Canada has a dim reputation on the world stage when it comes to taking action around climate change, which as a proud Canadian, I find very frustrating. Climate talks are well underway at COP 21 in Paris and the newly elected Canadian government, led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, is pledging that this time, things will be different.

On December 6th, Canada’s Minister for the Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna, announced that Canada supported the goal of capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius, rather than the 2 degree Celsius cap being discussed by other wealthy countries at COP21.

This sounds like promising news, but many Canadians, myself included, as well as environmental activists around the world, are a little skeptical, due to Canada’s lacklustre history in turning commitments into action.

Canada was a signatory of the Kyoto protocol in 1997, which many hoped would be a breakthrough climate agreement. But the Liberal government, who was in power at the time of the signing, did little to meet the target of a 6% total reduction by 2012 from 1990 levels.

In 2006, when Stephen Harper and his Conservatives came into power with a minority government, he announced that Canada would not be meeting the targets laid out in Kyoto. By 2009 Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions had increased 17% from where they had been in 1990.

Canada not only failed to meet targets, those targets were missed by a vast margin. As it became clear that not much was going to be done federally to curb climate change, provinces began looking at what they could do to limit emissions and encourage green industries. Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec have all taken provincial action to curb climate change and it looks like the provinces will continue to play an important role in Canada’s push to take meaningful action.  

I’m cautiously optimistic that, with a new government and renewed sense of international urgency, Canada will make the policy changes needed to make a real difference when it comes to protecting the planet.

As we see what concrete commitments come out of COP 21, global citizens will be ready to hold countries and their leaders to account to ensure that this time, pledges amount to real action.

You can go to TAKE ACTION NOW to call for a future that is 100% renewable energy.