Hello, Minister,
I was very hesitant to write to you. I figured that would do nothing. I know that you know very well that the presence of very big polluters under the Canadian flag at a conference on the environment (COP27) is an affront without description.
Moreover, in an article in La Presse canadienne, taken up by, among others, The dutyit says: “The Minister [de l’Environnement] knows, moreover, that Canada will not be able to claim any leadership at this conference because it has a serious credibility gap to make up for. Despite the rhetoric, Canada’s carbon footprint does not live up to its claims, far from it. »
You could, if you were free to do so, teach me a lot about the urgency of acting to reverse the current trajectory as well as about the consequences of our refusal to act adequately on the environmental plan. I would tell you absolutely nothing about the destruction of the ecosystem that is coming if we continue our shameless exploitation of fossil fuels.
That is what disappoints me so much, Mr. Guilbeault. You know the situation very well. I didn’t have a lot of confidence after the Liberal government’s first mandate, especially on the issue of the environment. I said to myself that with the appointment as Minister of someone who has your level of expertise on this issue, perhaps there would be a change of course.
But no. Ultimately, you give credibility to the companies that make the current state of affairs the most worse. These companies, with the complacency of your government, are able to say, when faced with criticism, “Come on, we were at the COP with one of Canada’s biggest environmentalists, a former head of Greenpeace and current Minister of the Environment. You can’t get any greener than that! »
The worst thing is that you participate in the increase in ambient cynicism, particularly among young people. I understand very well that you do not make the decisions alone, but I find that you are missing a unique opportunity to take leadership.
As I said at the start, Mr. Guilbeault, I believe that this letter will change absolutely nothing. I still thought it was important to share my disappointment with you.