A global agreement to protect a significant portion of the world's land and water will be reached in time for the end of COP15 in Montreal, federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault predicted Sunday. The Canadian minister spoke on the eve of the last official day of the conference as negotiators worked on a proposed agreement that would include funding provisions totalling several hundred billion dollars.
As the COP15 biodiversity summit in Montreal winds to a close, CTV News is sharing the perspectives of four local students confronting the issue from the inside out. And these students had a message for conference attendees: talk is cheap. It’s time for real, fast, concrete solutions.
The draft text of a new agreement to protect nature from destructive human behaviour is still littered with disagreement as COP15 talks in Montreal barrel toward their conclusion on Monday. With one million species facing extinction this century and a majority of both land and marine environments already significantly altered by human activities, the 196 nations in the UN biodiversity convention are seeking a bold new agreement that halts further destruction of nature and seeks to restore what has already been lost.
With four days left to reach a new global agreement to conserve and restore nature, the marquee targets under negotiation at COP15 in Montreal remain elusive.
Environment ministers from around the world are gathering in Montreal for the last few days of a conference aimed at preserving what's left of the planet's biodiversity. Talks at COP15 hit a speed bump early Wednesday when more than 60 nations from the global south walked out over concerns that pledges from rich countries to fund conservation were too small and too vague.
The role of private money and industry in preserving enough natural ecosystems to keep the planet functioning will be the focus of talks Wednesday at an international conference on biodiversity in Montreal. While negotiators continue to try to hammer an overall conservation deal, discussions are also scheduled on how global capital flows can be harnessed to work with nature rather than exploit it.
Negotiators at a global conference on saving the world's biodiversity were sharpening their focus on how to pay for it Tuesday, as environment ministers from around the globe converged in Montreal for the final week of COP15.
Montreal's famed Mount Royal Park is set to undergo the largest expansion in 150 years. The mountain will be expanded by three hectares, greened in several areas and redeveloped to strengthen and protect its ecological integrity.
The City of Montreal has been chosen to host a new United Nations office that will be responsible for the "global agenda for green, resilient and sustainable cities."
Cities took centre stage at COP15 Sunday as Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante challenged local leaders around the world to protect biodiversity at the local level. The 'Montreal pledge' includes 15 actions to 'reduce threats' and 'share the benefits' of biodiversity. They include moves to eliminate plastic waste, reduce pesticide use, increase green space, and to prioritize 'nature based' protection against extreme weather.
Mayors at an international conference on preserving biodiversity say cities must be part of the solution to stopping the erosion of natural ecosystems. Leaders from 14 cities around the world, including Montreal, are calling for national governments and the private sector to help increase spaces for nature in urban areas.
For many years, Inukjuak, like many communities in the north, has relied on diesel to heat homes, keep the lights on, and power its institutions. Now, for the first time in the region, construction is underway on a massive hydroelectric project. When it's completed, it will replace diesel at the community's primary source of energy, and provide a surplus which Inukjuak will sell to Hydro-Quebec.
Inuit in Inukjuak are still overcoming the effects of Canadian influence in their home. In this extended interview, Inukjuak's former mayor, the late Simeonie Nalukturuk describes, in his own words, the residential school system, the dog slaughter, and the forced Arctic relocation. CONTENT WARNING -- This interview contains details some may find distressing.
Inukjuak is one of 14 Inuit communities in Nunavik, the northernmost region of Quebec. Take a look at some scenes from there, as community members prepare to stop using diesel, which presently provides for the bulk of the municipality's energy needs.
This is a story about Inuit resilience, self-determination and true climate leadership. The day before this site went live on CTV, the documentaries were screened at Uquutaq High School in Inukjuak. Next up, we will screen with the Indigenous Clean Energy team at the Canada Pavilion at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The focus is on Indigenous communities leading the way in Canada’s energy transition.
Heavy downpours fell over much of Northern California on Friday, causing small landslides, overflowing a river and flooding some streets, including in parts of San Francisco. Meanwhile tens of thousands of people were still without power in the Seattle area after several days in the dark.
A study of hot spots for collisions between ships and whales around the world, including Canadian waters, offers a map for measures to prevent the deadly strikes that could drive some species to extinction, one of the British Columbia-based authors says.
Humans weren’t the only ones who struggled through the bomb cyclone that formed off the B.C. coast this week, bringing intense winds and choppy seas.
A Newfoundland energy company's embrace of data centres is raising doubts about eastern Canadian hopes of harnessing the region's howling winds to supply Germany with power from green hydrogen.
An unprecedentedly bad year for beached dolphins on Cape Cod might have to do with warming waters changing the availability of the animals' food, said scientists hoping to curb the strandings.
Astronomers have spotted orbiting around a young star a newborn planet that took only three million years to form, quite swift in cosmic terms.
The promise of starting life anew on Mars may appear alluring as the climate crisis intensifies and space and rocket technology advances. But the reality would be dreadful, according to experts.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says oyster samples from New Brunswick's east coast have tested positive for two diseases, one of which has been found for the first time in Canada.
A group of high school students from Alliston, Ont., have garnered international attention after being invited to showcase their work on a global stage.
The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) is inviting Canadians to choose the name of the first Canadian Lunar Rover.
Astronomers have captured the first close-up image of a star beyond our galaxy, taken during a dramatic moment near the end of the star’s life. In it, the 'behemoth' star appears to puff out gas and dust, a critical final step before exploding in a supernova.
A rare kind of fruit fly has been caught by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists at Detroit Metro Airport.
Australia’s communications minister introduced a world-first law into Parliament on Thursday that would ban children younger than 16 from social media, saying online safety was one of parents’ toughest challenges.
As NATO officials met up in Montreal, pro-Palestinian protesters flooded downtown in solidarity with those in Gaza.
An 81-year-old Quebec man has been sentenced to prison after admitting to killing his wife with Alzheimer's disease.
A Montreal family doctor has vowed to stop practicing medicine after he admitted to fathering a child with a 19-year-old woman who was his patient.
Canadians dining out this holiday season will enjoy a temporary financial break as the federal government removes the 5 per cent GST on dine-in, takeout, and delivery meals from Dec. 14 to Feb. 15.
It's that time of year again, with Montrealers out searching for their perfect Christmas tree.
Members of Montreal-based band Simple Plan were in town Friday — not to perform, but to donate $250,000 to organizations helping underprivileged youth.
Quebec provincial police are searching for a third suspect in connection with Kevin Mirshahi, the cryptocurrency influencer who was kidnapped and killed last summer.
Quebec’s pension fund manager says it is co-operating with United States authorities after three former employees were indicted in federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y., in an alleged scheme to give hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to the Indian government.
Longueuil police (SPAL) are seeking potential victims as part of an ongoing criminal harassment investigation involving a 49-year-old man, Zimbalist Bowman.
