Our Fair Share: Canada's Role in Supporting Global Climate Solutions

With countries racing to reach a new global climate deal by December, financial support for climate action in developing countries has emerged as an essential building block for a successful outcome.

Canada is the world’s 8th largest emitter of GHG pollution and has the world’s 13th largest economy. This means we have both the responsibility and the capacity to support climate mitigation and adaptation in developing countries. Based on current estimates of the costs of emission reductions and adaptation, Canada's contribution would be about C$2B to C$6B per year.
Formulas for sharing the effort show that Canada’s “fair share” is about 3-4 per cent of the global total.

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Poll: Canadians Want Action on Global Warming Despite Economic Downturn

Nearly two-thirds of Canadians want to see Canada take action to tackle global warming despite the economic crisis, according to new polling released by four Canadian observer organizations during the UN climate talks in Poznan, Poland in December 2008.

The full results, including regional breakdowns, are available here. 

The poll’s other findings include:

•    83% of Canadians surveyed agreed with the statement that "Canada should commit to strong action on global warming without waiting for other countries"

•    78% of respondents agreed that "Canada's global warming targets should be based on what leading scientists say is needed to avoid serious harm to people and the environment, even if meeting these targets entails some cost to the economy."

Groundbreaking Study Shows Canada can Tackle Climate Change and Prosper Economically

Canada can be a leader in tackling climate change and still grow the economy, according to a groundbreaking study by the Pembina Institute and the David Suzuki Foundation.

The economic modelling analysis in Deep Reductions, Strong Growth shows that governments can no longer argue fighting climate change means job losses and declining standards of living.

Key findings include:

•    Canada's economy can still grow by almost 20% in the next decade while the country reduces its greenhouse gas pollution to 25% below the 1990 level.
•    Canada will continue to enjoy strong net job growth, adding over 1 million new jobs while meeting the target.