Vancouver is ... peaceful!

Vancouver is really doing its part trying to bring peace to the world. A few weeks ago we hosted the Peace Summit and the Dalai Lama. In less than 4 months to go, Vancouver will host an event to promote peace across the world ... the 2010 Olympics of course.

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release 2009PREM0053-000509 October 19, 2009

Office of the Premier

2010 OLYMPIC TRUCE PROMOTES PEACE

NEW YORK – The 2010 Olympic Truce resolution was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly today, promoting peaceful resolutions to conflicts around the globe.

“Around the world, the Olympic Games are a symbol of peaceful, friendly competition between nations – a spirit that is embodied in the Olympic Truce and the dream of a world free from violent conflicts,” said Premier Gordon Campbell. “On behalf of the host province of British Columbia, I urge people, governments and nations around the world to embrace the Olympics as an opportunity to connect with one-another through sport and find peaceful resolutions to disputes.”

As part of commemorating the Olympic Truce, it is tradition for the Host Country of the Games to present a resolution at the UN, calling on the world to celebrate the principle that sport can inspire peace during the Olympic Games. As the host country, Canada presented the Olympic Truce resolution to the UN General Assembly today.

The UN General Assembly has unanimously adopted a resolution entitled “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideals” every two years since 1993.

The tradition of the Olympic Truce dates back to Ancient Greece, when the truce ensured athletes, artists, their families and pilgrims could travel in safety to participate in or attend the Olympic Games.

The 2010 Olympic Truce resolution “calls upon all Member States to cooperate with the International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee in their efforts to use sport as a tool to promote peace, dialogue and reconciliation in areas of conflict during and beyond the Olympic Games period.”

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A backgrounder follows.

Contact:

Bridgitte Anderson Press Secretary Office of the Premier 604 307-7177

BACKGROUNDER

October 19, 2009 Office of the Premier

Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal

The General Assembly,

Recalling its resolution 62/4 of 31 October 2007, in which it decided to include in the provisional agenda of its sixty-fourth session the sub-item entitled “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal”, and recalling also its prior decision to consider the item every two years in advance of each Summer and Winter Olympic Games,

Recalling also its resolution 48/11 of 25 October 1993, which, inter alia, revived the ancient Greek tradition of ekecheiria (“Olympic Truce”) calling for a truce during the Olympic Games that would encourage a peaceful environment and ensure the safe passage and participation of athletes and relevant persons at the Games, thereby mobilizing the youth of the world to the cause of peace,

Taking into account the inclusion in the United Nations Millennium

Declaration1 of an appeal for the observances of the Olympic Truce now and in the future and support for the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to promote peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic ideal,

Recognizing the valuable contribution that the appeal launched by the International Olympic Committee for an Olympic Truce could make towards advancing the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Recognizing also the increasingly important role of sport in achieving internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration, and reaffirming the commitments undertaken in this regard by the Heads of State and Government gathered at the World Summit of the General Assembly, held in New York in 2005,

Recalling its resolution 63/135 of 11 December 2008, in which it recognized the value of sport as a means to promote education, health, development and peace and welcomed the establishment of a United Nations Office of Sport for Development and Peace,

Recognizing that the goal of the Olympic movement is to build a peaceful and better world by educating the youth of the world through sport, practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which is based on mutual understanding, friendship, solidarity and fair play,

Welcoming the joint endeavours of the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee and the United Nations system in such fields as human development, poverty alleviation, humanitarian assistance, health promotion, HIV and AIDS prevention, youth education, gender equality, peacebuilding and sustainable development,

Recalling the relevant articles on leisure, recreation, sport and play of international conventions, including article 30 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizing the right of persons with disabilities to take part on an equal basis with others in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport,

Noting that the XXI Winter Olympic Games will take place from 12 to 28 February 2010, and that the X Paralympic Winter Games will take place from 12 to 21 March 2010 in Vancouver, Canada, with the aim of upholding sport as an inspirational means to promote peace, inclusivity, indigenous participation, social and environmental responsibility and meaningful legacies for future generations,

Also noting that the inaugural Youth Olympic Games will take place from 14 to 26 August 2010, in Singapore, with the aim of inspiring the youth of the world through an integrated, sport, culture and education experience to embrace, embody and express the Olympic values,

Noting with satisfaction the flying of the United Nations flag at the competition sites of the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games,

1. Urges Member States to observe, within the framework of the Charter of the United Nations, the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, during the XXI Winter Olympic Games and the X Paralympic Winter Games;

2. Welcomes the decisions of the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee to mobilize international sports organizations and the National Olympic Committees and National Paralympic Committees of Member States to undertake concrete actions at the local, national, regional and world levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace based on the spirit of the Olympic truce, and invites those organizations and national committees to share information and best practices, as appropriate;

3. Calls upon all Member States to cooperate with the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee in their efforts to use sport as a tool to promote peace, dialogue and reconciliation in areas of conflict during and beyond the Olympic Games period;

4. Requests the Secretary-General to promote the observance of the Olympic Truce among Member States and support for human development initiatives through sport and to cooperate with the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee and the sporting community in general in the realization of those objectives;

5. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its sixty-sixth session the sub-item entitled “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal” and to consider the sub-item before the Games of the XXX Olympiad and the XIV Paralympic Games to be held in London in 2012.

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Contact:

Bridgitte Anderson Press Secretary Office of the Premier 604 307-7177

Saving the world, one day at a time.

As the day comes to an end in Vancouver, I reflect on the topic of "Climate Change" for Blog Action Day 2009. Although there has been some debate whether climate change exists, there seems to be a consensus that it does and that it is an important issue that must be dealt with sooner rather that later.

I just want to take a few minutes out of this day to thank all those people who try to make a change in this world by doing their part to save this planet every day. If you recycle, reuse, plant trees, compost, bike, take transit, carpool, volunteer or show others how we can help make our environment cleaner, "Thank YOU!".

As we look to the future, we should seek new ways of stopping and reversing climate change. We should reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and search for clean energy technologies to live in a more sustainable world. We can build a better world, a greener world by working together as a community with industry and governments.

Bombardier...you have style!

A few weeks ago I was looking at City of Vancouver's Public Transit site and noticed the something called the "Olympic Line". I though the project had been an idea that never materialized. However, today Bombardier announced that on Monday it shipped two of its very cool "Flexity" light rail trams to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Games to be used along False Creek which will arrive in December.

The trams will operate 18 hours a day, seven days a week during the Olympic and Paralympic period between Granville Island and the Vancouver Athletes Village. Best of all, it will be FREE! How great is that! Can't wait to ride it.

Smile your on Google Maps!

There are many reasons to smile: It helps us reduce stress, makes you stay positive and lowers blood pressure. Now you can also smile because you can visit Vancouver using google's new "street view" maps.

When my collegue asked me today for a place to buy glasses, I went to google maps to confirm the location and discovered that google had made improvements to the their maps. Not only was I able to see the optical store that I was looking for, I was also able to see other interesting items like Canada Line construction. I was not the only one that noticed. The Vancouver Sun published some really interesting pictures that have been found across Canadian Cities. The pictures include a burning van, a person who looks like he had a heart attack in front of McDonald's and more.

So start exploring Vancouver before the Olympics and you might discover something that is even more unique to Vancouver than you would have ever expected.

Letter to Regan

Dear Regan Lauscher,

I just read your "Whistler Life" blog posting and wanted to let you know that many Canadians share your keenness and pride. I would like to thank you for all your efforts to represent Canada and compete at the 2010 games. As we near the Olympics, I hope that people catch the "Olympic Fever" and you feel more at home. Please stay positive and bring home the gold.

Sincerely,
Vancouver Lens

Does Prime Minister Harper have a future is show business?

I was really suprised to see Stephen Harper singing with famed cellist Yo Yo Ma on You Tube. Love him or hate him, you have to admit that our PM singing a Beatles song is very cool.