Today I have the honour of speaking at a rally for public education (video below).

More than a thousand teachers and parents rallied at the Legislature on September 2nd calling on the BC Government and the BC Teachers Federation to get the deal done and start the school year. This was meant to be a day where teachers were greeting their new classes and preparing for a complete academic year, but with a squandered summer and no signs of bargaining in the near future, schools remain closed.

Speech at the Legislature Rally

The level of funding allocated to our public education system depends on the priorities of the government. Spending on health care has remained a priority since 2000, ranging between 7 and 8% of provincial GDP. Education funding as a percentage of the provincial GDP has declined from a high of about 6.4% in 2001-2002 to an estimated low of about 5.0% in 2014-2015 (a decline of about 22%). If British Columbians deem education to be as important as I do, surely this drop needs to be rectified.

In terms of student achievement, our public education system ranks as one of the best worldwide. Every three years the Programme for International Student Assessment evaluates the performance of students internationally in three subject areas: mathematics, science and reading. The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada further breaks down the Canadian results on a province-by-province basis. British Columbia consistently performs extremely well. In 2012, for example, British Columbia was the top Canadian province in reading and science and was second only to Quebec in mathematics. In fact, British Columbia students even performed better than students from the much touted education system in Finland in reading and mathematics. While Finland scored slightly ahead of BC in science, the difference was statistically insignificant.

The success of our students is due, in large part, to the quality, professionalism and dedication of our school teachers, administrators and support staff.

Without a labour deal that addresses the main concerns of teachers, who battle daily to support their students, we risk losing not only a substantial portion of this school year but also the exceptional standard of education that we have come to be so proud of.

It is time to once again make education a priority in British Columbia.

Today I had the honour of attending and speaking at the Protect Public Education Now (PPEN) rally at the BC Legislature at 2PM. A petition of more than 11,000 signatures calling on the government to “Negotiate with teachers to protect public education” was presented by PPEN spokesperson Jordan Watters and grade 8 student Julia Pante to NDP MLA and Education Critic Rob Fleming. Rob will be passing along the petition to the Premier’s office.

A box containing thirty apples, representing a typical class size in British Columbia, was presented to NDP MLA Jenny Kwan. Twenty six of these apples were red and four were green. The green ones signified that in  2013-2014, 16,163 out of a total of 68,020 classes (24%) in British Columbia public schools contained four or more students with Individual Education Plans (IEPs). This is a 57% increase from 2007. Jenny will also be delivering the apples to the Premier’s office.

I was presented with a sapling apple tree that my office will nurture until such time as the government and the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation reach an agreement. Everyone hopes that such an agreement will reflect an adequate investment in public education and if so, the sapling will be ceremoniously planted so that it can bear fruit for generations to come.

Thank you to all who attended and especially to Marlene Rodgers and Jordan Watters for putting the event together.

Media Statement: July 29, 2014
Poll Shows Greater Victoria Residents Keen on Governance Study
For Immediate Release

Victoria B.C. – An Angus Reid survey, commissioned by Amalgamation Yes, clearly shows the vast majority of residents, in all 13 Greater Victoria municipalities, are concerned about local and regional governance and support exploring options.

The key findings are:

89% of respondents support a non-binding referendum on amalgamation.
84% of respondents are in favour of some sort of amalgamation.
80% of respondents support an independent, comprehensive cost-benefit study and analysis of amalgamation.

While a majority of respondents are satisfied with the services they receive from local government, there are concerns around the efficiency of service delivery across the Capital Region, as well as with planning, decision making and cooperation between municipalities.

There is an opportunity to place a non-binding question on the ballot for the November municipal elections which would directly inform councils and the CRD about existing support for a regional governance study. The Province can fund a study should a group of municipalities, or the region as a whole, seek assistance.

“This is an important survey. People in Greater Victoria are clearly engaged and interested in how their communities are governed and want a say on future directions. I encourage Mayors and councils in each municipality to put a question on November’s ballot on studying options for improving local and regional governance,” says Andrew Weaver.

For the full Angus Reid survey results, analysis and background material please see www.amalgamationyes.ca

Media Contact
Mat Wright – Press Secretary, Andrew Weaver MLA
mat.wright@leg.bc.ca
1 250 216 3382

Media Statement: July 29, 2014
Andrew Weaver Elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union
For Immediate Release

Victoria B.C. –  Today Andrew Weaver has been elected a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union for his contributions to Earth Science. The AGU represents over 62 000 members and scientists residing in 144 countries. Only 1 in 1000 AGU members are elected to Fellowship each year. Established in 1962, the Fellows program recognizes AGU members who have attained acknowledged eminence in the Earth and space sciences as valued by their peers and vetted by a Union- wide committee of Fellows. Primary criteria for evaluation in scientific eminence are a major breakthrough or discovery, paradigm shift, or sustained impact

The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science guided by core values of the scientific method, dissemination of knowledge, open exchange of ideas and information and the benefits of science for a sustainable future.

“I am deeply honoured to receive this honour and recognition from the American Geophysical Union.  It is profoundly humbling to be recognized by my peers for my contributions to climate science over the last two decades.” says Andrew Weaver. “Now, more than ever we need research and science to inform policy deliberations as we seek to address the great environmental challenges of today”.

For more information and the list of Fellows please see the American Geophysical Union statement.

Media Contact
Mat Wright – Press Secretary, Andrew Weaver MLA
mat.wright@leg.bc.ca
1 250 216 3382

This is the third in our series of stories celebrating the outstanding accomplishments of youth in our community. These inspirational young adults are enriching our lives with their passion and commitment to the betterment of society.

Vicki Kleu

We arranged to meet Vicki at my neighbourhood Starbucks near the corner of Feltham and Shelbourne, literally steps from where we had set up office during the 2013 election campaign. It seemed like an appropriate location. Vicki knew it well as she had just graduated from nearby Lambrick Park Secondary School. But imagine my surprise as we stood in the lineup for coffee. Vicki pointed to the barista and said “there’s my mentor, Cheryl Nigh”. And so, our conversation began.

Vicki was born in Pretoria, South Africa and moved to Victoria with her family when she was 10. She sincerely appreciates the numerous opportunities that Canada has afforded her family. Many of us simply take these opportunities for granted. Vicki, on the other hand, recognizes how fortunate we are in Canada and is determined to take advantage of them. Her achievements are a testament to her success in this regard.

Vicki attended Hillcrest Elementary, Gordon Head Middle School and graduated from Lambrick Park Secondary in June. School principal Kevin Luchies describes Vicki as a “renaissance student” who is a “tireless volunteer” and “student leader” and “one of the kindest humans one could meet”. She has been active in school leadership since grade 5 and a powerful leader in student council over the past three years.

For the last few years Vicki has volunteered as a reading buddy for children at Hillcrest Elementary. She loves working with children and told us “little kids make me happy”. More generally, Vicki elaborated to say that when “other people are happy, I am happy”. When she was younger, her dream was to be a kindergarten teacher (or a ballerina). But now, after becoming fascinated by the wonders of science and deeply touched by a very young relative who suffered from cancer, she sees herself training to become a pediatrician — a pediatric oncologist or cardiologist to be exact.

It’s always fascinating to discover what inspires the remarkably talented youth that we’ve had the honour of profiling over the last few weeks. A consistent pattern has emerged: teachers, friends and family. And Vicki is no different. Whether it’s feeding the ducks at Beacon Hill park or getting together with relatives, Vicki loves to be with friends and family. And it’s pretty clear to us that her friends and family are also inspired by Vicki. Here’s just one example. Having watched several relatives struggle with, and thankfully beat, cancer, Vicki took it upon herself to head up a cancer campaign at Lambrick Park last year.

Vicki is articulate, joyful and enthusiastic about life in general. She loves ballet and dances twice a week at Stages Performing Arts School. She is passionate about science — a passion that blossomed through the nurturing of her mentor Cheryl Nigh. Vicki has been participating in school, regional and national science fairs since she was in grade 7. She’s won so many science fair awards over the years that just listing them takes up three pages on her resume! When you see the outcomes of her innovative and creative approach to scientific inquiry, it’s pretty obvious why.

In grade 9 Vicki’s national award-winning project was titled Reducing Arterial Turbulent Flow Through External Stents. By Grade 11, she had developed Fully Biodegradable Adsorbent Pads to Clean Small Scale Marine Oil Spills. These pads could hold 50 times their weight in motor oil and potentially allowed for up to 95% oil recovery. Her invention is patent pending and she’s working on developing a few more patents this year.

Back in May of last year, Victoria News published a feature story on Vicki’s success. But what many people don’t know is that Vicki and Cheryl Nigh managed to get her Grade 11 project in front of CBC’s Dragon’s Den. While they didn’t air the segment in which she made her pitch, she did manage to get an offer from Arlene Dickinson and Jim Treliving.

Through her science fair projects Vicki continually searches for practical solutions to important problems. Most recently, her attention turned to the very real threat of oil spills on our coastlines. In her fourth venture to the National Science Fair this year she, along with partner Austin Sawyer, expanded upon her Grade 11 efforts through the development of Fully Biodegradable Booms for Oil Spill Recovery and Containment. Once again Victoria News published feature story detailing her trip to the nationals earlier this year.

A short time after we’d met up with Vicki I went back to Starbucks to have a chat with Cheryl Nigh, Vicki’s inspirational science teacher and mentor for the past six years. I asked Cheryl to describe Vicki in three words. These were her choices —choices that precisely described our first impressions as well: “meticulous, compassionate, and dedicated”.

It’s Vicki and youth like her that inspire me with a sense of hope. We can take comfort in the fact that these amazing young adults are certainly up to the task of finding innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing problems.