Convening dialogue and inspiring collaboration
We create an environment that enables a mix of stakeholders to cultivate independent, collaborative and practical solutions. We have extensive connections with leading universities, think tanks, non-governmental organizations, industry and government agencies. We also have a deep understanding of today’s energy challenges, coupled with experienced facilitation and engagement specialists. This allows us to bring together the right individuals at the right time to tackle tough issues, and work toward productive solutions.
See select upcoming and past events.
Thought Leader Forums
We have a proven record of designing and delivering effective Thought Leader Forums on challenging topics. Our forums are one- or two-day events that foster connections among diverse individuals in a confidential atmosphere, creating space for deep discussions that get past talking points and move toward lasting solutions. We also convene similar but smaller events in the form of multi-stakeholder dialogues.
Selected Thought Leader Forums
Clean Future Forum (2019)
The Clean Future Forum explored the challenges and opportunities in transitioning B.C.’s energy system to one that is increasingly clean and consistent with its climate commitments. The Vancouver event saw thought leaders and policy makers tackle the tough questions needed to inform B.C.’s climate and energy planning, including how far electrification — shifting industry, transportation, and buildings powered by fossil fuels to renewable electricity — can get B.C. towards the goal of decarbonization. Participants also examined other clean energy opportunities available in B.C., including bioenergy, renewable gas, and hydrogen. Read more.
On the Road to Freight Excellence in Ontario (2017)
This invitation-only freight Thought Leader Forum convened industry and business leaders, local, regional, provincial and federal policymakers and planners, academics and non-governmental experts to understand the current state and emerging trends in urban sustainable goods movement; identify key areas for additional research; and identify opportunities to collaborate on this research to achieve excellence in a carbon constrained environment. See more here.
Pathways to Net Zero Buildings in B.C. (2015)
This forum convened leading industry experts, utilities, local governments, the provincial government and Pacific Coast partners to develop and vet a pragmatic pathway for achieving high energy efficiency and low carbon buildings in B.C., with a focus on regulatory options. Read the forum summary and policy report.
Clean Electricity (2013)
This forum brought participants together to discuss a Clean Electricity Standard— a greenhouse gas emissions-intensity performance standard for the electricity sector in Alberta. Read the forum summary.
Responsible Shale Gas Development in Canada (2012)
Key decision makers and experts on shale gas from the public and private sectors, First Nations, community groups, environmental non-governmental organizations and academia came together at the Shale Gas Thought Leader Forum to establish a base-level understanding of environmental concerns associated with shale gas development. Read the forum proceedings.
Oil Sands Metrics (2011)
The Oil Sands Metrics Thought Leader Forum outlined what a successful oilsands metrics system would need to include to be relevant, accurate and credible. Read the summary report.
Wind and Cogeneration Opportunities in Alberta (2010)
Hosted by the Pembina Institute and the University of Calgary's Institute for Sustainable Energy, Environment and Economy, this forum focused on helping Alberta expand the development and deployment of cogeneration systems (small and large) and wind energy to replace coal-fired electricity generation. Read the summary report.
Canadian ENGO-Industry Cap-and-Trade Dialogue (2009)
This dialogue brought together nine companies and eight environmental organizations to discuss and outline the key elements of an effective cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. Read the joint statement from participants.
Industry convening on best practices
Gathering industry leaders to share best practices, experiences, barriers and opportunities is an essential step toward identifying solutions and turning innovation into action. We serve as a third-party convener to bring together multiple companies and associations to advance clean energy solutions.
Some examples include:
Renewables in Remote Communities (2017)
A followup from the previous Renewables in Remote Microgrids conferences, this event in Whitehorse attracted 200 participants to showcase the great momentum in this area. Featuring story sharing, innovative thinking and discussions on financial capacity and human capacity issues facing renewable energy deployment in remote Indigenous communities across Canada, the conference focused on two critical dimensions of advancing clean energy systems: financial capacity and human capacity. See details here.
Neighbourhood Freight Forums (2017)
Two meetings brought together local businesses and stakeholders to improve shipping and deliveries and reduce gridlock in the Greater Toronto Area. The first meeting was an opportunity for stakeholders to voice concerns about issues like parking, traffic lights, congestion, trucking and more. In the second meeting, participants worked towards designing solutions that could help reduce gridlock, improve delivery reliability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. See details here.
Renewables and Remote Microgrids (2013 and 2015)
These events, held in 2013 in Toronto and 2015 in Yellowknife, brought together more than 100 experts, manufacturers, policy makers, utilities and community members from across North America to understand the benefits of renewable energy for remote indigenous and other communities, with the goal of promoting economic development, environmental sustainability and energy security. Read our 2015 blog, Bringing renewables to remote microgrids.
Renewables in Oil and Gas (2012)
This workshop brought together representatives from major oil and gas companies and Pembina Institute experts on renewable energy to reflect on the barriers and opportunities to move renewables forward in Canada. The project sought to highlight and share case studies and "lessons learned" from the oil and gas sector's long-term involvement with renewable energy — most notably solar, wind, geothermal and ethanol production. Read the executive summary.
Advisory panels
We regularly design and facilitate panel discussions to explore specific energy topics or initiatives. We bring the right people into the room to offer objective advice and analysis. Our panels are tailored to the needs of the group and focus on seeking the best consensus solutions.
Some examples include:
3rd party expert reviews
A number of large organizations have brought us in as credible experts to advise on and critique life cycle studies. We bring our valuable expertise on life cycle analysis to the table to help strengthen processes and results.
Reviews of corporate sustainability
We have facilitated multi-stakeholder reviews of corporate sustainability and reporting performance for a variety of major companies. Our reviews include sensitivity analysis and leading-edge recommendations for ongoing improvements in accuracy and transparency.
Project innovation
Various companies have consulted us to bring environmental innovation to the design and ongoing operations of their major projects. We have convened leading North American experts on fields such as biodiversity, GHG emissions, air quality, terrestrial and aquatic issues to compile constructive, science-based and solutions-oriented recommendations.
Energy literacy
We have helped bring together diverse representatives from industry, academia, First Nations and environmental organizations to provide feedback and guidance on environmental literacy projects, such as a documentary film series aimed at spurring fact-based dialogue on energy and environment decisions.
Additional engagement tools
The Pembina Institute has a number of trained and experienced facilitators on staff with intimate knowledge of energy and sustainability issues. We can support your engagement needs with a variety of tools, including:
- Designing and facilitating processes, meetings or workshops
- Presenting webinars to share your work and inspire discussion
- Developing and administering surveys to collect input and feedback.