Newly appointed Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna

Congratulations to Prime Minister Trudeau on the appointments to his new Cabinet, which represents a mix of Cabinet veterans and energetic newcomers. The newcomers include Catherine McKenna, the new Minister of Environment and Climate Change, and Hunter Tootoo, the new Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

McKenna proved to be an intelligent, polished and effective communicator in beating out Paul Dewar—an NDP stalwart— in the October 19 election. She will need all those skills to protect nature in the federal realm. Marlo Raynolds, former executive director of Pembina Institute, will play a senior role in her team—great news because Marlo is a tremendous advocate for nature as well as one of Canada’s best policy minds on solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Minister Tootoo also defeated a high-profile member of Parliament—former Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq—in the election. He has a big job protecting fish habitat, integrating sustainability fully into fisheries management, and protecting marine species at risk such as polar bears.

Nature Canada is delighted that two veteran Cabinet ministers Stephane Dion (a former environment minister) and Carolyn Bennett (a Woman for Nature) are back in Cabinet in portfolios with important responsibilities to advance nature conservation. Dion is the new foreign affairs minister, and Bennett is indigenous and northern affairs minister. Both totally get it on environment and nature issues.

Nature Canada also welcomes the appointment of Kirsty Duncan, another Woman for Nature and former Liberal environment critic, as Science Minister.

Nature Canada wishes Prime Minister Trudeau and his Cabinet team every success in tackling the biodiversity and climate challenges facing Canada and other nations.