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The paper explains the findings of the MC3 Project (Meeting the Climate Change Challenge). This project brought together over 100 researchers, practitioners, civil-society leaders, and policy-makers, led by researchers from Royal Roads University, Simon Fraser University, and the University of British Columbia, with 12 major research partners from the public and private sectors, including the Union of British Columbia municipalities. Researchers conducted a detailed evaluation of 11 leading, yet different, municipalities across the province to identify the leading innovators and innovations on climate action. The case studies revealed the following key drivers of innovation, in order of prominence: the legislative and policy framework, supported by provincially led incentives and tools, access to partnership funding and intermediary support, and framing the issue as critically important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

British Columbia's introduction in 2008 of a revenue-neutral carbon tax shift was controversial. This analysis compares changes in fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and gross domestic product (GDP) between British Columbia and the rest of Canada. It finds that in the four years since the tax was introduced, British Columbia's per capita consumption of fuels subject to the tax has declined by 19 percent compared to the rest of Canada. At the same time, its economy has kept pace with the rest of Canada. British Columbia's experience mirrors the European experience with carbon tax shifting and should inform the federal debate on climate change policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Social Cost of Carbon (SCC) is being adopted for systematic use in cost-benefit analysis (CBA) conducted by the Government of Canada. Although there are potential efficiency gains from its application, we argue that the SCC may be inappropriate for use in CBA for three reasons. First, as currently calculated, the SCC typically excludes the potential for catastrophes and certain types of climate damages, and assumes perfect substitutability between natural and human capital. For these reasons, it is likely to be biased downwards, and as such would provide misleading advice to policy-makers. Second, the SCC is a global measure of benefits, whereas standard practice in CBA is to include only domestic costs and benefits. Accounting for costs borne outside of Canada and along only one dimension (carbon damage) risks reducing economic efficiency and confusing the users of CBA studies. Third, SCC-based decision-making is unlikely to be consistent with Canadian commitments to international partners on emissions reductions; so its adoption risks institutionalizing non-delivery of those commitments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

L'adaptation aux changements climatiques dans les réseaux d'aires protégées du Canada : état des lieux La Commission mondiale des aires protégées a récemment laissé entendre que les actions en faveur de la conservation sont vouées à l'échec, à moins que ces dernières tiennent compte des changements climatiques. Pour ce faire, les organismes chargés des aires protégées doivent dès maintenant s'assurer de l'intégration des changements climatiques dans les politiques, les cadres de planification et les modes de gestion. Le présent article rend compte des résultats d'une enquête réalisée conjointement par l'Université de Waterloo et le Conseil canadien des aires écologiques. Celle-ci vise à dresser un état des lieux sur l'adaptation aux changements climatiques dans tout le réseau d'aires protégées du Canada qui relève du palier fédéral, provincial ou territorial. Il se dégage de l'analyse plusieurs constats importants. Tout d'abord, sur l'ensemble des organismes chargés des aires protégées que nous avons interrogés, les trois quarts ont déclaré que les changements climatiques ont déjà des effets visibles sur leur réseau d'aires protégées. Ensuite, 94 pour cent des participants à l'enquête estiment qu'au cours des vingt-cinq prochaines années, l'enjeu des changements climatiques sera au cœur de la politique et de la planification des aires protégées. Finalement, malgré la perception voulant que les changements climatiques exercent une pression croissante, la portée des mesures politiques, de planification, de gestion ou de recherche mises de l'avant par la plupart des organismes jusqu'à maintenant demeure limitée. Si 91 pour cent des organismes indiquent ne pas disposer des capacités nécessaires en ce moment pour réagir de façon optimale aux changements climatiques, l'enquête a permis de mettre en évidence un écart significatif entre la perception de la gravité des changements climatiques et la capacité des organismes chargés des aires protégées de s'adapter. La faiblesse du financement, une capacité d'action limitée, et un manque de compréhension des changements climatiques et de leurs répercussions réelles ou potentielles comptent parmi les difficultés auxquelles sont confrontés les organismes canadiens chargés des aires protégées. Il est impératif de les surmonter afin que ces organismes puissent exercer leurs mandats et être en mesure d'assumer leurs responsabilités concernant la protection et la biodiversité des aires, par exemple, la protection de l'intégrité du patrimoine naturel au Canada dans un contexte de changements climatiques accélérés. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Canadian municipalities have direct or indirect control or influence over approximately 52% of greenhouse gas emissions. As early as 1988, some Canadian municipalities embraced the challenge of climate change and through municipal programs recorded emissions reductions. Given the recent publication of the Government of Canada's climate change plan which clearly emphasizes a prominent role for municipalities in meeting greenhouse gas emission reductions, and equally, the federal government's declared intent to provide further financial support to cities and communities through its ‘New Deal for Cities and Communities’, it is important to consider the potential role that Canadian municipalities can take in responding to climate change, and most importantly, the barriers they face in responding. Based on these observations, this paper presents evidence from a survey of 392 Canadian municipalities (all municipalities with populations of more than 10,000 people) conducted between the summer of 1998 and spring of 1999. The survey provides information on a key issue, which despite the date of the survey remains centrally relevant today: barriers to Canadian municipal response. Building on both quantitative and qualitative results from the survey data and updated information on the number of municipalities participating in Federation of Canadian Municipality (FCM) climate change programs, the paper concludes with recommendations as to how municipal capacity to respond to climate change can be increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]