Vote to keep Canada strong and free!

Sharing is SO MUCH APPRECIATED!

By David Suzuki

It’s election time in Canada. All elections are important, but the April 28 election comes at a critical time. We’re facing an increasingly costly, accelerating climate crisis, daily plant and animal extinctions, a worsening affordability crisis, a widening wealth gap and rising anti-democratic authoritarianism in parts of the world.

Canada is caught between two superpowers, the United States and Russia, but few would have thought it was our neighbour to the south we’d have to defend against. With confusing on- and off-again tariffs, threats to make Canada the 51st state and claims on our water and other natural riches, the U.S. administration seems determined to weaken our economy and bend us to its will.

Although we share many ties with the U.S. — cultural, geographic, historical, familial and economic — we are distinct. Of course we’re not perfect, but we have universal health care and other benefits; a high standard of living; a diverse, skilled and educated population and respect for fundamental civil liberties, such as freedom of expression and assembly. We may have a long way to go, but we’ve made strides toward greater social justice and environmental protection.

We need political leaders who will maintain and build on the strengths we’ve developed over our troubled history. We also need decision-makers who will take the climate and biodiversity crises seriously, who will strengthen measures to reduce emissions and pollution while ensuring that no one gets left behind in the energy transition. We need a government that respects Indigenous governance, rights and title.

Many of these issues shouldn’t even be political. I remember in the 1980s when climate change really appeared on the public radar. Leaders including Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, U.S. President George H.W. Bush, Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev and U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher all urged greater environmental protections and strong measures to reduce the climate threat.

But fossil fuel industrialists aren’t ready to give up their obscenely enormous profits, no matter how much damage their products cause. Their wealth allows them to influence politicians and governments through lobbying, campaign financing and more. They also shape public policy and opinion through media ties and fake grassroots or “astroturf” organizations.

The wealthy Koch family network, which has global interests in oil, plastics, forestry and more, has been a driving force behind the Cato Institute, the Federalist Society, the American Enterprise Institute, Canada’s Fraser Institute and the Heritage Foundation. The latter is responsible for Project 2025, the far right blueprint for the current U.S. administration.

We can’t let billionaires and oligarchs determine our direction, and we can’t let what’s happening in the U.S. spill over into Canada. We need to protect and strengthen our democracy and the shared values it’s built on.

Our politics have become too divided over issues that shouldn’t be divisive, such as the need for clean air, safe water, toxic-free food and a stable climate. We face serious threats, from climate disruption to dumbfounding U.S. aggression. Policy differences are healthy, but some things should not be in dispute — including the need to tackle the climate crisis and to stay strong in the face of U.S. bullying.

This is a time for everyone in Canada to stand united.

Politicians and political parties exist to represent our interests — even though some appear to be more concerned about their billionaire backers than the public. It’s up to us to tell them what we expect. Most people in Canada want continued progress on issues ranging from climate change to nature preservation and restoration. We want to maintain our strengths as a distinct nation — our diversity, social programs, education and health care systems and freedoms.

The most important thing we can do as adults is vote. But to really do our part, we should talk to candidates from all parties to ensure they’ll strive to protect and improve our environment, social programs, economy and independence. This is a good time to get informed, go to town halls, talk to friends, neighbours and family, write letters to your local news outlets or join campaigns.

No matter which party you vote for on April 28 (or earlier), make sure it is committed to keeping our environment healthy and our country strong and free.

This is an important time to be involved. Please vote!

David Suzuki is a scientist, broadcaster, author and co-founder of the David Suzuki Foundation. Written with David Suzuki Foundation Senior Writer and Editor Ian Hanington.

Learn more at davidsuzuki.org.

REFERENCES:

Rising anti-democratic authoritarianism::

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/world-trump-wants-michael-kimmage

Threats to make Canada the 51st state:

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/trump-threat-canada-annex-scandal-1235292306

Claims on our water:

https://thetyee.ca/News/2025/03/18/Trump-coming-canadas-water

We are distinct:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_rankings_of_Canada

All urged greater environmental protection:

https://davidsuzuki.org/story/people-want-climate-action