Low-carbon leader

In February, finance professor Ryan Riordan was named a “2021 Changemaker” by The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business for his research on Canada’s low-carbon economy and his leadership in creating Smith’s Master of Financial Innovation and Technology (MFIT). He was among 50 emerging leaders cited for their role in transforming business today.

Last fall, Riordan co-authored the “Capital Mobilization Plan for a Canadian Low-Carbon Economy”, the country’s first such plan. It found that Canada can meet its 2030 greenhouse gas emission targets with $128 billion in investments over the next decade—an achievable investment goal that represents 0.62 per cent of Canada’s 2018 GDP. He was also instrumental in creating the MFIT, the first master’s program on financial technology in North America. It launched last November.