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The list that includes General Electric's Ecomagnination, Global Footprint Network, Climate Change Capital, Goggle, and the Obama Presidency was announced at the Skoll World Forum on Entrepreneurship in Oxford England. The forum focused on the opportunities for change presented by the economic crisis.

"A new economic order is rising from the ashes, and a new generation of innovators, entrepreneurs and investors is accelerating the changes essential for delivering scalable sustainable solutions to the world," says the report.

The report The Phoenix Economy: 50 Pioneers in the Business of Social Innovation highlights the 50 organizations and explores new markets, technologies and business models that provide solutions to the economic crisis.

• Total greenhouse gas emissions for 2007 were 747 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. This is a 4.0% increase from 2006 emissions.
• Emissions in 2007 were approximately 26% higher than 1990 levels.
• Canada's emissions in 2007 exceeded our Kyoto Protocol target of 558.4 megatonnes by 33.8%.
• The most significant causes of emissions growth in Canada between 1990 and 2007 were increases in: oil and gas production; motor vehicles; and reliance on coal-powered electricity generation.

Climate Action Network Canada and KyotoPlus partners are seeking immediate action to meet Canada's Kyoto obligations.

Within days of the announced proposal, (made after over one year of secret meetings with the developer) the Wilderness Committee filed 10 Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) requests on behalf of the people of Manitoba about the proposed Meditation Lake development, including about water quality.

"This is about our parks," stated Eric Reder, Campaign Director for the Wilderness Committee. "People must realize that the precious wild spaces that used to exist in Whiteshell Provincial Park are disappearing. On top of the lack of parks management planning, putting a kids camp on a lake with deadly water quality could be criminally negligent."

Manitoba Wildlands director Gaile Whelan Enns commented. "Manitoba's is losing protected parklands every year, instead of establishing new protected areas. Our parks, including Whiteshell, are long overdue for management plans."

The public open house is at 7 p.m. Thursday April 30th at Victoria Inn, Winnipeg.

The report, Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Passenger Vehicles in Manitoba supports aggressive vehicle emission reduction targets and incentives to get older cars off the road. A suggested new public education campaign - Green Driving, would promote increased fuel efficiency through regular vehicle maintenance and driving habits including tips on anti-idling. The government will also provide support for a new rapid transit corridor for the city of Winnipeg.

The board was formed under Manitoba's new Climate Change and Emissions Reduction Act. Minister Rondeau said the province supports the proposed California Air Resources Board model for vehicle emission reductions. The government implementation plan includes introducing the California Air Resources Board model for emission reductions pending approval in the United States and economic analysis on the impact on retailers in Manitoba.

The ban was a result of an ongoing national student campaign organized by the Polaris Institute, the Canadian Federation of Students, and Sierra Youth Coalition. To date, 21 universities and colleges have established over 50 bottled water free zones.

"Our campuses need to lead the way on sustainability initiatives" said David Jacks, Manitoba Chairperson for the Canadian Federation of Students, "it is our hope that other institutions across Canada will take similar action, and enshrine public drinking water as a Right by refusing to accept water as a commodity".

In a 2008 national online survey of universities and colleges - respondents indicated a lack of access to clean, potable water and rapidly decaying water fountains. The University of Winnipeg will now be upgrading water infrastructure on campus and installing new water fountains.

If approved the Toxic Reduction Act 2009 would require facilities to provide a plan for toxic use reduction. This requirement in the legislation is completely voluntary.

"It sounds troublesome," said Aaron Freeman, policy director with Environmental Defence "but a model of mandatory reporting and then voluntary target-setting actually works very well."

The voluntary approach is modeled after Massachusett's Toxic Use Reduction Act which saw a 91 percent reduction in environmental releases and 64 percent reduction in toxic waste. Ontario will invest $24 million to help industries transform their processes and move away from toxic substance use.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) now requires large property and life insurance companies with premiums of more than $500 million to file an Insurer Climate Risk Disclosure Survey annually, beginning May 1, 2010.

"Climate change will have huge impacts on the insurance industry and we need better information on how insurers are responding to the challenge," said Joel Ario, chair of the NAIC Climate Change and Global Warming Task Force.

The eight-question survey will help regulators assess the exposure to risk from extreme weather events linked to climate change, such as wildfires, drought or flooding. The new mandate from NAIC was adopted following the third most expensive year on record for the insurance industry due to catastrophic damage attributed to climate change.

Targets contained in the bill will reduce Canadian GHG emissions by 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, and 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. It requires the government to make regulations to meet reduction targets and requires the Minister of Environment to produce a plan outlining how targets will be achieved.

"This Act will demonstrate strong leadership by Canada at a critical time for international action at climate talks in Copenhagen later this year." said Gaile Whelan Enns, Director of Manitoba Wildlands.

Sierra Club Canada encouraged Members of Parliament to vote for the bill, which passed by 141-128. The standing committee on the environment has 60 days to review the bill and propose any changes before it goes back to the House for a third and final vote.

The CEC's report reaffirms its 2003 recommendation for Winnipeg's wastewater treatment system that it is critical to also reduce ammonia and nitrogen because they are toxic to fish and degrade water quality. The city is required to meet its licensing and wastewater treatment requirements despite concerns that nitrogen removal might be an unneeded cost.

The scientific community advised the Manitoba government to focus on phosphorus, and not nitrogen for urban wastewater treatment in relation to the health of Lake Winnipeg. The 2003 investigation by the CEC occurred due to the huge cost to Winnipeggers to remove phosphorus and nitrogen before wastewater reaches Lake Winnipeg, and fines imposed by Environment Canada.

"While we know which commissioners participated in this review, we do not know which outside experts the CEC used, and the 2008 report the CEC used, An Assessment of Cost of Nitrogen Removal of City of Winnipeg Wastewater, does not appear to be public. We hope the CEC standards for access to information improve," commented Gaile Whelan Enns of Manitoba Wildlands.

The Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009 is a compilation of a giant package of 164 separate bills. It establishes 10 new National Heritage Sites, national trails, 21 new wilderness areas and expands several national park boundaries. It also provides the highest level of government protection from logging and commercial development.

"This legislation guarantees that we will not take our forests, rivers, oceans, national parks, monuments, and wilderness areas for granted, but rather we will set them aside and guard their sanctity for everyone to share," Obama said while signing the Act.

The act protects thousands of kilometers of rivers with 86 new Wild and Scenic Rivers and provides legal status for the National Landscape Conservation System, which contains areas of archaeological and cultural significance. New and expanded areas offer protection for critical fish and wildlife habitat.

Campaign Director Bruce Nilles helped coordinate a successful grassroots movement and was declared Grists 2008 Eco-Hero of the year for his efforts. The Sierra Club US claims to have stopped 24 new coal plants in the U.S. last year, for a total of 95 coal plants defeated or abandoned since the beginning of the recent coal rush.

Coal is becoming an increasingly risky energy option, as coal plants will soon be required to account for their global warming pollution. According to the Energy Information Administrations Annual Energy Outlook Report the US needs only two new coal plants between 2013 and 2025.

Government findings clearly dispute the coal industrys call for dozens of new plants. In 2008 the coal industry spent close to $50 million on ads to sway public support for more "clean" coal-fired power plants.

The key feature to allow voluntary carbon units (VCUs) to be traded across registries has been delayed but once up and running the Voluntary Carbon Standard Registry will be able to issue, transfer and retire voluntary carbon units.

"The VCS Registry is a significant milestone for the voluntary carbon market. In order to grow, this market needs credible, financial markets based registries such as the TZ1 Registry," said Lisa Ashford, Global Head of Voluntary and New Markets, EcoSecurities.

Carbon offsets enables companies to compensate for unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions. The carbon offsetting market was worth around $330 million in 2007.