REGISTER FOR LIVE WEBCAST: Thought leaders meet in Calgary to debate future environmental impact of energy sector in North America
Speakers include Nobel Laureate, activist, legal expert, Suncor executive and more. Visit www.cec.org/JPACenergy.
Montreal, 22 April 2013—The North American energy sector is expanding rapidly and presents a key policy challenge for North American governments, especially with respect to environmentally responsible development. The Commission for Environmental Cooperation’s Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC) will be broadcasting live as a host of experts on this issue gather in Calgary, Alberta, on 24–25 April 2013, to share their views and interact with the public through panels and workshop sessions.
To register for the live webcast (free of charge), click here.
You can also join the discussion on Twitter, where we’ll be live-Tweeting from the event via @CECweb, using #JPACenergy, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cecconnect.
Ideas shared at the meeting will help the advisory committee provide workable solutions on environmental policy for the CEC Council, made up of the federal environment ministers of Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Mexican Nobel Laureate Dr. Mario Molina, credited with discovering how man-made chemicals affect the ozone layer, will deliver the keynote address, speaking on the direct link between climate change and energy consumption. Other speakers include Aaron Cosbey, Associate and Senior Climate Change and Trade Advisor, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD); Scott Meakin, Manager, Corporate Responsibility, Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers; and Kent Klitgaard, a longtime activist, professor and author. Topics to be addressed include carbon markets, the potential of a North American energy strategy, green industrial policy, and much more. To view the full agenda, visit www.cec.org/JPACenergy.
Panel discussions will address fundamental questions, including:
- How much of North America’s fossil energy sources (coal, oil, gas, etc.) can be extracted and burned without causing catastrophic climate change?
- How do we make the economics of moving to a low-carbon economy work—for example, avoiding poverty and unemployment?
- How can communities, both remote and otherwise, develop their own local low-carbon energy solutions?
- How do we decrease energy demand throughout North America?
About the CEC
The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) was established in 1994 by the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States through the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation, a parallel environmental agreement to NAFTA. As of 2020, the CEC is recognized and maintained by the Environmental Cooperation Agreement, in parallel with the new Free Trade Agreement of North America. The CEC brings together a wide range of stakeholders, including the general public, Indigenous people, youth, nongovernmental organizations, academia, and the business sector, to seek solutions to protect North America’s shared environment while supporting sustainable development for the benefit of present and future generations
The CEC is governed and funded equally by the Government of Canada through Environment and Climate Change Canada, the Government of the United States of Mexico through the Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, and the Government of the United States of America through the Environmental Protection Agency.