Unpacking COP29: A Panel Discussion

Robert Godin, Assistant Professor, Chemistry, Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science

Robert Godin is the lead of UBC Okanagan's Solar Energy Conversion and Spectroscopy group.  His work is rooted in climate and sustainability, and is a member of the Climate Solutions Research Collective's Steering Committee.  Robert was a part of UBC's delegation to COP26 and will be the moderator of this event. 

Carol McAusland, Professor, Food and Resource Economics, Faculty of Land and Food Systems

Carol McAusland’s research focuses on interactions between globalization and public good provision. This includes climate policy, invasive species, skilled-labour migration, trade liberalization, the World Trade Organisation, intellectual property rights, political economy, transport emissions, regulatory takings, and consumer-related environmental policy such as carbon footprint taxes and vehicle subsidies.

Tarun M. Khanna, Assistant Professor, School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA), Faculty of Arts

Tarun Khanna's research interests focus on energy and climate policy - he is interested in the economics of the decarbonization of the energy sector and the policies that are needed to get there. His wider research interests include evidence synthesis, policy evaluation, electricity markets and energy in development.  Before turning to academia, he was a policy practitioner who worked with regulators, governments, and utilities in the design and implementation of electricity policy in South Asia. He is also a visiting researcher at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change in Berlin. 

Abul Bashar Rahman, Bachelor of Arts in International Economics, Faculty of Arts

Abul Bashar Rahman has attended both COP27 and COP28 as a part of UBC's delegation. Struck by the glaring representation gap of Bangladesh at COP27 and deeply moved by the resilience of the people of Bangladesh in the 2022 floods, Bashar teamed up with collaborator Rifat Abrar Anik, to amplify stories of resilience and advocate for the rightful representation of frontline communities in the climate crisis narrative.  They co-developed Stories of Change, a documentary highlighting this resilience that was first screened at COP28. 

Mark Shakespear, PhD Candidate, Department of Sociology, Faculty of Arts

Grounded in environmental, cultural, and political sociology, Mark Shakespear's research has three primary foci: 1) Environmental sustainability and inequality; 2) Social construction of the environment; and 3) Polarization.  His dissertation research explores how coalitions of participants at UNFCCC COP meetings frame climate-related issues, make identity claims about themselves and other actors, and how these frames and discourse coalitions have changed across COP meetings.

Simon Donner, Professor, Geography and Institute for Resources and Sustainability 

I am a climate scientist focused on helping the world prevent and prepare for climate change. My research program lies primarily at the intersection of climate change science, marine science, and policy. The specific research areas evolve over time in response to advances in climate change knowledge and to real-world events.