whatIf? Technologies is proud to have hosted its first User Conference on February 16, 2012, in Ottawa. Conference participants represented a broad spectrum of whatIf model users with attendees from the Canadian federal government, municipal governments, consulting firms, non-profit organizations, and academia.
During the technical presentations, participants gained insight into the evolution of the whatIf? modelling platform and models over the past 20+ years as Michael Hoffman, CEO, presented a retrospective of the whatIf? modelling platform, and Robert Hoffman, President, presented a history of whatIf? models. Shona Weldon, Platform Manager and Modeller, offered participants a walkthrough of new features for both model developers and users available in the latest release of the whatIf? software. The morning session concluded with a discussion of the whatIf? Modelling Platform roadmap during which participants contributed feedback on the software and made requests for feature enhancements.
Several user presentations showcased applications of whatIf’s Canadian Energy Systems Simulator (CanESS). Participants were briefed on: an initiative for CanESS to support energy system analysis in academic research, a project to explore ultra low carbon emission scenarios, and a study to compare the pricing of electricity from renewable and non-renewable sources in Ontario. Other presentations described: energy use and emissions models in the residential and transportation sectors; the Population and Land Use Model (PLUM); and the Australian Stocks and Flows Framework (ASFF).
The User Conference gave participants an opportunity to learn more about the past, present, and future of the whatIf? modelling platform and to exchange ideas with other users.
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Conference Material
Conference Program (PDF)
whatIf Platform Retrospective (Prezi link)
Michael Hoffman, CEO - whatIf? Technologies
whatIf? Modelling Platform - New Software Features - Slide Set 1, Slide Set 2 (PDF)
Shona Weldon, Platform Manager & Modeller - whatIf? Technologies
Using the Canadian Energy Systems Simulator to Support Energy System Analysis (PDF)
David Layzell, Executive Director - Institute for Sustainable Energy, Environment and Economy (ISEEE), University of Calgary
Platform Roadmap and Feature Requests (PDF)
Michael Hoffman & Shona Weldon - whatIf? Technologies
The Family Tree - A Short History of whatIf? Models (Prezi link)
Robert Hoffman, President - whatIf? Technologies
Using the Population and Land Use Model (PLUM) to Plan for ‘Places to Grow’ in the Region of Waterloo (PDF)
Virgil Martin, Planning Information Specialist - Regional Municipality of Waterloo
Overview of the National Energy Use Modelling System (PDF)
John Appleby, Chief, End-Use Market Analysis, Office of Energy Efficiency - Natural Resources Canada
Research Update on Trottier Energy Futures Project Development of Ultra-Low Carbon Scenarios
Tyler Bryant, Energy Policy Analyst - David Suzuki Foundation
Energy and Air Emissions Modelling at Transport Canada (PDF)
Alexandre Dumas, Senior Policy Advisor, Environmental Policy Directorate - Transport Canada
Pricing Ontario’s Electricity Options Using the Canadian Energy Systems Simulator (CanESS) (PDF)
Tim Weis, Director of Renewable Energy and Efficiency Policy - The Pembina Institute
The Australian Stocks and Flows Framework (ASFF) - Concepts and Applications (PDF)
Graham Turner, Senior Research Scientist - CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences
