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Friday, July 12, 2019 5Brooklin Town Crier For more information about this feature contact the Brooklin Town Crier brooklintowncrier@gmail.com Cullen Statue Unveiling The Town's Cullen Central Park (at 300 Taunton Road West) is now home to a new bronze statue honouring the late Len Cullen, a visionary entrepreneur in the horticulture industry and founder of Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village. Gifted to the Town by Cullen's daughter, Sue Green, and her husband Bryan - the statue was designed by award-winning Canadian sculptor Ruth Abernethy and unveiled during a special ceremony at Cullen Central Park on Saturday, June 22. Abernethy has created a number of bronze carved figures of some of the most influential members in history, including Sir. John A. Macdonald, Abraham Lincoln and Queen Elizabeth II. Cullen was a visionary entrepreneur in the horticulture industry, having founded Weall and Cullen, and many other successful businesses throughout his life. He was also the creator of what was once one of Whitby's largest outdoor attractions, Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village, which featured unique plantings and 160 miniature buildings on 25 acres. Following the closure of Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village on January 1, 2006, the land was purchased by the Town of Whitby, to remain in the public domain as a municipal park. Len Cullen passed away on August 15, 2006 In the photo, left to right, are: Sculptor Ruth Abernethy, Bryan Green, Sue Green and Mayor Don Mitchell Whitby Declares Climate Change Emergency Whitby's Town Council has unanimously passed a motion to declare climate change an emergency. With the declaration, the Town joins cities such as Kingston, Burlington, Hamilton, London (UK), Los Angeles and Vancouver that have all declared the same, recognizing the significant risks posed by climate change around the world. "It is time to end the silence about the catastrophic threat of Global Warming," said Whitby Mayor Don Mitchell. "By declaring climate change an emergency, we are recognizing the urgency and committing to address the serious challenge we face in combating climate change, both locally and beyond. Collectively, we need to ensure we are doing everything we can to reverse the heating of our planet. This declaration - along with the actions that will come out of it - is one important step in the right direction." Through the declaration, brought forward by the Whitby Sustainability Advisory Committee, Town Council is acknowledging the significant threat climate change poses to both the current and future social, economic, and environmental well-being of the community. The declaration also recognizes the immediate need to take action to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. What Whitby's doing Initiatives currently being undertaken by the Town to address climate change include: retrofitting the Town's 10,000 street lights to energy efficient LEDs; planting a naturalized pollinator habitat along Whitby's waterfront and installation of a beehive on the rooftop of Whitby's Town Hall, as part of the Town's Bee City commitment; construction of new multi-use paths (MUPs) to encourage more active transportation, like walking and cycling; hiring of a new Climate Change Specialist (through a one-time grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities) to look at the Town's stormwater infrastructure; ongoing development of new Whitby Sustainable Development Guidelines to incentivize developers to consider sustainability when planning and developing new areas of the community designation of Whitby as the Durham Region lead for the Innovate MY Future Youth Climate Change Team; and movement of the Town's Sustainability portfolio to the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer to better support the corporation in climate change initiatives. In partnership with the Region of Durham, five utilities and eight area municipalities, the Town also participated in the development of a new Durham Community Energy Plan, including a target to reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. In 2019, in addition to completing the above initiatives and implementing energy efficiency upgrades, the Town will be developing new public education materials aimed at encouraging residents to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions. What we can do Some ways residents can do their part in the fight against climate change include: using active transportation, like walking, cycling and taking public transit; reducing energy consumption in your home; reducing your waste by recycling, composting and avoiding single-use materials like coffee cups, plastic bags and water bottles wherever possible; and; keeping Whitby green by planting native trees or plants. To view the complete declaration or for more tips on how to fight climate change, visit whitby.ca/sustainability.