A Canadian flag waves in front of the parliament buildings in Ottawa
Insight

Don’t let green recovery become a political hot potato

In this op-ed for the Ottawa Citizen, IISD's President and CEO argues that ensuring a resilient recovery is not just a question of what’s good for the economy or what’s good for the environment. It is now an issue of national competitiveness.

By Richard Florizone on August 24, 2020

The idea that stimulus spending should drive a green, resilient recovery has wrongly become a partisan issue in this country, apparently playing a role in the departure of Bill Morneau as finance minister on one side and highlighting the lack of strong Conservative leadership on climate on the other.

Ensuring a resilient recovery is not just a question of what’s good for the economy or what’s good for the environment. It is now an issue of national competitiveness.

Leaders around the globe and across the political spectrum are making historic commitments to build a low-carbon future, rejecting the false compromise between economic growth and climate action. The scale of investment and economic change around the world illustrates the urgency with which Canada needs to lift its eyes to this horizon.

Read the rest of the article in the Ottawa Citizen.