Guest Lecture: Fusion Energy Development in Canada – Sep. 26, 2025

Session Description

Fusion Energy Development inCanada

Fusionis the process that powers the Sun and the stars and is the primary source ofenergy in the Universe.  It is aninexhaustible, CO2-free source of energy, which generatesno long-lived radioactive waste and is intrinsically safe.  Fusion energy is on the brink ofcommercialization worldwide.

Thislecture will discuss the historical development of fusion energy, give a statusof worldwide activities and describe plans for its development in Canada and theassociated opportunities for universities, research institutes and industry.

The Speaker: Dr. Charles SpencerPitcher

Dr.Pitcher is a Canadian physicist and registered professional engineer, with acareer spanning more than 40 years in the field of fusion energydevelopment.  He has worked at most ofthe major fusion laboratories in the US and Europe.  Most recently, he has been the FusionTechnology Principal Engineer at the International Thermonuclear ExperimentalReactor (ITER) based in the south of France. He has over 200 research publications and participated in the firstproduction of fusion power in deuterium-tritium experiments on the TokamakFusion Test Reactor (TFTR) at Princeton in the US.

Dr.Pitcher graduated from the Engineering Science program at the University ofToronto, followed by a PhD from the University of Toronto Institute forAerospace Studies (UTIAS).