This is the coldest summer of the rest of your life.
Hot enough for you? Usually that’s a friendly summer greeting. This year in many parts of Canada, it was no joke. Record hot temperatures. Widespread drought. Wildfires that destroyed homes, forests, and wildlife. And if that wasn’t enough - a grim report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that confirmed humans are causing the climate crisis, and we’re only going to see hotter temperatures and more extreme weather conditions.
It’s no wonder climate anxiety is on the rise. The IPCC report was conclusive: climate change is human caused, unprecedented, and projected to intensify. We could just give up in despair.
But I see a brighter side. There is a new sense of urgency, spurred by research and first-hand experience. More Canadians are willing to put in the work needed to tackle problems through accelerated innovation and investments.
Climate change is firmly top of mind. In past federal elections, environmental issues have been of secondary importance. In the current federal campaign, tackling climate change is a major part of each party’s platform. Climate change is among the top five issues for Canadians, according to a recent Ipsos poll.
As Canada’s cleantech accelerator, Foresight saw this problem coming a mile away. We created a plan. And we’re executing on it. The climate crisis is too massive and too urgent for solutions to occur in silos. We need your help!
Cleantech Forward: Accelerating Cleantech to Combat the Climate Crisis
Foresight’s strategic plan is audacious. What else could it be? Incremental improvements are not going to get us out of this mess. Here’s where we are headed in the next three years.
- Our vision is a future where Canada is a global leader in cleantech innovation, commercialization, and adoption. We can create an economy where 10% of employment is in green jobs (over 2 million) by 2030.
- Give innovation a clear target. Develop technologies, business models, and processes that reduce GHG emissions by 100 megatonnes per year. Ensure water and food security. Protect our precious planet.
- Propel investment at all stages. Attract and deploy $1 billion in capital towards Canadian cleantech ventures.
- Accelerate adoption of Canadian cleantech. Execute 50 Industry Innovation Challenges, matching innovators with industry seeking sustainability solutions.
- Bring Canadian innovation to the world. Substantially increase cleantech exports and raise our profile. Canada will be a global cleantech leader.
Above all, we must commit to collaboration. Yes, we’re running out of time with climate change. But we’re not running out of ideas. It is only by working together, by energizing innovation with relentless urgency, that we will succeed.
I’m up for the challenge. Are you?
