Gender-based analysis plus
| Governance Structure | NRCan’s Gender Based Analysis (GBA)+ Responsibility Centre resides in the Strategic Policy and Innovation Sector. The GBA+ Responsibility Centre ensures that GBA+ is integrated into decision-making processes, by requiring every Budget proposal, Memorandum to Cabinet, and Treasury Board Submission undertake a rigorous assessment of the potential implications of all policies or programs on diverse populations of Canadians. GBA+ indicators are included and monitored in programs’ Performance Information Profiles.
The GBA+ Responsibility Centre provides advice and guidance to decision makers within the Department. The Centre provides support to programs through training, coaching services, and by providing access to gender-diversity data so that programs can make informed decision-making with respect to diverse Canadian populations. In 2018, NRCan published The Charter for gender equality - the first of its kind in the federal government. The Charter outlines concrete measures for detecting biases, recruiting, and supporting women in reaching their potential. The Department also recently created new champion roles for GBA+ and women in the natural resource sectors at NRCan. |
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| Human Resources | NRCan is committed to ensuring that diverse populations of Canadians benefit from our policies and programs, and recognizes the importance of GBA+ in achieving this goal. NRCan has made GBA+ training mandatory for every new analyst hired through its Policy Analyst Recruitment and Development Program (PARDP), and will increase the frequency of in-house trainings, including targeted training for various functional groups, to ensure an increasing proportion of our analysts are equipped with this fundamental knowledge.
NRCan’s GBA+ Responsibility Centre consists of 1 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) dedicated to GBA+ and 0.2 FTEs in management support. Across the Department there are GBA+ analysts working in program areas (approximately 5 FTE-Equivalent) to conduct GBA+ assessments on policies and programs. The Department has a GBA+ network of 18 members (total 4.0 FTE-Equivalent). In the coming year, the Department will expand the reach of the existing network thereby advancing its goal to strengthen GBA+ capacity across the Department. NRCan has appointed a GBA+ Champion in its Audit and Evaluation Branch, expanding the scope of GBA+ expertise beyond policy and program development. In total, NRCan will have the equivalent of 10.7 FTEs dedicated to GBA+ implementation for 2020-21. |
| Planned initiatives | GBA+ - Responsibility Centre Driven Initiatives
To further support the integration of GBA+ in decision making, policy and program development, NRCan’s GBA+ Responsibility Centre (the Responsibility Centre, or the Centre) has a number of planned initiatives under way. The Responsibility Centre will be updating and developing new resources and tools to support the Department in meaningfully tracking, monitoring and measuring GBA+ impacts. The Centre will also be exploring ways to make key resources more accessible to sectors. By strengthening existing tools and resources, and developing new ones sectors will be even better positioned to conduct robust analyses that consider the impacts of policies or programs on all diverse groups of Canadians, and that works to ensure that diverse groups can benefit from our initiatives. Further, NRCan plans to increase its GBA+ capacity for 2020-21 by maintaining and expanding the sector advisor network, to include branches and divisions that are not necessarily involved in policy and program development; increasing targeted training for diverse functional groups; ongoing knowledge campaigns; and, training drives. The Centre is also exploring initiatives to strengthen the Department’s capacity and provide a stronger foundation for the implementation of GBA+ initiatives. To bolster the use of GBA+, the GBA+ Responsibility Centre will increase awareness through planned learning activities and events. The Centre will hold workshops during Gender Equality Week, GBA+ Awareness Week, and International Women’s Day. The GBA+ Responsibility Centre will work with functional groups within the Department and with other government departments in the development and implementation of GBA+ processes for new and additional requirements NRCan uses GBA+ indicators in its programs Performance Information Profiles as a tool to monitor and evaluate how NRCan’s programs are supporting government-wide priorities of gender equality, diversity, and inclusiveness, as outlined by the Gender Results Framework (GRF). NRCan will continue to pursue inclusive outcomes for Canadians through the following programs/ initiatives. Just Transition and Future Skills Natural Resources Canada is responsible for reporting on the results of activities/programs committed to in Budgets 2018 and 2019 to support workers and communities impacted by the phase out of traditional coal-fired electricity. Through this transition process, this initiative ensures inclusive outcomes for Canadians by:
Additionally, NRCan will support ESDC in its work with the Future Skills Council by providing data and trends on gender and underrepresented groups in the energy sector to inform the Council’s recommendations on future policy decisions with regards to targeted skills training and career development. The Clean Energy Education and Empowerment (C3E) Initiative The C3E Initiative is an international effort, organized under the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) and the International Energy Agency (IEA), with the goal of advancing gender equality in the clean energy sector. Actions taken under this framework support the Education and Skills Development; Economic Participation and Prosperity; and, Leadership and Democratic Participation pillars of the Gender Results Framework (GRF). Specifically, Canada supports this work to ensure inclusive outcomes for Canadians by:
The Equal by 30 Campaign NRCan leads the Equal by 30 Campaign on behalf of the Government of Canada. The Campaign is part of the broader C3E Initiative, and was launched in May 2018, at the CEM meeting in Copenhagen. Equal by 30 is a global commitment by both public and private sector organizations to work towards equal pay, equal leadership and equal opportunities for women in the energy sector by 2030. There are currently 129 signatories across multiple energy sub-sectors. Signatories develop commitments related to these themes, and report regularly on their progress. A robust reporting framework will be developed in 2020. By sponsoring these measures, the Equal by 30 Campaign supports the Education and Skills Development; Economic Participation and Prosperity; and, Leadership and Democratic Participation pillars of the GRF. Women in Cleantech Challenge Women are significantly underrepresented in the area of clean technology. The Women in Cleantech Challenge was designed to help mitigate this problem and is currently supporting the creation of six new, highly impactful and globally significant clean technology companies founded and run by women. Following a national call and expert selection process, six finalists were chosen from almost 150 applicants to participate in an intensive 2.5 year program. These women are all receiving business advice, and the financial and technical support they need to grow and succeed as entrepreneurs, including the opportunity to validate and de-risk their technology with the help of federal labs and researchers. Each entrepreneur receives up to $800k in support over 2.5 years:
At the conclusion of the challenge (March 2021), a $1 million grand prize will be awarded to the venture that has advanced the most during the Challenge and is judged most likely to succeed commercially, as determined by an independent and expert jury. Enabling Arctic Science in Canada Through the Enabling Arctic Science in Canada initiative, the Polar Continental Shelf Program is able to meet a growing demand for Arctic science and innovation research. The objective of this initiative is to strengthen the resilience of Indigenous communities, build a sustainable northern economy, gain an understanding of the implications of climate change on Arctic terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and support the exercise of Canada’s sovereignty in the Arctic. Under the program, logistics support for Arctic science is available to researchers or research teams working for universities and provincial and territorial government regardless of sex, gender, and culture/ethnicity. The program currently collects gender data from its on-line Arctic logistics service request form and logistics database only. Lower uptake of the program’s services by women and Indigenous peoples has been identified as an issue. Through the GBA+, it was also identified that there is a need to collect disaggregated data beyond gender. However, data gaps and technical limitations are currently preventing the collection of this information. This will be addressed through planned modifications to service request forms and incorporated into internal processes within the program. Further opportunities to collect disaggregated data on gender, Indigenous status and ethnicity will be examined as part of upcoming program evaluation. Mining Sector Performance Report The GBA+ analysis conducted on the report identified a number of data deficiencies. For example, only gender was being measured through the “gender diversity” social performance indicator, leading to a lack of data on other diverse groups. The most recent edition of the report used a custom tabulation from Statistics Canada, which more accurately reflected gender in the mining industry. Within the report, a commitment was made to consider redefining the gender diversity indicator to reflect broader definitions of workforce diversity. Subject to data availability, this would extend data and analysis beyond gender in the 2022 update. Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP) NRCan, in partnership with provinces, territories, Indigenous Groups and industry, developed the Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (CMMP). CMMP’s vision is for Canada to be the leading mining nation and home to a competitive, sustainable and responsible minerals industry that benefits all Canadians. The Plan highlights the need to take action on gender equality and identifies strategies to increase the number of women and visible minorities in the mining sector and advance Indigenous participation, particularly of Indigenous women. Through its vision for a more diverse workforce and related calls to action, the CMMP supports the pillar for Economic Participation and Prosperity under the Gender Results Framework (GRF). An aspirational target was established under the Plan to increase the representation of women in the industry’s workforce to 30% by 2030 (compared to 16% in 2016). To achieve this target, NRCan will continue to support a number of other initiatives such as:
NRCan has been working collaboratively with provinces and territories to develop concrete actions under the first in a series of Action Plans to operationalize the Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan, including advancing six pan-Canadian initiatives as agreed to by Mines Ministers at the 2019 Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference. These initiatives include convening conferences on Indigenous procurement in mining across Canada, in partnership with Indigenous business leaders and organizations, and provinces and territories, and developing a mineral literacy campaign and educational tool that will highlight the variety of career opportunities in the mining sector in the hopes of creating a more diverse and equitable workforce. Stem The Gap This pilot recruitment program is the first ever Canadian career re-entry program targeted at STEM-educated women and Indigenous graduates. It provides opportunities for women who have left the work force in the previous 5+ years and are seeking to return. It is often very difficult for women to return to their fields after breaks. The general objective of this program is to aid women and Indigenous graduates with a bachelor’s degree in science or engineering who have been outside the STEM field for five years to re-launch their professional career in the STEM workforce. NRCan progress to date includes hiring five women with STEM degrees on one-year contracts to return to their fields. They will then have the opportunity to apply for permanent positions as they become available, or to pursue private sector opportunities with recent and relevant experience on their resumes. The Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) Project NRCan will continue to support the engagement of Indigenous communities through a distinction-based approach, which will tailor engagement based on each community’s capacity, concerns, and interests. This approach will continue to support ongoing Indigenous engagement on the Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) Project and improve opportunities for Indigenous communities to benefit from TMX-related initiatives, including through the Government of Canada’s 8 accommodation measures and the CER’s 16 Recommendations. In sum, NRCan will continue to pursue the work of the aforementioned programs to achieve inclusive results for Canadians. In order to supplement the work of these programs the GBA+ responsibility centre will also be working to ensure that NRCan is pursuing effective integration of GBA+ throughout the department. |
| Reporting capacity and data | The following Natural Resources Canada programs will collect and use individual recipient microdata for GBA+ application.
Lower Carbon Transportation Program The Lower Carbon Transportation Program enables consumers and commercial fleets to adopt lower carbon modes of transportation. The program accomplishes this by: supporting the deployment of Electric Vehicles and Alternative Fuel refuelling infrastructure; developing enabling codes and standards; providing accurate, relevant and factual information to inform purchasing decisions; providing fuel use benchmarking; and, assessing fleet fuel usage and recommending more efficient options. The program’s objective is to positively enhance the availability, accessibility and awareness of low carbon transportation options for consumers and key actors in the transportation of passengers and freight on Canadian roads. In 2018, the program’s data collection methodology was updated to collect additional information on the uptake and impact of the program. Since 2019-2020, data can be disaggregated by province and territory for at least ten different indicators, and by gender, age group, income level, and province and territory, for another three indicators. This will help to determine how the uptake and impact of lower carbon transportation options and awareness efforts varies by location and various demographic groups. In addition, the program will measure the number of job-years of employment generated by funded projects, and will disaggregate the data by province and territory, gender and age group. The program’s data collection methodology enables it to undertake analyses on both the uptake and impact of the program based on province and territory, employment in the low carbon transportation sector (specific to employment generated by projects funded by the program), age group, gender and income-level. Electricity Resources Program The Electricity Resources Program is made up of four renewable energy projects, including: ecoENERGY for Renewable Power, Smart Grid, Emerging Renewables, and the Clean Energy for Rural and Remote Communities. These projects help to reduce Canada’s green house gas emissions and encourage sustainable growth in the electricity sector by providing communities with job opportunities, skills and training. The program collects, disaggregates and tracks data for renewable energy projects in remote areas, by rural and remote community (region), Indigenous ownership and participation. This includes measuring the percentage of projects and the number of capacity building initiatives led by or partnered with Indigenous groups or communities. The number of capacity building initiatives is also disaggregated by the participation of women and youth. With this information, the program will continue to be able to undertake analyses on the basis of region (rural and remote communities), Indigenous status (participation, leadership or ownership), gender and age (participation of women and youth in capacity building initiatives). Indigenous Partnerships Office – West (IPO-West) IPO-West houses the Secretariats for the Indigenous Advisory and Monitoring Committees (IAMCs) for the Trans Mountain and Line 3 pipeline projects. These Committees will continue to lead federal efforts to meaningfully involve Indigenous communities in the monitoring and oversight of linear resource projects. In 2019-20, the Secretariat began to identify and track priorities, issues, actions and advice addressed by the Committees that may have differential impacts based on gender or diversity factors (e.g., age, geography, culture and other identities). The Trans Mountain Committee identified the impacts of work camps on Indigenous communities, specifically women and girls, as a priority area of work in its 2019-20 work plan, and is undertaking engagement and studies on this issue. The Indigenous members of the Committees will incorporate information from its work camps study, and other initiatives that involve GBA+ considerations, to provide advice to federal regulators and government, in accordance with its Terms of Reference. The Secretariat will track the diversity of participation in Committee activities more broadly where possible, including the gender diversity of Committee and subcommittee members, and the diversity of participating Indigenous communities (e.g. First Nations and Métis). IPO-West will use the information to prepare the Committee’s performance information profile. A large majority of NRCan’s programs are designed to provide services or benefits to all Canadians and/or groups of Canadians rather than individuals. Consequently, while there may be other NRCan programs that support GBA+ through their data collection and methodologies, only those programs that provide services or benefits to individual Canadians have been included for the purposes of identifying NRCan’s reporting capacity and data. |
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