National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy
Annual Report  2005-2006

A Look Ahead

The coming year, 2006-2007, will be an active one for the NRTEE. Key initiatives planned for next year include:

• The Energy and Climate Change program will release an advisory note entitled, Advice on a Long-term Strategy on Energy and Climate Change in June 2006. The advice will address the opportunities and challenges facing Canada in relation to its long-term energy and climate change future. Specifically, it will examine how to, by 2050: meet the energy needs of a growing economy; achieve substantial reductions in carbon emissions; and improve the quality of Canada’s air.
• As well, the Energy and Climate Change program will continue to work on the international component of the NRTEE’s advice and recommendations and will release this document in late August 2006. These issues will include: a strategy for integrating climate change into Canada’s foreign policy, aid and trade objectives; a strategy for promoting the export of Canadian environmental technologies; and recommendations on how to promote consistency between Canadian carbon markets and existing and emerging international markets.
• The Capital Markets and Sustainability program will complete its research and consultations and will release its findings and recommendations in a State of the Debate report in late September 2006.
• The NRTEE will organize a series of Energy and Climate Change workshops in an effort to initiate a national discussion on Canada’s long-term response to energy and climate change. These half-day sessions will be held in eight to 10 major cities across Canada between October 2006 and March 2007. The NRTEE will engage key players - in the business, provincial, municipal and non-governmental organization (NGO) sectors - in a constructive dialogue which will assist in the future policy work focused on deploying GHG reduction technologies. This input and any subsequent analysis will be forwarded to the Minister of the Environment.
• The NRTEE will launch a new program to examine Climate Change and Adaptation. This program will examine the integration of climate change considerations, - risks and opportunities - into existing decision making and policy structures of adaptation as a risk management issue. Four policy areas that will be examined include: disaster management; insurance and other sectors that provide risk-transfer services; building codes and standards; and, project finances and capital markets.
• Building on the key findings and recommendations of the NRTEE’s advisory note (Advice on a Long-term Strategy on Energy and Climate Change), the Round Table will explore in further detail the need for a long-term policy signal on energy and climate change in Canada.

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