November 12, 2025
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Canada must lead on climate – scholars at Canadian universities pen open letter to Prime Minister
MONTREAL – As world leaders gather for the COP30 UN Climate Summit this week, against a backdrop of fragmented world politics, scholars across Canada write together urging the Canadian government to prioritize climate leadership.
Released today by more than 450 scholars from over 40 Canadian universities, the open letter asks for Canada to resist calls to roll back climate policies and instead align with countries leading the way at the UN Climate Summit in Belem.
The letter was initiated by Sustainable Canada Dialogues (SCD), a network of scholars working across engineering, natural and social sciences, and the humanities. Ten years ago, on the eve of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference, the group drafted a set of policy recommendations for a low-carbon Canada.
Today, joined by other scholars from coast to coast, the SCD network is calling on the Prime Minister to take concrete action on these recommendations, which are still national priorities today. The letter states that it is time to move forward on climate policy, and that in doing so we can also make progress on other key priority areas impacting life in Canada: energy and transportation infrastructure, cost of living, economic competitiveness, Indigenous leadership, national security and equity.
“Ambitious and well-designed climate policy is not a cost for Canadians. It is an opportunity to innovate and to build the foundation of a better future for all of us,” the scholars assert.
McGill University Professor Catherine Potvin, leader of the letter effort and the Sustainable Canada Dialogues network says, “We cannot stay silent. The raging forest fires are telling us that the planet is losing its ability to cope with the changing climate. Failing to swiftly mitigate climate change will cause much suffering in this generation and future ones. Short sighted political vision should not prevail over our common responsibility to act.”
The letter is also endorsed by the Future Earth Canada Hub, a network of Canadian innovators, collaborating across disciplines and sectors, to advance sustainability transformations in Canada and around the world.
“Reducing emissions remains a critical priority, and there are real societal and economic benefits of doing so,” says Damon Matthews, climate scientist at Concordia University and Executive Director of the Future Earth Canada Hub. “We must not cede to those who would see us undo a decade of climate policy progress. Instead, let us look to the future and chart a course towards a thriving and just net zero world.”
With this letter, scholars across Canada call on the Prime Minister and all levels of government to advance stronger climate policies, aligning with economic and social development priorities that will secure a healthy and prosperous future for all of us.
For media requests, contact:
- Future Earth: communications@sustainabilitydigitalage.org