Climate change is a serious and urgent problem that the world must combat before the damage to the ecosystems and the planet are irreversible. The Earth has already warmed up by approximately 1.5°C due to global warming and we are presently feeling the effects of this increase in temperature (rise of the sea level, increased frequency and severity of wildfires, heatwaves, hurricanes, droughts, floods, and rain, etc.). However, it isn’t too late to prevent the globe from reaching 2°C, a temperature that experts warn will have detrimental and irreversible effects on the planet. Just as we did with plastic straws, we can pressure industries and the government to support and fund projects and organizations that greatly reduce carbon emissions and waste.

The Canadian Green Council Building is a non-profit organization that runs Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (also known as LEED), an international green building certification program. In other words, LEED is a system that provides developers and home builders with a concise framework to implement practical eco-friendly buildings. This organization has introduced the first Canadian Zero Carbon Building Standard. This new program must be heavily encouraged and supported to get our country to the goal we agreed upon in the Paris agreement of 2015, that of carbon neutrality.

The government already provides 0% loans, grants, and tax breaks for LEED certified buildings and homes, and though these incentives are a great way to encourage people to build, buy or retrofit eco-houses, it isn’t enough. The government needs to offer additional grants and tax breaks for homes that are LEED Zero Carbon certified.

Help tackle climate change by signing this petition which I will forward to Benoit Charette, the Minister of the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change, along with my local Member of Parliament.