Climate Institute launches cutting-edge data tool tracking Canada's progress toward building a clean economy

Data tracker offers a new way to measure climate progress with dozens of leading indicators of Canada's energy transition.

OTTAWA, ON, Nov. 12, 2026 /CNW/ -- The Canadian Climate Institute has launched a first-of-its-kind data visualization tool that provides a new approach to climate progress tracking in Canada using leading and lagging indicators of clean technology adoption and emissions reductions.

440 Megatonnes logo

The tool--called the Climate Progress Tracker--was developed by the Institute's 440 Megatonnes project using more than 40 indicators of the country's transition to a cleaner, more competitive economy. It provides close-to-real-time data across five major signals of climate progress: electrification, clean energy, emissions progress, industrial performance, and the clean economy.

Tracking both leading and lagging indicators across these five signals makes it clear where efforts are showing promise, and where stronger policy is needed to accelerate Canada's energy transition and build a cleaner economy. Some leading indicators show bright spots of progress as the country deploys and exports more clean technology. Broader trends are mixed or negative, however, with national emissions plateauing and insufficient progress being made on clean electrification--the foundation of a more resilient, competitive economy.   

KEY FINDINGS

Among the positive findings: the tracker shows the country's electric vehicle market share has nearly doubled over the past year and a half, reaching 13 per cent this August. That's up from just 7 per cent in February 2025, following a crash in sales due to a rollback in government support. Wind and solar power capacity has grown by nearly 7 gigawatts since 2020, an increase of more than 40 per cent. Battery storage capacity has ramped up more than sixfold since 2020, rising to almost 900 MW in January 2026.

Clean technologies are growing in other ways. Clean tech exports have grown by nearly 1.8 times their 2020 levels in 2026. The share of made-in-Canada clean tech has also grown, up 11 per cent since 2020, with 81 per cent of the share of Canada's clean technology market now supplied by domestically manufactured products rather than imports in August 2026.

Yet overall trends show Canada facing headwinds in its energy transition. Electricity is not yet growing as a share of the country's energy use, though that could change as governments follow through on a commitment to double Canada's electricity supply. The country's power grids are also not getting cleaner in general. Although wind and solar power has grown, some hydro and nuclear power have come offline temporarily, and gas-fired power has filled that gap. As a result, the share of non-emitting power generation in August 2026 dropped 6 percentage points from the same month in 2020.

Likewise, Canada continues to make limited progress reducing emissions. The tracker provides a broader picture of climate progress by pairing leading indicators with new monthly emissions estimates that are tallied in near real time, with just a three-month delay. That can provide a preliminary look at emissions six months ahead of the Institute's annual Early Estimate of National Emissions, and more than a year before official government numbers are released.

The latest data on the tracker show that Canada's emissions appear to be plateauing: after a slight increase in 2025, emissions decreased slightly in the first half of 2026. However, that decrease still leaves Canada far from achieving its climate targets. 

Tracking leading and lagging indicators of progress is a growing practice globally as governments, investors, and analysts seek more current, data-driven signals to inform decision making. Similar frameworks have been adopted by climate councils in the UK, Sweden, and Australia; by publicly available platforms like the Systems Change Lab and Ember; and by many private sector firms tracking capital flows and energy system trends.

The 440 Megatonnes team will continue to develop new indicators in the year ahead, including measures of clean investment. Ultimately, the new interactive tool is meant to provide a more actionable view of Canada's progress towards decarbonization, showing where governments can prioritize efforts and investment to ensure future progress aligns with commitments.

QUOTES

"Canada's climate progress is about more than just emissions--it's about a broader transition to clean, electric technologies that are remaking global energy markets in real time. Our Climate Progress Tracker is the only tool of its kind in Canada to offer a broader picture of this progress with easy-to-use data and visualizations showing how the country is building a cleaner economy across sectors."

-- Rick Smith, President, Canadian Climate Institute

"The Climate Progress Tracker is an interactive way for people to access a wide range of data showing how Canada is transitioning to a cleaner economy--from electric vehicle and heat pump sales to detailed emissions estimates that are available nowhere else. It's a one-stop-shop for energy experts, policymakers, journalists and others interested in Canada's progress adopting clean technologies using dozens of the latest graphs and charts profiling the energy transition."

-- Ross Linden-Fraser, Acting Director, 440 Megatonnes

RESOURCES

• Data tool | Climate Progress Tracker
• Insight | Introducing the Climate Progress Tracker
• Insight | Early estimate finds that Canada's emissions increased in 2025 as clean electrification lagged
• Insight | Canada is now more than 20 years behind its 2030 target, with net zero nowhere in sight

About the Canadian Climate Institute 

The Canadian Climate Institute is Canada's leading climate change policy research organization. The Institute produces rigorous analysis, economic modelling, and in-depth research focused on incentivizing clean economic growth and low-carbon competitiveness, reducing emissions and accelerating Canada's net zero energy transition, and making our economy and infrastructure more resilient to a warming climate.

climateinstitute.ca

SOURCE Canadian Climate Institute

CONTACTS: Claudine Brulé (Eastern Time), Lead, Communications and External Affairs, Canadian Climate Institute, [phone]; Krystal Northey (Mountain Time), Lead, Public Affairs, Canadian Climate Institute, [phone]