Industry Insight
Envisioning a Green New Deal for Canada
A look at what a Green New Deal could mean for Canada, and how clean energy choices start at home.
A look at what a Green New Deal could mean for Canada, and how clean energy choices start at home.
Originally published in 2021 as an opinion piece on climate policy. It reflects the views and framing of that time and is kept here as a perspective on the clean-energy conversation in Canada.
Conversations about a Green New Deal for Canada often start with big policy goals, but they also shape the choices families and businesses in Ontario make about energy. Proposals under this banner generally combine climate action with job creation, biodiversity protection and community engagement. The vision described here is one that would cut emissions by more than half, create over a million clean jobs, and bring communities together, with change driven from the ground up. Fundamental change happens when governance aligns with the needs of communities and institutions. It would also involve acting on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, including the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent, and developing programs and legislation built on community engagement and sustainability.
Intergenerational justice, equity and equality would be built into decision-making at the municipal, provincial and federal level. All communities would be represented, including migrants, rural areas, people with low incomes, refugees, people with disabilities and the working class. Proposals in this area typically include accessible post-secondary education, access to childcare, quality housing and healthcare, and job security in the sustainable sector, along with attention to the global impacts of corporate activity, such as pollution, mining and unsafe working conditions.
Canada needs affordable, sustainable and accessible housing. Green infrastructure would expand renewable alternatives to fossil fuels and set a target of 100 percent renewable energy, along with energy efficiency, sustainable transportation, food security and cleaner manufacturing. Net-zero buildings would be required for future development, and older buildings would be retrofitted to meet sustainability standards.
Clean economic planning would involve social and economic change that protects workers' rights and well-being. This means aligning the economy and future jobs with the IPCC target of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, creating well-paid work, including opportunities for workers who transition out of the fossil fuel industry, supporting unionization and offering subsidies for affordable sustainable housing and transportation.
A Green New Deal would implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Free, Prior and Informed Consent. Indigenous knowledge and relationships with the natural world would be respected, which requires decolonization, supported through legislation and declarations as well as action on the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Canada's water, natural environment and public health would be preserved and protected. Ideas under this heading include an environmental bill of rights, laws that protect biodiversity, an end to toxic waste in natural areas and access to clean water, air and food. The fossil fuel industry would shift towards renewable alternatives such as solar, phasing out fossil fuels in a way that supports economic growth. Policies would also reduce single-use plastics and unnecessary packaging and end boil water advisories in Indigenous communities.
National and provincial plans only succeed when households and businesses can take part. In Ontario, that can mean upgrading insulation, switching to efficient heating, or generating your own electricity with rooftop solar. Each of these steps lowers demand on the grid and gives property owners more control over their long-term energy costs, which is the same principle behind many Green New Deal proposals: practical action at the community level, supported by fair policy.
Policy debates like these can feel distant, but one thing is concrete: Ontario households and businesses can generate clean electricity on their own property today. Rooftop solar reduces how much power you buy from the grid, and a battery can add backup protection. Terawatt Solar designs and installs residential solar and commercial solar systems across the GTA with our own ESA-licensed crews. To see what is available now, visit our incentives page, then book a free site assessment to find out what solar could do for your property.
Proposals typically include renewable energy such as solar, wind and storage as part of a broader plan for clean jobs and lower emissions.
Yes. Homeowners and businesses in Ontario can install solar today. Check our incentives page for current programs.
