The Taiga, or the Boreal forest as it is commonly referred to in North America, is the northern lung of the world.

Perched like a green halo atop the northern hemisphere, the boreal forest is the single largest terrestrial biome in the world, accounting for one-third of the planet's forested area, covering much of Canada, Russia and the Scandinavian countries.

The boreal forest, with the exception of Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, stretches across all of Canada covering about 53% of it's total land mass, representing 35% of the total global boreal forest cover. Only Russia has more.

The boreal forest of Canada can be broadly divided into three sub-regions: Boreal, Taiga and the Aspen Parkland forest regions. Collectively these three regions of Canada's boreal forest contain some of the last remaining large intact frontier forest in the world.

The boreal forest is also home for approximately 80% of Canada's indigenous people. Many still have deep spiritual ties to their ancestral lands and still continue to use the boreal forest to hunt, fish, trap and gather for sustenance.

The boreal regions play a vital role in Canada's overall economy. Canada is the largest exporter of forest products, minerals, hydroelectric power and is one of the largest producers of oil and gas in the world, much, if not most, of these resource development activities occur within the boreal forest region.

While there is no doubt as to the significant contribution the boreal forest makes to Canada's economy, it also provides invaluable ecological services. The boreal forest regions of Canada contains a majority of the freshwater in North America, helps to regulate global and regional climate, maintains biodiversity, and are a global storehouse of carbon. Yet, the boreal forest of Canada will face unprecedented stresses in the coming decades from the resource development activities that creates Canada's economic wealth.

According to Global Forest Watch, it is estimated that one fifth of Canada's remaining intact frontier boreal forests will be directly impacted by logging, mining, oil and gas exploration and other resource development activities, resulting in large-scale changes.

If current scientific modeling proves to be correct, the boreal forest of Canada will undergo profound and irrevocable changes over the next decade as a result of global climate warming.

It is estimated that global temperatures will increase by 1 to 4 degrees Celsius by the end of this century. For the boreal forest regions of Canada this will mean additional increases in the size and frequency of forest fires, and thus increasing the release of yet more carbon into the atmosphere.

In fact, most of the current science predicts that Canada's boreal will not be able to adapt fast enough to keep pace with global warming, resulting in Canada's boreal forest shrinking to half its current size.