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Bruce Lourie

Influential Environmental Policy Expert | Bestselling Author

Bruce Lourie
Dealing with Our Current Climate Emergency
Bruce
Bruce Lourie
Dealing with Our Current Climate Emergency

Co-author of the international bestseller Slow Death by Rubber Duck, Dr. Bruce Lourie is one of Canada’s most influential and widely respected problem solvers working on climate, energy, and sustainability. He has been instrumental in the creation of more than a dozen organizations that play critical roles in sustainability around the world, and initiated the largest climate action in North America — phasing out coal in Ontario. Speaking on topics such as getting to net zero, energy systems transition, the role of ESG and sustainable finance, toxic pollution, non-profit leadership, and more, Lourie translates complex issues into timely and actionable information.

Lourie is currently the president of the Ivey Foundation. Under his leadership, it has grown into one of Canada’s largest and most influential climate solutions organizations with a $100-million commitment. Lourie is credited with creating the largest grouping of “solution partnerships” to solve climate change, working on net-zero buildings, electricity systems, electric vehicles, affordable energy, and more. These partnerships include leading businesses, government agencies, Indigenous leaders, and labour and NGO voices.

As an in-demand speaker, Lourie speaks regularly at business, government, academic, sustainability, and philanthropic gatherings around the world. He’s presented at events as diverse as the Canadian Energy Roundtable, Institute for Corporate Directors, Public Policy Forum, C.D. Howe Institute, City of Calgary, Canadian Fuels Association, Canadian Energy Research Institute, the Koli Forum in Finland, the Women’s Health Forum in Pittsburgh, the Paris Cosmetics Summit on Sustainable Cosmetics, the Commission for Environmental Cooperation in Mexico City, the Australian Environmental Grantmakers Association, and the Sydney Writers’ Festival.

Lourie sits on the boards of several organizations including the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices, Canadians for Clean Prosperity, and the SeedChange Foundation. He is also the chair of the Transition Accelerator, a senior fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Finance, guest lecturer at the University of Oxford’s Social Finance Program, and a contributing writer to the National Observer. Lourie is a former director of the Independent Electricity System Operator, the Ontario Power Authority, and the Trillium Foundation, and was the founder of many for-profit and non-profit organizations including Summerhill Group and Efficiency Canada.

Speaking topics

Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.

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Client reviews

  • We were delighted to have Dr. Bruce Lourie join us for a fantastic discussion on how the employees of Jamieson Wellness can better understand climate change and have a more positive impact on the planet.

    Dr. Lourie was incredibly engaging, professional and his passion was inspiring!

    We have had terrific feedback from people all over the organization who were excited and ready to drive change after hearing Dr. Lourie’s talk.

    I would highly encourage any organization that is on their journey to positively engage wellness for people, planet and communities, to collaborate with Bruce.

  • We want to thank Bruce so much for his presentation. Employees were excited that he was our special guest and had some great questions for him. Our leadership team was happy with his ability to incorporate and help exemplify our key messaging.  We also want to thank Bruce for working with us on such a tight timeline – his efforts and enthusiasm are recognized and appreciated! It was a great day for employees, and Bruce’s presence and words helped make our event a real success.

  • As one of the top speakers on environmental issues, Bruce’s discussion on plastics was very timely. He presented the issues in a thoughtful way while creating a compelling and informative narrative. Our colleagues were highly engaged during the Q&A as Bruce delivered excellent responses. Although Bruce participated virtually we would love to invite him next in-person.

  • Bruce Lourie’s presentation on his new book, Slow Death By Rubber Duck, was an absolute standout. It drew one of the largest crowds to our mainstage because Bruce offered tremendous credibility on a subject that is of huge concern to the general public—and has a national bestseller to back it up. He managed to make a potentially dire subject, i.e., the consequences of daily exposure to harmful environmental toxins, highly engaging and even funny. He had the audience swept up in his cavalier tale of self-experimentation and was able to provide grounded, easy-to-understand and actionable advice on what consumers can do to protect themselves from the chemical cocktail that surrounds them. Anyone concerned about the state of our environment needs to hear more voices like Bruce’s.

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