Publications

Call launched by the Villes Régions Monde Network and the Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action

Scientific Committee: Sophie L. Van Neste (INRS), Stéphane Guimont Marceau (INRS), Geneviève Cloutier (Université Laval), René Audet (UQAM), Andréanne Doyon (Simon Fraser University) and Nathalie Bleau (Ouranos)

Call for abstracts form (deadline: March 11th, 2022)

Full call (PDF)

We invite you to contribute to the state of research on cities, climate action and inequalities in Quebec.

With the support of the vast network of researchers in urban studies at Villes Régions Monde network and the expertise of the Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action, this state of research aims to gather and disseminate social science and urban studies research that can contribute to knowledge on climate action in cities and urban regions and on the inequalities that result from it, whether or not this research has raised the issue of climate at the beginning of its process.

In the first phase, this state of research will bring together research on Quebec and focus on cities, local communities and living environments. Each compiled research will gain visibility and will be able to feed global knowledge on climate action. The syntheses will be published on the VRM website, compiled by theme and will be used to produce a meta-analysis of research in Quebec on these issues, with a view to contributing to future IPCC work at the urban level.

We particularly welcome contributions that address unequal opportunities to participate and influence public decisions, new inequalities possibly associated with climate action, processes of racialization, exclusion, discrimination, colonialism to be considered in climate action and transition.

See the full description on the VRM website.

The Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action and the Montréal Urban Ecology Centre are proud to announce the receipt of a new SSHRC grant for the Blue-Green Lanes project.

A sum of nearly $25,000 has been granted to continue the partnership and the research work that has been initiated. This grant is awarded within the framework of the SSHRC’s Partnership Engagement grant program, for a period from December 1, 2021 to November 30, 2022.

Sophie L. Van Neste is the recipient of this application, with Kregg Hetherington of Concordia University and Rafael Ziegler of HEC as co-investigators.

Congratulations to the teams and good luck in the future!

Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action Sophie L. Van Neste, joins more than 400 scientists in rejecting the proposed Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) tax credit.

Read the full letter here.

“Canada’s plans to introduce a tax credit for carbon capture in the country’s oil patch would amount to a fossil fuel subsidy for an ineffective technology, a group of academics said in a letter to the deputy prime minister.

Carbon capture, where the carbon dioxide from oil and gas production facilities is sequestered and injected back into the ground, is economically unsound and has a “terrible track record” of delivering emissions reductions, the Canadian academics and scientists said in their letter to Chrystia Freeland. The money would amount to a subsidy for the fossil fuel industry that would be better spent on renewable energy, electrification and energy efficiency. “

Héléne Madénian, Sophie L. Van Neste and Catherine Fournier are collaborating on the 3rd edition of Climatoscope, a French-language popular science journal on climate change, published annually and aimed at an informed, but not expert, audience.

Discover the two articles written by accessing via this link.

• Pages 111 to 116: Adapting to climate change in urban planning: lessons from the Montreal Climate Lab, by Alexis Guillemard, Hélène Madénian and Sophie L. Van Neste
• Pages 117 to 123: Reflection on the integration of sustainable and in situ rainwater management in regulatory tools, by Catherine Fournier and Michel Rochefort

Sophie L. Van Neste wins the best publication award for her paper “Place, pipelines and political subjectivities in invisibilized urban peripheries” in the Regional Studies Association’s Territory, Politics and Governance category. Full details here.

“Territory, Politics, Governance is committed to the development of theory and research in territorial politics and the governance of space. This journal creates a platform on which to explore the interface between territory, politics, economy, identity and the organisation of political space. It confronts topical and emergent issues of world economic and political concern. The journal publishes original, high quality international scholarship from this growing, international and increasingly vibrant field directed at a worldwide academic audience and at policy makers, activists and other communities of practice.”

We are currently recruiting students to work on different projects in the four research axes of the Chair: urban infrastructure in transition, transformation of suburban environments, social mobilization for climate justice and support to the most affected, emotions of political action in the face of climate.

Research direction

Sophie L. Van Neste

Project start date

Winter (for the Master’s degree) or Fall 2022 (Master’s or PhD)

Program of study

Master’s degree in Urban Studies or Doctorate in Urban Studies

Scholarship

Funding of $17,000 for the Master’s degree: a $10,000 Master’s scholarship (1st year) with $5,000 salary for summer research work and a $2,000 scholarship to attend a national or international conference. Possibility of internal and external funding for the 2nd year of the Master’s program

20,000 in doctoral funding: a $12,000 annual doctoral scholarship for 3 years with an additional $6,000 salary for summer research work and a $2,000 scholarship to attend a national or international conference. Possibility of additional internal and external funding.

Profile

Training in urban studies, geography, social sciences (sociology, anthropology, political science), environment or urban planning with an interest in the research themes
Experience in research with qualitative methods (an asset for the Master’s degree, a requirement for the PhD)
Good reading and writing skills in French and English (an asset
Candidates who wish to enroll in the PhD or MA program in Urban Studies
Priority will be given to students with an excellent academic record (GPA of 3.7 and above or equivalent).

Location

Center Urbanisation Culture Société
385 Sherbrooke Street East
Montreal, Quebec H2X 1E3
CANADA

Submission of an application

Interested candidates may submit their application to Professor Sophie L. Van Neste using the online form. The application file must include the following documents

• a letter of interest
• a CV
• a copy of your transcript
  
  
  Please provide your information and documents on the INRS website

INRS launches the country’s first Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action.

As world leaders prepare to meet at the annual climate change summit (COP26), the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) is officially launching the Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action. This unique research chair is designed to analyze and contribute to collective action to deal with climate change in cities through research and partnerships grounded in community and municipal contexts.

Cities as climate action leaders 

“Internationally, action has been so slow that cities are often the primary drivers of change in response to the climate crisis,” says Sophie L. Van Neste, a professor and researcher at INRS, who chairs the Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

All over the world, urban areas are greatly affected by climate change. For several years, cities have been at the forefront of climate action. That’s where most of the energy consumption and greenhouse gas production takes place.

Sophie L. Van Neste, INRS Professor

If cities are part of the problem, they are also part of the solution. The research conducted by the Chair will therefore focus on urban areas in North America.

The plurality of urban action

“What is unique about this Chair is that it focuses on urban political action, in its many forms,” says Professor Van Neste, who studies political action and citizen engagement regarding environmental issues in urban settings.

Municipalities cannot act alone. Citizen initiatives and support from higher levels of government are essential for urban climate action.

The Chair’s members are working on eight ongoing projects, including adaptation to climate change, for example in urban redevelopment or in support of the most vulnerable people facing heat waves, and the mobilization of collectives to transform urban infrastructures.

Some suburban cities have fewer resources than others and face greater challenges. More broadly, the researcher reminds us that not all communities are equal when faced with climate change.

“Social inequalities, discrimination processes, and the built environment and neighbourhood services will make some groups more vulnerable than others to climate change impacts, and some will be less recognized and supported in their efforts to respond,” explains Professor Van Neste.

The Chair will also devote a research segment to emotions in relation to the climate emergency, such as eco-anxiety, shame, or even blame. It will also look at how these emotions can block or stimulate climate action. 

Accelerating action through research

The Chair values connections with actors in the field and the academic community and is already rooted in sectors related to urban climate action.

The Chair has already initiated work to understand and participate in climate action with students, field collaborations with civil society and institutions, and a dozen academic collaborations. 

In the past, researchers studied climate plans. Now is the time for action, we need to understand the obstacles and the challenges and how stakeholders are working together. How can we accelerate action?

Professor Van Neste

The Chair is currently welcoming new students who want to work in the areas of its programs. Visit its website to learn more about the projects underway and stay tuned to its Facebook and Twitter accounts for all the activities.

Don’t miss the event Adapting the city to climate change: experimentation and learning organized by the Chair in collaboration with the Villes régions monde network on November 26, 2021.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2021 FROM 5:30 PM TO 7:30 PM
An online event organized by CAPED

Register here to attend
https://umontreal.zoom.us/…/tZMvfu-oqT0vE92K-xXoWBe24x…

The issue of climate justice is often thought of from the point of view of states, or even internationally. Yet the city we live in has a front row seat, and is marked by social and spatial inequalities that further exacerbate the effects of climate in certain living environments – for example: the issue of heat islands, uneven greening of neighborhoods, differential access to services and support resources, opportunities to participate and influence public decisions. Climate and state climate action overlap and sometimes intertwine with processes of racialization, colonialism and environmental injustices. How can we act urgently on climate change by putting at the heart of actions a disruption of these unequal processes and increased support for those most affected?

A talk moderated by Sophie L. Van Neste
Guests:

• Valérie Bloch and Wassyla Hadjabi, from the citizen group for the protection of Jarry Park
• Elza Kephart, environmental activist, founder of the Ministry of the New Normal (ministere-qc.ca).
• Albert Lalonde, activist with the Coalition for a Social and Environmental Change (CEVES)
• Tasnim Rekik, community organizer and decolonial feminist activist

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Friday, November 26, 2021
Espace Canal
4020 St-Ambroise Street (Montreal)

In order to adapt to the impacts of climate change, cities and local communities are acting in an experimental mode. Recognizing the complexity of the issues and a certain inertia in standards and practices, approaches are putting forward specific processes and projects aimed at getting out of ruts, testing innovative ideas, in short, learning by doing, by adapting. Alongside the enthusiasm for these new forms of collaboration and their spin-offs, constraints remain. The importance of taking stock, valuing learning and evaluating issues that have been set aside, stands out as being of primary importance. In the world of adaptation, the challenges are still often reduced to technical issues, when it is also a question of choice, consultation, planning and mobilization of actors and resources. In addition, researchers have documented several adaptation practices that exacerbate social and spatial inequalities, an issue that is still not sufficiently considered. These adaptation meetings are intended to provide a space for discussion in order to link the various experiments and their learning.

All the details here, on the VRM website.
Facebook page of the event.
Registration required through this link.

This event is organized by the Villes Régions Monde network. It is open to everyone. Please note that current health regulations will apply: vaccination passport and mask are mandatory. Note that the event will be held in presence only.

Sophie Van Neste, Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action, joins 2185 scientists in signing the #FossilFuelTreaty, an international initiative to move away from fossil fuels and support a just #transition.

💡 Sign the treaty now to address the Climate Emergency.

Full details are available here.

“Climate change, like nuclear weapons, is a major global threat.

Bold and immediate action is needed to address the climate emergency.

Fossil fuels are the main cause of the climate emergency. Coal, oil and gas are responsible for nearly 80% of all carbon dioxide emissions since the beginning of the industrial revolution.

It is now imperative that we cooperate internationally to phase out all fossil fuel production and find safer and more effective solutions in three main areas: non-proliferation, global disarmament, and a peaceful and just transition.”

The purpose of this workshop is to present research conducted by Frédéric Mercure Jolette, postdoctoral fellow, INRS, Clarence Hatton-Proulx, doctoral candidate, INRS, and Sophie L. Van Neste, Associate Professor, INRS, on how Anjou’s leaders mobilized the stereotypical suburban ideal in the 1960s. This research shows that, while the diagnosis of the “end of the bourgeois residential suburb” corresponds to reality, the representation of the suburb as an ideal community superior to the central city continues to play an important role in the development of the periphery. The analysis focuses on three dimensions of the suburban ideal: residential dominance, political autonomy, and lack of internal political dissent. For each dimension, we show how Anjou’s early leaders negotiated with a complex reality and adapted the suburban ideal so that a territory dependent on metropolitan infrastructure and hosting heavy industries could nevertheless be considered an ideal suburb. With guest commentators, Professors Gilles Sénécal and Harold Bérubé, the discussion will open this chapter of Greater Montreal’s history by considering the different actors and representations playing on its suburban and, to some extent, polycentric development.

All details and registration links are available here.

Thursday, September 30, 2021 (1:00 pm to 2:30 pm)
INRS (UCS Center)
385 Sherbrooke Street East (Montreal)
Room 2109

“The objective of this document is to present the results of a research project conducted by Labo Climat Montréal in partnership with Concert’Action Lachine. The project aims to promote the participation of community organizations in the resilience to extreme heat days. Indeed, community organizations can play an important role in adaptation and resilience to extreme heat days, even if their actions are not specifically recognized as such and even if they are not necessarily aware of the expected increase in heat waves due to climate change. This paper presents the connections between the missions and practices of community organizations in the borough of Lachine in Montreal and some of the vulnerabilities and adaptation measures to heat identified by the scientific literature or by public health organizations in Quebec.”

To read the full report in french, click on the image below:

To cite this report: Poulin, E., Van Neste, S.L., Gagnon-Lewis, C., D’Amours A. 2021. « Action communautaire et adaptation aux changements climatiques : la participation des organismes communautaires de Lachine à la résilience aux journées de chaleur accablante ». 25 pages. Montréal (Québec): Labo Climat Montréal

📣 The Canada Research Chair in Urban Climate Action is now on Facebook and Twitter!

📲 Follow us now to stay up to date with all the news, projects and upcoming events

Link to our Facebook page

Link to our Twitter account

Sophie Van Neste, professor of urban studies at the Urbanisation Culture Société Research Center of INRS, has been awarded a Tier 2 Chair from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) for her research on environment and climate. She will receive $600,000 in funding for 5 years.

Currently, cities’ action on climate change is taking an important place for municipalities and citizens alike. “We want to analyze actions on climate change by comparing different urban regions in North America,” says the Chairholder. “We will work on the new governance and mobilization processes put in place for climate action in cities and suburban areas, by studying infrastructure choices and suburban development methods. Another line of research will focus on the role of emotions in territorialized climate action, among other things, in relation to the attachment of stakeholders to the territories they inhabit.”

Canada Research Chairs

The Canada Research Chairs Program is investing up to $295 million annually to attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising researchers. Chairholders aim to achieve research excellence in natural sciences, engineering, health sciences, and social sciences and humanities.

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(Article published on the INRS website in December 2020)