SASKATOON — Christopher Shavetail formerly worked in the extraction industry, specifically in the oil and gas, and coal mining sectors. However, he changed his heart while working in a coal mine in the mountains of British Columbia. He quit his job and moved back to Saskatchewan.
Shavetail grew up in a family that has worked in the oil and gas industry, and chose to work in the school division despite a wage drop.
“I was working in a coal mine in Elkford Valley. I had a great wage, a fantastic life. But, has anybody seen a mine blast? The sheer power involved is loud and like a war scene. I’m standing on a bluff watching this happen, and then I had the epiphany,” said Shavetail.
“I looked up. We're in the beautiful B.C. mountains, serene trees, beautiful snow on top, and bright blue sky, and I'm standing in a war zone. I'm contributing to what was happening there. I quit my job the next day.”
Shavetail, who also worked in the lumber industry, added that he could not be part of an industry that was tearing the world apart, so he opted to work for 12 years in the school division and then for a company dedicated to increasing energy awareness and efficiency.
“Sometimes, we feel we're helping decrease our footprint, but that's not enough. I started working for Iron and Earth after leaving the school division. Iron and Earth helps transition folks in the extraction industries into regenerative future industries,” he said.
“And that is where we need to be because I wasn't a bad man. I was a bad man, but not a bad man because I worked in a coal mine. I was a bad man because I wasn't taking the opportunities while working there to preach for something better.”
He said people working in the extraction industries are also trying to earn a living to feed their families, ensuring their kids have a roof over their heads and food in their bellies. Still, he said, many disagree with ending extraction because they cannot see what is happening.
“They're desperately holding on to what they had. Workers all across this world are desperately holding on to what they have. Our vision and message must be more than saying no to gas, pipelines, or coal. It has to be: here is what we're going to do instead,” said Shavetail.
“We've got to sell that pitch of solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal. There are a lot of skills that were used in extraction industries that we will be needing and will be using in future industries.”
The rally highlighted four core demands of green, affordable, and reliable energy; Indigenous leadership and reconciliation; fair wages and job security; and protection for vulnerable communities.
Shavetail joined about 100 community leaders, concerned citizens, environmental and climate organizers, students, unions and workers in an Earth Action Day rally on Saturday, April 26, where they held a short program at Kinsmen Park.
The group gathered at the corner of Saskatchewan Crescent and Clarence Avenue East, crossing the University Bridge towards Kinsmen Park, where they called for urgent climate action, investment in renewable energy and a just transition that leaves no one behind.
