黄色直播

Fall 2025 Term

ESS Lecture Series

Since 2010, the College of Sustainability has hosted a weekly ESS (Environment, Sustainability and Society) Lecture Series that is open to the public. Local and international scholars, journalists, social activists, artists, public intellectuals, and elders share their wisdom and experience on wide-ranging topics related to environmental sustainability, social justice, Indigenous perspectives, and the impacts of the climate crisis.

The series is currently presented in a hybrid format, with most speakers presenting live and in-person as well as livestreaming to Zoom.

Unless otherwise noted, all lectures run Thursday evenings 7:15-8:30 PM in Potter Auditorium, Rowe Management building (6100 University Avenue). All welcome. Free of charge.

To attend virtually via Zoom, please write to sustlife@dal.ca听in advance for the Zoom link.

Thursday 4 September 2025 - Environment, Sustainability & Society (ESS) Orientation & Welcome Back event

New and returning SUST students are invited to join us at the Mona Campbell Building atrium (1459 Lemarchant Street) from 7:00-8:30pm for snacks, music, and fun sustainability swag and prizes. Make friends, get to know your student societies, and meet staff members from the College of Sustainability!

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Thursday 11 September 2025 -听Art of City Building

Shin-pei Tsay, Chief Research & Data Officer for City of Boston

*LECTURE CANCELLED DUE TO ONGOING LABOUR DISPUTE*

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Thursday 18 September 2025 - ESS Alumni Panel Discussion

*LECTURE CANCELLED DUE TO ONGOING LABOUR DISPUTE*

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Thursday 25 September 2025 - The Future of Global Health: Grave Risk and Persistent Hope

Stephanie Nolen, New York Times


Stephanie Nolen听is听a Canadian journalist and writer and is the Global Health Reporter for听the New York Times. She has reported on conflict and development issues from more than 80 countries around the world. She reported for the Globe and Mail for more than two decades as the bureau chief in South Asia, Africa and Latin America. She is a seven-time听National Newspaper Award winner and听an eight-time recipient of the Amnesty International Award for Human Rights Reporting. Her book on Africa's AIDS pandemic,听28: Stories of AIDS in Africa,听was published in 10 countries and six languages, and nominated for the 2007 Governor General's Literary Award.听

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Thursday 2 October 2025 -How to Be Hopeful: Empowering Practices to Overcome Despair and Act for Climate Justice

elin kelsey
Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society鈥斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌�
elin kelsey has an unwavering commitment to fostering agency and empowerment to counter the emotional and climate justice consequences of environmental despair. She has served as a visiting fellow at the Rachel Carson Center for the Environment and Society, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Kone Foundation, the Salish Sea Institute, the Cairns Institute and Stanford University.听

elin is an Adjunct Faculty member of the University of Victoria School of Environmental Studies, and Western Washington University鈥檚 School of Environment. She regularly leads workshops for environmental organizations, youth climate activists, educators and community groups on evidence-based hope and serves as an author/artist in residence for schools around the world.

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Thursday 9 October 2025 - Thanksgiving Weekend (NO LECTURE)

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Thursday 16 October 2025 -听Built to Last? Infrastructure in the Climate Era

Erin Taylor
Director of Adaptation and Resilience; Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada

Erin Taylor is the Director of the Adaptation and Resilience Division with Infrastructure Canada.听 Erin鈥檚 team leads climate adaptation and resilience policy and guidance development that informs infrastructure programming and advances climate resilient public infrastructure investment, including the development and implementation of the infrastructure theme of the National Adaptation Strategy and the Government of Canada Adaptation Action Plan.听 This team also works closely with the National Research Council and the Standards Council of Canada to develop climate resilient codes, standards and guidance and promote their uptake across Canada.听

Erin co-chairs INFC鈥檚 federal-provincial-territorial Resilient Infrastructure Working Group (with the Government of British Columbia) and is a member of the Infrastructure Resilient Infrastructure Resilience Professional (IRP) Stewardship Committee. Prior to joining Infrastructure Canada in September 2022, Erin spent 20 years leading climate change mitigation and adaptation policy development for the Government of Prince Edward Island.听 Erin is trained as an environmental scientist with a B.Sc. from the University of Guelph and a M.Sc. from the University of Windsor.听 She is passionate about building collaborative relationships, networks and human-centred policies and programs.听听

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Thursday 23 October 2025 -The Politics of Decarbonization: How we get stuck and how we can get unstuck

Matthew Hoffmann
Department of Political Science, Co-Director of the Environmental Governance Lab, University of Toronto

Matthew Hoffmann is a Professor in the Department of Political Science and co-Director of the Environmental Governance Lab at the University of Toronto. He teaches courses on global environmental politics and international relations. His research on climate change and environmental politics has been published in 4 books and over 50 journal articles and book chapters. Professor Hoffmann's current research projects explore the politics of decarbonization, transnational urban resilience movements, the pursuit of urban just transitions, and the use of grounded speculative fiction to expand climate politics conversations. In addition to scholarship, Professor Hoffmann also regularly contributes essays and commentary to media outlets such as听The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail,听and听The Conversation.听

Beyond the University of Toronto, Professor Hoffmann is a lead faculty member for the Earlth Systems Governanace network, was co-editor of the journal听Global Environmental Politics听from 2017-2022, and served as the chair of the board of directors for the environmental NGO, Green Economy Canada from 2012-2024.鈥斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌斺赌�

Thursday 30 October 2025 -听The Problem of Illegitimacy in Climate Law

Adebabyo (Bayo) Majekolagbe
Faculty of Law, University of Alberta

Adebabyo Majekolagbe is an assistant professor of Law at the University of Alberta, and previously taught at the Schulich School of Law at 黄色直播. He has designed and taught climate change law at both institutions for about seven years and has extensively researched and written on just transition and the legitimacy of climate laws. He also teaches constitutional law, international environmental law and international business transactions at the University of Alberta.

His groundbreaking SSHRC-funded doctoral thesis on just transition and impact assessment received the 黄色直播 best doctoral thesis award and was featured in the 2023 Parliament Hill research showcase. He has published numerous articles on just transition, sustainability, impact assessment, and the legitimacy and legality of climate laws.

Presented in conjunction with MELAW (黄色直播's Marine and Environmental Law Institute as the Annual Meinhard Doelle Legacy Lecture.听

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Thursday 6 November 2025 -听Environmental/Health Effects of Uranium Mining

Chief Tamara Young, Chief, Pictou First Nation
Nancy Covington, Retired physician, CAPE
Laurette Geldenhuys, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE)
Tynette Deveaux, CAPE

Tamara Young:听 听听Chief of Pictou Landing First Nation and a member of the Board of Directors of the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq.

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Nancy Covington: 听听Nancy has aBSc in Physics and Maths from Carleton University and听 a MD degree from Queen鈥檚 University. 听 She is now a retired family physician who also worked at Halifax Sexual Health Clinic.听

Nancy grew up during the Cold War in Ottawa and saw first hand preparations for a nuclear war. 听 She views the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons through a health lens and considers this to be a ultimate public health disaster, totally human created. 听 She is a long standing member of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada and a member of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Her current interests include examining the health implications of nuclear power including its links with nuclear weapons, as well as the health and environmental effects of uranium mining.听

Laurette Geldenhuys:听 听听Laurette was trained in South Africa, has master鈥檚 degrees in Anatomical Pathology and Medical Education, and is a Professor at 黄色直播 in Nephropathology. She is a former Division Head of Anatomical Pathology at Nova Scotia Health, and is a Past President of the Canadian Association of Pathologists (CAP-ACP), Chair of the CAP-ACP National Specialty Network on the Environment, Secretary of the Doctors NS Section on Planetary Health, Chair of the Nova Scotian Regional Committee of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE NS), and member of the Lab Green Team, the Board of CAPE, the Board of the Ecology Action Centre, and St. Matthew鈥檚 United Church Earth Spirit Action Team. She is interested in the greening of health care, the health effects of the climate emergency, and the beneficial health effects of spending time in nature.听听听听

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Thursday 13 November 2025 - Study Break (NO LECTURE)

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Thursday 20 November 2025 -听Living with Netukulimk: creating and sustaining balance

Shawn Feener
South Shore Regional Centre for Education听

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Shawn Feener is the Regional Coordinator for Mi'kmaw Education Services with the South Shore Regional Centre for Education (SSRCE). He has a background in wildlife conservation and fish biology and grew up in the area in a Mi'kmaw family.

In 2019, Shawn became the Math and Science consultant for BDDEC having begun in 2010 when he left Nova Scotia and headed to Ulukhaktok for his first teaching position. His time in Ulukhaktok provided the opportunity to teach almost all the NWT math curricula; grades 2 to 12 along with various other subjects. He feels very grateful for the countless friends, experiences, and perspectives gained from living in Ulukhaktok.

Shawn's educational background includes a M.Ed. in Curriculum Studies, a B.Ed. in Secondary Math and Sciences, and a B.Sc. in Mathematics and Statistics from Acadia University in Wolfville NS.

Thursday 27 November 2025 - Bicycles and Active Transportation

Landrick Bennett Jr.
School of Cities, Toronto

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Lanrick Bennett Jr. is Toronto鈥檚 first Bicycle Mayor and currently serves as Manager of Donor Education & Engagement at United Way Greater Toronto. In that role, he designs immersive experiences and educational opportunities that help donors understand the interconnected challenges facing communities across the GTA. Lanrick听also holds the position of Urbanist-in-Residence at the University of Toronto鈥檚 School of Cities, where he advocates for equitable mobility and sustainable city-building. His work focuses on climate justice, public space, and building cities that prioritize people over cars.

Before stepping into urban advocacy full-time, Lanrick听worked as a producer with The Second City, where he honed the collaborative power of 鈥淵es, And鈥︹�� 鈥� a mindset that continues to shape his approach to public space, community engagement, and city building. He has served as Executive Director of Charlie鈥檚 FreeWheels and The Laneway Project, two Toronto-based non-profits focused on empowering youth and reimagining neglected urban space.

Lanrick听sits on the City of Toronto鈥檚 Climate Advisory Group for the TransformTO Net Zero Strategy and contributes to affordable housing policy through HousingNowTO, mentors student groups from the University of Toronto and Toronto Metropolitan University on real-world planning challenges.

For more information:

Debra Ross听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听
Manager of Outreach, Partnerships and Communications
902-494-7805听 听 听 听cos.comm@dal.ca