Navigating Climate Change: Insights from the WUSC International Forum 2024

Isabelle Bujold

In a world where climate change is no longer a distant threat but an urgent reality, conversations surrounding its impact and the necessary actions to mitigate it are paramount. On February 9, 2024, a panel discussion featuring three distinguished participants including Nina Lantinga, Katherine Robitaille, and Mikaila Boyd, shed light on various facets of climate change, its effects on Canada and beyond, as well as the collective actions required to address this global challenge.

Photo by Nour Wahid

Panel discussion

What are the key challenges and what are the opportunities we have when facing climate change in Canada?

According to Nina, Canada boasts remarkable natural resources, yet there's a pressing need for enhanced resource management and efficiency. Unfortunately, comprehensive circularity index data is lacking for the nation, exemplified by Quebec's modest score of 3.4, indicating inefficiencies in resource utilisation. It's imperative to reconsider our production methods, consumption patterns, and behaviours to mitigate these challenges. For Nina, embracing a shift from linear to circular models in our product supply chains holds promise. Prioritizing biodiversity conservation and exploring innovative solutions for recycling plastics from oceans not only combats biodiversity loss but also reduces our reliance on crude oil—a crucial step towards a more sustainable future.

Photo by Nour Wahid

How can we work together to achieve climate goals? 

Mikailla noted that identifying the most vulnerable stakeholders in climate action is paramount to crafting effective solutions. Amidst this challenge, the private sector has emerged as a significant player, actively engaging in the development of innovative solutions to combat climate change. Furthermore, empowering farmers to participate in carbon credit markets provides a dual benefit: not only does it incentivize sustainable agricultural practices, but it also generates revenue to finance future climate resilience efforts. It's imperative that everyone, regardless of background or affiliation, actively participates in the dialogue and contributes to the development and implementation of solutions to safeguard our planet's future.

Photo by Nour Wahid

What are Canada’s key climate commitments and how is the progress? 

Katherine highlighted that collaboration with other nations is essential and we must guard against adopting a "white savior" mentality, ensuring that our efforts are inclusive and respectful of diverse perspectives and voices, particularly those of women. By prioritizing gender equality and embracing inclusive practices, we can foster genuine collaboration and enact more effective and equitable climate policies on the international stage.

Photo by Nour Wahid

How are Canadians and the international community measuring progress towards net zero? 

Nina highlighted a critical deficiency in our data infrastructure, stressing the necessity of establishing a foundational understanding – a baseline – to effectively monitor progress. To address this, Nina reminded us of the federal plastic registry initiative. The Federal Plastics Registry will require producers to report annually on the quantity and types of plastic they place on the Canadian market, how it moves through the economy, and, most importantly, how it is managed at its end-of-life. By comprehensively assessing plastic usage and disposal, stakeholders can pinpoint areas ripe for improvement and implement targeted interventions. Additionally, she advocated for a closer examination of supply chains through the concept of "in-setting," encouraging stakeholders to reassess each stage of the value chain for opportunities to reduce emissions and foster sustainability.

Photo by Nour Wahid

 Questions from the audience

How can businesses and industries effectively transition to circular economies? 

Nina emphasized the necessity for businesses to conduct a thorough analysis of their products or processes, regardless of their sector. This involves scrutinizing existing infrastructure and leveraging available technologies. She urged businesses to identify areas for innovation and implement sustainable practices to foster the transition towards circular economies.

Photo by Nour Wahid

What needs to be done to make fair trade products more accessible in terms of price? 

Mikaila highlighted the importance of both consumer demand and corporate engagement in making fair trade products accessible in terms of price. By fostering increased demand and advocating for broader adoption, fair trade practices could continue to gain traction and become more and more accessible to all consumers. Key strategies: 

• Increased demand for fair trade products can lead to economies of scale, making them more affordable for consumers. 

• Integrating fair trade principles into mainstream markets can improve product availability and competitive price. 

• Bring multinational corporations to invest in fair trade even if a high initial investment is required.

Photo by Nour Wahid

How are indigenous populations disproportionately affected by climate change, and what actions can we take to address this disparity?

Katherine stressed the necessity of actively listening to indigenous communities and to prioritize their perspectives and experiences to  better understand the unique challenges they face in the wake of climate change. 

She also advocated for recognition of their inherent knowledge and connection to the land, and the need  to respect their sovereignty and agency in determining the most effective climate change solutions for their communities. 

Katherine also highlighted the work of organizations like Indigenous Climate Action, which have played a crucial role in advocating for policies that respect indigenous sovereignty and promote decolonization within climate action strategies. 

Photo by Nour Wahid

The panellists’ call to action

Nina Lantinga:

As co-founder and President at Nets for Net Zero, Nina strives to build a circular system to solve the biggest plastic problem in our oceans today, abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear. Despite the gravity of the situation, Nina remains resolute in her belief that we can address climate change and curb rising temperatures. She implores us to take a moment, reflect on our values, and tap into our creativity to transform economies and secure a sustainable future. 

Mikaila Boyd:

Mikaila, specializing in cocoa at FairTrade Canada, is dedicated to trade justice, climate change adaptation, fair wages for farmers, and ethical consumption. Her goal is to increase accessibility to Fairtrade certified cocoa products for consumers. She advocates for a focus on organic, non-GMO products, and making mindful choices in our daily lives to favor a larger shift towards sustainability.

Katherine Robitaille:

Katherine, a PhD candidate at Université Laval, focuses on management, administrative science, and related areas such as organization, climate justice, environmental and social justice from intersectional feminist and ecofeminist perspectives. She believes that collective action is key and she recommends reading "The End of this World" to gain insights into the urgency of the situation and explore avenues for action.

Photo by Nour Wahid

The Promising Impact of Small-Scale Fisheries

Isabelle Bujold

With the rise of the fight against climate change, many concerns regarding our oceans have come to light, and several efforts have been made to address such issues. However, citizens and scientists alike, still know too little about the problems facing our oceans in regard to plastic pollution and its ecosystem impacts. From “Seaspiracy” to the anti-sealing industry, such movements have had real consequences on individuals and their livelihoods. Marine ecologist and fisheries biologist, Bryce D. Stewart told Inverse: “the biggest error is to say that sustainable fisheries don’t exist”.

While concerns of commercial fishing and overfishing are very real, local companies, communities and families often depend on fishing to live and provide for their families. According to Sustainable Fisheries Partnership more than 90% of the world’s fishermen are employed in small-scale fishing. Small-scale fishers feel the consequences of overfishing and climate change first hand and therefore gain the most by making their fisheries sustainable. A 2001 study has shown that small-scale fisheries utilize more of their catch for human consumption and hire more people for the same landed value than large-scale fisheries. Ultimately, this study suggests that small-scale fisheries are a better fit to meet numerous policy goals put forward by international organizations and national governments on the use of ocean resources.

At Nets for Net Zero, we’ve created a hub of small-scale fisheries and other stakeholders and innovators to address the root of the problem. This includes Fundy North Fishermen’s Association which represents small-scale commercial fishermen from St. Martins to St. Stephen. Their fishermen work with a variety of marine animals and ecosystems; harvesting the species that are plentiful while giving a break to the species that are scarce. For over 25 years, Fundy North has believed in strong community ethics and has worked relentlessly to preserve the fishing livelihood for generations to come. Their mission is to support fishermen, promote healthy fisheries, and encourage sustainable fishing communities in Southwestern New Brunswick. Their fisheries are a family affair, and often many of the crew members are related. As such, they are an intergenerational business composed of parents, grandparents, spouses, cousins and children. Captains even mentor future captains. Fundy North values strong teamwork and wants to be a means for positive change. 

This is why, in 2008, they began their Ghost Gear Retrieval Project. Since then, they have directed a ghost gear retrieval program to recover any fishing gear that has been discarded, abandoned or lost that subject wildlife to entanglement and damage critical marine habitats. They have retrieved a great deal of ghost gear between 2008 and 2015. Fishermen have also removed over 1000 lost lobster traps and other marine debris in the Saint John Harbour and Head Harbour Passage. They have designed a grapnel to remove ghost gear and dispose of it correctly. As an organization, they are dedicated to mitigating the impact of their fishery on the ocean. 

This mission continues today as we debut our first project with Fundy North Fishermen's Association. Our goal is to convert a minimum of 12 tonnes of fishing rope into clean energy and help finance the innovative research with Polytechnique Montréal. The project’s geographic scope will be regionally focused on the Bay of Fundy and approximately 12 tonnes of rope will be diverted from landfill by March 2022. Solutions for recycling will be identified and an environmental impact report will be provided. Rope samples will be studied at the Department of Chemical Engineering at Polytechnique Montréal starting in March 2022. Through our work, we wish to shed light on the issues related to ghost fishing gear, overfishing and climate change while generating recycling and other sustainable solutions towards a circular economy that benefit both us and our oceans.

Can Whale Poop fight Climate Change?

Tamika Gokhool

With COP 26 taking place in early November, world leaders made ambitious goals in hopes to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. This would mean significantly reducing their methane emissions. Prime minister Justin Trudeau strengthened Canada's commitment by enhancing their target of reducing emissions by 40% to 45% from 2005 levels by 2030. Not only that, Canada has committed to achieve net zero by 2050.  Meeting these ambitious targets is going to require a lot of change both systematically and behaviourally. However, there’s someone else that could help reach these goals- mother nature and more specifically whale poop! 

I’ve probably lost you at whale poop so let me explain! Whale poop is a great fertilizer for marine organisms. They leave a trail of iron- and nitrogen-rich faeces behind them as they rise through the water to breathe and move around the globe. This results in excellent growth conditions for many organisms and more specifically phytoplankton! So why does any of this matter?-Phytoplankton are crucial to life on Earth, producing around half of the oxygen in the atmosphere and collecting almost 40% of all CO2 created. This process of absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere is referred to as  biological carbon sequestration and it’s happening all around us in the form of photosynthesizing organisms.  On average, each great whale absorbs 33 tonnes of CO2. Meanwhile, a tree can only absorb up to 48 pounds of CO2 every year.

Our marine life plays a significant role in helping us fight climate change, however our negligence in waste management is hindering them from doing so. Whale species are increasingly becoming endangered, especially the great whale. There are a number of reasons why they’re becoming endangered such as human noise, injuries from ships, but the number one cause of death for a large whale is entanglement by fishing gear. According to NOAA, over 85 percent of great whales have been entangled in fishing gear at least once. Fishing gear can cause major injuries on a whale that can lead to their deaths. Even if the nets are removed from the whales, the injuries will weaken the whales and hinder them from reproducing. The current whale population is around 1.3 million, according to WWF restoring the population to roughly 5 million could significantly increase the amount of phytoplankton in our oceans and the amount of carbon we capture per year. 

According to a report  by WWF, there are between 500,000 and 1 million tonnes of fishing gear nets left in the oceans every year. Nets, lines and ropes from fishing and shipping make up 46% of the 45,000-129,000 tonnes of plastic floating in the North Pacific Gyre. The report also states that the number of species affected from either entanglement or the ingestion of ghost fishing gear has doubled from 267 to 557 species since 1997. This includes 66% of marine mammals, 50% of seabirds and all 7 species of marine turtles. 

All this to say, protecting our marine life is an important step to take to help us reduce emissions in the atmosphere and fight climate change. With ghost fishing gear being the biggest threat to our marine wildlife, we need solutions to protect our oceans! This is what we’re here for, at Nets for Net Zero, our mission is to protect our marine wildlife and ocean biodiversity by removing ghost fishing gear from our ocean. We are helping to protect and conserve the vast array of species and many living organisms found in our oceans. We’re excited to be tackling this issue by facilitating a circular economy for ghost fishing gear through our research, innovation, education and the creation of a circular materials network. It’s time to join forces

Power of Policy to Achieve COP26 Targets

Tamika Gokhool

What is COP 26?

The United Nations Climate Change summit (COP26) took place in Glasgow, Scotland, during the first two weeks of November. This was the most important summit to take place since the Paris Agreement in 2015. In 2015, countries agreed to an ambitious framework to combat climate change, including pursuing measures to limit temperature increases to 1.5°C.  Countries came together in Glasgow to guarantee that the world is doing what it takes to fulfil the Paris Agreement's promise by improving their targets and laying out additional initiatives to increase efforts over the next decade.

This summit revealed that the world is still off track to reduce the effects of climate change and require urgent action. Ministers from across the globe agreed that nations should submit higher 2030 emissions reduction goals next year in order to close the gap and keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees F). Ministers also agreed that rich nations should provide greater resources immediately to assist climate-vulnerable countries in adapting to the harmful and expensive repercussions of climate change that they are currently experiencing, such as decreased agricultural yields and destructive storms.

Countries also made bold collective commitments at COP26 to reduce methane emissions, stop and reverse forest loss, align the finance sector to net-zero by 2050, abandon the internal combustion engine, accelerate coal phase-out, and end international financing for fossil fuels, to name a few. 

Canada has been on track to meet its emissions target that were outlined in their plan from 2020. Prime minister Justin Trudeau strengthened their commitment by enhancing their target of reducing emissions by 40% to 45% from 2005 levels by 2030. Not only that, Canada has committed to achieve net zero by 2050 and has doubled its international climate finance for developing countries. Canada's ambitious goals are great initiatives and are hopeful for our future, however how can we meet these targets? 

There are a variety of different solutions that should be put into place, but policy change is the key driving factor to creating systemic change. Introducing new policies can enable Canada to reduce their emissions and achieve net zero by 2050. Here we’ll explore some different policies that our governments can introduce to start creating real change. 

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)

Extended producer responsibility (EPR), means that producers are responsible for their products waste once their consumers are done with it. It would promote producers to prevent waste at the very source, design environmentally friendly products and support public recycling and waste management goals. In the case of plastics, this would encourage producers to reuse the plastic they produce in manufacturing instead of throwing it in a landfill at the end of its lifecycle. By enforcing EPR, this can reduce growth in plastic production and consumption significantly and can change our current system to function as a circular economy. Transitioning to a circular economy would not only reduce emissions but can also steer us to becoming a net zero country. 

In 1991, Germany implemented an EPR system that required producers to pay a license fee based on the amount and type of packaging that was introduced into the market every year. Between 1991-1998, this policy alone resulted in an estimated waste reduction of 1 million tonnes. 

Products Standards

Products standards can be introduced that would require a minimum percentage of recycled content in plastic products. Every product should meet a percentage that can be reusable, recoverable, recycled or compostable.  This would go hand in hand with EPR and would cause companies to design waste out of the system at the very source. 

Not only should producers meet a minimum percentage of recycled content in their products, standard labeling requirements should be incorporated to educate the public on the environmental impacts of their products and how to efficiently dispose of it. As much as the plastic waste problem comes from large companies, the consumer plays a large role in properly disposing of their waste. 

Taxes and Economic Incentives

Governments can impose taxes to the consumer on single-use plastics to reduce the production of these plastics and promote the use of alternative means. For example, at the grocery store charging a fee for the use of a single use plastic bag and promoting reusable bags. Taxes can also be imposed to businesses who continue to produce single use plastics. 

Globally, this kind of incentive is already being implemented and has seen success. For example, in 2015 Portugal included a tax on producers of $0.12 per certain size of plastic bag and in as little as four months the consumption of these bags decreased by 74%. 

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the world's plastic problem. The provinces and territories of Canada are mostly (but not completely) responsible for waste policy. In addition, through partnering with the provinces and territories, the federal government may play a critical role in improving the efficiency of provincial waste management strategies. To make more progress toward a circular economy, the federal government, the provinces and territories must work together to define standards, targets, and procedures.

To be most effective, legislators must evaluate and embrace a variety of complementary initiatives, such as extended producer responsibility, prohibitions and limits, economic instrument labelling standards etc. Other activities are needed as well such as consumer education campaigns, public procurement requirements, waste management infrastructure investment, and public-private partnerships, are also necessary to support these approaches.

With these kind of policies in place, Canada will be one step closer to reaching its ambitious targets that were outlined in COP26 and hopefully will set a good example for other countries to do the same and meet their targets. The only way we can reduce the dangers of climate change will be for everyone to work together to fight this mess we have created.

A Circular Economy to Solve the Plastic Problem

Tamika Gokhool

WHAT’S THE PLASTIC PROBLEM?

The way we produce, use, and dispose of plastics is a huge problem. It’s not only a threat to our environment but it’s also causing negative ecological, financial, and social impacts. The problem at hand is much larger and more significant than many people can grasp. To put the situation into perspective, Canadians alone produce 3.3 million tons of plastic per year and of that amount, 2.8 million tons end up in our landfills. That means that 84% of plastic that is produced is thrown away every year. If those numbers were not scary enough, on a global scale, 24-34 million metric tons of plastics are dumped into our lakes, rivers and oceans every year.

How does all this plastic impact us? Economically, this single-use model is not sustainable and is actually costing Canadians roughly $100-$150 billion annually. Looking at the environmental impact, plastic related emissions have a huge impact on climate change since manufacturing since-use plastics utilizes fossil fuels (ethylene and propylene). This releases a large amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. At the current rate, plastic related emissions are equivalent to opening 195 new 500 megawatts coal fire plants that operate at full capacity.

This current system is no longer feasible if we want to ensure a sustainable, regenerative future. One of the main reasons why the plastic problem is so big is because for a long time, we have been following a linear economic model. This means that at the end of a product’s life cycle, it will be thrown “away” and will no longer be in use. More simply, our current system functions in 3 steps: take, make and dispose. To solve this, we need to completely transform our current system. Adopting a circular economy  model is the solution to steer us into a regenerative future.  

WHAT IS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY?

A circular economy model is financially, environmentally, and socially sustainable.  Waste is planned out of the system, and materials are reused and recycled, thus returned to production. It is distinguished by its closed-loop material flow, in which materials are recycled or repurposed using renewable energy. It accomplishes this without exhausting resources and can be continued indefinitely without creating waste in the environment. Essentially, at the end of a product’s lifecycle, instead of it being thrown away, it recirculates back into the system where the materials are repurposed by its producers. This will lead to greater accountability for companies to manage their waste and design waste out of the system at the very source.

HOW CAN WE SHIFT TO A CIRCULAR ECONOMY?

According to the World Circular Economy Forum 2021, there are four pathway solutions that exist: scaling innovation, behaviour change, voluntary agreement, and regulatory changes. Each of these propose unique solutions to creating change. 

• Scaling innovation in clean technologies would fast track solutions to repurposing plastics. For example, designing new plastic resins from waste creates a regenerative plastic lifecycle. Using AI to track and collect the plastic dumped into our oceans allows us to understand it’s impact and optimize the system.

• Driving behaviour change would mean making more sustainable choices when it comes to plastic use. For example, using reusable bags instead of plastic bags when grocery shopping or refusing plastic straws. By reusing and dematerializing, fewer production processes are needed, therefore less resources are needed.

• Voluntary agreements would entail introducing more institutions to recycle more products. For example, providing the resources for the sorting and manufacturing of recycled plastics. This would mean providing a system that would allow everyone to easily recycle their products.

• Regulatory pathways, such as extended producer responsibility, would involve introducing policy changes to impose more sustainable practices, while having producers consider the whole lifecycle of the product they make. 

Adopting the circular model would offer so many advantages in terms of the environment, economy and our society. An Ellen MacAuthur Foundation study found that following this model could halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 to the 2018 levels. The reuse of material lowers production costs and raw material needs, which can lead to savings of up to 70%. New jobs of the future will include engineers needed to create lasting and easily disassembled products, as well as innovation in materials transformation and production. A new wave of businesses specialized in services facilitating the adoption of the circular economy and supply chains is already emerging.

Each of these solutions will be beneficial to creating more sustainable practices. However, of those four solutions, regulatory changes will be the most effective and efficient way to transition into a circular economy. This will ensure long-term prosperity but will also cause a shift in consumer norms and change the current patterns of plastic consumption. Policy changes can have the power to accelerate the shift to a circular economy and support businesses working towards a regenerative closed loop system. We all have a part to play in this global shift. By changing our behaviors, rethinking our practices and waste management, and demanding policy change from our governments, we can build a prosperous regenerative future for generations to come!