After 11 years of bringing you local reporting, the team behind the Vancouver Observer has moved on to Canada's National Observer. You can follow Vancouver culture reporting over there from now on. Thank you for all your support over the years!

Are Canada's emissions too small to matter, or too big to ignore? Take a look

As our nation debates what to do, a common discussion point is: How important are Canadian emissions in the global scheme of things?

Some voices argue that our rising emissions, our foot-dragging and our broken promises don't really matter because our climate pollution levels are too small to matter globally. Others argue the opposite; that our emissions are globally significant and therefore we have a responsibility to at least keep pace with the Americans and Europeans in the climate fight.

To help you decide, I created a chart showing the global context. Climate pollution from each of 184 member nations[ii] in the United Nations (UN) is arranged in order from least to most. As you scroll down the list, here are two questions to ponder:

  1. Which set of nations do you think are critical to winning the climate fight?
  2. Which nation is Canada?

Read the full story on the National Observer

More in News

Views from a refugee camp: Who gets into heaven?

I have just returned to Vancouver Island from Greek refugee camps where I met a Yazidi man named Jason who told me about his escape from ISIS in Iraq.   His story begins on a desert road where a...

Vancouver's bicycle sharing grows as 15 new stations installed

Mobi bicycle by Shaw Go in Vancouver. Photo by Christopher Porter from Flickr Creative Commons

International Women's Day Concert celebrates female musicians who turned tragedy into triumph

Every March 8, on International Women's Day, we hear about the achievements of brilliant, talented women around the world. But how often do we learn about the physical and mental disabilities or...
Speak up about this article on Facebook or Twitter. Do this by liking Vancouver Observer on Facebook or following us @Vanobserver on Twitter. We'd love to hear from you.