The future necessitates cleansing and lightness so as to lessen our impact on this exhausted planet as much as possible. And so, as dusk approached on the 22^nd of June, we enjoyed a charming initiatory journey along the blonde beach and discovered a vegetable garden tended by young people from a rehabilitation program (we could pick peppers, zucchinis and fresh herbs). There was also a small cricket farm named Insecto. Crickets are a sustainable source of protein that, unlike the global meat industry, doesn’t generate any climate warming. Moreover, there was the incredible, integrated Umiko aquaponics system which involves: (1) Letting insects thrive in organic waste. (2) Feeding those insects to fish. (3) Using fish droppings to fertilize the soil. (4) Growing vegetables in the soil.

The greatest rewards were the trout and the cricket blinis by chef Frédéric Bourgault that were served at the Nourishing Box kitchen window, all of it as delicious as the promise of a softer life and a future without predation.

Even so, scientists from the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) continue to insist that we are capable of rapidly reducing the impact of construction on climate change. This is an area where we can act decisively. Yet because the lands and rivers of Quebec and Canada abound in natural resources, we feel entitled to waste them.

WE WANT

 
We want to fly to infinity, like the white and wispy fruits of the dandelion. We want to lessen our presence and our impact. We want our houses to sway in the wind, like “anniversary banners or laundry hanging on clotheslines” (say Simon Marcotte and Madly Fuss, designers of the Entropie kitchen).

We know that an ecological housing revolution is underway. We want our cities to be at the heart of it. We advocate for increased financial and technical support allocated to efforts to consume less energy, and to use construction and renovation materials that are less environmentally damaging. 

We bear witness to nature’s wrath as it sends us tornadoes and hurricanes, tsunamis and devastation. We want to prepare our cities and our houses for this new era; render them resilient and protective, strong when rattled by the storm, inclusive and durable.

We must be  determined, aware, perseverant, steadfast and capable of finding the strength to listen and resist collectively. Together, let’s build a city that can shake without collapsing, that produces energy without wasting it.

We are Montreal.
We want to bring forth the future, today.