Emergency: The Citizen’s Guide to Climate Success

Energy economist and author Mark Jaccard will deliver the 2021 University of Waterloo Hagey Lecture on October 27.

In this talk, Mark Jaccard speaks about how climate-concerned citizens can overcome myths that hinder us from acting in time to prevent extreme climate impacts. Actions can involve personal consumption choices (electric vehicles, heat pumps) but these only have an effect if citizens are also engaged in the political process and civil society to elect and support climate-sincere politicians. These personal and collective efforts must align with and foster a global strategy of decarbonization, especially in developing countries. Tune in to find out what is required on a simple path to climate success—and what you can contribute.

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The Hagey Lectures

The annual Hagey Lectures are jointly sponsored by the Faculty Association and the University of Waterloo. Established in 1970, the series honours the contribution of Dr. J. G. Hagey, one of the founders and the first President of the University of Waterloo (1957-1969). The lectures are intended to challenge, stimulate, and enrich not only the faculty, staff, and students of the University of Waterloo, but also all members of the community.

Speaker info

Mark Jaccard is a professor since 1986 in the School of Resource and Environmental Management at Simon Fraser University, interrupted in 1992–97 when he served as Chair and CEO of the British Columbia Utilities Commission. His PhD is in energy economics from the University of Grenoble, and his research focus is the design and application of energy-economy models for assessing climate policies. Internationally, Mark has served on the IPCC, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, and the Global Energy Assessment, and domestically on the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy and the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the CD Howe Institute, and in 2009 was named British Columbia Academic of the Year. He is one of eight professors at Simon Fraser University awarded the title Distinguished Professor. He has published over 100 academic papers. In 2006, his Sustainable Fossil Fuels won the Donner Prize for top policy book in Canada. His latest book, released in February 2020, is The Citizen’s Guide for Climate Success.