The news cycle out of the United States can feel particularly chaotic and overwhelming lately. Almost daily, Canadians are faced with an onslaught of concerning developments south of the border on a variety of important issues. And when it comes to climate change, this news can seem uniformly grim (it’s not, and we’ll come back to this).
But it’s worth reminding ourselves of the important progress that’s happening on climate and clean energy around the world as an antidote to pessimism that can paralyze us right at the moment when action is needed most.
Take Europe, for example—the continent’s nations have seen massive progress cutting emissions. The latest data show European Union countries slashed emissions in a single year in 2023, the largest drop in decades outside the COVID-19 years. That left its collective emissions 37 per cent lower than 1990 levels, all while the economy grew nearly 70 per cent bigger. The EU remains on track to cut emissions 55 per cent below where they were in 1990 by 2030.
In the United Kingdom, the country has already seen emissions fall since the same baseline year. A big driver of that success has been the stunning transformation of its electricity sector where in just 12 short years. Over that same period, the country used to power its grid, ending a long legacy that stretched back almost 150 years ago. Coal went from powering 40 per cent of the nation’s electricity in 2012 to nothing in October of last year.
That’s incredible progress, but the UK isn’t resting on its laurels. It recently announced it will cut its emissions by by the time 2035 rolls around.
But what about China? That familiar refrain is becoming ever more absurd as the world’s largest country puts its foot on the accelerator for clean technologies.
When it comes to electric vehicles, for example, —the world’s largest auto-market—are expected to come with a plug-in this year. The remarkable growth in EVs in China helped make 2024 another .
On wind and solar, China continues to . Clean power installations soared last year, as the country hit its 2030 renewable target six years ahead of schedule. That helped in China’s national emissions.
There is more good news in other parts of the globe. Major polluting nations like Indonesia, for example, have committed to , which will require a huge ramp up in renewables. We’ve also seen as countries including Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay add new clean electricity to their grids.
Brazil is hosting the United Nations climate conference this year , the 10th anniversary of the Paris Accord, and has made major progress bringing Amazon deforestation to its .
Let’s come back to the U.S. Yes, Donald Trump is eviscerating much of what the Biden administration tried to accomplish. But the last time Trump was in office this simply .
Many of the most durable climate policies that started or continued under the previous Trump and George W. Bush eras are still with us today. That includes two cap-and-trade systems and a basket of state renewable energy mandates. Currently, 12 states that make up and more than a quarter of its population have carbon-pricing programs on the books. Twenty five states and the District of Columbia now , including many that are Republican-led.
So let’s not lose hope. And let’s make sure that we redouble our efforts to make progress here in Canada. The vast majority of major economies of the world remain deadly serious about decarbonization. We need to keep pace.
