Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/609048
FALL 2015 simon 37 (JACCARD) TONIA COWAN C H A MP IONS , INNO VATORS , DOERS + C H A NGE M A K ERS MARK JACCARD A professor with SFU's interdisciplinary School of Resource and Environmental Management for the past 28 years, Mark Jaccard has advised governments on creating policies to reduce carbon pollution and meet their goals around emission control. He was a member of the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and his book, Sustainable Fossil Fuels, focuses on helping the fossil fuel industry sur- vive through technologies that capture carbon, rather than punishing the industry itself. He also supported Prime Minister Harper's decision to reject Kyoto tar- gets for a more realistic goal of 20-per-cent reduction by 2020 instead of 2013, a move that angered some high-profile environmentalists. Jaccard reasoned that such changes take time to work. Jaccard's activism began when, as politicians are apt to do, Harper backpedalled on his original prom- ise, reducing his targets to 17 per cent, and eventually withdrawing from the Kyoto protocol. The Keystone XL pipeline came into play, and Jaccard recognized that bigger actions were needed, both on a policy level, and personally as an environmental activist. He joined a blockade against a train carrying coal headed for Asia via Vancouver. Participating in the blockade, he says, "was trying to answer the people who 40 years from now will surely ask us, 'What did you do when there was still time to make a difference?'" SFU, Jaccard says, has offered a supportive envi- ronment from which to engage with the greater global community. "The aspect of engaging the world, for someone like me—I've been an advisor to the Chinese government, I'm a fellow at the C.D. Howe Institute, I was on Canada's National Round Table on the Environ- ment and the Economy—that kind of engagement at different levels, both globally and locally, has always been very supported by SFU." Q Track and field coach Brit Townsend began her career in athletics in the 1980s as a student in communication and kinesiology at SFU. Now, more than 20 years later, she's a two- time Olympian in the 800 metres, as well as a provincial and national team coach. Her work with the SFU Clan has won her the National Coach of the Year award seven times. Q E E While many people dream about world peace, Jennifer Simons has dedicated her life to advo- cating for it. The self-described anti- military militant is an adjunct professor with SFU's School for International Studies and a senior fellow and dialogue associate at SFU's Centre for Dialogue, as well as founder of The Simons Foundation, which conducts research and advocacy on nuclear disarmament. Her global peace talks have earned her the Order of Canada. W Richard Lipsey's long-standing career in eco- nomics has added up to a wealth of achievement. The professor emeritus at SFU has had stints at the London School of Economics, Queen's University, Yale and UBC. He has authored several textbooks and nearly 200 articles on theoretical and applied economics. He is an officer of the Order of Canada and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and the Econometric Society. In 2005, he won the gold medal for achievement in research from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. W Marco Marra got his start at SFU with a bachelor of science in 1989. Today he is the UBC Canada Research Chair in Genome Science, adjunct professor in SFU's Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, and director of the BC Cancer Agency's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre. He's also a member of the Order of British Columbia, and was named the second-most-cited researcher in Canada in 2014. But, most importantly, his work has helped shed light on the genetic sequencing of cancerous tumours. THE TROTTIER FAMILY Philanthropists Lorne, Louise and Howard Trottier—a family with a passion for science and astronomy— have created a family foundation to promote science outreach for young people. Their Starry Nights at SFU program has introduced thousands of young people to the beauty of the night sky. In April 2015, the family opened the Trottier Observatory and Science Courtyard on SFU's Burnaby campus. It features a six- metre-diameter dome with a reflector telescope that can be remotely accessed and deployed by community groups and schools across Canada.