Ep. 40: Blair Feltmate on Adapting to our Changed Climate
Climate change is one of the most vexing challenges facing our world. That the climate is changing is increasingly clear. But greenhouse gases are still spewing into the atmosphere. Temperature thresholds are being passed years earlier than predicted. So, what, if anything, can we do about it? My guest this episode has dedicated his life to sustainability but for Dr. Blair Feltmate, Head, Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo the focus is on adaptation and resilience to climate impacts. Blair talks about why focusing on adapting to climate change needs to be a bigger priority for individuals and governments. He shares practical steps that would help put Canada and Canadians on a path that is better prepared for the climate impacts that are sure to come.About our guest:Dr. Blair Feltmate is Head, Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo. Previous positions include Vice President, Sustainable Development, Bank of Montreal; Director, Sustainable Development, OPG; Partner, Sustainable Investment Group/YMG Capital Management.Blair was Chair, Federal Government of Canada Expert Panel on Climate Adaptation. He was Advisor, National Adaptation Strategy, Canada. He is Sustainable Finance Council member, Global Risk Institute, and a member of Climate Proof Canada (Insurance Bureau of Canada).He holds a Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Ecology (University of Toronto), Masters in Arts (Wilfrid Laurier University), Masters in Science (University of Toronto), and Hon. Bachelor of Science (University of Toronto). Blair was an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow. He has written books on Sustainable Banking and Aquatic Ecology. Additional Resources:Three Steps to Cost-Effective Home Flood ProtectionThree Steps to a Cost-Effective FireSmart Home
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Ep. 39: Sebastien Dallaire on Public Opinion Polling
2024 has been called the year of democracy. It is estimated that more voters than ever in history will head to the polls this year. Democratic elections are happening in at least 64 countries plus the European Union—representing a combined population of about half of the people in the world. At the time of recording, Canada is not facing a national election, but that may change at any point. Beyond the policies and leaders’ debates, the other thing that goes along with elections is polling. But while polling is a critical element of understanding how elections are shaping up, not all polls are created equally. To help us understand the ins and outs and wins and losses for public opinion polling is Executive Vice President of Leger, Sebastien Dallaire. In this episode, Sebastien shares his perspective on the state of public opinion polling today, where he sees the industry going in the future and how changes in telecommunications and citizen habits are impacting public opinion polling. About our guest:Sébastien Dallaire is Executive Vice President at Léger, the largest Canadian-owned public opinion research firm. With over twenty-five years of experience in public opinion research, Sébastien is one of Canada’s leading experts when it comes to understanding citizens' and voters' attitudes and behaviours. A seasoned presenter and panelist, he has covered elections on CTV and Global News networks and is Léger’s main bilingual spokesperson for North America. Additional resources:www.leger360.com https://www.conferenceboard.ca/focus-areas/canadian-economics/
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Ep. 38: Don Iveson on the Future of Housing
In late 2023, a dream team of former elected officials, mayors and chief planners, Indigenous leaders, designers, builders and developers, affordability advocates, and finance and insurance experts came together to create a Task Force for Housing and Climate. This group released their Blueprint for More and Better Housing in March 2024.This episode we welcome Housing and Climate Task Force co-Chair Don Iveson. We discuss why addressing Canada’s housing crisis should also include consideration of the climate crisis. We hear how over a hundred recommendations coalesced into a report that is both bold and grounded. We explore why this challenge motivated Don and his colleagues on the Task Force to try and set the floor for climate and housing discussions.About our guest:Don served as Edmonton’s Mayor from 2013 until 2021, and Chair of Canada’s Big City Mayors for 5 years. Since retiring from City Hall, he’s worked part-time with Co-Operators as Executive Advisor for Climate Investing and Community Resilience. He also operates Civic Good, an advisory practice focused on climate resilience, housing innovation, and civic innovation projects with clients ranging from startups to governments. He’s a member of the Expert Panel on Adaptation at the Canadian Climate Institute, is Co-Chair of the Task Force for Housing and Climate, and serves as Board Co-Chair of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness. Additional resources:https://housingandclimate.ca/blueprint/ https://civicgood.substack.com/p/a-blueprint-for-housing-and-climate https://www.conferenceboard.ca/product/work-in-progress/ https://www.conferenceboard.ca/product/canadas-housing-affordability-challenge-plenty-of-questions-some-answers-jan2024/
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Ep. 37: Denise O’Neil Green on the Evolution of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Roles
During Black History Month in Canada, we celebrate the many achievements and contributions of Black Canadians and their communities. We highlight Black Canadians’ role in making Canada the culturally diverse, compassionate, and prosperous country it is. We also acknowledge the work that remains to be done in addressing anti-Black racism in our society. This episode we welcome Dr. Denise O’Neil Green. For over 30 years, Dr. Green, a published author and award-winning expert has applied her visionary approach to equity, diversity and inclusion, anti-racism, organizational change and transformational leadership to organizations. We explore the evolution of the role of diversity leader throughout her career and note the challenges that persist today. Dr. Green provides advice on the skills and traits to look for when recruiting diversity officers and offers guidance to candidates considering taking on diversity, equity and inclusion roles. We discuss Canada’s ongoing journey to address anti-Black racism and how projects like the 100 Accomplished Black Canadian Women Initiative help to spotlight the many contributions of Black leaders.About our guest:Dr. Denise O’Neil Green is an internationally recognized expert in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and transformational leadership. She is President and Principal Consultant of Denise O’Neil Green Consulting. With 30 years of experience, she has worked across different sectors and is Creator of InstitutionalDiversityBlog.com, reaching 100 countries. As Executive Vice-President, she founded the Division of Equity and Community Inclusion at Toronto Metropolitan University. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of Leadership, Adult and Higher Education, University of Toronto and Co-Founder of the 100 Accomplished Black Canadian Women Project. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.Additional resources:https://www.deniseoneilgreenconsulting.com/ https://www.100abcwomen.ca/https://www.conferenceboard.ca/product/levelling-the-playing-field_2023/
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Ep. 36: Joshua Gans on the Economics of AI
When Joshua Gans and his co-authors released their book Prediction Machines in 2018, they were writing about a topic that seemed quite niche. At this time, machine learning was just starting out. In the last year, the speed at which artificial intelligence has advanced has surprised almost everyone.In this conversation, we hear how the analytical framework that he and his colleagues developed helps to sort through the hype. He argues artificial intelligence is best thought of as a prediction machine. You’ll hear why he’s optimistic that artificial intelligence will be able to help people remove some of the drudgery from some jobs, but at this time, doesn’t seem likely to take over full jobs. He’ll share how understanding artificial intelligence as an advance in predictive statistics will help leaders assess how artificial intelligence may or may not be useful. About our guest:Joshua Gans is a Professor of Strategic Management and holder of the Jeffrey S. Skoll Chair of Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Rotman School of Management, the University of Toronto (with a cross-appointment in the Department of Economics). Joshua is also Chief Economist of the University of Toronto's Creative Destruction Lab. Prior to 2011, he was the foundation Professor of Management (Information Economics) at the Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne and before that, he was at the School of Economics, University of New South Wales. At Rotman, he teaches MBA students entrepreneurial strategy. He has also co-authored (with Stephen King and Robin Stonecash) the Australasian edition of Greg Mankiw's Principles of Economics (published by Cengage), Core Economics for Managers (Cengage), Finishing the Job (MUP), Parentonomics (New South/MIT Press) and Information Wants to be Shared (Harvard Business Review Press) and The Disruption Dilemma (MIT Press, 2016);
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