The main functions of the state, in addition to economic, political, security, fiscal and cultural functions, include another no less important – the environment.
Canada’s environmental policy has a unique history and form. Although the volatility of power brings about a corresponding change in public policy in various fields, however, in Canada the divergence in vision of environmental policy during a change of government is not particularly evident.
All this is due to the fact that the state policy in the niche of ecology is constant and based on the fixed interests of society. The Liberal Party wins the election or the Conservative Party – they still maintain a state position on environmental safety, ecology, the polluter tax regime of the state ecosystem.
Unlike the United States, Canada is more resilient in this political vector. The government of the country of the maple leaf not only maintains and continues the internal regulation of environmental policy, but also maintains a unified position on the international stage.
How is it going in the USA?
The Republican and Democratic parties in the United States have diametrically opposed visions of the country’s development, including in terms of environmental security strategy. Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States and leader of the Republican Party, has turned the country in the opposite direction.
From the politics of a friendly neighbor concerned about the security of the world – to the conservatism and protectionism of his own state, where the United States of America and its domestic politics are the number one priority.
Go out the Paris Climate Agreement, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050; Reviews Global warming “fictionalized by Chinese special services”; decrease tax burden on the main pollutants of the ecological system, etc. – these are all radically opposed actions compared to the previous administration of Barack Obama.
It will be interesting to observe the consequences of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election, which appears to lead the continuation of the policy of the Obama administration, radically turning Donald Trump’s environmental policy in the opposite direction. These factors show a complete lack of general agreement both in society itself and at the level of the highest political representation, in response to the question of what the state’s environmental policy should be.
Thus, for the United States, the theme of ecology is directly linked to economic processes within the country. Therefore, the politician uses ecology as an instrument of political games for the struggle of the electorate, which translates all environmental issues into a turbulent regime.
Why is it different in Canada?
In general, we can distinguish four reasons, why Canada maintains its steadfast position on environmental issues, despite the differences of opinion between the parties themselves and their leaders.
First, the consensus of the company itself. Canada, as an independent state, retains and values the greatest merit – democracy. The people are the source of power in democratic states. Thus, the position and opinion of the people passively constitute the vector of state policy. The political forces that fight for state power in their election campaigns take over the opinion of their own society in order to gain the greatest support from them.
Due to the historical memory of Britain’s colonizing past and the historical attachment to its values, the neighborhood with the freedom-loving United States and the multinational population, a type of liberal society was formed in the Canada, whose main position is based on a person’s individuality, their rights and freedoms.
That is to say that for this nature of society, environmental issues play an important role, since the environmental situation of the country affects their inalienable natural rights, which are enshrined in the Constitution of Canada.
Second, Canada in the arena of international relations is positioning itself as a disciplined country that adheres to all the requirements of international law. Therefore, “EcoHype” did not bypass Canada, which was the first state to sign the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Planet’s Ozone Layer in 1986.
Third, these are the values and ideas on which the state is built. A democratic regime and liberalism are the ideal environment for drawing attention to the environmental problems of civil society and pursuing the legal policy of the state.
Fourth, the role of the ecological state brand. Since the beginning of the updating of the importance of the resolution of environmental problems by the world community, the country’s eco-strategy has been built in an imperative way (the principle “to act thus and not otherwise”). This attitude has enabled the country to reach significant heights in the ecological race.
Of course, there are sometimes differences of views between the parties, but they mainly relate to the regional regulation of environmental policy, that is to say at the provincial level, and the main regulation at the federal level remains constant.
Also, an equally important factor is the double cadence of leadership, which is already five years old and will continue for three more in the parliament of the Liberal Party led by Justin Trudeau. It was during the work of this Prime Minister that the environmental issues on the international agenda were brought to light.
In short, Canada has its own environmental policy separate from that of the United States. Although the geopolitical neighborhood has its own effect of influencing the development of the Maple Leaf Country, the political culture is still quite the opposite in terms of environmental protection. The United States is characterized more by political pluralism, while its northern neighbor has a more coherent environmental strategy and less inclined to change.
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