Cat Abreu
@cat-abreu.bsky.social
420 followers 390 following 39 posts
Climate action is my love language 💚 | Director, International Climate Politics Hub | Canada’s Walk of Fame 2023 National Hero | Advisor, Canada’s Net Zero Advisory Body | Board member & keynote deliverer
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cat-abreu.bsky.social
PIPELINES ARE SO BORING
Can a Canadian leader please come up with some better ideas for prosperity? @mark-carney.bsky.social Trudeau already bought a pipeline, and instead of bringing prosperity, it’s costing us billions in taxpayer subsidies every year. Come on www.thestar.com/politics/fed...
Insiders say Mark Carney and Donald Trump discussed reviving Keystone oil pipeline
The official said Trump was receptive to the pipeline as the leaders spoke about possible energy-sector co-operation between Canada and the U.S.
www.thestar.com
Reposted by Cat Abreu
greenprofgreen.bsky.social
Hey #Toronto climate peeps! Come learn about the future of global #climate politics at my book launch at @utoronto.ca. Featuring fierce all female panel with @cat-abreu.bsky.social, Fate Saghir (MacKenzie Investments), moderated by Jill English (CBC). #COP30 #GreenSky. Free event! Tasty treats!
Book Launch: Existential Politics by Jessica F. Green
Join University of Toronto’s Lawson Climate Institute as we celebrate the launch of Existential Politics by Professor Jessica F. Green with a panel discussion, networking reception, and meet-and-greet...
lci.utoronto.ca
cat-abreu.bsky.social
How do we drive large-scale systems change? Join me & global leaders convened by the National Academy of Medicine @nam.edu to explore the structural levers that can move us from climate-health ambition to action.
Learn more & register at nam.edu/event/the-ho...
cat-abreu.bsky.social
And that’s a wrap! I leave you with this from António Guterres:

“The fossil fuel age is failing. We are in a new energy era where cheap,clean,abundant energy powers a world rich in economic opportunity. But it won’t happen on its own. Not fast enough. Not fair enough. It is up to us.”
cat-abreu.bsky.social
6. Unleash the full force of
finance & drive investment to where it’s needed.

This is a big one! Reform the global financial architecture, address debt, enhance equity financing

A more than fivefold increase in annual clean energy investment needed in emerging economies by 2030.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
5. Use trade and investments to supercharge the transition.
-cut tariffs on clean energy
-use South-South cooperation to unlock investment
-modernize investment treaties, starting with Investor-State
Dispute Settlement provisions, which fossil fuel interests are weaponizing to delay the transition
cat-abreu.bsky.social
4. Invest in just transitions.

Equity, social protection, education & training for workers. Inclusion of Indigenous Peoples, women, young people. These are the principles that must lead the transition.

It’s a big year for just transition! Learn more: climatenetwork.org/resource/jus...
Just Transition - Climate Action Network
Are we just in a transition or do we need to be in a just transition? A fundamentally important difference. We have seen too often the blue-collar workforce being left behind with rapid unemployment i...
climatenetwork.org
cat-abreu.bsky.social
3. Satisfy growing demand with clean energy.

More communities are getting access to the energy they need. But it’s the data centres that are generating a lot of demand growth.

Today Antonio Guterres called on every major tech firm to power all data centres with 100%
renewables by 2030.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
2. Build the energy systems of the 21st century.

For every dollar spent on renewables, just 60 cents goes to grids and storage. These investments need to be on par to build the infrastructure of the future.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
1. Use national climate plans to go all out on energy transition.

Countries new climate plans under the Paris climate treaty are due this year. These plans need to build roadmaps for countries to accelerate their transition from fossil fuels to renewable.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
So here’s the Secretary-General’s six point plan for the movers and shakers in this audience to double down on clean energy and make the transition faster and fairer:
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Meanwhile, 80% of this good good renewable energy growth has happened in OECD countries and China, 10% in Brazil and India, leaving only 10% for the rest of the world.

Africa has some of the best RE potential and the greatest energy access needs in the world yet has only seen 1.5% of this growth.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Fossil fuels are being subsidized by more and more public money while investments shift to renewables and fossil elites convince governments to throw good money after bad. Consumptions subsidies for coal, oil and gas have a 9 to 1 advantage over subsidies to affordable clean energy.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
BUT. There’s a big but. Well, a couple.

The transition away from fossil fuels to renewables isn’t fast enough, and it isn’t fair enough.

Fossil fuel elites are buying politicians to maintain business as usual (he said it more tactfully), and RE isn’t reaching all who need it.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Some countries are saving a bunch of money with clean energy. Why? Because it reduces their reliance on expensive volatile fossil fuel markets. Gas prices increased 5x in the UK in 2022 alone!
cat-abreu.bsky.social
‪Some countries are making a bunch of money from clean energy. ‬

‪GDP growth from renewables in 2023:‬
‪🇮🇳 India - 5%!‬
‪🇺🇸US - 6%!!‬
‪🇨🇳China - 20%!!!‬
‪🇪🇺EU - 33%!!!!‬
‪(Side note: so depressing not to see 🇨🇦Canada on this list given our wealth of renewables resources) ‬
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Cheap renewable energy means better energy access for those who need it, and huge job growth.
In 2023:
👷🏾‍♀️Clean energy jobs reached a total of 34.8 million, of which
16.2 million are in renewables.
💰Clean energy added around USD $320 billion to the global economy,
accounting for 10% of GDP growth
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Plummeting costs mean that solar and wind are now the fastest growing sources of electricity in history.
🎯In 2024, renewables made up 92.5% of all new electricity capacity additions and 74% of electricity generation growth.
cat-abreu.bsky.social
The room is packed full of ambassadors from all over the world. We start by hearing about how incredibly affordable renewable energy is.
☀️Solar energy is now 41% cheaper than coal, oil, or gas.
💨Onshore wind energy is 53% cheaper than fossil fuels
cat-abreu.bsky.social
I’m in New York for UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ special address on climate. He has a hopeful story amidst the chaos and loss of climate disaster. Stick with me to follow his speech, and check out the report his comments are based on!

www.un.org/en/climatech...
cat-abreu.bsky.social
Announcing the Canadian Youth Climate Assembly! 36 people aged 18-25 will assemble this summer to identify what young Canadians want Parliament to do on climate. I'm thrilled to be part of the Advisory & Oversight Committee.

Spread the word! Find out more & apply to participate at www.climacan25.ca
Reposted by Cat Abreu
climatekeith.bsky.social
And why, dear G7 leaders, do you think that "the world has experienced record-breaking wildfires across every forested continent over the past decade"? Maybe a little thing you used to call clim*te ch*ange before it became the crisis that dare not speak its name? www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/stat...
cat-abreu.bsky.social
So while I understand the temptation of an all-of-the-above approach -“we have real green energy and our fossil fuels are somehow green, too!”- it’s just not how it shakes out for the climate. (Plus, it’s Norway & Saudi Arabia whose o+g is actually “cleanest”. Canada isn’t even winning that race.)
cat-abreu.bsky.social
And that’s not even counting the emissions when it gets burned. Canada exports more emissions every year than we produce ourselves.

newsinteractives.cbc.ca/features/202...
Canada’s uncounted emissions
Canada doesn’t count emissions from its oil and gas exports. So we did.
newsinteractives.cbc.ca