Elbows Up, Buy Local, Save Canada

Buy Canadian — Made in Canada — Resist Oligarchy
(Share: goodwork.ca/elbowsup)

Saving Canada isn't a paid job. It's something we all do.

Power is concentrating. Climate denial is loud. Aggressive billionaires and oligarchic systems continue to threaten democracy, social justice, and climate action — not only in Canada, but around the world.

These systems thrive when people disengage, become divided, or outsource their thinking to algorithms designed to maximize profit rather than the public good.

Many people are asking: What can they do?

Here are a few practical ways each of us can help build a stronger, more resilient Canada:

1. Buy Canadian, as much as possible.
   1. Buy directly from Canadian businesses — Many small businesses sell online through their own websites. As much as possible, avoid both amazon.com and amazon.ca. Rediscover your local stores.
   2. Shop at local markets — Farmers' markets and craft fairs are great places to find Canadian-made food, clothing, and crafts. Get to know your local farmers and buy directly from them. This season, consider a Community Supported Agriculture/ food-box.
   3. Check labels — Look for "Made in Canada" or "Product of Canada" on packaging. Some products are only packaged in Canada, but made elsewhere.
   4. Use online directories — Sites like Made in CA and Made in Canada Directory, list Canadian businesses and products. (Info/2)
   5. Reduce, reuse, repair, repurpose, re-prioritize, buy used.

2. Grow local food. We need to be resilient in every way we can. Grow food — FoodWork.ca/Grows | How to get started
3. Don't pay the oligarchs/ billionaires. Boycott Tesla, X, Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, Amazon, and other corporate social media. There are many alternatives! When we stop sending them our money, our content, our clicks... they collapse.
4. Support public, science-based education. Oligarchs thrive on those who are easily fooled by memes, sound bites, fallacies, rhetoric and outright lies.
5. Get involved like never before. You can get involved through nonprofits, the media, educational institutions, and/or political parties. Don't say, “I'm not political”. If you do that, you're just handing over your own power to the bullies who will wield it against all of us.
   • Join Canadian Organizations: Council of Canadians | Canadian Civil Liberties Assoc. | Democracy Watch | Evidence for Democracy | Dogwood BC | Samara Centre | Apathy is Boring | Fair Vote | Canadian Journalists for Free Expression | Centre for the Study of Democracy | GreenPAC | Environmental Leadership | Acorn | Civix
6. Choose Canadian media, over billionaire so-called 'social' media. CBC, Canadian newspapers and news sites. Climate, environmental & alternative media: Canada's National Observer, The Energy Mix, The Narwhal, Watershed Sentinel, The Walrus, Natural Life, Rabble, Briarpatch, Macleans, Peace Magazine and more. And of course your favourite environmental non-profit. (And don't get upset when they ask you to subscribe. Do you work for free?) Also international sources such as The Guardian, PBS and Al Jazeera.

7. Avoid billionaire 'social' media. It's alluring but deceptive. Instead, choose e-mail, websites, face-to-face, phone calls, active living, community organizing. If you must use social media, try Bluesky.
8. Online choices. Power corrupts. When we choose big, for-profit corporations, we compromise sustainability, privacy, democracy. Choose DuckDuckGo instead of Google or Bing. Wikipedia instead of Britannica. Android instead of iPhone. Firefox instead of Chrome or Edge. Libre Office instead of Microsoft 365. Fedora instead of Windows. Post your most valuable and original content on your own websites, rather than corporate social media.

Work for a healthy and sustainable world!

Hiring for staff, volunteers, board members? Why let such important content float around social media, vulnerable to the billionaire's algorithms and filtering? Post your jobs, volunteer positions and action opportunities on GoodWork.ca/Now as well as your own website and email list.

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*Oligarchy

“Oligarchy is a form of government in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, religious, political, or military control.” – Wikipedia (article)

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#buycanadian #boycottusa

 

#buycanadian #boycottusa

 

Saying “I’m not political” just hands over even more power to those who are. Let's take active part in our communities, our society.

 

#buycanadian #boycottusa #elbowsup #elbowsupcanada