Canada has announced a new emissions plan that outlines how it will meet its net-zero commitments by 2050, starting with target goals that must be hit by 2030 to stay on track. 

Allow us to draw your attention to our two biggest takeaways:

42% reduction in emissions in oil and gas

• The plan does not actually detail exactly how oil and gas emissions will be capped, a major blank that still needs to be filled.

23% reduction in emissions in transportation

• 20% of new passenger vehicles must be battery-operated by 2026 and 100% by 2035. 
   
• A $400 million expansion to a country-wide charging station installation plan.
   
•  A $1.7 billion increase in the government’s electric vehicle rebate program. 

Why it happened: The country needs to put its money where its mouth is—next month’s annual emissions report is expected to show that in 2020 Canada exceeded emissions targets for the seventh time in two decades.

• The most current emissions report shows that Canada produced 730 million tonnes of greenhouse gasses in 2019… 300 million tonnes more than the 2030 goal.

Why it matters: Canada’s net-zero by 2050 pledge is ambitious for a country that hasn’t met any of its climate targets in the nine plans it’s devised since 1990. This one promises that the goals will actually be achieved, but it still feels light on details that will lead to a cleaner future for Canadians.

Eleven of Canada’s most prominent crypto and Web3 companies—including Wealthsimple and Kevin O’Leary’s Wonderfi—formed an industry council to help grow the country’s  Web3 space and collaborate with the government on creating a unified national strategy for blockchain regulation.

Tailing behind Joe Biden’s executive order to devise recommendations for crypto regulation, the Canadian Web3 Council wants to help policymakers figure out what the heck Web3 even is, and then help them realize its full potential. Talks around freezing digital assets tied to the trucker convoy protests last month made it evidently clear to the council's creators that the government needs support when it comes to understanding the new ways in which things hold value.

It’s easy to roll your eyes at the metaverse and NFT gimmicks (like that Bored Ape-themed restaurant), but over 1.2 million Canadians currently own crypto and 5.6% of Canadian Internet users own at least one NFT, numbers that could increase if Web3’s utility and legality are clarified through legislation. 

According to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Canadian organizations are the victims of thousands of cyberattacks every single day, per the Financial Post. 

Why it’s happening: During testimony at the federal national defence committee, the spy agency pointed to the evolution of technology and unprecedented changes in online environments (groundbreaking and definitely new information to you all) as the cause.  

• A recent report by Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) points to hundreds of known ransomware attacks against Canadians in 2021, with more than half against critical infrastructure like hospitals, governments, and universities. 

Numerous government reports on the country’s cybersecurity landscape have listed state-sponsored cyber attackers as the greatest strategic threat to Canada right now, with China, Russia, North Korea and Iran posing the greatest threat. 

• Although they are not aware of any immediate threats to Canadian organizations in relation to events in and around Ukraine, the agency has repeatedly warned organizations to be on their guard from Russian state-sponsored hackers.

Big picture: The biggest public cloud providers (Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud) have all made acquisitions in the cybersecurity space over the last year—it’s possible others will follow as companies look to ramp up their protection efforts.