Draft Federal Sustainable Development Strategy: Appearance before the Standing Committee – March 24, 2022
The draft 2022-2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy
Q1. What is the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS)?
The draft 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS, the draft strategy) sets out the Government of Canada’s sustainable development goals and targets and outlines implementation strategies and short-term milestones for achieving them, from an environmental perspective. It provides a whole-of-government view, bringing programs, priorities and actions to advance sustainable development together in one place.
The Federal Sustainable Development Act provides the legal framework for the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy, or FSDS. Since 2008, the Act has required the Minister of Environment and Climate Change to table and report on a Federal Sustainable Development Strategy every 3 years.
Q2. Who contributes to the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy?
The 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy is a collaborative effort involving 99 federal organizations.
These organizations are required to contribute to a whole-of-government progress report at the end of the strategy’s cycle. They will develop and report against their own departmental sustainable development strategies, which set out specific actions federal organizations are taking to support Federal Sustainable Development Strategy goals.
Not all organizations contribute equally to the strategy: several large departments are responsible for many of the targets and milestones. All organizations are expected to contribute to the federal strategy as their mandates allow.
Q3. How did recent amendments to the Federal Sustainable Development Act strengthen the FSDS?
Amendments, which came into force in December 2020, have broadened the scope and reach of the Federal Sustainable Development Act, shifting the focus from the environment to also include social and economic aspects of sustainable development.
The Act’s purpose now goes beyond transparency and accountability to include advancing sustainable development in Canada and respecting domestic and international obligations, with a view to improving the quality of life of Canadians.
The amendments increased the number of federal organizations required to contribute to the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy from 28 to 99, enabling a true whole-of-government approach.
The amendments also established core principles, such as collaboration, openness and transparency, and results and delivery, and set a new requirement that all Federal Sustainable Development Strategy targets must be measurable and include a time frame.
Q4. How does the draft FSDS respond to recent amendments to the Act?
For the first time, the draft 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy is organized around the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with a focus on their environmental aspects.
This frame responds to the Act’s new, broader purpose by enabling the strategy to foster coordinated action across government, focus on sustainable development decision-making and respect Canada’s domestic and international obligations.
The draft strategy responds to the Act’s higher level of ambition through stronger targets that are measurable and include a time frame, as well as new targets in areas such as disaster risk reduction, information about sustainable development, and employment of women in the clean technology sector, as viewed through an environmental lens.
It also responds to the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development’s recommendation: “…that the sustainable development goals of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development be the foundation for developing the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy.”
Q5. What is the difference between the draft FSDS and Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy?
Published in February 2021, Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy outlines how the Government of Canada plans to achieve all 17 Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs. It promotes a whole-of-society effort to achieving the SDGs. It also sets out a national vision to help build the world envisioned in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The 2030 Agenda is a broad 15-year global framework that sets out 17 SDGs toward, among other things, a secure world free of poverty with access to education, the achievement of gender equality, and an end to environmental degradation. Where targets for Canada’s SDG’s exist, some are aspirational and non-specific, while some of the SDGs have no targets, but only indicators attached to them.
The draft 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy is organized around the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda, with a focus on their environmental aspects, and reflects Canada’s commitments to promote clean growth, ensure healthy ecosystems and fight climate change. All FSDS targets are specific and include a time frame and have indicators attached to them to assess progress.
The draft Federal Sustainable Development Strategy is a key component of the federal government’s contribution to the whole-of-society efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the 17 SDGs. It complements Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy by focusing on federal commitments and actions to advance the environmental aspects of the SDGs.
Q6. What is the purpose of public consultations on the draft FSDS?
Guided by the legislative requirements in the Federal Sustainable Development Act, the objectives of the FSDS consultations are to:
Inform Canadians about how the Government of Canada is taking action on sustainable development at the federal level
Gather feedback to inform the development of the final Federal Sustainable Development Strategy
Support an ongoing dialogue between the Government of Canada and stakeholders to advance collaboration on sustainable development in Canada
Q7. Who will be engaged during public consultations on the draft FSDS?
Under the Federal Sustainable Development Act, consultations on the draft Federal Sustainable Development Strategy include review and comment by:
The Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development
The Sustainable Development Advisory Council, which includes members from each province and territory, Indigenous Peoples, environmental non-governmental organizations, business, and labour
Standing committees of the House of Commons and the Senate that normally consider sustainable development issues (typically the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development and the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources)
The public, including sustainable development stakeholders.
Public engagement will be conducted through a number of online tools (for example, email, web, social media and webinars) with an intent to gather feedback from a diverse range of Canadians, including Francophone communities, youth/young adults, Indigenous and Northern peoples, rural populations, women, gender diverse people, and visible minorities.
Q8. How can someone participate in the consultations?
