Demonstrators march in Pittsburgh before the Sept. 24-25, 2009 G20 summit. (Matt Rourke/Associated Press)The buzz is picking up, the barricades are going up and thousands of people are gearing up for the G8 and G20 summits which Canada is hosting in Huntsville, Ont., and Toronto from June 25-27.

The events are drawing activist groups from around the country and the world, all with their own alternative plans to improve the life and health of people on the planet — although a handful may just make trouble.

Poverty, climate change and economic justice top the list of concerns among the civil society groups but in the spectacle that is a G summit everyone wants their voices heard so women's rights, labour rights, gender rights, indigenous rights and the rights of the transgendered are also on someone's agenda.

At least one anarchist group wants to begin dismantling capitalism by "demonstrating the diversity" of their discontent.

With the security bill running to at least $1 billion, police say they're preparing for everything. Although the Integrated Security Unit, which is responsible for keeping everyone safe, says they really only expect a small number of potential troublemakers.

Already many non-governmental organizations have denounced summit violence as counter-productive to social justice.

"Messages of peace and justice are not served by images of violence and destruction," says The Council of Canadians on its website.

Still there will likely be some noisy demonstrations and they're not likely to all be confined to the designated protest zone, near the Ontario legislature, which is about two kilometres from the Toronto meeting site.

Demonstrators begin a protest march in Pittsburgh in protest of the Sept. 24-25, 2009 G20 summit. (Matt Rourke/Associated Press)So, who are the people who are expected to show up for the summits and what do they want?

There's no central organizing body to track attendees. Everybody shows up and does their own thing — mostly at meetings — and there's a lot of overlap among the groups. Hundreds of NGOs are expected, mostly for the G20 in Toronto. They're hoping to be inside the security barricade, close to the international media.

On the outside, busloads of union members are coming in for a big parade (on June 26) and an unknown number of members of the 30,000 strong U.S. Social Forum are expected to arrive in Toronto after their meeting in Detroit ends, also on June 26. Add to that the committed and the curious and it should all get very crowded.

Here's a rough guide to who may show up:

At the Table

The largest and most powerful group of NGOs is a network of about 60 organizations — or other networks — meeting in Canada under this banner.

The groups are roughly divided into three categories, each dealing with poverty reduction, climate change or economic justice. They've come together because they have similar policy goals but each group or network also has its own "asks" from their governments. Here are some of the bigger issues on which they agree:

Anti-poverty: Includes groups: Make Poverty History, Save the Children, World Vision, Oxfam and AQOCI, a network of international development agencies from Quebec.

The members are pressing the G8 to live up to the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), which are due in 2015, chief among them to improve child and maternal health. Under pressure from the NGOs, Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Canada has made improving the health of women and children in the world's poorest regions a priority. NGOs are looking for a commitment of $30 billion over five years to achieve the MDG.

Climate change: The World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace and Climate Action Network are among the big players.

After the failure of the climate change conference in Copenhagen, activists are pressing summit leaders on two particular points: to get rid of fossil fuel subsidies to oil companies and provide money to developing countries to help them adapt to climate change. The NGOs propose a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) — also known as the Robin Hood Tax to help pay for climate change adaptation and meet the poverty reduction goals.

The economy: Coalitions like the Halifax Initiative are prominent among the NGOs dealing with international financial issues. At The Table supports cancellation of the debt of the poorest countries, making the development needs of poorer countries in global trade negotiations a priority and promoting measures to reduce tax evasion and illicit capital flight.

People's Summit

Considered civil society's alternative to the G8/G20. Organizers say the People's Summit "will have more legitimacy in representing the aspirations of the people of the world than the G8 and G20 can ever claim." They're expecting as many as 100 groups from across the country to come together from June 18-20 in Toronto to discuss social and environmental justice and talk about what they'd like on the summit agendas.

Labour

The Canadian Labour Congress is being joined by unions and labour councils from around Ontario and Quebec for its "People First! We Deserve Better!" rally and march on the afternoon of June 26. It could be one of the largest public gatherings. Twenty-eight buses, organized by local labour councils are bringing members to Toronto. Also participating in the rally are the Canadian Federation of Students and the Council of Canadians, Oxfam and Greenpeace.

Prior to the rally, on June 19, the CLC will host a public forum on the cause of the international financial crisis, the global recession it triggered and its impact on jobs.

The Council of Canadians

Holding a Shout Out public forum on global justice — speakers including Maude Barlow, and Naomi Klein on June 25 at Massey Hall. The council is pressing for the Robin Hood Tax and clean water rights.

Toronto Community Mobilization Network

Claims to be neither a lobby or protest group, but a grassroots community, urging activists to come to Toronto and helping to support those activists by providing shelter, food and daycare. The network says there is no legitimacy in the current summit model so it's holding workshops to find an alternative and supports "Themed Days of Resistance." The TCMN will hold "Days of Action" on June 21-24, meetings to provide education about the G20.

The Belinda Stronach Foundation

A first for the foundation, a pre-summit gathering from June 15 to 18 called G(irls)20 Summit. It's a meeting of 21 young influential female media personalities from around the world to raise awareness of the most pressing issues that affect girls and women — and find solutions. A member from each of the G20 countries will attend plus one woman from Malawi, so there will be an African representative.

Canadian Council of Churches

Getting down to work while avoiding the hubbub of the Ontario summits, faith leaders will hold three days of meetings at the University of Winnipeg, focusing on poverty reduction and global justice. June 21-23.

The 'anarchists'

A disparate group of anti-capitalist, anti-colonial activists calling for more action than reflection. They're planning to walk with the CLC's "People First" march on June 26 and continue on for "militant and confrontational" actions at the security barrier around the G20 Summit.

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