Lunch and Learn

1

$30 CAD

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Over the past five decades, a series of global crises—from the Yom Kippur War and subsequent Arab oil embargo in 1973 to more recent shocks in 2014 (Calgary a “ghost town”), 2020 (Covid shutdown), 2022 (Russia-Ukraine War), and 2026 (America and Israel attack Iran)—have repeatedly jolted the global economy and disrupted everyday life.

While each event differed in cause and impact, they share a common denominator: the oil price as a central transmission mechanism. Whether driven by oversupply, demand collapse, or geopolitical risk, these events demonstrate that the oil price is not just a commodity indicator, but a powerful financial signal that reflects uncertainty, expectations, and global stress. Benchmarks such as West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude respond rapidly to these forces, amplifying crises into economic consequences.

For consumers, however, this dynamic is often misunderstood. The oil price is frequently assumed to be synonymous with the price of gasoline, when, in reality, it is only one component of a much more complex system shaped by refining, transportation, and taxation. This creates a persistent perception gap: during periods of crisis, consumers experience sudden changes in the cost of living—rising sharply in 2014, 2022, and 2026, and falling in 2020—without understanding the underlying drivers. What appears to be a simple, direct relationship is in fact the outcome of a multi-stage process that translates global shocks into local prices.

This one-hour lunch and learn will clarify the nature of the oil price, its historical behaviour, and its critical role in linking geopolitical events to the global economy and everyday consumer experience.

Please bring your own lunch. Coffee, tea and sweets will be provided.