Risk, Resilience and Critical Infrastructure


Tuesday, November 14, 2017

12:00 pm to 1:30 pm
Room 1009, Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building
Dalhousie University, 6100 University Avenue, Halifax, NS
Facebook Event

Kevin Quigley will discuss new research on how markets, media, and private interests shape government responses to natural disasters, pandemics, industrial failures, cyber-attacks, and terrorist threats. Dr. Quigley will be joined by Ron Pelot and Dan Henstra, risk and emergency management specialists, who will provide commentary on the new book Too Critical to Fail: How Canada Manages Threats to Critical Infrastructure by Kevin Quigley, Ben Bisset and Bryan Mills.

About the speakers

Daniel Henstra


Daniel Henstra is associate professor of Political Science at the University of Waterloo. His research centres on public administration and public policy, with a focus on emergency management, climate adaptation and flood risk governance. Within these subject areas, Dr. Henstra investigates multilevel policy processes involving federal, provincial and municipal governments, and the complex, networked relationships among elected officials, public servants, stakeholders and the public.

Ronald Pelot



Ronald Pelot has been a professor in industrial engineering at Dalhousie University since 1994. His main research area is Maritime activity modelling, incident risk analysis and emergency response planning. Since 2012, Dr. Pelot has also served as the Associate Scientific Director of the MEOPAR Network of Centres of Excellence (Marine Environmental Observation Prediction and Response).

Kevin Quigley


Kevin Quigley is the Scholarly Director of the MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance and a professor in the School of Public Administration, Faculty of Management, Dalhousie University. He specializes in public sector risk and crisis management, strategic management and critical infrastructure protection. Dr. Quigley has published an acclaimed book on critical infrastructure, numerous articles in academic journals and studies for a professional audience; his next book, Too Critical to Fail: How Canada Manages Threats to Critical Infrastructure will be published by McGill-Queen's in November 2017.

Ian Stewart (Chair)


Ian Stewart is assistant professor of history of science and technology at the University of King's College. Dr. Stewart’s current research projects include trans-sector studies of the roles science and technologies play in framing policy, regulation, public engagement and industry practice, particularly in environmentally sensitive and politically contested contexts.


About the series

Policy Matters is a weekly panel discussion on major policy issues presented by the MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance and in collaboration with the Dalhousie School of Public Administration. Each discussion features thought leaders from civil society and focuses on one of the Institute's four research themes – Civic Engagement, Atlantic Canada and the World, Health Systems and Governance and Smart Infrastructure. Held each Tuesday from September 12 to November 14, the discussions take place in room 1009 of the Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building at Dalhousie, from 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm. The events are designed to encourage public engagement with local, national and international policy issues and are open to the public.

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