The environment is our greatest financial challenge
September 4, 2023
The greatest financial challenge we have left our children is the environment, writes Peter Watson.
The challenge will be met, they typically are, but at what cost? Things will get worse before we are motivated to find solutions.
There are two stories that have flooded the news in recent months. One is watching our neighbour to the south flirting with the idea that democracy only applies when it is suitable.
The other news stories involve climate change. Sky high temperatures in Europe, fires in Greece, fires in California, and Hawaii.
Closer to home, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and other provinces, are suffering from unprecedented forest fires. Much of the population of Ontario this summer has been inundated with forest fire smoke, particularly from Québec.
The next major natural disaster will be massive global flooding caused by global warming from melting ice in the Artic. Water levels will rise. Much of the human population lives on a coast that could be underwater.
Many regions in Canada have already suffered greatly from flooding.
Our planet is changing. Humans are the culprit. And we are not dealing from a position of strength. The new world is going to take massive amounts of funding.
Canada and other countries have not managed its finances well. There is always a reason to spend and unfortunately the terminology of overspending has shifted to investing in Canada which puts a pretty name on financial mismanagement.
How do governments access billions of dollars to fight global warming when its finances are already in extremely poor condition?
The same question could be asked about individual Canadians. There have been many reports how a significant number of Canadians live pay-cheque to pay-cheque with very little room for extra spending.
We are facing an environmental disaster. Financially we are challenged on what kinds of solutions we can provide.
Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP®, R.F.P., CIM®, FCSI offers a weekly financial planning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsoninvestments.com
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