Tuesday September 8th 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm
University of Northern British Columbia, 3333 University Way Prince George
Building 5 – Room 171
The finances of businesses and individuals are getting better as everything transitions to electric. But, improving our cost of living is not the only reason for transitioning to electric.
Missing from the business case are the costs and harms imparted daily on children as they wait at school bus stops and to workers from burned diesel fumes and particulates.
Jason Niu brings a father’s perspective – looking at the air his children breathe. A perspective which takes us to his hometown of Shijiazhuang, which in his childhood had air you could taste – some of the dirtiest air in China!
The journey takes us to China’s Greater Bay Area where Jason witnessed the world’s first large-scale electrification of road transportation; to the Chinese cities of Shenzhen and Zhuhai which became the first major cities on Earth to completely electrify their entire bus fleet consisting of over 16,000 buses; to Ontario for the phase-out of coal which eliminated days of smog; then back to Jason’s hometown which, within a single generation has got its blue skies back.
As the Marketing and Communications Manager at PowerON Energy Solutions, an Ontario Power Generation subsidiary, Jason is writing the next chapter of his journey by providing charging infrastructure and energy management solutions for fleets across North America – with the aim to electrify Canada’s transit and commercial fleet within one generation and its implications for Canadians.
China, with it’s head start is showing the way to clean transportation.
Health Canada attributes air pollution to causing poorer quality of life on an untold number of Canadians, about 15,300 premature deaths and $120 Billion in costs annually.
“As someone who is asthmatic, I am quite sympathetic to causes that will help improve air quality – every little bit counts towards future generations breathing better. Electrification, alongside effective public transit and strong last-mile active transportation infrastructure are some of the most important changes a city can make to mitigate poor air quality and the downstream effects of a changing climate,” said Kyle Ross, Student, UNBC
“I look forward to learning how China and Ontario are electrifying their public transit and fleet vehicles,” said Doug Beckett, Founder of the Prince George Electric Vehicle Association
Jason Niu’s presentation, which is part of the regular once a month UNBC Energy Transition presentation series is also a special early kick-off for UNBC’s Green Week
UNBC Green Week
A host of activities and presentations are taking place for UNBC Green Week from Saturday September 19th to Saturday September 26th
Activities
- Outdoor drive-in movie powered by an electric vehicle
- Try out an EV – with an emphasis on E-Bikes, E-Scooters and Yard Tools
- Toxi Trivia Party
Presentations
- Mapping B.C.’s Renewable Energy Potential by Connor McGookin
- The Economic Viability Of Electric Vehicles Compared to Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles by Mich Carlson
- Opportunities Municipalities Have For Transitioning Their Fleet To Electric by Mich Carlson
- Experience Getting Solar, Batteries, An Electric Vehicle And A Charging Station by Garth Frizzell
- Update On BC Hydro Net Metering For Solar, And What Happens When A Customer Orders Solar And Batteries by TJ Dhillon
- Living Off The Grid In Northern Rural BC by Joel Baerg
- High Level Presentation On the Electric Transition by Lorne Deyenberg
The October Energy Transition Group presentation “Is Nuclear Part Of Our Energy Future” by Adrian Currie.
Information on the above activities and presentations are posted in the UNBC Calendar of Eventshttps://www.unbc.ca/events.
Everybody is welcome to all activities and presentations
The Energy Transition Group was formed by individuals from the University of Northern BC (UNBC) and the Prince George Electric Vehicle Association (PG EVA) to encourage informative discussions with guest experts to reveal many of the neat, interesting, intertwined and complicated issues which are occurring with the ongoing energy transition.