| Full Name | Katherine Maas |
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| Email hidden; Javascript is required. | |
| Phone | 2505322361 |
| Where do you live? | In BC |
| If you live in BC, which region? | Vancouver Island/Coastal |
| Why are you interested in serving on the WE-CAN board? | I have been on the WE-CAN board now for four years, and I'm running for another term because I am a mother, a grandmother, and very recently a great-grandmother, and I cannot stand idly by and watch us turn this beautiful planet into an uninhabitable hellscape for our own families and for all the other lifeforms here. I'm committed to making BC a leader in sustainable energy production and usage, a model for other jurisdictions within Canada and also beyond. For many years, volunteering with other organizations, I've seen firsthand how much energy can be lost when different groups are working to accomplish similar objectives. By uniting the hundreds of groups, large and small, within BC who are working on saving the climate, WE-CAN is helping organizations share resources, ideas, and spirit, to make the climate movement more effective, and I want tocontinue to be part of that. |
| Tell us about your experience in the climate movement or with environmental justice work. | I've been a recycler since before it was fashionable or easy to do, going back to my university days. I used cloth diapers on my own babies, and helped my daughter do the same when my first grandchild was born. I've gardened, composted, worm-composted, canned, frozen, and dried my home-grown produce. I'm proud to say my daughters do it all even better than I did! Since moving back to BC in 2013, I've been a community organizer with Dogwood BC, and two years ago was a co-founder of Victoria Climate Action Team. I'm also on the board of the Unitarian Universalist Community of Victoria; Unitarian Universalism is guided by seven core principles that emphasize the inherent worth and dignity of every person, justice and compassion in human relations, and respect for the interdependent web of all existence. |
| What skills, perspectives, or lived experiences would you bring to the board? | I've been team leader of both the Indigenous Outreach Team and the JEDI (justice, equity, diversity and inclusion) Team at WE-CAN. Before I retired, I was an educator; I have taught in high schools, universities, in the corporate world, and as an independent consultant. I am a systems thinker and my main areas of expertise are interpersonal skills development, communication, and diversity. I speak and write English, French, Spanish, and little Portuguese and Danish. I really value how much I've been able to learn about how other countries are responding to the climate crisis by reading and viewing materials published in these other languages. |
| Do you have experience in any of the following areas? (Check all that apply) |
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| Are you currently affiliated with a WE-CAN member organization? |
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| If yes, which one? | Dogwood BC, VCAT, UUCV |
| Board members are expected to: Attend, and actively participate in, board meetings (virtually) twice a month, serve on at least one working team, support key organizational decisions and represent WE-CAN with integrity, and serve a 2-year term. Can you commit to these expectations? |
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| Returning Board Members Only: If you are seeking re-nomination, please briefly reflect on your past contributions to the board and what you hope to bring in a new term. | As a member of both the Indigenous Engagement team and the JEDI team, I have helped recruit presenters to offer Lunch & Learns to showcase climate initiatives being undertaken by Indigenous groups within BC. I have also supported the development and maintenance of our Indigenous Data Quilt. Recently I helped initiate a regular virtual movie night in which we showcase Indigenous climate action films. I helped develop and operationalize a proposal to the board aimed at helping ensure we are able to attract and retain Indigenous and minority voices to our organization. I look forward to continue to contribute and expand all these initiatives if I am elected to another term. |
