Green For Oxford

Wednesday, 14 May 2014 05:41

Farlow says for people to make a difference, they have to participate.

INGERSOLL -- One of the County's most outspoken critics of the Walker Landfill proposal is once again running under the Green Party banner, this time in a provincial election.

Green Party candidate Mike Farlow says he's never been a member of a political party, and he doesn't have to be when he runs with the Greens.

"The Green Party has the policy that you have the greatest freedom to serve the constituents in your community. It's not a 'top-down party' where they dictate what you have to do, so that fits in with my belief system as well."

Farlow doesn't just "talk-the-talk" when it comes to issues like energy conservation, he owns two electric vehicles in addition to solar panels and a homemade wind turbine, all of which he says have contributed to dramatically lowering his day-to-day energy costs.

Farlow last ran for the Greens federally in 2011 says he plans to be true to himself once again in this election. He believes running for the Green Party allows him to run in line with his own values, not values chained to any one political party.

"There's a lot of bureaucracy involved and you have to pace yourself in terms of the amount of paperwork you do. I plan to be sincere and offer the people the opportunity to vote for what I either stand for, or vote against for what I stand for -- but the most important thing I think about for this election is for people to get out and vote, no matter who they vote for."

Farlow is also well educated, having a degree in Economics from the University of Guelph, and a Bachelor of Education and Masters in Library and Information Science from UWO.

Farlow has consistently opposed the Walker Landfill Proposal in Beachville since news broke of the potential development in 2012. He says for this election, jobs are a high concern for everyone, but even issues around jobs, can relate back to issues our environment.

"As energy costs increase, there are a lot of options for people that will help manage their costs and actually be good for the environment. So I see a lot of the issues going hand-in-hand, so if the air isn't any good and your water isn't any good, then that makes it tough to do anything."

Farlow says for people to make a difference, they have to participate. He says if you don't put down the remote, things will be on a slow and steady decay in terms of the services you're provided.

Farlow has also been a High School Teacher, originally at IDCI and taught later at Fanshawe College. He's spent much of the last 20 years working on contract provincially for the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.