CREDIT: BESTDESIGNS / ISTOCK / THINKSTOCK
The United Nations Conference on Climate Change took place last weekend and Canadian Prime Minister was in attendance letting everyone know, "Canada is back".

A reputation is a powerful thing. Being known as the friend with a truck is a surefire way to get roped into helping people you met once pick up their new couch. Being the person who gets drunk and cries at parties is a great way to avoid being invited to parties. International politics is a little bit different: less couches, more parties.

When new national leaders are elected, the international community takes careful notice. A leader who is more conservative can elicit increased investment in their country’s economy because of the expectation of fiscal responsibility. A liberal leader will be more likely to pursue social programs and international cooperation on social justice issues.

Canada played a passive role in the international battle on climate change under the leadership of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Under his leadership, Canada backed out of the Kyoto Protocol, which was created to incentivize the international community to reduce carbon emissions. The United Nations Conference on Climate Change took place in Paris last weekend and newly minted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in attendance with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.

There are a number of valid criticisms to make about the Kyoto Protocol, but withdrawing entirely told the world that Canada wasn’t interested in being part of the solution. Trudeau went to Paris to tell the world that “Canada is back...we’re here to help.”

Trudeau and Harper certainly take a different approach to climate change and the same is true when it comes to Canada’s role as a military force. Both leaders always agreed on which countries Canadian forces should be deployed in, but where Trudeau wants to send in foreign aid and training personnel, Harper wanted to send Canada’s F-18 fleet.

The reality is that we can only judge these decisions with the benefit of hindsight. Drone warfare and carpet-bombing have given the United States an abysmal reputation in many countries in the Middle East.

Training and supplying local militia has had equally devastating effects when that training and military hardware has been used against the very troops who provided them. Neither approach has been without consequence.

Tackling complex international dilemmas might be the most difficult task that the leader of a country can face. Domestic decisions in a first world country are nothing to take lightly, but when lives are on the line overseas it’s an entirely different scenario. Ottawa is home to a number of war memorials that immortalize Canadian operations overseas. The sheer number of peacekeeping missions we’ve contributed to is a sobering reminder that millions of people worldwide lack the basic human rights we so often take for granted.

The international legacy of Stephen Harper consists of token military contributions and a reduced role in crucial international programs like land mine disposal. As world leaders have an opportunity to meet the new face of Canada, it’s hard to guess what they’re going to see: token contributions or meaningful commitment.
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