Joint statement on the development of a national strategy respecting environmental racism and environmental justice

The document expresses support for Canada's first national strategy to assess, prevent, and address environmental racism, as mandated by the 2024 National Strategy Respecting Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act. The signatories argue that racialized and Indigenous communities are disproportionately exposed to pollution and climate change, often masked by a lack of disaggregated population exposure data. To be credible, the signatories assert the strategy must center impacted communities, introduce an environmental equity lens across government departments, and incorporate comprehensive data gathering on ecological, social, and cultural determinants of health.

• The National Strategy Respecting Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Act, passed in 2024, requires the minister to analyze the connections between racialization, socio-economic status, and environmental risk to create a national strategy for advancing environmental justice and addressing environmental racism.
• Racialized and Indigenous populations in Canada are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation, pollution, and climate change, with a 2020 UN Special Rapporteur report noting a pattern where these marginalized groups face conditions that would be unacceptable in other parts of the country.
• The signatories identify a critical gap in Canadian data, noting that population exposure data is typically not broken down by income level or race, which obscures the extent of environmental racism.
• The organizations outline several requirements for a credible national strategy, including the use of an environmental equity lens in government decision-making (specifically mentioning the Major Projects Office), meaningful engagement with impacted communities, and alignment with the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and UNDRIPA.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2025). Joint statement on the development of a national strategy respecting environmental racism and environmental justice. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Organization-Joint-Statement-National-Strategy-12.12.2025.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Joint statement on the development of a national strategy respecting environmental racism and environmental justice. 2025. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Organization-Joint-Statement-National-Strategy-12.12.2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Joint statement on the development of a national strategy respecting environmental racism and environmental justice |date=12 December 2025 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Organization-Joint-Statement-National-Strategy-12.12.2025.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2025joint, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Joint statement on the development of a national strategy respecting environmental racism and environmental justice}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2025}, month = dec, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Organization-Joint-Statement-National-Strategy-12.12.2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }