Dr. Gabriel is an elected member of the Canadian Academy of Engineering and the former A/Deputy Minister at the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation. In 1990, Dr. Gabriel attended the prestigious, MIT-founded, International Space University and received a diploma in Space Sciences. For over 14 years, Dr. Gabriel led an international team in the research efforts spearheaded by NASA to design, test and operate a thermal management system for the International Space Station (ISS). In 2004, Dr. Gabriel was invited to lead the development of the research and innovation ecosystem in a newly announced university. He assumed the position of the founding AVP research and graduate programs at Ontario Tech University (formerly known as University of Ontario Institute of Technology) in Ontario, Canada. Under his leadership, Ontario Tech University was ranked as one of the top Canadian higher learning institutions in the categories of innovation and leaders of tomorrow.

 

The Role of Innovation in Combating Climate Change: Challenges and Opportunities

Advanced technologies for capturing or reducing carbon pollution hold great promise for combating climate change, yet many of these technologies do not go beyond prototype stage because private-sector financing cannot accommodate the high capital cost and the time lag before return on investment can be realized. As a result, innovation in energy supply that allows for the continued growth of the global economy and to the much needed fast reduction of GHG emissions, is hindered. Many performance gains remain to be achieved in energy technologies, such as renewable fuels for electricity generation and for vehicles, and efficient use of energy. Yet undertaking the efforts required to produce the innovations needed to transform the performance of the energy sector to mitigate the risks posed by increased emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants may be the greatest challenge humanity faces at this time.