Dr. Jennifer Winter

Dr. Jennifer Winter is a Professor in the Department of Economics and the School of Public Policy, University of Calgary, and Interim Director, Canadian Governance Policy at the School of Public Policy. From 2023 to 2026 she was the Departmental Science Advisor at Environment and Climate Change Canada. Her research evaluates climate policies, and examines the effects of government regulation and policy on energy development and the associated consequences and trade-offs.

Dr. Winter is an expert in the analysis of policy options for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and carbon pricing, with experience in advising governments and translating knowledge into formats that are accessible to non-expert audiences. She has testified to the Senate of Canada and House of Commons on emissions pricing policies based on her work in this area, and has advised governments in Canada and internationally in several capacities.

Dr. Winter is actively engaged in increasing public understanding of energy and environmental policy issues; recognition of her efforts include a 2014 Young Women in Energy Award, being named one of Alberta Oil Magazine’s Top 35 Under 35 in 2016, one of Avenue magazine’s Calgary Top 40 Under 40 in 2017, and one of Canada’s Clean50 and Clean16 in 2019. Dr. Winter serves on several boards and advisory committees.

Research

Areas of Research

Canadian Climate Policy Design, Emissions Policy and Regulation, Natural Resource Development, Energy Affordability, Energy Policy

Participation in university strategic initiatives

Energy Innovations for Today and Tomorrow (2013-2021)

Human Dynamics in a Changing World (2015-2021)

Projects

The Canadian Climate Policy Partnership

The Canadian Climate Policy Partnership (C2P2), led by Dr. Jennifer Winter, provides publicly accessible information on Canadian climate policies, supporting effective strategies to adapt and mitigate climate change, improving resilience, and helping Canada meet its net-zero emissions target.

The goal of C2P2 is to engage in data-driven research on and analysis of Canadian climate policies and enable the same in a broader network of researchers, informing necessary efforts to develop effective, coherent policy to meet Canada's climate goals.

C2P2 brings together Canadian academics from different disciplines, policy-makers, and policy-shapers to create a "one-stop" database and digital platform on the climate commitments, targets, policies, and investments from different orders of government in Canada. C2P2 facilitates improved understanding of the state of climate policy in Canada, reduces the burden of mitigating and adapting to climate change, and improves research and policy capacity in meeting Canada's climate goals.

CanCO2Re Initiative

The CanCO2Re Initiative, funded primarily by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), is an interdisciplinary team of researchers assessing the role for sustainable, equitable, cost-effective and rapidly deployable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies in meeting Canada’s net-zero targets. We identify and assess the cost, environmental impact and scalability of CDR technologies; ways in which CDR deployment will be shaped by (and shape) law and governance, stakeholder and community perceptions; and trade-offs inherent in developing supportive legislation and policies for CDR in Canada towards a 2050 net-zero goal.

The CanCO2Re initiative brings together experts from a range of fields, including engineering, science, history, political science and economics. While the initiative is housed at the University of Calgary, we have participating experts from the University of Alberta, University of Toronto, Simon Fraser University and the Pembina Institute. We are also collaborating closely with Natural Resources Canada’s CanmetENERGY laboratory.

Awards

Principal Investigator for Multiple Account Benefit-Cost Analysis of Coal Mining in Alberta, Calgary Foundation. 2021
Canada's 2019 Clean 16, Delta Management Group. 2018
Canada's 2019 Clean 50, Delta Management Group. 2018
Avenue Calgary Top 40 Under 40, Avenue Magazine Calgary. 2017
Alberta Oil Magazine's Top 35 Under 35 in Canada's Energy Sector (2016), Alberta Oil Magazine. 2017
2014 Young Women in Energy Award, Young Women in Energy. 2014
Graduate Research Scholarship, The University of Calgary. 2011
Graduate Teaching Fellowship, The University of Calgary. 2010
Ian N. MacKinnon Memorial Fellowship, The University of Calgary. 2009
John S. Poyen Scholarship, The University of Calgary. 2009
Petroleum History Society Graduate Scholarship, The University of Calgary. 2009
Dean's Entrance Scholarship, The University of Calgary. 2008
Arthur J. E. Child Memorial Bursary in Economics, The University of Calgary. 2006
Graduate Research Scholarship, The University of Calgary. 2008
2023 Vanderkamp Prize for the best article in Canadian Public Policy, Canadian Public Policy. 2024

Publications

Google Scholar

In the News

Now what? Climate, campaign promises, and the path ahead. What On Earth - CBC podcast. (2021)
NDP climate plan long on ambition, short on substance (again). CBC Opinion. (2021)
Conservative climate plan better than before, but still full of inconsistencies. CBC Opinion. (2021)
Liberal Party continues balancing act with unnecessarily vague plan on climate. CBC Opinion. (2021)
Green Party climate platform is both ambitious and unrealistic. CBC Opinion. (2021)