Former Calgary mayor Al Duerr writes from COP28

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I’m scripting this from COP28, which I’m attending as a part of the Alberta and Canadian delegation. Watching a number of the media messaging again dwelling, I felt the necessity to tackle why Alberta has such a big delegation attending COP28 led by Premier Smith and Surroundings Minister Rebecca Schulz. The delegation consists of key authorities representatives together with tutorial, business, agricultural, Indigenous and NGO stakeholders.

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Whereas the Alberta delegation is just not a part of the COP28 negotiations, everybody right here noticed worth in contributing their time and sources to symbolize all that Alberta and Canada can supply the world. With an estimated 97,000 folks attending this COP, we weren’t alone in recognizing the worth of collaborating.

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Whereas I perceive why some could query the worth of our attendance, I wish to shed some gentle on why it’s critically essential that Alberta voices from all sectors be heard at worldwide conferences like COP28.

Sadly, the unhappy fact is that we can not depend on others to inform our story. Whereas Canada earned a popularity within the second half of the twentieth century that far outweighed our measurement as a rustic, that’s not the case.

Canada’s relevance has slowly decayed from a long time of underfunding Canada’s diplomatic and commerce commissioner service. Politicians of each stripe have been afraid of the optics of spending cash in defending our pursuits or selling our industries; or, they only didn’t perceive the significance of being in entrance of worldwide resolution makers and actively supporting Canadian pursuits in key worldwide markets.

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Provincial governments adopted swimsuit. The just-released senate evaluate of our diplomatic corps and our commerce commissioner providers underscores this, highlighting power underfunding and lack of political management in supporting Canadian pursuits overseas, as a result of the optics of spending cash overseas didn’t match with our rising populist rhetoric.

Previous to my time in native authorities, I used to be lively in taking Alberta environmental applied sciences in water and wastewater therapy into worldwide markets, primarily in growing nations.

After returning to the personal sector, I’ve been lively in taking Alberta-developed environmental applied sciences — now in progressive power effectivity and methane emissions discount applied sciences, and providers developed in Alberta — into worldwide markets. I can say with absolute confidence that we’ve in Alberta corporations incubated within the province’s power sector which have global-leading applied sciences that the world wants.

This incubation of superior environmental applied sciences was enabled by the early and continued management by successive Alberta governments by main coverage, regulation, and program supply.

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For instance this level, I attended the biggest power convention within the Center East two months in the past, and took part in a non-public, invitation-only CEO roundtable specializing in methane emission discount. Across the desk we had representatives of worldwide environmental and business associations, a number of the largest engineering and repair corporations on the earth, and main oil and fuel producers.

I overviewed Alberta’s historical past, together with a number of the first flaring rules on the earth, the primary carbon market in North America based mostly on a big emitters tax, and centered authorities packages delivering actual verifiable carbon reductions.

After I completed, I stated that I believed that Alberta most likely had one of many strongest methane emission observe data on the earth, however as an excellent Canadian, I requested to be corrected if others felt I overstated my case. Everybody agreed that I used to be appropriate.

Extra importantly, simply yesterday I used to be advised by a roundtable participant, who’s the methane sector director of a really giant worldwide consulting group, that she now makes use of the Alberta instance to display how actual motion on methane emissions discount is feasible.

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Collaborating in that roundtable — and highlighting Alberta’s observe file of motion over ambition on this important environmental space — had an influence far past the group I spoke to. Now Alberta is getting used by a world community for instance of management on methane emissions discount.

Whereas in Canada some would have us imagine that Alberta is an environmental laggard, nothing could possibly be farther from the reality.

We as Albertans should be those to succeed in out to inform our story to worldwide audiences if we wish to make an actual distinction on the environmental entrance.

Figuring out the political danger that they took, I commend Premier Smith and Minister Schulz for main an excellent and numerous Alberta delegation. Our voices and essential messages have been amplified many occasions over by their participation and onerous work in usually difficult circumstances. I used to be proud to be a small a part of the excellent Workforce Alberta delegation they led.

Al Duerr served as Calgary’s mayor for 12 years from 1989 to 2001, and has been the CEO of Basic Magnetic Canada Inc., an power clear tech firm, since 2008. He’s additionally a associate in Carbon Join Worldwide Inc.

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