The Guardian / Larry Elliott / 15 January 2020
A year of extreme weather events and mounting evidence of global heating have catapulted the climate emergency to the top of the list of issues worrying the world’s elite.
The World Economic Forum’s annual risks report found that, for the first time in its 15-year history, the environment filled the top five places in the list of concerns likely to have a major impact over the next decade.
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Toronto Star / Carola Vyhnak / 02 January 2020
Whether you live in a house, condo or apartment, “there’s no one who doesn’t have some sort of risk,” Fraser said. “I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for every family and individual to be prepared.”
The emergency plan should include steps to get everyone out safely, a meeting place and means of communicating with displaced family members, says Fraser, calling the Red Cross’s “Be Ready” app a “critical” tool.
With winter’s snow and ice storms threatening power outages, Fraser advised equipping a grab-and-go kit with enough water, food, cash and prescription medication for 72 hours. It should also contain copies of important documents, a battery or hand-cranked radio, phone charger, flashlight and batteries, candles, matches, a can opener, and a book or playing cards to pass the time.
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CBC News / 01 January 2020
When storm winds howl and rivers flood, buildings take the brunt.
And as climate change makes all kinds of extreme weather more frequent and more destructive, scientists at the National Research Council are trying to figure out how to ensure Canada’s built environment is ready.
“We’re going to see change in the way we’re designing new buildings to help prevent the spread of wildfire, prevent the damage from flooding,” said Marianne Armstrong, who manages the council’s research effort.
“We want to create a culture of thinking about resiliency.”
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CBC News / Ellen Mauro / 06 December 2019
O’Brien lives on Erie Shore Drive, a stretch of road near Chatham-Kent in southwestern Ontario that was originally built as a dyke.
It’s prone to flooding, but O’Brien and her neighbours aren’t alone in their struggle. Many communities along Lake Erie have faced a challenging combination over the past year: record-high water levels and significant erosion of the shoreline.
This double whammy has caused property sizes to shrink as the lake swallows land, and has forced some homeowners to make the painful decision to either continue to try save and their lots or abandon them.
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The Energy Mix / 04 December 2019
It was judicious use of mental health expertise, along with many, many sandbags, that enabled Fargo, North Dakota to weather the challenges of the epic 2009 Red River flood.
That was one of the experiences that pointed to a basic precondition for building communities’ ability to face the climate emergency: Recognizing climate change as a profound threat to mental health, responding with messages of “hopeful realism” and ongoing compassion, particularly for older adults and children, and helping communities acquire the psychological and social resilience to cope.
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National Observer / Carl Meyer / 21 November 2019
The Bank of Canada says it wants to develop ways to stress-test how the country’s financial system will hold up against the possibility of punishing future scenarios borne by the climate emergency.
The initiative is part of a broader research agenda on climate change, announced this week by Bank of Canada senior deputy governor Carolyn A. Wilkins during a speech in Montreal.
“The Bank is devoting analytical firepower to understanding how climate risks are shaping the macroeconomy and financial system,” Wilkins said.
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