Canada Powered by Women started with a question: What would energy policy in this country look like if women’s voices were at the table shaping the conversation?
For years, we have been answering it through ongoing national research with Léger, event tours across some of Canada’s largest cities, women’s executive roundtables, and conversations with women across the country.
On June 3, we brought that answer to the federal government, on behalf of the 6.5 million engaged women whose voices we’re committed to amplifying.
Our submission is a formal response to a public consultation Ottawa opened in May on how Canada can build major projects faster. The government is proposing some of the largest changes in years to how energy and infrastructure projects get approved, and asked Canadians for their views before legislation is introduced in the weeks ahead.
The message we delivered: engaged women want faster, more certain approval of major energy and infrastructure projects, paired with the accountability needed to see them through.
Our Powering Prosperity tour brought together more than 700 engaged women across Regina, Halifax, Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver to discuss energy, the economy and Canada’s future
The document we sent to Ottawa says engaged women believe the government is heading in the right direction, but it also points out where the plan doesn’t go far enough.
We know this through our annual national research with Léger.
Our most recent research shows that 92 per cent of engaged women identify the current pace of government as Canada’s greatest risk to prosperity, 70 per cent support accelerating regulatory and approval processes, and 85 per cent support breaking down interprovincial barriers to facilitate affordable and reliable energy development.
Engaged women are asking for smart speed with a government that acts quickly and decisively, while staying flexible enough to adjust and correct course.
They also want accountability. Without someone clearly in charge of keeping projects on track, faster timelines on paper do not change what actually gets built.
This is what our years of work have been building toward.
Tracey Bodnarchuk, founder and CEO of Canada Powered by Women (left) talks with Heather Owen, Senior Vice President of research firm Léger, at CPW’s Powering Prosperity tour in Toronto.
“Our whole reason for existing is to amplify the voices of women,” says Tracey Bodnarchuk, founder and CEO of Canada Powered by Women. “Energy policy reform is at the heart of this consultation. For years, we’ve been listening to engaged women across the country, and we know exactly where they stand on our energy future. This is our moment to be part of the process. Our voices are unignorable, and this submission puts us directly in front of the people writing the next chapter of Canada’s energy policy, which is the underpinning of Canadian prosperity.”
Our submission is backed by objective and informed data from our research with Léger, and from two recent reports from our partners at Deloitte and PwC.
The first is Canadian women’s prosperity ambitions from coast-to-coast, a national report we co-authored with Deloitte Canada following our cross-country Powering Prosperity tour. Earlier this year, the tour brought together more than 700 engaged women across Regina, Halifax, Calgary, Toronto and Vancouver to discuss energy, the economy and Canada’s future. What surfaced in every city was alignment.
Deloitte Canada Partner and Energy & Resources Strategy Leader, Stephanie Prior, speaks at CPW’s Powering Prosperity Tour.
“Connecting with engaged women across Canada through CPW, it’s clear to me that we are well aligned in our view that a growing energy industry is critical for our country’s future,” says Deloitte Canada Partner and Energy & Resources Strategy Leader, Stephanie Prior.
The data supports this sentiment. Among engaged women, 86 per cent believe a strong and growing energy sector supports economic stability, and 85 per cent agree Canada’s natural resources give the country a position of power in global trade.
“We have to get more of our resources to market to increase the wealth of our nation and support programs Canadians count on,” says Prior. “Energy generates the tax revenue that helps fund education for our children, and our health care system. All of these things come from the same wallet. If we can put a few more dollars in that wallet by exporting our energy and strengthening our sovereignty, it helps to fund a better quality of life for Canadians from coast to coast.”
Also included in our submission is Fueling What Matters, a national report from our women’s executive roundtables that was prepared by PwC Canada for CPW.
Between February and April, we gathered 50 of Canada’s top women business leaders across Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver, bringing together their expertise in nuclear, mining, LNG, automotive, utilities, finance and other energy-adjacent sectors. These are women investing capital, building projects and hiring the workforce that will shape Canada’s next economic chapter.
Their mood was cautiously optimistic but focused on immediate, concrete action.
“There’s optimism that we’re hearing the right words: This is Canada’s moment, we’re an energy superpower, and it’s time to build Canada,” says Kirsten Baker, Partner and National Energy Leader at PwC Canada. “We’re all on the same page, and we’re on board. Engaged women now want to see the ‘how’. How do we do this? How do we move forward? How do we get things done? Let’s see the plans.”
Kirsten Baker, Partner and National Energy Leader at PwC Canada, speaks at a CPW event.
Among engaged women, only 23 per cent have high confidence in Canada’s current ability to approve and complete large projects on time, and 61 per cent believe current delays are making Canada less competitive on the world stage.
The submission is now with the federal government, and we’ll also be sharing it with key government decisions-makers directly.
The voices that shaped this submission will keep shaping what comes next, and we’ll be here to amplify.
Read the full submission and both reports: