Silla Watt-Cloutier speaks live today at 7:45pm - Streaming online

IsumaTV will be streaming Silla Watt-Cloutier's speech live from Iqaluit on Inuit Knowledge, Human Rights and Climate Change at the 9th annual LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium.

The speech will be streamed live from 7:45pm-10pm EST at http://www.isuma.tv/hi/en

The LaFontaine-Baldwin symposium, founded by John Ralston Saul in 2000, is one of the "most prominent lecture series on issues concerning the public good in Canada." For the first time in history the lecture series will be held in Canada's North with Silla Watt-Cloutier. Watt-Cloutier is an Inuit climate activist and 2007 Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Siila Watt-Cloutier has worked on a range of social and environmental issues affecting the Inuit, and has most recently focused on persistent organic pollutants and global climate change.

Going low-carbon will create millions of jobs

A recent study has revealed that the US alone would gain 2 million jobs by relying almost entirely on renewable or low-carbon sources of electricity. The study was conducted by the Copenhagen Climate Council.

Jose Manuel Barroso, the current EU Commission President hailing from Portugal, says that similar commitments to wind energy and other clean sources could produce a million new jobs in Europe since ``change also brings big economic opportunities.’’

Barroso made his comments on Day 2 of a business climate summit where CEOs of major world businesses are focusing on how to help politicians negotiate the new global climate treaty in Copenhagen in December to succeed the Kyoto protocol.

What will be left for the next generation?

I received a really nice email from students at my old high school Heart Lake Secondary School in Brampton who (like me when I was in high school) are really concerned about the environment and issues of social justice and youth today.

I've given them the space to be able to express their thoughts on this pertinent issue - and if there's one thing I know for sure, is that allowing students and youth the ability and the platform to express opinions on issues today will not only hopefully create a dialogue, but will help shape them to become leaders of the next generation.

Without further ado...

What will be left for the next generation?
Lilly Vijayasekar and Karen Dhillon

This is no ordinary letter about keeping the world green. This is also not just a reminder to recycle. This is a letter from two high school students who want to see a future for the next generation. As privileged as we are now, we have taken a class in our final year of secondary school that looks at the environment in depth. We are scared about what the future will hold for our generation. Global warming is happening now and we as a global community have to do something about this issue. Evidence clearly shows an increase in the world’s temperature since the Industrial Revolution. With the world heating up, we are in serious danger. Humans have essentially become a cancer to the Earth. Our irresponsibility and ignorance has clearly left Earth in jeopardy. We, as humans, have become so lazy, that we have changed the future of our plant significantly. We should be stewards to the environment and we have an obligation to protect and save the world. As Bramptonians, we watch the creation of numerous Suburban neighbourhoods which are completely dependent on fossil fuels. Think of how much carbon dioxide an individual in Brampton emits by simply driving to work and back home. It is unsustainable and yet we still continue on with a path that is destroying the world.

As young adults, we want everyone to know that we all can make a difference and help. Recycling is a great way to start. If we all understand our recycling rules better and even pressure Peel to collect a broader array of recyclable items, we are changing the world positively. Please, hear this out from students who care about their future. We want to live in a world where we do not have to fix the mistakes that the generation left before us. Thanks.

Here we go again...

So Toronto got its first smog advisory of the year. It's almost become like an unofficial sign to the start of summer, or in the case of CP24, a dramatic news event requiring in-depth coverage.

Although smog advisories are mainly for those at risk (such as the ever-increasing asthma sufferers) to protect themselves, smog advisories are also really strong reminders to perhaps not do some laundry or use really energy intensive appliances, walk or bike, or if you're really brave, stay away off the air conditioning.

Last year we only had 13 smog days compared to 29 in 2007, but that was credited mainly to the heavy downpour all summer.

It's almost a sadistic hobby of weather watchers, but, how many smog days do you think we'll be having this year?

What is climate change?

A great video that describes the basics of climate change:

Climate Change: The 21st century health threat?

What's buzzing around some internet news sites today is a report released that says that the health effects of climate change will affect billions and will become the biggest global threat in the 21st century.

Changing patterns of mosquito-borne diseases and exacerbated food and water scarcities will become the major side effects of climate change with perilous health consequences, says the 40-page report titled "Managing the Health Effects of Climate Change", released jointly by the Lancet and University College London.

The researchers analyzed how projects of an average global temperature rise of 2 C to 6 C would result in more heat waves as well, such as the one in 2003 that caused up to 70,000 deaths in Europe.

"The inequity of climate change — with the rich causing most of the problem and the poor initially suffering most of the consequences — will prove to be a source of historical shame to our generation if nothing is done to address it," the authors wrote.

Auditor finds government predictions of greenhouse gas reductions "exaggerated"

The commissioner of the environment and sustainable development reported today that the federal government has overstated greenhouse gas reductions expected as a result of its climate change plans, and is failing to count the actual reductions to see if they match with predictions.

"Without a system to count real emission reductions that result from its measures, the government will not be able to inform Parliament whether the measures are working," said Scott Vaughan, the commissioner of the report and also employee of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada. 

The audit found that (as summarized by the CBC):

• Environment Canada overstated expected reductions in greenhouse gas emissions between 2008-2012. Vaughan blamed the problem on accounting methods, delays in implementing programs and the complicated nature of the calculations.
• The government is unable to monitor actual reductions resulting from some of the measures in its plans, and acknowledges that it lacks such a monitoring system.
• The plans are not fully transparent.
• The plans are missing other information required by the Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act, including how total national greenhouse gas emission levels compare with Canada's Kyoto target or whether measures under the plan were put in place on time.

So with generally a weak target (at least comparatively to scientifically recommended targets), and weak accountability and monitoring, is Canada really going anywhere in terms of actual greenhouse gas reductions?

US carbon bill threatens Alberta tar sands

A US legislation that would make it difficult for US refineries to sell fuel from the Alberta oil sands has Canadian government officials and those close to the controversial carbon-spewing project nervous.

Federal Environment Minister Jim Prentice said on Tuesday that the Conservative government had "issues" with the draft bill that would impose a low carbon standard on American transportation fuels, and might make discussions between the two country leaders tense.

Under the draft bill, refineries would be required to reduce annual life cycle emissions from their fuel to 2005 levels between 2014 and 2022, and then cut them by at least another five per cent between 2023 and 2030. Because the life cycle emissions from oil sands crude is up to 30% higher than in conventional oil, Canadian officials are worried the country’s energy industry would be devastated by a national low carbon fuel standard in the U.S.

Will this US carbon bill finally wake up policy-makers in Canada that continuing with unsustainable practices of a refinery with emissions a lot higher than regular oil is increasingly becoming unacceptable?

Saskatchewan and Montana join forces on CO2 capture and storage

The province of Saskatchewan and the state of Montana will be joining forces in a cross-border initiative to develop one of the largest international carbon capture and storage demonstration projects in the world.

"We are taking the lead in the development of new technologies that capture carbon from coal and gas fired power generation, then store it deep underground. This project will help Saskatchewan to meet the federal government's target to reduce GHG emissions by 20 per cent below 2006 levels by 2020," said Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall.

The plans for the partnership include:
-constructing a technology-neutral CO2 capture plant at an existing coal-fired electrical generating station in Saskatchewan
-construction of a North American CO2 storage facility in eastern Montana
-construction of a pipeline infrastructure for the transportation of CO2 from Saskatchewan to the storage facility in Montana

Provincial officials say construction may begin as early as September and be in operation in the summer of 2011.

Linking the economic recovery with climate action

Economist Nicholas Stern discusses in the following video how the economic downturn is affecting the climate agenda, and causing leaders to question if climate action should be relegated to the backburner. However, others argue that green investment can stimulate growth that is direly needed.

The interview was conducted by McKinsey’s Matt Hirschland in Brussels on January 26, 2009.