CAN-Rac’s Webinar-Workshop Series Making Sure Canada Never Misses Another Climate Target

As a nation, we have missed every greenhouse gas reduction target set by the Canadian government prior to the current 2030 target, and are currently not on track to meet the 2030 target. While governments can claim credit for setting long-term goals, several short-term, and sometimes hard, necessary steps remain to achieve them. That’s why countries around the world are establishing the same types of accountability measures used in financial planning – budgets, independent audits, long- and short term plans, etc. – to address climate change. In the last election, most major political parties pledged to implement some of these measures. In this webinar, we will present recommendations for Canadian climate accountability legislation and mechanisms from experts at Ecojustice, West Coast Environmental Law, Environmental Defence, Équiterre, CAN-Rac, the Pembina Institute, the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices, and My Sea to Sky in collaboration with Climate Caucus. Canadians want action on climate change. We know it’s absolutely possible to reach Canada’s current goal of reducing GHG emissions by 30% below 2005 levels by 2030. We also know the 2030 target does not represent our fair share of addressing global climate change and that Canada needs to do more. Join us as we walk you through the five pillars of a Canadian Climate Accountability Act, discuss different approaches to climate accountability, and learn how municipalities are applying climate accountability practices in practical ways to drive down emissions. Webinar presentations are in English, the Q&A parts will be facilitated in both French and English. You can ask questions in both languages. Moderated by Jennifer Lash Speakers: Jason Dion Julia Croome Tracey Saxby With appearances from Andrew Gage, Catherine Abreu, Dale Marshall and Caroline Brouillette Register to learn about Canadian Climate Accountability SPEAKERS: Julia Croome is a staff lawyer with Ecojustice, and lead author of the recent collaborative Policy Brief: A New Canadian Climate Accountability Act, prepared in partnership with West Coast Environmental Law, CAN-Rac, Environmental Defence, Équiterre and the Pembina Institute. Julia’s history of legal practice has seen her litigate a mix of municipal, environmental and land use planning cases at all levels of court, including Smith v. Inco – the largest certified environmental class action in Canada. Jason Dion is the Mitigation Research Director for the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices. Jason was previously a lead researcher with the Ecofiscal Commission. His work has focused on carbon pricing, environmental risk and financial assurance, green public procurement, and sustainable infrastructure. He is a graduate of the MA Economics program at York University. Tracey Saxby is a marine scientist, and the Executive Director of My Sea to Sky, a people-powered environmental organization that was founded in 2014 to defend, protect, and restore Howe Sound.. In 2007, Tracey kickstarted the grassroots movement to reduce plastic bag use across Canada. She is currently working on an exciting new campaign called the #ZeroCarbonChallenge, which aims to foster collaboration between all levels of government (including First Nations) and the profit and non-profit sectors to help catalyze the culture shift that is needed to respond to our climate emergency. Tracey holds a masters equivalent in marine science, and is a partner at Visual Science with over sixteen years of experience working at the nexus of science, design, and communication. Jennifer Lash runs Sisu Consulting, providing expert strategic consulting skills for Canada’s climate policy community. Andrew Gage is a staff lawyer with West Coast Environmental Law, and project lead for its Climate Change program. Andrew wrote the 2015 report, A Carbon Budget for Canada, which explored what a Canadian climate accountability law might look like and helped convince the BC government to enact accountability laws. He is a contributing author to the Policy Brief: A New Canadian Climate Accountability Act. Dale Marshall is the National Climate Program Manager for Environmental Defence, where he works to makeCanada takegreater action and responsibility on climate change: towards clean, modern renewable energy technologies while phasing out all fossil fuels such as oil, coal, and fossil gas. Dale is a contributing author to the Policy Brief: A New Canadian Climate Accountability Act. Caroline Brouillette is a climate policy analyst at Équiterre, where she works to influence both the Quebec and the Canadian governments to respond more ambitiously to the climate crisis.   She  is a contributing author to the Policy Brief: A New Canadian Climate Accountability Act. Catherine Abreu is the Executive Director of Climate Action Network – Réseau action climat Canada (CAN-Rac). She is a contributing author to the Policy Brief: A New Canadian Climate Accountability Act, as well as an advisor to the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices.