The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that COP28 was the first COP where participants found themselves face-to-face with the reality of breaching the 1.5 Ccelsius warming limit that was the aspiration of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which Canada had aligned itself with. The Globe's guest columnist Mark Zacharias writes that COP28 codified a commitment to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems. This outcome presents a dilemma for Canada, which, while positioning itself as a climate leader, also happens to be the world's fourth largest oil producer and fifth largest gas producer. Adding to the problem is that the fossil-fuel sector is Canada's fastest-growing source of emissions. Canada was publicly called out at the UN's September Climate Ambition Summit for being, "one of the largest expanders of fossil fuels last year." Mr. Zacharias says for Canada to be competitive in the future global economy, it must invest in industries that will be growing in the coming years, which it has been and is set to continue doing. Still not enough is being done. The global shift away from fossil fuels is happening. Mr. Zacharias says it is time that Canada faced this reality.
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