Clarence received his doctorate in Urban Studies from the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) and in History from Sorbonne Université in November 2023. His thesis, carried out as a joint project between Montreal and Paris and co-directed by Sophie L. Van Neste and Alain Beltran, focused on the social and material consequences of urban energy transitions in Montreal between 1945 and 1980. He has covered topics such as wood and coal yards, gas stations, oil refineries, energy demand forecasting and district heating.
His current post-doctoral research, funded by SSHRC and FRQSC at the Géographie-cités laboratory of Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, studies household waste incineration from a comparative perspective between Montreal and Paris. They also focus on the deindustrialization and contamination of urban energy territories.