In this episode we share our favourite sections and topics of Homing including staying awake for the revolution, emphasizing care as a radical community endeavor, the importance of nurturing, self-sufficiency, and resilience in children for an uncertain future, and the need for feminist and feminine approaches to climate action, emphasizing care, collaboration, and creativity.

Mihskakwan James Harper, a proud citizen of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation in Treaty 8, Alberta, is passionate about energy storage and how this technology can support decarbonizing the grid and offer opportunities for meaningful engagement with Indigenous people and economic reconciliation for First Nations and Indigenous communities. Mihskakwan shares his vision for what an energy transition could look like if we get it right and how kinship and identify support his joy, motivation, and work in the sector. 

Jinhwa Hwong Ambrose shares a framework for how we can each discover our own unique, joyful experience and offering to the diverse tapestry of climate solutions we need. It’s a refreshing, practical and supportive approach.

The panelists shared how they care for these powerful emotions within these challenging contexts, how these emotions fuel their work and can impact their workplaces. Finally, ideas were shared on how we can do things differently to care for ourselves so that we can continue to have the resources and vitality necessary to do the work of these times.

Kim Nicholas’ book, Under the Sky We Make: How to be Human in a Warming World, was the book that had the most impact on me in 2022. It woke me up to the urgency of the climate crisis in a way that I hadn’t felt before. Specifically, how laser focused we need to be on eliminating fossil fuel consumption and extraction for a livable planet for humans. Period. Dr. Kim Nicholas, a climate scientist at Lund University in Sweden, is ringing the alarm bell and connecting with the issue and the solutions in new ways - often through personal storytelling and even poetry. Calling on all of us to go beyond-net-zero to actual zero. She acknowledges the need to centre voices, perspectives and solutions that aren’t typically at the centre if we are going to solve this crisis. It’s a hard topic. These are not easy truths to grapple with. But there are solutions. Take a listen to this episode. Pick up her book. Get shook up. Then let’s get to work and stay well and resilient, so we can fix it.

Jordyn Burnouf, an Indigenous leader in clean energy, climate and community divides her time between many impactful pursuits including advising the Vice President of the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan, Co-Charing Student Energy’s SevenGen Indigenous Youth Energy Summit, starting a new podcast with the David Suzuki Foundation, advising Efficiency Canada and getting out onto the land as a guide with her family’s land-based camp. Being connected to the land is an important influence for Jorydn’s work and she shares in this episode about what’s at risk when we lose our connection to land and it’s teachings, using getting out onto the land as an example: “You need to get out on a canoe and you need to struggle for hours, and there's lessons in that. You need to get outside and be rained on, you know, you need to get outside and experience the earth for all her beauty and all of that struggle, because that's, that's what it's really about.” Jordyn shares why Indigenous perspectives, knowledge and leadership matter for a just, clean energy transition and what she thinks the biggest opportunity for non-Indigenous people is to learn from Indigenous teachings on the topic of climate. Be sure to follow Jordyn on Instagram and Twitter and visit her website: https://jordynburnouf.com/

Inspired by what Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Dr. Katharine Wilkinson’s are calling a renaissance in climate leadership that is “more characteristically feminine and more faithfully feminist, rooted in compassion, connection, creativity and collaboration…open to people of any gender”, this episode explores the significance of feminine and feminist leadership in climate work in Canada – from the community to the global stage. You will hear the voices of Britt Wray, Jordyn Burnouf, Kim Nicholas, Shawna Henderson, Desiree Norweigan and Miranda Baksh speak about how they are experiencing in their climate work, including the importance of feeling our climate emotions, how empathy and emotional intelligence are critical when negotiating climate policy, how the feminine can help hold space for diverse voices and bodies in organizations and businesses results in unique and the valuable collaborations and solutions, and finally what feminist approaches can teach us about emotional resilience during these challenging times. The episode closes with Dr. Katharine Wilkinson explaining how the poem "Natural Resources" by the feminist poet Adrienne Rick helped unlock the title of the book All We Cna Save. She shares beautifully that “Our hearts have to be broken by all we cannot save, all that's already lost, all that will be lost. And, our hearts have to be moved by all that we still can save together”.

Today’s episode is all about how to talk about climate and why it matters. #TalkClimateToMe

Quinn Parker, CEO of Encolor, shares what sparked her to set out to make the energy sector more equitable, diverse, inclusive and socially just. Not a small undertaking. She is now six months into running this business and the response, the work, and how she and her family feel about it, well, it’s not quite what she imagined it would be.

Dr. Emily Eaton, Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of Regina, finds hope in the prospect of systemic changes like decarbonization, decolonization and democratization for a just, clean energy transition.

Energy planning for a small, remote, isolated utility with a grid in a geography and climate that are really not for the faint of heart, requires grit, efficiency, innovation and community support.

Katherine Sparkes and I talk about a range of topics from the relevancy of distributed energy resources (DERs) in the future of Ontario’s energy mix, the importance of equity and affordability in Ontario’s electricity market and insights on what’s it’s like to be - at times - the only woman in a room in this industry. She highlights the importance of diversity in this sector and emphasizes the value that diverse backgrounds, cultures, genders and professional experiences bring to the table and reflects on strategies to integrate diversity into innovative solutions.

On this episode I speak with Fatima Crerar, the Vice President of Strategy and Partnerships at The Atmospheric Fund.   Recorded in February of 2020, we chatted about change (maybe ironically – given the deep layers of systematic change that were coming barreling at us unknowingly). We talked about change in the context of climate, carbon and gender, and what is going to be required to make the necessary pivots to a low carbon future and why it is hard for organizations, cities, movements and markets to change.  She shared insights on the importance of using our voices as citizens and as women. Needed now more than ever, this conversation provides a healthy dose of inspiration and tact. It was an absolute joy and privilege to bring you this conversation, may it serve you well.  

In this episode I speak with Carmen Henriquez, co-director, producer and filmmaker of Power to the People, a a TV doc series airing on APTN until the end of April 2020 that shares hopeful stories from First Nations across Canada who are creating renewable and clean energy solutions for their communities that work. Not only is host Melina Laboucan-Massimo a strong indigenous woman, entrepreneur and activist, many of the leaders of these projects are also young, indigenous woman. Carmen and I speak about why that is so important right now. http://powertothepeople.tv/about/

We talk about why partnerships matter in the work of energy conservation, and particularly low income programming, which strategic partnerships are most important for Enbridge to be building right now and Erika also shares what technologies, resources and strategies Enbridge is investigating as we work towards a low carbon future in Canada.

I sat down with Raegan at the Dunsky offices in liberty village in Toronto and we explored within this context of the clean energy transition how the rules, programs and opportunities are changing – how we need to move beyond switching out lightbulbs and look to renewables, energy storage, fuel switching, electric vehicles and demand response to start to move the needle even further. I layer in some questions on equity, diversity, gender and leadership. On the personal front I ask Raegan about mentoring, coaching and what keeps her focused and passionate about working on these issues. It was a real pleasure chatting with Raegan and I hope you enjoy it too!

I sat down with Corey at the Efficiency Canada offices in Toronto in August, and we cover quite a bit of ground. We talk about gender equality and leadership, what Efficiency Canada is doing to lead on gender equality and ensure equal pay, equal leadership and equal opportunity for women within Efficiency Canada and beyond. You will find out what got Corey hooked on working in the sustainability sector originally and we learn what has surprised him about working in the advocacy industry. He shares insights on the role he sees for financing and partnering with banks and green banks in the future on energy efficiency as well as the opportunity and new role that municipalities are going to have in the future as they take on more climate action work. Finally, I am always curious what inspires people and also what keeps them grounded and focused – so Corey and I chat about what keeps him rocking. It's a super fun conversation – I really would expect nothing less from him. I hope you enjoy it!

A focused dose of hope, insight and practical steps that we can take as citizens to elevate environmental and climate protection specifically in this upcoming Canadian federal election but also going forward as active citizens for our planet. 

We talk about the future of the energy efficiency industry, how the changing market is transforming Summerhill’s business and Ersilia's perspective on women, leadership and courage.