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Hello Friend, Days ago, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed what we’ve known for a long time: climate change is here, it is caused by humans and we need urgent action to limit the most severe impacts of a warming planet. The IPCC report was very hard to read. It told us that a certain amount of global warming is locked in, along with its impacts: sea levels will continue to rise, and Arctic ice will continue to melt. These changes will continue to endanger our communities with more intense and frequent weather and climate-related events like floods, forest fires, drought, and hurricanes. After reading a report like this one, I know it is tempting to despair. But despair and inaction are not an option.
We can still protect our planet and prevent the worst impacts of global warming. But it’s up to us to make sure it happens. The IPCC findings contain rays of hope and a concrete directive: cut global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in half by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050 and we can limit global warming. Every incremental amount matters, and the great news is we already have the technology and policy solutions to accomplish this. By banning fracking, cancelling all new pipeline and oil and gas exploration projects, launching a Just Transition for fossil fuel workers, building a national renewable energy corridor, undertaking deep retrofits, and making strong investments in renewable energy and cleantech, we can dramatically reduce GHG emissions. And what’s more, doing all this will create a competitive green economy for Canada and the sustainable, green jobs of the future. What’s missing is the political will. Under successive governments, Canada has never met a target for reducing GHG emissions and we continue to be a top three GHG emitter globally per capita. However, failure in the past does not have to mean failure in the future. Canada can still become a global leader on climate action with a concrete plan on a scale that matches this challenge (you can read more on the report here).
I will continue to act. I am not losing hope. During the pandemic, people in Canada have proven we are able to act with determination and ambition. I know that we can take that same spirit to come together across the country to support a national action plan on the climate. There is hope yet and we will seize it.
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