Opinion: It’s time for philanthropy to respond to the climate crisis, just like it did to COVID-19

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In June this year, the temperature in Lytton broke all previous Canadian records with a sweltering 49.6 degrees Celsius. Two days later, the entire city was forced to flee when a forest fire engulfed the community.

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During that same week of record temperatures, 570 people in British Columbia died from heat-related causes. That number of deaths in just one week equates to more than half of the COVID-19 deaths in the Greater Vancouver region since the pandemic began.

To quote Chief Patrick Michell of the Kanaka Bar First Nation: “We now live in the age of consequences.”

Indigenous peoples, who have been warning for decades about the impacts of a changing climate on their lands, water, air and ecosystems, are on the front lines of this climate catastrophe.

Canada is the world’s third largest greenhouse gas emitter per capita, while our emissions reductions lag behind our G7 counterparts. Our climate is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, and we are already experiencing drastic consequences, from wildfires in the west and droughts in the prairies, to melting permafrost in the north and extreme storms in the east. These trends are rooted in the reality that natural resource extraction fuels the Canadian economy.

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To address this reality, we must recognize our moral, and practical, responsibility to do our fair share to reduce global emissions.

Climate change is affecting communities across the country. Countless stories of destroyed homes, uprooted lives and broken hearts proliferate with each passing day. More than 200 medical journals have declared that climate change is the greatest threat to public health. Furthermore, studies show that historically and perpetually excluded communities are disproportionately affected by its impacts, from air pollution and heat waves to floods and other extreme weather events. Climate justice is an issue of equity and is central to Canada’s reconciliation agenda.

All corners of Canada’s foundation community, representing more than 10,000 organizations with close to $ 100 billion in assets, have a common interest in prioritizing climate action. What was once perceived as a diffuse and distant environmental problem has become a clear and present threat multiplier that threatens the safety, livelihoods and long-term well-being of communities. Many foundation models are built on supporting thriving communities in perpetuity.

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However, the IPCC warns us that in a world warming by more than 1.5 degrees, a possibility in the next 15 years, living conditions will deteriorate dramatically and, as a result, weaken the promise of healthy, equitable and sustainable communities. fair that define a large part of the objectives of the foundations.

Canada’s commitment to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals requires that we leave no one behind. And yet, collectively, donors have failed to focus on a key issue that affects all aspects of our society, with direct implications for each priority area of ​​Canadian foundations and their programming.

On average, one percent of philanthropic dollars globally goes toward climate mitigation each year. In Canada, most of the funds go to large educational, medical and religious organizations. These are worthy causes, but foundations also need to think about how they can increase their grants and investments to address the climate crisis while fulfilling their missions. In other words, we need more funding and more sponsors for climate change and the thematic areas that it intersects.

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Together, we have the resources and influence to make a big difference through our grant and investment practices and our advocacy. Fortunately, there is still time to act to avoid the worst repercussions of runaway climate change.

For all these reasons, we call on the Canadian foundation community to join forces and sign the Canadian Philanthropy Pledge on Climate Change, which includes calls to action in seven key areas: Education and Learning, Resource Commitment, Integration. , Endowments and Assets, Operations, Influence and Incidence and Transparency.

Whether we are supporting health, education, faith, research, culture, politics, civic engagement, gender equality, social justice, the environment, or any other cause, we can apply a climate lens to all of our grants. Foundations must also align their assets with the goals of the Paris Agreement that Canada signed in 2015. This includes reducing the carbon footprint of financial assets to net zero by 2050. Many large pension funds, university grants, and foundations are leading the way. way, and you can help others by sharing the experience they have gained.

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On November 1, leaders from the government, business and non-profit sectors will gather in Glasgow for the 26th annual climate summit (known as COP26). This is a hands-on time, and Canadian foundations must do their part. Many of our foundation’s gifts were established generations ago and they look forward to serving Canadians for generations to come.

At this critical juncture in our history, our generation holds the keys to the future. In the face of this unprecedented crisis, we have the opportunity to be guided by the wisdom and leadership of indigenous peoples, as well as the obligation to do everything possible to protect those who will come after us through bold and forward-looking actions.

Karel Mayrand is the CEO of La Fondation du Grand Montréal; Eric St. Pierre is the Executive Director of the Trottier Family Foundation; Sherry Yano is the Director of Grants and Community Engagement for the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia.

Letters to the editor should be sent to [email protected]. The editor of the editorial pages is Hardip Johal, who can be contacted at [email protected].

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