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IKEA Canada net positive for energy consumption

3 years ago

Retail giant IKEA hit two major sustainability milestones during 2020, in Canada and around the world. The global furniture and housewares retailer announced it had generated four times the amount of renewable energy it consumed in Canada.

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Significant enhancements to achieve net-zero carbon are being made to the plan for a joint Ottawa Public Library and Library and Archives Canada facility scheduled to open in 2025. Changes will result in a 30 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas intensity.

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Canadians seem increasingly interested in living more sustainably, but one option that gets little mention is rooftop solar power. The U.K. and Germany, places that receive less light on average than Canada, have 20 times the number of solar rooftops.

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The Fitwel Viral Response Module is a framework that real estate owners can use to obtain third-party certification for ensuring their properties are ready for a safe return to work. Here are lessons learned from managing our first certification process.

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Since 2010, the GRESB Real Estate Benchmark has become an integral part of investor due diligence and investment-manager reporting. In 2020, further participation in GRESB caused coverage to grow by 22%, taking in 1,229 portfolios encompassing more than $6.1 trillion Cdn in assets under management.

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Canada is in an advantageous position to reach its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a new report titled Canada’s Net Zero Future, that looked at 60 modeling scenarios suggests, if governments capitalize on the right opportunities today.

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Royal Dutch Shell and Amazon announced Shell Energy Europe BV will supply Amazon with green energy from a subsidy-free offshore wind farm off the Netherlands coast. This will enable Amazon to power its business completely using clean energy by 2025.

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B.C.-based Pinnacle Renewable Energy is being taken over by British-based Drax Power Ltd., part of an international push to low-carbon energy production. Drax has agreed to pay $385 million for Pinnacle, a bid endorsed by Pinnacle’s board and its largest shareholder.

Energy Profiles

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B.C.-based fuel-cell producer Loop Energy Inc. is looking to raise $100 million in an IPO, capitalizing on the recent investor craze for clean energy companies. A longtime partner of Canada’s National Research Council, Loop makes fuel-cell systems to electrify commercial vehicles.

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The era of building big new hydropower dams in Quebec might be over. The province announced it has approved the $600-million Apuiat wind-power development, a private project owned 50-50 by Boralex and Innu communities that will provide 200 megawatts of electricity annually.

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One of the biggest headwinds facing the airline industry is finding a way to reduce the carbon emissions produced by flying thousands of jets every day. It’s one of the biggest challenges for the world’s efforts to combat climate change.

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The 1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville was a behemoth powered by a fuel-chugging 390-cubic-inch V8. With the announcement of its target to be carbon-neutral by 2040, the Caddy’s maker, General Motors Co. (GM-N), is seeking to bury the excess the machine embodied.

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CS Energy, an integrated energy firm that designs and builds projects in the solar, storage and emerging energy industries, has launched an employee-led effort to support and increase the number of women on its team.

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When a range of instances of systemic racism made headlines over the last year, SRI investors were head-down in meetings strategizing about what they could do to address racial disparities at the corporations they engage with.

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OPINION:  For many, the past year has brought a real awakening when it comes to their relationship to food – and food waste – as cooking at home became a necessity because of restrictions and concerns about eating at restaurants.

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Canadians are being asked for their input on ways for Canada to become a global leader in what the federal government refers to as the ‘blue economy,’ tapping into Canada having the world’s longest coastline and connected to three oceans.

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Steve Glenn founded LivingHomes in 2004 as “a designer and developer of modern, prefabricated homes that combine world-class architecture with an unparalleled commitment to healthy and sustainable construction.” I met him when I was working with a prefab company in Canada.

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The flood of California state bills addressing sea-level rise is surging as legislators recognize their urgency including the idea of relocating coastal railroad tracks, loans for cities to buy coastal homes and a warning system for coastal bluff collapses.

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A radical increase in available carbon emissions data may be just around the corner. Should it happen within a matter of months, cities failing to measure and publish their emissions data will find themselves under scrutiny.

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Denmark has approved a plan to build the world’s first artificial energy island in the North Sea that will produce enough green electricity for the needs of 3,000,000 European households and for use in shipping, aviation, industry and heavy transport.

Industry Events