Industry Calls to Action

As the Canadian animation industry rebuilds following several challenging years of financial uncertainty, there is an opportunity to ensure sustainability is no longer treated as an optional add-on, but as part of the industry's future foundation.

The transition will not happen through the efforts of producers alone. Funders, broadcasters, studios, educators, industry organizations, governments, and technology partners all have a role to play.

Canadian funders can build sustainability into the funding framework.

Public funders have an opportunity to both incentivize and reward sustainable production practices. Sustainability considerations can be integrated into existing funding programs by recognizing productions that measure their emissions, adopt sustainability plans, build internal capacity, incorporate environmental content where appropriate, and share lessons learned. Supporting industry-wide carbon measurement, training, and pilot initiatives today will help reduce costs and improve consistency across the sector tomorrow.

Broadcasters and streamers can make sustainability part of production excellence.

Commissioning partners can encourage sustainable production by recognizing it as one of many indicators of quality production management. They can also support authentic climate storytelling by commissioning content that reflects the realities of a changing world across genres and audiences. As international studios increasingly introduce sustainability expectations throughout their supply chains, Canadian producers who develop these capabilities early will be well positioned to compete globally.

Industry organizations can create shared standards and practical tools.

Producers should not have to navigate multiple carbon calculators, reporting systems, or sustainability frameworks. Industry organizations can work together to develop consistent Canadian guidance, shared reporting approaches, practical training, and resources that reduce administrative burden while improving environmental performance across studios and productions. This work is already underway in the live-action space, and is likely to expand to animation production in the near future. 

Studios can embed sustainability into everyday production.

The greatest opportunities often come from better planning rather than new technology. Measuring emissions, reducing unnecessary revisions, building reusable assets, improving energy efficiency, considering the environmental impacts of AI tools, and integrating sustainability into production planning can all reduce costs and emissions while strengthening long-term resilience.

Governments can support innovation and workforce development.

Governments can accelerate progress by supporting workforce training, research, clean technology adoption, and innovation within Canada's animation sector. Investing in sustainability skills today will help ensure Canadian studios remain competitive in an industry where environmental expectations are steadily increasing.

The industry can strengthen its evidence base.

There is still much we do not know about the environmental footprint of Canadian animation. More studios measuring their emissions and contributing anonymous data will improve benchmarking, strengthen future policy, and help demonstrate progress. Producing for the Planet's Animation Carbon Calculator is an important first step, but its value grows as adoption across the industry increases.

Creators can help close the content gap.

Research continues to show that audiences want stories that reflect the environmental challenges and solutions shaping our world. Whether climate is central to a story or simply part of the world its characters inhabit, animation has a unique ability to normalize sustainable futures, inspire curiosity, and imagine new possibilities. Supporting creators with the tools, training, and confidence to tell these stories is an investment in both creative excellence and public understanding.

None of these actions will transform the industry on their own. Together, however, they can help build an animation sector that is more resilient, more competitive, and better prepared for the expectations of audiences, funders, and international partners.

The opportunity is here. The next chapter of Canadian animation can be one where creativity and sustainability grow together—and where the decisions we make today shape a stronger industry for decades to come.