The following are the CSPC 2021 panels that cover

Climate Change and Sustainability

November 25th, 2021

Organized by: Future Earth

Panelists:

Danika Billie Littlechild – Lawyer; Indigenous leader; Assistant Professor at Carleton University in the Department of Law and Legal Studies (Faculty of Public Affairs)

François Soulard – Research Manager, Census of Environment, Statistics Canada

Andrew Gonzalez – Professor of McGill University, co-Chair of GEO BON, Liber Ero Chair in Conservation Biology, and founding director of the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science

Katja Neves-Graca – Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Concordia University

Kyle Artelle – Adjunct Assistant Professor in The Geography Department at the University of Victoria, Banting Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences at the University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus

Moderator: Ciara Raudsepp-Hearne – Canada Key Biodiversity Areas Director at Wildlife Conservation Society Canada

Context: Biodiversity is declining at an unprecedented rate, threatening the prosperity of the more-than-human world. Canada supports a globally significant diversity of ecosystems and boasts rich Indigenous knowledge which is promising to lead an integrated pathway towards the vision of ‘human living in harmony with nature’. With enhanced ambition in conservation policies and practices, Canada can contribute significantly to global biodiversity and climate change mitigation. The panel centred the discussion around the progresses, challenges, and potential solutions for biodiversity conservation in Canada.

Takeaways:

  • The changing state of our natural environment is a critical societal issue that Canada is facing; it will determine the state of our economy, our livelihoods, and our health. Canada’s climate is changing at a rate that is twice the global average.
  • Societies benefit from ecological functions and services far beyond what is generally recognized through national metrics.
  • As humans, many of us consider ourselves separate from nature. This separation is artificial and did not exist historically, and still does not exist in many worldviews.
  • From a national perspective, we need to be better at recognizing the links between ecology and society and have the means to estimate or measure these links. We need to better understand how to manage our natural resources to attain a more balanced stewardship of our natural resources and our natural biodiversity.
  • Indigenous-led systems which focus on the well-being of species and places tend to be more sustainable than state-led Western or colonial approaches.

Actions:

  • Provide a full picture of ecosystems by collecting data and developing new metrics to analyze ecological data, in order to truly understand how we (humans) benefit from our environment and how it is critical to the sustainability of our societies. Develop a monitoring system for the status of Canada’s ecosystems.
  • Create a sustainability framework (an international statistical standard) which all countries can help build on in terms of measuring and filling the gaps by providing information about different ecosystems.
  • Treat Indigenous peoples as experts of their territories. It’s important to challenge the dominant systems and the current reductionist approach to Indigenous Knowledge.
  • Facilitate the development of a Canada biodiversity observation network (Canada BON) dedicated to assessing the status and trends of Canada’s biodiversity and ecosystems. These efforts can be a collaboration between Indigenous leadership, the Canadian government, researchers, and NGOs.
  • Dismantle the belief that humans are separate from nature and have the right to exploit nature. The average citizen plays a major role as a consumer and considering the ethical consumption of goods is a key step to acknowledging the interconnectedness of nature.

Proceedings prepared by Maïa Dakessian

November 23rd, 2021

Organized by: Ocean Frontier Institute

Panelists:

Ken Paul – Lead Fisheries Negotiator and Fisheries Research Coordinator, Wolastoqey Nation in New Brunswick

Anya Waite – Vice-President Research (Ocean), Dalhousie University

Emily Choy – Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Natural Sciences, McGill University

Moderator: Paul Snelgrove – Departmental Science Advisor, Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Context: The ocean stores hundreds of times the heat and fifty times more carbon than the atmosphere. It absorbs more carbon than all of the Earth’s rainforests combined. Global ambitions for a net-zero-carbon future depend on the ocean’s ability to continue to do this, but mounting scientific evidence shows alarming change. Without the ability to measure this change on a meaningful scale, international climate targets risk significantly missing the mark. Global conversations about climate change generally omit the critical role of the ocean. This panel explained several different angles of this problem, why we cannot ignore it any longer, and the next steps that must happen.

Takeaways:

  • The ocean plays a critical role in global carbon uptake, but the extent to which the ocean acts as a carbon sink has not been fully quantified. There is also uncertainty around whether the ocean will continue to absorb carbon in the future.
  • To meet our net zero targets, we need to better quantify the ocean carbon balance to provide a baseline. We currently lack sufficient observations to develop this baseline without introducing substantial uncertainty.
  • The Arctic can act as an early warning system for the effects of climate change. Some marine ocean predators such as thick-billed murres and beluga whales are ideal species for monitoring Arctic change.
  • Many science questions are guided by Indigenous knowledge. Indigenous knowledge keepers want to share their knowledge, but the pathways for sharing are murky. Moreover, the benefits from research do not always make it back to Indigenous communities.
  • The effects of climate change are of great concern to Indigenous communities, including effects on food security and widespread damage in coastal communities due to rising sea levels and violent storms.

Actions:

  • We need to increase global ocean carbon observations. Closing this gap will require bringing nations together in a global effort. This includes raising awareness in wealthy (both coastal and landlocked) countries that should be engaged and contributing to the efforts.
  • Indigenous communities should be engaged in the earliest stages of research projects.
  • It’s important to have protocols and contacts in place in Indigenous communities for when researchers approach a community. This may help facilitate understanding and co-development of mutual benefits.
  • Canada has an opportunity to bring ocean carbon observation and in particular, Indigenous perspectives, to the international conversation.

Proceedings prepared by Linden Fairbarn

November 26th, 2021

Organized by: UK Research and Innovation and International Development Research Centre (IDRC)

Panelists:

Mark Pelling – Professor of Geography, King’s College London

Susan Waldron – Director of Research and Skills, Natural Environment Research Council, UK Research and Innovation

Lancelot Ehode – Regional Communication and Media Advisor, International Development Research Centre

Katharine Vincent – Director, Kulima Integrated Development Solutions

Moderator: Éliane Ubalijoro – Executive Director of Sustainability in the Digital Age and the Global Hub Director in Canada, Future Earth

Context: This dynamic panel brought together a mix of experts and perspectives from Canada, UK and Africa to highlight and discuss approaches and solutions to climate change adaptation in a changing world which is key to building back better from the pandemic. The panel covered issues such as the importance of international collaboration in addressing climate change adaptation; opportunities and challenges to finding solutions and consideration of cross-cutting policy areas and the role of different sectors in this space including research funders.

Takeaways:

  • A major challenge in climate change is how unclear the future is–what will the Earth’s climate look like in a few years, and how fast will it change? This can make it difficult to determine where there are gaps in knowledge and where research should be commissioned.
  • Timing matters with climate-related issues. The research community has to consider prioritizing certain areas over others based on urgency and work to achieve solutions on shorter timescales.
  • Adaptivity and accessibility are key aspects of addressing global challenges such as climate change. Technology needs to be scalable and adaptable to other contexts.
  • The urgency of the climate crisis raises concerns about whether or not current policies are enough to drive the innovation needed to address climate change. The world must adapt quickly to a new way of thinking, and policy must shift to consider this.
  • Many current systems exclude local people and cultures in favour of Western knowledge. Widening perspectives and having open dialogue are necessary in equitable partnerships between researchers and community members.

Actions:

  • More research is needed to address gaps in climate knowledge. Knowledge must be accessible, adaptive and translatable.
  • There must be increased collaboration with researchers and scientists during the development of climate policy.
  • Researchers must be aware of biases that create exclusions. Certain criteria can create a hierarchy in who gets funding. The best way to combat this is to work with consultants throughout the research and funding process.
  • To ensure a more holistic view of climate challenges being faced, it’s important to consult multiple different kinds of knowledge, including knowledge systems outside of the traditional scientific method. Include many different voices and viewpoints from around the world as climate change is a global challenge.

Proceedings prepared by Maisie Wong

November 23rd, 2021

Organized by: Digital Research Alliance of Canada

Panelists:

Karen Bakker – Professor, University of British Columbia

Roy Chartier – Director of Architecture and Industry, Digital Research Alliance of Canada

David M. Hall – Senior Data Scientist, NVIDIA

Catherine Abreu – Founder and Executive Director, Destination Zero; Member, Canada’s Net Zero Advisory Body

Moderator: Felipe Pérez-Jvostov – Senior Analyst, Community Engagement & Planning, Digital Research Alliance of Canada

Context: The importance of Big Data in tackling climate change is undeniable. Yet, it is also Big Data technologies that are contributing to climate change. Advances in computation have enabled scientific research to progress at unprecedented rates. However, these power-hungry and expensive training algorithms have grown exponentially in size over the past few years. It is thus no surprise that the associated energy consumption and cost have become a growing concern. The panel discussed current issues and future strategies for Canada in climate science while advancing Big Data in support of scientific excellence.

Takeaways:

  • Big data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are important tools in achieving sustainability goals. They can be used to identify problems related to climate change (e.g., through simulations), as well as to implement solutions (e.g., optimizing energy use).
  • The digital transformation of our planet is leading to an unprecedented intensification of energy use. Processing big data requires an enormous amount of energy.
  • To keep pace with advancements in digital technologies and the intensification of energy use, we need a clean energy transition on a global scale to decarbonize energy production.
  • In the context of big data, it is important to consider ownership of environmental data and to incorporate Indigenous data sovereignty into policies and governance. Tools exist to allow ownership and sovereignty of environmental data.
  • AI could be employed for “social nudging” to influence consumer behaviour towards more environmentally friendly options, but there are ethical and privacy concerns; this may also mistakenly focus on consumer behaviour shifts as the solution, when in actuality governments and industry are greater drivers of climate change than consumer behaviour.
  • Digital transformation is tied to sustainable mining. Canada, which is home to many mining companies, needs to work towards a circular economy framework.

Actions:

  • Political systems remain the most significant barrier to action on climate change. The general public must hold their elected officials accountable for climate action, no matter their political affiliation.
  • In the short term, optimization and adoption of renewable energy sources can allow for significant reductions in emissions from digital tech (e.g., from data centres). However, it is not clear if the pace of advancements can shift rapidly enough to meet climate goals.
  • In the long term, underlying technologies will likely need to change (e.g., biodigital convergence innovation).
  • Communicate clear and compelling predictions of climate change impacts so that decision makers can better understand the consequences of their actions and make better choices. AI can be used as a tool to “downscale” climate models to make predictions of climate change impacts at the local level.
  • Canada is strong in research and development, but not in bringing innovations to scale. Programs are needed to help create the next generation of clean tech start-ups and to promote scaling up. Governments have a role here to create policies that encourage the creation of these markets.

Proceedings prepared by Linden Fairbarn

November 23rd, 2021

Organized by: University of Waterloo

Panelists:

Sarah Burch – Associate Professor, University of Waterloo; Canada Research Chair in Sustainability
Governance and Innovation; Executive Director, Interdisciplinary Centre on Climate Change

Graeme Reed – Senior Policy Advisor, Assembly of First Nations and PhD Candidate, University of Guelph

Mary Pickering – Senior Advisor, The Atmospheric Fund; MES, Accredited Partnership Broker

Manvi Bhalla – Postdoctoral fellow, University of British Columbia; Co-Founder and President, Shake Up The Establishment, Co-Founder and Director, missINFORMED

Moderator: Jean Andry – Dean, Faculty of Environment, University of Waterloo

Context: This panel focused on the transition to a greener world and explored the importance of making an inclusive and just transition. Climate change effects, as well as transition steps to net zero, will affect different regions, industries, and groups of people in society differently. Some groups will bear more of the burden than others as it currently stands. However, evidence-based policymaking can help to make this transition more fair and mitigate the effects on more vulnerable groups (such as areas more impacted by climate change and high carbon sectors that are projected to be phased out or restructured).

Takeaways:

  • Many voices in society are not being included in the broader conversation about climate change, even though their input is extremely valuable.
  • Many of Canada’s companies are not currently ready for a transition to take place over the next few decades.
  • Indigenous and minority groups are overrepresented in sectors that will be vulnerable throughout a transition.
  • Working on and thinking about climate action is a privilege for those not concerned by other needs or financial strains in day-to-day life that present immediate challenges.
  • Working on this issue will co-benefit other areas such as racial justice, gender equity, and First Nations rights.
  • The youth of today are very engaged with issues in climate change, which indicates that important and necessary action will be taken in the future.

Actions:

  • Focus on retraining oil workers and workers in other heavy industries to do green jobs.
  • Value Indigenous perspectives in this transition and frame the transition as honouring our connection to the land around us.
  • Fix other things in people’s lives first: focus on community issues, so that groups can then turn their energy towards climate action.
  • Accept Indigenous traditional knowledge as valid knowledge (think outside the scientific method box).
  • To maintain equity, address issues around tax fairness, rising income inequality, and consider implementing universal basic income to ensure basic needs are being met.
  • Rethink how we can manage areas like food supply to be more robust and resilient against extreme weather events.
  • Focus on building leaders and role models at the community level to spread a positive influence.

Proceedings prepared by Andrew Macmillan

November 23rd, 2021

Organized by: Innovation Sciences and Economic Development Canada & Environment and Climate Change Canada

Panelists:

Laura Wesley – Director General of Communications, Environment and Climate Change Canada

John Cook – Researcher Fellow, Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub

Jiaying Zhao – Associate Professor, University of British Columbia

Marianne Mader – Executive Director, Canadian Association of Science Centres

Moderator: Eric Meslin – President and CEO, Council of Canadian Academics (CCA)

Context: Climate change is a defining global challenge of our time. Effectively addressing it requires significant changes in individual and collective human behaviour and decision-making. Scientific literacy also plays an important role in addressing climate change. Research shows that a relatively small amount of climate misinformation is effective in lowering people’s acceptance of climate action. Research has also shown that knowledge, education, and awareness on its own are not enough to drive behaviour change. Panelists explored how science literacy, journalism, and behavioural sciences can further support or explain the failure to act on climate change.

Takeaways:

  • Misinformation broadly refers to information that is false or misleading (although not always with bad intentions), while disinformation is deliberately spread by malicious actors intending to deceive others and attack scientists.
  • Misinformation can limit the amount of trust society has in government and institutions, and prevent action from being taken against climate change.
  • Climate misinformation is transitioning from science denial to solutions-based misinformation (e.g. misinformation regarding renewable energy).
  • Individuals are often reluctant to make lifestyle changes related to climate/environmental action because they feel individual action is not enough, or they may not want to make the changes needed.
  • COVID-19 has proven that society is capable of widespread changes in daily life to slow the spread of the virus. This provides a positive case study to demonstrate that society could also mitigate the negative effects of climate change through action.

Actions:

  • Use a social diffusion approach to counter misinformation as the reasons for climate inaction are varied. Teach people how to recognize misinformation and be resilient against it.
  • Provide safe spaces for people to voice opinions, and be empathetic towards those who are skeptical or have false beliefs.
  • Communicate facts, but use the form of narrative or story to frame the facts. Portray climate action as a heroic epic that we all participate in to give it a sense of meaning for people.
  • Facilitate better communication between scientists/other climate experts and the general public on climate knowledge.
  • Avoid excessive ‘doom and gloom’ narratives (we must remain optimistic about what can be done).

Proceedings prepared by Andrew Macmillan

November 24th, 2021

Organized by: Simon Fraser University

Panelists:

Sabina Russel — Principal and co-founder, Zen Clean Energy Solutions

Sami Khan – Assistant Professor, School of Sustainable Energy Engineering, Simon Fraser University

Mike Adamski – Product Line Manager, Fuel Cell Solutions, Ionomr

Aaron Hoskin – Senior Manager, Intergovernmental Initiatives, Fuel Diversification, Natural Resources Canada

Kristen Elkow – Elk Community Planning and Design

Moderator: Elicia Maine – VanDusen Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Special Advisor to Innovation to the VPRI, Simon Fraser University; Academic Director, Mitacs Invention to Innovation (i2I) Skills Training

Context: Canada is well-positioned to be a global leader in the clean energy transition. A well-educated workforce, leading technologies and innovation in the sector and abundant natural resources have been identified as strengths in federal and provincial Clean Energy Fuel Strategies. Canada has the potential to take on a leadership role within the emerging hydrogen economy as a global supplier of hydrogen technologies. However, to realize this future, climate policy must be strategically paired with innovation policy. Leveraging Canadian research innovation – in particular, our global strengths in the nascent hydrogen economy – will not only facilitate the vital transition to clean energy, it will also aid in post-pandemic economic recovery. In this panel, we heard from experts ranging from scientist entrepreneurs to innovation policy makers to industry on how to help move Canadian science innovations out of the lab and into the industries fueling a cleaner future.

Takeaways:

  • Canada is already a global leader in hydrogen production. We have advantages along the entire hydrogen value chain: natural resources, technological innovations, infrastructure, and research expertise. Opportunities for Canadian companies in the hydrogen economy have been growing exponentially. Worldwide, hundreds of billions of dollars are being invested in green technologies.
  • Canada has longstanding international relationships and established international exports and is very well-positioned to be a large-scale global producer of green hydrogen. We are one of the few countries that can provide green hydrogen, as well as the technology to use it. We can leverage these advantages to remain at the forefront of global deployment.
  • The Canada Hydrogen Strategy outlines the development of an at-scale, clean hydrogen economy as a strategic priority for Canada, in order to diversify our energy mix, generate economic benefits and achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
  • Many of the solutions we need to meet our 2030 greenhouse gas emission targets, such as carbon capture and storage and fuel cell technologies, reside within Canadian ventures and are ready to be enabled within existing climate policies at a commercial scale. However, half of the technologies needed to meet our 2050 zero emissions targets – such as economically viable green hydrogen production – are still undeveloped or currently at nascent stages in university research labs.
  • Key challenges we are facing in Canada are a lack of domestic deployment of technologies, lack of funding directed towards clean technology implementation and a gap between invention and implementation. We need to start now to build our capacities in these areas to better position Canada on the world stage, and to create jobs and fuel economic recovery.
  • Canada’s universities and leading researchers can be a big part of the clean energy solution. We need to equip our researchers with the education, translational support, and de-risking support to enable our leading inventors to develop clean energy ventures which are “Built-for-Scale” – science-based university spinoff ventures that are well positioned to scale and export products or processes around the world.

Actions:

  • Develop science policy that supports both economic recovery and environmental recovery, and purposefully align science policy, innovation policy and climate policy. Develop policies that support key actors at each stage of the clean energy innovation process, helping bring breakthrough inventions from conceptualization to commercialization to high scale production or implementation. Governments have a role to play in building cohesive strategies for innovation ecosystems—especially in areas where Canada leads.
  • Leading by example can build awareness amongst the public. Promoting greener government procurement policies and operations, considering environmental performance as a criterion in private sector procurement, and utilizing universities’ capacity to pilot sustainability initiatives can all fuel economic and environmental recovery.
  • Create appropriate conditions for ideas and research to succeed, including facilitating more engagement between researchers, industry experts and policymakers at every level to share ideas, test value propositions, inform market-driven research opportunities, inform new product development, and inform innovation policy. Partnerships between academia and industry can accelerate innovation stemming from research labs by introducing early-stage researchers to industry demand.
  • Provide support for the licensing/copyright of intellectual property, and provide a continuum of programming support via relevant academic and non-credit programming, as well as incubators and accelerators, to scale up ventures.
  • Setting standard reference platforms and certifiers to validate and standardize component advances can fuel innovation excellence.
  • One short-term strategy is to establish regional green energy “hubs” where supply and demand can be demonstrated at scale. These hubs could be established at Canada’s eastern and western ports, and within existing Alberta energy infrastructure. This would bring stakeholders and manufacturers together to collaborate in a region-specific manner, and once regional hubs grow, they can collaborate with other hubs across Canada.
  • Implement a Build-for-Scale strategy that leverages Canadian clean energy research strengths, purposefully supports breakthrough clean energy innovation from ideation through to commercialization and production scale up, and builds entrepreneurial capabilities within our clean energy innovation ecosystem

Proceedings prepared by Shivanthy Pathmanathan

November 18th, 2021

Organized by: Future Earth and Sustainability in the Digital Age

Panelists:

Joel Martin – Acting Director General, National Research Council Canada and Chief Digital Research Officer

Ken Paul – Ocean Frontier Institute

Karen Bakker – Professor, University of British Columbia

Bonnie Schmidt – Founder and President, Let’s Talk Science

Ryan Oliver – Founder and CEO, Pinnguaq Association

Oliver Bullion – Director of Sustainable Development Goals Unit, Employment and Social Development Canada

Moderator: Éliane Ubalijoro – Director of Future Earth Canada Global Hub and Executive Director of Sustainability in the Digital Age

Context: Canada has less than 10 years to deliver on its commitments for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (Canadian Indicator Framework for the SDGs), and to meet national climate and biodiversity targets such as protecting 30% of land by 2030 and hitting net-zero emissions by 2050. To catalyze action and achieve these ambitions, we must foster cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary collaborations that merge digital innovations with sustainability science and increase collective awareness at this interface. Canada is well-positioned to become a “first mover” on digital innovations for the SDGs and for scaling-up nature-based solutions as pathways to decarbonization.

To explore this topic further, Future Earth and Sustainability in the Digital Age hosted a half-day symposium at the 13th Canadian Science Policy Conference. This symposium brought together panelists with diverse expertise, covering policy analysis, climatology, digital innovation, sustainable development, private sector partnerships, Indigenous driven transformative solutions, education and youth development.

Takeaways:

  • The recent rise in digital innovation, in combination with environmental governance, has allowed citizen science to flourish, placing important power into the hands of community members and those most affected by climate change and its harmful effects.
  • There needs to be a dramatic shift in various aspects of individual daily life and society to appease the complexity of growing inequities in the world. To explore a more sustainable way of life, shifts include moving from market to moral values, seeing the internet as a human right and tackling the mental health crisis (particularly eco-anxiety).
  • Canada has not yet taken advantage of its unique global position to be a leader in environmental and climate change science, sustainability and education, whereas the European Union has, with the implementation of policies and acts like the Green Deal.
  • There are certain key drivers that Canada needs to address to achieve the SDGs in digital policy, including providing access to affordable high-speed internet, bridging the gap between Indigenous and Western knowledge, and better, more direct infrastructure and financing of science.
  • Policymakers can make recommendations to move towards a sustainable future. For example, prioritizing environmental services and biodiversity over economic prosperity can help meet certain SDGs.
  • To achieve the SDGs and other local sustainability goals, it is imperative to work on diversity, inclusion and respect. As society participates in dialogues, we learn from each other and move towards a healthier, more just society.

Actions:

  • Support educators and leaders to engage youth in the design of digital literacy programs for sustainable development. In education, integrate sustainability and digital literacy into academic curriculums from the earliest point. Provide youth with the possibility to design purpose-driven technologies within their studies and field of work. Infuse computational sustainability and ecological informatics into academic curriculums to promote ways that computer science can contribute to saving the planet.
  • Access to broadband must happen now, especially in Northern remote communities, to bridge the digital divide.
  • Community-led work is important to foster when working to achieve sustainable development goals and solve technological problems. When doing this community-based work, it is imperative that community protocols are followed.
  • The development of science programs in Indigenous communities should be done not only in partnership with federal science, NGOs and academia but also through engagement with community knowledge holders and youth to better define priorities.
  • Mobilize research and funding behind technology and optimize community partnerships. Provide support for innovators to topple structural issues in Canada’s innovation and commercialization pipeline.
  • We cannot go to Indigenous communities and expect to extract their knowledge. Rather, we must ask Indigenous nations what they need or want and then find researchers that can support them in achieving their objectives.
  • Infuse the sustainable development goals into our Innovation and Skills Plan so that Canada will not be left behind economically, as environmental protection is the cornerstone of a profitable economy in the 21st century.

Proceedings prepared by Mackenzie Menard

November 18th, 2021

Organized by: Future Earth

Panelists:

Marie-Josée Fortin – Ecologist and Professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto

Angela Kross – Full Time Faculty in Geospatial Technologies, Concordia University

David Rolnick – Assistant Professor and Canada CIFAR AI Chair, McGill University and at Mila – Quebec AI Institute

Damon Matthews – Professor and Research Chair in Climate Science and Sustainability, Concordia University

Paul del Giorgio – Professor, L’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)

Graeme Reed – Senior Policy Advisor, Assembly of First Nations

Verna McGregor – Elder, Algonquin Community of Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg; Minwaashin Lodge

Moderator: Éliane Ubalijoro – Executive Director of Sustainability in the Digital Age and the Global Hub Director in Canada, Future Earth

Context: Canada has less than 10 years to deliver on its commitments for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (Canadian Indicator Framework for the SDGs), and to meet national climate and biodiversity targets such as protecting 30% of land by 2030 and hitting net-zero emissions by 2050. To catalyze action and achieve these ambitions, we must foster cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary collaborations that merge digital innovations with sustainability science and increase collective awareness at this interface. Canada is well-positioned to become a “first mover” on digital innovations for the SDGs and for scaling-up nature-based solutions as pathways to decarbonization.

To explore this topic further, Future Earth and Sustainability in the Digital Age hosted a half-day symposium at the 13th Canadian Science Policy Conference. This symposium brought together panelists with diverse expertise, covering policy analysis, climatology, digital innovation, sustainable development, private sector partnerships, Indigenous driven transformative solutions, education and youth development.

Takeaways:

  • In order to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there is a need for an improved data validation network for carbon and water monitoring. There is a lack of continuous temporal and broad spatial data that can support the development of carbon AI modelling systems.
  • Data is mainly collected at a provincial level as opposed to federal. All provinces are working separately instead of collaboratively. This makes the process of choosing the data that matches the SDGs less straightforward.
  • AI is useful in supporting nature-based solutions (NbS) by analyzing complex systems (e.g., integrating different types for monitoring NbS). This data may be used to inform decisions regarding how governments can advance meaningful work in this area (e.g., funding for data collection and digital infrastructure in rural areas, research and innovation funding, deployment and systems integration for nature-based solutions, capacity building for local stakeholders, international collaboration, and structuring data standards).
  • Nature-based solutions are only part of the solution to meeting SDGs. Other measures can be coupled with NbS to fulfill the UN commitments.
  • In implementing nature-based solutions, it is important to couple the ongoing need for rapid decarbonization with the need to reduce carbon emissions. Additionally, there are social and cultural shifts that need to be considered important components of exercising our responsibilities to the environment around us.
  • It is important to regard climate action through an integrated landscape approach as opposed to a fragmented one. This involves placing more focus on trying to understand how changing one thing affects an entire system, rather than focusing on things separately.

Actions:

  • Direct funding towards impact-driven research. This funding should be distributed to promote more open-source communication in order to provide more equitable access to the information.
  • Involve stakeholders in all stages of the digital innovation process, and consider and involve those who will be affected by specific policy implementation.
  • Support sustainable forest management by developing new standards to fit the changing environment. Local action is particularly helpful in supporting the conservation of soil to support the environment. Fine-grain LiDAR is also a tool that has proved helpful to show where action is needed.
  • In developing protocols for nature-based solutions using technology, it is important to understand that no one technology will act as the answer. Ultimately before defining true, nature-based solutions, we need to first redefine our relationship with the land such that solutions can contribute to ecosystem integrity and community welfare.
  • The amplification of Indigenous voices is essential to the forming of a reciprocal, inclusive policy framework. This includes a consultation with diverse perspectives in the interconnected policymaking process.

Proceedings prepared by Ellen Mccole