AEF Leadership Council
Blake Shaffer
Associate Professor of Economics and Faculty Director, Electricity Centre
University of Calgary
Blake Shaffer is an associate professor of economics at the University of Calgary; faculty director of the Electricity Centre at UCalgary; project director of Western Transmission Catalysts; and co-director of Canada’s Energy Modelling Hub. Prior to academia, Shaffer had a 15-year career in energy trading, including at BC Hydro (Powerex), Barclays Capital, and Transalta, where he specialized in electricity, natural gas and emissions markets. He holds a PhD in economics from the University of Calgary, masters in economics from the University of Cambridge, and a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences from Queen’s University. He has held visiting scholar and Fulbright postdoctoral scholar positions at the Toulouse School of Economics and Stanford University. Shaffer also serves as policy advisor for various governments on energy and environmental policy matters.
Electricity systems are in transition, with massive and rapid changes occurring on both the supply and demand side of the market. I’m joining the AEF Leadership Council because navigating these changes requires dialogue and partnership between researchers, practitioners, and policy makers. AEF is particularly well suited to facilitate that dialogue and set Alberta up with the clean, reliable, and affordable electricity system that is required in the 21st century.
-Blake Shaffer