Protest TO Island Airport Expansion on Our Waterfront!

Summary

Our waterfront is the heart of Toronto. It’s where we run, picnic, celebrate, work, sail, and live. As a city we’ve invested a ton of money, time, and passion into making it the waterfront we deserve. But now the planned Island Airport expansion threatens all of that. 

As a revitalized Queens Quay opens again on June 19/20 with big fanfare and a huge festival, NoJetsTO will stage a massive and creative protest on the lake on June 20th at 1PM near the foot of Rees Street. With people from across the city celebrating our waterfront together with politicians and the media, we will send a strong message that our waterfront is a place for people – not jets.

That’s where you come in: with your help we will be able to make it a big protest that will draw eyeballs and public attention. The more you give, the more kayaks and boats we will put on the water. It’s that simple.

What We Need & What You Get

It’s all about scale. Your donation will help us:

• Rent boats, canoes and kayaks and assemble a flotilla of #kayaktivists – and you could be in one of them!
• Equip our entire flotilla with NoJetsTO flags and banners for the protest.
• Get the word out on social media to make this protest as big and fun as it can be.
• In return for your generous help, you can get NoJetsTO gear or join us on the water either in a kayak or sailboat.
• There’s more: if you pitch in more you can even dine with luminary and urban designer Ken Greenberg or get a collector’s item photo print from Ed Burtynsky-sidekick Jim Panou.
• Any funds left over from the boat protest will fund our ongoing grassroots campaign.

The Impact

With your help, we will make our boat protest a big splash when Queens Quay opens again and all eyes will be on our waterfront:

• A big and fun protest will impress folks at the opening festivities and those watching CP24 & Co. at home.
• City Councillors will be reminded that our waterfront is for people, not jets.
• We will get our message out there that this fight is about nothing less than the future of our waterfront.
• We’ve staged a similar (but smaller) protest last year – drawing media attention and municipal hopefuls like Olivia Chow and Joe Cressy. So we know what we are doing – this protest will just be much bigger and more fun.

Other Ways You Can Help

If you are not in the position to contribute financially, there are other ways for you to support a jet-free waterfront.

• Tweet and Facebook about this crowd funding campaign – use the Indiegogo share tools.
• Invite five friends directly (email, phone/text message, carrier pigeon).
• Take a NoJetsTO sign and spruce up your lawn, balcony or window.
• Sign up and volunteer for the event.