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We're pleased to welcome Suzanne Life-Yeomans to the Energy Futures Lab team as our new Indigenous Relations Lead. Suzanne joins the Lab as a contractor to strengthen and guide our relationships with Indigenous Nations, communities and organizations as they relate to emerging, low-emission economic development opportunities. This role reflects our commitment to ensuring Indigenous perspectives, rights, participation and knowledge(s) meaningfully shape our initiatives and engagement processes from the outset. Suzanne will provide strategic guidance, leadership and practical support to help ensure the Lab’s work is carried out in a good way, grounded in trust, reciprocity and respect. Suzanne brings more than 25 years of experience advancing Indigenous consultation, engagement and economic development. A member of the Liidlii Kue First Nation, she has built a career helping bridge Indigenous and non-Indigenous perspectives while supporting opportunities that create lasting social and economic benefits for communities. She is the founder of her own Indigenous relations consulting practice and serves as Chair of the First Nations Women's Council on Economic Security. Her leadership spans governance, community development, public policy and industry collaboration, with a strong focus on ensuring Indigenous communities are partners in shaping the decisions that affect them. Earlier this year, Suzanne was recognized with the King Charles III Coronation Medal for her longstanding contributions to Indigenous consultation and engagement, and for her work advancing initiatives that improve socio-economic outcomes for Indigenous communities. "I'm excited to join the Energy Futures Lab team because meaningful collaboration begins with listening. Throughout my career, I've learned that when we truly hear one another's perspectives, we find better pathways toward shared goals, “ said Suzanne. “Bringing an Indigenous lens to conversations about economic growth and the transition to a low-emission future is so important, because these opportunities are happening on Indigenous lands and within Indigenous communities. I'm looking forward to supporting EFL's work and helping strengthen partnerships that create lasting value for Indigenous communities and for Canada's energy future." -Suzanne Life-Yeomans "We're excited to welcome Suzanne to the team," said Alison Cretney, Executive Director of the Energy Futures Lab. "She brings deep experience building trusted relationships and a proven ability at fostering meaningful engagement that leads to stronger outcomes. Her guidance will help ensure our work continues to be shaped by Indigenous voices and perspectives." Please join us in welcoming Suzanne to the team.

Energy Futures Lab Welcomes Suzanne Life-Yeomans as Indigenous Relations Lead

The Energy Futures Lab is pleased to welcome Suzanne Life-Yeomans to the Energy Futures Lab team as Indigenous Relations Lead to strengthen and guide our relationships with Indigenous Nations, communities and organizations - especially as they relate to emerging, low-emission economic development opportunities.

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The Energy Futures Lab is pleased to announce the addition of Fatema F. Hardwarewala to our leadership team as Director, People & Finance. In this role, Fatema will lead the financial stewardship, people practices, governance, and internal operations of the Lab. Her work will align best-in-class processes and support systems with the organization’s strategic priorities to maximize impact towards its vision. Notably, she will be helping steward the Lab’s transition to independence, building the systems and structures of a sustainable, standalone organization while ensuring continuity from its place as a solution space of Generate Canada. To the position, Fatema brings 20 years of progressive experience as a senior finance and operations executive, leading financial strategy, governance, and operational excellence across SMEs, nonprofit, healthcare, and social service organizations. She is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and holds an MBA, with recognized expertise in financial forecasting, risk analysis, and budget planning. “Having spent much of my career in the non-profit sector, I'm inspired by organizations that create lasting impact by empowering people and building strong partnerships. I'm excited to contribute to an organization that values innovation, trust, and thoughtful leadership while helping build the people, culture, and operational foundations that enable this important work to thrive. ” -Fatema F. Hardwarewala As the Lab moves through a pivotal period of growth and organizational transition, the strength of its internal foundations — financial, operational, and cultural — are equally as important as the strength of its external partnerships. Fatema's appointment reflects the Lab's commitment to building the operational backbone required to sustain its impact for the next decade. “We’re very excited to have Fatema join the Lab at this important moment in our journey,” says Alison Cretney, Executive Director. “With her talent and experience in the areas of finance and accounting, operations and oversight, and people and culture, we look forward to bringing her wealth of knowledge to bear in growing and strengthening the structural underpinnings of our work. Getting these fundamentals right will allow the Lab to stretch, adapt and grow as we enter a new, more urgent phase of Canada’s energy system, trade, and economic transformation.” With Fatema now leading People & Finance, the Energy Futures Lab ensures that as we convene leaders across Canada's energy system, we do so from a place of financial clarity, operational stability, and people-first governance.

Energy Futures Lab Welcomes Fatema F. Hardwarewala as New Director, People & Finance

The Energy Futures Lab is pleased to announce the addition of Fatema F. Hardwarewala to our leadership team as Director, People & Finance.

In this role, Fatema will lead the financial stewardship, people practices, governance, and internal operations of the Lab.

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Many of us fondly remember watching the Jetsons, a futuristic cartoon where flying cars are the transportation mode du jour. While technological leaps are being made to engineer the planes of the future — think electric and hydrogen-fueled — they may take decades to reach commercial viability. In the meantime, the aviation industry continues to be powered by a sole source: jet fuel. And that dependence is looking increasingly fragile. As oil markets swing with every geopolitical tremor, the cost of jet fuel has climbed sharply. Analysts and industry leaders now talk openly about something that would have seemed implausible a few years ago: the risk that jet fuel supplies could actually run short. In mid-April 2026, the head of the International Energy Agency warned that parts of Europe were looking at critically low jet fuel reserves within weeks. A recent aviation sustainability report put it plainly — airlines may have a real opportunity to hedge against commodity price shocks and fossil fuel volatility by using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The urgency is no longer theoretical. It's showing up in departure lounges. The Hard-to-Decarbonize Problem If aviation were a country, it would rank among the world's top ten emitters. Air passenger traffic is expected to grow steadily toward 2050, with more than 10 billion passengers projected annually by the time we reach the Jetsons era (the show is set in 2062). Without significant intervention, CO₂ emissions from aviation could double in that same window. Unlike other forms of transportation that are rapidly adopting electrification, aviation faces a much narrower set of decarbonization options. Batteries are too heavy, hydrogen infrastructure doesn't exist at scale yet, and the physics of flight constrain what's possible. Which leaves SAF as one of the only options to cut the heavy emissions the sector produces. SAF isn't a single fuel but a category of fuels derived from a range of lower-emission feedstocks: industrial crops like canola and mustard seed, tallows, fats, algae, forestry residues, and agricultural waste. Many of these biofuel crops are grown, and can be purpose-grown, right here in Canada. They absorb CO₂ during their growth cycle, so when burned, their net emissions are significantly lower than conventional jet fuel which is predominantly kerosene - a petroleum product. Critically, SAF is also a "drop-in" fuel; it looks and behaves like regular jet fuel and can be used in any aircraft with any engine. No retrofitting required. The first SAF-powered commercial flight took place in 2008. By the late 2010s, over 100,000 flights globally had used some blend of biojet fuel. It can be made and it works well. The barrier to adopting SAF is systemic, not scientific. Unlike other forms of transportation that are rapidly adopting electrification, aviation faces a much narrower set of decarbonization options. Batteries are too heavy, hydrogen infrastructure doesn't exist at scale yet, and the physics of flight constrain what's possible. Which leaves SAF as one of the only options to cut the heavy emissions the sector produces. Gearing up for Takeoff In 2017, Geoff Tauvette became an Energy Futures Lab Fellow. At the time, he was Director of Fuel and Environment at WestJet. Even with the global energy transition well underway, he was very likely the only person in North America, and perhaps even globally, that was bridging fuel and environment departments at a major airline. "Environmental resources at airlines were not initially prioritized," Tauvette reflects. "They were very much 'back of the hangar.' But with climate at the forefront, emissions, procurement, and fuel departments are becoming more integrated. I was where airlines are now, but about a decade earlier." For more than 30 years, Tauvette has been integrating aviation fuel procurement, logistics, and environmental management and it’s this rare combination that has provided him with a system-wide view of aviation's carbon challenge. In short, he had been advocating for this transition long before it was fashionable. He'd helped establish Canada's first large-scale closed-loop glycol spraying and recycling facility, and as far back as 2012 he testified before the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities calling for a Canadian policy framework to develop and promote aviation biofuels. Joining the Fellowship gave him something he hadn't had before and something that would serve him well into the future: a convening platform, a collaborative network, a systems-thinking outlook, and a place to advance ideas that crossed organizational boundaries." The Fellowship shaped how I think about sustainability and the energy transition," Tauvette says. From Fellowship to Flight: The Biojet Initiative When Tauvette brought the concept of sustainable aviation fuel into the Fellowship, the Lab launched into action. What made the Fellowship particularly valuable was who was in the room. Players like Shell, Suncor, and Enerkem were part of the EFL network — exactly the kinds of actors needed to move a fuel innovation from concept to value chain. Jet fuel, after all, is a piece of the Alberta energy system, and the Fellowship had the right people from the right sectors already assembled. "We used the Fellowship as a kind of living lab," Tauvette reflects, "having access to people across the value chain to have the right discussions — testing ideas, aligning on a vision, asking what do we actually need to make this happen." In November 2018, the Lab hosted a workshop on Mobility in a Low Carbon Future, bringing together representatives from across Alberta's public and private sectors — including AL-PAC, Edmonton International Airport, West Fraser, Alberta Agriculture, Alberta Energy, Emissions Reduction Alberta, Cenovus, Suncor, and Western Economic Diversification Canada (now Prairies Economic Development Canada). One of the most ambitious ideas to emerge was the WestJet-led Biojet initiative. "Given what's going on around the world, what does low-carbon mobility mean for Alberta in the future?" said Pong Leung, the Lab's co-founder, at the time. "This is a key question on a lot of people's minds — and driving innovation." The rationale was compelling. Alberta has significant potential for biofuels given the nexus of numerous feedstocks like canola and forestry and agriculture residuals, refining expertise and workforce. Finding a new, viable pathway wouldn't just reduce emissions, it could anchor a new regional opportunity for economic diversification and make use of an industrial byproduct. "The Fellowship shaped how I think about sustainability and the energy transition ... We used the Fellowship as a kind of living lab, having access to people across the value chain to have the right discussions" - Geoff Tauvette Building the Coalition: C-SAF Takes Off The Lab’s convening work had a big impact on what would come next. The inspiration came, in part, from seeing how bringing multiple stakeholders together could catalyze an emerging industrial sector and give it a coherent voice. Tauvette recognized that SAF needed the same thing. In early 2022, Tauvette and a small but dedicated team from FSM Management launched the Canadian Council for Sustainable Aviation Fuels (C-SAF) with backing from more than 60 airlines, fuel consortiums, industry stakeholders, and government partners. "Launching C-SAF wasn't a huge hill to climb," Tauvette says. The rapid membership growth reflected a long-suppressed need: the SAF ecosystem had players in every part of the value chain — feedstock producers, refiners, distributors, and airlines — but lacked a dedicated coordination body to drive issues forward. C-SAF became that space: a trusted, boots-on-the-ground action driver that could connect stakeholders and speak with one voice to the government. C-SAF has since become a national advocacy voice for sustainable aviation fuel in Canada, actively engaging with the federal government on policy, incentives, and market design. A Roadmap for the Future With the coalition in place, Canada needed a strategy. Not just a policy discussion paper, but a full industrial roadmap that could guide policy, attract investment, and coordinate action across the value chain. The Energy Futures Lab had been instrumental in developing a clean competitiveness roadmap for the battery metals sector in partnership with the Battery Metals Association of Canada and The Transition Accelerator. That same convening-research-industry input model would prove beneficial for SAF. Through multi-stakeholder workshops, generative interviews, and the kind of facilitated co-creation the Lab is known for, a shared vision began to crystallize. The process engaged C-SAF members across the full Canadian SAF supply chain — from feedstock producers in British Columbia and Alberta to refiners in Ontario and Quebec to the airlines that would ultimately purchase and use the fuel. Working closely with Pong Leung and the Lab team on convening and alignment, Tauvette and the partners were able to embed strategy rather than just aspiration. "It became different from other roadmaps that look at SAF alone," he says. "It's situated within the full energy system — that came directly from working with EFL." In June 2023, the partners released The C-SAF Roadmap: Building a feedstocks-to-fuels SAF supply chain in Canada — Canada's first national SAF industrial strategy. The Roadmap set ambitious but grounded targets: By 2030: Produce 1 billion litres of SAF annually, representing roughly 10% of all jet fuel used in Canada, saving more than 1.5 million tonnes of GHG emissions. By 2035: Scale to meet 25% of Canadian jet fuel demand, cutting aircraft departure emissions by 15–20%. Three strategic objectives framed the path forward: maximize production now using commercially ready pathways; activate new large-scale feedstock channels from Canada's forestry residues, agricultural waste, and captured carbon; and seed advanced demonstration facilities using next-generation Canadian technologies. The Roadmap also broke new ground in how it framed the challenge. Rather than treating SAF purely as an emissions-reduction story, it reframed it as an economic opportunity — a lens that broadens the coalition of interest beyond environmentalists to include farmers, foresters, regional development advocates, and economic diversification planners. As the document itself argued: "Canada must go beyond an emissions reductions paradigm to think about how we build long-term support for deep decarbonization — by building a broad coalition of citizens and firms that benefit from climate action." In 2024, the project was recognized with a Clean 50 Top Project Award — a national honour recognizing outstanding contributors to sustainable development in Canada, and the Roadmap had proved to be foundational to the long anticipated SAF Blueprint released by Transport Canada. "Compared to other countries, we have everything it takes to make SAF," Tauvette says. "We have players in all sectors of the value chain. But do we have the regulatory and policy environment to spur this growth? That's where the work continues." The Roadmap identified the key policy gaps: SAF remains three to ten times more expensive than conventional jet fuel, and most of what has been used in Canada to date has been imported. What's needed is policy that simultaneously reduces aviation emissions, captures the economic benefits of domestic SAF production, uses abundant Canadian feedstocks, and keeps the sector competitive. One of the Roadmap's most practical insights is that SAF is fundamentally a place-based opportunity. Establishing a viable supply chain means developing regional value chains that bring together feedstocks, refineries, and end-users in proximity — what the Roadmap calls "mini SAF ecosystems." British Columbia's logging industry, long seeking new markets, produces forest residues that make excellent biofuel feedstock. Pulp and paper plant closures in Eastern Canada could be repositioned as SAF production opportunities within those same communities. Alberta's canola — versatile, widely grown, already integrated into global commodity markets — could give Canadian farmers a new, stable, domestic use. "Suppliers take cost at aggregate level and apply it back at the pump," Tauvette explains. "In aviation, it's concentrated at the airport. If the cost gets too high, airlines can reroute and fly out of a US airport rather than a Canadian one (i.e. Seattle vs Vancouver), for instance. That's the competitive pressure we're trying to address with policy." C-SAF has spent the last few years knocking down the barriers the Roadmap identified and followed up with two impact assessment: one for Canada and one for British Columbia. Awareness programs have been developed. Bio-development work has advanced, including in Vegreville, Alberta where the region received a BDO (Bioeconomy Development Opportunity Zone) 'A' rating. The Government of Alberta has been engaged on a Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) framework for canola-based SAF. Known ‘system blocks’, as Tauvette describes them, have been progressively removed. While the policy environment continues to develop, the sector is benefitting from some tailwinds. Canada's Clean Fuel Regulations, in place since 2023, created a credit market that allows SAF to serve as an opt-in compliance pathway. Parkland reported Canada's first domestic SAF production milestone. In early 2025, Airbus Canada began using SAF in its Mirabel operations and delivery flights. But there’s also headwinds to navigate. "Once we see a clear pathway for supply and getting to scale, it becomes much easier to have a conversation about demand" says Tauvette. "But right now, Canada is still sending clean fuel money outside the country. The Clean Fuel Regulations are in place but we're importing biofuels to meet obligations rather than making biofuels in Canada. Environmental policy is forcing us to buy elsewhere, and that has to change." C-SAF is now pressing for two concrete federal actions. The first is a higher SAF multiplier within Canada's Clean Fuel Regulations — which would represent the first nationally-scoped policy signal specifically designed to pull SAF to market. The second is a dedicated SAF investment program with price certainty mechanisms, giving investors the confidence they need to commit capital at scale. Without that certainty, the economics remain stuck as well as final investment decisions. Why This Matters Now For Canada In our globally connected world, aviation may just represent the most interconnected energy ecosystem. The recent geopolitical crisis that caused disruption in aviation fuel supply, isn't a distant European problem. It has direct implications for Canada, and for the SAF opportunity. This predicament has put a spotlight on what energy security in aviation actually looks like, and Canada has the ingredients to be a stable supplier for jet fuel derived from domestic feedstocks, produced at scale, and backed by Canadian clean energy. “Looking at different sources of energy where Canada can supply those markets — if we can build that together, that's a significant opportunity". The economic case is also sharper than it has ever been. Aviation and aerospace generate over $110 billion in economic activity and support more than 800,000 direct and indirect jobs in Canada. "The cost of SAF is directly related to the sector’s output and activity but there is also a cost to not decarbonizing,” Tauvette says, “if you want to keep the economic benefits from the sector then support is needed to scale the SAF industry in a cost effective way with an eye on staying competitive". The SAF story in Canada is, at its core, a story about what it takes to move a hard-to-decarbonize sector from concept to coordinated action. It didn't start with a government mandate. This initiative started with a Fellow, working for a major airline, who had spent years sitting at the intersection of fuel and environment, who brought that perspective into the Energy Futures Lab's collaborative model, helped organize a pivotal workshop, catalyzed a challenge, inspired a coalition, and co-authored a national strategy that’s now functioning as the country's de facto aviation decarbonization blueprint. It took an ecosystem with deep domain knowledge and credibility; a Lab with the convening capacity and collaborative methodology to bring disparate actors into alignment; a research partner with the analytical rigour to ground the vision in data; and an industry association willing to garner alignment before the market was ready to reward it. "Aviation was one of the first global industries to come together with a climate action plan," Tauvette notes. The takeoff of SAF in Canada shows what it looks like when that intention meets coordinated, multi-stakeholder effort on the ground. At a moment when jet fuel supply and warnings are no longer hypothetical and value chains are under pressure, when oil volatility is a front-page story, and the economics of SAF are finally beginning to shift, this work matters more than ever. Canada cleared the first runway. The question now is how fast SAF can take off.

Cleared for Takeoff: Building Canada’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel Ecosystem

If aviation were a country, it would rank among the world's top ten emitters. Unlike other forms of transportation that are rapidly adopting electrification, aviation is hard to decarbonize, leaving sustainable fuels one of the only options to cut the heavy emissions it produces.

Find out how innovation, an industry group, and the Lab and it's partners have helped to shape the evolution of the SAF ecosystem in Canada.

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Momentum is building for the Future Materials Alliance. We're pleased to welcome RBC Foundation as a funder as we continue bringing partners together to advance Canada's critical materials future. Canada has a tremendous opportunity to strengthen its critical materials value chain, but unlocking that potential requires new ways of working together. The Future Materials Alliance is creating the space for collaboration that can move promising ideas into tangible progress. With support from RBC Foundation, we'll grow the Alliance, convene partners in key industrial corridors to identify and address shared barriers, and support Indigenous capacity-building and early engagement in regions expected to host critical materials projects of national importance. This investment will help us move from conversation to coordinated action, building the partnerships needed to strengthen Canada's critical materials future. Thank you to RBC Foundation for supporting this important work. We look forward to working alongside our partners to turn shared ambition into action.

RBC Foundation Funds the Future Materials Alliance

We're pleased to welcome RBC Foundation as a funder as we continue bringing partners together to advance Canada's critical materials future.

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The rest of Canada may associate Alberta with oilsands, pickup trucks, and cowboy hats, but it’s also home to an innovation ecosystem where energy technologies are being invented, piloted, and scaled for global export. By Ailsa Popilian and Alison Cretney Originally published in The Hill Times, July 6, 2026 The Alberta-Ottawa MoU has been framed largely as a pipeline deal, but it goes well beyond that. It's a step-change in provincial-federal relations and signals a deeper shift to reframe Alberta’s place as energy security increasingly determines economic strength. And for some Albertans it isn’t landing. Understanding why requires more than the latest polling numbers, although they help. The tone shift between Trudeau and Carney hasn’t significantly moved the needle with UCP supporters. And for some Albertans, longstanding frustrations around energy still simmer. Decades of perceived slights have built something deeper than disagreement. That needs to be acknowledged, not explained away. And while polling reveals these entrenched frustrations, it also reveals something unexpected: Alberta is the most optimistic province when it comes to believing that the country can lead on energy and deliver on climate goals. Energy is identity The rest of Canada may associate Alberta with oilsands, pickup trucks, and cowboy hats, but it’s also home to an innovation ecosystem where energy technologies are being invented, piloted, and scaled for global export. Working at the intersection of climate and energy in the province showed us that Albertans are innovators, entrepreneurs, impact investors and much more. Albertans are not a monolith. The Energy Futures Lab hosts a Fellowship of experts from every part of the system, from finance, cleantech, ENGOs, Indigenous communities, and yes, oil and gas. When you put them in a room and ask them to wrestle with some of the toughest energy transition questions, you learn a thing or two about bridging divides. As political scientist Jared Wesley has put it, "Albertans can be fiercely provincial and proudly Canadian. They can belong to a local community, a treaty relationship, a region, and a country all at once. These attachments do not need to cancel each other out." A rancher, a roughneck, and a climate activist walk into a room Bringing together unlikely co-conspirators is something we know well. As part of the Alberta Narratives Project we helped shape a large-scale exploration of how Albertans, from all walks of life, think about energy and climate. The findings challenged a lot of assumptions. What people responded to most was cooperative language, not combative framing. But perhaps the most telling finding about Albertan identity was that their views weren’t shaped by political or industry affiliation as much as their assessment of the future — whether they believed fossil fuels would remain economically viable, and whether they saw climate change as a genuine threat. Shift those evaluations, and the conversation shifts too. The central Alberta town of Innisfail offers a useful case study. It hosted our Roadshow as it considered its energy future. It was later selected as the site for Deep Sky, Canada's first direct air capture (DAC) R&D facility, sparking millions in cleantech investment for the region. The announcement was met with grassroots pushback. Deeply held values around land stewardship shaped concerns about the technology. But rather than retreat from the conversation, Deep Sky and town council stayed in it. They held open houses and fielded tough questions head-on. The project moved ahead. A Montreal-founded company got rural Albertans on board with game-changing climate technology by taking them seriously, not overriding them. How to talk to Alberta The pitch isn't complicated. Talk to Albertans the way you'd have any serious conversation: sit at the table, stay through the hard parts, field the tough questions, and seek common ground rooted in shared values. Right now, that includes the economy, investment, quality of life and affordability. Treating Alberta's contribution as something to be tolerated rather than built on is a common pitfall, as is denigrating its industries contributing to Canada's economic engine, run by the very people driving innovation in sustainable agriculture and reducing energy emissions. Albertans have a maverick streak that the rest of Canada can benefit from, the tenacity to build things bigger and faster (when conditions are right), and a deep belief in producing the energy, food, and materials that the world needs without forsaking climate progress too. The MoU is much more than a pipeline deal. It’s a relationship reset that signals potential for a new mode of federalism — one that takes Alberta's economic and geopolitical role seriously, and builds from there.

Op-Ed: How to talk to Alberta: a no-nonsense guide to bridging divides

Working at the intersection of climate and energy in the province, it's clear that Albertans are not a monolith.

The pitch isn't complicated: talk to Albertans the way you'd have any serious conversation: sit at the table, stay through the hard parts, field the tough questions, and seek common ground rooted in shared values.

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We have some exciting news to share. The Lab is proud to announce a new funding partnership with the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation — a private charitable foundation dedicated to addressing some of the most urgent challenges facing society today. Their first-time support marks an important milestone for our work, and we're grateful for the trust and shared vision that has made this partnership possible. About the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation Established in 2021 through the estate of the late Vancouver businessman Ronald Roadburg, the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation was built on a belief that philanthropy can — and should — respond boldly to the defining issues of our time. Ronald Roadburg was a prominent figure in Vancouver's business community, and his legacy lives on through a foundation that reflects his commitment to making a meaningful difference to some of the biggest challenges facing our country. Among the Foundation's top funding priorities is supporting responses to urgent societal challenges, with climate change at the forefront. In a moment when the need for decisive action has never been clearer, the Foundation is choosing to invest in solutions that work on multiple levels: building the economy, addressing emissions, and doing both in a way that supports people and communities across the country. The Foundation was one of the first partners to join the Climate Champions - an effort to encourage new climate philanthropy in Canada. Why This Partnership Matters We know that climate change is not a distant threat — it is reshaping communities, economies, and ecosystems right as we speak. Canada, with its vast natural resources, diverse regions, and significant industrial base, sits at a critical crossroads. The transition to a low-emissions economy presents both an immense challenge and a generational opportunity: to build the industries that support Canadians’ long-term prosperity, create jobs, and also avoid the mistakes of the past by ensuring new solutions and systemic designs centre equity and resiliency. That is exactly the work the Lab was created to do. “Our mission is to accelerate Canada's clean economy transition in ways that go beyond simply reducing emissions. We believe that how we make this transition matters equally." Our mission is to accelerate Canada's clean economy transition in ways that go beyond simply reducing emissions. We believe that how we make this transition matters equally. A future economy that shifts the costs of transition to families, leaves communities behind, concentrates opportunity in the hands of the few, or fails to deliver measurable results in a short timeframe is not the future we're working toward. We're focused on solutions that enhance social equity, expand economic opportunity, and produce real, tangible impact. The Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation's support directly enables us to deepen this work — to move faster, reach further, and engage more meaningfully with the communities, policymakers, and industries shaping Canada's economic future. Building a Clean Economy That Works for Everyone One of the things that makes this partnership so meaningful is the alignment of values at its core. The Roadburg Foundation doesn't just fund climate work — it funds work aimed at urgent, systemic change. That framing resonates deeply with how we approach our mandate. Transitioning Canada’s economy will touch every community, from coast to coast to coast: from workers in energy-producing regions navigating industry shifts, to Indigenous communities leading careful utilization of the lands and resources under their management in accordance with their beliefs and practices, to cities designing infrastructure for a low-carbon future. Getting this transition right means centring the voices and needs of the people most affected — and building the policy, financial, and institutional frameworks that make equitable outcomes not just possible, but proven. With partners like the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation behind us, we're better positioned to do exactly that. Looking Ahead We are energized by this new partnership and deeply grateful to the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation for their confidence in our work. Philanthropy that takes on climate change with urgency and ambition is a powerful force — and we're proud to be working alongside a foundation that embodies both. There is a lot of work ahead. And we're ready for it. To learn more about the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation, visit roadburgfund.org.

A New Partnership for Canada's Clean Economy: Welcoming the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation

The Energy Futures Lab is pleased to announce that the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation has partnered with us and will support our work to accelerate Canada’s clean economy transition in ways that enhance social equity, economic opportunity, and measurable climate impact.

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Alison Cretney recently appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry and Technology (INDU) to provide testimony on the impacts of U.S. tariffs on Canada’s steel, aluminum, and advanced manufacturing sectors. The testimony highlighted how the status quo risks creating structural vulnerabilities in integrated North American value chains, and outlined the opportunity to build more resilient domestic ecosystems in critical minerals, metallurgy, and advanced manufacturing. Energy Futures Lab's Executive Director, Alison Cretney, speaks to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry and Technology (INDU) on April 23, 2026 INDU Meeting No. 34 | Full committee hearing can be found here

Energy Futures Lab Testifies on Canada’s Critical Materials Value Creation Before House of Commons Standing Committee on Industry and Technology

Alison Cretney of the Energy Futures Lab provided testimony to the House of Commons INDU Committee on the impacts of U.S. tariffs on Canada’s metallurgical and advanced manufacturing sectors, highlighting the need for a more integrated and resilient critical materials strategy for Canada.

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The Energy Futures Lab (EFL) is pleased to announce the Richard Hiller as Director, Future Materials Alliance. In this role, Hiller will lead the Lab’s Future Materials Alliance initiative to advance a more integrated and competitive critical materials ecosystem in Canada, driving strategy to action across policy, industry, and investment. Hiller has extensive experience integrating energy systems, policy, and economic development. Throughout his career, he has worked across governments and with industry to translate technical, geopolitical, and economic considerations into clear strategies and coordinated action. Most recently, Hiller served as Executive Director of Energy Transition with the Government of Alberta, where he led implementation of Alberta’s Minerals Strategy and Action Plan and advanced intergovernmental and stakeholder collaboration across western and northern Canada on critical minerals development. Throughout his career, Richard has played a key role in shaping energy strategies, including leadership on Alberta’s Hydrogen Roadmap, Natural Gas Vision and Strategy, and emerging areas such as geothermal, nuclear energy and small modular reactors, while operating at the centre of government and Cabinet decision making. This appointment comes at a pivotal moment, as global demand accelerates and jurisdictions compete to secure their critical minerals supply chains. Canada has a significant opportunity to move beyond extraction and strengthen its position in processing, manufacturing, and advanced materials, while reinforcing Canada’s security and economic future. Realizing this opportunity will require coordinated action across sectors, alignment between policy and investment, and new models of collaboration. Underpinning this is the need for sustainable development of resources, energy systems, and transition materials that take into account the impacts on people, communities and the environment. “The path forward is not simple, but the cost of standing still is far greater. In critical materials, our window will not stay open for long. This is our moment to lead, build, and align together” says Hiller. “The path forward is not simple, but the cost of standing still is far greater. In critical materials, our window will not stay open for long. This is our moment to lead, build, and align together" -Richard Hiller As Director of the Future Materials Alliance, Hiller will play a key role in advancing this work through convening diverse actors, navigating complexity, and enabling progress toward a more resilient and competitive materials ecosystem. “Richard brings the kind of cross-system experience this work demands,” said Alison Cretney, Executive Director of the Energy Futures Lab. “His ability to bring clarity to complexity and build alignment across diverse actors will be a real asset as we work to build Canada’s low emission future, where critical minerals and materials are crucial to the energy transition.” Together with the recent appointment of Marla Orenstein as Director, Partnerships & Impact, this addition further strengthens the Energy Futures Lab’s ability to drive impact in an area that is increasingly vital to communities, economic resilience, and the global energy transition, as demand grows for the minerals and materials that underpin modern life.

Energy Futures Lab Welcomes Richard Hiller as Director, Future Materials Alliance

The Lab welcomes Richard Hiller as Director, Future Materials Alliance. Richard will lead efforts in advancing the FMA at a pivotal moment, as global demand accelerates and jurisdictions compete to secure their critical minerals supply chains. As Director, Richard will help coordinate action across sectors, create alignment between policy and investment, and enable progress toward a more resilient and competitive materials ecosystem.

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MoUs don’t make mines, and partnerships don’t build processing facilities By Ailsa Popilian and Marla Orenstein Originally published in The Hub, April 15, 2026

Op-Ed: Canada’s critical mineral diplomacy aims to keep it at the table and off the menu—as U.S. competition looms

MoUs don’t make mines, and partnerships don’t build processing facilities. What happens after the ink dries?
By Ailsa Popilian and Marla Orenstein. Originally published in The Hub, April 15, 2026


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By Marla Orenstein and Ashley Meller When the Prime Minister launched Canada’s first Defence Industrial Strategy a few weeks ago, it was an appropriate response to a rapidly shifting geopolitical reality. But alongside the important elements that the strategy contained, there was a conspicuous, and potentially even fatal, absence: energy. Specifically, domestic energy sovereignty didn’t merit a mention. But a Canadian defence strategy falls short if the fuel for your fighter jets comes from US refineries, power for your Arctic radar defence systems depends on diesel flown in from the south, or if the centralized electricity grids supplying your military installations can be bricked by a cyberattack. Canada’s energy vulnerabilities are systemic, built into almost every facet of production and consumption. We export enormous volumes of oil but lack the refining capacity to keep ourselves fuelled without imports. This deficiency is also the reason we don’t maintain a strategic petroleum reserve — unlike the United States or most European nations, which mandate 90 plus days of reserves by law. There’s no point when our reserves would just be used to feed refineries south of the border. Our electricity grids have little East-West transmission connecting demand from other provinces; instead, our electricity exports mostly supply American networks. And remote Arctic communities, where our sovereignty is most vulnerable, run almost entirely on diesel that needs to be shipped in by sea or air. Energy sovereignty and Canada’s national security are not parallel tracks. They are one and the same. This means that building defence capability requires an unflinching focus on energy infrastructure and the supply chains that underpin it. It means building domestic refining capacity for both traditional and sustainable aviation fuels and marine diesel, sized to ensure national security needs are met. It means deploying small modular reactors — where Canada already has world-class technology and the largest uranium reserves on earth — at critical infrastructure sites to provide reliable, zero-emission power that cannot be interdicted or held hostage. It means accelerating East-West electricity transmission infrastructure so Canada can reroute power domestically if the geopolitical situation demands it. And it means decentralizing energy supply onto microgrids with long-duration storage for critical facilities—hospitals, ports, military bases, government continuity sites — and to keep communities powered, so that a cyberattack or other supply disruption doesn’t spiral into a national crisis. This approach also yields ‘no-regrets’ moves that build resilience against a broader range of threats, including floods, wildfires, biodiversity loss, and food security. It also supports decarbonization efforts, as many of the technologies that provide the greatest energy security also happen to be the lowest-emission ones. Such an approach also supports Canada’s economic interests. The Defence Industrial Strategy rightly identifies critical minerals as a priority. But simply extracting and exporting raw ore is a missed opportunity. Processing those minerals into battery-grade materials and advanced components within Canada — creating the supply chain our allies are desperate to build outside of Chinese control — is simultaneously a defence strategy, an economic strategy, and a climate strategy. These are just a few examples of what genuine strategic autonomy looks like. Prime Minister Carney’s government deserves credit for the seriousness of Tuesday’s announcement. The creation of the Defence Investment Agency, the commitment to Canadian procurement, the focus on innovation and intellectual property sovereignty — these are the right instincts. But the strategy is flawed without an equally serious commitment to securing the energy infrastructure that makes our defence capability in various scenarios real rather than theoretical. Canada holds one of the most enviable strategic resource positions of any nation on earth: the world’s largest uranium deposits, world-class hydropower and other renewable infrastructure, the critical minerals for technologies our allies need, and vast natural gas reserves that can bridge the transition. A country that can convert these into a coherent, integrated strategy — one that provides domestic energy resilience, export leverage with trusted partners, and a credible path to net-zero — will be among the most strategically indispensable nations of the coming century. So let’s not allow a good crisis (or the strategy’s accompanying half-trillion dollar investment) go to waste. As the Prime Minister said, “The work of defending Canada is the work of building Canada.” Let’s make sure seizing the opportunity not only shores up our defences, but also builds Canada’s resilience on multiple fronts.

Op-Ed: You want to talk defence? Talk energy.

By Marla Orenstein and Ashley Meller When the Prime Minister launched Canada’s first Defence Industrial Strategy a few weeks ago, it was an appropriate response to a rapidly shifting geopolitical reality. But alongside the important elements that the strategy contained, there was a conspicuous, and potentially even fatal, absence: energy. Specifically, domestic energy sovereignty didn’t merit a mention. But a Canadian defence strategy falls short if the fuel for your fighter jets comes from...

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No single jurisdiction has all the ingredients. But by leveraging its collective strengths as a whole, the region becomes competitive. By Alison Cretney Originally published in The Hill Times, Feb. 25, 2026

Op-Ed: Building industrial strength: a regional approach to Canada’s critical materials

No single jurisdiction has all the ingredients. But by leveraging its collective strengths as a whole, the region becomes competitive. By Alison Cretney Originally published in The Hill Times , Feb. 25, 2026

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Driving through central Alberta still offers that familiar prairie poetry — big skies stretched wide over aspen bluffs, wheat fields bending with the wind, canola glowing under long summer light. But in Innisfail, something else has taken root alongside the crops and rail lines: confidence. The central Alberta community between Calgary and Edmonton had been hoping to bring the Energy Futures Lab Roadshow program to the region for some time, but they weren’t resting on their laurels. They’d already been seeking diversification opportunities and supporting and adopting clean energy initiatives like Elemental Energy’s 25 MW Innisfail Solar Farm north west of town, and having conversations with clean energy innovators looking for the right environment in which to site novel technologies in the province. And the town had released their municipal Community Economic Development Strategy, The Power of Place. Right around the same time, the Lab made a deliberate shift in how we would deliver the Roadshow program for 2022-2023. Rather than working with several communities in a single season, we decided to pilot a deeper, year-long engagement with a single municipality to increase community-level impact. And the one that happened to perfectly fit the bill was the Town of Innisfail. It was an experiment grounded in a simple question: what type of impact can we have when a community is given time, space, and sustained support to explore its energy future together? It was an experiment that paid off in ways we could not have imagined. Laying the Groundwork Over the course of a year, the Roadshow morphed from a series of in-person and online workshops to a shared process of sense-making that encompassed dedicated community conversations, formal learning journeys, and culminated in a set of community-led initiatives. It brought together Innisfail’s elected leaders, town administration, industry, high schoolers, and invested community members. This helped set a strong and shared foundation to develop a common vision for the region that would extend to how energy, economic development, and environmental stewardship could reinforce each other. As part of the process, the Lab team collaboratively helped to steward the creation of the Innisfail Energy Hub — a novel platform for dialogue, learning, and collaboration. Innisfail Mayor Jean Barclay participates in the Energy Futures Lab Roadshow As Todd Becker, Chief Administrative Officer for the Town of Innisfail and an Energy Futures Lab Fellow, reflects, the value of the Roadshow went well beyond individual initiatives. “The Roadshow helped create the foundational piece — tying council’s vision to administration and giving us the confidence, literacy, and shared language to actually move ideas into action.” That foundation proved to be a strong one. With a clear vision, supportive Council, and an empowered administration, Innisfail learned to move swiftly when opportunities emerged. The Roadshow created a forum where questions could be asked openly, concerns aired respectfully, and understanding could be built. This would prove useful as the town’s vision for a resilient and thriving energy future began to take shape. When Opportunity Knocks In the year following the Roadshow, that groundwork bore fruit. Innisfail announced it would be the home of Deep Sky, a first-of-its-kind direct air capture and carbon capture research, development, and testing facility. Designed as a ten-year project, Deep Sky is bringing global technologies to Alberta to compete, learn, and generate real-world performance data under Innisfail’s ideal, and picturesque, prairie skies. For a small town in central Alberta, it was a major coup but it didn’t happen by accident. “All of the work leading up to Deep Sky mattered,” says Becker. “The Roadshow secured our philosophy and culture. It gave us the confidence to have real conversations with companies like Deep Sky — and they noticed.” Deep Sky’s arrival was not without its challenges. Like many high-profile clean energy projects, there were moments of skepticism and pushback within the community. But thanks to the Roadshow and Energy Futures Lab’s model of harnessing tensions for generative conversation, Innisfail’s leadership had built the muscle to lean into those moments rather than shying away from them. “It takes energy to talk about energy,” Becker says. “Deep Sky came with a rough couple of weeks, but it also came with a lot of support. Council didn’t shy away from the conversation. We weathered it.” Photo Credit: Deep Sky That willingness to host difficult conversations with transparency and respect proved critical. The same openness that characterized the Town’s participation in the Roadshow shaped how the Town engaged with Deep Sky: quickly, collaboratively, and with a clear sense of shared purpose. “We’re quick, we’re nimble, and we’re open,” Becker explains. “Our approach is: how do we get to yes?” Signals of Change The impact of the Town’s economic development strategy has extended well beyond a single project. Its presence has attracted interest from other clean technology companies, including those working in hydrogen, waste-to-energy, and related supply chains. With new investment has come both community growth and new pressures — including a housing shortfall driven by an influx of skilled workers and increased interest in living in a community seen as progressive, service-oriented, and future-facing. “The label on our community has changed,” Becker reflects. “People want to live somewhere modern where leadership cares about economic opportunity and environmental stewardship.” That leadership has also been nationally recognized. Since the Roadshow, the Town of Innisfail has received two significant awards: the Invest Alberta Belt Buckle Award, connected to the Deep Sky project, and the 2025 CCUS Leader of the Year Award, presented by Carbon Capture Canada in recognition of Council’s leadership and the strength of administration. As Becker notes, “those awards are tied to the foundational work. The Roadshow and EFL need to take credit for that. The Mayor mentions the Energy Futures Lab in those speeches every time.” Despite celebrated successes and best efforts, not every clean energy initiative has moved forward at the same pace. A planned 2 MW municipal solar project was paused due to unfavourable market conditions — a challenge shared by municipalities across Alberta. At the same time, residential solar uptake is increasing, reflected in a growing number of household permits. “We haven’t shied away from the technologies,” says Becker. “Leadership is about keeping sustainability on the agenda even when it’s hard.” Carrying the Story Forward In November 2025, Innisfail underwent a municipal election, bringing a mix of returning and new councilors to the table. Mayor Jean Barclay continues in her role, and Becker remains at the helm as CAO. New faces mean new conversations and a focus on sharing the backstory of how Innisfail arrived at this moment. “The magic is in the conversations,” Becker says. “When councils or staff change, that context can get lost. We don’t want this to evaporate.” And in thinking of why it feels important, Becker credits the Roadshow as crucial. “It focused us. It helped sculpt an environment where projects like Deep Sky could land, and where administration felt ready to have those conversations.” For Innisfail, clean energy isn’t just an environmental imperative anymore, it's also a core economic strategy. It builds resilience, attracts investment, keeps the town competitive, and builds long-term confidence. What began as a Roadshow pilot became proof that when communities are supported to build shared vision, they can move fast when opportunity knocks. Innisfail is still writing its next chapter. The ground is fertile, the seeds have been planted, the roots are growing deep, and the confidence to keep growing is firmly in place.

Before Deep Sky, deep work helped found a culture of innovation in Innisfail

The future of energy is arriving fast, and nowhere more so than in Innisfail. Here's how a year of deep community engagement with the Energy Futures Lab cultivated the culture, confidence, and capacity to seize it.

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Man in a hard hat consults tablet while standing in front of a transmission line. By Marla Orenstein and Ashley Meller Originally published in Canada's National Observer, Jan. 27, 2026

Op-Ed: Canada’s leverage in a fractured world starts with energy

Man in a hard hat consults tablet while standing in front of a transmission line. By Marla Orenstein and Ashley Meller Originally published in Canada's National Observer , Jan. 27, 2026

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The Energy Futures Lab (EFL) is pleased to announce the addition of Marla Orenstein to our leadership team as Director, Partnerships & Impact. In this role, Orenstein will lead the Lab’s partnership strategy and grow public awareness and understanding of how the Lab’s multiple streams of insight and analysis generate real-world impact on Canada’s energy system—by catalyzing sustainability-aligned energy innovation, fostering collaboration across many fields of expertise and diverse perspectives, supporting emission-reducing technology investment and diffusion, and accelerating value chain formation in high-potential emerging industry ecosystems to help capture greater value for Canada’s resources. Since first becoming involved with the Lab as a member of its signature fellowship program, Orenstein has become widely recognized as a trusted voice in national and international conversations on Canada’s energy future, with a deep understanding Western Canada’s distinct priorities, assets, and opportunities. “Meeting the challenges that Canada’s energy sector faces at this moment is only possible through relentless focus, unwavering resolve, and extraordinary trust between system leaders" -Marla Orenstein As global markets reel from unprecedented disruption to global order and trade, Canada has a small but critical window of opportunity to set the stage for the next wave of economic growth—one that builds on existing strengths in energy, petrochemicals, technology, and industrial expertise—if it can coordinate the necessary players and capabilities required to seize it. The Energy Futures Lab exists to help navigate this moment by convening leaders across sectors, regions, and perspectives to align strategy, investment, policy, and innovation. Orenstein’s appointment reflects the Lab’s growing focus on partnerships as a critical component for turning opportunities into reality. “Meeting the challenges that Canada’s energy sector faces at this moment is only possible through relentless focus, unwavering resolve, and extraordinary trust between system leaders," said Marla Orenstein, Director, Partnerships & Impact, Energy Futures Lab. “The Energy Futures Lab has built a rare space in Canada where leaders with different, and sometimes opposing, goals can tackle tough challenges together and quickly find innovative solutions that drive real action. I’ve seen the Lab shift conversations, unite unlikely allies, and turn halting progress into unstoppable momentum. I’m excited to join this team at such a pivotal moment for Alberta’s future.” Orenstein brings extensive experience working at the intersection of research, analysis, partnerships, and public dialogue—connecting governments, industry leaders, Indigenous partners, investors, and civil society. Her work has helped inform policy debates and investment decisions across Canada and internationally, with a reputation for credible analysis and thoughtful, solutions-oriented leadership. “Marla is a perfect fit for where the Energy Futures Lab is headed,” said Alison Cretney, Executive Director of the Energy Futures Lab. “She brings deep credibility in Canadian energy and natural resource discussions and a proven ability to build trusted partnerships across sectors. As Canada works to compete higher up the value chain and align infrastructure, policy, and investment around emerging low-emission opportunities, Marla’s experience and leadership will be instrumental to amplifying both the impact and awareness of the Lab’s important work.” The addition of Orenstein comes as the Energy Futures Lab deepens its focus on moving from analysis to enabling action—supporting collaboration across electricity system modernization, critical minerals and advanced materials, sustainable finance, economic competitiveness and reconciliation, and regional resilience, among others. Across all of this work, the Lab believes collaboration remains Alberta’s greatest competitive advantage. “Other jurisdictions are moving quickly,” added Cretney. “Alberta’s success will depend on how well we align people, capital, and policy. Marla’s deep connections in Western Canada and ability to quickly analyze and adapt to the shifting landscape will play a key role in helping us build the partnerships needed to seize this moment.” Along with the recent engagement of Tom McCaffery on the organization's government relations file, this most recent appointment positions the Energy Futures Lab for even greater impact in 2026 and beyond.

Energy Futures Lab Welcomes Marla Orenstein as Director, Partnerships & Impact

The Lab welcomes Marla Orenstein as Director, Partnerships & Impact. Marla will lead efforts to turn insight into further action, connecting leaders across sectors to drive sustainable energy innovation, lower emissions, and stronger collaboration across the system to build the economic engines of the future—helping Alberta and Canada shape a more resilient and prosperous energy future.

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By Keren Perla and Ailsa Popilian Originally published in The Hub, December 13, 2025

Op-Ed: From resource powerhouse to industrial superpower: Alberta’s potential in the global trade order

By Keren Perla and Ailsa Popilian Originally published in The Hub , December 13, 2025

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By Alison Cretney Originally published in The Calgary Herald, December 6, 2025

Op-Ed: Beyond pipelines, Alberta is ready to help make Canada a superpower

Think pipelines are the central feature of Alberta and Ottawa's MOU? Think again. There’s a deeper shift underway — one that could reshape Canada’s role in the global energy economy.

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Photo: Maddie Faunt On November 4, 2025, the very same day that the Lab’s first workshop closed a decade earlier, over 150 members of the EFL’s extended network, including founding members of the Lab platform, joined us in Calgary at Bonterra Trattoria for a very special gathering to celebrate the Lab’s 10th Anniversary. Guests attend the 10th anniversary celebration of the Energy Futures Lab | Photo: Maddie Faunt Between rounds of delicious food, drinks, and enthusiastic reunions of community members, the evening’s program kicked off with a very special opening by Hal Eagletail, who performed a song to bless and safeguard the people leading the important work of energy innovation. Alison Cretney speaks to guests of 10 Forward: A Celebration of 10 Years of Impact | Photo: Maddie Faunt The Lab’s Managing Director, Alison Cretney, offered remarks highlighting the many ways in which the Energy Futures Lab community has helped break through polarization, open new pathways in Alberta’s energy transition, and build the momentum, partnerships, and leadership needed to shape a prosperous, sustainable energy future. And we also debuted two new videos, highlighting the Lab’s journey from inception to impact: Next, toasts offered by six supporters of the Lab showcased unique aspects of the Lab’s approach, its community and what it has achieved in its first decade. Arlene Strom | Photo: Maddie Faunt Arlene Strom A founding partner of the Energy Futures Lab, Former Suncor Chief Sustainability Officer and General Counsel and now Chancellor of Mount Royal University toasted the Lab’s ambition, and its unique willingness to truly relinquish control in a co-creative space, and the empowerment and sense of duty that trust unlocks in participants. She reflected on the discussions with Suncor leadership in deciding whether or not to fund the Lab’s initial 3-year arc given the ineffable nature of what it might generate, and how their trust in the founders’ vision ultimately persuaded them to proceed. Steve McDonald | Photo: Maddie Faunt Steve McDonald The Current Generate Canada board member, long-time Lab Advisor, Former CEO of Emissions Reduction Alberta and now Principal at +SM Advisory Services toasted the Lab’s unwaivering commitment to finding solutions amidst deep complexity, and solving problems with integrity, ingenuity and a truly representative diversity of perspectives. Photo: Maddie Faunt Prageet Nibber The CEO and founder of ReWatt Power Inc. toasted the Lab’s capacity as a forum for mentorship and a springboard for new ideas, reflecting on an initiative she developed with support from Lab members, Community Power Aggregation, that’s since gone on to be implemented in the UK. Dani Hansen | Photo: Maddie Faunt Dani Hansen Current EFL Fellow and BMO Capital Markets VP Environmental Commodities Sales & Structuring, Dani toasted the Lab’s ability to take complex, systemic issues, and create space for practical collaboration that leads to meaningful impact, pointing to its role in the creation of the investment tax credit now in place to support carbon capture and storage projects in Canada. JP Gladu | Photo: Maddie Faunt JP Gladu The Energy Futures Policy Collaborative Indigenous Advisory Committee Chair and Principal of Mokwateh toasted the Lab’s emphasis on building relational capital, forged through valuable shared experiences. Chad Park | Photo: Maddie Faunt Chad Park Last but not least, the founding Managing Director of the Energy Futures Lab and current Vice President, Sustainability & Citizenship for The Co-operators, toasted the Lab’s longevity, which he credits to its adaptability, which allows it to sense the system and quickly pivot to respond to what’s needed most at any given moment. He also praised the application of adaptability in learning and not being deterred by the inevitable missteps that accompany innovation and human relationships. Photos: Maddie Faunt We're grateful to everyone who was able to join us for the event, and to those who sent messages and texts congratulating us on this significant milestone. Your support means the world to us! As we reflect on our journey, we couldn't be prouder of what the Lab community has collectively achieved. Each contribution, big or small, has played a vital role in our success. We value every individual who has been a part of this journey, and we recognize that our accomplishments are a direct result of your hard work and dedication. We extend our most heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for your unwavering commitment to the Lab's vision and the hard work and passion you bring to the table every day in service of making that vision a reality. Onwards!

Celebrating 10 Years

Photo: Maddie Faunt On November 4, 2025, the very same day that the Lab’s first workshop closed a decade earlier, over 150 members of the EFL’s extended network, including founding members of the Lab platform, joined us in Calgary at Bonterra Trattoria for a very special gathering to celebrate the Lab’s 10th Anniversary. Guests attend the 10th anniversary celebration of the Energy Futures Lab | Photo: Maddie Faunt Between rounds of delicious food, drinks, and enthusiastic reunions of...

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As the Energy Futures Lab turns 10, we’re also celebrating the start of a new era. Today, the Lab is excited to share news of an important milestone for our organization — one that reflects our growth and the strong foundation we’ve built over the past decade. To look ahead, we must first reflect on where we began. In 2015, an idea for a social innovation approach to addressing a growing sense of polarization around energy and climate was born within The Natural Step Canada (TNS). That idea went on to become the Energy Futures Lab, which emerged as TNS' first 'solution space'. In 2024, TNS rebranded as Generate Canada: an organization helping to tackle complex challenges at the intersection of the environment, economy and society. Over the past decade, the Lab has grown and matured into Canada’s leading social innovation platform for the energy transition, bringing together innovators, industry leaders, policymakers, and communities to navigate the challenges and opportunities of some of the most pressing energy issues of our time. Now, as we mark 10 years of helping accelerate the energy transition in Canada, we are confidently stepping into our next phase of growth. Effective September 1, 2026, the Energy Futures Lab will become its own independent organization – a natural progression in our journey from an initiative of Generate Canada to a fully established entity in our own right. This marks an important step forward, and we will continue to collaborate closely with Generate Canada and its solutions spaces, maintaining a strong and strategic partnership where our work intersects. With this transition: The Lab will establish its own Board of Directors, composed of nationally connected regional leaders leaders committed to advancing our shared vision. Our programs, partnerships, and day-to-day work will continue without interruption. For most outside the organization, there will be no discernable change to our operations or programming beyond this shift in finance and governance structures. With our roots in Alberta, we will continue to align our work with regional priorities and realities — applying local expertise and scaling tailored approaches to national and global challenges. As the Lab’s scope has gradually broadened, our platform and methods have become part of the fabric of Alberta’s energy system, with many communities, agencies and organizations eager to partner with us, growing our capacity to host major initiatives independently. Becoming an independent organization will further allow us to deliver programming with the support of regional leadership and broaden our network to connect with strategically aligned organizations and new partners at a critical moment for Canada’s energy future, enabling us to make sustained impact as the energy landscape continues to shift. This evolution is a testament to the strength of the network we’ve built together — the Fellows, Ambassadors, alumni, initiative coalition and working group members, advisors, funders, and friends who have shaped our journey. Your insight, collaboration, and commitment continue to inspire us. We are profoundly grateful for the enduring partnership and support of Generate Canada, whose stewardship has been essential to our growth. As we look to the next decade, we remain dedicated to accelerating an inclusive and equitable shift to a prosperous and sustainable energy future — and we look forward to continuing this work with all of you in this exciting new chapter. #2025 #EFL_Platform #Generate_Canada

A New Chapter Begins for the Energy Futures Lab

As the Energy Futures Lab turns 10, we’re also celebrating the start of a new era. Today, the Lab is excited to share news of an important milestone for our organization — one that reflects our growth and the strong foundation we’ve built over the past decade. To look ahead, we must first reflect on where we began. In 2015, an idea for a social innovation approach to addressing a growing sense of polarization around energy and climate was born within The Natural Step Canada (TNS). That idea...

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With additional reporting from Jennifer Young EFL Fellows on an invigorating, early-morning hike to Grassi Lakes near Canmore Energy Futures Lab Fellows recently gathered for the second time in-person in Canmore at the mid-point of the Fellowship. Together, we worked to unpack insights gathered over the last year and put them into action. Over the summer, work had been done to whittle down the Fellowship’s portfolio of tension investigations into four key tensions present across the energy industry: Investor Coherence and Confidence Relationships with Indigenous Communities Energy Development in Rural Spaces Pore Space Many of the Fellows, particularly new ones, were itching to get to work, and after several months of working to understand these tensions, it was time to shift from working in the “problem space” to the “solution space.” GROUNDING TO OPEN Our second gathering was opened with a truly grounding land acknowledgement. Elder-in-training Gilbert Crowchild graciously and humorously shared his traditional knowledge of how the land, the water and the air have sustained for eternity, a sentiment that is echoed in the human experience of motherhood and nurturing. These ideas were cemented with a ceremonial smudge allowing us to be truly open and present for work we had in front of us. ICEBERGS, REVISITED The workshop’s first session focused on completing the ‘Iceberg’ (causal layered) analyses that Fellows had started to work on during the March workshop. These were used to generate a better, more nuanced understanding of the structures and mental models that underpin each of the tensions. In other words, diving even deeper into the problem. In this session, Fellows utilized the data from 101 interviews conducted with people working within these tensions in their day-to-day roles to further explore the assumptions, beliefs and value systems that drive the tensions that we see in the energy system. We observed that many of the tensions are rooted in systems that are much larger than anything our group of fifty people could tackle. For example, in the Rural Energy Development tension, sticky notes added under structures and mental models included things like NIMBYism, rural values, inertia, colonialism, even ‘the way government is structured’. Not only did we spend most of the day in the “problem space” – at this point, it seemed the problems were much deeper and larger than we had initially thought. SHIFTS AND NUDGES Next, we sought to identify shifts in mindset, behaviour, structures or narratives that would need to occur in order to make meaningful progress on each of the tensions by December 2026. As part of this, we were asked to identify some enabling conditions – WWHTBT or “what would have to be true” for the shift to take place. We found ourselves wondering, “what if the thing that would need to be true, did not seem possible or feasible?” – like having regulatory certainty or people having the ability to discern misinformation. After some debate (and a bit of mental spiraling) one Fellow reminded us to be optimistic, and not limit ourselves to what we perceive as possible right now. We may not be able to shift the entire system, but maybe we could nudge it. The FSSD'S SOCIAL PRINCIPLES Sarah Brooks closed the day out with a pointed and impactful overview of the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development’s (FSSD) social principles that made many think deeply about what social sustainability really means in practice. She reminded us that social systems are living, adaptive networks, made up of people connected through relationships, interactions, and shared experiences. These systems are constantly evolving, finding new ways to organize and maintain balance even amid uncertainty and change. Together, we reflected on how this adaptability depends on nurturing five essential conditions: health, ensuring people have access to safety and basic needs; influence, creating space for all voices to shape decisions; competence, supporting learning and skill development; impartiality, upholding fairness and justice; and meaning-making, helping individuals and communities find shared purpose. The discussion reminded us that sustainability isn’t just about managing resources, it’s also about strengthening the social fabric that allows people and systems to thrive and adapt over time. This exploration of the FSSD social principles set the stage beautifully for the next part of the off-site, where we turned our focus toward systems mapping and the collective capacities needed to navigate complex change. WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITY Day 2 started off with imagining our energy future via arts and crafts. We were challenged to visualize what the future might look like if the shifts we identified the previous afternoon came to pass and then build a Lego model or draw it. What can we do? And how? What are the initiatives already taking place that Fellows may leverage to bring these shifts about? The use of creativity was a great way to usher the Fellows into the long awaited “solution space”. And boy, did we get creative: there were some great stories, and even an AI generated, Titanic-esque image of certain, nameless politicians that stayed in the mind for a few days! Windmill models and model windmills INTERVENTIONS & CHAMPIONS And now, given everything we’d learned about the issue spaces – the events, observed patterns, the mental models, existing systems and structures, windows of opportunity, what should we do to close the gap between today and the future? In complex systems, strategy rarely unfolds in linear plans. We talked about “opening moves” as the first, intentional steps that allow learning and adaptation to guide what comes next in a journey of learning, discovery, and potential influence in these tension spaces. Fellows were then challenged to identify the moves they believed were feasible, flexible and visible enough to build momentum and make progress towards shifting narratives and behaviours and resolving the tensions in the energy system. After an afternoon of brainstorming, reflection and dot-mocracy, Fellows were invited to identify initiatives they were interested in championing and/or supporting. And just like that - our 2025 portfolio of initiatives was born! We identified an initial portfolio of fourteen interventions in response to each of the four system tensions, many working across multiple tensions. Dot-mocracy in action Initiatives (or interventions) launched with committed initiative teams, an initial definition of the solution, draft problem statements and ideas for initial steps to be taken in the coming weeks. Utilizing a variety of approaches and tactics, collectively the portfolio works across 4 key leverage points for shifting the system and utilizes 5 basic mechanisms. 4 Leverage Points for System Change Empowering people and communities Strengthening actors and networks Reforming structures and processes And shifting culture and mindsets The four leverage areas loosely mirror Donella Meadows’ leverage points, spanning from feedback loops and information flows to the deeper rules and paradigms that shape systems. 5 Tension-Allieviating Mechanisms 1. Capacity Building & Education Mechanism: Strengthening skills, literacy, or competence to enable better participation, decision-making, and collaboration. Change logic: Equip actors with knowledge, tools, and relationships → reduce friction and perceived risk → unlock collaboration and investment. 2. Institution Building & Governance Mechanisms Mechanism: Creating or strengthening enduring structures, associations, or frameworks that shape how actors interact or make decisions. Change logic: Institutionalize collaboration, reduce fragmentation, create neutral third spaces to co-learn, and explore and standardize approaches → improve efficiency, transparency, collaboration and legitimacy. 3. Narrative Change & Public Communication Mechanism: Shifting shared stories, frames, and public meaning to influence norms, legitimacy, and motivation. Change logic: Reframe mindsets and narratives → shift the perceived “centre of gravity” in decision-making → enable more inclusive and future-fit policies and investments. 4. Financial & Policy Innovation Mechanism: Creating incentives, instruments, or policies that directly influence capital flows or investor confidence. Change logic: Align market and policy signals with social and environmental values → increase capital flow toward credible, inclusive projects. 5. Convening & Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration Mechanism: Bringing diverse actors together to co-create understanding, identify shared goals, and prototype joint actions. Change logic: Enable trust and mutual understanding → coordinate experimentation and policy → accelerate system learning and legitimacy. System Leverage Focus Capacity Building & Education Institution Building & Governance Narrative Change & Communication Financial & Policy Innovation Convening & Collaboration Empowering People & Communities - Indigenous Invest! - Guiding Questions for Communities & Developers - First Nations Advisory Fund - Major Projects Narrative Reloaded - Indigenous Partnership Incentives - Creating Opportunities for Indigenous Knowledge Keepers StrengtheningActors & Networks - Upskilling Developers in Investor Language - Rural Energy Development Community of Practice - Association of Pore Space Operators - Investment Community Engagement Barriers and Gaps in Alberta - Rural Energy Development Community of Practice - Investment Community Engagement Reforming Structures & Processes - Pre-Approved Rural Project Location Pilot - Canadian Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism Equivalent - Testing Ideas for a National Industrial Strategy - Independent Free Prior and Informed Consent & Sustainability Assessment - Pre-Approved Rural Project Location Pilot Shifting Culture & Mindsets - Indigenous Invest! - Major Projects Narrative Reloaded - Indigenous Knowledge Keepers in Pore Space Leadership - Indigenous Knowledge Keepers Dialogue It was great to see people raise their hands to lead so many initiatives, and to take initial steps towards action. And while it was uncomfortable to sit with the “problems” for so long, the interventions we identified seem a lot more promising than anything we might have suggested following the first workshop in the spring. Much credit to the EFL team for helping us navigate the journey thus far, and to the Fellows for their openness and willingness to explore. FELLOWS IN THE WILD We were fortunate to have a few days of incredible weather while in Canmore, and many fellows took the opportunity to go for a hike. Any hike is a great metaphor for the Fellowship – a reminder not only to trust the process, but to enjoy the journey as well as the destination.

Fellows in the Wild: 2025 Fall Fellowship Workshop Recap

Lab Fellows gathered in September for the 2025 Fall Fellowship Workshop to continue to unpack investigations into cross-cutting tensions dampening energy transition efforts and put insights gleaned into action. Fellows Demetria Zinyemba and Jennifer Young recap the workshop's highlights and provide a summary of the processes that led to the creation of the Fellowship's 2025-26 portfolio of initiatives.

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SERIES: PART 3 of 3 When a range of opportunities is on the table, spreading bets can lead to big wins — but success relies on the strategies used. Alberta can hedge across a number of emerging energy and resource sectors, yet the real challenge is where to place those bets to maximize future success. In the first and second parts of this series we introduced 16 low-emission opportunities and scratched the surface on ways to evaluate them, focusing on the potential size of their market share and whether they’re primarily domestic or export-oriented. But there’s more than one way to slice the pie and applying the right set of lenses can sharpen focus on the ones that make the most strategic sense. The opportunity landscape Alberta has traditionally been an export economy and is very likely to stay that way. But today’s geopolitical and industrial context demands a more nuanced approach than in the past. Trade volatility, shifts in U.S. policy, and changing investment trends require opportunities to be assessed not just by size, but by how well they jive with regional strengths and advantages. When matched successfully, these opportunities can also help solve for some of Canada’s broader challenges: navigating trade uncertainty, addressing infrastructure constraints, and building resilience to policy shifts. That’s where lenses come into play — a way to gauge what can work well, and where. In this study, we introduce a set of lenses designed to evaluate sectoral opportunities. When looked at together, the lenses provide a wide-angle view and a useful tool for comparative assessment showing where Alberta’s strengths can be leveraged, and offering relevant insights that might otherwise be overlooked. Lenses provide a wide-angle view and a useful tool for comparative assessment, offering relevant insights that might otherwise be overlooked And when applied individually, each lens provides a more granular way to evaluate an opportunity — soon to be further demonstrated when the full report is released. Like real lenses, they can be used to zoom out to reveal the bigger picture or zoomed in to bring specific opportunities into focus. These lenses provide a way to explore potential opportunities from multiple angles, capturing nuance, and supporting more informed decisions even amid uncertainty. And similar to how not all opportunities will work in all places, not all stakeholders will be shared on which ones to pursue. Visualizing the opportunities The heat map brings insights from the lenses together in a visual snapshot, showing how these opportunities stack up. It highlights potential across a range of key factors and shares a high-level view of each sector's value proposition, offering perspective rather than definitive recommendations. Heat map of 16 resource-based low-carbon economic opportunities by lens Lenses Providing the detail behind the heat map, looking through each lens can prompt considerations that may not traditionally factor into investment and policy decisions. And while people and players may disagree on which opportunities to pursue, the lenses not only provide a relative scale, but a means to assess both competitive potential and potential trade-offs. When combined with regional fit, these lenses help to take the analysis from what looks promising on paper to what makes sense in the real world. Lenses help to take the analysis from what looks promising on paper to what makes sense in the real world Domestic vs. export In the first part of this series we introduced this lens to examine whether an opportunity primarily serves Alberta’s domestic market or is positioned for export to North American and/or global markets. The study findings emphasize how each sector contributes to a broader low-carbon economy. Even though the Clean Energy Enablers identified in the study primarily serve the domestic market, they play a critical role; the accessibility and proximity of reliable clean energy can underpin investment in many of the export-oriented sectors. Without these enablers, the case for prioritizing other export opportunities becomes less clear, making them a foundational element of any sectoral strategy. Market potential In the second part of this series we introduced the forecasted potential of key markets for each opportunity in the decade ahead based on the market that each sector is likely to be able to sell to. A rating of ‘high’ means the annual market size is greater than $25 billion; ‘low’ means it is less than $1 billion, and ‘medium’ falls in between. It is important to note that the rating reflects only the size of the market and not the extent to which Alberta companies are likely to be successful in capturing market share. While this offers insight into where markets are heading, political and economic shifts could alter these projections. Comparative advantage This lens looks at how well Alberta is positioned for success in each sector compared to other jurisdictions competing for similar markets. Critical factors for assessing Alberta’s advantage include natural resource availability, sectoral experience and existing infrastructure. Other supporting considerations include the availability of skilled labour, research and development (R&D), incentives, regulatory frameworks, and sector roadmaps, along with the extent to which these exist or could be developed over time. Ratings reflect Alberta’s relative strengths — providing a view of where the province holds an advantage and where it doesn't presently stand out from the pack. Independence This lens considers the extent to which a sector’s success relies on other parts of the energy system. Some opportunities are relatively independent, for example solar which requires limited coordination beyond grid connection. Others, such as hydrogen, are dependent on parallel infrastructure being developed i.e. carbon capture, transportation, and customer adoption. While high interdependence does not necessarily mean an opportunity should be avoided, it highlights the complexity and potential delays involved in building a viable industry. In this context, a rating of ‘high’ indicates less dependence on other parts of the system or sector. Location flexibility How easily can sectoral projects be sited across the province? This lens considers geographic, infrastructure, and resource requirements. Some of the opportunities have high flexibility with minimal constraints, while others face more limitations e.g. needing access to water, rail, CCS infrastructure, or specific geologic conditions. Investment environment A way of evaluating the maturity of the investment environment, this lens reflects how easily private capital can be mobilized to support growth in the sector. Ratings range from early-stage to well-established, indicating whether investment pathways are emerging or already proven. While primarily focused on Alberta, relevant national or global investment dynamics are taken into account. Understanding the investment environment helps to gauge the speed at which sectors can scale. And while a well-established investment environment doesn’t guarantee project funding, it does signal that established pathways have successfully connected investment with project opportunities in the sector. For instance, investment in alternative proteins demonstrates a pathway for connecting capital with projects; whereas Alberta has seen fewer investments in minerals and metals processing to date, the sector is familiar to investors and the market potential is immense. Resilience to US policy It’s important to assess how sensitive each sector is to changes in U.S. policy or market conditions given that the United States is both a key market and a competitor. Sectors with high resilience, like Clean Energy Enablers, are less affected by U.S. policy actions such as tariffs, incentives, or production demands. In contrast, product export sectors, like green chemistry, are more exposed due to heavy integration with U.S. markets — for example, 87% of Alberta’s chemicals are sold to the U.S. Ratings reflect the degree of vulnerability and identify where Alberta businesses can operate with relative stability versus where external policy shifts could have a significant impact on competitiveness. Sharpening the focus Applying the lenses makes it possible to zoom out and get a 30,000 foot view of the landscape, revealing where opportunities make strategic sense. Where they intersect with regional strengths, interests, and priorities can point to what’s worth pursuing — and where. But this is about more than spotting potential. It’s about taking deliberate action while the opportunities are still within view. This hinges on making strategic choices while simultaneously recognizing – at the risk of sounding like a broken record – that what works in one region may not work in another. Regions will have differing priorities: job creation, resilience to policy shifts, emissions reduction, and more. For some, priorities will be influenced by a mix of factors and require “stacking” multiple lenses to get the clearest picture. Layering these lenses with regional insight brings the opportunities that matter into sharper focus, helping to see the board more clearly before placing any bets. It highlights where Alberta’s real comparative advantages lie and surfaces insights that can strengthen the province’s future economic competitiveness. #Albertas_Future_Competitiveness #Future_Economy #Regional_Pathways #2025

Coming into Focus: Lenses to Gauge Alberta’s Future Growth Opportunities

SERIES: PART 3 of 3 When a range of opportunities is on the table, spreading bets can lead to big wins — but success relies on the strategies used. Alberta can hedge across a number of emerging energy and resource sectors, yet the real challenge is where to place those bets to maximize future success. In the first and second parts of this series we introduced 16 low-emission opportunities and scratched the surface on ways to evaluate them, focusing on the potential size of their...

Read More
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