Marianne Hatzopoulou is Chair in the Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering at the University of Toronto and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Transport Decarbonization and Air Quality. She leads the Transportation and Air Quality (TRAQ) research group studying the interactions between transportation, air quality, climate change, and public health; she published over 150 publications on these topics. Prof. Hatzopoulou is also the Director of Positive Zero Transport Futures, a living lab ecosystem for testing transport decarbonization innovations with positive societal outcomes.
Prof. Hatzopoulou held a Tier2 Canada Research Chair in Transportation and Air Quality (2013-2021) and a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Discovery Accelerator Supplement (2016-2019), an award recognizing research programs that are highly rated for originality and innovation. She is on the Canadian team of researchers who were the 2021 recipients of the NSERC Brockhouse Canada Prize for Interdisciplinary Research in Science and Engineering. In 2022, she received the University of Toronto Engineering Alumni Network 2T5 Mid-Career Achievement Award. She is an associate editor of the journal Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment. She supported municipal governments and community groups in the appraisal of transportation policies in terms of climate and air quality impacts and served on national and international expert panels, providing advice on the development of strategies to reduce transportation-related emissions.
The Campus-Community Partnership for Reducing Air Pollution in the Bathurst Quay Neighborhood is a collaborative initiative involving the Bathurst Quay Neighborhood Association, the City of Toronto, Toronto Public Health, and Ports Toronto. The project aims to assess population exposure to air pollution and identify the contributions of various sources, such as the airport, highways, and regional background pollution. Additionally, it seeks to inform policy and planning decisions related to land use, transportation, and airport operations. Findings indicate that while air pollutant concentrations in Bathurst Quay are generally comparable to other urban areas in Toronto, the airport is a significant source of ultrafine particles (UFP). Notably, ferry electrification has led to a measurable reduction in certain pollutants. The project has generated key recommendations for mitigating airport-related emissions and has contributed to a deeper understanding of air quality in the neighborhood. Moreover, it provides evidence that targeted interventions, such as ferry electrification, can effectively reduce pollution exposure for the community.