Focus on Quebec at the "World of Solutions"

The Quebec government’s booth at the UN Conference on Climate Change brings together a variety of different activities for “A world of solutions.” As the host province, Quebec is also providing a broad overview of what the real Quebec is like.

The booth is staffed, in part, by a group of researchers from the Ouranos Consortium, a network of researchers who work in regional climatology and adaptation to climate change.

Suzanne Guy, communications adviser to Quebec ’s Ministère du Conseil exécutif, was interviewed on site by Canada:  Daily Highlights.

Question:  What message do you want to convey to delegates and to the general public through this exhibit?

Suzanne Guy:  We want to impress upon the public and other stakeholders that Quebec is a leader in clean, renewable energy.

Quebec has the lowest per-capita rateof greenhouse gas emission in Canada: theequivalent of 12.1 tonnes of CO₂ per inhabitant, whereas the Canadian average is 23.4 tonnes.

Question: What impact is climate change having on the province of Quebec?

Suzanne Guy: Severe impacts have been felt across Quebec over the past few years. We had the floods in the Saguenay in 1996, the ice storm in 1998, and in the St. Lawrence, the humpback whales are disappearing.

At our booth we have an interactive DVD from GéoQuébec, an impressive way of getting a feel for the large territory of Quebec as a whole. The DVD includes a number of presentations, videos, archive films and aerial views. It is a wonderful panorama of Quebec.

Question:  What innovative technological solutions exist in Quebec?

The booth features a “BionX” bicycle.  This home-grown technological solution is based on the principle of a motor attached to the wheel of the bike and a battery that recharges as the rider pedals.