Renewables 101: Heat Pumps, Geo-Exchange, Wastewater Energy, Biomass & More

Curious how heat pumps actually work—or how to tell when geo-exchange or biomass might make more sense for your project? Join us for a plain-language, insight-packed session that cuts through the jargon and explains today’s leading renewable thermal energy systems in ways that anyone working toward low-carbon buildings can understand.

Drawing from extensive hands-on experience, this engaging session demystifies the full range of renewable heating and cooling technologies—air-source and water-source heat pumps, geo-exchange, wastewater energy recovery, district energy, and biomass—that have been successfully implemented across Ontario’s public and private sectors.

You’ll gain a clear understanding of:

• How these systems actually work (without the complicated thermodynamics)
• The human and operational factors that can make or break success
• How to compare and select the right system for your project context
• How these technologies contribute to real-world cost savings, efficiency, and decarbonization
  

Bring your curiosity and your questions—this interactive live session connects the dots across renewable systems, bridges the gap between theory and practice, and will leave you significantly more confident discussing low-carbon energy solutions.

About the speaker

John Rathbone

CEO & C0-Founder, Rathco ENG Ltd.

Rathco’s CEO & Co-Founder, John Rathbone, is a Professional Engineer with over 17 years experience as an engineering consultant. During this time he has worked exclusively in infrastructure and energy systems, most specifically renewable energy systems. John has led local and international teams in the feasibility, detailed design, and commissioning of dozens of renewable energy systems within Canadian jurisdictions at the single building scale, all the way up to the community scale.

John has experience with geo-exchange systems, sewer energy exchange systems, heat recovery systems, biomass systems, district energy systems, energy transfer stations, heat pumps, heat exchangers, boilers and chillers, and other various components of renewable energy infrastructure. He also has experience leading and designing emergency generator systems, and various other aspects of central plants.