Common Horizon is a mass movement of working people who are coming together to take power away from the billionaire class. Together, we will win solutions to the climate crisis that secure millions of good jobs, expand social services, and address affordability.
Our Structure
History shows us that mass movements are one of the best tools that working people have to improve our lives. When we're up against corporate money and lobbying power, we must build people power. That's why Common Horizon's focus is on building volunteer-run chapters across Canada and Quebec. These chapters are supported by a Movement Coordination Team (MCT.) The MCT coordinates movement-wide campaigns and supports local chapters to take action.
We build our structures in service of our strategy. This means that our organizational structure will shift as our movement changes and grows.
Members
We are a membership-based organization.
A Common Horizon member is someone who has agreed to abide by our principles, pays dues, and has received an orientation to Common Horizon either online or through a local chapter.
We encourage all our members to actively organize with a Common Horizon chapter or movement-wide team but understand that one’s ability to participate may fluctuate over time.
Chapters
We have local chapters across Canada and Québec.
Local chapters are the backbone of Common Horizon. They are essential to building the power we need to tackle the climate crisis. Currently, our chapters are working on our #MakeThemPay campaign. This is a campaign for an excess profits tax on big corporations that have made staggering profits while working people struggle with the affordability crisis. Revenue from the tax would be downpayment on climate solutions that make life more affordable.
Movement Coordination Team
The Movement Coordination Team (MCT) is a centralized body that coordinates movement-wide campaigns and supports local chapters to adapt and/or execute their own campaigns in line with our movement’s overarching strategy.
Principles
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We are a mass movement of everyday people, rising to tackle the climate crisis and create a just and equitable future for all.
We come together to end the corporate elite’s grip on climate action, reclaim our power,fight for Indigenous sovereignty, and improve the lives of working people. We are an unstoppable wave that will take on the biggest challenge of our time and win a People’s Agenda.
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We build power in our communities.
We grow from the communities we belong to— unions, workplaces and neighbourhoods— by talking to our coworkers, neighbours and friends. We always think about those who have not joined us yet and welcome them into our movement. And because tackling the climate crisis requires our governments to take responsibility and spend what it takes, we shake up the political debate and force politicians to implement the solutions we need.
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Our diversity is our strength.
We are of many cultures, ages and from all paths of life. We live in rural communities, suburbs and cities, in Canada, Québec, and Indigenous nations across this land. A wealthy few try to pit us against each other because they know that when we come together, we have the power to win. We build a united force by embracing and bridging across our differences.
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We work in solidarity with Indigenous peoples to protect the land, water, and air for present and future generations.
We acknowledge and respect Indigenous science, knowledge systems, and ways of relating. We recognize that Indigenous laws and jurisdiction are alive on the lands we live on. We do our best to learn about the agreements and laws that govern the land, and uphold our obligations to them.
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We stand in solidarity with other movements for justice and liberation.
We are not alone: our movement is one of many fighting for a transformed world. We learn from the movements that came before us, and we set the stage for those who will take over once we achieve what we set out to do. We respect other tactics and strategies, but we know and stay focused on our role. We support and uplift other struggles because the fight for climate and economic justice is intertwined with the liberation of all peoples.
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The gravity of the crisis only strengthens our resolve.
Our grief roots us in purpose, rather than leading us to despair. We know how serious the crisis is, but history teaches us that faced with great challenges, humanity is capable of great things. We reject the notion that it is “too late” because we know that every degree counts. We owe it to ourselves and others to meet the challenge of this moment.
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We are nonviolent in our words and actions.
Our opponents will seek to turn the public against us, but we choose to create change through building a mass movement that everyone can see themselves in. Nonviolence will help us build understanding and support from the largest number of people.
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We are the ones we have been waiting for.
We take initiative. We create strong structures to meet our goals. We center the voices of those most impacted by the problems we aim to solve. We tell our own stories to deepen connection, bring new people into the movement, and develop new leaders. This movement needs all of us, so we appreciate each other’s contributions, big and small.
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We operate in French and English, and encourage our members to organize in as many languages as they speak.
This will not always feel easy or comfortable but we make the effort because building strong relationships across lines of difference is crucial to our movement’s success.
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Our relationships are the foundation of our work.
Strong relationships allow us to feel safe, take risks and bring our best. We are honest and keep an open mind. We bravely work through conflict, take responsibility for our mistakes and repair relationships because they are what make us strong.
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By taking care of each other, we will go far.
We give time, energy and resources because we know it's worth it. We accommodate access and safety needs that allow us all to participate however we are able. At the same time, we take care of ourselves by naming our boundaries and limitations. We rest when we need to and we support others to do the same. We do this work out of love, out of conviction, out of joy, to feel our collective power in our bones.
