Canada’s Net-Zero Forum 2024: Accelerating Net-Zero Pathways

Lord Turner chairs the Energy Transitions Commission, a global coalition of companies, NGOs and experts working to achieve a net zero economy by 2040. 

He is also Chairman of insurer group Chubb Europe; Adviser to the Board of energy group Envision and a board member of Envision AESC, the battery production company headquartered in Japan. More recently, he was appointed adviser to the board of Watershed Technologies Inc. and Chairman of Oaknorth Bank Ltd. 

During his public policy career, Lord Turner chaired the UK Financial Services Authority (2008-2013); was first chairman (2008-2012) of the Climate Change Committee, the advisory body to the UK Government; chaired the UK Pensions Commission (2003-2006), the Low Pay Commission (2002-2006), and was Director General of the Confederation of British Industry (1995-2000). He was appointed to the House of Lords in 2005.

Andrée-Lise is the Founder and Managing Partner of the largest investment platform in climate technologies in Canada, Cycle Capital. She is an engineer by training and an active member of l’Ordre des Ingénieurs du Québec, with a master’s degree in science and training in physics of the atmosphere and climate science. Her venture firm, Cycle Capital, went through exponential growth since its foundation in 2009, now including 6 funds and the Cycle Momentum accelerator. She believes that the key to facing the climate crisis is through funding breakthrough technological innovations.  

She sat on many boards in sciences, philanthropic and cultural wealth. She sits on different boards, including boards of Cycle Capital’s portfolio companies, the Infrastructure Bank of Canada, the Montréal Heart Institute and the Pointe-à-Callière museum. She also sat on many advisory boards for her expertise; for example, she co-chaired the Task Force under the United Nation Environment Program (UNEP) from 2004 to 2009. She is currently the ambassador in clean technologies for Investissement Québec. She received numerous awards, such as being Officière de l’Ordre du Québec in 2018 and receiving the 2019 Grand Prix d’excellence from the Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec. She is still recognized for her amazing work in private equity by receiving the Trailblazer Honor from With Intelligence no later than October 2023. 

Bruce is president of the Ivey Foundation, an Adjunct Professor at the School of Policy Studies, Queen’s University, and a Board director of several organizations including the new Canadian Institute for Clean Growth and Climate Change. He is a former Director of the Independent Electricity System Operator, the Ontario Power Authority, the Ontario Trillium Foundation and many others. He is a founding Advisory Board member of Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission, an Advisory Board member of the Canadian Energy Research Institute and visiting faculty at the University of Oxford Social Finance Programme.

Bruce is well known for his work in convening collaborative efforts among businesses, NGOs and government. He played a pioneering role in connecting environmental issues to human health, most notably with his leadership in the phase-out of coal-fired power plants in Ontario, the single largest climate action in North America. And also as the co-author of two best-selling books, including the internationally acclaimed Slow Death by Rubber Duck. He is the founder of Summerhill Group, one of Canada’s leading energy efficiency consultancies.

Dr. Dan Wicklum has spent more than 25 years performing and managing research, driving innovation, and fostering collaboration between industry, government, academia, and civil society. He is the CEO of the Transition Accelerator, a pan-Canadian charity that works with groups across the country to solve business and social challenges while building in net zero emission solutions. Dan was also the inaugural co-chair of Canada’s Net-Zero Advisory Body (NZAB), the statutory independent body that advises the federal government on setting interim emission reduction targets on the way to a net-zero emission Canada by 2050 and on the most likely pathways to net zero.

Prior to joining the Transition Accelerator, Dan was the CEO of Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance, Executive Director of the Canadian Forest Innovation Council, and a senior manager at Environment and Climate Change Canada and at Natural Resources Canada. He was a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Montana, and holds a PhD in Aquatic Ecology from the University of Montana. His initial career was in professional football, as a linebacker for the Calgary Stampeders and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

James Meadowcroft, PhD, is a professor in the School of Public Policy and Administration at Carleton University where he has held a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Governance for Sustainable Development. He has written widely on environmental politics and policy, democratic participation and deliberative democracy, national sustainable development strategies and socio-technical transitions. Recent work focuses on energy and the transition to a low-carbon society and includes publications on carbon capture and storage (CCS), smart grids, the development of Ontario’s electricity system, the politics of socio-technical transitions and negative carbon emissions.

As the Vice President Climate and Sustainability for EllisDon Corporation, Jolene McLaughlin works to build partnerships across the industry to support climate mitigation and adaptation strategies in the build environment. She has spent more than 12 years driving sustainability initiatives across various segments of the built environment from concept into execution. Working with project teams with a collaborative approach, in support of the identification, definition and implementation of practical strategies that result in more efficient, resilient and comfortable buildings.

Michael Sabia was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Hydro-Québec effective August 1, 2023.

Mr. Sabia has extensive experience as an executive in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining Hydro-Québec, he was Canada’s Deputy Minister of Finance (2020–2023). Previously, he held a number of executive positions, including at Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Canadian National Railway and BCE (Bell Canada).

Over the course of his career, Mr. Sabia was involved in numerous global initiatives, including the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance convened by the United Nations and the G7’s Investor Leadership Network, set up to help drive the transition to a sustainable and inclusive global economy.

Mr. Sabia holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from the University of Toronto and a master’s in those fields from Yale University, where he also pursued doctoral studies.

Deeply committed to community involvement, he is a member of the Board of Directors of the Mastercard Foundation, one of the largest foundations in the world, whose mission is to advance learning and financial inclusion in Africa and to support Indigenous youth in Canada. Mr. Sabia is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Mihskakwan James Harper is a proud citizen of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation in Treaty 8, Alberta. He is currently the Business Development Manager at NRStor Inc., where he champions developing large-scale energy storage and clean microgrid projects in a way that empowers communities and contributes to meaningful climate action. He is a Board Member with Indigenous Clean Energy and the Pembina Institute. He holds a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from the University of Manitoba and has recently completed a Master of Science in Renewable Energy from KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Ecole Polytechnique, and the ESADE Business School. He is the co-chair of the SevenGen council, an organization that develops and leads programs for Indigenous youth to lead in clean energy and climate action. He has co-hosted the podcast, Decolonizing Power, a series that aims to amplify voices worldwide on how clean energy enables authentic community empowerment. This experience combined with the 20/20 Catalyst program, he is passionate about the carbon free future, particularly within the power and mobility sectors. He loves his partner, family, and his community, who inspires him to work to build a future that is sustainable and empowers all.

Moe Kabbara is an experienced energy and climate professional with close to a decade of experience working at the intersection of technology, policy, and markets. Moe brings expertise in the areas of transportation electrification, renewable energy, energy storage, and energy efficiency. He is also a sought-after voice on zero-emission vehicle supply chain issues and has spearheaded the establishment of Accelerate, Canada’s zero-emission vehicle supply chain alliance, bringing together private and public sector players to leverage Canada’s opportunity in global ZEV manufacturing.

Prior to joining the Accelerator, Moe was a Managing Consultant at Dunsky Energy + Climate. He was also a Senior Investment Officer at the Department of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada. Moe also was the co-founder and CEO of a thermal energy storage start-up in Atlantic Canada.

Sarah Lazarovic is the Vice President of Communications + Creative Strategy. She is an artist, writer, creative director, and marketing strategist.

As VP of Marketing at Clean Prosperity, Sarah increased public support for carbon pricing and stronger climate policy. In 2021 she launched Talk Climate to Me, a free climate education experience that has trained thousands of women across NorthAmerica.

In 2014, her book A Bunch of Pretty Things I Did Not Buy, a visual essay about consumerism, was published by Penguin. She writes a sustainability column for Yes! Magazine and her climate comics and charts appear all over the world.

Sarah has created award-winning films for Canada’s National Film Board and been an artist-in-residence at the Banff Centre. In 2015, she was awarded a Massey Fellowship to study behavioral science and environmental policy at the University of Toronto. Sarah has taught communications and design at Humber College and frequently gives climate communications talks.