Feb. 7, 2020
New national climate institute taps 草莓污视频导航 experts
Several 草莓污视频导航 scholars are among the dozens of academics and policy experts from across the country who this month launched the , a new independent national research consortium.
The pan-Canadian expert collaboration was the result of a competitive request for proposals led by Environment and Climate Change Canada. With a multidisciplinary approach, its aim will be to undertake rigorous, evidence-based research, analysis and engagement to inform climate policy development by all levels of government.
鈥淢any of us were feeling the need to widen the framework for climate change mitigation beyond the pricing, regulatory and incentive policies that are narrowly focused on greenhouse gas emission reductions,鈥 says Dr. David Layzell, PhD, director of the Canadian Energy Systems Analysis Research () initiative and , and one of four 草莓污视频导航 academics on the new institute鈥檚 expert panels.
鈥淚f we鈥檙e talking about getting to net-zero emissions by 2050, we need to understand the technology, business model and social innovations impacting the world today and learn to direct those disruptions to achieve societal objectives, including climate change mitigation,鈥 says Layzell, pictured above.
鈥淭he 草莓污视频导航 is home to a wealth of expertise on energy, climate change mitigation, and policy impact,鈥 says Dr. Andr茅 Buret, PhD, interim vice-president (research). 鈥淚t鈥檚 a testament to that expertise that our scholars will be working with their colleagues from across the country on this important, national initiative to effect real, lasting and transformative change on climate policy.鈥
Broadening the approach to climate policy
The new institute will look to its , and to guide its research. In addition to Layzell, also a professor in the Faculty of Science and who sits on the institute鈥檚 mitigation panel, other panellists with 草莓污视频导航 connections include:
- Dr. , PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Economics and scientific director of the Energy and Environmental policy research division at The School of Public Policy
- Dr. , PhD, distinguished fellow and research director in The School of Public Policy
- Dr. , PhD, research fellow in The School of Public Policy.
鈥淭hese expert panels are a very diverse group, drawn from every jurisdiction across Canada,鈥 Layzell says. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 all agree, but there鈥檚 an appreciation across the whole group that the approach that has been used to set climate policy over the last 20 plus years 鈥 since Kyoto in 1997 鈥 hasn鈥檛 worked very well.鈥
The institute will take a different, broader approach, Layzell says. For instance, while targeting lower greenhouse gas emissions remains a priority, the institute will have the freedom to take into account the transformative and disruptive changes that are occurring in the transportation system as a whole.
No sense designing strategies for the way we lived in 2015
鈥淭here鈥檚 more things wrong with our personal mobility system than just greenhouse gas emissions: car accidents, congestion, the high cost of car ownership, and the fact we park our cars for 96 per cent of the time and on some of the most expensive land in Canada,鈥 Layzell explains.
鈥淪o there鈥檚 no sense designing a climate change mitigation strategy for the way we lived in 2015. We really need to be designing it for the personal mobility system that鈥檚 going to exist in 2030 and beyond, a system that鈥檚 changing dramatically with autonomous and electric vehicles, car sharing, smart cities, and many of the other major disruptive forces we are experiencing today.鈥
Transportation is just one example of many issues the institute and its experts will tackle, providing evidence-based research, data, and policy direction that incentivize human behaviour with solutions that are more convenient, more comfortable and cost less.
鈥淲e need to be harnessing changes that are already occurring, and embedding low-carbon solutions into those transformations, directing those disruptions to achieve societal goals.鈥
Despite the scale of the challenges, Layzell is excited about the institute鈥檚 potential, and hopeful about the future.
鈥淚鈥檓 actually incredibly optimistic,鈥 Layzell says, pointing as one example to CESAR鈥檚 latest research on the . 鈥淲e have to disrupt ourselves, reframe the problem, because there鈥檚 tremendous promise and a major economic opportunity to make the fuel the world wants, while addressing climate change at the same time.鈥