Canada to invest $2.7B to fight global climate change

Justin Trudeau wrapped up his trip to the Commonwealth heads-of-government meeting in Malta on Saturday.

Trudeau spent part of his childhood in 24 Sussex – the official residence of Canadian prime ministers – made his first appearance in national politics in September 2000, when he gave an emotional eulogy at his father’s funeral in Montreal.

“I want to be able to demonstrate that Alberta is united with the rest of Canada in its commitment to take collaborative action on climate change, I’d like to able to promote our province’s new climate leadership plan in meetings with global stakeholders and experts, and of course, overall I want to strengthen and build new worldwide relationships so we can leverage environmental partnerships with some global stakeholders”.

Crucially, Canada is also pledging $2.65 billion in climate mitigation funding to help developing nations – who will be often worst affected by global warming – to adapt to extreme weather events and rising sea levels that threaten to flood coastal cities.

Yet, despite the tiny geographical size of these nations, “These countries have an equal voice in the Commonwealth, and none more so than Malta”, where she lived in 1949, the same year that the Commonwealth was established.

“So, I think one of the most important things we can do here is talk about the perils of Islamist extremism violence and the problem of extremism more broadly. It requires us to take action all around the world”.

Canada’s former Conservative government had “absolutely no plan” to hit its climate targets announced earlier this year to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, he said.

Hollande told the 53 countries represented in Malta that mankind has a moral duty to fight climate change as much as terrorism.

Five years ago at a climate change summit in Durban, South Africa, Member States agreed in their Declaration: let us agree on a universal, legally binding, ambitious climate change agreement by 2015, Mr. Ban stressed.

How else to explain the seismic shift in Canadian climate-change policy since the defeat of the Harper government on October 19 and ascent of the Trudeau Liberals?

Justin Trudeau toasted the monarch at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) banquet at the Corinthia Hotel in Malta. “We can not again delay or postpone it until tomorrow”.

The summits are only held every two years and the next two are scheduled to be far from Europe.

In a text provided to the media, Trudeau pays homage to the Queen as a constant in the development of Canada over the last half century, including opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959, cutting Canada’s ceremonial centennial cake on Parliament Hill in 1967 and signing off on the repatriation of the Constitution in 1982.

“As everyone knows I was thrown into the deep end of global summits just shortly after being elected”, said Trudeau, 43.

That work began Thursday evening as Trudeau met with Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat at the Auberge de Castille, the presidential office.

“In 1947, you famously vowed that your whole life would be devoted to the service of the Commonwealth”.