CCA, CCLI guide provides roadmap to addressing climate governance

OTTAWA — A new report released by the Canada Climate Law Initiative (CCLI) and the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) is calling on the construction sector to embed climate resilience into their core governance structures.

Building resilience: A guide to climate governance for Canada’s construction sector aims to provide a roadmap to help industry leaders address growing climate risks across the entire construction value chain.  

“The construction and buildings sector holds enormous potential to drive positive change,” said Rodrigue Gilbert, CCA president, in a statement. “Through effective governance, leadership, and collaboration across the value chain, the sector can play a pivotal role in creating more sustainable, climate-resilient communities. From project financing and design through to construction, maintenance, and renovations, each actor plays a critical role.”

The guide calls for long-term, governance-driven strategies to build resilience, a release reads, with heatwaves, wildfires and flooding becoming more common.

Key messages include:

• Directors and senior leadership are central to climate action.
• Climate action is a competitive advantage. By adopting long-term strategies around mitigation and adaptation, companies can lead in a changing marketplace, enhance business resilience and meet evolving client expectations.
• A systems-level co-ordinated approach is essential. Building climate resilience requires cross-sector co-ordination, continuity and shared accountability.

“Climate governance is a strategic imperative for Canadian construction companies to build sustainable and resilient businesses and communities for the future,” said Jacqueline Fitzpatrick, author of the guide and CCLI affiliated research scholar.

“Climate governance is not merely a corporate initiative — directors must be aware of their evolving fiduciary duties,” added Amee Sandhu, a volunteer climate change governance expert at CCLI as well as senior legal counsel at Alstom. “As citizens, regulators, and stakeholders demand accountability, this guide provides practical insights to construction firms’ management and directors as they navigate this newly emerging area of law, ethics, and business.”

The guide includes legal context, risk assessment frameworks and tools to help boards and management teams embed climate governance into their core operations, the release notes.