Climate action and sustainability go hand in hand in securing a better future. The aim is to integrate the goals of a high quality of life, health and prosperity with social justice while maintaining the earth's capacity to support life in all its diversity. Reducing our carbon footprint, implementing more efficient and effective use of energy, and reducing waste are all important steps.
Standards and conformity assessment are tools that can help mitigate the effects of a changing climate while enabling us to work toward net zero goals for a more sustainable world.
Infrastructure and climate change
Canada's climate is changing twice as fast as the global average, and it is affecting our built environment: the places we live and work. Our smallest communities and largest cities need standardization to help address current and future challenges so that our buildings and infrastructure are safe, efficient, and sustainable.
Our Standards to Support Resilience in Infrastructure Program (SSRIP) leads the development of standards and related guidance to safeguard infrastructure and communities, including issues caused by a changing climate.
We focus on the following key areas:
- Northern-specific solutions for communities facing permafrost thaw
- Strengthening assets against climate risks
- Integrating risk management in infrastructure design, operation and retrofit
- Nature-based solutions
- New materials for low and embodied carbon
- Climate-resilient transportation infrastructure systems
NISI
The Northern Infrastructure Standardization Initiative supports standards development that considers climate change impacts specific to Canada's North.
Extreme weather
Heavy flooding and high winds are costing Canadians their lives and hundreds of millions of dollars in recovery each year. Standards can help strengthen infrastructure against extreme weather events.
Urban heat
Extreme heat events are anticipated to become longer, more frequent, and more intense because of climate change, and urban areas are highly affected.
Future by design: standards for a climate resilient Canada
Since 2016, the Standards Council of Canada’s Standards to Support Resilience in Infrastructure Program has advanced standardization strategies to address rising risks due to climate change. The Program has led the development of 41 standards and related guidance to safeguard communities and infrastructure.
Supporting Indigenous communities affected by climate change
First Nation, Métis and Inuit communities across Canada are directly experiencing the impacts of climate change. We’re thrilled to release the Climate Monitoring Guide for Indigenous Communities, a roadmap for Indigenous communities interested in community-based physical climate monitoring.
Sustainable action
Climate action is one form of sustainability. However, sustainability is broader than just preventing climate change. It is about understanding how our everyday actions will affect future generations, for better or worse, and redesigning how we create that future in sustainable ways. It can include creating a circular economy, or a sustainable energy system, tackling hunger, poverty, ill health, improving access to clean water, and many other aspects of sustainable development.
Environmental, Social and Governance
Environmental, Social and Governance performance (or ESG) is an increasingly important topic amongst organizations around the world, driven in large part by growing consumer, investment and media attention on climate change, social inequality, and the impact of COVID-19. Standards and conformity assessment are ideal tools to address these issues.
Smart cities
Smart cities use data to improve information sharing and operations, to provide a better quality of life to its citizens. Being equipped with high-calibre data helps decision makers monitor how their services are advancing as a result of investments. Standards help ensure the quality of data and enable cities to use it to measure themselves in a national and global context.
Clean technology
Clean technology innovation and commercialization is key to facing the challenges of climate change and enabling a net zero future. We support Canadian cleantech innovators through standardization activities that promote commercialization and market access.
Standards in Action: Building a Climate Resilient Future
Canada’s climate is changing faster than the global average. Our infrastructure can’t keep up with the impacts—floods, wildfires, permafrost thaw, coastal erosion, and other natural disasters are costing billions of dollars per year. If we do not change the way we build infrastructure to ensure it is climate-resilient, it could cost Canada $300 billion over the next decade.
Related accreditation programs
Accreditation and conformity assessment play a vital role by ensuring that standards are applied correctly and consistently. At SCC, we offer a wide range of accreditation programs and training across many conformity assessment areas such as climate and sustainability.
News articles
Arming standards writers with new tools to address climate impacts
What if we could build our infrastructure—the places we live and work—to withstand the impacts of climate change?
Protecting Canada’s urban dwellers from extreme weather events
A line of violent windstorms carved a path of destruction through Ontario and Quebec, passing close to or directly through three of Canada’s four largest cities.
Protect or Retreat: Rising Seas Threaten Canada’s Atlantic and Pacific Coasts
Rising seas, swollen atmospheric rivers and post-tropical storms are a threat to community infrastructure, housing and the safety of those living along Canada’s east and west coasts.
Case studies
Compilation of standards in climate action case studies
This series of case studies demonstrates the benefits of using standards to build sustainable, resilient communities.
Guidelines for addressing climate change in standards
A standard for standards developers to incorporate climate change adaptation and mitigation in planning, drafting, revising and updating standards.
Design and construction of low-rise residential and small buildings to resist high winds
Best practice guidance for homeowners, insurance and other decision-makers to help reduce risk.
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Get involved in standards development
By participating in standardization and shaping the standards of tomorrow, you can become a global leader at the very forefront of your industry, while helping to advance the health, safety and economic well-being of all Canadians.
Find and buy standards
Browse our database to search for published National Standards of Canada and international standards. You can also search for Other Recognized Documents. Find out where to buy the standards you need.
Learn about accreditation
We offer a wide range of internationally recognized accreditation programs and training across many conformity assessment areas.
Level up your standardization knowledge
Our standardization courses will help deepen your knowledge and ability to successfully use standards, and better understand how standardization works.