Call of interest
thematic committee of the Energy Modelling Hub

The newly created Energy Modelling Hub (EMH) is opening a call of interest to strengthen of Canada’s energy modelling capacity through the participation in various thematic committees that will advise the EMH in its convening and structuring activities across Canada.

More specific, the EMH is looking for energy modelers, model users and policy makers interested in participating into one of three supporting committees:

Platform, modelling and visualization committee — aims at defining and strengthening the development of a general platform to house data and models, and prioritize the type of models that will be supported by EMH

Data committee — with the goal to identify data needs, develops guideline for gathering and curing data sets and making them available to the general community, in collaboration with the Canadian Center for Energy Information

Documentation, training and convening committee — develops guidelines for documentation and the model/modelers inventory, identifies training gaps and needs, help identify information and documentation relevant for the platform, as well as discusses convening possibilities

These committees will meet virtually or in person a few times a year (maybe more often at the beginning).

Subgroups of these committees may be formed to evaluate applications submitted in response to calls to the community from the EMH.

Context

In order to meet its climate goals, Canada is launching a profound transformation of its energy systems that will rely largely, but not uniquely, on low-carbon electricity.

To succeed in this rapid transition to this new energy system, Canada needs, more than ever, policy options and practical advice based on a wide range of evidence, modelling exercises and open and transparent visualization tools.

Led by members of the Institut de l’énergie Trottier at Polytechnique Montréal, the Institute for Integrated Energy Systems at the University of Victoria and the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary, the Energy Modelling Hub (EMH) stems from a desire by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) to facilitate the development of effective public policies based on accessible and transparent results from Canada’s energy modelling community through:

Support for energy modelling, both in the production and use of models, to extract energy data and contextual information relevant to policy-making;

The active mobilization of policy makers in a logic of dialogue in order to elitise priority policy issues, identify modelling needs and provide contextualised analyses of modelling results.

With the aim of leveraging existing knowledge, expertise and capabilities, the EMH will, more precisely, pursues the following objectives:

Promote the role of modelling as a support for the development of public policies and the energy transition;

Fill data and modelling gaps in collaboration with decision makers, stakeholders and modelers;

Coordinate the development of models useful for policy development aimed at the major transformation of Canada’s energy system in achieving its climate objectives;

Provide support to the community in the development and use of models and in the interpretation of modelling results and their policy implications.

Maintain open and transparent datasets and models as well as an inventory of models, modelling projects and modellers; and

Serve as a liaison to increase exchanges between decision makers and Canada’s modelling community.

Application

To apply, send before August 19, 2022 a short CV, a text describing your motivation to participate into one of the committees and what you would bring to it, to info@cme-emh.ca.

While each committee will be restricted to a maximum of about 10-12 members initially, the EMH will work hard to find way to involve all those interested.

We aim at getting back to each of you by the end of September.