by Seth Klein, Melissa Lem, Liz McDowell and Ashley Zarbatany

The gas we burn in our homes and buildings is responsible for about 12% of British Columbia’s GHG emissions. Consequently, a key piece of climate emergency action is getting fossil gas – more commonly and misleadingly known as “natural” gas – out of buildings. The good news: British Columbians are ready to see our government take more decisive action to speed up progress on this file. Last November, a coalition of climate groups commissioned a province-wide poll of 1,000 British Columbians from Abacus Data on the subject of gas in buildings. The results are very heartening.

by Seth Klein

It seems NDP MP Charlie Angus has hit a nerve. Last week, heeding the call of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), Angus tabled a private member’s bill in the House of Commons to prohibit fossil fuel advertising. The reaction to Angus’s bill from Big Oil’s political and media defenders has been swift and hysterical - a sure sign of the bill’s merit. Angus’s proposed law is already doing a great service — sparking a needed conversation about the role of fossil fuel companies in perpetuating the climate crisis and questioning the social licence we have extended to these nefarious corporations for far too long.

by Seth Klein

One of the biggest climate stories in Canada in 2024 might well prove to be a project that, so far at least, few in the country have heard of — Ksi Lisims LNG. Like the earlier-approved LNG Canada project in nearby Kitimat, Ksi Lisims has the potential to be a major carbon bomb. The “net zero” claim of the project proponents ignores the greenhouse gases that would be emitted when the LNG produced by Ksi Lisims reaches its destination and is burned, known as Scope 3 emissions. Ksi Lisims aims to produce 12 megatonnes a year of liquified gas, and amount of LNG that, when burned, produces approximately 32 megatonnes of GHGs. That is equivalent to more than half of British Columbia’s total annual emissions.

Toronto, ON – As the global climate COP28 meetings begin in Dubai, young people are mobilizing for climate action here at home. This morning, dozens of youth gathered outside the constituency office of federal Minister for Youth Marci Ien to hand-deliver over 600 mock cover letters for a Youth Climate Corps (YCC). The letters capture the aspirations of young people from across the country seeking meaningful work confronting the climate crisis. These youth seek to serve in an exciting government-funded green jobs program.

By Seth Klein

The Trudeau government’s recent decision to exempt home heating oil from the carbon tax will be remembered as one of the great boneheaded political moves of recent years. The carveout has thrown the federal government’s keystone climate policy of the past 10 years into turmoil. It now appears we are destined to spend the next federal election, quite likely next year’s BC election and possibly other forthcoming provincial elections re-prosecuting past climate fights. This is no way to win the battle of our lives. Tackling the climate crisis requires urgent forward momentum, not re-litigating the carbon tax debate. And the kicker is there are a multitude of other options to address the affordability crisis facing many.

By Seth Klein

Eager to see what Canadian public opinion makes of a climate corps, the CEU commissioned a poll from Abacus Data. The results are now in, and they are very good news! The headline finding: A majority of Canadians – across the country and political lines – support the idea of creating a Youth Climate Corps (YCC). The results are especially strong among those aged 18 to 35 (the cohort for whom the program is designed). The most heartening results came from a survey question that asked those 35 and under, “If a program like this existed, how likely are you to consider enrolling in a Youth Climate Corps for two years?” In short, hundreds of thousands of young people are ready to serve as we confront the climate emergency. Our governments should sign these folks up as quickly as possible

Toronto & Vancouver— A majority of Canadians support the idea of creating a Youth Climate Corps (YCC). According to a new national survey conducted by Abacus Data, after being given a short description of the program, 55% of adult Canadians support it, with a further 23% who can accept it. Only 12% oppose the idea.

by Seth Klein

Last month, the campaign for a Youth Climate Corps took a big leap forward when the Biden administration launched the American Climate Corps — a new jobs program that will see thousands of young people get training and employment in climate-related work, and a huge win for the youth-led Sunrise Moment in the US. Launching the American Climate Corps should be seen as a renewed attempt by Biden to make nice with the youth voting bloc upon whom his re-election may well hinge. Speaking of which: Memo to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau! The polls have you trailing badly among Gen Z and Millennial voters. Maybe it’s time to offer something exciting and hopeful to these folks. Sir, may I present the Youth Climate Corps.

by Seth Klein

Victories often don’t occur in a clear-cut timeline, nor can they always be pinpointed to a specific event. When we look back at this time, maybe — just maybe — the spring and summer of 2023 will be remembered as a pivot period. This summer was also the first in which almost all Canadians experienced the emergency firsthand. Perhaps this collective experience — in which we all stared the crisis in the face and tasted the disruption to come — will signal a shift in the zeitgeist we’ve long awaited.

By Emiko Newman and Erin Blondeau

Over 1,000 wildfires are burning across Canada. Families are fleeing their homes, haunted by the very real possibility that they may never be able to return.

This dystopian scene has become far too common. In June 2021, Lytton, B.C. experienced the highest temperature ever recorded in Canada: 49.6 C. A devastating wildfire then reduced the town to ashes. Two years later, the rebuilding process has hardly begun, yet residents of the Lytton First Nation are once again under evacuation alert due to wildfires.

By Juan Vargas Alba

It may be hard to believe, but half of Gen Z (1997-2012) is now eligible to vote; you just wouldn’t know it if you followed last week’s provincial election. With voter turnout at a disappointing 59.5 per cent, it’s likely that youth voter turnout also followed its downward trend. Young voters — many of whom have never voted but care deeply about political issues and who have experienced their most formative years during a pandemic — could have made stark differences in key ridings.

By Seth Klein

The federal government has tabled its long-awaited Sustainable Jobs Act (formerly to be known as Just Transition Act).

The full name of the bill is “An Act respecting accountability, transparency and engagement to support the creation of sustainable jobs for workers and economic growth in a net-zero economy.” And yes, the bill really is as boring as the title suggests.

Climate mobilization in Canada has yet to feel like a grand societal undertaking, despite the risks we face and the climate disruption we’ve already endured — like heat domes, wildfires, and atmospheric rivers.

The Youth Climate Corps is an invitation to the country’s youth to mobilize to confront our civilizational challenge and step into a future with meaning and purpose.

By Juan Vargas Alba

With President Biden’s upcoming visit to Ottawa, I wonder if Prime Minister Trudeau might be a bit embarrassed. After all, the historic Inflation Reduction Act in the U.S. includes “unprecedented investments to tackle climate change.” Meanwhile, the European Union recently introduced a proposal to encourage clean energy and climate investments. Canada hasn’t even entered this race to the top for net zero.

by Seth Klein

Most young people know — the climate crisis is coming for them. One way or another, on their terms or not, it's going to enlist them. It won't ask their permission. Best to take pre-emptive action on one’s own terms. A Youth Climate Corps (YCC) would represent an invitation to Canada’s youth to mobilize to confront today’s gravest threat: the climate emergency. It could be a new flagship public program and, funded at sufficient scale, would send an electrifying signal. It would indicate our governments are indeed entering genuine emergency mode and would communicate to young people that they are being called to join in a grand societal transformation.

by Seth Klein

Emergency responses need to look and sound and feel like emergency responses. Emergencies require that leaders tell the truth about the severity of the crisis and what is required to combat it — frequently, consistently and coherently. Yet, nothing about the climate communications we currently hear and see comes close to approximating such an invitation. The current official communications (or lack thereof) is producing a form of cognitive dissonance — is this an emergency or not? That confusion needs to end. We need a new, well-resourced climate communications agency — a Climate Emergency Information Board.

By Anjali Appadurai

The new year opened with a significant step forward for Canadian climate policy as the Glasgow Statement takes effect. Canada signed onto the policy, which promises to end international public support for the oil and gas industry, with an accompanying pledge to tackle the much higher domestic support for the industry by mid-2023.

By Anjali Appadurai

It’s the season of giving, of family and connection and generosity. It’s also the aftermath of yet another lukewarm UN climate COP and another year of inadequate climate policy — and it’s a strange mix of these themes that I’m reflecting on as I consider what climate action must look like in the year to come.

As Premier Eby settles into his new role, some important changes appear to be afoot, reflected in both the language being used and the people being appointed to key roles. Last week, this was most apparent with the unveiling of Eby’s new cabinet and in the mandate letters given to new ministers. This piece digs into the choices and mandate letters of cabinet members Josie Osborne, Bowinn Ma, Niki Sharma and Brenda Bailey.

By Stewart Phillip, Peter McCartney, Seth Klein, Tracey Saxby, Alexandra Woodsworth, Kiki Wood, John T. Young, Jens Wieting

Opinion: To avoid the worst impacts of climate change, we must stop building coal, oil and gas projects.