Chapter 2 Responding to Global Environmental Change Learning

Chapter 2 Responding to Global Environmental Change

Learning Objectives • Identify selected global responses to environmental degradation. • Understand some key Canadian responses to environmental degradation. • Place Canada within the global context for environmental response. • Examine the ways in which corporations can respond to environmental challenge • Assess how important environment is to the administration of your university.

Learning Objectives, cont’d • Make better decisions to minimize your impact on the environment. • Use your influence more effectively to benefit the environment. • Clarify what “the good life” means for you. • Describe different ways of tracking progress among nations on environmental matters over time.

Introduction • Compared to 30 years ago, we are seemingly less concerned with the ozone layer today. Why? • The answer lies in the Montreal Protocol o Ozone helps shield life on Earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. The protocol set targets to phase out ozone depleting substances such as CFCs o Only international agreement to have been ratified by all UN member states and is one of the most successful international environmental agreements o Its success was due to much public support for addressing the ozone hole, scientists were involved in negotiations, chemicals were clearly identified, and a multilateral fund was established to help countries meet their compliance targets

Introduction, cont’d • The Montreal Protocol highlights how multiple stakeholders were involved in the response to the hole in the ozone layer: international community, national governments, private sector, research and educational institutions, and the public. • Governments and institutions are only part of the answer; individuals can make a significant difference in how the environmental challenges will develop over the next decade, if we are aware of the problems and are willing to do something about them.

Global Perspectives • The environmental degradation that results from human activities often transcends political and national boundaries • Weiss (2011) outlines three distinct periods in the development of international environmental agreements • First: early glimmers • Second: development of a basic framework • Third: maturation and linkage

Global Perspectives, cont’d International Environmental Agreements • First period, 1900 -1972: “early glimmers” of global environmental responses o limited international environmental principles or treaties o Some localized agreements protected certain species, often those of commercial value. o Often implemented in specific locations in the western hemisphere and Africa o E. g. Convention for the Protection of Migratory Birds, International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, OILPOIL

Global Perspectives, cont’d International Environmental Agreements • Second period, 1972 -1992: “development of a basic framework” for global environmental response o international treaties proliferated and the focus of environmental issues broadened o treaties often included significantly more detail and intruded on national sovereignty to a greater degree o E. g. CITES, Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, Montreal Protocol

Global Perspectives, cont’d International Environmental Agreements • Third period, 1992 -now: “maturation and linkage” of global environmental responses o greater attempt to link environmental laws to other areas of law o actors involved in environmental responses broadened o enhanced focus on refining principles and rules, development of non-binding agreement o shift away from establishing new legal documents and agreements toward ensuring implementation and compliance o E. g. Convention on Biological Diversity, UNFCCC, Agenda 21

Global Perspectives, cont’d Sustainable Development Goals • Consuming more will not, after a certain threshold, improve overall well-being. o The challenge at the international level is to enact policies and programs that will see consumption levels raised in needy countries but reduced in over-consuming countries, such as Canada

Global Perspectives, cont’d Sustainable Development Goals • Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) follow from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), eight anti-poverty targets that expired in 2015 • 15 -year framework that identifies ambitious goals for achieving sustainability, established in 2015 • SDGs have a broadened focus on environmental sustainability, with seven goals explicitly highlighting connections between well-being and the environment

Global Perspectives, cont’d Sustainable Development Goals • At the end of 2015, at least some progress had been made on almost all MDG target • E. g. extreme poverty reduced by half, access to an improved drinking water source became a reality for 2. 3 billion people, and child mortality almost halved • exception was the environmental targets most statistics demonstrate that environmental problems are getting decidedly worse

Global Perspectives, cont’d Sustainable Development Goals • Overall human welfare appears to be improving on a global scale and yet ecosystems are degrading • humans have not yet felt the true impacts of environmental degradation but continue to enjoy benefits from environmental overexploitation

National Perspectives • Canada is a remarkable country: • world’s second-largest by area • ranked 3 rd forested area and renewable freshwater resources, 7 th for amount of arable land • Canadians enjoy one of the highest standards of living • ranked 13 th in the UN’s Human Development Index for 2019 • Most Canadians are unaware of the global challenges we face due to our isolation from global pressures.

National Perspectives • Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), 1999 o primary legislative framework for protecting the environment o focuses on preventing pollution from entering the environment o supposed to be reviewed every 5 years, but the first review took place 17 years later, in 2016

National Perspectives • Review of CEPA included recommendations to improve the Act, such as: o Recognize the right of every person in Canada to a healthy environment (already recognized in over 100 countries, not in Canada) o Introduction of national drinking water and air quality standards o Putting onus on industry to prove substances are safe before being approved for sale o Examining cumulative impact of noxious

National Perspectives, cont’d • On paper, Canada has impressive legislation, policies, strategies, and plans regarding the environment. However, their translation into “on-the-ground” improvements is often chronically underresourced.

National Perspectives, cont’d Jurisdictional Arrangements in Canada • Authority or responsibility for natural resources and the environment is divided between the federal and provincial governments, with territorial and municipal governments, and Indigenous peoples increasingly having a role.

National Perspectives, cont’d Jurisdictional Arrangements in Canada • Canada also has bilateral arrangements with US to address problems such as air pollution and to deal with shared water bodies • Multilateral arrangements with other nations or international organizations regarding resources such as fisheries, migratory birds and animals, and minerals on or under the ocean floor

National Perspectives, cont’d Jurisdictional Arrangements in Canada • Control and ownership of Crown lands and natural resources is provincial; federal in the North. • Legislative authority is split between federal and provincial governments, often becomes a significant source of conflict. • In the 1990 s, many provincial governments began to download responsibilities onto municipalities to save costs o principle of subsidiarity: decisions should be taken at the level closest to where consequences are most noticeable • Effective partnerships exist between provincial– municipal (e. g. Ontario conservation authorities)

National Perspectives, cont’d Environmental Impacts of Politics • Responding to environmental challenges becoming increasingly politicized • Environmental policies and strategies can shift significantly with a change of government o E. g. Stephen Harper revised Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, removed HAAD clause from Fisheries Act—revised with change to Liberal government

National Perspectives, cont’d Environmental Impacts of Politics • Canada’s response to climate change similarly marked by politics o Under Prime Minister Harper’s leadership, Canada reduced its greenhouse gas emissions target o 2013: Canada received the Lifetime Unachievement Fossil Award for long-standing failure to make meaningful contributions o Under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau: Pan. Canadian Framework for Clean Growth and Climate Change

National Perspectives, cont’d Environmental Impacts of Politics • Governments outline their official policy approach but may not always follow through • Federal governments must work in conjunction with provincial governments, which may be formed by different political parties • Regardless of the political party in power, Canada’s performance in most areas of environmental management is largely overlooked

National Perspectives, cont’d Environmental Impacts of Politics • We make commitments at international and national levels that we consistently fail to fulfill. • The image that many of us have of ourselves —as a leader in global environmental management — is strongly supported by governments, but inconsistent with the facts. • Canadians often do not rise to meet environmental challenges and, in many cases, are falling behind. We are frequently followers and laggards rather than leaders.

National Perspectives, cont’d Environmental Impacts of Politics • However, some progress is occurring o BC’s carbon tax, Nova Scotia tidal power and geothermal energy, Ontario’s “pumped storage” • Enlightened political leadership can play a major role in implementing change at the societal level • Human ingenuity is vast but needs to be applied to the key challenges facing society

Corporate Perspectives • Companies may voluntarily take environmental action or government may impose regulations • Extended producer responsibility—laws that require manufacturers and importers to accept responsibility for their products at the end of their useful lifespan o provide incentives to design products to be recycled/reused and toxic materials eliminated o Canada has no such laws, but some companies have taken the initiative

Corporate Perspectives, cont’d • Life-cycle assessments (LCAs) identify inputs, outputs, and potential environmental impacts of a product or service throughout its lifetime o E. g. Volvo and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as Green Seal • Eco-labelling: companies voluntarily adhere to specified environmental standards and practices and can thereby label their products accordingly o E. g. LEED, Dolphin-Safe, Energy. Star

Corporate Perspectives, cont’d Corporate Social Responsibility • CSR refers to corporations’ efforts to address social, ethical, and environmental concerns in their business practices, thereby moving beyond a focus mainly on profits. • Often large business organizations that adopt a CSR approach, due to their substantial resources and ability to affect many people.

Corporate Perspectives, cont’d Corporate Social Responsibility • Corporations often fall within the following: o Environmental practices: focus on reducing the environmental impact of business operations o Philanthropy: donate funds, goods, or services to social causes o Labour practices: treating employees and communities in an ethical manner o Volunteerism: sponsor/send representatives to charity events or encourage employees to volunteer at them

Corporate Perspectives, cont’d Corporate Social Responsibility • Some question whether these efforts are effective or merely greenwashing o Use of deceptive/manipulative sustainable claims by companies to portray a superficial eco-friendly image o Investing more resources on marketing products as ‘green’ rather than actually minimizing impact on the environment • Whose role it is to facilitate environmentally friendly approaches to business practices?

Educational Perspectives • Colleges and universities are frequently accused of not being part of the “real’ world, ” meaning the economic realities of today’s society. • However, economics is not the “real” world; it is a game that humans invented to facilitate barter and exchange; it is important, but only part of the real world. • The real world is our physical reality: air, water, land, and organisms, without these things, there can be no invented world, however “real” it might seem.

Educational Perspectives, cont’d • One major challenge contributing to lack of understanding and action on environmental matters is nature deficit disorder o Increasing gap in understanding of the real world in younger generation o The less exposure that young people have to the natural world, the less they understand it and the less comfortable they feel outdoors o Concern over this situation has prompted movements across North America to provide opportunities and facilities to encourage outdoor re-engagement by younger people—Parks Canada

Educational Perspectives, cont’d • At the elementary and secondary level, environmental education is increasingly recognized as vital o Extent of environmental education varies between provinces/classrooms, environmental topics not mandatory • In colleges and universities, environmental education has often fared worse o Requirements for general levels of language and math but nothing for challenges of the future o Pressures on universities to put greater emphasis on meeting the short-term economic demands of society o Science programs create technically competent students, seldom instill appreciation for planet, deep moral questioning

Personal Perspectives • The difficulty with many environmental challenges is the vastness of their scale. • We tend to lack awareness because we are sheltered from their effects. • Most problems have long lag times and different effects in different parts of the world (e. g. , climate change).

Personal Perspectives, cont’d • Urgent actions are required, but cannot occur in a vacuum; they require understanding. • Educational systems should help develop this understanding, but most university students graduate with little or no idea about how the ecosphere functions and how human activities impair those functions. • Encourage others to increase their understanding of environmental challenges

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Light Living • Light living expresses the need to tread as lightly as possible, to minimize our own ecological footprints. o Often characterized by the four Rs: refuse, reduce, reuse, and recycle

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Light Living • Refuse o We live in a society that makes consumption easy (consumerism) o We frequently shop not to fulfill basic needs, but to indulge whims, we discard out of date clothing and gadgets, and Christmas has become all about shopping o Resist and refuse to buy anything that you do not really need; if a purchase is necessary, shop carefully (buy the least harmful products, buy one quality product rather than many cheap ones, shop organic or grow your own)

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Light Living • Reduce o Energy is a major contributor to GHGs o Heating - turn down thermostat o Lighting costs – use long-life bulbs o Transportation – walk, ride a bike, take public transit o Food choices – vegetarian meals, 100 -mile diet o Water use - contributes to conservation, lowflow o Waste - buy products with less packaging

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Light Living • Reuse o Buy products that can be reused, such as rechargeable batteries o Try to find another use for something no longer useful in its original state, such as storage containers o Reuse bags when shopping o When you have finished using something, donate or sell it so that someone else can use it

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Light Living • Recycle o Recyclable materials can be reprocessed into new goods such as newspaper, cardboard, mixed paper, glass, various metals, some plastics, car batteries, tires, and oil o Less energy is required to recycle materials into products than it does using new materials o Most Canadians who have access to recycling programs use them o While it is better to recycle than not to, reducing consumption levels in the first place is still the preferred option

Personal Perspectives, cont’d The Law of Everybody • Accumulated actions of many people make a difference • If we all did many small things that could be done easily, without having much negative or even noticeable influence on our lifestyle, many of our environmental challenges would be greatly reduced in scale

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Influence • One of the best ways to influence business is through your purchasing power as a consumer • Consumer boycotts can be an effective way to influence business practices and reduce environmental impacts • We should also let non-conforming producers know why we are not buying their products • We should redesign the way we live to reflect our increased understanding of planetary limits

Personal Perspectives, cont’d Influence • Encourage governments to act— election campaigns offer a major opportunity • Governments are often more than willing to adopt environment-friendly, voter-popular measures— as long as they do not involve any significant cost • Issues are often very complex o For this reason, concerned people may band together in non-governmental organizations (NGOs)

Measuring Progress Indicators • Indicators provide information on environmental problems that enables policy-makers to evaluate their seriousness, develop policy and set priorities, and monitor the effects of policy responses o Can also help raise public awareness and generate support for government actions

Measuring Progress, cont’d Indicators • Ecological footprints o Measure demands that humans place on nature in terms of supplying materials and disposing of wastes. o To provide for everyone at Canadian standards would require 3. 5 Earths, not just one o Biocapacity: amount of biologically productive area available to meet humanity’s need § Has increased 27 per cent while human footprint increased 190 per cent o Need to reduce the footprint to below biocapacity

Measuring Progress, cont’d Indicators • Indicators grouped according to themes produce indices • The Living Planet Index— created by the World Wildlife Fund— quantifies the overall state of planetary ecosystems • Composite indices are often the most useful for decision-makers and represent the highest level of aggregation. Although few in number, they incorporate many, often very different, subvariables o E. g. ecological footprint, GDP, Canadian Index of Wellbeing

Measuring Progress, cont’d Indicators • The Happy Planet Index (HPI) assumes that most people want to live long and fulfilling lives and that the “best” country allows its citizens to do so without hindering people in other countries and in the future from doing the same • Composite indices often tell us what is happening at the macro level but not why, may mask complex detail decision-makers require to make informed decisions • DPSIR (Drivers-Pressures-State-Impact-Response) frameworks help to develop causal linkages between indicators

Measuring Progress, cont’d Indicators • Indicators are not without problems: o Degree of aggregation of information—while information could be useful for understanding basics, may not be needed for decision making o Ongoing misuse of indicators when a reporting body selects only those indicators that best convey a desirable message

Measuring Progress, cont’d Monitoring Progress toward Sustainable Development in Canada • Federal government uses the Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators to track and monitor environmental sustainability o These indicators track data on Canada’s environmental performance related to climate change, air quality, water quality and availability, and protecting nature. • 2018 report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development found a lack of governance structures to meet UN’s 2030 Agenda o Recommended developing a federal response and implementation plan to achieve national sustainable development targets

Implications • No place on Earth has been left untouched by human activity and these changes are likely to result in significant challenges • However, the message here is not all doom and gloom o There are international, provincial, and local efforts to help move toward environmental sustainability. • Environmental sustainability and stewardship are not just the responsibility of governments and larger organizations o We all have a role to play to ensure that human and non-human populations can survive and thrive for generations to come.