Building systems that are fit for the future means beginning with the end in mind and working together with unlikely allies. Our greatest challenges can only be addressed if we learn to do so. Chad Park lays out an approach that aligns diverse perspectives towards a shared understanding of what the future requires: backcasting from sustainability principles. He also introduces the groundbreaking initiative that is putting these ideas to the test: the Energy Futures Lab. Chad

You need to critically test for whether the pace and scale at which work is getting done is appropriate to the challenges that you’re trying to take on. Nowadays, it’s a key success factor: can you accelerate progress? On issues like climate change, we have to accelerate progress tremendously. – Gord Lambert Pong : You talk about the importance of setting up aspirational goals to help drive innovation. Do you feel that the EFL Vision and Innovation Pathways are aspirational e

The term “Brain Trust” was coined in the 1930s by a New York Times reporter to describe a group of advisors who provided advice to Franklin D. Roosevelt during his presidential campaign. Today, the term is used more broadly to describe a prized group of advisors who hold expertise in their particular fields. Under that definition it is easy to see that the Energy Futures Lab is indeed one of our province’s greatest brain trusts. The FSDS is the government’s plan and vision fo

The Energy Futures Lab is all about the energy system. In fact, the idea is built right into our convening question “How can Alberta’s leadership position in today’s energy system serve as a platform for transitioning to the energy system the future needs?” But what do we really mean by the energy system? It is important to keep in mind the great quote from George E.P. Box “All models are wrong but some are useful”. Is the energy system all about oil and gas? What about elect

Accelerating the transition to a sustainable energy system is a pretty big goal. Let’s face it, if we could meet this challenge with a step-by-step approach, we would have solved it by now. How do we keep track? How can we make sure that we are delivering value to the Fellows and contributing to systems change? How do we know when we getting to the “breakthrough results” we are looking for? But we know these change processes  are highly complex and very difficult to predict i

If the energy transition is a journey, what are the paths to get there? Our future isn’t in a single resource based economy or a silver bullet solution. Instead, it’s a series of paths leading to the same destination, paved by diverse talents and opportunities. But we need to quickly recognize the tools and resources we have, and looking at the trailblazers in cleantech is a good place to start. To better understand the potential for cleantech in Canada, Rudayna Bahubeshi sat

In our current energy transition dialogue, we’re used to separate and fragmented conversations from opposing viewpoints. The conversations generally hold a lot of emotion including apprehension, fear and frustration. There isn’t yet a wealth of examples, outside the Energy Futures Lab, that builds trust across the boundary that pins “us” against “them.” Leor Rotchild recently talked with Lliam Hildebrand, the newest Energy Futures Fellow, on how his organization Iron & Earth

In this three-part blog series, Donna provides practical advice on how to begin the sustainability planning discussion in your organization, with your stakeholder communities and with the critics. She will provide tools to accompany each blog post to assist you, as an intrapreneur, in applying the learnings. Building trust is really hard work. Working to understand what sustainability really means to your company, and what sustainability really means to your critics, and then

Your own company may be committed to closing some of your performance gaps on sustainability. Your company may even be staking new frontiers in sustainability. But, you can’t solve sustainability challenges acting alone. This is work that requires integration and collaboration. You know that business as usual isn’t possible for an energy company operating in Alberta. You have opened up conversation with people inside your company who, like you, are curious about what sustaina

In this three-part blog series, Donna provides practical advice on how to begin the sustainability planning discussion in your organization, with your stakeholder communities and with the critics. She will provide tools to accompany each blog post to assist you, as an intrapreneur, in applying the learnings. As a corporate insider, you are no doubt noticing the radically different market reality. And, you want to support your organization’s targeting and pursuit of new sustai

The first time I heard the term “Learning Journey” I had a little trouble taking it seriously. I mean, we’re talking about field trips, right? Well, sort of. If they are field trips, then they’re field trips with a very specific and important function in the lab process. What makes the trip even more timely is the fact that Fort McMurray is reeling from of the fall in oil prices, laying bare aspects of the community that represent seeds of resilience in the face of adversity.

Part Three: Opportunities for Alberta’s Energy Future Following last month’s GLOBE Conference in Vancouver, Energy Futures Lab Director Chad Park caught up with two members of the Energy Futures Lab Advisory Council, Tzeporah Berman and Toby Heaps, both of whom had important roles at GLOBE and its surrounding events. The following is part three of the three-part discussion and focuses on specific considerations and opportunities for Alberta’s energy future. Part one explored

Part Two: Updates from GLOBE Conference 2016 Following last month’s GLOBE Conference in Vancouver, Energy Futures Lab Director Chad Park caught up with two members of the Energy Futures Lab Advisory Council, Tzeporah Berman and Toby Heaps, both of whom had important roles at GLOBE and its surrounding events. The following is part two of the three-part discussion and focuses on infrastructure and policy to guide energy transition. Part one explored some of the big internation

Part One: The Latest International Developments Following last month’s GLOBE Conference in Vancouver, Energy Futures Lab Director Chad Park caught up with two members of the Energy Futures Lab Advisory Council, Tzeporah Berman and Toby Heaps, both of whom had important roles at GLOBE and its surrounding events. The following is part one of the three-part discussion and focuses on some of the big international developments that Tzeporah and Toby believe are changing the playi

Reflections from our Energy Futures Lab Fellows As a fourth generation Albertan and Manager of CSR & Sustainability at Enbridge, MaryAnn Kenney has a deep understanding of the energy system here and respects “everything that the individuals and companies have built to create the current energy system.” At the same time, she believes “with the information we now have about climate change – and the information we have had for a long time about energy inequity– we can no longer

A group of Fellows visits Landmark Group/AcQbuilt’s innovative net-zero home production facility before engaging with founder and CEO Reza Nasseri and the Landmark transition story (Edmonton, Jan 2016) “It’s easy for people to have opinions, and be wildly pro or against something. But Fort McMurray is the literal front line of our national energy industry. It’s the bleeding edge of the boom bust cycle, that’s what this community experiences. I think it’s really important for

Diversity of opinions makes us stronger as families, Lab participants and frankly, as a nation. Our unique life experiences and narratives are not what define our separateness but are critical contributions to a more realistic, whole view of a system. With the support of the Alberta Real Estate Foundation we’ll be taking The Newtonian Shift across Alberta by invitation of municipalities, businesses, and other organizations. I have a big family—sixteen aunts and uncles and ma

The Energy Futures Lab is all about transitioning Alberta’s energy system for a sustainable future. But what do we mean by the “energy system” exactly? Are we talking about oil and gas or renewables or both? What about the electricity generation and transmission infrastructure? All of those are part of the system. But those are talking about physical things, raw materials and their transportation. What about how we actually use energy? There is too much information to make se

The Energy Futures Lab is very pleased to announce the support of the Alberta Real Estate Foundation (AREF).  AREF’s Board of Governors has approved a grant of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($250,000.00) to foster community engagement with a focus on energy literacy across Alberta. This is a bold commitment by AREF toward co-creating the province’s energy future as part of the Foundation’s 25th anniversary. “We want people to really understand where their energy com

Imagine 20 years of energy transition condensed into an immersive half day simulation. The Newtonian Shift drops you into the outdated, inefficient, polluting energy system of Newtonia. You may find yourself working for a utility, or a bank. Or maybe you are a First Nations leader, oil and gas producer, or the director of an environmental non-profit. As the population grows and the impacts of climate change become impossible to ignore, the leadership and citizens of Newtonia