441-01675 (Environment)

The Minister of the Environment and Climate Change has a mandate to provide Canadians with environmental information in the public interest and promote and encourage practices and conduct that help to preserve the environment, in cooperation with partners such as provincial governments, Indigenous peoples, not-for-profit organizations, academic institutions and others to advance this mission. Last year, the Minister was also mandated by the Prime Minister to engage with Canadians to better communicate the impact of climate change. Environmental education is critical to tackling the environmental challenges Canada is facing today and will face tomorrow. It is also an important part of Canada’s international commitments. Canada is actively engaged in the work of Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). ACE emphasizes the importance of education to address the climate crisis and promote sustainability. Its overarching goal is to empower people to engage in climate action through education, training, public awareness, public participation, public access to information, and international cooperation on these issues. It also emphasizes the importance of youth voices in climate change action.

These obligations are taken very seriously, and the Department recognizes that more needs to be done to improve access to climate and environmental education. The views expressed in this petition will be taken under consideration.

In Canada, provinces and territories are responsible for organizing, delivering, and assessing all levels of education. The Government of Canada contributes to sustainability knowledge and education through various means including by undertaking and funding critical research that provides the foundation for environmental and sustainability education; working with and providing funding and support to diverse partners across Canada in support of this mission, and leading the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy.

Information, Research and Science

The Government of Canada has conducted a national assessment process of how and why Canada’s climate is changing. This assessment discusses the impacts of these changes on communities, environment, and the economy, and details how Canadians are adapting. A series of reports that followed the national assessment raise awareness of the issues facing the country and provide information to Canadians to support sound decisions and actions that address climate change and adapt to its impacts.

The Government of Canada is also implementing the Roadmap for Open Science. This will make the scientific research process more inclusive and accessible to scientists and Canadians by making data and publications open and making research understandable and useful. In addition, the Government of Canada is developing a climate data strategy to ensure that the private sector and communities have access to data to inform planning and infrastructure investments.

At Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), the Canadian Centre for Climate Services provides information to improve Canadians’ understanding of how the climate is changing and how those changes could affect them, as well as guidance and resources to make climate-smart decisions.

The Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators program publishes high-quality indicators that provide Canadians with information on Canada's performance on environmental sustainability issues including climate change, water quality and availability, and species at risk.

Research shows that Canadians trust scientists. To leverage its scientific resources, ECCC has developed a pilot program, in French and English, which helps its scientists, researchers and science experts to become better science communicators and harness storytelling and presentation techniques to reach and motivate more Canadians to take environmental and climate action. Once trained, these experts are connected to the Canadian public through a network of schools, museums, science centres as well as non-governmental organizations.

Working with Partners

The Program of Applied Research on Climate Action in Canada (PARCA) https://impact.canada.ca/en/behavioural-science/parca is a multi-year program of research on climate change, running from September 2021 to March 2024. It is a partnership between Environment and Climate Change Canada, Natural Resources Canada, and the Privy Council Office’s Impact and Innovation Unit. PARCA is using behavioural science for an evidenced-based, data-driven approach to understanding what drives choices and behaviours and what barriers stand in the way of greater climate and environmental action. This will help point the way to more impactful interventions by factoring in actual behaviour. Behaviourally informed solutions will be tested online and then in the real world for their potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote climate adaptation at the individual and community levels. This work will generate new insights on a rapid timeframe and use them to inform policy development, program design, and communications. A large network of internal and external partners, including partners at multilateral organizations and an advisory committee of subject matter experts, are guiding the research program to help ensure its relevance, rigour, and impact. PARCA data pointed directly to the need for the kinds of partnerships ECCC is developing to build climate literacy.

Youth have an important role to play in climate action. Today’s youth and future generations will face the gravest environmental and climate consequences. The youth population is also particularly susceptible to mis- and dis-information. Meaningful youth engagement and education in environment and climate action is essential in building a more sustainable future. That is why the Environment and Climate Change Youth Council (ECCYC) was formed in August 2022. The ECCYC is a group of young Canadians who are passionate about protecting the environment and taking climate action. They have been selected to advise on key environmental and climate issues to inform decisions by the Government of Canada. The ECCYC is engaged on the Government’s climate communication and education initiatives and plays an important role in connecting with diverse community, national and international networks to help mobilize youth for climate action.

The Government of Canada also contributes to sustainability knowledge and education by funding research through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

In addition, ECCC’s EcoAction Community Funding Program provides financial support to non-profit and non-government organizations for Canadian communities to take on local action-based projects that produce measurable and positive effects on the environment and to build their capacity to sustain these activities in the future. EcoAction funds projects that lead to tangible environmental results, engage the community to improve the environment, increase environmental awareness and capacity in communities, and result in sustainable outcomes and engagement following project completion.

The Environmental Damages Fund (EDF) is a specified purpose account administered by ECCC, on behalf of the Government of Canada, to direct funds received from fines, court orders and voluntary payments to priority projects that will benefit Canada’s natural environment. EDF funding is available for projects that address one or more of the program’s priority areas. Priority is given to projects that restore the natural environment and conserve wildlife, improve environmental quality, undertake research and development on environmental restoration and improve and/or advance education and awareness on issues affecting the health of the natural environment. This could include, for example, promoting education related to environmental damage restoration, including training for the assessment and restoration of damage, or for increased awareness and compliance with environmental regulations.

ECCC set up two Grants and Contributions programs with different sources of funding to address the need for better access to environmental education across the country.

For fiscal years 2022- 2024, recipients have received or are set to receive funding to advance environmental literacy by 1) supporting teacher training programs, 2) improving access to environmental educational resources, and 3) conducting further research to generate evidence-based solutions for environmental education in Canada.

On October 4, 2023, a call for proposals was launched for a new and innovative Environmental Literacy Funding program. ECCC is partnering with philanthropic organizations to support projects that can increase environmental literacy in young Canadians. Strong collaborations with trusted partners in the field can help make long-term gains in tackling climate change and biodiversity loss. ECCC’s $12.5 million investment will be bolstered by interested philanthropic organizations wanting to team up on long-term solutions to tackle climate change. A minimum of $2.5 million of the $12.5 million envelope will be dedicated to Indigenous-led initiatives.

ECCC has been engaging stakeholders for the past 2 years focusing on environmental learning. Besides setting up two working groups, one for Provinces and Territories and the other for other science-based Government of Canada Departments, the department has also met with national and international experts, NGOs, youth, formal and non-formal education professionals. Three daylong dialogue days bringing together key actors from diverse sectors (youth and children, education, academia, NGOs, government, museums and science centres, etc) were held between December 2022 and August 2023. ECCC also funded a Youth Climate Lab to conduct policy research with youth on environmental literacy. Key conclusions emerging from these consultations were that nearly every aspect of a young person’s future will be affected by climate – their jobs, their homes, energy use, transportation, food, water, health, and more, and that environmental literacy is a key mitigation and adaptation solution to climate change and biodiversity loss.

 ECCC has drafted a discussion paper to work toward a Pan-Canadian Framework on Environmental Learning that will be posted for consultation on consultation.gc.ca later this year. Indigenous communities and youth will also be consulted. A “What we heard” report will be drafted and presented to key stakeholders to help the drafting of the Framework in 2024.

ECCC also works regularly with other federal partners to ensure sustained public communications about the various programs and incentives available to Canadians to support their environmental actions. ECCC is also developing a long-term multi-faceted social marketing campaign that will aim to provide Canadians with clear, consistent, and evidence-informed information about the environment and climate change. This campaign is expected to launch at the end of 2023.

Federal Sustainable Development Strategy

The Government of Canada provides federal leadership on environmental and sustainability issues through the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy, as detailed in the Federal Sustainable Development Act. Key aspects of this work are openness and transparency in providing information about sustainability in Canada. The Federal Sustainable Development Strategy brings the federal government’s sustainable development priorities, goals, targets and actions together in one place and enables parliamentarians and Canadians to track progress.

All federal organizations subject to the Federal Sustainable Development Act are also required to develop a Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy every three years and report on its progress. These documents provide specific details on all departments’ plans and actions that advance sustainable development in Canada.

As is stated by the Federal Sustainable Development Act, the Government of Canada recognizes the importance of involving Indigenous peoples in developing the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy given their Traditional Knowledge and unique understanding of, and connection to, Canada’s lands and waters. Indigenous youth will inherit the results of Canada’s sustainable development efforts. It is critical that no future generation of Indigenous youth is “left behind”.