Local People, Strengths & Solutions

Fair Vote Canada‘s acting President David Merner will be at Edward Milne Community School on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. to inform Sooke voters about the electoral reform process now underway in Ottawa. Mayor Maja Tait will moderate the evening, which we’re hosting in the EMCS Community Theatre. Admission is free.  

Merner, who ran locally in the last federal election for the Justin Trudeau Liberals, worked on constitutional, election law and corruption issues at the Department of Justice and Privy Council Office in Ottawa before returning to the BC Ministry of Justice in Victoria. He’ll share his wealth of knowledge about electoral systems while exploring the myths and realities of various voting methodologies. The evening will include an audience Q&A.

Read P. Gail Armitage’s preview article and check out links of related interest elsewhere on our website.

A second West Shore opportunity to learn more is set for Belmont Secondary School, 3041 Langford Lake Rd., on Saturday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. Speaker will be Fair Vote Canada’s Terry Dance-Bennink.

Following our informative, sweet and communal reskilling fair and potluck at Sunriver last weekend, the fall calendar is filling up fast for Transition Sooke and its working groups. Here’s a quick guide to what’s slated for the next six weeks along with a few other local events of interest.

* Zero Waste Sooke‘s Wendy O’Connor, Jo Phillips and Jeff Bateman will be presenting the ZWS Open Space report at the District of Sooke’s Committee of the Whole meeting – Monday, Sept. 12, 6 p.m. at the Municipal Hall. Anyone keen to see Sooke investigate a full-service waste recovery facility, a plastic bag reduction campaign, the installation of water fountains in key spots around town and other initiatives are urged to attend.

* Transition Sooke presents a Fair Vote Canada town hall meeting on electoral reform at EMCS on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. Featured speaker will be FVC’s acting president David Merner. The evening will be moderated by Sooke Mayor Maja Tait. Free admission.

* Permaculture Sooke hosts the hands-on workshop “Making Your Own Herbal Salves” on Saturday, Sept. 24 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Cast Iron Farm, 2385 Philips Road across from Sunriver Gardens. Cast Iron’s Erin Newell will supply medicinal plants and demonstrate the easy steps involved in creating healing salves. Participants will take away their own tins of salve along with the knowledge of how to make their own.  $15 cost for materials.

* TS presents the first Sooke Ecohome Tour on Saturday, Oct. 8th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Learn how local homeowners are tapping nature’s energy grid via rooftop solar, natural building materials, rainwater catchment systems, grey water irrigation, radiant flooring, heat pumps, solar cookers and much else. The tour will feature six private homes in Sooke along with the super-efficient Harbourside Cohousing and the cob house at ALM Organic Farm. More details to come.

Also of interest to the Transition-minded … 

* Juan de Fuca Forest Watch, launched this spring by one of our core team alumni Darren Alexander, presents a panel discussion on the future of our forests at Edward Milne Community School on Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. Speakers will be Victoria councillor Ben Isitt (co-author of the draft policy paper “The Future of Forests and Communities on Vancouver Island“) and Metchosin councillor Andy MacKinnon (who is spearheading a current campaign to protect Van Isle’s remaining old-growth forest on crown land). Free admission.

*Awareness Film Night begins its 22nd season on Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. in the EMCS Community Theatre with the award-winning 2015 documentary Requiem for the American Dream: Noam Chomsky and the Concentration of Wealth & Power. Admission by donation.

* The District of Sooke has begun its Official Community Plan refresh process. Public consultation opportunities are now underway and are scheduled through mid-December. Click here to complete an online questionnaire, revisit the 2010 OCP and see the “Plan Sooke Now” event calendar.

The final schedule is ready for this Saturdays event at Sunriver Community Gardens. It promises to be a full and interesting day.

We hope to see you all there!

Schedule Reskilling Fair and Picnic 2016

We’re delighted to announce our third annual potluck community picnic and second Reskilling Fair, set for Sat. Aug. 27 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Sunriver Community Gardens. Admission is free or by pay-what-y0u-can donation to cover our costs.

Our volunteers will offer a selection of skill-building workshops for kids and adults in the morning and early afternoon. These will be followed by a potluck picnic to which everyone is invited to bring their own cutlery and plates along with a dish to share. After lunch we will continue the program with an intro to re-wilding skills, offered by Green Man Adventures’ Dante Chicano.  

As the afternoon winds down, the relaxed scene will shift to the orchard for some peaceful contemplation (led by Michael Tacon) and lively music-making (with maestro Andrew Moore).

This year’s workshops for adults will include “Reaping 21st Century Health Benefits from Traditional Fermented Foods” (led by nutritionist Jo Phillips), “Continuous Brew Kombucha” (Marion Pettinger) and “Bear Aware 101” (Debb Read). A session on cycling will be hosted by Olena Russell in tandem with her “bike petting zoo” display of multi-purpose bikes for all occasions.

Kids, meanwhile, can wander the gardens on a NatureQuest with Sofie Hagens, learn how to make musical instruments from recycled materials with Wendy O’Connor, and attend a bike workshop led by young cycling enthusiast Kasian Russell.

All ages are welcome to join Wendy for an introduction to geocaching, the popular sport that gets families outdoors on adventures in search of buried treasures.

Once the picnic’s complete, you can join Michael for an earth-focused meditation and Andrew for a musical jam session in the orchard.

Throughout the day you’ll meet the folks behind our working groups: Bike Sooke, Wild Wise Sooke, Permaculture Sooke and Zero Waste Sooke. Learn more about their activities and perhaps even sign up as a volunteer to further their respect causes!

Here’s our working schedule. Please check back for an updated final version prior to the 27th.

Hope you can join us! It shapes up as another fun and friendly communal get-together in a truly lovely Sooke setting.

Our thanks to Sooke Food CHI for making Sunriver available for the day, and to the District of Sooke for its financial support through its Community Grant program.

Click here for the Facebook event page.