Members: Expert Panel on Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience Results

Blair Feltmate, Ph. D., Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, University of Waterloo

Mr. Feltmate is the Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation at the University of Waterloo, and has over two decades of experience leading sustainability programs in business and government.

Graeme Reed, Senior Policy Analyst, Assembly of First Nations

Mr. Reed is a Senior Policy Analyst with the Assembly of First Nations, where he advocates for the inclusion of First Nations in the federal, provincial, and territorial climate change and energy policy dialogue.

Jennifer Parrott, Research Manager, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation

Ms. Parrott works with Inuit communities and organizations in the Canadian North, and has coproduced a series of data management systems which promote knowledge exchange between Inuit and academia/government.

Kathy L. Hodgson-Smith, Senior Policy Advisor, Métis National Council

Ms. Hodgson-Smith leads national policy initiatives for the Métis National Council, including the Pan Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change. She also chairs the Métis Nation table on climate change, which includes adaptation and mitigation measurement.

Deborah Harford, Executive Director, Adaptation to Climate Change Team (ACT), School of Public Policy, Simon Fraser University

Ms. Harford co-founded ACT in 2006 to explore policy options for sustainable adaptation in a range of areas at risk from climate change impacts, including water, food, health, biodiversity, energy, infrastructure, and population displacement, and collaborates with a wide variety of organizations and individuals on resource development and outreach.

Cory Searcy, Ph.D., P.Eng., Professor, Industrial Engineering & Environmental Applied Science and Management, Ryerson University

Mr. Searcy’s research focuses on corporate sustainability indicators, sustainability reporting, and sustainable supply chain management. A registered professional engineer in Ontario, he is also an editor for corporate sustainability at the Journal of Business Ethics.

Bronwyn Hancock, Associate Vice President, Research Development, Yukon College

Ms. Hancock is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of research at Yukon College, and for developing relationships with the research community in support of northern research.

Craig Stewart, Vice-President, Federal Affairs, Insurance Bureau of Canada

Mr. Stewart leads national work on disaster resilience and climate change at the Insurance Bureau of Canada, the industry association representing the property and casualty insurance industry in Canada.

Joanna Kyriazis, Policy Director, Zizzo Strategy

Ms. Kyriazis works with organizations to identify, manage and disclose climate-related risks and opportunities in the context of transitioning to a low carbon, resilient economy. She has also advised clients on emerging legal and policy issues related to climate and energy.

David Lapp, Practice Lead, Engineering and Public Policy, Engineers Canada

Mr. Lapp leads a long-term national project to assess the engineering vulnerability of Canadian public infrastructure to the impacts of climate change. This project has led to the development of a climate risk assessment tool for infrastructure used in Canada and internationally.

Al Douglas, Director, Ontario Centre for Climate Impacts and Adaptation Resources

Mr. Douglas has worked on climate change impacts and adaptation for 15 years, and has partnered with organizations across Ontario and Canada to develop tools and resources that support adaptation planning and decision-making.

Karen Lockridge, Principal, Responsible Investment, Mercer

Ms. Lockridge assists investors in integrating climate change into their investment beliefs, policies and portfolios. She was the founding chair of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries’ Climate Change and Sustainability Committee.

Ian McPherson, Chief Executive Officer, Last Spike Capital

Mr. McPherson is a Certified Investment Manager and a pioneer in the world of sustainable investment, having launched Canada’s first Global Clean Energy Fund and first Water Infrastructure Fund in 2007.

Brian Kelly, Manager of Sustainability, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, Regional Municipality of Durham

Mr. Kelly leads the efforts of the Region of Durham (Ontario) to adapt to climate change, with a key aim of educating municipal politicians on the need to limit community and residential flood risk.

Twyla Kowalczyk, Water Resources Engineer, City of Calgary

Ms. Kowalczyk has previously focused on preparedness and response to river flooding in the City of Calgary and is now supporting the development of Calgary’s climate adaptation plan.

Sophie Pantin, Project Verification Specialist, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Ms. Pantin led the development of performance indicators for the Municipalities for Climate Innovation Program and is responsible for the on-going development, implementation, and revision of the FCM’s project performance measurement and reporting system.

Ewa Jackson, Managing Director, ICLEI—Local Governments for Sustainability

Ms. Jackson has worked with municipal governments for over 14 years in the fields of sustainability, public participation, and climate change, including on numerous adaptation and sustainability monitoring and evaluation projects at the local, national, and international scale.

Louise Comeau, Director, Environment and Sustainable Development Research Centre, Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management, University of New Brunswick

Ms. Comeau has a wealth of experience on climate change issues. Her results-oriented approach in her current role is based on the understanding of the need for solid research as well as collaboration with national and international networks.

Deborah Martin-Downs, Chief Administrative Officer, Credit Valley Conservation Authority/Conservation Ontario

Ms. Martin-Downs has broad organizational, operational, and technical leadership experience based on her career in the environmental industry.  Her organization is responsible for watershed management, natural hazard management and natural system protection in the Credit River Watershed, one of 36 Conservation Authorities in Ontario.

Bob Purdy, Director, External Relations and Corporate Development, Fraser Basin Council

Mr. Purdy is an experienced facilitator of broad-based collaboration on topics such as climate adaptation in Canada’s mining industry, flood mitigation planning, Indigenous/non-Indigenous relationship-building and sustainability indicators development.

Sarah Sargent, Director, Programs Disaster Management, Canadian Red Cross

Ms. Sargent started her career in international development in 1994 and has worked with the Canadian Red Cross since 2012.  Her work supports programs addressing climate change and extreme weather threats and identifying means to prepare for, mitigate or limit those threats.

Caroline Larrivée, Team Leader, Vulnerabilities, Impacts and Adaptation Group, Ouranos

Mrs. Larrivée has worked as a planner in the private sector, for academic institutions and for the Kativik Regional Government where she collaborated on research into the impacts of climate change on northern communities. Mrs. Larrivée has been with Ouranos since 2006 and now leads the Vulnerabilities, Impacts and Adaptation Group.

Kyle Empringham, Co-Founder, The Starfish Canada

Mr. Empringham is the co-founder of The Starfish Canada, a federally registered non-profit that celebrates and amplifies the great environmental work done by Canada's youth. Mr. Empringham runs their Top 25 Environmentalists Under 25 program, which has assembled a network of young change-makers that work to create a greener, cleaner future for Canada's climate.