Canadians have grown tired of greenwashing, said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Sustainable Finance Forum in Ottawa on Thursday. They demand greater credibility from the companies they do business with.
“You can make profits, grow the economy, hire workers and do good while fighting climate change at the same time,” Trudeau said in a fireside chat with MP Ryan Turnbull.
The Department of Finance announced its intention to mandate climate-related financial disclosures for large, federally incorporated private companies in October, which included a taxonomy defining “green” and “transition” investments.
The first adopters of sustainable finance are driven by moral imperative and don’t know if they’ll benefit financially. But conventional investors will eventually be drawn when there’s a demonstrable market need, Trudeau said. Implementing a clear framework will help attract investments by creating a level playing field and weeding out bad actors.
However, progress in Canada has been slow. The Canadian Securities Administrators has proposed enhanced climate standards since 2021, but their effort stalled the following year waiting for the final standards from the International Sustainability Standards Board and U.S. rules.
“Some of us would’ve wished that things had gone a little bit faster,” Stephen Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, said later in the day.
There was a consensus at COP29 earlier this month that the global south needs investment to decarbonize and adapt to climate change, but there aren’t enough public funds to do it, Guilbeault said.
In Canada, investment tax credits, the Strategic Innovation Fund and Canada Infrastructure Bank were intended to help catalyze early action and private investment into sustainable projects by offering low-cost debt and share risk, Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, said sitting alongside Guilbeault.
In addition, Canada also needs to speed up its regulatory permitting process. For example, Alberta has a strong renewables market as it has a deregulated energy market that allows private entrants to compete with public utilities, Wilkinson said. “It went like gangbusters.”
“I am optimistic that even with bumps in the road from changes in different political configurations, that we are going to continue to see progress around the world … to ensure a sustainable future for our kids,” Wilkinson added.