When it comes to keeping our air clean and protecting our planet, the world can't afford to take a step back. As the G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministers Meeting took place in Berlin, Germany this week, the world is under pressure to take urgent climate action in a way that addresses energy security issues and seizes the opportunities of a net-zero economy.
Over three days of meetings with their international counterparts, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, and the Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson championed Canada's international role in tackling climate change, building strong partnerships to advance energy and mineral security, and taking urgent action to protect nature and halt biodiversity loss. G7 countries have reaffirmed and strengthened commitments in these areas in a detailed communiqué.
In particular, Canada pursued and delivered progress on these key priorities:
- Driving ambitious climate action among G7 countries and globally. Following negotiations, all G7 nations made significant new progress on the global phase-out of unabated coal-fired power, and decarbonizing electricity systems by 2035. Ministers Guilbeault and Wilkinson emphasized in particular the importance of a sector-by-sector approach to decarbonization, as Canada has done in its 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan. G7 nations are also now committed to phasing out international financing of fossil fuel projects by the end of this year. This is a commitment that Canada made at COP26 in Glasgow and had since been consistently encouraging other G7 countries to adopt. Canada remains committed to phasing out domestic fossil fuel subsidies by 2023, two years ahead of schedule. And to ensure countries worldwide are resilient to the impacts of climate change, G7 members agreed to double climate financing for adaptation in developing countries, part of the $100 billion commitment of member nations.
- Strengthening clean energy and mineral partnerships with G7 countries. Canada is committed to helping Europe reduce reliance on Russian energy without compromising shared climate and nature commitments. Minister Wilkinson held bilateral discussions with G7 partners on the role Canada can play to support an accelerated transition to clean energy solutions with secure and reliable supply chains, including raw materials and clean hydrogen. G7 members agreed on the importance of partnerships in critical minerals supply chains, including mining, processing, manufacturing and recycling. Canada emphasized the need for clear and consistent policy signals to attract investment, set emissions intensity standards, and drive affordability for the net-zero economy of the future.
- Acting urgently to protect nature and halt biodiversity loss. Canada highlighted its progress on the protection of 30 percent of its lands and waters by 2030, while pushing others to follow suit. Canada also supports the High Ambition Coalition on Biodiversity beyond National Jurisdiction to advance the protection of marine biodiversity. Minister Guilbeault continued to champion a new legally-binding global agreement on plastic waste and shared details of impending regulations to ban harmful single-use plastics in Canada. As a global leader in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) standards, Canada shared best practices on its approach to sustainable mining and forestry and emphasized the importance of building strong Indigenous partnerships.
Canada's domestic leadership in linking these three priorities-climate action, clean energy and nature protection-and showing concrete action allowed the Ministers to pull forward ambition on global commitments. This will be illustrated by the series of global events at which Canada will participate in the coming months, including the CETA Clean Technology Summit, Convention on Biological Diversity COP15 and the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP27.
