Dr. Shannon Bard

Recognizing that the usual 30-year time lag between invention of climate solutions at universities and societal adoption of the innovation does not meet this climate emergency moment, through her leadership of UBC’s Climate Venture Studio, Shannon has made it her mission to decrease that timeline to 5-10 years. Her novel approach has led supported scientist-entrepreneurs to successfully launch over 35 impactful climate solution ventures, ranging from carbon capture and sequestration, sustainable agriculture, fisheries, and mining, bioplastics, clean air and water, and geothermal technologies. Shannon’s approach includes government engagement to dismantle regulatory barriers, effective impact storytelling via artistic collaborations, and Indigenous economic reconciliation via technology pilots in remote communities. She convenes diverse stakeholders (regulators, academia, industry, investors, NGOs) to advocate for alignment of innovation policy with climate policy to accelerate impact and scale.