Name
Concurrent Workshops
Date & Time
Tuesday, October 6, 2026, 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM
Speakers
Description
- Changing the Conversation - Communicating Energy Poverty in Canada
Nearly 2 million Canadian households experience energy poverty, struggling to afford or access the energy needed to maintain healthy, comfortable homes. The burden falls disproportionately on vulnerable groups, including seniors, renters, newcomers, and single-parent families. Despite its growing prevalence, energy poverty remains inconsistently defined in Canada, creating barriers to awareness, policy action, and access to support. This workshop will examine how effective communication and public engagement can connect research, policy, programs, and communities to build understanding, strengthen support, and drive meaningful, long-term solutions.
- Breaking the cycle - stable policies for energy affordability, deep retrofits, and good jobs
Reducing emissions from existing buildings is essential to meeting Canada’s climate goals, yet adoption of proven retrofit technologies such as heat pumps, insulation, and air sealing remains too slow. The start-stop-start cycle of deep retrofit incentive programs has created uncertainty for contractors, disrupted workforce development, and slowed market growth. This workshop will explore how insights from industry practitioners, combined with stable policy and workforce strategies, can accelerate building decarbonization while supporting healthy communities and good jobs.
Ceileigh McAllister, Arctic Energy Alliance & University of Waterloo
- Non-Energy Benefits for Equitable Retrofit Programs and Energy Affordability
Motivations for retrofits often extend beyond energy efficiency. When building improvements also address priorities such as health, safety, affordability, and housing stability, support for investment is strengthened. This workshop will explore how non-energy benefits (NEBs) can help build the case for energy poverty solutions, highlighting emerging research and approaches to measuring these impacts. Participants will discuss opportunities for collaboration, shared data, and standardized methodologies that can strengthen advocacy, unlock funding, and support more equitable program outcomes across Canada.