Author: Sadie Jackson

We are pleased to provide you with a copy of our report,
“Strengthening Canada’s Foreign Policy: Lessons from Our China Experience.”

Harmony has been composing this report over the last year based on lessons learned from our experience working in China since 2005. Our intention is to contribute to a positive discussion, involving all Canadians, on how Canada’s foreign policy can be most advantageous to Canadians while meeting our shared values of good governance, social justice, and environmental responsibility.

Since 1985 Harmony Foundation has been building bridges between business, government and civil society on environment and development issues in Canada and internationally. For the past 7 years the Foundation has been leading projects in China on sustainable community development, experience that has provided invaluable insights into the Canada-China relationship as well as Chinese attitudes toward our current approach.

We believe Canada’s performance in China is representative of Canadian foreign policy that increasingly favors short-term trade goals, rather than building relationships for long-term success. Canada will be better positioned to achieve our economic goals through enduring partnerships based on mutual respect and shared benefits.

These trends are exacerbated by the lack of a national strategy that includes all sectors, business, universities, provinces and municipalities and civil society. Instead each organization tends to pursue their own interests lowering Canada’s effectiveness and profile.

The purpose of this paper is to stimulate and inform a constructive, non-partisan discussion on Canada’s role in the world and to re-set our foreign policy accordingly. To succeed, the process must involve Canada’s leaders in business, government and civil society and enjoy active public participation. We see a win-win strategy in viewing other countries as partners in humanitarian, social, economic and environmental progress, rather than simply markets and customers offering revenue opportunities.

As you read this discussion paper we ask you to consider how Canadians and our leaders can work together to craft a foreign policy that is socially just, environmentally sound and economically successful. If our efforts achieve some progress in that direction we shall be satisfied.

“We possess the means to create a world where every man, woman and child can live free of hunger and discrimination and obtain the healthcare, education and opportunity to reach their potential while ensuring that human development does not squeeze every other life form towards extinction.”
— Michael Bloomfield, Founder and Executive Director, Harmony Foundation of Canada

Thought provoking and insightful essays from a “gentle iconoclast” whose dogged determination, keen wit and innovative ideas have gained the attention of leaders in government, business and community organizations and have brought people together in Canada and around the world on a wide variety of environment, peace and social development issues for more than 30 years. A keen observer of our relationships with each other, other species and future generations he has pioneered many practical programs helping groups and individuals in 36 countries to take positive action on a wide variety of issues environment and social development issues. Among many successes he has:

• organized and led successful projects in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Ghana, Kenya, and the Middle East
• brought together Israelis, Palestinians and Jordanians in cooperative environmental projects and hosted Mohawk elders planting trees of peace with them
• organized and led exciting projects in China promoting participatory governance and social and environmentally sustainable development
• pioneered non-lethal methods of wildlife study still used today and championed caribou in Western Canada
• advised numerous organizations on trends in sustainable development, corporate social responsibility, ethical decision making, education and philanthropy
• actively worked in his community as volunteer for youth at risk, homelessness, refugees and animal protection
• initiated animal-assisted therapy programs, helped build animal shelters, libraries and programs for abused women and children, raised 58,000 pair of socks for the homelessness and mentored countless young people

EssayBooklet FINAL  Jan 18th 2013

Click Here to Download

Furthering Harmony’s work to encourage business, government, and civil society to work together to improve CSR globally, we are pleased to share with you “Canadian Mining Operations Around the World: Respecting People and the Environment. In our report, we examine Canada’s mining industry to make the case for all Canadian companies to adopt a “made in Canada” standard of performance for community engagement, worker health and safety, labour rights and environmental protection wherever they operate around the world. We believe this approach will benefit Canada and its partners now and over the long-term.

We call upon the federal government and industry to come together with provincial government and civil society leaders to draft a protocol and ultimately legislation which would create binding standards for Canadian companies operating internationally.

We hope that you will add your voice to the growing number of Canadians seeking prosperity with integrity and international relations based on respect for other people, public health, labour rights and the environment. We invite you to join us in this campaign and inform your constituents about our paper and these important issues.

Canada has many blessings; we don’t need to harm other people and the environments their lives depend on to increase our own wealth.

For further information on CSR and Canada’s foreign policies please see:

“CSR Guide for Multinational Corporations in China: Prosperity with Integrity”

and

“Strengthening Canada’s Foreign Policy: Lessons from Our China Experience.”