A convergence of factors – climate change, geopolitical conflict and inflationary pressures – has brought the debate on how to balance sustainability with security, prosperity and social impact into much sharper focus. The linkages between these historical forces make for a complicated set of scenarios facing national climate transition strategies. Our Symposium today brings subject matter experts from public policy, finance, enterprise, extractive industries, historians and other relevant disciplines to discuss the interplay of these forces on our present and future. Our hope is that we can shed light and generate insight on what is, perhaps, the most urgent long-run question of our time: ensuring planetary health while building a prosperous, equitable future for communities and nations.

A synopsis of this Chatham House Rule event can be found below.

The LRI is indebted to our co-sponsors, BMO Climate Institute. Led by a multidisciplinary team with climate-related expertise, the Institute leads BMO’s efforts to convene stakeholders, information and best practices at the intersection of climate adaptation and finance, and drive thought leadership to advance the low-carbon transition and enhance resilience.

We extend our thanks to the Honorary Co-Chair and Patron of this Symposium, Her Honour V. Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Ontario. Her Honour’s engagement with the issue of climate change has a long and illustrious pedigree. We thank her for her gracious hospitality and the opportunity to hold the Symposium in the splendid surroundings of her suite at Queen’s Park.

Of course, it cannot all end here today. Our respective institutions are, therefore, planning ways of keeping this meaningful conversation going in the coming months. We hope you will join us.

Patron and Honorary Co-Chair

• The Honourable V. Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Ontario,

Co-Chairs

• Mr. Simon A. Fish, Chair, BMO Climate Institute
• Dr. Laurence B. Mussio, Chair, Long Run Institute

Keynotes

• William A. Downe, C.M., Former CEO, BMO Financial Group
• Dr. Geoffrey G. Jones, Isidor Straus Professor of Business History, Harvard University

Panelists

• Sonia Baxendale, President and CEO, Global Risk Institute
• James Bradshaw, Banking Reporter, The Globe and Mail (Moderator)
• Derek Evans, President and CEO, MEG Energy Corp.
• Josée Guibord, CEO, Evolugen
• Janine Guillot, CEO, Value Reporting Foundation; Special Advisor to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)
• Dr. Sarah Kaplan, Director, Institute for Gender and the Economy, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
• Professor Juliette Kayyem, Belfer Senior Lecturer in International Security, Harvard University
• John H. Kousinioris, President, CEO and Corporate Director, TransAlta and TransAlta Renewables
• Paul Rochon, Executive Advisor, Deloitte Canada; Former Deputy Minister of Finance (Canada)
• Dr. Ruth Sandwell, Professor, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto
• David Walmsley, Editor-in-Chief, The Globe and Mail (Moderator)

Have a question? Please contact us at events@longruninstitute.com