Thank you very much.
Good afternoon, and thank you for inviting me here today. I'm pleased to be speaking to you from Ottawa, the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people. My name is Debbie Scharf. As mentioned, I'm the associate assistant deputy minister of the energy systems sector at Natural Resources Canada.
Just transition is a policy approach that puts people at the centre of the Government of Canada's climate policy. To date, the government's actions on just transition have focused on phasing out coal-fired electricity generation, which has had a major impact on workers and communities in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. It has led the government to commit $185 million in budgets 2018 and 2019 towards economic diversification and skills development initiatives. This funding seeks to strengthen communities affected by the transition away from coal power, enabling their residents to pursue meaningful careers and enjoy a high quality of life for generations to come.
Today, the government is looking at the energy transition writ large, knowing that the world is moving to a low-carbon energy model. Canada has an opportunity to be an economic and innovative leader in a net-zero future. Government climate policy is not the only driver. Smart investors know that the opportunities of the future will need to be low-carbon, and we're already seeing investments shift away from high-carbon industries. So, too, the energy transition ahead of us is not about “phasing out” any industry; it is about industries making changes, reducing carbon intensity and finding new ways to adapt to the changing market.
Finally, the impacts of the transition will affect not only one industry or segment of workers. Oil and gas workers may pivot to hydrogen. Mechanics will learn about zero-emission vehicles. Construction workers will integrate the most energy-efficient building codes. All this means that just transition is about ensuring that Canadian workers have the skills and training they need to seize the opportunities created by the energy transition. We know that some who work in high-carbon industries may lose their jobs, but we also know that Canadian workers who built our current energy systems have the know-how, the ingenuity and the work ethic to see them thrive in green energy jobs.
The government is doing its best to make sure those jobs are available. My department is supporting energy projects in every region of Canada and creating jobs through programs like the greener homes grant, the clean fuels fund and our nuclear strategy.
We are looking at economic diversification by supporting the opportunities unique to each region and each sector, whether it's hydrogen in the Prairies, critical minerals in Quebec and Ontario or biofuels in British Columbia. In fact, because the clean energy sector is growing faster than the economy overall, we see the potential for skilled labour shortages in a number of those areas, including nuclear, green mining and energy efficiency. This means we need to attract young people to careers in the natural resources sectors and break down systemic barriers that have kept women and racialized Canadians out of employment in traditional energy jobs.
That is why the government is committed to introducing a just transition act, and why my department has begun working with experts and stakeholders to support the development of the legislation. Last July, we launched public consultations with a broad range of stakeholders, including workers and labour organizations, industry, academia, non-governmental organizations, youth and experts in skills training, diversity and inclusion. This is in addition to having meetings with provinces, territories and indigenous organizations. To date, we have received over 17,000 submissions, and we are still accepting written submissions until April 30. The proposed legislation will be guided by the feedback we receive from the consultation sessions and a “what we heard” report, which will be published once they are complete.
I look forward to sharing more information at this time and seeing the conclusions this committee will reach after meeting with officials and stakeholders. As mentioned, I'm pleased to be joined by my two colleagues, Roisin Reid and Jasmine Redenbach, and we will be pleased, at the right time, to answer your questions.
Thank you.