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The report finds that while Canada's GDP has grown, its comprehensive wealth—comprising produced, natural, human, financial, and social capital—has grown much more slowly and shows signs of fragility. Key concerns include a lack of growth in human capital, the depletion of market natural assets, and an increasing concentration of produced capital in housing and oil and gas infrastructure. The document advocates for the regular measurement of comprehensive wealth by Statistics Canada to better guide long-term policy decisions and address threats like climate change.

The report argues that Canada's long-term prosperity is fragile, as its comprehensive wealth has grown significantly slower than its GDP. While Canada possesses high levels of natural capital, it faces risks from household debt, climate change, and an over-concentration of produced capital in housing and oil and gas infrastructure. The authors advocate for the official adoption of comprehensive wealth measurement to shift policy focus from short-term gains to long-term sustainability.

The report analyzes local content policies (LCPs) used by mineral-rich nations to increase the use of domestic labor, goods, and services in the mining sector. It details various policy instruments—ranging from mandatory quotas and ownership requirements to government incentives and voluntary business initiatives—and examines their practical application in countries such as Norway, Chile, Ghana, and Brazil. The document argues that LCPs often fail when implemented as blanket provisions without clear objectives or sufficient industrial capacity. It identifies critical prerequisites for success, including institutional readiness, a favorable business climate, and a long-term vision that transcends political cycles. The report concludes that effective LCPs require a combination of quantitative and qualitative measures, robust monitoring through key performance indicators, and strong partnerships between governments, mining firms, and local suppliers to ensure sustainable economic diversification.

The document argues that the PMRA's proposed phase-out of imidacloprid is too slow and narrow in scope, failing to account for the risks to wild pollinators beyond honey bees and bumblebees. It criticizes the reliance on label statements for risk mitigation, citing inadequate enforcement capacity in Canada. The authors highlight risks from environmental contamination, such as residues in non-target wildflowers and dust from treated seeds, and argue that the economic value of neonicotinoid seed treatments is overrated. They recommend a full ban on all outdoor uses, aligned with European Union regulations, and a shift toward Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

The document outlines six key actions for regional governments to decarbonize mobility: expanding electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, electrifying commercial and government fleets, implementing clean vehicle manufacturing standards, improving freight delivery efficiency, investing in public transit, and promoting non-motorized travel alternatives.

The document outlines three primary actions for regional governments to mitigate the climate impact of waste: diverting organic waste from landfills, banning the open burning of municipal and agricultural waste, and implementing gas collection and energy recovery systems at landfills.

The document outlines five specific actions for achieving carbon-free electricity: implementing Renewable Portfolio Standards, phasing out coal plants, modernizing rate designs, integrating distributed energy resources into grid planning, and expanding community solar access.

A coalition of over 115 organizations, including the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, calls on Ontario Premier Doug Ford to reinstate climate policy and meet legislated emissions targets. The letter highlights the increasing financial and human costs of climate change in Ontario, citing record heat waves, floods, and forest fires, and notes that Ontario is Canada's second most carbon-polluting province.

The report argues that ecosystem management, particularly regarding 'wicked problems' like toxic algal blooms, is hindered by lagging scientific adoption of mature commercial technologies. It proposes a 'fintech gearbox' approach, combining the Internet of Things (IoT) for real-time data collection, big data for managing volume and variety, artificial intelligence (AI) for revealing hidden patterns, and blockchain for ensuring data integrity and trust. The author emphasizes that while these technologies offer significant potential for predictive modeling and sustainable supply chains, their success depends on overcoming cultural barriers in academia and government regarding open data sharing.

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) advocates for the rapid closure of coal plants in Canada to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate severe health risks from air pollution and mercury. While supporting this transition, CAPE stresses that unemployment and poverty are social determinants of health, requiring a just transition framework including retraining, relocation programs, and extended severance to prevent the health benefits of decarbonization from being offset by economic instability for workers.

CAPE advocates for the continuation of Manitoba's ban on cosmetic pesticides, citing significant health risks to children and criticizing the federal Pest Management Regulatory Agency's evaluation process as inadequate.

The research note analyzes California's consignment auctioning mechanism, where the government auctions free allowances on behalf of companies and returns the revenue to them. This hybrid approach is proposed as a solution for China's national ETS to enable price discovery and price collars while cushioning the economic impact on energy-intensive, trade-exposed sectors and bypassing institutional barriers regarding government revenue accounts.

The report examines the urgent need for innovation in mining due to declining productivity and rising costs. It details advancements in automation, electrification, and renewable energy, while highlighting the role of governments in ensuring these gains are shared with local communities. Case studies illustrate specific applications of AI, solar power, and new business models across Canada, Australia, Chile, and other regions.

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) supports the City of Edmonton's plan to update its Integrated Pest Management policy to improve clarity on pesticide use and justification. CAPE urges the city to consult health-related groups and incorporate health evidence into its decisions, citing epidemiological studies that link pesticide exposure to adverse reproductive, neurological, and developmental outcomes, especially in children and pregnant women. The organization also highlights flaws in the federal pesticide approval process managed by Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency, arguing for a precautionary approach to protect public health.

The document examines the risks associated with neonicotinoids, a class of systemic insecticides. It highlights their negative impacts on pollinators, soil organisms, and aquatic ecosystems, while questioning their actual economic value to farmers. It specifically critiques the Canadian regulatory process for being slow and fragmented.

The report details how neonicotinoids contaminate plants, soil, and water, leading to the decline of pollinators and other essential invertebrates. It argues that these chemicals provide marginal economic benefits while posing significant risks to ecosystem services, and criticizes the Canadian regulatory system for its slow re-evaluation process and historical use of conditional registrations.

The policy brief highlights Manitoba's potential to utilize over 5 million tonnes of available annual biomass from agriculture, forestry, and ecological sources like cattails to replace fossil fuels. It notes that current demand for biomass fuel exceeds the capacity of existing processing facilities and calls for government investment in infrastructure, research, and water management to enable a high-value bioeconomy.

The report finds that the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) carbon market, comprising California, Quebec, and Ontario, is experiencing significant oversupply. This surplus, estimated at 270 million metric tons (MMT) through 2020, is driven by economic factors, renewable energy innovation, and the 2009 recession. Because allowances can be banked, this oversupply threatens to undermine the 2030 climate targets by effectively raising future emission caps. The author recommends that WCI jurisdictions adjust future caps downward by an amount equal to the privately held allowances banked by the end of 2020, citing the success of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) in using a similar approach.

The report examines the transition from traditional gray infrastructure to green infrastructure (GI) for stormwater management. It argues that because the benefits of GI are collective while costs are private, public intervention via economic instruments—specifically stormwater markets—is necessary to bridge the investment gap. The document details various price-based and quantity-based instruments, such as stormwater retention credits and environmental impact bonds, and analyzes their application in cities like Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and Halifax.

The document outlines opposition to a Draft Screening Assessment regarding hydrogen sulfide (H2S), sodium bisulfide (Na(SH)), and sodium sulfide (Na2S). The authors argue that H2S poses significant risks to human health, particularly for communities near oil and gas operations, and that the government's assessment fails to apply a precautionary approach or account for olfactory nuisance as an adverse effect.