Shifting Mandates and Climate Change Policy Capacity: The Canadian Infrastructure Case

Abstract

Responsive policy-making on climate change issues requires both sophisticated policy analysis as well as an institutional structure which allows problems to be dealt with on a multi-level and multi-sectoral basis. Designing such policies requires a high level of policy capability in relevant government departments and agencies matching changing organizational mandates in the area. This paper examines Infrastructure Canada’s evolving mandate over the past decade and assesses whether or not its resource allocation has matched any shifts in government expectations for the agency due arising from climate change challenges. Provincial data are also examined in a similar light.