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Unicorn-status Assent focuses on SaaS ESG capabilities

2 years ago

Ottawa-based Assent Compliance Inc., a leader in supply chain sustainability management, has seen tremendous growth since its inception 11 years ago. Its recent $447-million financing round has lifted the company to unicorn status.

The federal government has announced $8 million in funding for 21 organizations to advance applications which focus on Earth observation challenges and sustainable development priorities. The funding will be delivered through the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) smartEarth initiative.

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The WEF’s 2022 Global Risks Report has “climate action failure” as the No. 1 risk over the coming decade according to author Peter Giger, group chief risk officer, Zurich Insurance Group highlighting documented physical risks such as the severity of severe weather.

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Addressing the significant impact buildings have on the world’s emissions, the World Economic Forum has released Net-Zero Carbon Cities Building Value Framework with ideas to move toward net-zero targets including investing in digital, smart, and distributed renewable energy technologies.

Sustainable Biz Canada

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Among carbon-emitting industries, buildings should be one of the easiest to decarbonize. And yet Canadian carbon emissions from buildings hit an all-time high in 2019. The sector needs to reduce emissions by almost four million tonnes each year between now and 2030.

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Vancouver and Quebec recently banned certain kinds of fossil fuel-based heating in new home construction. Similar bans have occurred from Norway to New York City in order to cut CO2 emissions from buildings by replacing fossil fuels with electric heating.

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A new smart platform to improve the energy efficiency of HVAC systems, pumps and fans for commercial buildings is being launched by Turntide Technologies. It includes a fan and cooling system for data centers, healthcare facilities and manufacturing plants.

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REALPAC’s newly updated model green lease for Canadian office buildings introduces measures aligned with the broadening demand for ESG reporting and performance outcomes in commercial real estate, and also responds to some arising pressures landlords are facing in lease administration.

Decarbonizing Canada’s Large Buildings

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A report by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, called the Zero Carbon Action Plan, found that the U.S. will need to nearly triple its renewable generation capacity to achieve its net-zero goals by adding 100 gigawatts every year between now and 2050.

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Property lines, municipal borders and the actuarial tables that map the bracing new limits of home insurance in flood-prone areas represent some of the most stubborn hurdles in the path of a sustainable response to global warming.

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Rooftops are the new frontier of creativity and energy-efficiency being put to use for solar panel placement for power generation, green spaces to reduce interior heat gain and gardens offering a relaxing outdoor tenant amenity but they all cost money.

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Whether it’s a Gothic Revival church, a modernist Centennial project, or a glass and steel building, a completed structure has a huge carbon footprint. Demolishing a building or throwing it into a landfill is a staggering act of conspicuous consumption.

Anchor Corp

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Montreal’s public transportation system is ordering 10 new fuel-efficient passenger locomotives that will help it meet strict emissions standards. The city’s public transit, also called Exo, will replace aging locomotives with diesel-electric charger locomotives from Siemens Mobility.

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Three U.S. utilities — Pacific Gas & Electric, Portland General Electric and Florida Power and Light — have plans to deploy microgrids to take advantage of EV batteries’ ability to support the grid and to meet the increased demand for EV charging.

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Homeowners, politicians and those in the solar industry are blasting Nova Scotia Power’s proposed new charge for people who generate their own electricity which includes increasing electricity rates for residential customers by at least 10 per cent over three years.

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The federal government is launching a new $200-million fund that will offer grants of up to $25 million to projects that reduce carbon emissions as Canada seeks to cut emissions to net zero over the next three decades.

Yardi Pulse

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Online retail giant Amazon led a record year for corporate renewable-energy purchases worldwide as businesses expand efforts to clean up their power sources accounting for 20 per cent of a record 31.1 gigawatts of clean power capacity bought by corporations in 2021.

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Canada-based Brookfield Renewable Partners has purchased clean power developer Urban Grid for US$650 million which will roughly triple its U.S. development pipeline to about 31,000 megawatts of capacity making it one of the largest renewable energy developers in North America.

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In our hyperpolarized, fact-challenged world, the political debate over the climate crisis has boiled down to a choice. Take costly measures now to avert bigger costs down the road or is doing so both needless and risky for the economy?

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China is getting ready to relaunch the China Certified Emission Reduction (CCER) system, the voluntary carbon credit plan that was abandoned 5 years ago to coincide with the completion of the first compliance period for China’s new carbon trading market.

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