Keyword Mitigation

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

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

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.

“I don’t think any of us ever thought we’d use the words ‘heat wave’ and ‘Vancouver’ in the same sentence”, says Vancouver city councillor Andrea Reimer, “but now it’s something we not only have to expect but that we’re experiencing right now.”

Climate change is a large-scale problem, but it’s also a direct result of our collective choices and actions. That means we can make a difference. But how? We’ve been told for years to take environmental and climate action as individuals. Things like upgrading our home insulation, riding our bikes and taking public transit are important, but these small-scale personal choices take place in a wider world. Our social, political, and economic systems also have a responsibility to tackle the climate challenge head on.

Today, over 80% of Canada’s population lives in cities. We know that cities will soon face increased climate change impacts, such as more frequent and intense extreme weather events.  The research series Building a Climate-Resilient City by the Prairie Climate Centre outlines policy steps that cities can take to engage in climate risk management in a range of areas, including transportation, agriculture, electricity infrastructure, disaster preparedness and emergency management.