Economy and Ecology on Budget Day

 

                        Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and Prime Minister Mark Carney

The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,
    the world, and those who live in it,
2 for he has founded it on the seas
    and established it on the rivers.

                                  Psalm 24: 1-2 NRSVue

[Chorus]

If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
If a tree falls in the forest does anybody hear?
Anybody hear the forest fall?

[Verse 2]
Cut and move on
Cut and move on
Take out trees
Take out wildlife at a rate of species every single day
Take out people who've lived with this
For a hundred thousand years—
Inject a billion burgers worth of beef—
Grain eaters—methane dispensers
Through thinning ozone
Waves fall on wrinkled earth—
Gravity, light, ancient refuse of stars
Speak of a drowning—
But this, this is something other
Busy monster eats dark holes in the spirit world
Where wild things have to go
To disappear
Forever

Bruce Cockburn 

Today we'll be introduced to the first federal budget under Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. We've been forewarned that this could will be austerity budget in some respects, Carney putting on his pragmatic economist cloak, having been governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. Less spending on government, more on a diversified economy that doesn't depend on a trade relationship with the now volatile United States. 

There is also an ominous sense that the economy will "trump" ecology in terms of priorities. I use the word ecology rather than environment because it has the same root as economy. The Greek word "oikos" means both family and family home as basic units of society. 

When Mr. Carney was elected a resource called Sustainablity asked How Sustainable is Canada’s New Prime Minister Mark Carney? The accompanying piece noted: 

Newly-elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s ascent is rooted in a distinguished career at the intersection of finance and climate action. With leadership roles at Goldman Sachs, the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, Carney has consistently championed the alignment of financial markets with climate goals.

“Climate change is the tragedy of the horizon,” he said in 2015 as the Governor of the Bank of England. “We don’t need an army of actuaries to tell us that the catastrophic impacts of climate change will be felt beyond the traditional horizons of most actors – imposing a cost on future generations that the current generation has no direct incentive to fix.” 

As the United Nations Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance and a key figure at COP26, Carney argued that private finance is a crucial lever in the fight against climate change.

I was aware of this background before the election and hoped as a Christian who cares deeply about Creation that we might have leadership willing and able to strike a balance addressing  the imminent threat of climate change in a way that the previous Liberal governments promised and never delivered. Catherine McKenna, the first Environment Minister under Justin Trudeau, recognizes the shortcomings of that government in addressing climate change and is waiting for a clear Climate Plan from PM Carney...promises, promises...

We've been told that one of the likely austerity measures in this budget will be to cut back by at least half the ambitious goal of planting two billion trees by 2031, although current contracts will be honoured. I imagine the majority of Canadians won't care about this reduction -- hey, one billion trees is still a lot. For me this will be a symbolic statement about environmental action that I don't want to hear. 

Who knows whether this budget will be passed, knowing that it will require some support for other parties. Will be dragged into another federal election? I hope not. 

I'll point out again that Mr. Carney is a person of faith, a Roman Catholic Christian.who attends mass on occasion. I hope that he prays for guidance in the balance between economy and ecology, and will continue to do so. The Earth is our family home and we must "live with respect in Creation."