Mobilizing Citizens on Climate Change with Digital Media
Thursday Oct 13th 2016
University of British Columbia hosted a symposium focused on social mobilization on climate change using powerful digital tools. The Symposium brought together government, industry leaders, NGOs, educators and researchers, pooling their expertise on engagement, learning, behaviour change, gaming, and visual media, to strategize on fostering climate change literacy and action. The timing is critical as jurisdictions in Canada and beyond develop climate action plans to meet their commitments under the Paris Agreement. This event showcased a broad range of innovative digital tools, shared the latest research findings and best practices, and developed strategies for scaling up community and youth engagement on climate change.
Morning agenda:
UBC researchers and partners presented effective and emerging communication tools and engagement programs. Speakers highlighted action research outcomes, lessons learned, evidence-based recommendations on what works, and innovations under development (such as augmented reality, video games, thermal imaging, and citizen science).
Afternoon agenda:
Facilitated break-out sessions was used to identify critical knowledge gaps and interdisciplinary research priorities, and develop new partnerships for scaled-up implementation. The event culminated in targeted strategies for social mobilization on climate change using digital tools.
Symposium Agenda
Keynote Speaker – Jonathan Wilkinson
Jonathan Wilkinson is the Member of Parliament for North Vancouver and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change.
Prior to being elected, Jonathan spent 20+ successful years as a senior business leader and executive. He has extensive experience in the energy and environmental technology sectors, having served as CEO of QuestAir Technologies and BioteQ Environmental Technologies, as well as Senior Vice-President of Business Development for Nexterra.
A Rhodes Scholar, Jonathan holds Masters Degrees from Oxford University and McGill University. Early in his career, he worked as a constitutional negotiator and a federal-provincial relations specialist.
Jonathan has served on numerous industry and charitable boards, including B.C. Technology Industries Association Chair, United Way of the Lower Mainland Cabinet Committee Chair and Board member and Treasurer of the Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation.
He lives in North Vancouver with his wife Tara and their two teenaged daughters.
Keynote Speaker – Joyce Murray
Joyce Murray is the Member of Parliament for Vancouver Quadra and Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board . Ms. Murray was first elected to Parliament in 2008. She has served on Standing Committees on Trade, Health, Fisheries and Oceans, Environment and Sustainable Development, and Defence. Her legislative work includes presenting a Bill banning crude oil tanker traffic from BC’s North Coast; and a Bill to increase accountability and transparency of Canada’s Communication Security Establishment (CSE). Before entering federal politics, Ms. Murray was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, serving as a cabinet minister in the BC Liberal government from 2001 to 2005. This followed 25 years spent building an international reforestation company she co-founded that has planted over one billion trees. She was awarded the SFU Deans Medal for top MBA graduate of 1992, for her thesis on climate change policy.
Presentation Files:
- Joyce Murray – Greening Federal Government Operations An Overview
- Stephen Sheppard – Cool Tools for a Warming World
- Daniel Kreeger – Integrating Climate Change Into Decision Making
- Tzeporah Berman – The Social Network
- Alicia Lavalle – Future Delta 2.0 – A Place-Based Educational Videogame for Social Mobilization on Climate Change
- Adam Fenech – Coastal Impacts Visualization Environment
- Maged Senbel – Social Mobilization for Climate Change Action Through Multiple Pathways of Engagement
- David Fracchia – The Center for Digital Media
- Leslie Alden – What’s the World Coming To? Using VR To Imagine the Future
- Tammy Meyers &; Miles Marziani (QuestUpon) – Innovative Educational Tools
- Tarah Stafford – Thermal
Confirmed speakers and panelists to date include:
- Dr. Stephen Sheppard – Director of UBC’s Collaborative for Advanced Landscape Planning (CALP)
- Dr. Sybil Seitzinger – Director of Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS)
- Daniel Kreeger – Executive Director, Association of Climate Change Officers
- Dr. Tzeporah Berman – Author and Environmental Activist
- Dr. David Fracchia – Centre for Digital Media
- Dr. Stephen Petrina – UBC Faculty of Education, Media and Technology Studies
- Dr. Jiaying Zhao – UBC Department of Psychology, climate change perceptions & behaviour change
- Dr. Aleksandra Dulic – UBCO, Centre for Culture and Technology, arts and social engagement
- Samsara Marriott – Science World, Youth Program Specialist
- Alicia LaValle – UBC Future Delta 2.0 team, climate change video game, co-design & evaluation
- Dr. Adam Fenech – University of PEI – CoastaL Impact Visualization Environment (CLIVE)
- Dr. Maged Senbel – University of British Columbia, “Do it in the Dark”
- Leslie Alden – County of Marin Government, “The OWL Project” on sea level rise
- Tarah Stafford – West Vancouver ‘Cool Neighbourhoods’, Thermal imaging for social engagement
- Tammy Meyers and Miles Marziani – QuestUpon Augmented Reality
Happened At:
BC Hydro Decision Theatre
Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS)
2260 West Mall, UBC
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z7
Hosted By:
The Collaborative for Advanced Landscape Planning at UBC with support from UBC Research & International Office, Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, MITACS and SSHRC.
