Canada’s clean-tech funding created a global powerhouse. Now scandal threatens to tear it down

A “green slush fund” to be severely reined in or a fund that “set Canada apart” and needs to be quickly fixed and continued….

This is the current debate about a fund that has, for 20 years, helped Canada become a leading player in clean technology—until recently when revelations of mismanagement and the political machinations that followed have created an uncertain future.

Mark Ramzy of the Toronto Star dives into Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) and how it went from a once lauded federal fund to a political punching bag. Conversations with industry insiders examine the economic and environmental ramifications of current political decisions.

Ramzy outlines the Auditor General’s report showing mismanagement, including instances of conflict of interest—wrongs that need to be addressed. The critical question is, how? Knee-jerk damage-control moves to stop the flow of funding and move SDTC under government control have short- and long-term impacts. And using SDTC troubles primarily for political gain only delays constructive solutions.

As one business leader noted, decisions taken in Ottawa will reflect the type of country we want to be, “… whether we’re going to be a supplier of clean-tech solutions into this, you know, trillion dollar global clean-tech market, or we’re going to be a buyer. How do we create the conditions for success?”