Tag Archives: Gov of Alberta

Politics

Carney’s cabinet selections clarify climate priorities before upcoming election

By John Woodside, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

With an election widely expected to be around the corner, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s  choice of cabinet ministers reveals his approach to this tense political  moment, observers say. 

For voters who  care about climate, the headline is that former Environment and Climate  Change Minister Steven Guilbeault, the longtime environmental activist  who has frequently drawn the ire of conservatives and the fossil fuel  industry, has been shuffled to a new far less controversial role. No  longer overseeing policies aimed at slashing emissions, from the carbon  price to oil and gas emissions cap, he will now serve as Carney’s Quebec  Lieutenant — the government’s leading voice in Quebec — as well as  Minister of Parks Canada and Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity. 

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Politics

Elbows up plus — retaliation is just part of the story, Alberta legislature hears

By George Lee, The Macleod Gazette, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Elbows up has earned its place as a catchphrase of the moment for a Trump-and-tariffs Canada where patriotism suddenly got cool again. But perhaps also worth considering is the not-so-sexy cliché nose to the grindstone, as provinces like Alberta reorient their economies to become less reliant on the U.S.

Both ideas rose from the floor of Alberta’s legislature this week, as Donald Trump’s pronouncements, commentary and policies continued to sow economic havoc and news cycle confusion and unpredictability.

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Cost of Climate Change, Politics

Middle ground is collapsing on climate action, Canada concedes in submission to UN

By John Woodside, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Polarization is gripping the country and the centre isn’t holding, Environment and  Climate Change Canada found when setting the country’s latest emissions  reduction target. 

The department solicited  feedback from provincial and territorial governments, Indigenous  groups, think tanks and the public to determine what Canada’s  internationally binding 2035 pollution reduction obligations should be.  It was a monumental effort with over 11,000 participants, more than  23,000 comments, and just over 100 official submissions. The results  found that overcoming polarization is a major hurdle to implementing  aggressive emissions reductions that climate scientists say is required to avoid catastrophic warming. 

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Cost of Climate Change, Energy, Indigenous Nations

‘No room for fossil fuel expansion’: Grand Chief Steward Phillip clears the air on pipelines

By Matteo Cimellaro, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Long-time climate advocate and First Nation leader Stewart Phillip is walking back controversial remarks he made on Tuesday.

Canada’s climate advocacy world gasped in unison after Phillip appeared to suggest building out pipeline infrastructure at a news conference. 

Phillip, who is the Grand Chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, was a strong critic of pipelines like Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline and the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion when those projects were under consideration in the early- to mid-2010s. On Tuesday, he said those years were a “different time.” With the uncertainty of the U.S. President Donald Trump, Canada has “no choice” but to reconsider fossil fuel development, Phillip told reporters. 

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Politics

Pierre Poilievre promises patriotism but stays vague about U.S. tariff threat

Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

On the eve of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s meeting with premiers to tackle the threat of looming U.S. tariffs, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was on the West Coast hosting a packed “axe the tax” rally. 

Poilievre’s speech Tuesday night to the large crowd at Dwight Hall in Powell River was heavy with patriotism but didn’t address how he’d tackle incoming U.S. president Donald Trump’s promise to impose a 25-per-cent tariff on Canadian goods. 

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