Australian author, explorer and conservationist Tim Flannery has urged the Canadian government to step up its efforts and act more decisively on climate change, as part of a mass global mobilization program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Flannery, a former Harvard professor whose book The Weather Makers inspired Al Gore's Oscar-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, was in the national capital region yesterday to address the annual in Gatineau, Que.
Named Australian of the Year by his federal government in January, Flannery's keynote presentation, "The environment: Why we need to bring the public along," underscored the rapid rate of change in the earth's atmosphere and how even small changes collectively can make a massive impact.
Riding on this year's conference theme, "Who should do what in a progressive Canada?", debate focused on the potential for a new approach to governance: rather than the old top-down method, governments should more actively engage with its citizens in what's known as bottom-up governance.
Flannery pressed governments around the world to include the public, to help change our lifestyles and to work with industry on policy refreshment aimed at a new formula for a sustainable environment.
For his part, new Environment Minister John Baird, introducing Flannery to the conference, said he had to agree with his boss (Prime Minister Stephen Harper) and promised Canadians would soon see tough new measures designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Since this time last year, the environment has shifted coordinates on the radar of politicians on Parliament Hill, moving much further up on the list of priorities on the Canadian political landscape. What was once Harper's list of five priorities under Canada's new government for "getting things done for all of us" is now a set of six, since the Feds began pushing the ecoAction agenda.
Among Flannery's recommendations to the Canadian government was a moral responsibility and mandate to both educate and engage with the private sector and the nation's citizens, raising public awareness and providing more information on how to change the way we live.
If every small change collectively can significantly reduce toxic emissions and help to save energy, transport provides one road to a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. It's not always practical to hop on the bus, but we could choose to drive smarter, for example.
The federal government targeted this year's Toronto Auto Show to announce $36 million in funding for new programs aimed at raising awareness and education, increasing the availability of more green cars and trucks, and encouraging Canadians to make informed choices when purchasing a vehicle.
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) will receive $21 million in federal funding for the ecoENERGY initiative for Personal Vehicles, set to launch next month. The program will provide fuel consumption information and decision-making tools such as vehicle labels, guides and interactive Web sites, to encourage consumers to purchase fuel-efficient vehicles that are currently available on the market.
Johanne Geoffrion, chief of the EnerGuide for Vehicles program at NRCan, notes the importance of Web campaigns. "We understand that more and more Canadians are using the Web and interactive sites as tools to make certain decisions," she says. "We'd like to continue in the future to assist Canadians to make wise decisions when it's time to purchase a vehicle."
Continued: Tips for going green online before hitting the highway
EnerGuide Awards recognize greenest vehicles
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