If you’re reading this on the web or someone forwarded this e-mail newsletter to you, you can sign up for Globe Climate and all Globe newsletters here.
Good afternoon, and welcome to Globe Climate, a newsletter about climate change, environment and resources in Canada.
And also welcome to 2023! Remember 2022? In hindsight, it wasn’t all that bad.
One funny thing about trying to remember the last year, is how much we forget. How well had you been following the latest breakthroughs in space, climate science, biology and more? Try our 10th annual romp through the greatest (and weirdest) discoveries of the year. The Globe’s science quiz is five galaxies worth of fun
Pst. Want to take it to the next level? try our 2022 news quiz.
Now, let’s catch you up on other news.
Noteworthy reporting this week:
- After COP15: The world now has a plan to save biodiversity. What’s next? Also: A look at some of the people at COP15, in photos
- Electric Vehicles: Ottawa sets ambitious targets for zero-emissions vehicles. Can they be met?
- Nuclear: Canada’s first new nuclear power reactor in 30 years has embarked on a crucial review. Can it pass quickly?
- Wildlife: Loons are slowly disappearing. Researchers want Canadians to help them find out why
- Food and drink: What can we expect from wine in 2023? Climate chaos will decide
- Greenbelt: Ontario government pushes ahead with Greenbelt development despite broad concern
- Investing: New Canadian investing rulebook would disqualify new oil and gas projects from ‘green’ tag
- World: ‘The brink of famine’: Drought puts an entire generation of Somalis at risk
- Photo Essay from The Narwhal: Our top images from 2022 speak to the resilience of nature and the power of the human spirit
A deeper dive
A Buddhist monk walks as he prays during a ceremony for Vesak Day at the Borobudur temple in Magelang, Central Java province, Indonesia, May 18, 2019.ANTARA FOTO/Reuters
Where to travel in 2023 if you care about climate change
To see the full list, check out the article on our site!
If you truly care about saving the planet, you’ll make a New Year’s resolution to stop travelling and just stay home. At least, that’s what a climate-change expert will likely tell you. However, the world is still out there. And people want to see it. Enter the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism.
So if you’re going to travel, why not support the economy of a place that’s trying to make a difference? These destinations are committing themselves to creating – and implementing – climate action plans within 12 months of signing, and then publicly reporting on progress annually.
EUROPE, Number of signatories: 51
To experience road trip, history, and nature, Scotland is your place. It’s a must since it’s where the declaration launched – and it was part of the committee that drafted it. But it also has other sustainability bonfides: The country’s Destination Net Zero program, for instance, launched as Glasgow prepared to host the COP26 climate conference in 2021, provides advice and funding to Scottish tourism businesses and destinations.
ASIA Number of signatories: 2
Indonesia is your destination for nature, family friendly, and beaches. More than 17,500 islands make up Indonesia, one of two locations in Asia to sign the declaration. That whopping figure allows it to lay claim as the largest archipelago in the world. The most popular is Bali, of course, for its white-sand beaches, luxury resorts, ancient temples (more than 20,000) and Ubud Monkey Forest, a nature reserve where you can observe long-tailed macaques in their natural habitat.
NORTH AMERICA, Number of signatories: 9
Try out Barbados for beaches, romance, and gastronomy. What this sunny Caribbean Island lacks in size – it’s only 430 square kilometres – it makes up for in coastline, culture and commitment to climate. Visit Barbados, the only Caribbean destination that has signed the declaration, is developing a customized calculator that will help assess the carbon footprint of visitors and businesses
SOUTH AMERICA, Number of signatories: 2
Check out Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil for nature, adventure, and history. The state of Mato Grosso do Sul, located in the midwestern part of the country bordering Paraguay and Bolivia, is full of nature’s riches and cowboy culture (as a result of the large agriculture and cattle-raising economy). And it’s also one of only two destinations in South America to sign the declaration (the other is Machu Picchu).
What else you missed
- An activist in office: Steven Guilbeault’s first year as environment minister
- Ottawa says 60 per cent of vehicle sales must be electric by 2030
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau talks climate change with King Charles
- Restaurants debut new takeout ware amid phase-in of single-use plastics ban
- B.C. timber industry in throes of change, as Premier David Eby warns of ‘exhausted forests’
- Nova Scotia names first member of panel studying environmental racism in province
- Canadian polar bears near ‘bear capital’ dying at fast rate
- COVID-19 pandemic helped Quebec surpass its emissions target: environment minister
- Warm winter breaks temperature records in Europe
- Climate activists dig in to defend German village from coal mine expansion
- Climate change causing more frequent warm winter temperatures, extreme weather expert says
- B.C. pauses electricity connections for crypto mining, citing ‘massive’ consumption
- Climate activists spray paint French Prime Minister’s office
- TC Energy receives regulatory approval to restart part of Keystone pipeline shut by spill in Kansas
Opinion and analysis
Robyn Urback: Here comes Canada’s (sort of) ban on (select) plastics that are (often) single-use
John Richards and Christopher Mabry: When the wind isn’t blowing, the sun isn’t shining: the case for nuclear energy
Tarun Nayar: In praise of fungi. Why 2022 was the year of the mushroom
Kelly Cryderman: Despite Ottawa’s rebrand of pending policy, Alberta finds ‘just-transition’ anything but that
Green Investing
ESG’s greenwashing pains are overdue – and leading to a better picture for risk management
The investor love affair with ESG is down, but not out. Plus, if anything, the turmoil in ESG has helped investors and the public better understand what it is, and what it is not, as the world grapples with social inequity and a climate crisis.
At its core, ESG is a series of measures used to determine if a company or fund is protected against non-financial and policy-related risks tied to climate change, worker safety, boardroom diversity and other factors.
The fading lustre of ESG is not surprising as war rages in Ukraine and inflation puts pressure on corporate and personal finances, said Kent Kaufield, ESG markets leader and chief sustainability officer at Ernst & Young LLP. He also sees the questions about ESG as part of a maturing process.
- BlackRock’s pitch for socially conscious investing antagonizes all sides
- Shareholders use proxy voting to fuel investor activism around ESG
- Advisors welcome scrutiny on ESG funds but say there are still many challenges facing investors
Making waves
New year new you? Each week The Globe will profile a Canadian making a difference. Do you know an engaged individual? Someone who represents the real engines pursuing change in the country? E-mail us at GlobeClimate@globeandmail.com to tell us about them.
Photo of the week
Some skiers practice in the area of the Semmering ski school in front of the Semmering mountain with artificially snowed ski slopes in wintersport resort Zauberberg im Semmering, Lower Austria, on January 08, 2023. Many Alpine ski resorts have closed fully or partially because of the lack of snow and high temperatures as Europe has seen what experts have said is "extreme" warm winter weather.ALEX HALADA/AFP/Getty Images
Guides and Explainers
- Want to learn to invest sustainably? We have a class for that: Green Investing 101 newsletter course for the climate-conscious investor. Not sure you need help? Take our quiz to challenge your knowledge.
- We’ve rounded up our reporters’ content to help you learn about what a carbon tax is and just generally how Canada will change because of climate change.
- We have ways to make your travelling more sustainable and if you like to read, here are books to help the environmentalist in you grow, as well as a downloadable e-book of Micro Skills - Little Steps to Big Change.
Catch up on Globe Climate
- COP15 reaches historic biodiversity agreement
- Biodiversity, genetics, and commercial gain at COP15
- Why Montreal’s COP15 is worth our attention
- Canada drops the first National Adaptation Strategy
We want to hear from you. Email us: GlobeClimate@globeandmail.com. Do you know someone who needs this newsletter? Send them to our Newsletters page.