So German!
The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany and its partners present the 10th Ottawa Climate Talk: Zero Emission Vehicles and the Decarbonization of the Transportation Sector
With opening remarks by H.E. Sabine Sparwasser, German Ambassador and a keynote speech by Christian Hochfeld, Director of Agora Verkehrswende
Followed by a panel discussion with:
Sidney Ribaux, Cofounder and Executive Director of Équiterre
Moderator: Erin Flanagan, Program Director Federal Policy, Pembina Institute
For many developed countries, reducing vehicle emissions is essential to meeting their climate commitments. Zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs) promise to make our neighborhoods quieter, our air cleaner and our lives more sustainable. However, as green mobility innovation moves forward, many countries and communities still face challenges relating to infrastructure, connectivity and incentive policy. At the same time, international collaboration on ZEV policy is becoming more urgent, yet more challenging. This panel will discuss the role of governance in the transition to lowering transport emissions. The focus will be on how can governments set the right conditions and avoid roadblocks for a swift and smooth transition to ZEVs.
Bringing together experts from government, academia and the private sector, the panel for the 10th Ottawa climate talk will discuss the challenges and opportunities of greening the transport sector.
About Christian Hochfeld: From 1996 to 2004, Dipl.-Ing. Christian Hochfeld worked on environmental and climate protection in traffic as a research assistant at the Oeko-Institut, a research institute for applied ecology. He was a member of the management team of Oeko-Institut from 2004 to 2010. Christian Hochfeld then worked as a programme director for sustainable traffic in China at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) a leading provider of international cooperation services for sustainable development. He has been the Managing Director of Agora Verkehrswende, an initiative of Stiftung Mercator and the European Climate Foundation, since February 2016. Christian Hochfeld has been a member of the International Advisory Committee of the China Association for Electric Vehicles (China EV 100) since 2015.
About Agora Verkehrswende: The activity of Agora Verkehrswende revolves around societal discourse on environmentally friendly, sustainable ways to develop the traffic sector. Its highly decorated council, featuring representatives from the fields of civil society, politics, economics and science, provides a central forum for this dialogue. The discussions of the council are complemented by public workshops and conferences and lay the basis for insightful academic analysis. In 2017, Agora published the in-depth report ’Transforming Transport to Ensure Tomorrow’s Mobility – 12 Insights into the Verkehrswende’, an essential read for anyone wishing to understand Germany’s path toward green mobility.
About Sidney Ribaux: Sidney helped found Equiterre in 1993 and chaired the Board of Directors until 1998. Since then, as executive director, he has been involved in all of the organization’s activities, from development, to implementation, to funding. His passion for urban planning led him to chair the Montreal Regional Council on the Environment from 1996 to 2003. He also participated in efforts to increase funding for public transit in Quebec, as well as in Canada’s ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. In 2007, he received a fellowship from Ashoka, an international organization that recognizes and supports social entrepreneurs. In 2009, he received the first Canadian Award for Environmental Innovation from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. He is also an honorary fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. Sidney also spearheaded and chairs the Centre for Sustainable Development, which is one of the greenest buildings in Canada, as well as a hub for social and environmental groups.
About Erin Flanagan: Erin Flanagan is the director of the Pembina Institute’s federal policy program. She researches and advocates for policies that reduce the environmental impacts of fossil fuel and related infrastructure projects, and that support Canada’s transition to clean energy. As a technical analyst at the Institute, Erin contributed to public- and private-sector projects on a range of issues in the oilsands, including greenhouse gas and water management, land-use planning, tailings treatment and reclamation. Her analysis has appeared in outlets such as the Globe and Mail, the Financial Post and the New York Times. As a frequent spokesperson for the Institute, she appears regularly on CBC, Global and CTV news and current affairs television programs. Erin holds a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering with a minor in public policy from the University of New Brunswick. Her contributions to technical and humanitarian issues have been highlighted by organizations including the Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation, the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of New Brunswick and the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering.
