A new report by senior fellows of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at uOttawa, led by senior fellow Patricia Fuller, Canada's former ambassador for climate change, calls on the Canadian foreign ministry to fully integrate climate change into its diplomatic, trade and development activities.
Even though climate change is an existential crisis and a priority of the Canadian government, the country’s foreign ministry – Global Affairs Canada – has yet to integrate climate change considerations into the full array of its activities. Our foreign, trade and development policies, all of which are impacted by climate change, could be better aligned with Canada’s domestic climate change ambitions, more coordinated and coherent, and more effective. The recommendations set out in this Policy Memo, drafted by senior fellows at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs based on their extensive international and foreign-policy experience, include the establishment of a group within Global Affairs Canada to provide strategic leadership on climate change across the foreign ministry, as well as the creation a climate change and energy network across Canada’s missions abroad.
Read the full report.
Lead Author: Patricia Fuller – Senior fellow, GSPIA, and Canada’s former ambassador for climate change
Co-Authors: Ruth Archibald, Kerry Buck, Masud Hussain, Daniel Jean, John McNee, Alex Neve, and Lillian Thomsen – Senior fellows, GSPIA
Researcher: Corinne Blumenthal