From Research to Policy

This in-person panel session with researchers and government policy experts will explore how policy is created and influenced inside government with the intent of developing practical strategies to increase research uptake and impact in the policy sphere. 
 
This session was organized to support University of Waterloo researchers interested in engaging with government and policy makers and mobilizing their knowledge in the public sphere. Topics to be discussed include how policy is created in government, what information (and in what form and when) is most useful for researchers to share in policy processes, and the best ways to engage policymakers to increase research uptake and impact. This event is open to all Waterloo faculty members, staff members, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. 

The event will be moderated by Dr. Rob de Loë, a professor and Associate Dean of Research at the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability at Waterloo. The panel will feature insights from Waterloo alumni, Chris Derksen of Environment and Climate Change Canada, Trevor Swerdfager from the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, Waterloo, and Blair Feltmate from the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation. Following their discussions on government processes and policy making, there will be an informal networking session.

About the presenters

Dr. Chris Derksen

Director, Climate Modelling Division, Environment and Climate Change Canada

Dr. Chris Derksen is the Director of the Climate Modelling Division of Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Division is responsible for the provision of climate information from observations and models to support adaptation and mitigation policy- and decision-making. Chris’ research focuses on the use of satellite data and climate models to understand climate change impacts on snow and ice.

Dr. Blair Feltmate

Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo

Dr. Blair Feltmate is the Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo. Previous positions he has held include Vice President, Sustainable Development Investing, Bank of Montreal; Director, Sustainable Development, Ontario Power Generation; Partner, Sustainable Investment Group/YMG Capital Management.  Blair has co-written textbooks on Sustainable Banking and Aquatic Ecology.
 
He is Sustainable Finance Council member, Global Risk Institute, and he is a member of Climate Proof Canada (Insurance Bureau of Canada).  Blair was Chair, Federal Government of Canada Expert Panel on Climate Adaptation.
 
Blair was an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow (University of Waterloo). He holds a Ph.D in Theoretical and Applied Ecology (University of Toronto), Master’s in Sustainable Development (Wilfrid Laurier University), Master’s in Zoology (University of Toronto), and Hon. Bachelor’s Biology (University of Toronto).  He is generally interviewed by the media 150 times per year on climate change/ESG related issues.  In 2025 he received the King Charles III Coronation Medal.

Trevor Swerdfager

Faculty of Environment, School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, Practitioner in Residence, University of Waterloo

Trevor Swerdfager joined the Faculty of Environment in the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability, 2020 as Practitioner In Residence after a career spanning over 30 years in the federal Public Service. 
 
After graduating from the University of Waterloo’s Faculty of Environment in 1985 and University of Ottawa’s Master of Arts, Geography in 1988, he started as a contract biologist in Ontario Region of the Canadian Wildlife Service. He subsequently held positions in Environment Canada offices in Sackville, New Brunswick, Edmonton and Vancouver before becoming Director General, Canadian Wildlife Service in Ottawa. He then spent 18 months on Executive Interchange with the Forest Products Association of Canada before moving to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans as Director General, Aquaculture in 2007. The next ten years saw Trevor moving in to roles as head of law enforcement and then a succession of Assistant Deputy Minister roles responsible for operational policy, fisheries management, marine protected areas, species at risk, aquaculture and environmental assessment before assuming the role of Assistant Deputy Minister, Science. The last 18 months of his Public Service career were spent as the Senior Vice-President Operations at Parks Canada where he was responsible for the operation of all Parks Canada National Parks and National Historic Sites. 
 
Trevor teaches courses in fish, forest and wildlife management, environmental policy and decision-making and oceans conservation and protection as well as assisting the Dean and the Faculty leadership team in the areas of educational partnerships and government relations. 

Krista Urchenko

Senior Policy Advisor, Pharmaceutical Policy Division, Health Canada

Krista Urchenko is a Senior Policy Advisor at Health Canada, where she leads work in strategic and international pharmaceutical policy development to advance priority health system initiatives. She recently spent three years in the Deputy Minister’s Office at Health Canada, working at the centre of federal health policy decision-making. Her experience spans roles at Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada, with a focus on health care policy, regulatory policy, and infectious diseases. With a background in microbiology and medical laboratory sciences, Krista brings a practical and evidence-informed perspective to policy development, particularly at the intersection of science, regulation, and health system innovation.

Krista holds a Master of Public Health from the University of Waterloo and began her career as a medical laboratory technologist.

Event details

Event date: Thursday, June 4, 2026

Time: 2 to 3:30 p.m. (panel session followed by informal networking)

Location: Davis Centre (DC) 1302

Please register to confirm your attendance as seating is limited.