Recently, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources announced our initiative, Expanding Understanding of Community-Relevant Climate Adaptation in Small, Rural and Indigenous Communities across Canada, as part of over $2.6 million in funding for the Canadian Prairies under the Natural Resources Canada’s Climate Change Adaptation Program (CCAP).
"The impacts associated with climate change — including intense wildfires, devastating floods, stronger tropical storms and hurricanes, and permafrost thaw in the north — are being felt environmentally and economically in every single region of Canada. That is why this federal government is acting now to help our communities and our economy prepare for and protect against the threat of climate change. Today’s announcement of seven projects based in the Prairies under the CCAP supports the vital long-term, community-based work to keep people safe now and into the future."
Thanks to this funding, over the next several years our team will be strengthening the understanding of equitable and meaningful engagement and advancing community-relevant approaches to climate.
This work will also help us to strengthen our contribution to the Roots for Resilience program in partnership with the Canadian Red Cross.
“People in small, rural, and Indigenous communities are on the front lines of climate impacts; their economies, cultures and identities are deeply entwined with local industries that are very vulnerable to climate-induced disasters—for example forestry, agriculture, fisheries and tourism. This initiative will help us develop critical knowledge toward holistic approaches to adaptation that are representative of diverse voices and values and reflect local realities. It is at the intersection of local and cultural knowledge, climate change adaptation, and disaster risk reduction where resilience to climate change will be strongest.”