Upcoming Events
(Looking for a past events information, or presentations, click here)
Sustainability in Latin America – The Canadian Connection – April 24th – 2012
LatinCouver and Connecting Environmental Professionals are pleased to invite you for an evening of dialogue about sustainability issues in Latin America, and their connection to Canada. Are Canadian citizens and organizations able to drive positive changes in the region? Can we learn from Latin American initiatives?
To help us better understand these issues, we have invited a panel of experts who have been involved in different aspects of sustainability in Latin America, such as human rights, economic development, climate change adaptation, forestry, and mining.
Event Details:
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
Time: 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM, registration at 6:15 PM
Location: The Hive Vancouver - 128 West Hastings, Suite 210, Vancouver, BC V6B 1G8
Cost: $5 for Latincouver members (bring you user ID), CEP members, and Students (with Valid ID). $10 for Non-Members, and at the door.
Register here: http://
Visit LatinCouver at www.latincouver.ca and Connecting Environmental Professionals atwww.cepvancouver.org
Any questions please contact Oliver Lane (LatinCouver) at oliver@oliverlane.info or Alexandre Vigneault (CEP) at alexandre@3eyond.com
PANELISTS
Dr. Marcello Veiga: Mining & Health
Dr. Marcello Veiga is an Associate Professor of the Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering of the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. He has worked for the past 34 years, as a metallurgical engineer and environmental geochemist for mining and consulting companies in 21 countries. From 1977 to 1997, he was employee of the Brazilian Center of Mineral Technology, Vale do Rio Doce company, Paulo Abib Engineering and Techmat Consulting (own company). He has worked extensively on environmental and social issues related to mining. From 2002 to 2008, he has worked as an expert and Chief Technical Advisor of the Global Mercury Project for UNIDO – United Nations Industrial Development Organization, in Vienna. This includes the implementation of Environmental and Health Assessment of mercury pollution in artisanal gold mining in Asia, Africa and South America. Since 2008 he has been key consultant for the UNIDO Mercury Project in Colombia and ACME-UBC Cyanide Project in Guyana, UBC-CIDA project of eco-health in Ecuador, AngloGold Ashanti Project in Colombia, and US Dept of State project for replacing mercury in Peruvian artisanal mining.
Dr. Reem Hajjar: Community-based forest management to alleviate poverty
Dr. Reem Hajjar is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at UBC’s Faculty of Forestry. Her research and teaching interests focus on community-based forest management as a tool for alleviating poverty and promoting sustainable landscapes in developing countries. Her PhD dissertation looked at community forestry in Brazil and Mexico, where she studied power imbalances between communities and governmental and non-governmental agencies, challenges that communities face in developing and maintaining forest-based enterprises, and bottom-up approaches to development initiatives.
Séverine Debacker: Eco-tourism
Séverine Debacker has diverse international experience in project management, network building, strategic planning and communications. Originally from France, Séverine completed her MBA in International Management at Laval University in Québec in 2005. After moving to Vancouver, she has worked for the BC Francophone community in Education and Health promotion projects. Her background provided her with the opportunity to work for six months in Ecuador recently at the Ecuadorian-Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Guayaquil through the CIDA* International Youth Internship Program. Through her position as the Marketing Officer-Sustainable Tourism, she envisioned and organized the conference “Vancouver: Vision of a Green City – Planting a Seed for a Sustainable Future for Guayaquil, Ecuador”. She also had the chance to bring awareness about sustainable tourism towards Ecuadorian tourism players during her experience.
Linda Yauk : Fair Trade Vancouver
If you happen to spot a bright yellow Fair Trade banana walking around, it just might be Linda Yauk. For nearly 2 years, Linda has been volunteering with Fair Trade Vancouver in a variety of ways, from organizing events to engaging the public in a banana costume. Fair Trade Vancouver is an independent non-profit, volunteer-based organization that works to advance equality, social justice and environmental sustainability by promoting a system that respects producers and artisans around the world and highlights the importance of individual choices and how our actions (eg. consumer purchases) can contribute to building a global community. Linda’s interest in Fair Trade probably started with her passion for drinking coffee and seeing the Fair Trade label. She is also very interested in Latin America, having lived and travelled in a number of Latin American countries. When she is not busy promoting Fair Trade, Linda can be found teaching ESL to international students, exploring the outdoors, or planning her next trip.
Dr. Cecilia Roa-Garcia: Climate Change Adaptation in the Andes
Dr. Cecilia Roa-Garcia is a Postdoctoral Scholar, UBC Faculty of Land and Food Systems. Her research interests revolve around issues of environment and development in Latin America, particularly the issues of multi-scale governance of natural resources and its impact on rural communities. She has conducted participatory research in rural areas of Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Honduras.
Edna Aguinaga: Urban sustainability
Edna Aguinaga has worked in sustainability issues for over 10 years, in developing and developed countries. She is originally from Mexico. She holds a Master’s degree on Environmental Science and Technology from the UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education in The Netherlands and a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from La Salle University in Mexico. She has extensive experience with corporate and non-profit sectors and has worked and facilitated workshops in more than 25 countries. Edna’s role at Sustainable Cities is to be the main liaison with the Latin American cities, providing support for their initiatives and expanding the Network. Her areas of expertise are strategic planning, sustainability indicators, fundraising / sales and project management.
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Past Events
Can mining be sustainable? – April 4th @ The HiVE
Life Cycle Assessment: A Day of Practical Training – February 4th 2012
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Can mining be sustainable? – Wednesday April 4th 6:30PM to 9:00PM @ The HiVE
CEP is exploring the controversial topic of mining with a central question: Can mining be sustainable? Can mines be designed to reduce or even eliminate adverse impacts on water, air quality, biodiversity, land disruption, and be supported by local communities? In the search for an answer, CEP is presenting a panel of experts representing a wide range of expertise, from consultants in environmental impact assessment, to a senior mining company executive, to university academic and non-governmental organizations. The event will focus on current challenges, regulatory processes, mining methods, and best practices for the industry in Canada and abroad.
New Location: Hive Vancouer Vancouver, BC
Wednesday, April 4th, 2012, 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM, registration 6:15 pm
5$ CEP Member and students (a valid student ID must be presented at the event), 10$ for Non-Member
- Ann Pacey – Environmental Mining Consultant, Fair Trade Gold
Ann Pacey Presentation
Ann Pacey is a Chemical Engineer with 30 years of overall work experience; 20 of those in Latin America focused on environmental management and consulting, working with companies, organizations, communities, and financial institutions on improving the environmental performance of industrial activities and resource development projects. For the last 16 years, Ann has worked directly on the environmental and social impacts of extractive industries (primarily hard rock mining) with extensive experience in the exploration stages of mining. Her work includes development of environmental impact studies, closure plans and remediation efforts, and on the effective communication of technical issues to communities to enhance their ability to make informed and responsible decisions. Most recently she has been involved in human rights evaluations of mining operations (Goldcorp Marlin Mine, Guatemala) and the new Jewelry Council Fair Trade gold certification.
-Gillian Quigley-Teck
Gilian Quiqley Presentation
Gillian Quigley has 7 years’ experience working in the extractives industry. While working for ERM in the UK she focused primarily on resettlement and social performance management in West Africa. She has worked on a wide range of projects funded by both private companies and international financial institutions. Recent key projects have included a Resettlement Action Plan for a linear project in Cameroon, a Human Rights Impact Assessment for a mining company in Ghana, and the provision of Strategic Resettlement Advice to extractive companies in Kazakhstan and Bangladesh. In June 2011 Gillian started with Teck Resources as their Social Responsibility Officer. In this role, Gillian works collaboratively with operational and development sites, especially in North America, to achieve compliance with Teck’s Code of Sustainable Conduct, Environmental Health Safety Community Management Standards, Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) and other relevant commitments.
Norma Vázquez. - Silver Standard Resources Inc.
Silver Standard Presentation
Norma arrived in Canada in 2005 as a Diplomat for the Mexican Government and in 2008 joined Silver Standard Resources in the area of Social Responsibility as Director, Community Relations. Norma has devoted her knowledge and passion to direct the community relations strategy implementation throughout the Silver Standard Operations in Argentina, Mexico and most recently Peru. She spends most of her time in the field, working with community relations teams, the Andean communities and management on the development of their sustainability initiatives. Norma is a Graduate in Business Administration from Universidad Regiomontana in Mexico and is currently completing her Master’s Degree in Corporate Social Responsibility Accounting and Social Audit with the University of Barcelona. She has more than 20 years of experience working in the private and public sectors in Mexico, Canada and the US.
Janet Mackenzie – Stantec
After spending nearly a decade in government, including positions within the environmental assessment departments of both provincial and federal governments, Janet joined Stantec’s Environmental Services division as a senior consultant and regulatory specialist, where she manages projects through environmental assessment processes. She also provides strategic advice and aboriginal consultation expertise to her clients and colleagues. Her vision is to take major projects from concept to reality in an environmentally sustainable and socially responsible manner.
John Meech - Professor of Mining and Mineral Process Engineering (UBC) and Director of CERM3
John A Meech Presentation
Dr. Meech is a professor in the Department of Mining and Mineral Process Engineering at the University of British Columbia. He is also the director of CERM3, the Centre for Environmental Research in Minerals, Metals, and Materials. The centre is specifically working on several new methodologies to mine more effectively and efficiently with regard to economic, technical, social and environmental concerns. A graduate of McGill University and Queen’s University, Dr. Meech spent 4 years in Zambia with Roan Consolidated Mines Ltd working on R&D projects in milling and smelting. In 1974, he joined the Mining Department at Queen’s University, Kingston, On. In 1989, Dr. Meech joined UBC. His research interests in mineral processing, mercury pollution in the Amazon, and mining method selection.
Moderator – Robert Walker-
Robert Walker is the Vice President of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Services for NEI Investments, an investment management company with approximately $5 billion in assets under management. NEI manages Ethical Funds, Canada’s largest socially responsible mutual fund family. Working out of the Vancouver office, Robert leads a 10-person team responsible for implementing NEI’s ESG Investing Program, a set of activities designed to enhance risk-adjusted returns to investors and contribute to the creation of long term sustainable value. Core elements of the program include corporate ESG performance evaluations, corporate engagement, and creating a public policy environment conducive to ESG investing and corporate sustainability.
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Life Cycle Assessment: A Day of Practical Training
Saturday February 4th 2012, 9:00 AM to 5:00PM
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a technique to assess environmental and social impacts associated with all the stages of a product or service’s life (from material extraction to usage and disposal). LCA aims at offering tools to make decisions both in our workplace and within our day-to-day consumptions habits. This full day workshop will allow participants to understand the structure of LCA and to make critical judgement on the quality of LCA studies, environmental product declarations, and carbon neutrality claims.
No previous knowledge of LCA is required.
The training will be performed by members of the LCA Alliance team . The LCA alliance is a network of LCA professionals based at the University of British Columbia – Vancouver. See below for short bios.
Only 30 seats available, Register early.
Cost*: (includes lunch** and refreshments)
CEP members: $115 (to become a member (30$ life membership))
Nom members: $150
*limited amount of student bursaries available upon request
**vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free options available
Click here to register http://lcatraining.eventbrite.ca/?ebtv=C
See program agenda below.
Where: UBC Robson Square, Vancouver, 800 Robson Street , Room C100
When: Saturday February 4th 2012, 9:00 AM to 5:00PM
Who: Anyone who wants to start using LCA at work or for their daily life choices. We will adjust our training according to your interests. Printed handout and electronic copy of our material will be available for participants.
Rob Sianchuk is a life cycle assessment (LCA) practitioner with four years experience teaching, advising and practicing LCA in industry and academia. Mr. Sianchuk currently consults as a Research Associate with the Athena Sustainable Materials Institute and as a Principal of Coldstream Consulting with professional affiliations to the University of British Columbia, as a Sessional Lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department and as a Instructor in Continuing Studies.
Alexandre Vigneault is a PhD candidate at UBC in the field of clean energy and distributed hydrogen production. Since 2007, he has been performing LCA on a range of household eco-products, as well as carbon footprints for events and business activities. Alexandre works as a consultant for Raincity Strategies and Beyond Climate Solutions.
For more information, please email Alexandre: alexandre@beyondclimatesolutions.com
