2022-23 Departmental Plan, supplementary tables, chapter 2: Environment and Climate Change Canada

Section 1: Institutional GBA Plus Capacity

To ensure that Gender-based Analysis (GBA) Plus is integrated in the Department’s decision-making processes, the Department has a GBA Plus Centre of Expertise (CoE) which resides in the Strategic Policy Branch (SPB). The Assistant Deputy Minister SPB is the Department’s GBA Plus Champion, while the Director General of Strategic Policy oversees the operation of the CoE. The CoE is staffed by two dedicated full time equivalent (FTE) (one analyst and one senior analyst) who report to a Director. The CoE provides support to the department, including:

• Developing tools and guidance to facilitate GBA Plus of policy and program proposals, including maintaining and growing a body of research and resources;
• Offering advice and support to departmental staff undertaking GBA Plus;
• Providing an internal challenge function to ensure that mandatory GBA Plus for Memoranda to Cabinet, Treasury Board submissions and Budget proposals are complete and rigorous;
• Identifying training needs and opportunities to support professional development and enhance GBA Plus capacity throughout the department;
• Chairing the Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) GBA Plus Branch Advisory Network and Community of Practice; and,
• Liaising with the Department of Women and Gender Equality (WaGE) and collaborating with GBA Plus leads in other government departments.

The GBA Plus Branch Advisory Network and Community of Practice aim to strengthen GBA Plus capacity throughout the Department by facilitating the sharing of information, best practices and resources.

These resources help advance the integration of GBA Plus across all departmental activities to support evidence-based decision-making and to continue to build a culture of inclusiveness.

In addition, GBA Plus activities feed into the Department’s Working Group on Diversity and Inclusion, supported by two ADM Co-Champions.

Section 2: Highlights of GBA Plus results reporting capacity by program

Core Responsibility: Taking Action on Clean Growth and Climate Change

Program: Clean Growth and Climate Change Mitigation

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Climate change affects all Canadians; however, experiences differ according to geographic location, gender, income level, ethnicity and other socio-economic factors. For example, large urban centres experience amplified heat waves, whereas those in rural areas who depend on agriculture can experience loss of livelihood. Studies demonstrate that women, people with lower income, and Indigenous people tend to be disproportionately affected by climate change. In Canada, northern and coastal regions are particularly vulnerable to climate change.

Policy responses to climate change can disproportionally affect some subgroups of the population. For example, low-income households, which are more likely to be headed by sole female parents and disproportionately include individuals with disabilities or mental illness, recent immigrants and Indigenous persons, may be more vulnerable to pollution pricing as expenditures on carbon-intensive goods make up a larger share of their expenses. This initiative may also impact employment for many Canadians, with potential losses in the traditional energy sector, and gains in the environmental, clean technology, and renewable energy sector. As the initiative is implemented, efforts are taken to mitigate and avoid as much as possible, disproportionate impacts on vulnerable groups.

Overall, mitigating the effects of climate change in a balanced and inclusive manner that generates clean growth will benefit many Canadians, and in particular, the measures under this program are designed to help alleviate impacts that could be disproportionally felt by certain groups.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity.

GBA Plus assessments and intersectional considerations are integral to the design and implementation of climate change mitigation plans, policies, and programming. The Clean Growth Climate Change Mitigation Program comprises a number of policy and regulatory tools and programs that are all designed to mitigate, or to support mitigation, of the emissions of greenhouse gases and encourage clean growth in a way that maximizes benefits and minimizes disproportionate impacts on vulnerable groups. GBA Plus data collected and published by federal partners and other agencies and institutions is leveraged by initiatives under this program. Certain programming under this program also collect information that is assessed to inform future delivery and design of climate change programing.

The program considers implementing further improvements to data collection efforts in support of GBA Plus, in recognition of the importance of GBA Plus data. Climate change and clean growth policies and initiatives are designed using GBA Plus considerations and data collected and/or published by partners and other agencies and institutions to ensure mitigation of possible disproportionate impacts. Future policies and programming will continue to be viewed through a GBA Plus lens to determine how diverse and intersecting groups of people are impacted.

Program: International Climate Change Action

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Canada’s international engagement on climate change, including our climate finance commitment to support climate action in developing countries, serves to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the impacts of climate change on those most vulnerable (women, Indigenous people, youth, etc.). The repercussion from droughts, floods, extreme weather events, and food and water insecurity have a greater and differentiated effect on these vulnerable groups, especially the poor. To address these issues, proposed programming will specifically target women, girls, and Indigenous people by integrating GBA Plus considerations into climate change actions alongside developmental considerations, such as health. Canada’s climate finance commitment is aligned with Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy, which seeks to eradicate poverty and build a more peaceful, inclusive and prosperous world by putting gender equality and empowering of women and girls at the heart of development programming.

In line with Canada’s Gender Results Framework, GBA Plus is considered during the negotiation and implementation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) as well as in other bilateral and regional environmental cooperation agreements with strategic partners, including the United States and Europe. Multilateral and bilateral engagement is expected to increase throughout 2022-23. Canada’s international environmental cooperation has the potential to have positive impacts on individuals and groups outside of Canada by improving environmental conditions in the most vulnerable regions, including in Southeast Asia and Latin America. GBA Plus considerations are also integrated through the development of bilateral environmental cooperation activities with international partners, in order to provide women and Indigenous peoples equitable access to and benefits from the opportunities created by FTAs in green goods and services.

Canada will continue supporting the implementation of the Gender Action Plan adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which aims to increase women’s participation and leadership in climate action and to better integrate gender considerations in national climate plans and policies. Applying a GBA Plus lens to investment decisions will help create better social and economic opportunities for vulnerable groups in the face of climate change. In addition, such actions promote the engagement of women and vulnerable groups in the design, decision-making, and implementation of programs and projects while facilitating cooperative solutions and knowledge transfer.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity.

Data is collected on participants for targeted programming through the relevant project processes (e.g. collecting data on country of origin of participants in annual workshops for women negotiators), and impacts are monitored through regular reporting and evaluation of project outcomes. The International Affairs Branch (IAB) also collects qualitative data on Government of Canada domestic and international initiatives with links to gender and climate change through collaboration and reporting with other implicated departments with a view to report on Canada’s progress in international fora. Finally, IAB collects gender data on participants in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations as part of the formation of the Canadian delegation. Related to the climate finance program, one of the program’s performance indicators also tracks the cumulative number of people in developing countries who benefited from Canada’s adaptation finance; where possible, data on beneficiaries is disaggregated by gender to measure the differential impact of the project.

Program: Climate Change Adaptation

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Climate change is already affecting and will continue to affect the daily lives of Canadians. Climate change is influencing the frequency and intensity of extreme events, is altering ecosystems and habitats, and will have deep economic repercussions—both due to the changes required to mitigate climate change, and the economic impacts associated with a changing climate and severe weather events. In addition, our changing climate poses risks to human health and safety. Certain populations are disproportionately affected by climate change than others, depending on the region in which they live, their sex, gender, age, income, employment status, family status, Indigenous status, visible minority status, and disability status. Prevailing social norms, attitudes, and behavioural habits may also exacerbate the impacts and responses to climate change for certain populations in present and future years.

Integrating considerations of gender, income, age, employment status, education, family status, region of residence, disability status and of Indigenous and visible minority communities, helps ensure that adaptation policy, climate services, and programs fulfill the specific needs of the most affected, do not exacerbate inequalities and other vulnerabilities, and ensure resilience and the equal participation of diverse groups of people in the decision-making and implementation phases of these activities.

To address issues of disproportionate impact and build on recent efforts to include diverse perspectives in adaptation policy, a GBA Plus lens will be applied to the ongoing development of adaptation policy advice and the National Adaptation Strategy, and in the work of the Canadian Centre for Climate Services. In 2022-23, ECCC will continue to engage partners, including Indigenous peoples, to develop a shared national vision and goals to enhance climate resilience in Canada. While this work will benefit many Canadians, it is likely to have the greatest impact on populations who are and will be disproportionately affected by climate change.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

The program recognizes the importance of GBA Plus data. Although it does not collect its own GBA Plus disaggregated data, it does engage partners and leverage important climate and adaptation information produced by partners and other institutions to guide its direction. For instance, the Canadian Centre for Climate Services (CCCS) is a climate information service provider but has been working closely with regional climate expert organizations and Indigenous partners to ensure that the services are delivered in ways that meet the needs of users and are accessible. Similarly, the National Adaptation Strategy is being designed with information and feedback obtained from partners and stakeholders and is being coupled with other data to ensure that a GBA Plus lens is applied at every stage of development.

Core Responsibility: Preventing & Managing Pollution

Program: Air Quality

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Certain populations are more vulnerable to air pollution depending on age, income, employment status, family status, geography, and previous health status. Detrimental health effects of air pollution can be compounded in individuals who have multiple risk factors. For example, a person could be disproportionately affected by air pollution if they are elderly, have chronic health conditions, and live in an area that has a higher degree of air pollution, compared to someone who has only one risk factor.

A GBA Plus lens has been applied to the development of some policy recommendations, programs, and measures to address air pollution and improve air quality. ECCC will build on this approach by exploring ways to ensure that vulnerable populations, such as Indigenous communities in geographic areas located near large industrial complexes and those affected by smoke during wildfires, are considered in future air quality work.

ECCC will also continue to work with provinces and territories to monitor the levels of air pollutants in outdoor air on a daily basis through the National Air Pollution Surveillance (NAPS) Program. The information from the NAPS Program is used to report the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI). The AQHI includes information from Health Canada on the health risks of air pollution and personal actions to reduce these risks to the general public and the “at risk” population. The “at risk” population is defined as people with heart or breathing problems.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

ECCC works with provinces and territories to monitor ambient (outdoor) air quality on a daily basis through the National Air Pollution Surveillance (NAPS) Program. The NAPS Program is the main source of ambient air quality data in Canada. ECCC uses the NAPS data, for example, to assess air quality trends, to determine the effectiveness of measures aimed at addressing air pollution, and to report the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI). Health Canada uses the NAPS data to study the impacts of air quality on human health and in the calculation of the indicator, percentage of Canadians living in areas where air quality standards are achieved. This indicator is reported at the national level. Provinces and territories are responsible for reporting percentages at a more detailed level.

Program: Water Quality and Ecosystems Partnerships

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

In general, the Program is expected to affect Canadians positively by providing cleaner freshwater for drinking, fishing, swimming and other uses, and healthier freshwater ecosystems. Certain elements of the Program will positively affect Indigenous peoples. Specific targeted activities under this Program seek to improve the technical capacity and engagement of Indigenous governments, organizations, individuals and communities. These activities aim to address Indigenous peoples’ particular concerns regarding freshwater ecosystems; to include Indigenous representation at key decision-making tables, where appropriate; and, to build capacity in understanding and addressing freshwater issues, especially those that have implications in Indigenous communities.

Ecosystem-specific Key Impacts:

• Great Lakes:Through the Great Lakes Protection Initiative, projects that build capacity in understanding and addressing Great Lakes issues will be supported, including those that have implications for Indigenous communities. Through ongoing efforts related to lake-wide management and Areas of Concern, ECCC will continue to engage with First Nations and Métis communities across the Great Lakes basin in taking action and Great Lakes decision-making. Indigenous participation in Great Lakes governance will continue to be welcomed, including participation on the Great Lakes Executive Committee, pursuant to the Canada-U.S. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, participation in meetings of the Canada-Ontario Agreement on the Great Lakes (COA) Executive Committee and annual meetings between the COA Executive Committee Co-Chairs and First Nations and Métis partners.
• Lake Winnipeg: ECCC’s Lake Winnipeg Basin Program will provide funding to support Indigenous governments and peoples in efforts to reduce nutrient loading in the Lake Winnipeg Basin through Indigenous-led projects such as community-based monitoring and projects that gather and utilize Indigenous Knowledge to enhance the understanding of the ecosystem health of Lake Winnipeg and its basin.
• St. Lawrence:The St. Lawrence Action Plan will continue to support projects that foster education and raise awareness of best practices among Indigenous peoples and communities to preserve water quality and aquatic ecosystem health. For example, an ongoing project in the watershed will engage youth in the Mohawk community of Kanesatake through activities that recognize the traditional Kanien’kéhâ:ka knowledge and through scientific samplings of territorial rivers and scientific analysis of the aquatic ecosystem.
• Atlantic Ecosystems Initiatives: Through the Atlantic Ecosystem Initiatives, projects will be supported in the Wolastoq/Saint John River Watershed that build capacity in understanding and addressing freshwater issues, including those that have implications in Indigenous communities. For example, Atlantic Ecosystems Initiatives will support the implementation of an Indigenous-Based Framework for the Wolastoq that includes Indigenous Knowledge (IK) in future watershed monitoring. This initiative will incorporate IK into assessments of the Wolastoq and aims to create a better dialogue between Indigenous communities and western scientists in New Brunswick, supporting the overall goal of improved freshwater ecosystem health.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity for the Great Lakes Protection Initiative (GLPI) but does not for the Lake Winnipeg and St. Lawrence Action Plan (SLAP) and Atlantic Ecosystems Initiatives (AEI).

The GLPI collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor/report program impacts on diverse groups. In particular, progress on the number of Indigenous communities and organizations that are meaningfully engaged under GLPI (e.g., through funding support for community-based projects, or participation in Great Lakes decision-making processes) is tracked.

In general, in its development of the St. Lawrence Action Plan (SLAP) 2011–2026 and the Programme Interactions communautaires (PIC) (joint funding program between federal and provincial governments) in particular had not considered monitoring and/or reporting program impacts by gender and/or by diversity. No changes regarding this are expected in the near future. Similarly for the Zones d’interventions prioritaires (ZIP) program (a dedicated program to 13 targeted recipients), the Terms and Conditions of the program are fixed for the next 5 years (2021-26) and do not include requirements for monitoring and reporting on the above-mentioned components.

The Atlantic Ecosystems Initiatives (AEI) has an internal program review and update planned for 2022-23, which will include the consideration of additional questions that could be added to the application process to address GBA Plus components. Other grant and contribution programs within Water Quality Ecosystems Partnership and Preventing & Managing Pollution will be consulted to ensure consistency.

Program: Community Eco-Action

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

The EcoAction Community Funding Program and the Environmental Damages Fund programs aim to affect Canadians and their communities positively by funding projects that benefit the environment. The Programs’ eligible funding recipients include environmental non-governmental organizations, community groups, youth and student groups, and Indigenous organizations.

The programs allocate funding using Calls for Proposals that are open to all eligible applicants. French and English information on how to apply for funding is available widely on program websites and social media. Staff are also available to answer inquiries and provide advice on proposal development to groups that are underrepresented or have less capacity or experience in applying for funding. Concrete actions will be taken to recognize various cultures and languages through the engagement of Indigenous communities to build awareness of funding opportunities, and with a linguistic lens when evaluating projects involving Official Language Minority Communities. This includes: ensuring different subgroups of the population are eligible and aware of funding opportunities; using a linguistic lens when answering inquiries and evaluating proposals that involve Official Language Minority Communities; translating program material in both official languages and considering translation in Indigenous languages when appropriate; funding projects in communities negatively impacted by climate risks; directing funding to diverse communities as appropriate; and including members of diverse backgrounds, cultures, and regions in the review process. Both programs compile data on funding to Indigenous communities, some of which are located in remote regions.

The Science Horizons Youth Internship Program provides wage subsidies to eligible employers across Canada to hire university, college and polytechnic graduates between the ages of 15 to 30 for internships in the environmental science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Up to $25,000 in funding for wage subsidies and up to $5,000 in funding for skills development, training, and wraparound services are available to eligible employers. Internship opportunities lasting 6 to 12 months provide youth hands-on experience working on environmental and clean technology projects.

The Science Horizons program has a focus on serving under-represented youth in specific areas include young women in STEM, visible minorities, Indigenous youth, and youth with disabilities. This includes a broad range of tailored direct and indirect interventions, including work placements, training opportunities, and wraparound supports. The program provides enhanced supports for youth in rural or remote locations, and official language minority communities. The program aims to increase the proportion of women in STEM fields, and through the experience acquired “on the job,” it is expected that this program will facilitate easier transitions into the labour market and will lead to an improvement of wages for program recipients in STEM fields. Science Horizons program funding can go towards offsetting the additional cost of living in the North, such as transportation and telecommunication costs for Indigenous youth and youth located in rural communities. These funds can also be used to offer diversity and inclusion training to help immigrant youth adapt to the Canadian work culture more easily. The program can allocate additional funds towards services and supports to youth with disabilities such as ergonomic assessments for adapted workstation set-up and computer software to assist reading and writing in the workplace. Recent immigrants and unilingual Canadian youth can benefit through the program from language training support. Some of the programming delivered can provide opportunities for youth to work in Canada’s two official languages, presenting recent immigrant and refugee youth with an additional channel through which to improve their official language capabilities. Youth who identify as LGBTQ2+ can face various forms of discrimination that affect them in many facets of their lives, including their employment. Science Horizons work experiences provide “quality” work placements, which include safe and inclusive work environments and practices.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity for the EcoAction, Science Horizons Youth Internship Program but does not for the Environmental Damages Fund (EDF).

The EcoAction Community Funding Program has put together a Program Working Group who are working with the GBA Plus Centre of Expertise at ECCC to identify methods to generate crucial information and better results for the range of needs, priorities, capacities, experiences, interests and views of differently situated communities and groups in Canada. The EcoAction Community Funding Program is working to facilitate the inclusion of GBA Plus factors in order to gather intersectional information that will help identify barriers and impacts of the program related to underrepresented populations. GBA Plus questions have been added to the 2022-23 application that will provide additional details on: knowledge transfer (e.g. Indigenous Knowledge), minority language communities, and participation of persons with disabilities. Additionally, EcoAction has taken into consideration its accessibility to potential recipients. While the submission of an online application is strongly encouraged throughout EcoAction Call for Proposals products, a paper application can be made available to applicants requiring an alternative submission process. Quantitative data related to the EcoAction Community Funding Program will be collected through the application form. Both quantitative and qualitative data will be collected through annual and final project reporting forms. As listed above, the EcoAction Community Funding Program has added additional questions to the application to begin collecting data related to GBA Plus factors. Continued work with the GBA Plus Centre of Expertise at ECCC will guide the EcoAction program to ensure gaps and limitations continue to be addressed.

The Science Horizons Youth Internship Program collects disaggregated administrative data on participants’ gender (soft target is 50% women), internship city and province/territory, intern education level (must be post-secondary graduate), visible minority youth (target is 20%), youth with disability (target is 2.1%), age (program requirements are under age 30), Indigenous status (target is 2.1%), employment status before and after internship, first official language, legal status (Canadian citizen, permanent resident, refugee), member of official language minority community (baseline target to be set), youth living in rural and remote areas (baseline target to be set), percent of youth who are employed after the internship (target is 80%), and percent of interns who return to school after the internship (target is 6%). This is to inform performance measurement and program objectives. As part of its data collection process ECCC collects detailed outcomes tracked by indicators that are impacted by gender and diversity. Since the Science Horizons program is continuously expanding upon its program to better support youth furthest from employment and facing barriers, ECCC regularly assesses its employment equity targets through annual analysis of program data and reports. This analysis takes into consideration the barriers and challenges faced by various groups within Canada’s youth demographic. The purpose is to regularly increase the number of underrepresented youth in employment equity groups served by the program, including in particular youth living with a disability, Indigenous youth, visible minority youth, and young women in STEM.

The EDF collects data on four categories of eligible applicants (which includes Indigenous organizations), but does not yet have an established data collection plan to monitor potential impacts by gender and diversity. In the creation and implementation of Large Award Strategies, and where socio-economic or cultural impacts are significant, the program collaborates with stakeholders, Indigenous organizations, partners, and other orders of government to incorporate, when possible, their feedback into Large Award Strategies to avoid or mitigate disproportionate impacts on certain groups. The EDF is currently updating its policy suite. In doing so, the program will apply a GBA Plus lens throughout the policy update process to ensure that data collection and analysis for gender, income, age, employment status, education, family status, region of residence, disability status and of Indigenous and visible minority communities are considered to the extent possible. Recent EDF intakes under the Climate Action and Awareness Fund have provided an opportunity for applicants to identify the community type that will be impacted by the proposed project. Applicants may also describe how work with the community will be culturally relevant and/or easily related to the geographic location and purpose of the project. This best practice will be incorporated into future EDF intakes.

Program: Substances and Waste Management

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Although the Substances and Waste Management Program benefits many Canadians, certain populations in Canada, such as expectant mothers, children, the elderly, the economically disadvantaged and Indigenous communities are more vulnerable to harmful substances, and benefit most from sound risk management. The Chemicals Management Program uses scientific information to properly assess the risks posed for vulnerable groups from exposure to toxic chemicals and products that contain them. Scientific information is also used to inform decisions and risk management.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

ECCC does not collect data on the impact posed to humans by chemicals and other substances in the environment. This is the mandate of our partner department and will be more appropriately reported in the Departmental Plan of Health Canada.

Program: Compliance Promotion and Enforcement—Pollution

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

The Compliance Promotion program continues to tailor compliance promotion material to the target audience’s needs, taking into account cultural and linguistic profile of the regulated community. The program continues to work with various Indigenous communities and organizations to deliver compliance promotion activities that meet the needs of their communities. Person visits and attending workshops were stopped during the pandemic but are resuming.

Enforcement will continue to adapt its hiring practices to ensure its workforce is more representative. Additional training will be provided regarding Treaty rights and the unique legal status and rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada to facilitate better engagement initiatives. Enforcement officers will continue to adapt their engagement approaches when conducting enforcement activities with diverse communities through the use of translators, for instance. Adjusting hiring practices and creating a workforce more representative of Canadians will help to foster trust with Canadians. Providing additional training opportunities will give officers the tools needed to interact in a constructive manner with the intent of reducing non-compliance.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

The Enforcement Branch collects data on the type, outcomes, and location of its enforcement activities, which can be overlaid with geographically based data from other sources, including with respect to demographics and socio-economic indicators like income level and the relative presence of equity seeking groups, where available. Additionally, enforcement data can be compared with information concerning the environmental quality in specific places (e.g. air quality, water quality), to determine, for example, how often communities with poor environmental quality are monitored for compliance (where ECCC’s mandate applies). This allows for analysis sufficient to determine if there are correlations between the volume and type of enforcement activity and several GBA Plus indicators. It is not sufficient to determine causality, but can be used to direct qualitative research to gain insight into the underlying reasons for the correlations that are identified. This data has been used, preliminarily, to identify correlations between the rate of non-compliance that is detected by officers and gender and income levels. Initial work has also been done to determine the correlation between inspection locations and environmental quality information, largely obtained from ECCC’s National Pollution Release Inventory. The Enforcement Branch will conduct additional analysis to verify where correlations between non-compliance detection rates and gender, income levels, equity seeking groups, and environmental quality exist. This analysis will be supplemented with additional work to determine where correlations exist between the above indicators and absolute inspection and investigation numbers. Where correlations are identified, additional qualitative research will be conducted to better understand why they exist. Where correlations are determined to be inconsistent with ECCC’s Compliance and Enforcement policies, the Enforcement Branch will redirect inspections as required.

Core Responsibility: Conserving Nature

Program: Species at Risk

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Preserving biodiversity is necessary for maintaining strong ecosystems, which in turn, deliver important and diverse ecosystem services to Canadians. The performance indicators considered in the Species at Risk Program reflect not only the ability to protect species at risk, but also examine how the Program might impact, either directly or indirectly, demographic groups who may be more vulnerable due to a combination of socio-economic factors. Other groups may also be impacted including private landowners, industry, other orders of government, non-governmental organizations, and Indigenous peoples.

ECCC expects that the Program will have more direct effects on Indigenous peoples given that Indigenous reserves and lands often provide important refuge for species at risk. Canada’s Indigenous peoples are also the holders of Indigenous Traditional Knowledge (ITK) essential to achieving the protection and recovery goals for many species. Additionally, the Program consults with Indigenous peoples to ascertain impacts to Treaty rights. Therefore, expected negative Program effects may be related to consultation fatigue and the continuous, repeated gathering of ITK on species at risk. Efforts will be made to reduce these effects by focusing more on ecosystem-based and multi-species conservation approaches as well as improving policy and program improvements to terrestrial species at risk and coordination among federal departments and provincial/territorial governments.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity.

In 2022-23, ECCC will continue its emphasis on the importance of data in conservation, both to advance protection and recovery outcomes for species at risk and to enhance communication to the public. ECCC will continue to improve the accessibility of open data on species at risk.

GBA Plus assessments were conducted on the Enhanced Nature Legacy initiative (2021). The assessments concluded that Canadians of all genders broadly benefit from nature conservation, and that Canadians broadly support nature conservation. However, identity factors will impact how and when Canadians access and experience these positive impacts. For example, women and men tend to demonstrate different patterns of behaviour in nature recreation, urban and new Canadians are less likely to visit rural parks or protected areas than their rural counterparts, and lower-income Canadians are less likely to live close to protected areas and parks. Different regions also experience different opportunities for access to nature and participation in opportunities such as tourism, recreation and sustainable wildlife harvesting.

Based on the findings, and to help ensure equitable consideration of outreach, benefits and impacts of the Enhanced Nature Legacy initiative, the implementation approach will be to:

• Encourage equal participation of diverse populations when consulting with different Canadians—including Indigenous peoples, nature conservation organizations and youth—taking care to deliver messages to targeted communities in ways that allow equitable opportunity for all genders, visible minorities, and diversity of socio-economic groups to participate and reap the benefits of nature conservation.
• Actively consider gender equity and other intersectional groups when establishing and implementing key governance and decision-making mechanisms.
• Design engagement and outreach activities to increase opportunities and reduce barriers to participation in conservation activities for all (i.e., regardless of sex, gender, age, income level, employment, family situation, education, language, ethnicity, immigration status, region of residence, or disability).
• Make nature more accessible for Canadians and encourage—where applicable—inclusive design of natural public spaces and infrastructure.
• Leverage new and existing partnerships with Indigenous peoples, including a focus, where appropriate, on opportunities for collaboration in conservation initiatives, supported by adequate and effective public announcements to optimize participation.
• Work with representatives of Indigenous peoples in planning and implementing conservation initiatives, with a focus on identification of well-defined outcomes before implementation.
• Support the transfer and nurturing of Indigenous knowledge, including opportunities to engage youth in connecting with the land and water, and to recognize and support female and male Elders in sharing knowledge with future generations.

ECCC Canada Nature Fund contribution agreements under the Enhanced Nature Legacy initiative will require large and medium-sized recipients of Gs&Cs funding to have Diversity and Inclusion Plans. The requirement may be voluntary for small organizations as they may find the requirement for a Diversity and Inclusion Plan overly burdensome. Indigenous organizations and communities may also be excluded from this requirement. Gs&Cs programs will collect data on GBA Plus considerations to assess the effectiveness of Diversity and Inclusion Plans and improve understanding of worker diversity and the associated workforce where possible.

Specifically, this would require collection and reporting of information by medium and large-sized organization funding recipients on the number of under-represented groups, such as women, immigrants, people with disabilities, and visible minorities, in the workforce supported by Gs&Cs funding as well as a breakdown of jobs created in urban and rural/remote areas to the extent practicable. Contribution agreements will also, to the extent practicable, \ require reporting of whether funding recipients have: 1) provided training targeting to under-represented groups for career development; and 2) been involved in activities to promote workforce diversity. [Funding departments will also collect information on the number of Indigenous-led projects through Gs&Cs funding to support GBA Plus analysis.] Departments will only collect aggregate information and anticipate no privacy issues.

Program: Migratory Birds and other Wildlife

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

The primary aims of the Migratory Birds and Other Wildlife Program are to maintain and restore healthy populations of migratory birds and to address wildlife health needs. The Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada provides advice to the Governor in Council with respect to migratory birds and other wildlife. This advice is based on science, benefits and risks analyses, and the results of consultations with partners and stakeholders most likely to be impacted, both positively and negatively, by such advice. The ubiquity, accessibility, and popularity of birds provides the Department the unique opportunity to engage diverse groups, through monitoring (e.g., citizen science programs), conservation (e.g., stewardship), and management (e.g., hunting) of migratory birds and other wildlife across Canada and the Americas. This program has the potential to benefit all sectors of society; socio-economic studies are increasingly demonstrating the importance of nature—birds in particular—to human happiness, life satisfaction, and well-being. The landscape properties that promote bird diversity are those that also promote human well-being, through improved access to clean water, healthy lands, recreational and hunting activities, as well as spiritual and cultural pursuits.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

In 2022-23, ECCC will evaluate its current engagement with Indigenous peoples and strive to increase engagement of Indigenous peoples in migratory bird management and conservation. More specifically, the program will begin measuring its ability to engage Indigenous peoples in migratory bird conservation through its monitoring and research projects, and in the collection of migratory bird harvest data. ECCC and Environmental Non-Government Organisation collaborators also engage large numbers of the public in citizen science programs such as the North American Breeding Bird Survey, Breeding Bird Atlases, and other related programs. Efforts are underway to evaluate participation in these programs by gender and diversity, the results of which will be used to identify ways to increase the program’s reach to diverse groups and communities.

Program: Habitat Conservation and Protection

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

The core outcome of this Program is the protection of important wildlife habitat through the regulation, purchase or donation of land and water for conservation purposes. Impacts and benefits would accrue to different demographics along the process of achieving this outcome. While the processes of land and water securement and protection tend to involve and favour specific groups of Canadians (landowners, governments, non-government organizations), the long-term ecosystem services, such as climate regulation, erosion control, tourism and recreation, education, knowledge systems, and cultural heritage, that are gained by conserving ecosystems and landscapes are most often to the benefit of lower income, rural and Indigenous communities.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity.

A GBA Plus assessment for the Natural Climate Solutions Fund (NCSF) initiative concluded that ECCC’s support for restoring, better managing, and conserving ecosystems will contribute to an overall reduction of GHG emissions, which will benefit a broad range of Canadians. Activities will occur in sectors where men are more likely to be employed (e.g. landscaping and forestry) as well as sectors in which women are more likely to be employed (e.g. environmental NGOs, policy and programming and conservation authorities). The work required to implement the proposal will be largely attributed to the working age population (defined as ages 15–64) and will primarily target people occupying medium—and high-level program and administrative jobs, and those occupying field labour positions in the conservation sector. Coastal, Northern, Prairie and Indigenous communities are anticipated benefiting from this initiative. Long-term benefits are expected for children and future generations with the successful implementation of this proposal.

The GBA Plus data collection and reporting plan was developed as part of the NCSF Treasury Board Submission. ECCC-HCP will contribute to this plan as a supporting partner and lead on the Nature-Smart Climate Solutions (NSCS) stream. NSCS will require large and medium-sized organizations funded by NSCS to report on the development of Diversity and Inclusion Plans that support the inclusion of underrepresented groups in NSCS activities. This will be required after consultation with recipients in year 1 of the initiative, starting with funding recipients with more than 50 employees. This requirement will be voluntary for small organizations such as community-based groups since these organizations may find the requirement for a Diversity and Inclusion Plan overly burdensome. Indigenous organizations and communities may also be excluded from this requirement. ECCC will also collect information on the number of Indigenous-led projects through NSCS to support GBA Plus. This new requirement and the new indicator will provide information for the program to better understand diversity and inclusion outcomes.

As noted above under the Species at Risk Program section, GBA Plus assessments were conducted on the Enhanced Nature Legacy initiative (2021). Findings and activities through this assessment will be implemented within the Enhanced Nature Legacy work through Habitat Conservation and Protection Program as well.

Program: Biodiversity Policy and Partnerships

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

The Biodiversity Policy and Partnerships Program aims to engage with domestic and international governments, Indigenous organizations, non-government organizations, businesses, and Canadians to develop and meet Canada’s biodiversity commitments. The conservation and protection of biodiversity are necessary for maintaining strong ecosystems, which in turn, deliver important and diverse ecosystem services to many Canadians. For example, healthy ecosystems can filter toxic substances from air, water, and soil, protect us against flooding, storm surges, and erosion, sequester carbon, maintain the water cycle, and help stabilize local climates.

To increase capacity to conserve biodiversity in Canada, the Program will continue to develop, review, and share Canadian positions and policy frameworks, provide targeted funding, conduct research, and maintain and share data and information. Indicators will be assessed to gauge the level of engagement of the population and, in the case of Indigenous peoples, the level of satisfaction with those engagement activities. This information will be used to adjust engagement activities as needed in 2022-23.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

This program collects sufficient data to enable it to monitor and/or report program impacts by gender and diversity.

To report on the Departmental Results Framework, ECCC administers an annual survey to Indigenous peoples that ECCC has engaged on conservation to determine whether the engagement was considered to be meaningful. The survey results enable the Department to track progress on the Departmental Result, “Indigenous peoples are engaged in conservation,” and provides critical information to guide engagement planning under the Conserving Nature core responsibility and by the Department, more generally.

Program: Environmental Assessment

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Resource development affects the environment and can have economic, social and health consequences that are felt more heavily by some demographic groups. ECCC provided expert advice and knowledge to decision makers for subjects within its mandate, such as water quality and biodiversity. This engagement helped to determine potential impacts of development to Canadians, including vulnerable populations.

Program: Compliance Promotion and Enforcement—Wildlife

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

ECCC is aware that certain instruments under the Acts it is responsible for enforcing may present more challenges to compliance for specific groups, such as visible minorities, linguistic groups, and/or Indigenous peoples. The various compliance promotion strategies utilized need to respond to these challenges:

• The Program will provide training and material to inform on elements that must be considered when engaging in compliance promotion and enforcement activities with regulatees that may be Indigenous or part of a visible minority or linguistic group.
• Through a group of officers who meet regularly with Indigenous representatives such as in wildlife co-management committees, ECCC will continue to build and promote mutual understanding and partnership.
• Imagining new ways of working together, the department successfully implemented a service agreement for a Quebec Collège d’enseignement général et professionnel (QC-CEGEP) to develop a collegial training program adapted to Indigenous students’ unique realities, culture and history. The Program will continue to address the special considerations required to meet GBA Plus requirements through policy analysis and the development of service agreements with the affected groups.

As a result, enforcement officers take into account established precepts when determining a fair and appropriate enforcement response.

The Enforcement Branch collects data on the type, outcomes, and location of its enforcement activities, which can be overlaid with geographically based data from other sources, including with respect to demographics and socio-economic indicators like income level and the relative presence of equity seeking groups, where available. This allows for analysis sufficient to determine if there are correlations between the volume and type of enforcement activity and several GBA+ indicators. It is not sufficient to determine causality, but can be used to direct qualitative research to gain insight into the underlying reasons for the correlations that are identified. This data has been used, preliminarily, to identify correlations between the rate of non-compliance that is detected by officers and gender and income levels.

The Enforcement Branch will conduct additional analysis to verify where correlations between non-compliance detection rates and gender, income levels, and equity seeking groups exist. This analysis will be supplemented with additional work to determine where correlations exist between the above indicators and absolute inspection and investigation numbers. Where correlations are identified, additional qualitative research will be conducted to better understand why they exist. Where correlations are determined to be inconsistent with ECCC’s Compliance and Enforcement policies, the Enforcement Branch will redirect inspections as required.

Core Responsibility: Predicting Weather and Environmental Conditions

Program: Weather and Environmental Observations, Forecasts and Warnings

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

ECCC provides authoritative information on weather, water, climate, marine, ice and air quality to support decision-making by Canadians, provincial and territorial public authorities, and other specialized clients (e.g. other federal departments). To reach a majority of Canadians and stakeholders, ECCC provides weather and environmental information through a wide range of platforms including the weather web site, WeatherCAN mobile application, automated telephone system Hello Weather, weather radios, tailored weather products focusing on potential impacts of a weather situation, and stakeholder engagement.

Weather forecasts and warnings can assist vulnerable Canadians, such as the elderly, children, or those with certain chronic illnesses or their caretakers, to make informed decisions in weather scenarios that may pose increased risks to these populations (e.g. extreme heat, extreme cold). This also applies to information that might be used to support other populations such as the homeless (i.e. extreme cold responses).

Weather forecasts and warnings can also support decision-making by Northern, Indigenous, and remote communities to safely undertake activities such as transportation across natural infrastructure (e.g. ice bridges) or aviation and marine navigation that are critical for resupply of remote communities.

An important aspect of providing weather forecasts and warnings is determining how best to communicate with Canadians, especially those who are most vulnerable. ECCC is looking to improve the accessibility and documentation of its weather and environmental data and services so as to increase the reach of weather forecasts and warning and better communicate risk to a wide variety of Canadians and prepare them for potential impacts of hazardous weather.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

ECCC will continue evaluating the reach and impact of its weather warning and products, especially after severe weather events. While these do not target specific groups of Canadians, it does provide valuable information to support continuous improvement in service delivery. ECCC will also explore the development of a GBA Plus Data Collection Plan for future services.

Program: Hydrological Services

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

Disasters in Canada, including water-related disasters such as floods and droughts, have shown that major events such as these can have significant psychosocial impacts, especially on those citizens who lack sufficient social infrastructure or those who were vulnerable prior to the event. Hydrometric data can be used in combination with socio-economic data to identify potential impacts of water hazards on various groups and implement mitigation measures accordingly. For instance, in the case of flooding, hydrometric data provide the core information to develop flood maps which, when combined with geo-referenced socio-economic data, such as household revenue, age and sex, can be used to generate detailed risk assessments to prioritize actions targeting the groups that are the most at risk, including optimizing the monitoring network to enhance coverage for Canadians.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

While the Hydrological Services program does not target specific groups of Canadians, it does provide valuable information to support continuous improvement in service delivery.

Internal Services

Expected GBA Plus Impacts:

ECCC is committed to integrating GBA Plus in evaluation engagements. A GBA Plus lens is applied, when appropriate, in designing the methodology for evaluations. Among other things, evaluations can consider how GBA Plus has informed program design and delivery as well as decision-making with respect to program amendments.

In its role as an enabler in the delivery of services by program branches, ECCC’s Corporate Services and Finance Branch (CSFB) is participating on interdepartmental working group committees that addresses the topic of social procurement. A pilot is currently being conducted by Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) on the integration of social procurement considerations as part of procurement processes. ECCC and other client departments are following progress on the pilot with a view towards greater integration into ECCC procurement practices when methodologies are clearly established by central agency leads.

Furthermore, a built-in GBA Plus component has been integrated in the consideration of project investment in IM/IT. Digital tools, primarily remote work and the use of GCworkplace, have been deployed to enhance inclusion and meet the needs of all employees. The Corporate Services and Finance Branch has encouraged flexible work arrangements for employees to ensure that family situations and family roles are considered, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To enhance inclusion, workplace solutions such as GCworkplace are considered and where feasible, implemented in new projects. The GCworkplace vision was formed and is oriented towards the following seven dimensions: flexible, digital, efficient, green, inclusive, collaborative, and healthy. Additionally, a single window approach for accommodation requests and a Return to Work application were both developed with a GBA Plus lens in mind.

Corporate Services and Finance Branch also benefits from a high representation of women throughout the senior management cadre, enabling decision-making that incorporates balanced and diverse perspectives.

Human Resources continues to support the overall implementation and promotion of the Diversity, Inclusion and Employment Equity: An ECCC Strategy for 2021–2024 and work through avenues such as the Leadership Council on Diversity & Inclusion and the Diversity & Inclusion Working Group to ensure that ECCC works towards addressing key employment equity areas of under-representation. The Department will continue to contribute to a leadership culture that promotes and builds a healthy, harassment-free, accessible, respectful and supportive work environment. ECCC will continue to use and develop tools and resources to support the mainstreaming of GBA Plus in all ECCC activities and build a culture of inclusiveness.

GBA Plus Data Collection:

Human Resources collects various demographic information on employees that are sensitive and protected. Some notable actions are being taken to develop data collection and assessment within ECCC to support evidence-based decision-making and to continue to build a culture of care and inclusiveness, such as:

• Consultations with all diversity, inclusion and employment equity networks will be used to collect qualitative information on the various challenges faced by these groups of individuals.
• A self-identification Awareness Campaign helped the department identify changes in policies, practices and systems aimed at achieving fairness and equity in employment. All self-identification information will be used for statistical purposes, in compiling workforce representation figures for the Department and to report to Parliament on employment equity in the Public Service.

Various barriers were linked to data collection such as the protection by the Code of Confidentiality, access to technology access and timing related to the COVID-19 situation.