Reflections on Achievements and Next Steps After the 2025 UN Climate Summit
Introduction
The 30th Conference of the Parties (COP 30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), concluding in Belém, Brazil on November 21, 2025, marked a pivotal moment in the global response to climate change. This year’s summit brought together world leaders, scientists, Indigenous representatives, and civil society to review progress, set new targets, and accelerate climate action. For Canadians concerned about the environment and our country’s international commitments, COP 30 offered both milestones and ongoing challenges in the journey towards a sustainable future.
On October 29th, BEA members Rajbalinder and Aneet were at Harold M. Brathwaite Secondary School in support of their community engagement event that included parent interviews. Harold M. Brathwaite is a school of approximately 1,700 students with programs including: International Baccalaureate (IB), Specialist High Skills Major in Justice and Business Studies, International Student Program, Developmental Disabilities Program.
“The Science is real, the problem is urgent. Global greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 50% by 2030 to avoid climate catastrophe”. Those were the words from David Miller, the keynote speaker at the Ontario Climate Summit held at the University of Toronto this past weekend, attended by four members of the BEA Board, Polly, Rhythm, Dayle and David.
David Miller is the Managing Director of the C40 Centre for City Climate Policy and Economy. The C40 Centre provides mayors, policymakers and city practitioners with the evidence, analysis and policy guidance needed to implement progressive and equitable climate action.
Mr. Miller went on to say that 80% of the people surveyed in Canada want governments to take stronger climate action, that people believe in the science but vastly overestimate the number and strength of the opposition. He said only 17% are climate deniers, the “drill baby drill” folks, but that their oversized voices tend to sway political discussions and policy making.
Comments provided to the City of Brampton Planning Department regarding a proposed development on the east side of Heart Lake Road located about mid-way between Sandalwood Parkway and Mayfield Rd.
I want to provide comments on the above application on behalf of the Brampton Environmental Alliance Board and its members. The property lot in question is located across the street from the Heart Lake Conservation Area which is a valuable tourism and recreational asset for the City of Brampton. A main reason this area is so popular is because of the large number and diversity of plants and animals that can be experienced there. Biodiversity flourishes not just because of the natural heritage amenities within the park itself, but because of the richness of the surrounding natural heritage systems that, historically, have been left relatively undisturbed by development. That pattern of isolation has begun to change, however, in recent years.
Your BEA team is taking advantage of April being Earth Month to participate in various activities to promote environmental awareness. Check out the sections below including: Parent Teacher Night at Harold M. Brathwaite Secondary School, Sustainable Procurement Workshop at the Rose Theatre, Reconnect Brampton’s Sip & Stroll Nature Walk in Downtown Brampton, Earth Day Event at McCandless Park, CVC Fletchers Creek SNAP Workshop at Brampton City Hall
April is the time of year when we celebrate Earth’s bounties, take joy from daylight as it emerges from darkness’s sheath, and as we are released from the ravages of winter cold, snow and ice. April is also a time for us to reflect on the importance of the earth’s natural environment to our health and wellbeing, and the damage it suffers as a result of human pursuit of perpetual economic growth. The old adage that, “those who forget history are doomed to repeat it” is poignant today for many reasons but, perhaps, especially so for the environment. With government’s of all stripes and colours, north and south of the Canada, U.S. border, rolling back environmental legislation in the name of progress, growth and affordability, it’s worth looking back to the time before much of this legislation existed to examine the impact that unbridled growth can have on our quantity and quality of life.
Saturday March 22nd was a busy day for the BEA supporting two community tables.
In the morning, the Bramalea Community Network hosted a Health and Wellness Day at the Knightsbridge Seniors Centre. About 30 neighbourhood residents attended including seniors from the Centre as well as families from the surrounding community.
It was difficult to write this year-end review for the Brampton Environmental Alliance. Not because we didn’t work very hard to make a difference but because several things conspired to make this a very challenging year, environmentally speaking.
Among the issues we faced: the Province prioritizing building Highway 413, and the efforts of the Emerald Energy From Waste company to expand its garbage burning operations in Brampton without appropriate environmental controls being in place. Of greater concern is the general apathy of the public towards environmental issues and the vitriolic response to public policies aimed at climate change mitigation, notably carbon pricing and rebates. The fact that we seemingly cannot have an adult conversation related to these important topics is deeply troubling.
The Ontario Climate Emergency Campaign, (OCEC), is a non-partisan group promoting awareness on the climate crisis and environmental issues in the Province of Ontario. It’s aim is to empower citizens and urge political leaders with the power of democratic voice to drive the urgent transformational changes needed for the present and the future climate security of all Ontarians.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Christmas Bird Count is one of the world’s oldest and longest running citizen science efforts. It began out of a barbaric practice, known as side hunts, where families would go into the forest and see who could kill the most birds.
Frank Chapman, an early Audubon Society member, proposed the idea of counting birds instead of killing them. He organized 27 observers in 25 places, both the U.S. and Canada, to count all the birds they could on Christmas Day 1900. According to Wikipedia, 90 bird species were observed and 18, 500 individuals were counted that day.
Since then, the counts have been held every December/January with more than 50,000 observers in about 2,000 locations across 17 countries. The data from each count is submitted to the National Audubon Society which helps inform population counts and conservation practices.
Christmas Bird Count Circle
Counts can be held on any day from December 14 to January 5. Individual counts are done in a “count circle” with a diameter of 24 kilometers. Each circle has a “compiler” and at least 10 volunteers. Some volunteers follow assigned routes within the circle that remain essentially the same each year. Others count all the birds they see on their backyard feeders from the comfort of their homes.
For many years BEA member Bob Noble has been organizing a Christmas Bird Count in a count circle that covers the eastern half of Brampton and parts of Vaughan, King and Caledon including, Tullamore, part of Caledon East, and all of Bolton. Bob is an amazing naturalist and nature photographer. You’ve likely seen some of his incredible insect pictures posted on Facebook, Instagram, and on his own website . Each year a selection of Bob’s best shots are compiled into a calendar which is published and given to City of Brampton and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority volunteers.
Nomad Bee
Photo: Bob Noble
Bob describes the December 15, 2024 count. “The temperature stayed around freezing for the day with a bit of light snow. The smaller ponds were completely frozen but there was some open water in the larger lakes. Thirty field observers and seven feeder watchers managed to count 10,859 individual birds. This is below the average of about 12,000.
We set a new species record of 62 with the previous record being 61 even though the general consensuswas that it was a tough day to find birds. We didn’t find any new species this year leaving the total number of species observed in all counts at 120. Good birds included Green-winged Teal (3rd record), Bald Eagle (3rd record), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (3rd record) and White-crowned Sparrow (4th record). Record high numbers were recorded for Common Goldeneye (6), Cooper’s Hawk (10), Red-bellied Woodpecker (18), Merlin (3), Eastern Bluebird (6) and Northern Cardinal (180).
A number of regular species were missed including Ruffed Grouse (34 previous counts), Pine Siskin (33 previous counts), Snow Bunting (33 previous counts) and Swamp Sparrow (27 previous counts). Low numbers were recorded for Wild Turkey (2), Rough-legged Hawk (1), Cedar Waxwing (22) and Common Redpoll (1).”
Thanks to Bob for organizing and being a compiler for this important annual event!
