Canada’s economic development model is on a collision course with the urgent need for global climate action. Worldwide, extreme weather events from drought to floods to powerful storms and record-breaking temperatures are making a powerful statement that climate change can no longer be denied. Hurricane Sandy, which rudely interrupted a US election in which candidates [...]
Marc Lee’s Blog Posts
Marc Lee is the Senior Economist at the CCPA’s BC Office. In addition to tracking federal and provincial budgets and economic trends, Marc has published on a range of topics from poverty and inequality to globalization and international trade to public services and regulation. Marc is Co-Director of the Climate Justice Project, a research partnership with UBC's School of Community and Regional Planning that examines the links between climate change policies and social justice. Marc chairs the Progressive Economics Forum and contributes regularly to Relentlessly Progressive Economics (progressive-economics.ca/relentless).
Investor alert: TSX over-valued due to a “carbon bubble”
April 15th, 2013 · Marc Lee · Comments Off · Economy, Environment, resources & sustainability
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Climate justice and BC’s political moment
April 5th, 2013 · Marc Lee · Comments Off · Climate change, Economy, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability
The following is based on a talk at the Bring Your Boomers election forum on April 3 at the Rio Theatre in Vancouver, the fourth in a series of intergenerational dialogues from Gen Why Media, and was co-sponsored by the CCPA, Get Your Vote On, LeadNow and Vancity credit union. I was asked to set the stage for a conversation on climate justice between [...]
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Absolving our Carbon Sins: the Case of the Pacific Carbon Trust
April 2nd, 2013 · Marc Lee · 1 Comment · Climate change, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability, Provincial budget & finance
Last week’s report from BC’s Auditor General dealt a huge blow to the credibility of carbon offsets and claims that BC had achieved a state of “carbon neutral government.” Coverage of the AG’s report was coloured by accusations from the Pacific Carbon Trust, the Crown corporation created to buy and sell BC offsets, and “experts” [...]
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Closing the Loop: Zero Waste, GHG Emissions and Green Jobs in BC
March 28th, 2013 · Marc Lee · Comments Off · Climate change, Economy, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability
Below is the summary for our latest Climate Justice Project report, Closing the Loop: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Creating Green Jobs through Zero Waste in BC (I recommend checking the much prettier full paper, stand-alone summary, and awesome infographic by Sam Bradd on the website). Closing the Loop was a complex and challenging project that made my head [...]
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The dubious case for casinos
January 22nd, 2013 · Marc Lee · Comments Off · Economy, Taxes
I got way off my usual research agenda this morning for a business panel on CBC radio. The topic was the economics of casinos, the result of the City of Surrey voting down a new casino proposal. I have often disparagingly compared stock markets to casinos, but in fact I knew relatively little about the [...]
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Marc’s Enbridge Testimony
January 16th, 2013 · Marc Lee · 3 Comments · Climate change, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability
Testimony to the Joint Review Panel on the Enbridge Northern Gateway Project By Marc Lee, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives January 16, 2013 My name is Marc Lee, and I have served as an economist for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives for more than 14 years. Most recently I have been Senior Economist and [...]
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Enbridge testimony from Josh Paterson
January 16th, 2013 · Marc Lee · 1 Comment · Environment, resources & sustainability, First Nations & Aboriginal
A guest post follows from Josh Paterson, who is formerly a lawyer with West Coast Environmental Law, and recently appointed Executive Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association. Josh’s remarks are his own personal opinions. ********** Good evening. I’m happy to be here in unceded Coast Salish territories to address you this evening, to express my unreserved [...]
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BC’s Coal Future
January 16th, 2013 · Marc Lee · 2 Comments · Climate change, Economy, Environment, resources & sustainability
While much of the attention this week is on the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline hearings in Vancouver, another fossil fuel export issue has come into play with proposals to greatly expand coal exports from the Port of Metro Vancouver. Our colleagues, David Green (Economics, UBC) and Kevin Washbrook (Voters Taking Action of Climate Change) have [...]
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What’s next for BC’s carbon tax?
January 14th, 2013 · Marc Lee · 1 Comment · Climate change, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability, Taxes
An oped of mine was published by the Vancouver Sun today: What’s next for BC’s carbon tax? Marc Lee Climate change forced its way onto the political agenda in 2012, as Hurricane Sandy ripped through the northeast United Stages just days before the election. And while action remains frustratingly slow, extreme weather disasters in the [...]
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Making the case for public dental care
January 10th, 2013 · Marc Lee · 3 Comments · Health care, Privatization, P3s & public services
There is a classic episode of the Simpsons, where Mr Burns cuts the dental plan for the nuclear power plant. With Lisa needing braces, Homer becomes a union organizer and leads a strike against the plant to get back the dental plan. I thought about that episode when had to get a root canal this week. Because [...]
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