Climate change is a real and undeniable threat to our entire civilization. The effects are already visible and will be catastrophic unless we act now. Through education, innovation, and adherence to our climate commitments, we can make the necessary changes to protect the planet. These changes also provide huge opportunities to modernize our infrastructure which will create new jobs and promote greater prosperity across the globe. Global Goals.org

Canada’s Response:

Canada’s response is to: “Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.” Many indicators measure how this response is progressing, including, for example, measuring the amount of carbon Canada produces.

In December of 2020, the Government of Canada introduced A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy – Canada’s strengthened climate plan. This plan commits Canada to net-zero emissions by 2050.

Canada’s commitment to –SDG 13 Life on Land is expressed in the 2021 Mandate Letter to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada. For example: “Work with all Canadians and the Net-Zero Advisory Body to identify ways to further accelerate climate action to achieve net-zero emissions as soon as possible and no later than 2050 and to pursue efforts to limit the increase in average global temperatures to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.”

How are actions within our biosphere region contributing toward these goals?.

Advocating for Climate Action Now!

Not-for-profit organization My Sea to Sky works to defend, protect and restore Howe Sound by raising awareness and advocating for action on climate and a zero-carbon future. The organization aims to make it as simple as possible for people to take action at critical moments.

Local government actions:

The Átl’ḵa7tsem/Txwnéwu7ts/Howe Sound Ocean Watch Howe Sound Editon 2020 report has comprehensive information on Climate Change and its impacts on oceanography. The article here provides details on how communities around the region are addressing the issues related to a changing climate. There were six recommendations from the report specific to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

1. Invest in efficient, regular public transit options in the Sea to Sky corridor.

2. Invest in renewable energy and green infrastructure.

3. Where not already done, local governments should declare a climate emergency to enable council and staff to dedicate the resources required to immediately reduce communitywide GHG emissions.

4. Conduct a baseline GHG emission inventory for each community to identify the largest emitters, with ongoing monitoring and reporting of community-wide emissions beginning in 2020 to track success.

5. Work with large businesses to advise on how to decrease their carbon footprint.

6. Create a climate action plan to prioritize policies and actions that will be most effective at reducing community-wide GHG emissions. Identify challenges and opportunities and establish key evaluation criteria to evaluate success.

Activities being taken by local governments are reported quarterly at the Ocean Watch Action Committee meetings and tracked here. While this is not a complete list of the extensive number of changes underway, the report provides links to where you can learn more.

Below are the most relevant actions for SDG13 goals. Click here to learn more about UN SDG 13

What more can we be doing or are we on track? We want to hear from you.

Communities around the region have declared a Climate Emergency and actions are underway at the local government level. What more can we be doing? We want to hear from you.

In developing a management plan for the Átl'ḵa7tsem/Howe Sound UNESCO Biosphere Region, we are assessing where we are in our collective vision of Life on Land in the Átl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound region for 2030, and setting priority goals and objectives. Read more here about the Nchu’ú7mut/Unity Plan.

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