Hello. Thank you for having me here today.
My name is Margareta Dovgal. I'm the director of research at Resource Works, which is a B.C.-based non-profit advocating for responsible natural resource development. My background is in energy, climate and innovation policy. I work to communicate the facts about Canadian resource industries to decision-makers and the public.
Last year Resource Works convened a national coalition, the Task Force for Real Jobs, Real Recovery, which brought together 38 organizations spanning the country, including all resource sectors, labour and many indigenous organizations. We set out to determine how we can leverage Canada's natural resource industries for economic recovery from COVID-19 and how we can maintain and create jobs for Canadians.
We found that the right deployment of natural resource industries can help supercharge our economy. Unsurprisingly, Canada's role in the global mining supply chain, including in mining exploration and supplying to projects around the world, is an integral part of our recovery opportunity. We released our recommendations aimed at the federal government in August 2020 as a report, “Securing Canada's Economic Future”, which can be found on our website at realrecovery.ca.
Several themes relevant to your work here emerged through this research. For context, I was the report's editor and lead author.
First, we found that Canada's natural resource industries lead the world on sustainability and corporate social responsibility, CSR. They are optimally positioned to meet the evolving demands of global investors. With respect to this subcommittee's study into the CORE, it's important to note that our resource industries have actually developed standards and practices that have been adopted internationally. This is true of forest management, chemistry, oil and gas and, of course, mining, with Canadian companies leading the global implementation of TSM, towards sustainable mining.
Moreover, our government's work, such as on the CSR checklist for Canadian mining companies operating abroad, is regarded very favourably by host governments in Asia and in Central and South America. As Canada's mining sector has long said, the pathway to better social and environmental performance is through collaboration and co-operation with international partners, not extraterritorial measures or an overly prescriptive approach that reduces host states' autonomy. Our own domestic regulatory experience has actually shown that reducing adversarial processes leads to better outcomes.
We've also found that resource companies are often subject to much-heightened scrutiny. The fact is that modern life is resource intensive. We must carefully balance producing what we need, at the scale we need, with protecting the environment, both locally and globally. There is an opportunity before us now to meet rapidly increasing demand for metals and minerals as the world electrifies, while mitigating environmental impacts. This requires an honest recognition of what it takes to live in an industrialized society with a high quality of life enjoyed by all.
It occurs to me that we've seen something similar play out on climate activism. Canada is a jurisdiction where the screws of public opinion can get tightened easily. This has played out in national debates about energy export infrastructure, which occasionally failed to acknowledge that Canada is one of the world's most ethical and sustainable major producers of energy, which the world continues to desperately need. The vibrant debate we have about resource development in this country is not a reflection of inferior performance; it actually results in the most innovative and responsible practices, which our companies take abroad.
Canada is a solutions provider for better international performance in resource development. I would credit the fact that this conversation here is occurring at all to an inclusive democratic stage for debate, in contrast to many of our multinational mining competitors. Take artisanal cobalt mining in Congo, where Chinese multinationals dominate the space and child labour and extremely dangerous labour practices are common under their purview. In contrast, high labour standards are a leading reason that Canadians are welcomed by host countries.
As global demand for critical minerals grows, Canadian companies have an opportunity to provide sustainably sourced materials for electric vehicles, batteries, wind turbines and solar panels. This direction is recognized in the recent Canada-U.S. joint action plan on critical minerals.
Finally, Canada's role as a major resource economy provides us with a foundation for resource prosperity. That's great for paying the bills, such as for national child care or the wage subsidy. Our resource industries also establish us as a global supplier of choice not only for resource products, but also for resource equipment, technology and services. Canadian innovation and expertise in emissions reduction, remediation and manufacturing is needed around the world. That is what we bring when our companies invest abroad.
Any measures that this committee recommends should take into account the impacts on Canadian mining investment abroad. Canada's reputation as a sustainable producer gives us a competitive advantage. These investment opportunities represent an essential opportunity for decarbonization through critical minerals, Canada's strategic and geopolitical partnerships and our own recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thank you.