UBC experts on Earth Day 2023

Credit: NASA / Unsplash
Credit: NASA / Unsplash
On April 22, the world will celebrate Earth Day under the theme "Invest in Our Planet." UBC experts are available to comment.

Sustainable living

Dr. Alex Bigazzi
Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering

Interview language(s): English
  • Cycling and e-bikes, active transportation, micro-mobility, GHG emissions from transportation


*available weekdays during work hours

Dr. Johan Foster
Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering

Interview language(s): English
  • Bio-based polymers and composites, recycling of plastics, biodegradable materials and packaging


Robert Godin Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, UBC Okanagan

Email:  robert.godin@ubc.ca
Interview language(s): English, French
  • Solar energy, green chemistry


*available April 19 from 1-4 p.m., April 20 all day and April 21 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Dr. Emily Kennedy
Associate Professor, Department of Sociology

Interview language (s): English
  • Sustainable and green consumption, alternative food initiatives, gender and politics in environmentalism


Dr. Gord Lovegrove (he/him)
Associate Professor, School of Engineering, UBC Okanagan

Interview language(s): English
  • Sustainable transportation and planning, transportation demand management, social cost benefit analyses


Dr. Lorien Nesbitt (she/her)
Assistant Professor, Department of Forest Resources Management

Interview language(s): English, Spanish
  • Urban greening, urban forestry, environmental and climate justice


*available April 19-21 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Environment and economy

Werner Antweiler
Associate Professor, Sauder School of Business

Interview language(s): English
  • Sustainability investments, electricity infrastructure, hydrogen, critical minerals, and electrification of mobility


Christie Stephenson (she/her)
Executive Director, Peter P. Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics, Sauder School of Business
/ 778’918 -332

Interview language(s): English
  • Impact investing, socially responsible investment, sustainable development


*unavailable April 19 from 10:30 a.m.-noon and after 5 p.m., April 20 from 3-4:30 p.m. and after 5 p.m., April 21 from 10-11 a.m.

Dr. U. Rashid Sumalia (he/him)
University Killam Professor, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and School of Public Policy and Global Affairs

Interview language(s): English, Hausa, Norwegian
  • Blue economy, sustainable and just ocean systems, fisheries economics


*available before April 21

Environment, society and governance

Jessica Dempsey (she/her)
PhD candidate, Department of Geography

Interview language(s): English
  • Political economy of biodiversity loss; environmental law and policy; international environmental agreements; financial mechanisms


Dr. Kathryn Harrison (she/her)
Professor, Department of Political Science

Interview language(s): English
  • Getting off household gas, carbon pricing, environmental politics, climate change policy, greenhouse effect


Dr. Tara Ivanochko
Professor of teaching, Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences

Interview language(s): English
  • Climate studies and action certificate


*available April 19 from 10-11 a.m., April 20 from 11 a.m.-noon, April 21 from 2-4 p.m.

Dr. Daniel Steel (he/him)
Associate Professor, School of Population and Public Health

Interview language(s): English
  • Ethics of climate change, and risks of societal collapse


David Tindall
Professor, Department of Sociology

Interview language(s): English
  • Social aspects of the environment and climate change, public opinion on the environment and climate change, protest over environmental and climate change issues, environmental and climate justice

Environmental law

Natasha Affolder (she/her)
Professor, Peter A. Allard School of Law

Interview language(s): English
  • International environmental law, climate law


Temitope Onifade (he/him)
PhD candidate, Peter A. Allard School of Law

Interview language(s): English, Yoruba, English-based pidgin
  • Law, regulation and governance of low-carbon transition technologies, finance and impacts

Wildlife, biodiversity and conservation

Peter Arcese (he/him)
Professor, FRBC Chair in Applied Conservation Biology, Department of Forest and Conservation Sciences
(email or text first)

Interview language(s): English
  • Conservation, finance, biodiversity, forests, birds


Dr. Kai Chan (he/him)
Professor, Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability and the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries
Canada Research Chair, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Interview language(s): English
  • Wildlife, ecosystem services, climate change and its ecological impacts, human action and social transformation, environmental policy


Dr. Gabriel Reygondeau
Research Scientist, Institute for Ocean and Fisheries

Interview language(s): English, French
  • Marine biodiversity, marine protected area, blue economy, climate change, fisheries


*available April 19-21

Dr. John S. Richardson (he/him)
Professor, Faculty of Forestry

Interview language(s): English
  • Water, forests, and biodiversity


Dr. Sean Smukler (he/him)
Associate Professor, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
Director, Centre for Sustainable Food Systems

Interview language(s): English
  • Agricultural adaption to and mitigation of climate breakdown

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