sectors
Specializing in key sectors, we are experts in navigating challenges and seizing opportunities in environment, energy, healthcare, and beyond. Our focus includes sustainability, renewable energy, health care advancements, research, improved access to care, and much more.
Energy is the pillar of our economy and is undergoing the largest transformation we’ve seen in generations. Commercial opportunities are plentiful, but companies must navigate diverse market structures, global supply chains and technological innovations that introduce new risks for their investment dollars.
Our team of energy experts knows your business and what you need to grow. We understand local market conditions and can advise you on risks and opportunities at the federal, provincial and municipal levels. We specialize in navigating a complex and rapidly changing political environment to remove risk and create commercial opportunities in the energy sector to achieve your company’s financial and ESG goals.
Capabilities
Policy Changemakers
In Canada, energy is inherently political. Whether related to climate policies, carbon pricing, market structures, tax incentives or customer rate policies, government decisions here have enormous impacts on commercial viability. Understanding, managing and influencing these policies can be make-or-break to your success. That’s why we engage early and often at all levels of government, to identify early political direction and provide timely, strategic advice to secure policy decisions that align with your objectives.
Project Revenue Acquisition
As with any commercial endeavor, there will be no investment without sufficient revenue forecasts. Whether we are talking about rate regulated assets, private Commercial and Industrial (C&I) contracts, competitive Requests for Proposals, bilateral contracts or other offtake structures, our team can advise on how to close the deal. Complementary tools, such as grants, loans, or tax incentives, can also be combined to maximize profitability and lower risk.
Strategic Commercial Advice & Networks
With experience in both the public and private sectors, our energy team has the political and commercial expertise to guide your company to success. We have acted as advisors on mergers and acquisitions (M&A), project risk assessments, market-entry, municipal and indigenous partnerships and other commercial arrangements to ensure informed, profitable decision-making.
Sussex was the first public affairs firm in Canada to establish a dedicated Environment Practice Group, and we pride ourselves on our continued leadership in this space. Our business is based on helping clients identify, understand, and impact environment and climate policy, legislation, and regulation as it relates to the circular economy, carbon pricing, permitting & approvals, cleantech, chemicals management, energy efficiency, and more.
We consistently monitor government announcements, parliamentary proceedings, international forums, regulatory bodies, the media, and other influencers to keep our finger on the pulse of environmental and sustainability issues and use this to create and execute informed, impactful, and persuasive government relations campaigns. Clients can be confident we have the required knowledge to identify potential risks and opportunities and can provide strategic advice and guidance as it pertains to the environmental landscape in Ontario and across Canada.
Capabilities
Circular Economy, Plastics & Resource Recovery
Our team has been involved in Canada’s evolving circular economy landscape for over two decades. We identify, track, and provide strategic advice to clients regarding government proposals for extended producer responsibility programs, plastic waste reduction initiatives, food and organic waste policies, commercial and construction waste, and landfill management. We create and execute compelling advocacy campaigns to ensure the circular economy regulatory climate is aligned with corporate sustainability commitments and market realities in support of a healthier environment with less waste.
Decarbonization
We help clients as they navigate the dynamic landscape of government-mandated carbon pricing programs, net-zero initiatives, and climate change policies across Canada. Helping clients to identify opportunities and avoid potential risks, Sussex monitors, researches, and analyzes governments programs, funding opportunities, and regulatory instruments that incentivize economy-wide decarbonization through the development and deployment of low-carbon technologies and fuels, nature-based solutions, offset projects, and energy efficiency. Our team creates evidence-based advocacy campaigns that are rooted in a sophisticated understanding of the complex climate action ecosystem.
Permitting & Approvals
Sussex helps clients work through necessary environmental review and approval processes in an efficient manner, minimizing the likelihood of significant project delays. Our team has helped numerous clients navigate – and expedite where possible – various environmental approvals while ensuring that the proper level of rigour and due diligence around environmental protection is maintained.
Chemicals Management
Working within Canada’s chemicals management framework, our team works with clients throughout the risk assessment and risk management processes. Advocacy campaigns and key messages are designed to ensure regulatory instruments as well as mandatory and voluntary policies governing the use of chemical substances are grounded in science, minimize negative socio-economic impacts, and protect human health and the environment.
Health care is a rapidly evolving sector. That’s why, at Sussex, we support clients to balance their organizational goals against a constantly changing policy landscape.
We develop ideas and transform them into solutions organizations can present to government. We have a deep knowledge of the health care and life sciences sector with an extensive bench of talent. We work with our clients to develop the strategy, narrative, “ask”, and we continue working with them to implement these through our grassroots advocacy campaigns. Our goal: advance our clients’ objectives by implementing patient-centric ideas in the policy arena.
Capabilities
Strategy Development
This is where we get to know each other. We will develop a pathway for our work and determine the short, medium, and long-term activities and milestones so our relationship stays on track and focused on your success.
Messaging & Narrative
Top-line messaging for government and public-facing advocacy is essential. We draft the core messaging and narrative to deliver to government – one that sets a collaborative tone and builds credibility with decision-makers to achieve your objectives.
Issues Tracking
We’ll be your eyes and ears. We monitor key healthcare policies, regulations, and legislation that impact our clients and collect political intelligence to help our clients be in the know and achieve their objectives.
Stakeholder Mapping
Building a stakeholder profile with the right people is half the battle. We’ll determine relevant government, industry, and public groups, rank their importance, and maintain an updated contact list for potential outreach.
Advocacy
Ready, set, implement. We’ll prepare you for strong and memorable meetings with a concise ‘ask’ of government and identify next steps to ensure our engagement is not a one-off event, but the start of an ongoing dialogue.
The natural resources and mining sectors form the backbone of Canada's global economic presence, encompassing everything from forestry to fisheries, minerals to energy sources. Navigating the multifaceted challenges of sustainable development, policy regulations, community engagement, and global market dynamics necessitates a nuanced approach and deep industry understanding.
We craft strategies that blend sustainable utilization with economic growth, cultivating opportunities and mitigating risks while ensuring compliance with ever-evolving regulations. Also tailoring to the specificities of Canada’s mineral exploration and extraction landscape. Our approach emphasizes meaningful engagement with Indigenous communities and local stakeholders, actionable market insights, and comprehensive case-by-case assessments.
Our team carries unparalleled expertise in international trade and investment, market entry strategies, infrastructure, and economic development. With industrial policy gaining prominence, the rise of ‘friendshoring,’ and governments and companies alike looking to de-risk their supply chains, organizations are facing a more complex environment where adept government relations services are needed more than ever.
Leveraging our extensive experience, we guide stakeholders through emerging and complex regulatory terrains, help to safeguard and advance their interests, and explore new commercial opportunities, both federally and provincially. Our services are based on helping clients better understand the evolving Canadian policy environment and to support them in shaping appropriate policy, programs, legislation, and regulations.
We provide invaluable guidance between policy imperatives, funding opportunities, market dynamics, and stakeholder objectives, championing our clients' success throughout Canada and beyond.
We recognize the importance of, and are committed to, fostering long-lasting relationships with Indigenous communities across Canada. Our insights and relationships stem from a genuine understanding of the nuanced issues and multifaceted challenges inherent to Indigenous affairs.
First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities not only represent a rich tapestry of Canada's cultural heritage but are also pivotal contributors to its economic advancement and hold an indispensable role in shaping our nation's trajectory. Businesses operating within the ancestral lands of Indigenous communities recognize this profound significance.
We're not just intermediaries; we're collaborators, allies, and advocates, devoted to forging enduring bonds and fostering trust between public and private sectors, governments, Indigenous communities, and beyond. We are dedicated to facilitating and strengthening the bonds of trust, ensuring harmonious collaboration and coexistence for the future of Canada.
We propel urban development into the future, through the cohesion of infrastructure, land-use, and strategic growth. Leveraging an intricate grasp of infrastructure requirements and spatial interplay, we provide insights focused on sustainable expansion and comprehensive land-use tactics.
Skillfully navigating the regulatory maze, we position our clients towards current governmental priorities, like affordable housing and supporting the creation of complete communities.
Our services encompass everything from land-use planning guidance, community engagement plans, permitting approvals and procurement bids. Our capabilities extend to counteracting NIMBY (not in my backyard) sentiments with tactical communication campaigns and grassroots initiatives, to drive projects that might otherwise face roadblocks. Collaborating with real estate developers, our diverse portfolio spans mixed-use, commercial, industrial, and residential properties.
When it comes to infrastructure, we foster connections between the government and our clients, we catalyze public-private partnerships, scout bid opportunities, and underpin client investment ventures. We don't just map out infrastructure and development goals, we help make them a reality, ensuring our clients are at the forefront of redefining the blueprint for the future.