Latest news with #MikeBurrell
Scoop
18-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
17th Climate Change & Business Conference: Where Ambition Meets Action
Aotearoa New Zealand's premier Climate Change and Business Conference returns in 2025, bringing together global and local leaders to accelerate climate action and business innovation. The conference is taking place on 8-9 September at the Viaduct Events Centre in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. This year's theme Ambition. Accountability. Action. promises to inspire and challenge business to take meaningful steps toward addressing the impacts of climate change. Chief Executive of the Sustainable Business Council (SBC), Mike Burrell, says this year's conference theme is timely and critical, given the increasingly complex geopolitical environment businesses are navigating. "Forward thinking businesses recognise the focus on climate action must remain. The science has never been more urgent or clear - we must continue to pursue better business for a better world, and this year's conference reflects the need for that ambition to now meet action." The two day-event will offer a unique opportunity to learn from global and domestic leaders and changemakers across business, government, iwi, media and civil society, who are turning climate strategies into solutions and real-world impact. The 2025 international speaking line-up includes: - Hon. Ralph Regenvanu, MP: Vanuatu's Minister for Climate Change Adaptation, Energy, Environment, Meteorology, Geo-Hazards and Disaster Management. - Prof. Elizabeth Robinson: Acting Dean of the London School of Economics' Global School of Sustainability. - Lord Adair Turner: Chair of the Energy Transitions Commission (a global coalition of companies, NGOs and experts working to achieve a net zero economy by 2040). Environmental Defence Society (EDS) Chief Executive Gary Taylor says, "The conference brings together visionaries and leaders in the climate space at a time when serious engagement is needed more urgently than ever, given the profound changes taking place globally." "This event is about having challenging conversations, tackling the gnarliest of climate issues facing our country, and driving real and meaningful change." Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in more than 30 different plenary, workshops and breakout sessions, all designed to equip business leaders with the tools and insights needed to lead out on climate. Genesis CEO and Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) Steering Group Convenor Malcolm Johns says, "As business leaders we are facing a variety of pressures and shifting geopolitical dynamics, but it is imperative that we stay the course, remain focused and maintain our momentum on climate action." "This conference underscores the continuing role business has to play in this journey, and provides a critical platform for leaders to connect, innovate and lead the charge toward securing a resilient net-zero economy." Delivered in partnership between the Environmental Defence Society (EDS), the Sustainable Business Council (SBC) and Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC), the Climate Change and Business Conference is Aotearoa New Zealand's leading and longest running climate and business event. More than 650 people attended the 2024 event in person and online. The 2025 event is supported by Foundation Sponsors Westpac NZ and Beca.
CTV News
09-06-2025
- General
- CTV News
Bird watching goes ‘digital'
Kaelyn Bumelis and Mike Burrell are looking for birds in Bruce County. But this isn't an idle hobby, they're leading a cross-Ontario bird data collection project. 'The Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas project is a community science project where a bunch of volunteer birders and Atlas staff all go out and try to document Ontario's breeding birds. And essentially, we're trying to figure out their distribution and their abundance across the province, which is a huge province as you find out when you're trying to cover it all,' said Bumelis, who is the project manager for Ontario's Bird Atlas, with Birds Canada. Collecting data for Ontario's Breeding Bird Atlas happens every 20 years and takes five years to complete. This is year four of data collection for this Bird Atlas, where the province is broken up into 10 by 10-kilometre sections, for over 2,000 volunteers and Atlas organizers to find and document as many birds as possible. BIRD (St. John Alexander, CTV News Vancouver) This year's Bird Atlas will have the benefit of the digital age, specifically the Nature Counts app, which eliminates paper and pen documentation in favour of a new app developed in partnership with Birds Canada. 'You don't need to even know where you are. Your phone has a built in GPS, so it records exactly where you are, and knows what time it is, what day it is. So, it gets all that information for you, and it just makes collecting the data so simple. It really makes us not only be able to get better data, but a lot more information as well,' said Burrell, who is the Bird Atlas co-ordinator with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. 'It knows where you are. Obviously, you know, it records the time, date, and exact location. Then, you can just get to surveying without having to enter all that data later, which is honestly super helpful,' said Bumelis. This is the third Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas, which means there is bird data dating back to 1981. Burrell said bird health and abundance is usually a good indicator of how Ontario's entire ecosystem is functioning – or not functioning. Mike Burrell and Kaelyn Bumelis Mike Burrell and Kaelyn Bumelis documenting birds for Ontario's Breeding Bird Atlas on May 30, 2025, near Chesley, Ont. (Scott Miller/CTV News London) 'Species like Canada geese and wild turkeys and red bellied woodpeckers are doing great. Their numbers are just so much higher than they than they were 40 years ago. But other birds, like some of the grassland birds like swallows that feed on insects in the air, the aerial insectivores, as we call them, some of those are not doing so well,' said Burrell. 'Red bellied woodpeckers in Ontario, they're definitely increasing. They're moving up further north into Ontario. 20 years ago, they were really in deep southwestern Ontario, but they're moving northeast. Whereas, you know, other bird species tend to be declining. We're seeing fewer Blooming Teal and other bird species,' said Bumelis. Bumelis said data collection should wrap up next year for Ontario's third Bird Atlas, and the final results will be released by 2027. The information is vital, she said, for all Ontario stakeholders. 'It could be for governments to make decisions. It could be for bird conservation organizations to plan conservation strategies. It could be for land trusts to decide, 'Oh, that's an area that has a lot of rare or declining species, and a place we need to protect.' It can be used by industries, and folks like that to make the most effective business decisions as well, when they need to consider those things,' said Burrell. You can learn more at Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas.
