Follow Biden’s leadership on climate change
It seems there are three kinds of politicians in the world right now.
The first is a Jason Kenney or Donald Trump type. Who openly ignore the hard science of climate change, and position themselves as advocates for the fossil fuel industry.
The second, like Justin Trudeau, see that science, accept it, but decide that physics is somehow subject to the same kind of negotiation and horse trading as politics.
The third, which Joe Biden is trying to be, accepts science and acts in accordance with what it says. Last week’s cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline was the kind of action climate scientists and social movements have long been calling for. Let’s hope it’s the first of many such actions by the new president.
Canada needs more of this third kind of politician, one who understands that the fossil fuel era is ending and acts accordingly. Justin Trudeau could be this kind of politician. But he would need to move past simply sounding like a climate leader and start acting like one. That means, he would need to stop pushing pipelines and start moving forward with things like the Just Transition Act he promised back in 2019. We still haven’t seen that important legislation, but now would be a perfect time for Trudeau to finally deliver.
Olaf Gabriel
Cobble Hill
