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Faculty of Graduate Studies

Adam J. Regier

  • BA (University of Victoria, 2023)

Notice of the Final Oral Examination for the Degree of Master of Science

Topic

Democratic Innovations for Energy Justice: Evaluating Community Engagement Best-Practices in Canada’s Renewable Energy Transition

Department of Geography

Date & location

  • Wednesday, December 3, 2025

  • 3:00 P.M.

  • David Turpin Building

  • Room B215

Reviewers

Supervisory Committee

  • Dr. Sophia Carodenuto, Department of Geography, University of Victoria (Supervisor)

  • Dr. Simon Pek, School of Business, UVic (Non-Unit Member)

  • Dr. Tamara Krawchenko, School of Public Administration, UVic (Non-Unit Member) 

External Examiner

  • Dr. Matt Huculak, Department of Computer Science, University of Victoria 

Chair of Oral Examination

  • Dr. Tetjana Ross, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, UVic 

Abstract

 

The decarbonization needed to limit and mitigate the effects of climate change requires substantial development of renewable energy sources. The geographic disparity between renewable energy resources and energy consumption sites creates the potential for an extractive and inequitable relationship, where benefits are experienced mainly by developers and energy consumers, while the communities hosting renewable energy projects bear a disproportionate share of the associated negative impacts. Community concerns regarding the negative effects of energy development, unfair development processes, and an uneven distribution of project benefits drive social resistance to renewable energy development, potentially challenging decarbonization through electrification. Energy justice applies justice principles to energy systems to ensure equitable access, fair distribution of benefits and burdens, and proper representation in fair decision-making processes, while addressing environmental and social harms. The research explored how applying a democratic innovations framework to an industry-standard best practices guide for Indigenous and community engagement reveals or overlooks energy justice implications, particularly in terms of equity, inclusion, and the fair distribution of benefits and burdens. Through the application of democratic innovations, this research identified four shortcomings in energy justice with broad implications regarding the potential for the document’s recommendations to replicate historic systems of inequality, fail to respect the rights and interest of impacted Indigenous communities, and undermine efforts towards decarbonization through a lack of social acceptance. These findings suggest that applying a democratic innovations framework offers valuable insights into energy justice, particularly concerning procedural justice and the extent to which communities impacted by renewable energy development can influence the project’s development process and the distribution of its outcomes. This finding begins to fill established gaps in academic literature regarding the need to investigate the factors that impact the overall justice of development processes, with an emphasis on governance mechanisms that can address conflict, foster trust, and ensure energy transitions do not exacerbate existing inequalities.

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