Industry experts and government officials discuss opportunities, investment and policies at 2016 ONEIA Environment and Cleantech Business and Policy Forum
ONEIA’s 2016 Environment and Cleantech Business and Policy Forum, held on May 17, attracted more than 160 members, guests, industry experts and government officials to the Double Tree by Hilton Hotel in downtown Toronto. The timing could not have been better for our theme “High Stakes, Low Carbon: The Business of Climate Change in Ontario. Please CLICK HERE for Pictures of the day. For copies of presentations, please see below.Just two days before the Legislature was set to pass the province’s new climate change legislation into law, the Deputy Minister of the Environment and Climate Change and the Deputy Minister of Northern Development and Mines sat down for more than an hour of frank and off-the-record discussions with attendees on the implications of Ontario’s new program. They discussed some of the program priorities in their departments and emphasized the key role that cleantech innovation and private sector environmental services will play in meeting the province’s greenhouse gas reduction targets.
The day started with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce offering both its support for cap and trade and its concern that we take the time to get it right. The rest of the morning was devoted to an examination of the business opportunities that will attend the transition to a low carbon economy. Representatives from several major industries shared the challenges they will be facing and the help they will need in ensuring compliance.
We also tested out an innovative Pecha Kucha format – it means “chit chat” in Japanese – to allow seven environmental and cleantech firms to explain (in just six minutes and forty seconds apiece!) how to build business and overcome barriers in meeting the climate change challenge. Presentations of the Pecha Kucha session can be found below.
The afternoon was spent in a series of roundtable discussions on some of the most pressing environmental issues of the day, including the evolving brownfields regulatory regime, recent upgrades to the environmental approvals process, the coming investments in water infrastructure, and the role organics will play in a the new “waste free” Ontario.
ONEIA members got invaluable insight into current government plans from top Ministry bureaucrats and, in turn, were able to offer their suggestions and concerns directly to the officials that are handling the waste, water, brownfields, excess soil and climate change files. Members of ONEIA’s advocacy subcommittees were also able to refine their ‘action agendas’ on these issues for the coming months.
Finally, a special thank you to the planning committee that spent months pulling together the program and, more importantly, attracting a full roster of top decision-makers, as well as all our sponsors. A full report on the Forum will appear in our next newsletter.
Please click the following links to view some of the Pecha Kucha presentations:
Kevin Bossy, Bishop Water Technologies
Darren Fry, Walker Environmental Group
