Speech (committee meeting)

{
    "time": "2008-04-30 16:30:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Dr. James Meadowcroft",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"1078293\" data-originallang=\"en\">I think there's a dialectic between reform and innovation and structure, and on the other hand between political realities and public aspirations and political aspirations. I don't think you want to set the two apart. In other words, if a bill such as this passed, it would indicate that politicians are saying this is something important, and maybe we should give it more importance that it had in the past. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1078294\" data-originallang=\"en\">One of the things a sustainable development strategy might do is help in an educational and communicative function by communicating to stakeholders and business and civil society and the public that this is something important, that we're formulating these important goals and trying to work towards them, and so on. There's a back-and-forth between the politician as leader and educator and the politician as someone who executes what people want on the day to meet short-term needs.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1078295\" data-originallang=\"en\">I don't think you can oppose it and say there's no point in doing something like this, because we don't really want to change anyway, so it'll be politics as usual, and let's not bother. Rather, I think you have to say, if we think this is a step that will improve the situation, let's take it and try to do better than we've done in the past.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"1078293\" data-originallang=\"en\">Pour moi, il y a une dialectique entre la r\u00e9forme, l'innovation et la structure et, d'autre part, entre les r\u00e9alit\u00e9s politiques et les aspirations publiques et politiques. \u00c0 mon avis, il ne convient pas de s\u00e9parer les deux. Autrement dit, si un projet de loi comme celui-ci est adopt\u00e9, il ferait comprendre aux citoyens que les \u00e9lus estiment que cette question est importante et qu'il faut peut-\u00eatre lui accorder plus d'importance maintenant que cela n'a \u00e9t\u00e9 le cas par le pass\u00e9.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1078294\" data-originallang=\"en\">Une strat\u00e9gie de d\u00e9veloppement durable peut justement jouer un r\u00f4le en mati\u00e8re d'\u00e9ducation et de communication, en faisant comprendre aux parties prenantes, aux entreprises, \u00e0 la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile et au public que c'est un enjeu important, que le gouvernement se fixe des objectifs importants et essaie de les atteindre, etc. Il y a une sorte de permutation permanente chez l'\u00e9lu entre la fonction de dirigeant et d'\u00e9ducateur et celle d'ex\u00e9cutant de la volont\u00e9 du peuple pour r\u00e9pondre \u00e0 des besoins imm\u00e9diats.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1078295\" data-originallang=\"en\">Donc, on ne peut pas s'y opposer et d\u00e9cider que cela n'en vaut pas la peine, qu'il n'y a pas de v\u00e9ritable raison de changer quoi que ce soit, et que nous allons donc continuer \u00e0 faire de la politique comme nous l'avons toujours fait, en \u00e9vitant de nous donner cette peine. Il faut se dire, au contraire, que, si cette d\u00e9marche est susceptible d'am\u00e9liorer la situation, il faut l'adopter et essayer de faire mieux que ce qu'on a fait jusqu'ici.</p>"
    },
    "url": "/committees/environment/39-2/29/dr-james-meadowcroft-7/",
    "politician_url": null,
    "politician_membership_url": null,
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "2442800",
    "document_url": "/committees/environment/39-2/29/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fcommittees%2Fenvironment%2F39-2%2F29%2F"
    }
}