Our History
Explore YEIP’s history and how we’ve been developing and empowering young professionals to shape our industry future.
2012
Founding year
Led by young industry professionals and supported by senior industry leaders, Young Pipeliners Association of Canada (YPAC) was formed to close the generational knowledge gaps in the energy pipeline industry. In little over a year, our membership has grown to over 250 members.
2015
Creating a platform for young professionals in the energy pipeline industry
For the first time, we organized YPAC Conference, a platform where young pipeline industry professionals across the country can gather in one place to learn and network. With over 150 in attendance, the conference was a full day of learning and networking. Young pipeliners were provided with the opportunity to present their achievements within their work from industry or academia.
2016
Initiating participation in energy policy
YPAC representatives participated in the Senate Committee meeting representing our organization to provide a witness presentation regarding a strategy to facilitate the transport of crude oil to eastern Canadian refineries and to ports on the East and West coasts of Canada.
2018
Expanding advocacy efforts
At the end of November 2018, YPAC sent representatives to the Parliament Hill, speaking to members of parliament on young professionals’ concerns around the future of the pipeline industry, including quality of life, future job prospects, and maintaining a global view with respect to energy development projects.
2019
Evolving the platform for envisioning industry future
Beyond the initial objective of bringing young industry professionals across the country to network and learn from each other, YPAC started to evolve the YPAC Conference as a platform for “Shaping the Future of the Pipeline Industry”.
2020
Connecting young professionals virtually
YPAC faced a new challenge when COVID-19 pandemic paused the world. Facing this crisis, we had to ask ourselves: What is our purpose during this pandemic? How should we adapt our missions during this time? The pipeline industry continues to need leaders – and our vision is to build the next generation of them.
We took on the challenge and turned it into an opportunity by:
• Providing a virtual network of peers to reach out for support, connection, and inspiration
• Enabling digital access to opportunities for development – both personal and professional
• Sharing insights about the industry and the markets through social media
• Advocating for the needs of young professionals through online channels
2021
Shaping a sustainable energy future
In 2021, we formalized 3 new internal councils to engage our broad member base and envision what a sustainable future looks like in young industry professionals’ perspective:
• Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change Council
• Indigenous Inclusion Council
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council
2022
YPAC conducts a strategy review
The strategy review resulted in the following key finding: Today, the energy solution that our society demands is rapidly evolving, and the future solution requires broader systems thinking. This means that pipeline alone will not be the solution; pipeline will be a critical part of the “bigger solution”, which is new ecosystems of various components working together. At the core of these new sustainable energy ecosystems, there will be a foundational backbone called “energy infrastructure”.
2022 – Present
YPAC changes its name to Young Energy Infrastructure Professionals (YEIP)
Based on the findings from the strategy review, the new leadership team, consisting of 21 Chairs across the country, votes to change the organization’s name to YEIP (Young Energy Infrastructure Professionals) to evolve our organization in response to the changing industry.