Emerging Environments

In episode #4, we welcome Dr. Jessica Green, a political scientist and Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. We talked about Jessica's early career and her current research on climate governance, non-state actors, private authority and transnational regulation. Jessica is also the author of the book, “Rethinking Private Authority: Agents and Entrepreneurs in Global Environmental Governance”.

In addition to talking about the basics of carbon pricing, we focused on two of Jessica's recently published articles, the first on the effectiveness of carbon pricing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and the second on how closing corporate tax loopholes is a mechanism that governments can use to facilitate decarbonization. The conversation was quite timely as the Supreme Court of Canada had just handed down their decision on the constitutionality of the federal price on carbon, so that was fodder for a lively discussion.

Jessica's new article: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3746463

Jessica's book: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691157580/rethinking-private-authority 

In episode #3 we welcome Dr. Justina Ray. Justina is the President and Senior scientist of Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, which is affiliated with global WCS programs around the world. Justina specializes in large mammal conservation in Canada’s north and is significantly active in policy development for species at risk in Canada. Last year she was the inaugural winner of the President’s Award for Excellence in Societal Engagement by the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution.

We talked about Justina’s career journey including her early work in conservation through Tropical Ecology research. We also talked about the need for active engagement in policy and broader perspectives on the threats facing biodiversity, the future of conservation in Canada’s north through indigenous-led protected areas and a critical perspective on the role of environmental impact assessments. 

Justina's presentation at the Muskoka Biodiversity Summit: https://muskokasummit.org/2012-biodiversity-summit/speakers/justina-ray/

WCS Canada: https://www.wcscanada.org/

The Key Biodiversity Area Initiative: http://www.kbacanada.org/

George Schaller books: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/313603.George_B_Schaller

For our first episode of Emerging Environments we welcome Conservation Biologist, Dr. Nick Mandrak. Nick is the Director of the Conservation and Biodiversity Stream of the Masters of Environmental Science program at the University of Toronto-Scarborough and is one of the leading experts on Canada’s freshwater fishes. He has authored over 200 scientific publications on topics such as the biology and conservation of endangered fishes, the risks posed by aquatic invasive species, and the actions needed to conserve aquatic biodiversity. In that vein, he’s been heavily involved in Canada’s conservation science organizations and is working to foster the next generation of conservation scientists.   

Nick's website:

The MEnvSc program:

Scientists warning on invasive species:

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A taste of what to expect on the podcast.