Rising to the challenge at this pivotal moment for Canada

Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, has been quoted as saying “the only constant in life is change”. And while it’s true that change is constant, it seems as though the nature, pace, and intensity of change right now in Canada, and around the world, is unprecedented. 

There can be no question that we are living through challenging times. The changing and ever-polarized political landscape, the on-again off-again threats of U.S. tariffs driving uncertainty in our economy, and the continued pressure on our natural environment manifesting in climate change and biodiversity loss—combined, these challenges are impacting almost all aspects of our economy and society. 

With the federal election—and the first consequential meeting between Prime Minister Carney and President Trump—now behind us, there is a feeling in the air of a new chapter for Canada. A brief moment, in a sea of turmoil, where we can pause to reflect on our future and our standing on the global stage. A moment where it is possible to pivot in ways that will ensure we are economically resilient, environmentally sustainable, and socially inclusive. 

But where do we want to go? How do we pivot? How do we overcome the systemic barriers to achieving the future we want, and unlock ourselves from past practices and current norms that make change so difficult? These are questions about innovation and creative disruption. They are about going upstream to anticipate and solve issues at their source, rather than deal with their unintended consequences at enormous cost to the economy and our broader society.  

At Generate Canada, we are focused on generating solutions to help advance a strong and inclusive economy that thrives within nature’s limits. Depending on what is needed, these solutions might come in the form of shifting policies or business practices, advancing new national standards, mobilizing public and private investment towards new technologies and related infrastructure, or other approaches to transforming markets for better mission-aligned outcomes. As specialists in catalyzing systems change, we have experience tackling big, complex wicked problems, and know the challenges and opportunities associated with these kinds of efforts. 

There is no fixed formula to follow, but drawing from history and lessons learned by Generate Canada and our Solution Spaces over the years, here are some thoughts.     

First, let’s not panic or make emotional decisions that are not grounded in evidence and expert advice.

At times like this it is natural to look for quick fixes, but often these are short-lived or lead to unintended consequences that can be harmful in the longer-term. That said, we do need to act with urgency. So let us rapidly (and continuously) engage an eclectic mix of experts and practitioners to explore the best solutions for our given context, build roadmaps and blueprints for a given industry or sector based on research and experiments, and then let’s retool our systems, infrastructure, business models, and approaches for now, and for the future.    

Second, let’s take an “economy first” approach.

This may seem odd coming from the head of an organization that has been working on the front lines of environmental sustainability for almost 30 years. But despite significant progress, the global environmental movement’s track record of focusing on moral and environmental imperatives regardless of economic impacts, has not moved the needle far enough. Future-fit solutions need to create jobs and strengthen the economy—and be environmentally responsible—to be viable and scalable. 

For a more resilient Canada our leaders must responsibly build-out strategic industries that harness our natural resources, innovate across supply-chains, improve physical and data infrastructure, invest more in R&D, improve trading arrangements (domestically and internationally), and cultivate the new skills required for our future economy,  all with a lens on doing so responsibly. Regenerative agriculture practices need to improve crop yields and generate new revenues for farmers.  Finding ways to efficiently reclaim, reuse and recycle plastics, building materials, and critical minerals from our waste streams—as promoted by Circular Economy Leadership Canada (CELC)—can eventually lower input costs for manufacturers, while reducing our demand for raw materials. Just to name a few examples.  

But an “economy first” approach does not mean “economy only”. Instead, this is about managing a cascading set of fragile interdependencies. Businesses rely on a strong economy.  Our economy depends on people (call them citizens, customers, or community members) who must have the support that comes from effective governments and a strong social system.  And all these depend on us having a healthy natural environment. Like a house of cards, if any one falls, they all fall.         

Third, let’s break down the silos that often exist between key actors in our economy, and find new ways for them to collaborate and innovate together.

When starting the Energy Futures Lab, energy company leaders, environmentalists, policymakers, and Indigenous community leaders rarely met together. Today through our lab, they regularly convene to co-create solutions together. The same goes for the full supply-chains across the agri-food space that  are now working together through the Canadian Alliance for Net Zero Agri-food (CANZA), and across the plastics packaging ecosystem through the Canada Plastics Pact. 

We know that solutions developed in disconnected bubbles tend to miss something that could only be caught by working as a broader system of actors. To address current challenges, SMEs, industry-leading corporations, all types and levels of government, NGOs, academics, and communities need to come together—not just for conferences, but on an ongoing basis. This will lead to better technologies, more efficient supply chain strategies, greater tracking and analysis, new investments in needed infrastructure, better enabling public policies, and more.   

Fourth, let’s think in systems, along multiple time horizons.

Part of the problem that led us to where we are today is narrowly focused short-term thinking. To solve big, wicked problems like the ones referenced above it is important to think strategically and systematically about solutions—in pre-competitive spaces—and in ways that overcome the challenge of self-interest—where actors are driven by “egos and logos”. 

Companies often think (and compensate) in terms of quarterly returns, and how they can achieve competitive advantage over others. Governments often focus on what they can reasonably achieve in 3-4 year election cycles, and on policies and investments that may lead to re-election. This is natural and is built into our democratic and free-market systems. In many ways this has served the needs of customers and citizens, at least in the short-term. 

But who is thinking 10-25+ years out? Who is thinking about public interests, and the unintended consequences that the actions of one may cause for the many?  It is an art and a science to think in systems—beyond the constraints faced by governments and companies. And far too few have the ability or luxury to work across different time horizons—solving for current needs, while developing disruptive solutions that will help phase out the status quo, to create the bridge to our longer-term and more ideal “north star”. Governments and commercial enterprises are indeed necessary, but also insufficient for these kinds of systems change efforts.   

Instead, there seems to be a growing need for independent, innovation-focused, multi-stakeholder platforms such as Generate Canada and our Solution Spaces to serve as catalysts for change.

 As both a “do tank” and “think tank”, we focus on diagnosing and reframing “wicked problems”, identifying and prioritizing a range of possible solutions, getting key actors to align behind strategic roadmaps and action plans, launching or coordinating pilot projects to test the efficacy of different options, and mobilizing public and private investments to help scale proven solutions.   

This work isn’t easy or for the faint of heart, but it works. Never have we needed these kinds of collaborative efforts more, and never have we been better prepared to step up to the challenges before us.   

So, if not us, then who? If not now, when? This is the time for anyone reading this article to become part of this effort.  This is an all-hands-on-deck moment, as we need one and all to be part of our efforts to generate solutions to meet the moment. Let’s get to it.