Featured Guest
You’ll find this guest among our growing roll of Urban Champions.
5 Key Takeaways
A roundup of the most compelling ideas, themes and quotes from this candid conversation
1. Indigenous knowledge must be a part of climate resilience planning.
Through his work on the Adaptation Futures Conference‘s Science Committee—and as a writer, knowledge keeper and artist—Hetxw’ms Gyetxw (Brett D. Huson) is connecting Indigenous knowledge to the climate adaptation planning world.
“Indigenous knowledge has been stereotyped and relegated to subjective matters, so people tend to think that the extent of it is just hunting and fishing,” said Huson. “But you can’t have civilizations for tens of thousands of years without having complex governance systems and very deep understandings of land. We’ve been having to adapt to severe drastic changes to our land in the past 150 years, so it would be a good opportunity to look at what we’ve done.”
2. The climate crisis is urgent, but the most effective solutions cannot be rushed.
Julius Lindsay is the Director of Sustainable Communities at the David Suzuki Foundation and co-founder of the Black Environmentalist Alliance, where he engages urban communities in climate solutions—particularly those who are most impacted by the climate crisis’ harmful effects. He stressed the importance of long-term relationship building and intersectional analysis among leaders in the climate sector.
“We have this urgency of ‘We have 10 years left, so we have to do everything fast,’” explained Lindsay. “But if we continue to focus on those fast changes, it’s easy to implement a solution that doesn’t help everybody, and that pushes people more to the fringes.”
3. Cities can serve as powerful climate convenors.
As former mayor of Toronto, and now Managing Director of C40 Cities, David Miller knows first-hand the important role that cities can play in convening the private and public sectors towards climate action.
“Cities have the ability to use their bully pulpit to pull people and institutions together, to address the collective problem and help drive collective solutions,” said Miller. “For example, in Sydney and Melbourne, the cities do not have regulatory authority over electricity, but they’ve driven significant change by working with other large institutions like universities, hospitals, and other big energy consumers, to say to the private companies, ‘We’re not going to buy your electricity.’”
4. Our understanding of climate risk should include the entire ecosystem.
Huson encouraged viewers to broaden their understanding of climate mitigation beyond its impact on their city or community.
“Many municipalities or urban centres have created a little human bubble cut off from the rest of the world,” said Huson. “They only look at the infrastructure and sectors within the city, not thinking about the far-reaching impacts that they have on the consumption of materials coming into the city. Where is that concrete coming from? Where is the steel coming? What impact is this having on the land? Risk assessments typically focus on the impact to a city’s population or bottom line, but not on the broader ecosystem.”
5. Everyone has a role to play in uplifting climate solutions.
All panellists agreed that by working collectively, civic leaders and urban residents can support the implementation of effective climate solutions. Miller cited Oslo’s climate budget and Hydro-Quebec’s commitment to take natural gas out of buildings are strong policy examples, while Lindsay encouraged viewers to pass the mic and empower others to identify their own community-based solutions rather than imposing. “It’s not about ‘What do I do?’ or ‘What are the actions that I need to tell somebody to do?’” cautioned Lindsay.
Full Panel
Transcript
Note to readers: This video session was transcribed using auto-transcribing software. Questions or concerns with the transcription can be directed to events@canurb.org with “transcription” in the subject line.
Full Audience
Chatroom Transcript
Note to reader: Chat comments have been edited for ease of readability. The text has not been edited for spelling or grammar. For questions or concerns, please contact events@canurb.org with “Chat Comments” in the subject lin
From Canadian Urban Institute: You can find transcripts and recordings of today’s and all our webinars at https://canurb.org/citytalk
11:58:10 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Welcome everyone! We invite you to say hello in the chat before we get started. Where are you watching from? Please change your chat settings to “everyone” so that everyone can read your comments.
11:59:16 From Vivian Forssman To Everyone:
Hi – I am Vivian Forssman, Resilience by Design Lab at Royal Roads University. Watching from Squamish lands in West Vancouver
12:00:14 From Manjinder Dhaliwal To Everyone:
Hey – I’m Manjinder, a recent graduate from the University of Waterloo. Watching from Waterloo
12:00:20 From Canadian Urban Institute To Ewa Jackson(Privately):
Awesome! Please turn your camera on
12:00:42 From Real Eguchi To Everyone:
Real Eguchi, Landscape Architect in Tkoronto!!
12:01:01 From Abby S To Everyone:
Hello from Tkaranto
12:01:12 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
HOUSEKEEPING: We are recording today’s session and will share it online at canurb.org/citytalk-canada/ We hope this session is as interactive as possible, so please feel free to share comments, references, links or questions in the chat Please change your chat settings to “everyone” so that everyone can read your comments. Do you have specific questions for the panellists? Post them in the chat, and we’ll try to answer as many as possible.
12:01:35 From Matthew Figuerres To Everyone:
Hello, my name’s Matt. Analyst at the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority
12:01:54 From Ryan Des Roches To Everyone:
Ryan Des Roches, Registrar & Director of Member Services, Ontario Professional Planners Institute, joining from Williams Treaty territory in Ontario.
12:02:28 From paula Gallo To Everyone:
Paula from Recreate Place, in Tkaronto
12:02:36 From Miranda Jimmy To Everyone:
tân’si nitôtêm. I’m Miranda Jimmy, new Director of Reconciliation & Social Justice with the Ontario Professional Planners Institute. I am work remotely from the heart of Treaty Six, amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton)
12:02:37 From Mark Hafen To Everyone:
Hi everyone…I’m Mark Hafen, independent consultant in Tkaronto
12:02:40 From Mikaila Montgomery To Everyone:
Good morning from the Territory of the lək̓ʷəŋən People, the Songhees and Esquimalt nations (Victoria BC)
12:03:10 From Jean-Benoit Fournier To Everyone:
JB Fournier, from the UNDP. Joining from snowy Québec
12:03:22 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
ICLEI’s third BARC report can be found here: https://icleicanada.org/project/third-barc-impact-report/
12:03:37 From Rebecca Szczepanowski To Everyone:
Hello, my name is Rebecca, Climate Change Officer for the City of Brantford
12:04:58 From Eleanor Mohammed To Everyone:
Hi Everyone, Eleanor Mohammed, President of the Commonwealth Association of Planners. Joining from Abegweit / PEI.
12:05:09 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Barbara Swartzentruber is the Executive Director of the Smart Cities Office at the City of Guelph. As winners’ of Canada’s Smart City Challenge, the City and County of Wellington, are collaborating with public and private sector partners to create a Circular Food Economy.
12:05:21 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Barbara is a public sector innovator with work at the local, provincial and national levels in the areas of public policy, smart cities, citizen engagement, digital economy, rural broadband, open government, data and technology. She has taught public policy, community development and advocacy at several Canadian universities. She was appointed to the Council of Canadian Academies Expert Panel on the Circular Economy in Canada.
12:05:32 From Mark Roseland To All Panelists:
Mark Roseland, Professor of Sustainable Community Planning and Development, Simon Fraser University and Arizona State University
12:05:37 From Micheal Clark To Everyone:
Using this new app to make a transcript
12:05:43 From Micheal Clark To Everyone:
https://zoom.beulr.com/ — lmk if u want
12:06:22 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Thanks Michael! We will also be sharing the transcript from today’s session at www.canurb.org/citytalk-canada/ early next week
12:06:59 From Olusola Olufemi To Everyone:
Greetings to all from Oakville, Ontario.
12:07:04 From Heather McRae To Everyone:
Good morning! Heather McRae, Calgary Downtown Association. Mohkinstsis
12:07:07 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Hetxw’ms Gyetxw, also known as Brett D. Huson (he/him/his), is from the Gitxsan Nation of the Northwest Interior of British Columbia, Canada. Influenced by this matrilineal society, Brett developed a passion for his people’s culture, land, and politics and a desire to share their knowledge and stories. He has worked in the film and television industry for over 16 years and is the volunteer chair for the sakihiwe Music Festival (sakihiwe.ca).
12:07:23 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Brett is also a member of the Science Committee for Adaptation Futures 2023 (adaptationfutures.com). The multi-award-winning Mother’s of Xsan is Brett’s first series of books, and he is currently writing new books both in Fiction and Non-fiction that explore the worlds of the GItxsan culture and perspective. With the support of his wife Jeri and their children Warren and Ruby, Brett endeavours to continue sharing the stories from the land and creating dialogue and understanding around indigenous pedagogies and ways of knowing. Brett is also working with the Prairie Climate Centre at the University of Winnipeg to connect science and Indigenous Knowledges. This work has led to the launch of the Indigenous Knowledges section of the Climate Atlas (climateatlas.ca).
12:07:40 From Mark Roseland To Everyone:
Mark Roseland, Professor of Sustainable Community Planning and Development, Simon Fraser University and Arizona State University
12:08:25 From Jade Schofield To Everyone:
Jade Schofield, Senior Advisor Climate Risk & Resilience, WSP.
12:09:22 From Astra Burka To Everyone:
Hi …I am Co-chair of Sustainability for Directors Guild of Canada -Ontario and involved with Circular Economy Group with the Netherlands Consulate in Canada looking at Dutch Canadian circular initiatives
12:10:00 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Julius Lindsay is the Director, Sustainable Communities at the David Suzuki Foundation and co-founder of the Black Environmentalist Alliance.
12:10:06 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
He previously served as Project Manager, Climate Change and Sustainable Development for the City of Richmond Hill where he lead the City’s Climate Change Mandate which included developing a Corporate Climate change Framework and a Community Energy and Emissions Plan. Julius has also led climate change adaptation and mitigation and community energy work for the City of Mississauga, and worked with Infrastructure Ontario (formerly Ontario Realty Corporation) to work on energy management, climate change, corporate social responsibility and sustainability plans.
12:12:17 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
David Miller is the Managing Director of the C40 Centre for City Climate Policy and Economy. Mr. Miller was Mayor of Toronto from 2003 to 2010 and served as Chair of C40 Cities from 2008 until 2010. Under his leadership, Toronto became widely admired internationally for its environmental leadership, economic strength and social integration. He is a leading advocate for the creation of sustainable urban economies.
12:12:29 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Miller has held a variety of public and private positions and served as Future of Cities Global Fellow at Polytechnic Institute of New York University from 2011 to 2014. He has an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Waterloo in Environmental Studies, an Honorary Doctor of Laws from York University and is currently Executive in Residence at the University of Victoria. He is the author of ‘Solved, how the great cities of the world are fixing the climate crisis‘, (University of Toronto Press).
12:16:41 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Do you have specific questions for the panellists? Post them in the chat, and we’ll try to answer as many as possible.
12:17:22 From Lisa Mactaggart To Everyone:
Tuning in from Grand River Watershed, what is now known as Guelph, ON in Mississauga of the Credit Treaty Lands.
12:21:46 From Richard Gould To Everyone:
During the conversation can the panelists summarize the various actions/policies that cities can implement for adaptation and mitigation? In particular what are the ones that been shown to be most effective?
12:26:12 From Minaz Asani To All Panelists:
My name is Minaz Asani. I’m with CEED Canada. Unfortunately I have to leave to go to a funeral but will listen to the recording. We hear about Climate Justice in other places but not nearly enough in cities in Canada. For an organization trying to do this work in underserved communities, it is really difficult to compete with privileged, white-run organizations. Funders and cities do not look at grants from groups like ours with an equitable lens. What advice would you have for an organization like ours that is racialized and trying to work with underserved and mostly racialized communities knowing we’re going to need everyone on board to get to net zero?
12:28:28 From Mark Roseland To Everyone:
All of you are doing great work, but collectively we clearly need to be doing more and better. It is hard for most people to connect the intersectionality dots between multiple dimensions of sustainability and climate change. Do any of you use, or know or, tools that help communities make these connections and align their efforts?
12:28:32 From Kerri Wall To Everyone:
I just finished the book New York 2140, a piece of speculative fiction about NYC after massive sea-level rise and world hunger/food insecurity. Helpful for those of us that want to use the power of imagination to visualize collective problems and collective solutions.
12:30:21 From Ewa Jackson To All Panelists:
@Mark Roseland (hi!) that’s a great question. Here’s one piece that we worked on: https://icleicanada.org/project/equitable-climate-adaptation.
12:30:26 From Jean-Marc La Flamme To Everyone:
Agree engagement is key and we now have an opportunity to have deep digital engagement online and allow residents to co-create and vote on solutions. There a dozens of platforms in Canada and around the world. Social media is transforming but not the tool for city building. Cities around the world are using purposed built civic engagement platforms like https://www.citizenlab.co/
12:35:07 From Millicent Akinsulure To Everyone:
Hi Everyone : Milly Akin from The Riverside Church, NYC, Beloved Earth Community – Climate Change.
12:35:45 From Jean-Marc La Flamme To Everyone:
Our rural region with dozens of cities built a tool to visualize all the climate action… this is just a start https://basinclimatesource.ca/ How can we “futurescape” solutions, visually understanding impact with open source data and connect them all across the country?
12:38:18 From Lynn Robichaud To Everyone:
Thanks for sharing that link Jean-Marc – very interesting.
12:38:35 From Richard Gould To Everyone:
Can cities do more to provide incentives to increase energy efficiency of homes and buildings?
12:41:00 From Abby S To All Panelists:
The Lorax speaks for the trees. The book was prescient.
12:41:00 From Jean-Marc La Flamme To Everyone:
Everything a city does is deeply connected to the land… rural and urban are completely connected. There is so much innovation in rural we can do to support urban as well.
12:41:42 From Gloria Gutman To Everyone:
I’m Gloria Gutman from Gerontology Research Centre at SFU. Where is PHAC in this discussion? In 2005 it played a lead role in the establishment of the Age Friendly Cities Movement within WHO. There are a number of us around the world who work in the area of climate gerontology. Older people are among those most likely to die in climate-related disasters. Evidence dates back to Hurricane Katrina…
12:42:10 From Chris Fraser To All Panelists:
Julius Lindsay’s point about hydrogen innovation is very interesting. Ironically, sometimes it is the City that gets in the way of innovation that will help it – evidence the failure of the world’s first green hydrogen cab system to be developed by Kristine Hubbard. https://www-2.rotman.utoronto.ca/insightshub/governance-risk-management/how-family-businesses-move-fas
12:43:48 From Richard Gould To Everyone:
Cities need progressive official plans that support greening of the city, provision of parkland, 15 minute/complete communities, active transportation infrastructure, etc. And the benefits of the planning needs to equitably accessible.
12:44:36 From Mark Hafen To Everyone:
The City of Adelaide, South Australia, has committed to becoming a regenerative city, and has implemented so many programs to go from linear (resources in, waste out) to circular. Reducing imports, including energy, is a crucial part of this. Herbert Girardet’s book, Creating Regenerative Cities, has many good ideas for this.
12:46:33 From David Miller To Everyone:
There are some really interesting circular economy type projects – I think portland and philadelphia are working on this too
12:47:25 From Kim Sutherland Mills To Everyone:
Related to Brett’s comment – check out this Kingston business https://www.facebook.com/Main.Street.Market.Kingston/
12:47:50 From Kim Sutherland Mills To Everyone:
They grow food on properties owned by others and sell the food. All within the city, all connected only by bicycle
12:47:59 From David Miller To Everyone:
cool
12:48:17 From Abby S To Everyone:
Love this initiative. Not to be a grinch but better than blow up Santa’s.
12:48:29 From Mark Hafen To All Panelists:
Increasing food sovereignty is crucial.
12:49:36 From David Miller To Everyone:
“better than blow up santa’s” is a low bar…
12:50:13 From Mona Moreau To All Panelists:
I live beside a commercial building on St. Clair W in Toronto where they have planted a vegetable garden in front and supply a food bank with the produce. It looks lovely and is supported by volunteers.
12:51:43 From Barbara Swartzentruber To Everyone:
Check out foodfuture.ca and coil.eco
12:52:11 From Alex Tabascio To Everyone:
Amazing Idea of using under-utilized green space! Toronto should use the greenspace along it’s hydro corridors as community gardens instead of it being just grass
12:52:44 From Abby S To Everyone:
@david without a doubt.
12:52:45 From Mark Hafen To All Panelists:
Edible landscapes are being developed in many cities.
12:53:17 From Real Eguchi To Everyone:
There are 2 urban farms in hydro corridors in Toronto we helped with!
12:53:20 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Great point Alex. Flemo Farms is an initiative in this space https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/new-farming-project-in-hydro-corridor-aims-to-bring-healthier-food-to-flemingdon-park-1.5739910
12:54:41 From David Miller To Everyone:
Another way of looking at emissions is that 70% globally are from cities (incl electricity) – thats where the problem is so thats where we have to act. Predominantly for transportation, buildings, waste, electricity – although emissions from food very important and the examples cited interesting. Also interesting work in milan
12:54:51 From Mary Shaughnessy To Everyone:
I’m planning to take BCIT’s course on Design for Disassembly!
12:55:00 From Sarah Primeau To Everyone:
I haven’t heard much about specific on-the-ground actions that cities are doing to mitigate and adapt to climate change. I am a landscape architect involved in climate mitigation / adaptation and am involved with several on-the-ground design interventions including separated bike lanes, integrated nature-based rainwater management within street right-of-ways, restoration of ecosystems within cities to sequester carbon, + increase liveability + protect biodiversity, coastal cities to restore coastal ecosystem in conjunction with adaptation to sea-level rise
12:55:26 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
On December 7, CUI is convening people across Canada for an online summit exploring how COVID shaped our cities and revealed urgent priorities. RSVP to “COVID 1000 and Beyond: Building Better Cities for a Robust Recovery” here: https://events.zoom.us/e/view/PoOLQnA9RXizRRFqGDtF6Q
12:55:48 From David Miller To Everyone:
Sarah, for good examples see here https://www.c40.org/
12:56:02 From David Miller To Everyone:
or my book Solved
12:56:13 From Shannon Miedema To Everyone:
and here: www.halifax.ca/climate 🙂
12:56:19 From Ewa Jackson To Everyone:
https://changingclimate.ca/map/#z=4&lat=58.42862399306741&lng=-97.68022174999959
12:56:35 From Mona Moreau To All Panelists:
I think we are past writing letters. Our politicians know what has to be done but they are not putting the priority on climate change.
12:56:44 From Ewa Jackson To Everyone:
Map of Adaptation Action across Canada – many of the examples you gave @Sarah (in detail can be found on the map above)
12:56:54 From Abby S To Everyone:
At times these actions seem to fruitless (I know they are not). We have been trying for years to ban gas powered leaf blowers in Toronto. Seems like a no-brainer. But impossible to get through. It’s mind boggling.
12:57:02 From Kim Sutherland Mills To Everyone:
Another Kingston area project – faith community and Indigenous community. https://www.facebook.com/groups/219010656662963/?mibextid=HsNCOg
12:57:18 From Lisa Mactaggart To Everyone:
I am concerned with how few people turned out to vote in the last municipal election here in Ontario. How do we connect civic engagement with climate action?
12:57:41 From Kim Sutherland Mills To Everyone:
https://rideau1000islandsmastergardeners.com/little-forests-kingston/
12:58:03 From Canadian Urban Institute To Everyone:
Reminder: We are recording today’s session and will share it online, along with the chat log and transcript, at canurb.org/citytalk-canada/ in the coming days
12:58:14 From Tamara Grossutti To Everyone:
Supporting the work that many climate activists and community-led orgs are doing in cities is the best thing that municipalities can do. A bit bias here as we’ve been doing that in climate action at the City of Toronto for years… but it’s also very fulfilling work.
12:58:18 From Matthew Figuerres To Everyone:
Sarah – check out Low Impact Development (LID) initiatives being administered by some Conservation Authorities – Credit Valley Conservation Authority has a great program
12:59:02 From Abby S To Everyone:
I suspect you are speaking to the converted
12:59:13 From Richard Gould To Everyone:
Unfortunately Ontario is undermining the roles of the conservation authorities
12:59:13 From Jade Schofield To Everyone:
This is so true Julius, ego’s need to be put aside, and we need to focus on making sure people feel like they are contributing to developing the solutions.
12:59:44 From Shannon Miedema To Everyone:
Abby S – would love to connect – our Council just put a motion looking to ban blowers in Halifax!
13:00:05 From Caroline Hill Smith To All Panelists:
Here in Hamilton we just elected 10 new climate forward councillors because those of us in the climate activism space worked hard to get those candidates heard and give them support.
13:00:06 From Jade Schofield To Everyone:
Thanks for a great session today!
13:00:06 From Kim Sutherland Mills To Everyone:
Thanks everyone. Inspiring!
13:00:12 From Richard Gould To Everyone:
Thanks everyone for an excellent discussion
13:00:16 From Caroline Hill Smith To All Panelists:
Thanks for this!
13:00:17 From Cristina Ross To Everyone:
Thanks
13:00:19 From Matthew Figuerres To Everyone:
Thank you
13:00:19 From Jean-Benoit Fournier To Everyone:
Thanks!
13:00:21 From Jeremy Schembri To Everyone:
Thanks Everyone!
13:00:23 From Katie Watt To Everyone:
Thank you!
13:00:25 From Krysten Bates To Everyone:
Thanks for a brilliant discussion!
13:00:27 From Lisa Mactaggart To Everyone:
thanks
