That is a very interesting question. Thank you for it.
When I worked in other countries, Canada was seen as a leader in conservation. Brian Mulroney signed the Convention on Biological Diversity before anyone else, before any other OECD countries. We were very much at the forefront. I think, as the committee knows, that international perception has changed dramatically.
I think the question was what is the best way and whether we could do some comparisons. I don't want to speak out of hand here. I think there are countries that seem to be taking the issue more seriously. I think Australia has a remarkable endangered species law, though it's very new, and we don't know how effective it is on the ground. They are very much ahead on the monitoring and in their understanding of their biodiversity.
I think some of the other more developed countries.... The United States for instance, has a much stronger culture of conservation than we do, both at the private and the government level. Europe is in a different boat because they dealt with their biodiversity long ago by getting rid of it; they don't have much left to manage. They look to places like Canada with envy and consternation because they know we are stewarding a lot of biodiversity for the rest of the world. So we are in a unique position.