A push for systems change
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James Meadowcroft, Professor in the School of Public Policy and Administration, Carleton University
There is increasing recognition that addressing climate change requires not just trimming emissions but stopping them – and drawing down anything that’s left over. The carbon intensity associated with all our big social production activities, from how we move and house people to how we produce energy, food and goods, makes this especially challenging.
While transitioning large socio-technical systems is a complex undertaking, knowledge from past changes can provide insights on how to move forward. Most transitions happen incrementally, where improvements – like adding more houses to cities or more generation stations to the electricity grid – take place over time.
But occasionally, systems go through big step changes, and that’s what we need to achieve due to the urgency of climate change. There is much we can already do. Areas where we’re ready to scale up efforts range from creating clean electricity grids, getting internal combustion engine vehicles off the road and decarbonizing buildings, and there are innovators working on longer-term solutions; for example, for air travel.
Shifting socio-technical systems requires addressing all the social, political and economic dimensions. The electricity system, for example, is more than just wires, generators and transformers – it includes pricing systems, government regulation, consumer behaviour and more. Since there is so much to do, we have to prioritize actions that lead to systems change. Yet from previous transitions, we also know that they typically come with considerable distributional consequences. There will be winners and losers; there will be jobs that disappear and new jobs that will come, so paying attention to those at risk of being left behind is important.
Supporting climate-tech
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Sarah Goodman, President and CEO, B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy (CICE)
Clean technology isn’t just about climate change – it’s about outpacing global competition, driving productivity and guarding against national security and energy vulnerabilities in an unpredictable world, all while delivering affordable energy solutions. That’s why supporting our climate technology innovators is vital to securing a more sustainable and competitive future.
Globally, 55 per cent of the technologies crucial for achieving net-zero emissions, including electric vehicles and renewable energy generation, are available and cost competitive today – or will be soon. Yet significant strides are still needed to validate actionable decarbonization pathways, unlock capital and accelerate the development and adoption of essential net-zero technologies.
With 13 cleantech companies on the Global Cleantech 100 list, Canada stands out and is second only to the U.S. on the 2024 Global Cleantech Innovation Index. Despite favourable conditions – including public support for climate action, abundant resources, a skilled and diverse workforce, and a supportive startup culture – doing better is always possible. Canadian cautiousness can impede investments in research and development, capital flows into startups, and corporate adoption of emerging technologies.
The B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy is the province’s largest climate investor, providing non-dilutive investments to advance breakthrough solutions and de-risk industry adoption. Our focus is on the next wave of technologies: low-carbon hydrogen, batteries and energy storage, carbon management and bio- and synthetic fuels. Launching May 31 is a first-of-its-kind call for wildfire tech innovation, investing up to $3-million in solutions related to wildfire prevention, mitigation and adaptation.
We are committed to building a collaborative support system – together with Indigenous rights holders, communities, government, industry, investors, venture builders and academia – for reframing climate change: from a wicked problem to a transformative opportunity.
Decarbonizing buildings
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Thomas Mueller, President and CEO, Canada Green Building Council
The built environment makes up roughly 40 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, and there is increased attention on making buildings more sustainable across the globe. Last year, for example, COP28 unveiled the Buildings Breakthrough, an initiative where more than two dozen nations committed to accelerating zero-emissions, resilient buildings.
In Canada, we also see more recognition of the need to decarbonize buildings to reach our climate goals; we also face a housing crisis. To build the 5.11 million units of housing Canada needs, including affordable housing, we must innovate. We need to build quality homes, and we need to have all the parties involved – including municipalities, developers, homebuilders and innovators – to come up with solutions that work for the bottom line and sustainability.
Industry needs to invest in research and innovation that can help advance technologies and best practices that result in quality housing that is energy efficient and resilient. We know it can be done. Over the last 20 years, we certified close to 6,000 LEED buildings of any type, and we’ve seen that when we invest in quality construction and low-carbon elements, these buildings will serve us well in decades to come without needing costly retrofits or upgrades anytime soon.
At the Canada Green Building Council, we work with senior levels of government to explore ways to help to bring down costs for innovators. We’re also supporting industry to increase investments in research and development.
Addressing climate change and the housing shortage requires that we all work together to de-risk the implementation of new innovation, so it can then be replicated at scale to make buildings and communities more resilient and sustainable.
Mission driven research
Plant-based high-performance materials
Our society’s reliance on fossil fuels goes beyond energy systems to encompass everyday materials, including those used in shoes. Evoco Ltd., led by CEO Jason Robinson, is accelerating the switch from conventional oil-based components to plant-based material solutions. Its bio-foam FATES, for example, is designed to cut carbon emissions by up to 70 per cent while maintaining high-performance standards. Evoco helps numerous consumer brands defossilize their supply chains and has partnered with leading footwear brands to use FATES in the form of insoles and midsoles with enhanced mechanical properties. Their high bio-content (up to 85 per cent) minimizes the product’s end-of-life impact through advanced detoxifying properties, and has already resulted in significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
Seaweed-based plastics
Combining a mission to reduce plastic waste and a partnership with multiple Indigenous nations in British Columbia, Ranah Chavoshi, co-founder and CEO, PhyCo Technologies Inc., focuses on developing an earth-digestible and non-toxic bioplastic made from local seaweed for the Canadian agri-foods sector. A collaboration to supply seaweed for research and development is in place with two First Nations partners, who earn direct funding for harvesting efforts. A pilot project under development focuses on removing invasive seaweed species from the local environment of another Indigenous community and utilizing it to make seaweed-based plastic. The intensive R&D process is yielding results in the form of advanced seaweed-based plastics formulation, production processes and properties.
Compostable menstrual products
Addressing the critical issue of menstrual product waste, which contributes to 20 billion products ending up in landfills annually, Aruna Revolution Health Inc., led by CEO Rashmi Prakash, an engineering professor at UBC, developed an innovative, 100 per cent compostable menstrual pad that utilizes natural fibres derived from repurposed food and crop waste. In addition to diverting waste from landfills, this pioneering process is devoid of harmful PFAs and chemicals that have a profound environmental impact. From this menstrual product, which the company has started to distribute, the team’s vision extends to revolutionizing diaper and medical PPE markets with compostable alternatives.
Decarbonizing powersports
Shifting transportation systems to low-carbon fuels is an important step to reduce emissions, and Samuel Bruneau, CEO and co-founder of Taiga Motors Inc., set out to tackle the disproportionate impact of the powersports industry on the environment. Each fully electric snowmobile and personal watercraft delivered by Taiga has an impact equivalent to removing 40 cars off the road. With over 500 Taiga vehicles now in operation, this amounts to a substantial impact, and the company is ramping up production that utilizes a proprietary electric propulsion system to make powersports environmentally friendly as well as blissfully quiet.
Verifiably compostable
As the market for compostable plastic alternatives is exploding, this raises the question whether product claims – that materials will break down in compost – are true or false. Love-Ese Chile, founder & CEO, Regenerative Waste Labs (RWL), set out to verify these claims with a unique lab that tests biomaterial disintegration in compost. The RWL team is benchmarking the performance of over a dozen bioproducts, including food packaging, textiles, menstrual products and more, becoming a leader in Canada’s circular bioeconomy. The team supports innovators in their quest to recover organic waste, find markets for agricultural residuals and other waste streams – helping transform and divert thousands of tonnes of waste from landfill.
Advertising feature produced by Randall Anthony Communications. The Globe’s editorial department was not involved.