The Rule of Law in Our Lives: From Garbage to Governance

By Mireia Ariana Amba Cuenca (Posted by ReyFort Media)

(This essay is Mireia’s speech that she wrote and delivered at the 2025 Barry Sullivan Law Cup organized by the Canadian Bar Association BC. She placed 3rd out of 45 students who competed in this prestigious competition across BC. The judges in the final round were Premier David Eby, retired Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia Christopher Hinkson, and Kerry Simmons, KC, Executive Director of the Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch.)

Taking out the trash. At first, it seems like just a trivial chore. We wheel our bins to the curb, few of us thinking beyond that moment. Yet, this simple act goes further than that. It is the expression of a deeper principle: that society functions because individuals follow rules, for a collective good. To me, the rule of law is precisely that: a shared commitment to live within a system of rules, where obligations are clear, and fairness is enforceable. But the rule of law is not self-executing. It exists only when we uphold it. And in this time of global instability, our role has never been more important. Through something as seemingly mundane as trash, we can trace the power, and fragility, of the rule of law.

Municipal: Starting locally, in my hometown of Surrey, bylaws dictate how we manage our waste. Bylaw No.18412 tells us what to sort, where to place it, and when to bring it out. This may seem minor, even bureaucratic. But these laws have gravity. They protect health, preserve public spaces, and present shared objectives. When we choose not to follow them, the rule of law begins to erode. That erosion becomes visible in the 2014 BC Supreme Court case of Churcher v. Richards. In this case, an individual burned garbage illegally in their backyard, creating noxious smoke that affected neighbouring homeowners and violated waste management rules. The court upheld charges, affirming that individual convenience does not override collective responsibility. This case also reveals something deeper: the rule of law does not only provide consequences for actions and inactions that cause harm but also compels us to act for the common good.

Provincial/Federal: Waste is not just a local issue. Its regulation involves overlapping provincial and federal frameworks. British Columbia’s Environmental Management Act governs how landfills are operated, industrial waste is processed, and pollution is mitigated. Federally, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act sets standards for toxic waste and transboundary shipments. These laws are intended to ensure that environmental conservation is maintained. Yet laws are only as strong as their enforcement, and their accessibility. In 2024, the Chiefs of Ontario filed a lawsuit against the federal and provincial governments, citing failures to provide access to justice. Among the key issues? Inadequate waste management in Indigenous communities: left without clean water, plagued by illegal dumping, and burdened by contamination, because legal protections went unenforced. This is a profound failure of the rule of law. When laws exist but are not applied equally, they lose their meaning. And that, too, is a choice. The rule of law depends not just on statutes, but on the equal application by government agencies.

International: The rule of law and our obligations under it, extend beyond our borders. Under the Basel Convention, an international treaty ratified by Canada in 1992, countries are required to give “prior informed consent” before waste shipments arrive. Between 2013 and 2014, Canada sent over 100 shipping containers to the Philippines, labeled as recyclable plastic. Instead, they contained rotting household and medical waste, in clear violation of the Basel Convention. The containers sat in Manila’s port for years, sparking international outrage. Six years later, after diplomatic pressure and a threat of retaliation from the Philippines, Canada finally retrieved the waste. The incident exposed a dangerous truth: when oversight fails and legal commitments are ignored, even wealthy democracies, like Canada, can undermine the rule of law abroad. Once again, it came to choice: to cut corners but later make it right.

Global Trends: This event highlighted how fragile the rule of law becomes when global trends, from climate change to economic demand, push systems past their limits. As the world produces more waste than ever before, countries are under immense pressure to manage growing volumes with limited resources. Recycling markets collapse. Landfills overflow. And nations, even ones with strong legal frameworks, start to look for shortcuts. We see it in how environmental laws are bent or delayed in the name of economic recovery or efficiency. When rules become difficult or inconvenient to follow, we begin to test their limits. And in doing so, we test the very existence of the rule of law. That’s why now, more than ever, we must choose to follow the rule of law not because it is easy, but because it is necessary. The difficulties of global trends are not excuses to bend the law. They are reasons to reinforce it — to double down on accountability, public oversight, and responsible governance.

Conclusion: So, what does the rule of law mean to me? It’s not just a legal principle or an abstract concept. It’s a collective commitment — one that only exists when we act on it. It lives in how we manage our waste, how we respond to injustice, and how we hold ourselves accountable even when no one is watching. If we abandon it in difficult times, we take away its power.. But when we stay with it, even when inconvenient, we show that the rule of law is not just something we expect, but something we sustain. The future of the rule of law in Canada will not be decided solely by judges. It will be shaped in everyday decisions. We cannot afford to treat the rule of law like garbage, something to be discarded when it no longer suits us. If we want it to endure, we must all carry its weight. Together, our collective actions will strengthen the rule of law.

Le Secret à L’harmonie

By Mireia Ariana Amba Cuenca

(This essay in French is Mireia’s speech that she wrote and delivered at the 2025 Concours d’art oratoire. This essay is about the cultural significance of music and how it allows us to discover ourselves and the world around us. Mireia is a four-time Concours medalist who topped the podium once again, with this winning speech earning her the First-Place award in the BC/Yukon Region in her category (Grade 11 Early Immersion). This is Mireia’s fifth Concours medal since joining this largest annual French public speaking competition in Canada. She is graduating from the International Baccalaureate Program at Semiahmoo Secondary in 2026.)

Nous l’entendons chaque jour de nos vies, qu’il s’agisse d’une berceuse réconfortante, d’une jingle commerciale dans l’ascenseur, ou même de notre chanson préférée. La musique. Souvent, on la perçoit comme un simple divertissement, un bruit de fond insignifiant. Mais elle est beaucoup plus que cela. Chers juges, chers parents, chers professeurs et chers amis, aujourd’hui, j’explore l’impact de la musique, à travers l’individu, sa culture, et les cultures du monde.

La musique est un aspect essentiel de la découverte de nos identités individuelles. Les chansons sont complexes, composées de nombreux éléments différents, qui leur permettent d’être nos miroirs émotionnels. Leurs paroles, éloquentes comme nos voix intérieures , représentent nos pensées pleines d’émotions. Leurs mélodies, fluides et expressives, reflètent nos sentiments dynamiques. Leurs rythmes, variables comme nos battements de coeurs, montrent nos réactions au monde qui nous entoure. Ces éléments nous façonnent en affirmant ce que nous sentons déjà, mais aussi en nous faisant découvrir de nouvelles idées, valeurs, et croyances qui forment nos identités. Alors que nous continuons à nous développer, nos préférences musicales évoluent à nos côtés. Avec l’infinité d’options, de Taylor Swift à Kanye West, du heavy-metal au classique, la musique est capable de s’adapter à toutes nos émotions et situations, jouant un rôle intemporel dans nos identités.

Commençant par ce rôle profondément personnel, la musique est capable de nous amener plus loin: nos cultures. Jusqu’à récemment, je me sentais loin de mes racines culturelles. Je suis une immigrante de deuxième génération n’ayant jamais mis les pieds aux Philippines. Maintenant, je suis membre d’une chorale de jeunes philippins appelée Himig Kabataan, ou Mélodie de la Jeunesse. Je me suis inscrite simplement par amour de la musique, mais avec le temps, j’ai établi un lien incomparable avec ma culture. Chaque fois que j’apprends de nouvelles chansons avec mes camarades, je suis plongé dans les histoires et traditions magnifiquement complexes, racontées par les paroles de Tagalog, Visaya, Ilocano, et pleins d’autres dialectes. En chantant sur la scène, je me sens transporté aux Philippines, connectée à mes ancêtres qui ont fredonné les mêmes mélodies que moi. Cette expérience ne m’est pas unique. Peu importe notre origine, la musique a ce pouvoir universel de raviver ou même créer un lien avec nos racines. La musique nous permet de voyager, d’explorer, de ressentir une appartenance à quelque chose de plus grand, que nous n’aurions jamais cherchée autrement.

Mais ce n’est pas tout : nous ne sommes pas limités à la découverte de nos propres cultures. Aujourd’hui, il suffit d’un clic pour écouter de la musique de n’importe où dans le monde. Cette accessibilité a changé bien plus que notre façon de consommer la musique—elle a transformé notre manière d’interagir avec le monde. Nous sommes devenus des explorateurs musicaux, naviguant entre les sonorités d’autres cultures avec une curiosité sans limites. Nous célébrons et partageons une grande variété d’artistes, pas seulement la musique occidentale. Nous nous immergeons dans des styles et pratiques qui nous étaient autrefois étrangers. Une chanson en une langue inconnue, venue de l’autre bout du monde, peut évoquer des émotions familières qui transcendent les frontières. Et, en découvrant la musique d’un autre peuple, nous découvrons aussi sa façon de voir la vie, ses douleurs, et ses espoirs. La musique devient alors une passerelle vers une compréhension plus profonde des cultures qui nous entourent, tout en restant accessible et naturelle, comme si, à travers une simple chanson, on ouvrait une fenêtre à un univers entier.

Alors, écoutez ! La musique n’est pas simplement de l’ambiance ; c’est un vaisseau qui nous emmène en voyage : de nous-mêmes, à travers notre culture, jusqu’à la culture de notre monde. Donc, la prochaine fois que vous mettez vos écouteurs, soyez conscients de l’effet de la musique: elle possède un pouvoir qui façonne l’harmonie de notre monde.