TA’KAIYA BLANEY

CLIMATE CHANGE AND INDIGENOUS PEOPLES ACTIVIST

SINGER AND activist Ta’kaiya Blaney has been to the Paris climate conference, the United Nations’ NGO meeting in Korea, Idle No More in Vancouver and Occupy Wall Street in New York City—places you wouldn’t expect to see a 16-year-old. “Those trips have been about spreading the message of my community internationally and giving a face to climate change,” says Blaney, who is a member of B.C.’S Sliammon First Nation. “Our culture is impacted by the degradation of the land; my people will be on the front lines of those who feel the effects.” That’s why you’ll find her campaigning for land rights, protesting pipelines and writing songs around these issues. “For anyone who is in activism for the long haul, it’s healthy to bring in an element of selfexpression, of what you love,” she says. “For me, that’s music.”

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

“Yes, we all have to be individually responsible, but it’s more than turning off the lights—we also have to organize to tackle the system.”