Canada’s net-zero goals appear impossible to achieve on schedule and may come at the expense of some industries and economies. The unreasonable nature of the federal targets has created friction; Alberta premier Danielle Smith, for example, does not intend to recognize the mandates.
Even so, much of the private sector remains following the roadmap of incentives laid out by Canada’s net-zero approach. Foresight Canada is one such example—the nonprofit organization is all about fast-tracking the country toward its climate goals by accelerating the success of climate-tech startups across the nation.
“If we are to have any chance of meeting net zero by 2050, we urgently need to manage, reduce, and remove emissions,” the company states. “While we have many of the solutions we need, there’s no longer a path to keeping global temperatures between 1.5-2c without breakthrough technologies such as carbon dioxide removal.”
Through Earth Tech 2050, Foresight says it is looking for Canada’s top 10 climate tech startups with “potential to reduce half a gigatonne of CO2e by 2050.”
“While we rapidly deploy the technologies currently available to meet 2030 targets, we need to also support the emerging climate tech with the potential to massively reduce or remove emissions by 2050,” Foresight says. “Earth Tech: 2050 is an accelerator for the technologies we will need to avoid climate catastrophe—the hard tech we have to develop today to have the heavy lifters of tomorrow.”
Selected companies will receive nine months of comprehensive support and connections to “supercharge the technologies we need to avoid climate catastrophe.”
Applications are due July 30.
The annual Foresight 50, a spotlight on promising Canadian cleantech ventures poised for investment, is also open for 2023. The initiative by Foresight Canada seeks out privately held ventures that are ready to contribute to environmental sustainability while also demonstrating potential for return on investment.
Applications, open until July 21, are evaluated by an independent panel of investors and investment professionals based on criteria including investability, environmental impact, leadership team, and probability of success.
The Foresight 50 program has supported 1,000 companies as part of a clean-tech community consisting of 1,500 members and 150 regional and global partners.
Leave a Reply