Andy Nichols

Lindsay Luhnau aims to instill a "respect for all living things" in her son Oliver.

Canadian mothers make up to 85 per cent of household spending decisions, and households in Alberta report the highest average household spending in the country. It is no surprise, then, that advertisers of everything from mobile phones to disinfectants, toys to vacation packages, target mothers, hoping to translate spending power and love into big profits.

But according to Melanie Isles, a Calgary mother of two, "Having kids doesn't mean you have to have so much plastic you can't walk across the room." Isles is one of several local moms proving that becoming a parent does not mean diving into the kind of excessive consumerism that has caused so many of our current global problems. In fact, the choices parents make become exponentially more important because they have a direct impact on the choices and values of future generations as well.

For example, Mother's Day actually began as a way for activists to promote peace. Julia Ward Howe, an anti-slavery activist and pacifist, wrote the Mother's Day Proclamation in 1872, and proposed an annual Mother's Day for Peace. The proclamation was a deeply passionate statement against the carnage of the American Civil War, and mothers from both sides of the war took to the streets and rallied for peace. The connection between motherhood and social justice was clear to these women, who achieved great results. There are innumerable examples of women, throughout history and across the world, who have become social activists as a way to protect their children and improve the lives of future generations.

The decision to have children remains controversial, largely due to concerns about overpopulation (though populations of more developed regions like Canada is expected to remain largely unchanged). However, those who choose to have children can be a powerful force for positive social change.

These four local mothers are responsible role models for their children, and an inspiration to other parents:

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Julie Hrdlicka has spent the last 12 years advocating for causes ranging from public health care, the environment and fair economic policy, to addressing sanctions and the war in Iraq (she visited Iraq twice during the war as a human rights observer). Four months ago, Hrdlicka became a mother.

Hrdlicka says there are a lot of people in the activist community who are incredibly cynical about parenthood, but she believes becoming a mother has made her activism "more personal," and has given her new skills, including patience, that will help her do more good in the world. Hrdlicka believes that people who truly care about the world have the opportunity to raise leaders, children who are aware of the global impact of consumerism and injustice from a young age.

"The feeling that we shouldn't be having kids is rampant in the activist community, but I wholly disagree. There is such opportunity with children for us as activists to raise responsible kids. We ask ourselves, 'What are you going to pass on to your kids?' They watch your every move."

Hrdlicka continues to work on the war resisters’ campaign in Calgary, volunteers on the board for Sunrise Community Link to provide resources to struggling local families, and is part of a graffiti clean-up project in southeast Calgary.

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Melanie Isles believes that having children is an opportunity to pass on important values to the next generation. Melanie co-founded the local business, Babes in Arms, a resource for environmentally conscious parents, and is actively involved in the attachment parenting movement in Calgary, which emphasizes the quality of the time and attention parents give their children.

Isles says she started Babes in Arms to provide resources for "people who might otherwise be intimidated by raising their children in a way that is outside of the norm of a consumer culture." She lives in the Sunnyside Housing Cooperative, which allows her to raise her children within a strong community, and also reduces the need for a car. Isles says the most important aspect of parenting is "the relationship you develop with your children," and so she acts as a positive role model for her two young ones. She makes an effort not to purchase plastic toys, which contribute to the degradation of the environment, and has organized local events such as the breastfeeding challenge, an annual gathering of about 100 women. Isles was raised in an activist-feminist household herself, and knows first-hand how great an influence a parent’s values can have on their children’s lives.

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Mariam Fath is a Calgarian of Egyptian background who is working on a master’s degree studying activism among Muslim women who live in non-Muslim cultures. Fath grew up seeing children who "didn't have one-quarter of what the children have here.”

She says she felt "trapped" by Calgary's consumer culture. “It’s hard to be a mom with a social justice perspective, combined with the perspective of a different culture," she explains. So in raising her daughter, Fath chooses to give her "only the one-quarter" of what other Canadian children may have. "Motherhood hasn't made me want to spoil my child more, but has made me want to focus on what we don't need to waste," she says.

Through the Calgary Immigrant Women's Association, Fath found women with values more similar to her own. CIWA's mission is to provide programs and services designed to empower women for the benefit of their entire family and our community, including workshops like Civic Participation and Immigrant Women in Politics. The organization assisted Fath with job interview skills and her resumé, while also providing free childcare (lack of childcare is a major barrier for many women).

"At lunch time, we brought all of the children together, from all different cultures. We shared food and became friends,” says Fath.

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When Lindsay Luhnau ran for municipal government in 2010, she didn't hold back her environmental agenda. And now, on parental leave from her job at Green Calgary, her environmental ethics still run deep. While her goal to run for politics is on hold, she is working on being a "living example" for her family and her community. She plans to turn her front yard into a food forest based on permaculture principles, an environmentally sensitive method of gardening and small-scale food production. She is looking to become involved on the board of her community association, and is exploring prenatal education.

"In my professional life I continue to be active and vocal about issues affecting our city," says Luhnau. "I often look at my son and wonder what kind of life he will have, and sometimes I see the potential for him to have it better than we do, if things turn out right, but most times I am fearful about the world he will inherit.”

“My values have influenced me as a parent by wanting to instill a sense of respect in my son; a respect for other people so that all are treated justly, a respect for all living things so that he considers the effects of his actions, and a respect for our home — planet Earth — so that many more generations will be able to enjoy clean air and drinking water."