This paper argues that Canada should look beyond “market-based” climate strategies to resolve climate federalist challenges. A policy mix more targeted towards specific technology systems can tailor approaches to Canada’s different regional circumstances and is thus best suited to grapple with Canada’s regional political reality. Rather than weakening carbon pricing proposals or opening up a new round of debates on emissions reduction “burdens,” the federal government should aim to turn regional diversity into a strength by creating a uniquely Canadian version of a “Green Entrepreneurial State.”
This essay will start by introducing the concept of the Entrepreneurial State, which explains the government’s role in recharging and redirecting innovation. The second section will examine how Canadian governments have succeeded or neglected to play this entrepreneurial role in the energy sector, and will discuss the current innovation direction promoted by Canadian policies. The next sections will explain why market-based climate policies are insufficient, and why regional low-carbon innovation pathways could help create both the political and economic momentum needed for Canadian climate policy to succeed. The paper will conclude by discussing the role of a uniquely Canadian version of the Entrepreneurial State aiming to catalyze low-carbon innovation and turn Canada’s regional diversity into an asset.
‘A Green Entrepreneurial State as Solution to Climate Federalism’ is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0
