Steven Guilbeault

The federal government’s pledge to protect a third of Canada’s land and water by 2030 will be put into legislation next year, says federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault.

Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault now finds himself, alongside a select handful of other countries, in a pivotal role brokering the fierce debates around phasing out fossil fuels that have defined COP28.

The proposed plan to tackle oil and gas sector emissions is to cut pollution from the sector by more than a third by 2030.

“There's all sorts of reasons why it's challenging for governments to deliver on commitments, so that's the person who ultimately is cracking the whip, saying we've got to get this done faster," says former federal environment and climate change minister Catherine McKenna.

Activists are horrified by a climate conference in one of richest petrostates on the planet. Remind me why they went?

Canada set a high bar globally when the country announced new standards Monday to crack down on planet-warming methane emissions, say observers.

Why I’m here with colleagues and allies at COP28? Because civil society is capable of exerting power to balance corporate interests and protect the global co-operation process — as imperfect as it is.

In an interview with Canada’s National Observer, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault said details of the oil and gas emissions cap framework are being finalized but should be ready “in the coming days.”

New commitments under the Paris Agreement to slash more planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions are due in 2025, the UN's climate change executive secretary told delegates on the opening day of the annual climate change negotiations, upping the pressure on countries like Canada that remain off track.

With the leadup to COP28 marked by scandal after scandal and geopolitical tensions pitting the Global North and South against each other, establishing a loss and damage fund and pouring hundreds of millions into it on the first day of the UN climate conference is an unprecedented achievement, advocates say.

COP28 must deliver a global agreement to phase out fossil fuel production. 

The annual UN climate change negotiations officially kick off in Dubai, and Canada’s National Observer is on the ground to cover it.

The Conservatives dialed up the pressure on the Senate on Tuesday to vote in favour of a carbon-pricing bill, all the while accusing the Liberals of trying to intimidate senators into delaying the bill.

Canada’s image at the world’s signature climate negotiations could be complicated by infighting, some observers fear, as two of the federal government's ardent critics at the provincial level look to capture attention at the United Nations climate summit known as COP28.

New data suggest wealthy countries may belatedly be providing a promised $100 billion in climate-related aid. But they’ve eroded trust in the process.