In late April, Sustainable Waterloo Region hosted their 10th annual Evening of Recognition, and they couldn’t have picked a more fitting location than evolv1: Canada’s first net positive carbon multi-tenant building.

It’s a building that was first discussed almost ten years ago, just down the road at the Accelerator Centre. I was in the thick of a brainstorm with about a dozen SWR team members. As a team, we had just come out of a year-long journey starting the organization, in the midst of the 2008 economic recession - showing that businesses were ready to show leadership in the midst of the climate crisis. That they could save money, reduce their carbon footprint and grow the clean economy at the same time.

That night, we decided it was time to be bold, and together we began dreaming bigger about the impact we could have. On the list of ideas?  The aspiration that we could build a space for the clean economy to thrive in, embodying the future we were all aspiring for - right here in Waterloo Region.

On my way in to the Evening of Recognition a couple weeks back, an old friend stopped me, looked at evolv1, and asked, “Mike, how does this feel?”

I told him that it felt wonderfully familiar: evolv1 had only moved from idea to reality because so many people across Waterloo Region – from both the private and public sector – were willing to join us in dreaming bigger. A way of thinking that is baked into the DNA of this community.

The results are incredible. The building, with 2,000+ solar panels and an innovative geothermal well system, generates more energy than it uses. It has a living wall made up of 4,500 plants that provide clean air for occupants. And it provides a healthy, collaborative space for the people that go to work there every day.

All of which started with our community being willing to dream bigger.

As we set out on this campaign now, I’m reminded of the evolv1 journey, and how we’re dreaming bigger again.

It starts with the premise of our campaign: that if we are going to meet the scale of the economic and climate crises we face, we need to dream bigger about the solutions. We need to consider bold ideas like a made-in-Canada Green New Deal, and bring together unlikely allies as we raise our collective ambition.

We’re also dreaming bigger about how together, we can create our own political reality. I’m not shy to point out that in the 2015 election, the Green Party in Kitchener Centre only received 3% of the popular vote. While this time around, we’ve made clear we’re building a campaign that can win, and we’ve scaled our efforts and resources accordingly. In response, I’m hearing from more and more people who are saying that yes: this is our moment. That this time around, they intend to vote for what they are for, rather than the fear of what they’re against. At a time, and in a riding, where we can win.

So, as we set out on this ambitious journey together, it all does feel very familiar.

This Thursday, we’ll come together again to dream bigger. Though this time, it won’t be a dozen people squatting in a small meeting room. This time it’ll be hundreds of us. My friends Elizabeth May and Mike Schreiner will be there - friends who also know what it’s like to dream bigger, and what’s possible when we do.

I hope you’ll consider joining us. Everyone is welcome and registration is online here. Because once again, I feel that together, we’re at the outset of something special. Something that could in turn inspire others across the country. That time when a community stood up and said: we can be better. We can dream bigger. And we can do it together.

Mike