Tuesday 31 May 2011

Hello Veggie Lovers and Animal Lovers Friends!

Reminder that the Second Annual Joyful "Toronto Veggie Pride Parade” is this upcoming Saturday, June 4th, 2011! We will be meeting/starting on Asquith Avenue (one street north of Bloor) at 11:30am, and then at 12pm we will begin marching south on Yonge Street, all the way to Queen Street and then finishing the parade portion of the TVPP over at Trinity Square for a post-parade event with entertainment, guest speakers, and vegan food!

If you loved last year's 1st Annual Toronto Veggie Pride Parade event (first ever in Canada), then you'll love this year's 2nd Annual TVPP, as it will be even bigger and better than last year's event. Just like last year, our vibrant, Kimberly Carroll, TV Host, will be our Parade MC (and post-parade event MC), leading the joyful parade down Yonge Street.

The Toronto Veggie Pride Parade is for Everyone, so whether you're a veggie (vegan or vegetarian), or a closet wanna-be veggie, or veggie-friendly - YOU ARE ALL MOST WELCOME TO ATTEND THE PARADE, and help us celebrate the "Veggie Lifestyle"! Come and see how diverse and desirable the Veggie Diet/Lifestyle IS! :)

Just like last year it will be a joyful, fun, family-friendly, diverse, and inclusive event that is welcoming to ALL, yet still great, meaningful, diplomatic vegan advocacy! :)

We are a 'real parade', with a float and all, that just happens to be a parade with a social justice cause attached.

For more details please check out our website! www.veggieprideparade.ca

It would be very helpful if you were able to cross-post this email and/or cross-post our attached promotional poster. On our website we also have multilingual posters. And if you are able to print off our poster and post it around town too, then that would be super helpful!

http://veggieprideparade.ca/get-involved/downloads/

Thank you!

Holly :) on behalf of the Toronto Veggie Pride Parade Directors

www.veggieprideparade.ca

Monday 16 May 2011

Show your Veggie pride!

Hello Everyone

We are super excited to be hosting the 2nd annual Veggie Pride Parade on June 4th. This is our chance to show the world what a vibrant, fun, caring, environmentally conscious group of people the Veg community is. PLEASE JOIN US. Last year we had 300 people in attendance, this year we want double, triple or quadruple that. This is going to be fun day so put on your best costume (we will be giving our prizes for best costumes) or come as you are. You are welcome to bring along your four-legged creatures to march along in the parade. If you feel you are unable to walk the distance of the parade we can find you a ride in one of the parade vehicles.

The parade starts at 12pm on Saturday, June 4th. Further info can be found at www.veggieprideparade.ca


Also, we are sending out a plea for donations for the Veggie Pride Parade. We still need to raise a significant amount of money to cover the many cost.

As most of you know, we are holding the Second Annual Toronto Veggie Pride Parade Saturday, June, 4, 2011. The Toronto Veggie Pride Parade (TVPP) is a non-profit, all volunteer event. All participants, including performers and speakers, are there on a strictly unpaid volunteer basis. However, the parade is an official legal event and as such has significant fees for permits, rentals and other professional fees. The parade can only take place and be a success for the celebration and outreach for the veg lifestyle with the financial support of the veg community.

If you are able to make a monetary donation towards the TVPP, then we'd be very grateful! :) You can donate by going on to our website and making a contribution via our Pay Pal System (www.veggieprideparade.ca), or if you prefer then you may also mail a cheque to the TVPP at our mailing address which is:

Toronto Veggie Pride Parade
c/o Panacea,
588 Bloor Street West,
Toronto, Ontario, M6G 1K4

Thank you very much in advance for your support. :)

Sincerely,
The TVPP planning committee

Tuesday 10 May 2011

3 Minutes to Help 3 Elephants!

From Zoocheck Canada


***


Please get involved & voice your opinion ASAP!


On May 12, 2011, the Toronto Zoo Board of Management will be considering the future of elephants at the Toronto Zoo.


In 2008, the Toronto Zoo conducted a feasibility study that looked at how their existing elephant exhibit could be upgraded and improved. In 2010, they hired a company called Lord Cultural Resources to look at other aspects of the elephant issue. The Lord study is complete and their report has been forwarded to the Zoo. It has not yet been released publicly.


It's no secret that Zoocheck Canada has been critical of keeping elephants in cold climates and that we think the Toronto Zoo elephants should be moved. But taking that position should not be seen as an attack on the Toronto Zoo. It's not. In actual fact, many zoo supporters, including the zoo's former Executive Director of Support Services, who accompanied the first shipment of Toronto Zoo elephants from Africa back in the 1980s, no longer believe Toronto is an appropriate place for elephants.


In a nutshell, here's why we think the elephants should be moved:


  • Toronto's climate is too cold, forcing the elephants indoors for significant periods of time;
  • The indoor elephant enclosure is outdated, small and needs refurbished;
  • The outdoor elephant yard is less than 1 hectare (2.4 acres) in size, devoid of pasture and other living vegetation and lacks significant structural enhancements and furnishings to keep the elephants mentally and physically stimulated;
  • Even if the outdoor exhibit was expanded, there is no way to mitigate the climate issue (there is some talk of heated stations in the exhibit, but these are a stopgap measure- the entire outdoor space should be elephant-friendly);
  • Out of 10 elephants at the Toronto Zoo, seven died before reaching old age (the two oldest were middle aged at 40, the youngest was just several days old);
  • Records show the elephants have suffered from a variety of infections and are displaying abnormal stereotypic behaviours;
  • Expanding the exhibit (reportedly to just a few acres in size) will cost an estimated $40 million or more - funds the zoo does not have;
  • According to a 2010 study conducted by Zoocheck, visitors spend less than 2 minutes looking at the elephants (a result similar to studies in other zoos), too short a time for any positive educational impact;
  • Other urban zoos that have phased out their elephant displays did not experience a downturn in visitor numbers, and some actually experienced an increase (a Toronto Zoo visitor survey said 85% of people would return to the zoo if there were no elephants);
  • The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and other zoo and elephant organizations all agree there is no need or intention to breed elephants for reintroduction to the wild, as this will not address the problems that wild elephant populations face;
  • The Performing Animal Welfare Sanctuary in northern California has offered the elephants a permanent home, with hundreds of acres to roam, at no cost to the Toronto Zoo.  
It seems the Toronto Zoo has three options:

1) Keep elephants and spend millions of dollars upgrading their existing exhibit and, at some point, expanding it (estimated at upwards of $40 million - funds they do not have);


2) Relocate the elephants to a more elephant-friendly facility in a warmer climate and use the vacated space to expand and enhance the living situation for other species in the Africa section of the zoo;

3) Relocate the elephants and replace with an interactive, high technology Elephant Learning Center, a stand alone facility of displays, actitivies and experiences for both kids and adults.
Zoocheck Canada is pushing Option 3. We believe that by following through on it the Toronto Zoo has an opportunity to move forward in an exciting new direction that will not only be good for the zoo and the animals, it will better fulfill the zoo's educational mandate and save money at the same time. To see our proposal for an alternative display called the ELEPHANT LAByrinth, visit http://www.elephantsincanada.com/
Please take a few minutes to get involved by politely expressing your opinion about the future of elephants at the Toronto Zoo. Now is the time for your voice to be heard. Please send your opinion and comments to:

Toronto Zoo Board of Management
c/o Dela Ting
City Clerk's Office
Toronto City Hall
2nd Floor, 100 Queen Street West
Toronto, Ontario, M5H 2N2
Fax: (416) 392-1879 / Email: dting@toronto.ca
Please send Zoocheck a copy as well. We'd like to know your views.

Tuesday 3 May 2011

Thank you!!!

We won the Pepsi Challenge!  Thank you all SOOO much!

This money is going to be so great for the animals.  Words really cannot how thankful we are to all of you who support Project Jessie.

If anyone would like to continue voting, The Responsible Animal Care Society (TRACS) in BC is entered in the $25K category.  AAC Board Member Sinikka Crosland is the co-founder of TRACS, a wonderful group doing great things on Canada's west coast.

To help TRACS follow the link below.  THANK YOU!!!

http://www.refresheverything.ca/tracs

The Responsible Animal Care Society (TRACS)
www.tracs-bc.ca
Visit us on Facebook
778.754.5522