Episode 3.4: What does a just transition really entail? From green jobs to decolonization

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Climate change and its impacts on the economy, the planet, and, of course, us, is top of mind for a lot of folks these days. One potential solution that merges economic and climate needs is the transition away from fossil fuels as an energy source, to greener options. But with so many people relying on the fossil fuel industry for their livelihoods, how do we ensure a transition to a whole new energy source is just? This is one of the many questions we touch on in today's episode. Our guests, Luisa Da Silva, Executive Director of Iron and Earth, and Heather Milton-Lightening, a long-time Indigenous climate activist and current student, share with us their different views on just transition, and what we need to consider if we're really going to make it work.

Host

Peter Andrée
Professor, Department of Political Science, Carleton University

Host

Ryan M. Katz-Rosene
Assistant Professor, School of Political Studies, University of Ottawa

Guest

Heather Milton-Lightening
Student

Guest Bios

Guest

Luisa Da Silva
Executive Director, Iron & Earth

Guest Bios

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Guest Bio

Heather Milton-Lightening

Heather has over twenty years of organizing experience from local issues to international campaigns. Heather was a founding member of Native Youth Movement-that empowered youth politically and socially to make change in their communities; based in Winnipeg, MB in 1995. She helped found Winnipeg’s first Native youth organization called Aboriginal Youth with Initiative, Inc. in 1998 through her position as Associate Director. Heather then went on to found and build a national Native youth network that supported Native youth organizing across the US and Canada with the Indigenous Environmental Network. She was a former member of the United Nations Environment Programme’s Youth Advisory and has extensive experience in lobbying internationally through the United Nations and other International arenas on Indigenous Peoples issues. Heather’s work since then has been to build capacity and find resources that help local Indigenous communities.

Heather is currently consulting with many different organizations doing training, facilitating and support work for Indigenous communities while working on finishing a Masters Degree at York University in Toronto, on Indigenous Just Transition.

Luisa Da Silva

Luisa brings over 20 years of diverse experience in the energy, mining, education, and not-for-profit sectors. She began her career in the fossil fuel industry of northern Alberta, and has been influenced by her mining experiences in Canada and abroad. After a successful career as a professional geoscientist, Luisa moved to the United Kingdom where she pursued an Executive Master’s of Business Administration. After her return to her hometown in Ontario, she worked in the not-for-profit sector with one of Canada’s top environmental charities. In her spare time, Luisa is an outdoor enthusiast and spends as much time in nature as possible; transitioning to green solutions has been a life journey. Along the way, Luisa has learned that she is enthusiastic about educating others and enabling them to transition to fulfilling careers.