The G8 Summit scheduled for the Kananaskis next June should be cancelled or moved, say two former energy company executives who are now leaders in Alberta’s sustainable development sector.
“The spectre of escalating violence and destruction, both human and environmental, in conjunction with the 2002 Kananaskis G8 summit is absolutely unacceptable,” Peter Dickey and Jim Leslie said in a release.
Dickey, former corporate manager of safety and environment for Shell Canada, is an associate with the International Institute of Sustainable Development (IISD) Business Trust.
Leslie, 63, who died suddenly last week while hiking in the mountains, was president of IISD’s Business Trust and former vice-president of sustainable development for TransAlta.
Shortly before Leslie’s death, both men had written to Prime Minister Jean Chretien, Alberta Premier Ralph Klein and Calgary Mayor Al Duerr, calling on them to start consultations to relocate the summit.
“We don’t have the infrastructure and the facilities in Kananaskis,” Dickey said. “To service the summit properly, it would be like having the city of Calgary in the middle of Kananaskis Country.”
Both men emphasized they were not speaking out on behalf of the IISD or any energy company. “We’re not normally environmental activists, either one of us,” said Dickey.
Klein has stated publicly that in the light of last week’s terrorist attacks in the U.S., the meeting may have to be reconsidered.
Leslie and Dickey, calling for a transparent multi-stakeholder consultation, said: “Let no one be fooled — the 2002 G8 Summit is NOT just a Kananaskis event. It involves Calgary, Canmore and Kananaskis.
“It threatens human and property damage where we live and work, and environmental damage in the Kananaskis where we seek peace and recreation.”
