Home / Corporate Reporting / DPR – 2006-2007 – Index / DPR – 2006-2007 – Message from the President

DPR – 2006-2007 – Message from the President

2006-2007 - NRTEE Departmental Performance Report

Previous - Table of Content - Next

Message from the President

I am pleased to present the Performance Report of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE or Round Table) for the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2007. Created by the Prime Minister in 1988 as an independent advisory body reporting to the federal government, the NRTEE had its status formalized in a 1993 Act of Parliament. The purpose of the Round Table, according to the Act, is "to play the role of catalyst in identifying, explaining and promoting, in all sectors of Canadian society and in all regions of Canada, principles and practices of sustainable development." The NRTEE draws on the insight and experience of its members to examine the environmental and economic implications of priority issues and offer independent advice on how to address them. Appointed by the government, its members represent different regions of Canada and are distinguished leaders in business, labour, universities, environmental organizations, Aboriginal communities, and municipalities. (See a list of members in Section 4.) NRTEE activities align with the government’s objective of building a strong, globally competitive, sustainable, technologically innovative economy. The NRTEE reports to the Minister of the Environment, but as an independent national body, it shares advice with other levels of government and various non-government sectors. The agency strives to influence federal policy development on environment and economy issues. To accomplish this, it must produce and disseminate relevant, credible advice in a timely manner. In 2006-2007 the NRTEE delivered effectively on the commitments made in its Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) in the identified priority areas. After releasing findings and advice to the government on a long-term climate change and energy strategy (the "Wedge Report") in June 2006, the agency embarked on a successful outreach initiative and consulted online to promote awareness of and gather feedback on this advice. Also in the reporting period, the Round Table responded to a reference from the government to provide advice on specific elements of Canada’s proposed Clean Air Act. This work will be completed in the fall of 2007. In parallel with this work, and in partnership with other organizations, the NRTEE continues to examine how Canadians can adapt to climate change, particularly as it affects the vulnerable northern parts of our country. In February 2007, the NRTEE released a State-of-the-Debate Report entitled Capital Markets and Sustainability: Investing in a Sustainable Future. The report was well received in the financial sector. To improve its overall ability to influence policy development, the NRTEE initiated a review of how it communicates with stakeholders and sought advice on how to be more effective in this area. The Round Table will consider the recommendations from this review in 2007-2008. On the operations side, the Round Table continued to strengthen its accountability and management systems. Senior staff were trained on delegation of authorities; the agency completed a MAF self-assessment, with satisfactory results; it laid the groundwork for implementing an electronic system to improve how it manages information; and it worked to comply with Treasury Board Secretariat’s requirements under the Management Resources and Results Structure (MRRS). Addressing what had been previously identified as a weakness in terms of corporate evaluation, the NRTEE developed a new performance measurement framework designed to generate improved performance information for decision making and for external public reporting. Moreover, it will allow the Round Table to measure its overall corporate performance efficiently and consistently over time. Results of the first round of performance measurement activities for 2007-2008 are included in this report. The Round Table plans to build on the positive results achieved in 2006-2007, providing the credible and independent research and advice on which it has built its reputation. David McLaughlin President and CEO