A range of opportunities and challenges for Indigenous-led conservation and carbon storage in Canada are identified in a new Metcalf-funded report from the Conservation through Reconciliation Partnership. Emerging from a two-year research and engagement project, the report is informed by five components: a literature review, in-person gathering, individual interviews, the creation of eight short films, and mapping work that identifies carbon storage values across the country in relation to Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas.

Nature-based solutions to climate change could enable 30-40% of the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions required to keep warming capped below 2°C by 2030. These solutions include planting forests and protecting carbon-rich ecosystems. Findings from a Metcalf-funded workshop that convened Indigenous leaders with environmental organizations and researchers support the literature indicating that nature-based solutions are more likely to succeed when Indigenous Peoples are involved.

In early February, over 400 leaders from across the country gathered in Ottawa for the Nature-Based Climate Solutions Summit. This two-day summit was organized by a collection of Canada’s leading nature and conservation organizations, and Metcalf along with the Government of Canada were the presenting sponsors. This report provides an overview of featured speakers, topics discussed, along with hyperlinks to video recordings of each summit session.

Co-authored by Smart Prosperity Institute researchers, Katherine Monahan and Ben Filewood, with support from Metcalf and the McCall MacBain Foundation, this report is aimed towards policymakers and other stakeholders interested in nature-based climate solutions. The report describes potential policy tools that deliver GHG mitigation while also protecting or improving biodiversity.

Canada’s vast forests, grasslands, oceans, and wetlands provide essential ecosystem services that have already absorbed significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Yet these globally significant ecosystems could play a much bigger role in climate change mitigation with increased protection and wise stewardship. In the report, lead author Florence Daviet and her team present a road-map for both scientists and policymakers to use conservation strategies as a means to achieve climate and biodiversity goals.