Keyword Community

Charlie Clark, the Mayor of Saskatoon, speaks about the changing nature of cities, living in an era of global warming, and how the next generation of young people are demanding action. Despite being a “cold prairie city”, Clark believes Saskatoon’s sense of community will allow them to move quickly to “show leadership on environmental change”.   Recommended Video Citation Climate Atlas of Canada. (2018). Charlie Clark, Mayor of Saskatoon: Prairie cities are part of the solution. Prairie Climate Centre. https://climateatlas.ca/video/charlie-clark-mayor-saskatoon

After a 1-in-100 year storm flooded Truro, Nova Scotia under five feet of water, the conversation around town shifted to questions about the future. What’s clear to local residents is that climate change is bringing higher tides, stronger winds and flooding, leaving more and more people shouldering the costs and risks.   Recommended Video Citation Climate Atlas of Canada. (2018). Storms of the future: Shouldering the risks of climate change. Prairie Climate Centre. https://climateatlas.ca/video/storms-future

An energy revolution is hitting the town of Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia. New 800 kW wind turbines are popping up everywhere, transforming the ever-present wind into electricity that’s used to power electric cars and offset the community’s reliance on fossil fuels. The move to renewable energy isn’t just reducing the community’s impact on the climate, it’s also sparking a whole new green economy.   Recommended Video Citation Climate Atlas of Canada. (2018). The wind-powered green economy: Mitigating climate change on the East Coast. Prairie Climate Centre. https://climateatlas.ca/video/wind-powered-green-economy

Indian Island First Nation is on a peninsula surrounded by water. Through a combination of traditional knowledge and scientific studies, it became clear to Chief Ken Barlow that his community would be underwater by 2100. Barlow and his community are in a race against time to protect homes, raise roads, and potentially even relocate the graves of their ancestors.   Recommended Video Citation Climate Atlas of Canada. (2018). Indian Island, New Brunswick: Adapting to sea level rise. Prairie Climate Centre. https://climateatlas.ca/video/indian-island-new-brunswick

Prince Edward Island is slowly disappearing into the ocean, in large part due to climate-change-related sea level rise and powerful storm surges which are increasing erosion of the island’s soft sandstone base. Tides have become noticeably different and have destroyed infrastructure including lighthouses, bridges, wharfs, streets, boardwalks, water wells, and sewer lines. As one resident remarks, “climate change is here and, if anyone doesn’t believe it, just get up and look out the window”.   Recommended Video Citation Climate Atlas of Canada. (2018). Prince Edward Island: Life on a shrinking island. Prairie Climate Centre. https://climateatlas.ca/video/prince-edward-island

The climate determines almost everything about how we design, build, and live in our cities. The streets and sidewalks, businesses and homes, parking lots and public transit that we use every day have been created to suit our climate. Now, with our climate changing, we need to re-think important aspects of how we live our urban lives.