• Alex M. McComber, KANIEN'KEHA:KA, BEAR CLAN, Kahnawà:ke Knowledge CARRIER

Canada's energy efficiency and demand-side management community is large, talented, and spread across provinces that often don’t have a chance to talk to each other. This opening session tells the story of how AESP Canada came to be, what it is here to do, and what the day ahead holds. Come ready to connect. 

Speakers:

• Jen Szaro, President and CEO (AESP Canada)
• Raegan Bond, Board Chair (AESP Canada)

What does the Canadian energy landscape actually look like right now, and where is it headed? This session opens the day with a frank, wide-ranging conversation about the opportunities and challenges shaping the future of energy efficiency and demand-side management (DSM) across Canada, including the role of electricity, gas, and everything in between. 

From federal ambition to provincial reality, from affordability pressures to the question of whether DSM is keeping pace with infrastructure investment priorities, speakers will share their honest read on the current state of play and what it means for the work this community does every day. 

Speakers:

• Moderator - Raegan Bond, Director, Energy Policy (Hydro One)
• Philippe Dunsky, Founder & President (Dunsky Climate + Energy Advisors)
• Corey Diamond, Executive Director (Efficiency Canada)
• Susanna Zagar, President & CEO (Canadian Gas Association)

Sponsored by:

Canada's energy markets look very different depending on where you stand. What is changing fastest in BC looks nothing like what is happening in Alberta, Ontario, or the Atlantic provinces. And yet the professionals navigating those markets rarely have a dedicated space to compare notes at a national level. 

This panel brings together utility and program leaders from across the country to share what is shifting fastest in their regions, what challenges they suspect others share but nobody is talking about nationally, and where a pan-Canadian community like AESP Canada can make a difference that provincial conversations cannot. Expect candour, regional contrast, and the kind of cross-country perspective that only happens when everyone is finally in the same room. 

Speakers:

• Moderator - Sarah Colvin, EVP, Revenue (Camus Energy)
• Tam Wagner, Director, Demand Side Management (IESO)
• Jerry Joseph, Executive Director, Customer Experience and Geothermal (Énergir)
• Mike Stocki, VP, Efficiency Programs (Efficiency Manitoba)
• Errol Pereira, Senior Director, Engineering and Planning (EfficiencyOne)
• Danielle Wensink, Director, Conservation and Energy Management (FortisBC)

The ambitions for Canada's energy transition are significant. The workforce needed to deliver them is not keeping pace. From skilled trades shortages to the challenge of building the next generation of DSM and efficiency professionals, the gap between what the industry has committed to and what the labour market can actually support is one of the most pressing and underexamined challenges in the sector. 

This session takes an honest look at where the gaps are, what Canada is doing to close them, and what needs to change in the next three to five years if collective ambitions are going to become reality. 

Speakers:

• Moderator - Lisa Rae, Senior Manager, Business Development (CIET)
• Abhi Kantamneni, Director, Government & Stakeholder Relations (HRAI - Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada)
• Yoana Turnin, Director, Programs (Electricity Human Resources Canada)
• Jill Kirwin-Daviau, Energy Business Development Coordinator (Greater Sudbury Hydro)

Affordability is not just one issue among many. It is the issue that cuts across every fuel type, every province, and every stakeholder group in the room. It is also the issue where perspectives differ most sharply, and where those differences most need to be aired openly. 

This session brings together voices with genuinely different views on how to make energy more affordable for the Canadians who need it most, what role DSM programs play in getting there, and how the industry can have that conversation constructively across fuel types and community contexts.

Speakers:

• Moderator - Yasmin Abraham, President (Kambo Energy Group)
• Nick Martin, Vice President, Insights and Analytics (The Transition Accelerator / L’Accélérateur de transition)
• Debbie Scharf, Director, Energy Conservation (Enbridge Gas)
• Adam McLaren, Policy Analyst (Ishkoday|First Nations Energy Sustainability Association)
• Jordan Fisher, CDO (FRESCo Building Efficiency)

Real programs, real results, and real lessons from the field across Canada. 

This fast-paced session is designed to surface the kind of candid, practical insight that rarely makes it onto a conference stage: what worked, what did not, and what this community would do differently. Speakers will share specific examples from their own work, with strict time limits and an emphasis on takeaways attendees can actually use. Come ready to learn fast and leave with ideas worth stealing. 

Speakers:

• Moderator: Gillian Saidman, Senior Program Manager (C+C)
• D.M. Stoneman, Sr. Director, Canada (ICF)
• Geneviève Gauthier, National Director, Strategic Innovations (Econoler)
• Karim Abraham, CEO (Kambo Energy Group)
• Trudy Spooner, Director, Client Solutions (Summerhill)
• Mihskakwan James Harper, Manager, Business Development (NRStor Inc.)

The day ends with the room's voice at the center. Hear from AESP Canada board members about what a community like this one has meant to their careers and what they hope it becomes for the next generation of Canadian energy professionals. Then add your own perspective through live polling that surfaces what the room is thinking in real time. 

The results will inform how AESP Canada grows its programming, deepens its community, and shows up for its members in the years ahead. This is not a wrap-up. It’s the beginning. 

Speakers:

• Moderator: Natalie Irwin, Business Development Director (CLEAResult Canada)
• Raegan Bond, Director, Energy Policy (Hydro One)
• Sarah Colvin, EVP Revenue (Camus Energy)
• Ariana Arguello, Program Manager, Program Development for Conservation and Energy Management (FortisBC)

Join arriving Flex Connect attendees in the Opera Foyer for drinks, snacks, and great conversation. Connect with exhibitors, meet new faces in the energy space, and reconnect with longtime colleagues. Leave AESP Canada energized, inspired, and surrounded by the people pushing the industry forward.

Join us for the Canadian launch party of AESP Flex Connect, hosted by the AESP Ontario Chapter! End your meeing with an unforgettable evening of great conversation, local flavours, and a warm Canadian welcome, all set against the backdrop of one of Montréal's most iconic venues.

Reconnect with colleagues, meet new faces and soak in the energy as Flex Connect officially begins. Expect delicious bites showcasing the best of Québec cuisine, a lively atmosphere and plenty of Canadian hospitality to set the tone for the days ahead.

Dress the part: Break out your red and white or your best Canadian gear, with bonus points for maple leaves, hockey jerseys or anything proudly Canuck!

Tickets:

C$55 (before Aug 24)
C$75 (Aug 24 - Sept 1)