I love the phrase how might we? How might we collectively envision, sow the seeds for, build and support a sustainable and socially just society? I find it keeps me somewhat positive and focused on the possible. It allows me to move away from the pain of watching wildfires, floods, violence and the bombing of our global democratic systems. It forces me to dig deeper into our collective responses, and it gives me the opportunity to participate in the healing that comes naturally from contribution.
And so with that context, I read an article on work to update B.C.’s climate plan. Being in Ontario, I wanted to understand more about provincial efforts across the country and so started to dig in. After reading the background documents and survey questions, I was left with a familiar feeling of frustration that we are consistently avoiding big, important areas and spinning our wheels with lots of effort but limited impact.
First and foremost, thank to all those who have and continue to lead, create, and advance urgent and critically important climate work including the foundational work outlined in CleanBC’s 2024 Climate Change Accountability Report. I know this work is painstaking effort that is undervalued and intentionally opposed by many – from those with vested interests in the existing system to those who are fearful of the future or cannot imagine an alternative to our current system.
I hope I am wrong but from what I see, B.C.’s Climate Action Plan approach will not enable us to truly address the climate crisis we are facing. Please feel free to challenge my thinking. From a preliminary analysis, I see three issue areas that are core barriers to meaningful progress.
1. There is no recognition of the systemic nature of the current climate crisis and no vision that is focused on building a sustainable socially just future
The report begins with an Executive Summary stating that “B.C.’s current policy landscape does not put us on track to meet our 2030 targets. However, we are reducing emissions intensity as we grow a cleaner economy”. This starting place highlights a significant gap in emissions and a massive gap in paradigm. It demonstrates a mindset of growth as a higher-level priority and emissions reductions as a lower focus. There is no recognition that infinite growth on a planet with finite resources is impossible. This paradigm is reflective of a limited commitment to addressing the climate crisis. Commitment seems to be paired to growth and contingent on an ability to avoid reckoning with uncomfortable truths. This mindset shapes investment decisions, programs and policies. It is a key reason why despite a $3.5 billion investment, the province’s emissions were almost the same as they were in 2007[1].
In addition, while the accountability report identifies sector specific emissions and details meaningful interventions, there is willful avoidance of meaningful discussion around key drivers of emissions. For example, in the 46 page report, there is no explicit analysis of expected emissions impacts of the LNG build out[2], Bill 15 which enables the fast tracking of energy and resource projects[3], empowerment of the BC Energy Regulator (BCER) which oversees the “province’s growing oil and gas sector …[and is] largely funded by the oil and gas industry[4] or the continued and expected ongoing subsidies of fossil fuels energy projects[5]. I can only see this as willful misleading of the public - by public servants.
Acknowledging the systemic nature of the crisis we find ourselves in, is difficult – it fundamentally challenges our socio-economic system. It creates fear and anxiety around short term economic insecurity. It shines a light on our dependence on the existing system triggering us to protect the way things are.
Avoiding is easier. But it does not get us any closer. Avoiding is investing billions of dollars in good interventions that are completely ineffective at addressing the root issues. Acknowledging the incongruence between growth, expanding fossil fuel infrastructure and emissions reductions does not mean we can or will change the system overnight. Instead, it enables us to recognize root issues and allocate resources to establishing a genuine vision of sustainability, social justice and the system changing efforts required for genuine change. This is what will allow us to make meaningful progress on climate commitments, to effectively use our resources and to build a prosperous and thriving society.
2. There is a superficial use of the breadth of tools available to the government. The current report is focused on documenting the many good interventions that have been made to advance emissions reductions. It includes a breadth of direct investments from rebates for residential retrofits and light duty Zero-Emissions Vehicles as well as some policy levers such as the strengthening of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard.
Unfortunately, when we look at the broader context, we see that the government is weakening policy and limiting it’s use of available tools that can drive meaningful emissions reductions. Bill 15 is described as “a blank cheque that would give the current government – and all those to come – the power to pick priority projects and exempt them from any type of permitting or environmental assessment requirement that it deems is slowing down the project”[6]. Separately, as Ecojustice has flagged, there is a concerning shift to B.C.’s industry policy which went from requiring that all proposed “LNG facilities in or entering the environmental assessment process have a credible plan to have net zero emissions by 2030” to now only needing a “plan to be net-zero ready by 2030 [meaning that] LNG facilities can generate millions of tonnes of climate pollution beyond 2030, if electricity from the B.C. grid is not available”[7]. In parallel, there is no recognition that the current level of climate emissions is directly related to a profit maximization focus by corporations and that governments have the power to shape and incent particular focus areas. What might interventions look like if governments prioritized a sustainable socially just society and started to design permitting and taxing systems accordingly?
Another very simple example of failing to use existing tools is the complete absence of any mention of sustainable procurement. This is an area of my work and so I cannot fail to notice. The provincial and municipal governments in B.C. spend billions of dollars on goods and services. Integrating sustainability-oriented specifications for renewable energy and circularity and weight for delivery on climate and social priorities is just smart business – it uses existing dollars to drive existing policy objectives. Not working to do so is a sign of inappropriate stewardship of taxpayer dollars. An analysis of public sector procurement I led found governments had superficial and narrow integration of sustainability into purchasing despite the climate crisis[8].
3. The level of commitment in addressing the climate crisis is completely incongruent with scale of the crisis, as well as the current and potential health, safety and emotional pain for B.C. communities. B.C. has been hard hit by climate related disasters. These include the 2021 heat dome and wildfires which resulted in over 600 heat- related deaths[9] and consumed the town of Lytton[10], the 2024 atmospheric rivers contributing “to dangerous flooding, deadly landslides and road washouts”[11] as well as droughts and deep freezes that are wreaking havoc on fruit farmers and vineyards, requiring tens of millions of government investments including $70 million to help “grape, berry and tree fruit producers replace dead and diseased plans with more climate-resilient varieties”[12].
Given this context, the efforts documented in the 2024 Climate Change Accountability Report are equivalent to showing up to WWII with a butter knife. As Seth Klein brilliantly shows us in A Good War – Mobilizing Canada for the Climate Emergency, we do know how to take effective and strategic action in cases of emergency. We know what it takes to mobilize businesses and millions of people. We know what political will and commitment look like – and this is not it.
Where there is a will, there is a way. We need values-based leaders with a will to build a sustainable socially just future, the courage to recognize the systemic nature of the issues we face and the commitment to use all the tools at their disposal to help build this future.
***I welcome all comments on this analysis. If you feel it is missing information or fails to consider key areas, please reach out / comment.
About the Author
Monica Da Ponte is the Principal Shift & Build, a consultancy dedicated to advancing a sustainable, socially just future. She applies a systems lens to deliver services spanning strategic planning, program design, revenue generation, research, facilitation, partnership development and implementation support. Monica welcomes consulting projects and innovative collaborations that work to drive meaningful, lasting change.
[1] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-emissions-targets-failed-2025
[2] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-lng-projects-2025
[3] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-bill-15-controversy-explained
[4] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-energy-regulator-explained
[5] https://www.policyalternatives.ca/news-research/painting-itself-into-a-corner-lng-and-the-climate-affordability-trade-off-in-b-c
[6] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-bill-15-controversy-explained
[7] https://ecojustice.ca/news/ecojustice-reacts-to-b-c-government-lng-policy-shift
[8] https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/14/5550
[9] https://science.gc.ca/site/science/en/blogs/science-health/surviving-heat-impacts-2021-western-heat-dome-canada
[10] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/01/lytton-wildfire-heatwave-british-columbia-canada
[11] https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/ten-most-impactful-weather-stories/2024.html
[12] https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-apples-co-op-closure/