Panelists

John Abbott, CEO, Health Council of Canada

Don Aldridge, Industry Executive, Research & Life Sciences, IBM Canada Ltd.

Yeihya Al-Khazraj, Director of Academic Relations, Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau

Anil Arora, Assistant Deputy Minister, Natural Resources Canada

Prakash Bharati, Director, India Science Lab, GM Global R&D, Bangalore

Karen Booth, Executive Vice President, Mitacs

Michael Bowman, Chair & President, Delaware Technology Park, Inc.

Ricardo Renzo Brentani,CEO, State of São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)

Arun Chockalingam, Director of Global Health, National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Subhasis Chaudhuri, Dean of International Relations, IIT Bombay, India

Chris Eaton, Executive Director, World University Service Canada

Jun Fang, Counsel and Director for Education, Consulate-General, People's Republic of China in Toronto

Richard Fajzel, General Manager and Head of the Canadian Oncology Business Unit, Pfizer Canada Inc.

Timothy A. Gonsalves, Director, Indian Institute of Technology Mandi

Danika Goosney, Director of Program Planning and Process, and the interim Director of Research Capacity Development in the Research Portfolio at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Michael K. Hawes, CEO, Fulbright Canada

Faiz Ahmed Khan, Dean Academic, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad

Janis Koyanagi, Vice President, Business Development & Strategy, Toronto Stock Exchange & TSX Venture Exchange

William Kupferschmidt, Vice-President & General Manager, R&D, Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd.

Mark Levine, Professor and Chair, Department of Oncology, McMaster University

Tony Mancina, Director, Engineering, Chrysler Canada Automotive R & D Centre (ARDC)

Jean-Marc Mangin, Executive Director, Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences

Bill Mantel,  Assistant Deputy Minister (Acting), Ministry of Research and Innovation, Science and Research Division,  Government of Ontario

Sam Marcuson, Vice-President, Business Improvement, Vale Canada Ltd.

Philipp Marxgut, Director & Attaché for Science and Technology, Embassy of Austria

Thom Mason, Laboratory Director, Oakridge National Laboratory

Chandrabhas Narayana, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR)

Leo Owsiacki, Deputy Executive Director, International Science and Technology Centre, Russia

Bonnie Patterson, President and CEO, Council of Ontario Universities (COU)

Patricio Powell, Consul General, Consul General of Chile, Toronto

John Preece, Acting Science & Innovation Officer, British Consulate-General, Toronto

Jessica Robin, Program manager, Americas, Office of International Science and Engineering, National Science Foundation

George Ross, Deputy Minister, Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation

Rana Sarkar, President & CEO, Canada-India Business Council

Frank Saunders, Vice-President, (Nuclear Oversight and Regulatory Affairs), Bruce Power

Howard Shearer, President & CEO, Hitachi Canada Inc.

Kevin Smith, President & CEO, St. Joseph's Health System and Chair of the Board, Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)

Byron Spencer, Director, Research Institute for Quantitative Studies in Economics and Population, McMaster University

Christian Turquat, Scientific Attaché, ConsulateGeneral de France

Vivek Vijay, Faculty Affairs, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Rajasthan

Max Voegler, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), German Research Foundation, Director, DFG North America Office

Bob Walker, Senior Vice President Nuclear Laboratories, Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd.

Dezi Yang, VP Engineering, SNC-Lavalin Nuclear Inc.

Wenjun Zhang, Vice President, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

 

PANELIST BIOGRAPHIES

John G. Abbott is currently Chief Executive Officer with the Health Council of Canada. Prior to joining the Health Council, John was a management consultant specializing in public policy analysis and development. Previous to this, John was Deputy Minister of Newfoundland and Labrador’s Department of Health and
Community Services where he oversaw the re-organization of the province’s system of regional health authorities and the expansion of the provincial drug program to meet the needs of low-income families and
those with high drug costs. Between 1989 and 1999, he held a number of other senior positions: Assistant Secretary to the Treasury Board, Associate Deputy Minister of Health and Community Services, Chairman and CEO of the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, Deputy Minister of Works, Services and Transportation and Deputy Minister of Municipal and Provincial Affairs. John served with distinction as a senior government executive in Newfoundland and Labrador for which he was recognized with the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Excellence in Public Administration by The Institute of Public Administration of Canada.
John has a B.A. in Political Science and Economics from Memorial University of Newfoundland and an M.A. in Public Administration from Carleton University (Ottawa). John is also active in community affairs, has an interest in heritage property re-development and enjoys hiking (recently hiking Africa’s Mount Kilimanjaro).

Don Aldridge has more than 27 years of experience with IBM.  During this time he has held a wide range of technical, sales and management positions.  Most of his career has been spent working closely with the higher education research community.  He introduced the “IBM ThinkPad University” student mobile computing program in Canada in the early 1990’s.  In 2003 he established IBM’s Life Sciences unit in Canada, working with medical researchers in universities and research hospitals across the country. Currently Don is responsible for research relationships with universities and teaching hospitals from coast to coast, focusing on the establishment of collaborative relationships between IBM’s scientific organizations and the academic research community.  He works closely with the IBM Research Division, the IBM Canada Software Lab, and the Canadian IBM Centres for Advanced Studies.  Don is on the board of many university based projects and programs and currently chairs three. He received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s University in 1982; and, a Masters in Business Administration, also from Queen’s University, in 1984.

Dr. Yeihya Al-Khazraj is the Director of Educational and Training Affair at the Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau in Canada. Dr. Al-Khazraj completed his PHD in the Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology at the University of Hull in the United Kingdom in 1992. He is a staff member at the Faculty of Sociology and Social Work at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Anil Arora is the Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for the Minerals and Metals Sector at Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). His sector coordinates the federal government's role and policy in minerals, metals and materials, beginning at the early stage of the mining cycle and extending to ground-breaking research and development in the automotive and nuclear energy sectors. The Minerals and Metals Sector at NRCan plays a prominent role in ensuring that mining remains competitive and sustainable in a socially and environmentally responsible manner in Canada and abroad. Central to this is the federal government's Green Mining Initiative.

Mr. Arora has a breadth of experience in the private and public sectors. He has worked internationally-bilaterally, as well as with the UN and the OECD, including leading a multi-year program with the National Bureau of Statistics in the modernization of China's statistical system and infrastructure.

Mr. Arora has completed the Canada School of Public Service's Living Leadership and Advanced Leadership Program, the Public Sector Management and Governance graduate program at the University of Ottawa, and holds a B.Sc. in Geology from the University of Alberta. He is also the recipient of the APEX Leadership Award for 2009.

Prakash Bharati is Director of the India Science Lab (ISL) at General Motors Global Researchand Development. Prakash was also primarily responsible for establishing ISL (in September 2003) and ramping it up to become a part of the Global Research and Development effort.  He is a post graduate from the Bangalore University and has a doctorate from the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay. During 1977–1986 he worked at ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore in the area of design validation of satellite structures. Subsequently, from 1986–2002 he worked at the Aeronautical Development Agency, Bangalore where he was associated with the design and development of the Indian Light Combat Aircraft programme. Prakash’s expertise is in the areas of structural & computational mechanics, composite structures, aero-servo-elasticity, design integrated virtual manufacturing, design automation and manufacturing simulation. Prakash has to his credit more than 50 research publications in both national and international journals and is the recipient of Dr V M Ghatage Award from Aeronautical Society of India for his outstanding contribution in the field of Aeronautics and the Aerospace Engineering Gold Medal from Institution of Engineers for work related to Aero-Servo-Elasticity. Prakash moved to GM Global R&D in July 2002, where he took on his current responsibilities.

Karen Booth joined Mitacs in 2003. As Executive Vice-President, Programs, she is responsible for the management, planning and oversight of the Mitacs suite of programs including Mitacs-Accelerate, Globalink, Elevate, Skills Training and Entrepreneurship program (Step), Networking and Outreach initiatives. Previously, she held the position of Vice-President, External Relations and was responsible for the development of government, business and academic collaborative initiatives.
Karen’s experience in management, business development, marketing and operations during the last 25 years has been in both the private and non-profit sectors. As VP Operations for the UK office of Rare Medium, a global Internet services company, she developed new markets, established state-of-the-art facilities for user research, and recruited specialized technical personnel. As partner and COO for UK Communications Company, Carlyle Media Group, Karen co-founded the Internet professional services division and created the expansion strategy which put Carlyle into the top ten corporate communications companies in the UK. In the non-profit sector, as Director of Sales and Marketing at the Royal Albert Hall (UK), she significantly increased event revenue and developed highly successful co-promotions with organizations including the Bolshoi Ballet and Cirque du Soleil. For both the Royal Albert Hall and as Marketing Manager at the National Museum of Science & Industry (UK), she introduced profitable commercial programs including retail and corporate events, and raised profile through national and international PR campaigns.
Karen has a BA from the University of Winnipeg and a Diploma of Public History from Simon Fraser University.

Since 1998, Mike Bowman has been Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Delaware Technology Park Inc, (DTP) a collaboration of the State of Delaware, University of Delaware and high technology industries such as advanced materials, life sciences, information technology and energy/environment. In 2007, he was elected President of the Board of the Association of University Research Parks which includes about 180 US and Canadian research parks.  

In 2005, DTP was recognized as Outstanding Research Park of the Year for the nation. The 40 acre park is home to 54 companies, 750 high tech jobs, the Delaware Biotechnology Institute (DBI), the Fraunhofer Center for Molecular Biolology, and has graduated 20 spin out companies. DTP tenants have won about $310 million in federal grant awards and invested $275 million to date. DTP and DBI have had a direct role in the creation of nearly 16,000 life science jobs in Delaware over the last 10 years.

From 1990 to 1996, Mike was Vice President & General Manager for DuPont Advanced Materials and Systems, a one billion-dollar global business unit with 2500 employees. Over a 30 year career at DuPont he served professional and managerial roles in research, marketing and manufacturing.

Currently Mike serves as a Board member on five early stage companies, First State Innovation, Fraunhofer USA and is Chairman of the UD Engineering College Advisory Council.

Mike holds a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and attended graduate business and financial programs at Wharton and Columbia. In 2000, he was presented the UC Distinguished Alumnus Award and in 2009 recognized as one of DE’s 14 Most Influential People by DE Today Magazine

Ricardo Renzo Brentani is a noted Brazilian physician, scientist and university professor. He was made a Grand Cross of the Brazilian Order of Scientific Merit in 2007. He graduated in medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo. After completing his doctoral studies in biochemistry and developing his entire teaching and research career there, Brentani is now a full professor and former dean.

In January 1983, Dr. Brentani became the Founding Director of the São Paulo Branch of the global Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR). Dr. Brentani retired from this position on December 31, 2005 having there guided the training and research of many hundreds of students.

Dr. Brentani also became president of the São Paulo Cancer Hospital, where he directs its Research Center. He is one of the outstanding Brazilian scientific leaders, and is the director of the Technical and Administrative Council of the São Paulo State Research Foundation.

Subhasis Chaudhuri received his B.Tech. degree in Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur in 1985. He received the M.S. and the Ph.D. degrees, both in Electrical Engineering, respectively, from the University of Calgary, Canada and the University of California, San Diego. He joined the IIT, Bombay in 1990 and is currently serving as an Institute Chair Professor and the Dean of International Relations. He served as the Head of the department during 2005-2008. He has also served as a visiting professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, the University of Paris XI, and the Technical University of Munich. He is a fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany, Indian National Academy of Engineering, Indian Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences and the IEEE, USA. He is the recipient of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Research Award for the year 2001, the Swarnajayanti Fellowship in 2003 and the S.S. Bhatnagar Award in engineering sciences in 2004. Currently, he is a J.C. Bose National Fellow. He received the G.D. Birla Award for scientific research in 2010. He is the co-author of the books 'depth from defocus: a real aperture imaging approach', 'motion-free super-resolution', and 'ambulation analysis in wearable ECG', all published by Springer, NY. He has also edited a book on 'super-resolution imaging' published by Kluwer Academic in 2001. His research interests include image processing, computer vision, multimedia and computational haptics. He has published over 200 papers in various journals and conferences and has several patents to his credit.

Arun Chockalingam, MS, PhD, FACC, FAHA, Director, Office of Global Health, leads the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Office of Global Health.  Prior to this appointment, Dr. Chockalingam was the Founding Director of the Global Health Program and subsequently served in an enhanced role as the Director of Continuing Public Health Education at the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.  He received his Ph.D. in Cardiac Cell Physiology and Pharmacology from Memorial University of Newfoundland.  In addition, he has an extensive and varied career in cardiovascular epidemiology, prevention, government research administration, and global health.  Dr. Chockalingam served as Senior Policy Advisor, Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Control, Health Canada, and Associate Director of the Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health in the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and he currently serves as Secretary General of the World Hypertension League.  He has published over 150 papers and 11 book chapters, served as an Editorial Board member and reviewer for numerous journals.  He has been a reviewer for a number of national and international research granting agencies.  He was a member of the Institute of Medicine’s 2010 Report on “Promoting Cardiovascular Health in the Developing World.”  He is passionate about promoting healthy lifestyles and preventing chronic non-communicable diseases throughout the world.

Chris Eaton is the Executive Director of World University Service of Canada, and the former Chief Executive Officer of Aga Khan Foundation Afghanistan. He has Bachelors and Masters degrees from the University of Toronto in international development and political science respectively. He has worked in Canada and overseas with a variety of non-governmental, international development organizations, supporting education, local governance and rural development initiatives.

Richard Fajzel

Jun Fang has been posted to work at Chinese Embassy or Consulates in the US, Canada and Australia for over 10 years.  He also had worked for the Ministry of Education of China for over 15 years. He was graduated with B.S from Tongji University in 1985 and with MA from the University Exeter in 1997.

 

Timothy Gonsalves received his B.Tech. (Electronics) IIT-Madras; M.S. (Electrical Engg) Rice University, Houston and Ph.D.(Electrical Engg) from Stanford University, California.  He joined the Department of Computer Science & Engg, I.I.T., Madras as an Assistant Professor in 1989, rose to Professor and Head of the Department. Gonsalves is the co-founder of the TeNeT Group of IIT-Madras, founding Director of NMSWorks Software Ltd, n-Logue Communications Ltd and the IIT-Madras Rural Technology Business Incubator (RTBI). In January 2010, he was appointed as the first full-time Director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi (Himachal Pradesh).

Interests:  design and performance of computer and telecom networks.  With emphasis on innovative and low-cost product and technology development for Indian and international industry. Fostering software development in small towns and rural areas.

Danika Goosney is the Director of Program Planning and Process and the interim Director of Research Capacity Development in the Research Portfolio at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Dr. Goosney completed her Ph.D. in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Biotechnology Laboratory (now Michael Smith Laboratories) at the University of British Columbia. She conducted her post-doctoral research as a CIHR post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Immunology at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. Following her post-doctoral work she pursued a career in biotechnology at two Vancouver-based companies prior to joining CIHR in 2006.

Michael Hawes is a professor of political science, a tireless advocate of international education, and a proud alumnus of the Fulbright program. He assumed the leadership of Fulbright Canada in September of 2001 and has had the privilege of directing the program through some very exciting times. He is Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation for Educational Exchange between Canada and the United States of America, Executive Director of the Canada – U.S. Fulbright Program, and National Director of the Network on North American Studies in Canada. Under his direction Fulbright Canada has witnessed dramatic growth in its programs and in the number of students and scholars that the program supports. He is also Visiting Professor at the Center for Public Diplomacy in the Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California (Spring 2010).

Since 1985, he has been a professor of international relations (currently on leave) in the Department of Political Studies at Queen’s University in Kingston. He also holds an appointment at the Queen’s School of Business, where he currently teaches in the area of cross-cultural negotiation. During the 1999-2000 academic year Michael was the J. William Fulbright Distinguished Professor of International and Area Studies at the University of California at Berkeley and the John A. Sproul Senior Research Fellow in Canadian Studies. He has also held posts as Visiting Scholar at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico in Mexico City, Visiting Professor in the Political Science Department at the University of British Columbia, Visiting Research Fellow at the Swedish Institute for International Affairs in Stockholm, Visiting Professor of International Political Economy at Tsukuba University in Japan, and, on several occasions, Visiting Professor of International Political Economy at the International University of Japan in Niigata Japan. Michael was Acting Director of the Centre for International Relations at Queen’s University, Senior Fellow at PARMEC (the Program for the Study of Mexico, the United States, and Canada) at ITAM in Mexico City, Research Associate at Nichi-Bei Ken (the Center for Japan-U.S. Relations) at Kokusai Daigakku in Japan, and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Socio-Economic Planning at Tsukuba University in Japan. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from York University, an M.A. in international affairs from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University, and a B.A.H in economics and history from the University of Toronto. He has published widely on foreign policy, political culture, international economic relations, regional integration, and related subjects. He has also sat on a number of national advisory committees and on ministerial advisory boards.

Faiz Ahmed Kahn is Dean Academic, Professor & Head of the Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Hyderabad, and was a

Postdoctoral Fellow at Technische Universität Dresden, Germany (Professor H.-U. Reissig), 1994-96 (as a Humboldt fellow). He is the recipient of the following awards and honours: INSA medal for Young Scientist (1997); Young Associate of the Indian Academy of Sciences Bangalore (1997);A.K. Bose Memorial Award by INSA (2001); B. M. Birla Science Prize in Chemical Sciences (2003); Young Muslim Scientist Award (2003) by the Muslim Association for the Advancement of Science – MAAS; Swarnajayanti Fellowship in Chemical Sciences (2003); B.M. Birla Science Prize (2003); AVRA Young Scientist Award (2006); Bronze Medal of Chemical Research Society of India (2008); Prof. Narasimhan Endowment Lecture Award (2009) and Madras University Alumni Endowment Award (2010). His research areas are in Synthetic Organic Chemistry, Synthesis of Natural and Unnatural products, Transition Metal mediated reactions in organic synthesis, Discovery of new Methodologies and Control of Stereochemistry in organic synthesis, Chemical Synthesis in Ionic Liquids, Supported Catalysts.

Janis Koyanagi CA, CFA is the Vice President, Business Development & Strategy at Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) and is responsible for global listings business development activities, market intelligence and strategy for both exchanges. Her team’s mandate is to build TSX and TSX Venture listings and international business alliances across all industry sectors with a focus on Asia, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Australia and USA.

With over 12 years of experience at the TSX and TSXV, Ms. Koyanagi has provided advisory services to companies and their advisors that are interested in going public, launched new issuer products and services, and worked with companies across all industry sectors from mining, diversified industrials to technology and biotech. She also has developed a specialization in product and market development in financial services, structured products, and exchange-traded funds.

Prior to her career at TSX, Ms. Koyanagi worked at the Bank of Montreal as a senior analyst in investor relations and at PriceWaterhouse in audit, tax and corporate finance. Ms Koyanagi graduated from the University of Western Ontario and has obtained a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst designations.  

William Kupferschmidt, Vice-President & General Manager, Research and Development, Atomic Energy Canada Ltd. (AECL) based at Chalk River Laboratories.  In this role, he is responsible for the R&D programs supporting existing CANDU stations and next generation reactor designs, R&D in support of operating AECL site facilities as well as pre-commercial product and services development initiatives for AECL. 

Bill obtained a B.Sc. (Honours) degree in Chemistry from the University of Guelph in 1977, and a Ph.D. in Physical Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Alberta in 1982.  After a short post-doctoral assignment at the University of Alberta, he subsequently joined AECL at its Whiteshell Laboratories in Pinawa, Manitoba.

During his twenty-eight plus years with AECL, he has held various technical and managerial positions, including:  Group Leader, Containment Chemistry and then Manager, Research Chemistry Branch at Whiteshell Laboratories; Executive Assistant to the President, AECL Research in Ottawa; Director, Reactor Safety Division at Chalk River Laboratories; General Manager, Decommissioning and Waste Management for all of AECL’s research and prototype reactor sites; and, AECL Chief Environmental Officer.

In 2007 June, he accepted the role of General Manager, CANDU Technology Development, and later that year was appointed Vice-President & General Manager, Research & Development, the role that he continues to hold.  From July 2009 until November 2010, Bill also served as Acting Senior-Vice President for AECL Nuclear Laboratories. Bill is a Fellow of the Chemical Institute of Canada and a member of the Canadian Nuclear Society.

Mark Levine is Chair and Professor in the Department of Oncology at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He holds the Buffett Taylor Chair in Breast Cancer Research at McMaster University. He is a past recipient of the O. Harold Warwick Prize (1999) from the National Cancer Institute of Canada. Dr. Levine received his medical degree from McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and completed his residency in internal medicine at McMaster University. He completed his training in hematology and oncology at Duke University Medical Centre, Durham, North Carolina, USA. In addition, Dr. Levine received a master’s degree in clinical epidemiology and biostatistics from McMaster University.
In 1982, Dr. Levine became a member of both the Faculty of Health Sciences at McMaster University, and a medical oncologist at the Hamilton Regional Cancer Centre (now known as the Juravinski Cancer Centre - Hamilton Health Sciences). He was CEO of the Cancer Centre between 1992 and 1999. Over the past 29 years he has been an active researcher in clinical trials and health services research. His focus is in the areas of breast cancer, thromboembolism in malignancy and functional imaging. A number of the trials he has conducted have impacted on health care in both Canada and internationally. He helped establish the Ontario Clinical Oncology Group (OCOG) in 1982 and now is the Director. OCOG is an academic group that designs, coordinates and analyses multicentre trials in cancer. Dr. Levine has over 250 publications in peer-reviewed journals and has brought much research funding to McMaster. He was Chairman of Health Canada’s Steering Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Care and Treatment of Breast Cancer. Dr. Levine was an Associate Editor of the Journal of Clinical Oncology for seven years and now is a Consultant Editor.

Antonio (Tony) Mancina is Director, Canada Engineering - Chrysler Canada Inc. He was appointed to his current position as Director of Canada Engineering in June 2009. He previously held positions at Chrysler Canada’s Automotive Research and Development Centre (ARDC) over the past 10 years. Mr. Mancina’s work and academic background includes:
2008, Manager, Materials Engineering & Operations – ARDC –Chrysler Canada
2002, Manager, Materials Engineering & Labs - ARDC –Chrysler Canada
1995 – 1999, Progressively responsible management positions, Chrysler Corp.Manufacturing and Advanced Manufacturing Engineering. He received a Bachelor of Applied Science in Environmental Engineering, Co-op Program from the University of Windsor in 1991. He also received a Master of Applied Science in Environmental Engineering, from the University of Windsor in 1993. He is also a member of Professional Engineers of Ontario.

Jean-Marc Mangin has been the executive director of the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences since March 2010. Mr. Mangin previously held the positions of executive director of CUSO and, most recently, of first executive director of the Global Campaign for Climate Action, a cross sector civil society initiative bringing together over 250 international organizations and networks in support of transformational change and rapid action to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

Mr. Mangin has lived for nearly 10 years in Asia and Africa. Born in Manitoba, raised in Quebec, educated in BC and Ontario, Jean-Marc Mangin holds a M.A. in Political Sciences and Environmental Studies from the University of Toronto.

Bill Mantel is the Assistant Deputy Minister (A) of the Science and Research Division in the Ministry of Research and Innovation (MRI), where he oversees the delivery of ministry research programs and strategy, as well as the overall policy and strategy function for Ontario’s Innovation Agenda.

In his previous role as Director of MRI’s Commercialization Branch, Bill was responsible for implementing a wide range of strategies and programs that accelerate growth in Ontario’s knowledge-intensive industries; namely, harnessing and integrating Ontario’s public and private innovation capacity by creating a provincial innovation network that builds on capacity at both the provincial and regional levels.

From 1999 to 2005, as Director of the MRI Life Sciences and Technology Branch, Bill led the development and implementation of provincial initiatives in the bio-technology and health industries, including medical and assistive technologies. While in this role, Bill oversaw the establishment of key organizations such as the MaRS Discovery District and the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research. 

Since joining the Ontario Public Service in 1987, Bill has held progressively responsible positions in Cabinet Office and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs, focused on the development and implementation of key provincial policy and program initiatives. Significant accomplishments include supporting the Red Tape Review Commission, creation of an Ontario private-sector led farm finance policy designed to increase access to risk and operating capital, implementation of the province-wide restructuring of farm property taxation, and growth development of the Agricultural Commodity Corporation as a member of the Board.  Bill holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture and Business.

Sam Marcuson is a Vice President at Vale Canada Limited heading the Base Metals Technology Department centered in Mississauga, ON.  Sam was appointed to this position in 2008.  Previous roles included Supervisor of Process Development, Superintendent of Smelter Technical Services, Manager of Process Metallurgy and Director of Process and Product Research.  In his current position, Sam leads a group of some 100+ professional and technical staff and provides technical advice and guidance for projects and operations.  In earlier positions he played a leading role in the development of a novel copper-making process, one of the key components of Inco’s Copper Cliff sulphur dioxide abatement program of the 1990’s.    

Marcuson holds M.S. and Eng.Sc.D. degrees in Mineral Engineering from Columbia University and a B.S. in chemistry from the College of William and Mary. Before joining Inco in 1980, Sam worked in the research department of Engelhard Minerals and Chemicals Corporation (now part of BASF).  

Marcuson is a member and Fellow of the Metallurgical Society of CIM and served on the Board of Directors in a number of positions, including president in 1986-87.  He was chairman of the 1986 Annual Conference of Metallurgists.  While in Sudbury he was a member of the Laurentian University’s Engineering Advisory Council and was also an adjunct professor. Today, he is a member of the industrial advisory committee to the Earth and Environmental Engineering Department at Columbia University.  He is also on the boards of the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI), the Canadian Mining Research Research Organization (CAMIRO) and on Canmet’s Green Mining Industry Advisory Committee.  Marcuson has published and presented over thirty papers and holds seven patents.  In 2005 he was awarded the CSChE’s Environmental Improvement Award.

Philipp Marxgut has been accredited as Austria's Attaché for Science & Technology to both the USA and Canada since July 2007, and also holds the position of Director of the Office of Science & Technology (OST). He served at the Austrian Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology from 2005 to 2007 in the Directorate for Innovation where he mainly dealt with European and International R&D Policy.

 

Prior to that, he worked in the Office of the Special Coordinator of the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe and the European Commission in Brussels, was a Research Assistant at the University of Innsbruck and an Intern in the Office of the Austrian Foreign Trade Commissioner in Casablanca.

 

Philipp Marxgut studied law and political science at the University of Innsbruck and the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris, earned a Master at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna and complemented his studies with courses in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Moscow.

 

Thomas Mason is a native of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, in Canada. He graduated from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics and completed his postgraduate study at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, receiving a Doctor of Philosophy degree in experimental condensed matter physics.
After completing his Ph.D., he held a postdoctoral fellowship at AT&T Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey, and then became a Senior Scientist at Risø National Laboratory in Denmark. In 1993 he joined the faculty of the Department of Physics at the University of Toronto.
Thom joined Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in 1998 as Scientific Director for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) project. In April 2001 he was named Associate Laboratory Director for SNS and Vice President of UT-Battelle, LLC, which manages ORNL for the Department. In 2006 he became Associate Laboratory Director for Neutron Sciences, leading a new organization charged with delivering safe and productive scientific facilities for studying the structure and dynamics of materials. In May 2007, Thom was named Director of ORNL and President and CEO of UT-Battelle.
Thom’s research background is in the application of neutron scattering techniques to novel magnetic materials and superconductors using a variety of facilities in North America and Europe. He is author or coauthor of more than 100 refereed publications. In 1997, he was awarded an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Research Fellowship. Thom was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2001, a Fellow of the American Physical Society in 2007, and a Fellow of the Neutron Scattering Society of America in 2010. He received the Distinguished Alumni Award for the Sciences from McMaster University in 2008 and the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, from Dalhousie University in May 2011.
Thom and his wife, Jennifer MacGillivray, also a native of Nova Scotia, live in Oak Ridge with their two sons, William and Simon.

Chandrabhas Narayana is a native of Bangalore, Karnataka, in India. He graduated from University of Mysore in Mysore, Karnataka, with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics, chemistry, mathematics and education followed by postgraduate degree in physics.  He received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in experimental condensed matter physics (High Pressure Raman spectroscopy) from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India. After completing his Ph.D., he held a postdoctoral fellowship at Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York and then became an Assistant Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, India in 1998. He is currently the Professor in the Chemistry and Physics of Materials Science at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Adavnced Scientific Research, Bangalore.  He was appointed the Dean, Fellowships and Extension Programmes of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore in 2008.  Narayana’s  research background is in the application of Raman spectroscopy, Brillouin spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction under extreme pressure and temperature on materials, which includes, novel magnetic materials, ferroelectric, graphene, nanotubes, fullerenes, fast ionic conductors, plastic electrolytes, proteins, nucleic acids, etc. He has developed Raman spectrometer customized for biological applications, is involved in developing experimental facility for Indian scientists in Photon Factory, KEK, Tsukuba, Japan. He is author or coauthor of more than 70 refereed publications. In 2007, he was awarded Bronze medal by the Material Research Society of India and in 2008, Sir C.V. Raman Young Scientist Award by the Karnataka State Government, India. Narayana is a member of the American Chemical Society and a life member of Material Research Society of India. Narayana also has 3 international patents in the area of Nano-biotechnology.

Leo Owsiacki has been Deputy Executive Director, Global Security, Biotechnology, Environment & Health at the International Science & Technology Center headquartered in Moscow, Russian Federation, since 2005. This is a non-proliferation center which has engaged over 75,000 former nuclear, chemical and biological weapons scientists on thousands of high technology projects on a budget of > $750 million USD over the past 17 years.  Mr. Owsiacki s currently overseeing the Center’s Communications & External Relations Division, Strategic Planning Division, Programs & Targeted Initiatives Division, Global Security Projects Division, and Branch Offices Division. He is an economic geologist by profession and has worked in many capacities in mining and exploriation for 15 years, and as a Regional/Resident Geologist for the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines. From 1981-1997 Owsiacki worked progressively in senior management and administrative positions with the Ontario Ministry of Northern Development and Mines as:Manager Temiskaming Testing Laboratories; Coordinator Federal-Provincial Northern Ontario Development Agreement; Acting Chief Geoscience Laboratories; Director Elliot Lake Research Station - Laurentian University. From 1997-2002 he was Executive Director & Head of Mission of the intergovernmental Science & Technology Center in Ukraine, supporting more than 11,000 former Soviet nuclear, chemical and biological weapons scientists on 500 advanced Science &Technology conversion projects. Mr. Owsiacki received an undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto in 1976 and a graduate degree from the University of New Brunswick in 1979.

In December 2009, Professor Bonnie M. Patterson was appointed President and CEO of the Council of Ontario Universities, after serving as Interim President since September 21, 2009.

Prof. Patterson had served as President of COU from 1995 to 1998 before taking the post of President of Trent University, a position that she held for 11 years. She also served as Dean of Business at Ryerson University (then known as Ryerson Polytechnic Institute), and chaired and taught at its School of Administration and Information Management.

Prof. Patterson served as one of four Canadian university presidents to the Council of the Association of Commonwealth Universities. She has served as Chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada; as a Director on the board of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre for nine years, including two as its Chair; and on the board of directors for the International Consortium on Anti-Virals (ICAV). Currently, she is a member of the Ontario government’s Private Sector Advisory Committee, the Advisory Board for the Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation, and The Roberta Bondar Foundation.

In addition, Prof. Patterson served as the province's representative on the founding board of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority and participated in a number of provincial advisory committees including the Biotechnology Commercialization Centre Fund; Health Industries Advisory Committee on Sectoral Strategy Development; and the Centres of Excellence, Ontario Technology Fund. In 2006, she was recognized by the Women's Executive Network with a Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada award in the Trailblazers and Trendsetters category. In 2010 Prof. Patterson was appointed to the Order of Ontario and as a Member of the Order of Canada for her contributions as a leader in postsecondary education.

She holds a BA and MLS from the University of Western Ontario.

Patricio Powell is Counselor, Consul General of Chile in Toronto, ON. EDUCATION:Universidad de Chile, School of Engineering; Universidad Católica de Chile, School of Journalism, Journalist; 1985-1986 Diplomatic Academy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Graduate member of the Foreign Service; 1987-1988 Georgetown University, Washington DC, Fellows in Foreign Service graduate.

WORK EXPERIENCE: Journalist 1986 – to present day.  Foreign Service Officer of Chile. In Chile:Third Secretary, Planning Directorate (1987);Second Secretary, Americas Division, U.S. Desk.  (Canada, 1994-1995);First Secretary, Director of Information Technology and Communications (2001-2002);

Counselor, Head of OAS Hemispheric Affairs Department, Multilateral Policy Directorate (2008-2009).

Abroad: Third Secretary- Deputy Consul, Embassy of Chile in the U.S. (1989-1994); Second Secretary, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Chile in Singapore, representative of Chile to the APEC Budget and Administrative Committee (1996-1998);First Secretary, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Chile in Austria and Alternate Representative to the United Nations (Vienna), Non-resident Embassy in Slovakia, Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1999-2000);Counselor, Deputy Head of Mission, Permanent Mission of Chile to the Organization of American States, Washington DC (2003-2007);Counselor, Consul General of Chile in

Toronto, ON, Canada (2010 – to present day).

John Preece is a chemist and chemical engineer by training, studying at the University of Birmingham (UK) for his undergraduate and doctoral degrees. He currently works with the UK Science and Innovation Network at the British Consulate-General in Toronto, facilitating scientific collaborations and reporting on Canadian science. Before coming to Canada, he lectured at Ewha Womans University in South Korea and performed field research into smallhold organic farming and sustainability in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. In his spare time, he enjoys Aikido, travelling and volunteering, and writes about science and pseudoscience in television.

Jessica Robin is a Program Manager in the Americas Cluster of the Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) at the National Science Foundation (NSF).  She is responsible for a multidisciplinary set of programs involving various countries of the Americas region.  Dr. Robin reviews, evaluates, and manages projects that involve research collaborations with South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, coordinating closely with foreign counterpart agencies, NSF research directorates, and U.S. funding institutions.  She also chairs the Foundation-wide Science, Engineering, and Education for Sustainability (SEES) Implementation Group and is active on several different NSF working groups.     Prior to joining NSF, Dr. Robin worked as a research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Institute for seven years, where she provided technical assistance and educational outreach in Earth science research for GLOBE and other NASA Programs.  Additionally, she has taught physical geography and soil science at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.  She also developed soil science curriculum for the GLOBE program and Cornell University, where she worked managing field and laboratory experiments prior to her work at NASA.    Dr. Robin earned her Ph.D. in Geography specializing in Remote Sensing from the University of Maryland College Park, her M.S. in Soil Science and her M.P.S. in International Agriculture, both from Cornell University, and her B.S. in Labor Relations also from Cornel University.  She has lived in Argentina, Uruguay, Indonesia, and Scotland.  She has also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Bolivia and is fluent in Spanish.   

George Ross was appointed Deputy Minister of Research and Innovation in January 2008 and Deputy Minister of Consumer Services in February 2010. As Deputy Minister of Research and Innovation, Mr. Ross has been instrumental in developing and advancing Ontario’s $3.2–billion Innovation Agenda.

He has led key initiatives to advance Ontario’s position as a leading innovation jurisdiction, including establishing the province’s new innovation system, the Ontario Network of Excellence (ONE), developing a $161–million Life Sciences Commercialization Strategy, and implementing the successful $150–million Biopharmaceutical Investment Program.

As Deputy Minister of Consumer Services, Mr. Ross and his team are leading the transformation of Ontario’s not–for–profit corporations legislation – to increase member rights and make it easier for Ontario’s 46,000 not–for–profits to operate and do business in today’s marketplace.

Mr. Ross is past Chair and current Vice Chair of the Ontario Capital Growth Corporation, as well as the Pharmaceutical Innovation Working Group.  He co–chairs the Conference Board of Canada’s Centre for the Advancement of Health Innovations, as well as the newly established Joint Committee on Science and Technology Cooperation with the People’s Republic of China.

In addition, he is an active member on various other boards and external committees, including:

Mr. Ross holds a Bachelor of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo and certificates in Business Administration and Human Resources Management from Ryerson and Queen’s University. He is also a graduate of the advanced program in Human Resources Management at the Rotman School of Business and a graduate of the Directors Education Program at the University of Toronto.

Rana Sarkar is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canada-India Business Council.

He also serves as a Senior Fellow and Co-Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. Previously, Rana was a co-founder and director of Rawlings Atlantic Limited, a cross border advisory firm, and Content Partners, a fast growing media promotions agency. Rana also served as the lead strategist at leading European digital agency and a consultant at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants based in London and New Delhi. Rana helped establish the Roland Berger office in New Delhi (1997-1998), working for a variety of global and Indian corporate clients.

Rana is an active commentator and ideas contributor on global business and politics, and has been featured on the BBC and CBC, and in the Financial Times and The Globe & Mail. He has been a regular visiting lecturer at both the London School of Economics and the CASS Business School, a patron of the Guardian Hay Literary Festival. He attended the London School of Economics (MSc), Queen’s University at Kingston (BAH) and the INSEAD Executive Program and is a member of the advisory council of the Literary Review of Canada and the Mowatt Centre for Policy Innovation. He currently serves as co-chair of the Labour Market Readiness working group for the Toronto City Summit Alliance.

Frank Saunders began his career in the nuclear industry with Ontario Hydro where he held a variety of management positions.  This included experience in a number of disciplines such as engineering, operations, quality assurance, safety, and inspection. After 13 years with Ontario Hydro Nuclear, Frank moved to McMaster University as Manager, McMaster Nuclear Reactor.  Subsequently he took up the position of Director of Nuclear Operations and Facilities where as senior nuclear operating authority he overseen operations at McMaster's Nuclear Reactor, Accelerator Facility, Nuclear Research Building Laboratories and support facilities.  In 2001 Frank returned to the Bruce site with the launch of Bruce Power as Vice President Safety and Environment. Currently, Frank holds the position of Vice President of Nuclear Oversight and Regulatory Affairs with Bruce Power.

Howard Lincoln Shearer is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hitachi Canada Ltd. (HCL), having joined Hitachi in October 1984. He is also a member of HCL's Board of Directors, a position to which he was appointed in 1999, and a Board Member of GE-Hitachi Nuclear Canada Ltd. Prior to this, he served as Vice-President & General Manager of HCL's Semiconductor division.  Prior to joining Hitachi, Mr. Shearer was employed in the high-tech industry by Texas Instruments as well as Murata Erie. Mr. Shearer holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario and is currently a member of McMaster University’s Board of Governors. He serves on the boards of the following non-profit organizations: Japan Society and the Canadian Nurses Foundation. He is one of board of directors of the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) in Ontario, Canada.  He is also a member of the Principal's Advisory Council (PAC) at the University of Toronto as well as a member of other professional organizations including the Energy Council of Canada and the Canadian Nuclear Association. He serves on the Special Advisory Council to the League for Human Rights, B’nai Brith Canada

Kevin P. D. Smith, D.Phil, ICD.D., is President and CEO of St. Joseph's Health System, which spans the full continuum of care from community-based to tertiary academic acute-care.  An Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Kevin remains active in academic programs at McMaster University and the University of Toronto.

 

Educated in Canada, the United States and Great Britain, Dr. Smith began his career in medical education, followed by leadership roles in university administration prior to taking on senior management roles in academic hospitals and health systems.  His continuing education has focused on governance in the public and private sectors and is professionally certified by the Institute of Corporate Directors and has completed the Harvard Program in Effective Governance.

 

A frequent advisor to the Ontario government, Kevin has served as ministerial supervisor and investigator on behalf of the Government of Ontario and led a number of government corporate initiatives. 

 

Kevin also participates in a number of provincial and national government bodies including the Association of Canadian Academic Healthcare Organizations, the Council of Academic Hospitals of Ontario, and the Change Foundation.  In 2010 Dr. Smith assumed the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) a $6 Billion independent organization founded by the Government of Canada to fund research infrastructure.  Kevin is also the past Chair of the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA), an organization representing all 153 hospitals in the Province of Ontario and Chair, Home Capital Group – one of Canada’s most successful financial services companies and highly rated for its governance practices.

 

Byron G Spencer is Professor of Economics and Director of the Research Institute for Quantitative Studies in Economics and Population at McMaster University; he is also Academic Director of the Statistics Canada Research Data Centre at McMaster and chairs the Executive Committee on the Canadian Research Data Centre Network. His current research centres around the SEDAP (Social and Economic Dimensions of an Aging Population) Research Program, whose purpose is to gain a better understanding of the likely social and economic consequences of the inevitable aging of the population that will take place in Canada over the next few decades. Dr Spencer has published extensively on the impact of population change on the economy, on our social security system, and on both the future need for health care services as the population ages and the ways in which those needs could be met.

Christian Turquat is currently Scientific Attaché at the General Consulate of France in Toronto, Canada. Dr Turquat obtained his M.S. degree at Pierre and Marie Curie University (Paris 6) in Chemistry and Structure of Condensed Mater (1996) and PhD in Material Sciences (1986) from the University of South-Toulon-Var. From 1999-2003 he was a visiting postdoctoral research associate first in the Institute for Materials Research at the University of Bayreuth, Germany then in the Center for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology at Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, USA. In 2003, he joined the University of South-Toulon-Var as an Associate Professor. His research expertise lies in the application of transmission electron microscopy techniques for the study of nanoscale features in materials and their link with their properties at a macroscopic level.

Vivek Vijay is presently Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan, India where he is also the official spokesperson of the Institute. Earlier he has been Assistant Professor at Goa Institute of Management and Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India. For more than year he has worked as with quantitative finance team at Syntel Inc, contributing to research and analysis, specifically econometric research, reductive modeling and risk analysis.

He received his M.Sc. in Mathematics from MDS Ajmer University, India where he received a Gold Medal for being the topper in the University.  He received his PhD from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, for which he was awarded Research Fellowship from Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Government of India. His research interests include categorical data analysis, risk analysis, log-linear and graphical and regression Modeling. He has authored many papers and articles in reputed journals. At IIT Rajasthan he heads students’ counseling services and is also coordinator of faculty affairs. He is also coordinator for the upcoming Centre of Excellence for Water Resource Management at IIT Rajasthan. He is actively associated with many voluntary organizations undertaking social sector development works in rural areas of India.  He has been instrumental in mobilizing more than 500 young professionals from different disciplines to serve the poor and socially marginalized in villages and urban slums of India.

Max Voegler is Director of the DFG North America office, a position he has held since October 2010. He joined the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) in 2005 as a program officer in the Academic Libraries and Information Systems division, where he coordinated policy among European organizations in the fields of Information and Communication Technology. In 2009, he moved to the International Affairs division to head the section on North America and Research Marketing. He holds a PhD in European history from Columbia University.

 

Robert Walker was appointed Senior Vice-President, Nuclear Laboratories, of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) on November 15, 2010.

Dr. Walker has had a distinguished career in the Government of Canada, with more than 25 years experience in science and technology management and 10 years experience in conducting defence research and exploratory development, both at progressively senior levels.

Most recently, Dr. Walker was the Assistant Deputy Minister of Science and Technology at the Department of National Defence and the Chief Executive Officer of Defence Research and Development Canada. He currently serves as the elected Chairman of the NATO Research and Technology Board, the senior oversight body for cooperative research and technology within the NATO framework.

Dr. Walker earned a B.Sc. in Physics from Acadia University and also holds an M. Eng. in Engineering Physics and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from McMaster University. He is a graduate of the National Defence College and a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.

Dr. Walker’s strong academic credentials, combined with his extensive public policy and laboratory operations experience, make him uniquely suited to build AECL’s Nuclear Laboratories into one of the world’s foremost nuclear research facilities.

Dezi Yang is Vice-President, Engineering, SNC-Lavalin Nuclear Inc. In this role, Mr. Yang leads the SNC-Lavalin Nuclear Inc. Engineering Team to deliver quality engineering deliverables to clients on time and under budget. Mr. Yang holds a Ph.D., a Master Degree in Structural Engineering and a Bachelor of Engineering in Applied Mechanics from Southwest Jiaotong University.  Mr. Yang worked at Bristol University, United Kingdom as the post-doctorial fellow supported by British Council.

Mr. Yang is a senior manager with over 30 years of academic, engineering and management experience in Canada, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and the United Kingdom.

Mr. Yang’s academic experience includes teaching and research at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom, Singapore Construction Management Institute and Southwest Jiaotong University in China and Ryerson University in Canada.  Mr. Yang and Mr. Shudong Yu, Principal Investigator and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Ryerson University, are leading a three-year Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) grant supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)  to develop a computer code for simulating the CANDU fuel bundle vibration induced by coolant flow and predicting the wear of pressure tubes. 

Mr. Yang’s  engineering experience includes engineering design, specification, and site construction supervision of power plants, industrial plants, commercial and residential buildings, road and bridge structures.  As the Chief Bridge Engineer, Mr. Yang is member of the team that won the 2004 Canada Consulting Engineer Award - Award of Excellence for Category Transportation for his work on the Esplanade Riel – Winnipeg’s new landmark pedestrian bridge.

Mr. Yang is a registered Professional Engineer in Ontario and Manitoba and a member of American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and Canada Nuclear Society (CNS).

Mr. Yang is a member of the Nuclear Standards Steering Committee of the Canada Standard Association (CSA) and also servicing as the Technical Committee Member for CSA in developing N289 CANDU Nuclear Plant Seismic Design Requirements since 2006.

Wenjun Zhang was born in Qingdao, China, in 1963. He received the B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electronic engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China, in 1984, 1987 and 1989, respectively.

 

From 1990 to 1993, He worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Philips Kommunikation Industrie AG in Nuremberg, Germany, where he was actively involved in developing HD-MAC (former European HDTV) system. He joined the Faculty of Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 1993 and became a full professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering in 1995. As a team leader, he was successfully in charge of developing the first Chinese HDTV prototype system in 1998. By solving the technical bottleneck of high-speed mobile reception of digital television signals, he was one of the main contributors to the Chinese Digital Television Terrestrial Broadcasting Standard issued in 2006. He has  more than 37 patents granted and more than 90 referred papers published in international journals and conferences.

 

Prof. Zhang’s main research interests include digital video coding and transmission, multimedia semantic processing and intelligent video surveillance. He is the vice president for Research and International Relations of Shanghai Jiaotong University and the chief scientist of the Chinese Digital TV Engineering Research Centre, an industry/government consortium in DTV R&D standardization and Intellectual Property management.