Indigenous-owned or co-owned renewable energy projects have a role to play in helping Canada come closer to reaching its climate targets, says one advocate.

James Jenkins, executive director of Indigenous Clean Energy, a not-for-profit that supports Indigenous-led clean energy projects at the community level, said Indigenous-owned or co-owned renewable energy projects increased over the last decade.

“Every project that's not emitting does help Canada reach that target,” said Jenkins.

Data released from Environment and Climate Change Canada in December suggests Canada will fall well short of its 2030 climate goal — just halfway to its target of a 40 to 45 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels.

Jenkins, a member of Walpole Island First Nation in southwestern Ontario, said among the growing list of operations are hydroelectric, wind and solar projects, and battery storage. Renewable generation can generate revenue which is then reinvested into community, he said.

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Ross Linden-Fraser, research lead of 440 Megatonnes, a data project at the Canadian Climate Institute tracking climate policy, said Indigenous nations have been "at the forefront of some of the really encouraging developments in clean electricity.”

He co-authored a recent Canadian Climate Institute report assessing the federal government’s report on progress toward the 2030 emissions reduction target that suggests Canada has moved further away from its climate targets since 2023 because the federal and provincial governments have removed or weakened climate policies.

"If Canada, a wealthy, high emitting country, is not contributing to global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, that global effort is going to be weaker and we're going to have a harder time as a world trying to avoid these climate impacts,” he said.

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