Obiter Dicta Issue 12 - March 10, 2014 | Page 15

page 15 A R T S & CU LT U RE Avant garde volume 4: Bart Danko MARIE PARK Layout Editor Thinking green is becoming more elusive to the Canadian public, as the day-to-day tasks of life preoccupy our minds and influence our every action. It seems that being environmentally conscious in our lives has become something that must be an active and deliberate choice, as opposed to a way we carry out various aspects of our daily lives on a constant basis. For instance, the purchase of a hybrid car is not a default option and, with a significant price difference, is largely inaccessible to the middle-class income earner. Even for policymakers and city planners, environmentally conscious choices must necessarily be weighed against competing financial restraints. But, with a dismal report card in commuting times for the average Torontonian and a patchy waste management system, there is an urgency to inform the public to rethink the way we approach “thinking green” and that there are new ideas that benefit both the environment and economy. One Osgoode student is doing just that - educating the public about an innovative take on the way we think about the physical places we occupy. Bart Danko is a Master of Environmental Studies and Juris Doctor (MES/JD) student at Osgoode, living in the rapidly expanding city of Brampton which lies north of campus. After studying psychology and sociology at the University of Toronto, he first undertook the MES portion of his dual degree; this background in environmental studies gave him the backdrop to ground the law school courses that soon followed. “That year at MES was huge in directing my future interests and research plans, which quickly became to challenge traditional legal academia in every way,” Bart said. “Throughout the process, my appreciation for the law, and its ability to elicit actual social change, has only grown.” Not only has his understanding of the intersections of the law, social, and environmental change developed, but his creativity shines through his art of filmmaking. Just this past January, Bart’s filmmaking debuted at the Focus on Sustainability Film Festival. His film revolves around the idea of the “commons,” the belief in reclaiming space in favour of the public benefit. Terra Communis is Latin for “land belonging to all people.” The film explores the idea of green roofs, which have been increasingly implemented in urban development projects for their multiple benefits, but have been slow on the uptake due to the lag in the necessary changes in government policies and attitudes towards the idea. © 2012–2014 Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP. All rights reserved. | 416 869 5300 Cassels Brock Obiter Dicta student ad Contact: Heather Murray Please PRINT a hard copy of the The theme of 2013/2014“commons”- Resolve Disputes” [email protected] would eithertoconsidered nontraditional the season “Yellow is carried 416 869 law:fax“What file and back FAX it thanks! and be me, or SCAN 4B Prestige, b&w 5782 416 642 7137 EMAIL it beyond the content in the deliberate selection of legal academic work has been one of my greatest media that is accessible to the public, as the film assets in law school. Beyond the benefit of keepcan be viewed online by lay people, unlike tradiing me sane, it’s