The Queen of England was represented at a round table discussion about environmental concerns on Walpole Island Tuesday morning.
Ontario's Lieutenant Governor the Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell spoke with the elders of Walpole Island First Nation to find out how they are handling environmental issues. Dowdeswell represents the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, in the province. She is invested in helping improve the environment and said Walpole Island has been a big part of the efforts to clean up the Great Lakes.
"From years ago I have been familiar with some of the work that goes on here and the contribution that is made to steward the environment," Dowdeswell said. "There was a lot of talk about threats to species and how to mitigate those threats. We also talked about the exciting educational programs and making sure there are opportunities to teach young people about the land."
Dowdeswell added there is a lot the rest of the province can learn from Walpole Island's environmental efforts.
"I don't think we tell our stories well enough," Dowdeswell said. "There are incredibly wonderful stories to be told and I am one of the people who can share these stories. As I go down the 401 to another community I can say 'I saw such and such here and they really had an interesting way of approaching this problem. There are some problems and challenges communities have that are similar but everyone approaches them differently."
Dowdeswell added a healthy environment is a basis for a healthy economy. She said economic prosperity seems to be the priority for all the communities she visits. According to the Lieutenant Governor, Chatham-Kent isn't the only community having trouble taking care of its ageing population while stopping the younger people from leaving. She said the trick is to figure out how to have a healthy environment while keeping both old and young residents happy.
According to Dowdeswell, taking care of human resources in a community is just as important as the natural ones.
"My morning started yesterday talking with people in advanced manufacturing and saying the nature of the world is changing so fast, how are we going to be resilient?" Dowdeswell said. "How are we going to know that our kids have dignified work in the future? And how do we know that we are not going to leave communities decimated when industries pick up and move. So it really is, how do we think about the future?"
Dowdeswell is heading to Essex County next to talk with the community about economic development and the growing cannabis industry.