I can be followed on Twitter at: @MarkJaccard
Internationally, I contributed to
assessment reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. My most recent
contribution to the IPCC was as a lead author on the 2011 IPCC Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate ChangeMitigation. I was also convening lead author for the chapter on sustainable
energy policy in the monumental 2012 Global Energy Assessment – a five year international collaboration of leading
energy experts. I have contributed since 1994 to the China Council forInternational Cooperation on Environment and Development. My latest mission for
the council was to co-chair a task force on sustainable use of coal. We
presented our recommendations to the Chinese premier in November 2009, just
prior to his departure for the Copenhagen climate conference. I have also
provided advice to policy makers in other countries, including the United
States, France, Brazil, Hungary, Abu Dhabi and Mexico.
Nationally, I have been a research fellow
with the C.D. Howe Institute, producing evaluations and recommendations on
Canadian climate policy. I was appointed by the Canadian government to a
three-year term (2006-2009) on the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy, an advisory body on sustainability. Having my own consulting
company for over 25 years, I and my staff have provided advice on energy and
climate policy to departments of the Canadian government, related agencies
(such as the Auditor General and the National Climate Change Program), industrial
organizations, corporations, non-governmental organizations, and provincial and
territorial governments.
Locally, I chaired over 40 regulatory
hearings while at the utilities commission, as well as leading special inquiries
into energy efficiency, fuel pricing and incentive-based rate-making. I also
chaired a one-year task force on electricity market reform in B.C. in 1997-98,
and virtually all of my recommendations were implemented by the provincial
government in 2003. This model was also adopted by Quebec, whose government I advised
at the time. I
I have over 100 academic publications (see Energy and Materials Research Group). My
research is mostly focused on the design and application of large computer
models that simulate the likely effect of policies to shift the economy to a
more sustainable energy path. My innovations in developing what are now
referred to as hybrid energy-economy models played a key role in my selection in
2009 as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. My main model, called CIMS, is
applied frequently to Canada and the US, and sometimes to other countries.
I frequently engage with the general public
in sustainable energy issues through my writing and other media activities –
interviews on radio, TV and in the print media. My co-authored 2002 book, The Cost of Climate Policy, won the
Policy Research Institute award for best policy book in Canada and was
shortlisted for the Donner Prize. My 2005 book, Sustainable Fossil Fuels, won the Donner Prize for best policy book
in Canada. In 2007, I co-authored Hot Air
with Globe and Mail columnist Jeffrey Simpson. My latest book entitled The Citizen's Guide to Climate Success: Overcoming Myths that Hinder Progress will be published early in 2020. This book focuses on how to overcome human psychological traits that hinder our
ability to act effectively on the global warming threat.
My scholarly work and engagement with the
public and policy makers has been recognized numerous times. One notable award
was to be named the British Columbian Academic of the Year by the association
of British Columbian faculty members in 2008.
