Evaluating the Societal Effects of Participatory Processes

Over the past 5 years, Suncor Energy has invested in the Energy Futures Lab, the Engineering Change Lab, the Getting to Maybe social innovation program, the Suncor Energy Foundation Gathering, and most recently, the Turtle Island Institute. All of these initiatives are designed to transform whole systems in rapidly changing environments in partnership with diverse groups of partners, particularly Indigenous communities. As Suncor is itself deeply embedded in the changing energy environment, these investments hold the potential to transform the funding organization alongside the system. How can we assess if, and how, this transformation is taking place? How can we aggregate the impact of multiple parallel projects? The goal of this study is to answer these questions by capturing the effects of Suncor’s social innovation investments across a range of partners.

Faculty Supervisor:

Student:

Partner:

Suncor Energy Inc.

Discipline:

Environmental sciences

Sector:

Environmental industry

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate