The Canadian government made a commitment to Canadians and to the future of the planet by active and positive participation in the CoP21 meetings in Paris at the end of 2015. It states it will provide "national leadership and join with the provinces and territories to take action on climate change, put a price on carbon, and reduce carbon pollution".

To put it all in context click here to see how the 'Historic' Paris climate deal was adopted.

The clocking is ticking on the 90-days post-Paris timeline that Prime Minister Trudeau promised for a formal meeting with the provinces and territories, and municipal and First Nations to develop a pan-Canadian climate change framework. 

The federal government commitment includes:

• Working with the global community to support sustained emissions reductions and adaptation to climate change in the most poor and vulnerable nations
• Setting a national target of greenhouse gas reductions to reduce carbon pollution
• Ensuring that the provinces and territories have flexible federal funding to design their own carbon pricing policies
• Investing in clean energy and clean technologies
• Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies 
• Developing a Canadian Energy Strategy

The first step is to set a new target for Canadian reductions that is consistent with the goal of holding global average temperatures to less than 1.5 degrees Celsius above conditions before the industrial revolution.

Currently Canada still has an unacceptable target courtesy of the former administration. This legacy also continues to affect much of the federal infrastructure needed to support evidence-based decisions. Canada needs new targets by Earth Day, April 22, 2016 when the Paris Agreement will be formally signed. And we need a revitalized public service to support the changes needed to meet our commitments.

Now it's your turn to act. Write, email or tweet the first ministers and ask them to step up to the 1.5 degree target. We want to consensus by the time the world announces its targets in New York on Earth Day.