The Canadian Institute of Planners applauds yesterday’s announcement of “A Force of Nature: Canada’s Strategy to Protect Nature” from the Prime Minister. With an investment of $3.8 billion, Canada’s new nature strategy will protect and restore critical habitats, ensure industrial strategies complement conservation efforts, and mobilize new capital for nature.
Planning influences where we live, how our economies grow, and how we interact with the natural world. Planners are at the forefront of some of the most pressing climate challenges, and they are the forward-thinkers who provide the ideas and solutions needed for communities to thrive.
Establishing minimum standards for climate-adaptive development to ensure healthier, more resilient communities is essential. CIP encourages the creation of a national inventory of climate data and the setting of reporting standards so that future datasets are consistent and gaps can be identified. Provinces and territories often have richer, more localized datasets that should be collated through a national effort. Additionally, more training tools should be developed to help planners access and apply this data. Greater access to climate data reduces risk, supports evidence-based investment, and improves consistency in planning.
CIP also encourages the establishment of a planning advisory service to provide cost-effective planning support to under-resourced communities vulnerable to the potentially detrimental impacts of the climate crisis. By increasing planning capacity at the local level, we can pre-empt delays and ensure sustainable economic growth across the country.
CIP and our members look forward to working with the federal government to support the advancement of Canada’s Strategy to Protect Nature in communities from coast-to-coast-to-coast.