Readout: Minister Wilkinson and Secretary Haaland Meeting

GATINEAU, QC, April 21, 2021 /CNW/ - Today, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, spoke with U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. The meeting built on a long history of cooperation on nature-related matters between Canada and the United States.

The two reaffirmed their commitment to work together and with others to increase the scale and speed of action to protect nature and wildlife, including through supporting Indigenous solutions, and ensuring that conservation plays a role in reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. They also noted their mutual commitment to protecting nature and combatting climate change in an ambitious and integrated way.

Minister Wilkinson highlighted Canada's recent commitments to nature ? including the historic investments that it is making in nature protection, Indigenous-led conservation and nature-based solutions. The Minister noted Canada's $4.1B in Budget 2021 in nature protection overall earlier this week, which means it will be able to achieve its goal of protecting 25 percent of its lands and oceans by 2025 and be well set to meet its 30 percent by 2030 target. These new funds will, in part, support the creation of new national wildlife areas, Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas and the expansion of Canada's Indigenous Guardians programs and build on commitments to protect species at risk and engage in ecological restoration to restore biodiversity and tackle climate change.

The Minister also noted that he is looking forward to participating in Secretary Haaland's nature-based climate solutions discussion at the U.S.-led Leaders Summit on Climate tomorrow to share Canada's perspective on the need to emphasize protecting intact nature in carbon-rich ecosystems as a primary strategy as well as to engage in ecological restoration such as planting trees and restoring wetlands and grasslands.

Associated Links

• U.S. Canada High-Level Ministerial Dialogue on Climate Ambition
• Roadmap for a Renewed U.S.-Canada Partnership
• Canada's strengthened climate plan, A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy
• U.S.-Canada Joint Statement on Climate, Energy, and Arctic Leadership

SOURCE Environment and Climate Change Canada