On March 14, 2025, Mark Carney - the former governor of the Banks of Canada and England, boasting an extensive track record of climate advocacy - was sworn in as Canada’s 24th Prime Minister, replacing Justin Trudeau.
Few success stories came out of this year’s COP. Nevertheless, we’ve compiled COP29’s five (very modest) achievements and five of its most notable failures.
On November 12, 2024, the Hague Appeals Court overturned a landmark 2021 decision ordering oil giant Shell to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 45% from 2019 levels by 2030.
On October 17, 2024, Ontario’s Court of Appeal sided with a group of young climate activists in its Mathur v Ontario decision, reviving a case against the province which was previously dismissed in April 2023.
The recent 271 page report describes, sector by sector, how Canada’s emissions are being generated, and what policies the federal government - budgeting $9.1 billion in new climate-related spending - is planning or implementing to decarbonize Canada’s economy, with a near term goal of 40-45% emissions reduction (as compared to 2005 levels) by 2030.
Although Ontario’s grid is exceedingly clean by North American standards, deriving 94% of its electricity from non-emitting sources like wind, hydro, and nuclear, a clean energy credit registry could help businesses meet quantifiable emission reduction goals and boost ESG credentials by allowing certified clean energy purchases from the grid.
In mandate letters sent last week, Prime Minister Trudeau directed Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault to “work with provinces and territories to move toward mandatory climate-related financial disclosures based on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures [TCFD] framework.”
