Our Common Future

The Brundtland Commission and UN World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) wrote the report Our Common Future in 1987 to emphasize the importance of sustainable development for social, economic, and environmental agendas. The report defines sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs", and advocates it as a means to blend the fulfilment of human needs with environmental protection. Read the report here.

Kyoto Protocol

The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change aimed at stabilizing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community to decrease GHG emissions to 5% against 1990 levels over the 5-year period 2008-2012. The rules for the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol were outlined in the ‘Marrakesh Accords’ in 2001. Read the Kyoto Accord here, and read about how different countries are taking action here.

COP-15 Copenhagen Accord

The Copenhagen Accord is the outcome of the 15th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The accord promotes the continuation of the Kyoto Protocol and recognizes the crucial role of immediate climate change action, yet it does not establish quantitative targets and does not legally bind participant nations to any of its provisions. Despite the numerous shortfalls of the accord, it is nonetheless a step in the right direction. Read the Copenhagen Accord here.

350.org

350 parts per million is the upper limit for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and anything above and beyond this level could result in human and natural catastrophes. 350.org is an international campaign aimed at building a movement to solve the climate crisis, and has organized rallies across the world and garnered support from many prolific icons. Get more information on the 350.org website.

Climate Action Network

The Climate Action Network (CAN) is an international network of over 550 NGOs working to encourage governments and individuals to reduce human-caused climate change. CAN’s vision is to protect environmental integrity while promoting sustainable and equitable global development. CAN works to achieve this through information sharing and the collective development of NGO strategies on international, regional and national climate issues.

Partners for Climate Action

The Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) program is an association of municipal governments from across the nation that have committed to acting on climate change and reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. PCP is the Canadian constituent of the ICLEI’s Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) association, which is comprised of over 900 communities across the globe. Find out more information on the PCP website.

BC Climate Action Toolkit

The BC Climate Action Toolkit is a tool to help BC local governments reduce greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen communities. It is a live network that provides the latest news, best practices, practical advice, and strategic guidance to inspire action in municipalities across the province. Learn how local governments can make significant contributions to climate change mitigation on their website.

Niagara Region joins green municipal marketing machine

The Niagara Region is uniting with nine other southern Ontario municipalities to lure green energy firms and investors. Niagara has been attempting to shift to a green economy for the last decade, and the newly-established Green Energy Act and provincial tariff program for renewable energy projects has allowed them to pitch southern Ontario as a green energy destination. Read the full story in the St. Catherines Standard.

The GTA region’s rise and sprawl

Ontario received international praise for Places to Grow, its strategy to reduce urban sprawl. Today however, planning decisions made in certain municipalities threaten its success. The plan gives municipalities a large amount of flexibility in attaining its goals, allowing some of them to deviate from intended responses to increased population growth. Read the full story in the Toronto Star.

Vancouver 2020: A Bright Green Future

Vancouver 2020: A Bright Green Future” is the City of Vancouver’s action plan for becoming a world leader in environmental sustainability by the year 2020. A sustainable Vancouver is a community that unites short and long term economic, social and environmental well-being, thereby enhancing the quality of life for current and future citizens. The report, which was written by the Greenest City Action Team, sets out a long term vision and list of goals in the areas of green economy, green communities, and human health.

Jobs, Justice, Climate: Building a Green Economy for BC

The Columbia Institute report "Jobs, Justice, Climate: Building a Green Economy" states that BC can increase employment and social justice while actively pursuing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets. A green jobs strategy would protect and create thousands of jobs while reducing BC’s carbon footprint, and could include actions such as expansion of transit systems, enabling energy efficiency retrofits in housing, promoting local agricultural production, and improving current carbon taxation schemes.

The 2011 Most Sustainable Cities in Canada

The most recent Corporate Knights Sustainable Cities ranking gave top marks to Vancouver, Victoria and Toronto for their commitments to ecological integrity, economic security, infrastructure and built environment, governance and empowerment, and social well-being. As urban migration increases and climate change worsens the looming environmental crisis, metropolitan sustainability initiatives will become more important. Read the full story in Corporate Knights.