NSERC - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Senior Member of SPIE
Anne-Sophie Poulin-Girard holds a Ph.D. in Physics (Optical Engineering and Computer Vision) from Université Laval. She currently works as a systems scientist in the Space and Defense Systems division of ABB Inc. Previously, she served as scientific co-ordinator for the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Neurophotonics at the CERVO Brain Research Centre and then as a professional researcher at the NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Lens Design at Université Laval.
Dr. Poulin-Girard's research deals with design and implementation of advanced optical systems for a wide variety of applications. For the past several years, she has been working on astronomical instruments in particular. She is participating in several projects in collaboration with foreign organizations and institutions and industry, including the HiCIBaS stratospheric balloon-borne telescope, GIRMOS and NIRPS She was also mission chief for the installation of the NIRPS spectrograph in Chile in 2022.
Dr. Poulin-Girard is a senior member of SPIE (the international society for optics and photonics) and of Optica (formerly the Optical Society of America). She has also served on various technical committees and scholarship and grant award committees and as a reviewer for scientific journals. She is recognized by her peers for her work on education and promotion of scientific and engineering disciplines. She has co-chaired several international conferences in the field. She has written many scientific communications on ways of stimulating young people's interest in science and has developed many different teaching tools and activities. From 2017 to 2019, she chaired the SPIE education committee and served on the SPIE strategic planning committee.
In addition to her scientific activities, Dr. Poulin-Girard works with local organizations in the field of education. From 2012 to 2018, she was a member of the jury for Forces Avenir, a Quebec organization whose mission is to promote student engagement. She holds a diploma of college studies in music and, to encourage perseverance and excellence among young musicians, established a scholarship program that was active in the Greater Quebec City Area from 2015 to 2020.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Chartered Professional Accountant
- Chief Financial Officer and Vice - President of the Common Administrative Services Directorate ( CASD )
Dominique Osterrath rejoined NSERC in July 2021 as Chief Financial Officer and Vice-President of the Common Administrative Services Directorate (CASD). She leads a team of professionals who work to support both NSERC and SSHRC in delivering human resources, finance and awards administration, security, and information and innovation solutions. As the lead CASD executive, Dominique supports the accountability of the agency presidents by ensuring CASD's effectiveness as a strategic partner, business enabler, steward and service provider.
Before rejoining NSERC and SSHRC, Dominique was the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Security Officer, and Vice-President of the Corporate Management Branch at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). In previous appointments, she was the Deputy Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director of Financial Services for CFIA, the Deputy Chief Financial Officer and Director General of Finance and Awards Administration for NSERC and SSHRC, and the Director of Financial Planning, Budgeting and Advisory Services for the National Research Council Canada.
Dominique is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA), holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the Université du Québec en Outaouais, and is a graduate of the Public Sector Leadership and Governance executive program at the University of Ottawa.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Member of the Executive Team
- President
- President of the Council
- President of the Natural Sciences
- Professor
Professor Alejandro Adem has been President of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) since October 2019.
Under Professor Adem's leadership, the agency developed the comprehensive strategic plan NSERC 2030: Discovery. Innovation. Inclusion. This plan presents a vision for an agile agency that is steadfast in its support for investigator-driven discovery research while enabling quick responses to emerging Canadian research priorities and maintaining a leading role for Canada as an international player in science and innovation. It envisions a modern, inclusive, collaborative agency that is part of a harmonized, cooperative Canadian ecosystem, addressing domestic and international research priorities, with a renewed focus on interdisciplinarity and open science, all while ensuring that Canadian research, knowledge and intellectual property is protected from foreign threats.
As a highly accomplished researcher in the field of mathematics and a faculty member at the University of British Columbia, Professor Adem has significant leadership experience in the Canadian research and innovation ecosystem. Before joining NSERC, he was CEO and Scientific Director of Mitacs (2015-2019) where he oversaw a significant expansion of its domestic and international internship programs, as well as launching the Mitacs Canadian Science Policy Fellowships, an Indigenous engagement initiative and an innovative entrepreneurship program. Prior to that, he served as Director of the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences (2008-2015), a research and training consortium supporting the mathematical sciences across Western Canada. From 1989 to 2004 he was a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA).
Professor Adem earned a B.Sc. at the National University of Mexico and a PhD in mathematics at Princeton University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society, a Fellow of the Canadian Mathematical Society and a Corresponding Member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences. He has authored more than 70 articles as well as two books; delivered close to 400 invited research lectures around the world; and held postdoctoral or visiting positions at Stanford University, the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, the ETH-Zurich, the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in Bonn, the University of Paris and Princeton University. Other distinctions include a senior Canada Research Chair at the University of British Columbia, the Jeffery-Williams Research Prize (awarded by the Canadian Mathematical Society), the National Science Foundation Young Investigator Award (USA) and an Alfred P. Sloan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship.
Over his career Professor Adem has served on a variety of scientific, editorial and governance boards for the scientific research community worldwide. He is currently Chair of the Canada Research Coordinating Committee, Chair of the Global Research Council's Governing Board, and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Human Frontier Science Program as well as on the Council of the American Mathematical Society.
Alejandro Adem is a Canadian citizen who was born and raised in Mexico City and is a proud member of the Latin American community in Canada. He is married and has two grown children.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Vice - President and Chair of Council
- Vice - President and Chair of the Executive Committee
Dr. Charmaine Dean (B.Sc., Mathematics, University of Saskatchewan; M.Math and Ph.D., University of Waterloo) is currently Vice-President, Research and International and Professor in the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of Waterloo. Previously, she served as Dean of Science at Western University. Prior to her service at Western, she played a major role in establishing the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University in her capacity of Associate Dean of that Faculty, and was the founding Chair of the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, at Simon Fraser University.
Dr. Dean's research interest lies in the development of methodology for disease mapping, longitudinal studies, the design of clinical trials, and spatio-temporal analyses. Much of this work has been motivated by direct applications to important practical problems in biostatistics and ecology. Her current main research applications are in survival after coronary artery bypass surgery, mapping disease and mortality rates, forest ecology, fire management, smoke exposure estimation from satellite imagery, and modeling of temporary and intermittent stream flow for flood analysis and predictions. She holds an NSERC Discovery Grant.
Dr. Dean was 2007 President of the Statistical Society of Canada, 2002 President of the International Biometrics Society, Western North American Region, and has served as President of the Biostatistics Section of the Statistical Society of Canada. She served as Chair of NSERC's Statistical Sciences Grant Selection Committee and Discovery Accelerator Supplement Committee for the Mathematical and Physical Sciences.
She has served as Chair of the NIH Biostatistics Grant Review Panel; on the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Advisory Council and on selection panels for that foundation; on the Board of Directors of the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences; on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Banff International Research Station; and as a member of the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council College of Reviewers. She is a member of the Mitacs College of Reviewers and of College of Reviews of the Canada Research Chairs Program. She is Associate Editor of Biometrics, of Environmetrics, and of Statistics in Biosciences, and Senior Editor of Spatial and Spatio-temporal Epidemiology.
Dr. Dean is an engaged member of several relevant boards including, Compute Ontario, the Southern Ontario Smart Computing Innovation Platform, the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence and the Institute for Cybersecurity and Privacy, Dr. Dean has also served as a board member for the US National Institute of Statistical Sciences (NISS) Corporation, the National Institute for Complex Data Structures and the Canadian Statistical Sciences Institute. She is dedicated to developing outstanding computing capabilities for researchers and for building capacity in Canada and is interested in bringing together diverse communities to drive forward a unified direction for data management activities and priorities.
In 2003, Dr. Dean was awarded the CRM-SSC prize; in 2007 she was named Fellow of the American Statistical Association; in 2007 awarded the University of Waterloo Alumni Achievement Medal; in 2010 named Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; and in 2020 was named Fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
Dr. Darren Lawless (Ph.D. and B.Sc. Inorganic Photochemistry, Concordia University) is an accomplished senior research and development executive. He is currently Assistant Vice-President, Research Innovation Partnerships at McMaster University. Previously, he was Dean of Applied Research and Innovation at Humber College. Prior to that, he served as Sheridan College's first Dean of Undergraduate Research.
After completing a postdoctoral appointment at Argonne National Laboratories, he began his career as a bench chemist at Sterling Pulp Chemicals where he helped develop an innovative and patented membrane-based water treatment technology.
Dr. Lawless chaired NSERC's Synergy Awards for Innovation selection committee and has served on other NSERC committees, such as the Innovation Enhancement Grants selection committee and Technology Access Centres site visit committees. During his time at Concordia University, he received Undergraduate Research Awards and a Post-Graduate Scholarship from NSERC.
Dr. Lawless has contributed to more than 50 Canadian and US patents and has over 40 papers published in numerous refereed journals, peer-reviewed publications and conference proceedings.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Chairman of NSERC 's Committee
Dr. Jeremy Kerr (B.Sc. Biology, University of Ottawa; Ph.D. Biology, York University; PDF Zoology, University of Oxford) has worked for the University of Ottawa since 2002. He is currently a Full Professor in the Department of Biology.
Dr. Kerr's primary research seeks to discover specific causes for biodiversity decline and how biodiversity responds to rapid environmental change. His approach integrates remote sensing tools, field ecology, and computer-based models and has led to major discoveries around endangered species conservation, climate change impacts on biodiversity, and fundamental determinants of biodiversity for virtually all species. These discoveries, published in journals like Science, have been used to improve conservation activities around protected areas and to inform legislative and regulatory activities in government and industry.
Dr. Kerr is strongly engaged in public science and at the science-policy interface. He has worked intensively on science advice in the federal government to ensure the best evidence is available to decision-makers and extensively around issues of science integrity.
Dr. Kerr holds the University Research Chair in Macroecology and Conservation and is President of the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution. He served on NSERC's Evolution and Ecology Evaluation Group (2011-14). He is also an alumnus of the Global Young Academy and has received a number of prizes and awards recognizing research and societal contributions, including the Young Researcher of the Year award, the Early Researcher Award from Ontario, the Excellence in Media Relations Award for Research, and the Partners in Research National Science Ambassador Prize (2018). He is very active in the Partnership Group for Science and Engineering, a project of the Royal Society of Canada.
Dr. Kerr is the Chair of NSERC's Committee on Discovery Research.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Vice - President of the Research Grants and Scholarships Directorate at the Natural Sciences
- Vice - President, Research Grants and Scholarships Directorate
Marc Fortin is currently Vice-President of the Research Grants and Scholarships Directorate at the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), after serving as Vice-President of the Research Partnerships Directorate. In that capacity, he led the evolution of the Alliance research partnerships program as well as the College Applied Research programs.
Throughout his career, Marc has led the development of policies, strategies and programs designed to support research across organizations, countries and disciplines. He has worked extensively at the national and international levels to leverage research to generate impact for the policy, industry, regulatory or decision-maker communities. He has provided advice to Governments in topics at the interface of science, policy and society. He has led the development of research support programs that have changed the relationships between partners in the innovation space.
Dr. Fortin is a molecular geneticist, with a B.Sc. and a M.Sc. from Université Laval and a Ph.D. in Plant Molecular Biology from McGill University. He did post-doctoral work in molecular genetics at the University of California and the University of Chicago. His research lab was focused on understanding the molecular interactions between picornaviruses and host cells.
Prior to joining NSERC, Dr. Fortin held senior positions leading research organizations in academia and government. He has led science and technology branches as Assistant Deputy Minister at the Department of National Defence and at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada for 12 years. He was Associate Professor at McGill University where he held leadership positions (Department Chair and Associate Dean - Research) over 17 years.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Vice - President
- Vice - President, Strategic, Corporate and Public Affairs
Marc Gervais is Vice-President, Strategic, Corporate and Public Affairs at NSERC. Prior to joining the organization in May 2020, Marc served as Executive Director of the Canada Research Coordinating Committee (CRCC).
Marc has over 20 years of experience in the public sector, specializing in the areas of policy development, project management, cabinet and parliamentary affairs, machinery of government, strategic planning, issues management, and organizational change. Over the years, Marc has worked in various government departments and agencies, including Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), Global Affairs Canada (GAC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC).
Marc has a PhD in political science from the University of Ottawa, where he specialized in Canadian politics. He is the author of Challenges of Minority Governments in Canada (2011).
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Chairman of the Alberta Comprehensive Community College Presidents
Dr. Misheck Mwaba (PhD in Energy Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology; MSc in Mechanical Engineering, The University of Manchester; BEng in Mechanical Engineering, University of Zambia) is a professional engineer registered in the province of Alberta. He is currently the President and CEO of Bow Valley College, where he previously held the position of Vice-President, Academic. Dr. Mwaba has a broad professional background in progressively responsible roles that engage academic leadership, instructional and curriculum design, applied research, and cross-functional engineering team leadership. Prior to joining Bow Valley College, he was the Dean of Media, Trades and Technology at Niagara College. He is passionate about facilitating cohesive environments that enable collaboration and success in the workplace and is guided by a conviction to promote student persistence and achievement.
Dr. Mwaba has extensive research and teaching experience obtained through his work at Carleton University, the University of Ottawa, Algonquin College, Eindhoven University of Technology and the University of Zambia. His research findings have been presented at conferences and published in peer reviewed journals. His industrial experience includes working as a Mechanical Research and Development Engineer at Atomic Energy of Canada, combining simulations and experiments to validate safety aspects of CANDU nuclear reactors.
Dr. Mwaba is Chair of the Alberta Comprehensive Community College Presidents. He has previously served as Vice-Chair of the Niagara Industrial Association; Chair of the Council of Deans of Trades and Apprenticeship Canada; Vice-Chair of the Pembroke Regional Hospital Board; Member of the Arnprior Regional Health Board; and Council Member of the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists.
In 2022, Dr. Mwaba received a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal and an Alberta Newcomer Recognition Award.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Associate Vice - President, Research Grants and Scholarships Directorate
Dr. Robin Craig joined NSERC in August 2022 as Associate Vice-President, Research Grants and Scholarships. With more than 10 years of experience in the administration of research and innovation programs, Dr. Craig brings to NSERC a significant knowledge of the research ecosystem and the federal funding agencies. Robin is passionate about multidisciplinary research collaborations, and throughout her career, has prioritized inclusive training and mentorship to further the career goals of students and highly qualified personnel.
Prior to joining NSERC, Robin was the inaugural Director of Recherche & Innovation Boréal at Collège Boréal, where she led the strategic development of the college's applied research and innovation portfolio. In this role, she established the college's research services office and developed an extensive network of research partnerships with industry and community organizations to enhance knowledge transfer, commercialization, and create experiential learning opportunities. She has served on several advisory committees including NSERC's College and Community Innovation Program Evolution Advisory Committee, and the Governing Council of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). In addition, she has served on the Executive of the Heads of Applied Research of Ontario, le Comité consultatif du Consortium national de formation en santé (CNFS)-Volet Laurentienne, and Bioenterprise Canada's Northern Ontario Advisory Committee.
Before joining Collège Boréal, Robin held academic and administrative positions at Laurentian University starting in 2007. As a member of the Office of Research Services, she contributed to the university's research intensity and visibility by supporting faculty and students in the coordination of research funding proposals and knowledge mobilization activities. In this role, she also advised senior leadership regarding strategic research initiatives and facilitated the work of the institution's Research Ethics Board.
Subsequently, she served as Senior Manager, Programs and Knowledge Translation at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's (CIHR) Institute of Indigenous People's Health.
Robin has a PhD and Master's in French from Western University and an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto.
Dr. Susan Chatwood (B.Sc. Nursing, University of British Columbia; Masters Epidemiology, McGill University; PhD Medical Science, University of Toronto) is a Professor and Associate Dean Education, at the University of Alberta, School of Public Health and is and a recipient of the McCalla Professorship. She also holds affiliations as an Associate Professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and Institute for Health Policy Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto.
Dr. Chatwood has spent most of her career in remote and northern communities working in the clinical setting, public health and research. She has played a number of leadership roles in the north which have promoted northern based research, partnerships, training, and capacity building. She was a scholar in the Fulbright Arctic Initiative, was the founding Scientific Director of the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research and was President of the Canadian Society for Circumpolar Health. Her research interests include circumpolar health systems stewardship and performance, and the synthesis of knowledge across sectors that promotes broader connotations of health systems and wellness in the Arctic.
She was previously a member of Council in 2019-20, and was reappointed in 2021.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
Dr. Valérie Bonnardel-Vacqué holds a master's degree in engineering from the École centrale de Marseille and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the Université de Lille. She has devoted her career to building ties between academia and industry in a wide variety of areas, from fundamental and applied research to technological innovation and its economic, environmental and societal impacts. She is currently Senior Director of Business Development - Science and Engineering at Axelys, a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to accelerate the development, commercialization and transfer of high-potential innovations stemming from public research, thus contributing to the economic and social prosperity of Quebec. She is responsible for the development and sound management of the organization's external business relationships, in particular with industry partners interested in intellectual property assets supported by AXELYS; this work encourages technology transfers and the creation of spinoff firms from Quebec universities, colleges and hospitals. She also maintains relationships with numerous public- and private-sector partners that help Axelys to achieve its overall mission.
In her earlier career, Dr. Bonnardel-Vacqué worked for 15 years in the research departments of large private companies (AkzoNobel and L'Oréal) and then for nearly 10 years on developing collaborative academic research-first as executive director of the Grenoble INP Partnership Foundation in France, and then with Mitacs in Canada. She also served as Director of the Innovation Support Office in the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research at the Université de Moncton. In this capacity, she developed collaborative research strategies based on best practices for public-private partnerships and implemented these practices with the faculty's researchers.
An expert in managing complex situations and change, Dr. Bonnardel-Vacqué is dedicated to improving performance, creating innovative social networks and developing teams and individuals through her teaching, seminars and conferences. She also applies her international, multidisciplinary expertise as a consultant on social enterprise incubation and sustainable development.
Dr. Bonnardel-Vacqué is active as a volunteer with several organizations dedicated to entrepreneurship (Startup Greater Moncton, in New Brunswick, Canada, and Sevea Consulting, in Cambodia), environmental research (the CHORUS research institute, which works to protect marine ecosystems and promote the sustainable development of human activities at sea), and integrating adults with autism spectrum disorder into the job market (the Leonard Algernon Association, of which she is a co-founder).
Job Titles:
- Research and Innovation Development Officer
Job Titles:
- Research and Innovation Development Officer
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Member of the Executive Committee
Helge Seetzen is a successful multi-media technology entrepreneur with deep experience in the university tech transfer space. He currently serves as the CEO and Managing Partner of TandemLaunch-a startup foundry that works with driven entrepreneurs to turn research from the world's best universities into exceptional consumer technology companies. Under Helge's leadership, TandemLaunch has created over 30 technology companies, accounting for hundreds of jobs, $600M+ in market value and commercialized technologies from over 50 international universities.
Prior to TandemLaunch, Helge co-founded Sunnybrook Technologies, which later became BrightSide Technologies, to commercialize high dynamic range (HDR) display technology and champion the development of the local dimming LED TV concept. After receiving accolades such as the Best Buzz Award at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show and a "Top 100 Technologies in 2006" rank by Popular Science Magazine, BrightSide was successfully sold to Dolby Laboratories at a high return to shareholders. At Dolby, Helge led all cross-functional development activities for Dolby's first two consumer video products, including today's Dolby Vision standard for HDR video. In this capacity he built research and engineering departments in both Canada and the US, and was closely involved in licensing negotiations with many major consumer electronics manufacturers.
Helge's leadership in the technology transfer, innovation and entrepreneurial space has been widely recognized through awards such as a Business In Vancouver Forty under 40 distinction for his business accomplishments, an NSERC Innovation Challenge Award for university technology transfer, and a Special Recognition Award from the Society for Information Display for the pioneering of LED TV technology. Helge's contributions to Canadian society include service on the governance bodies of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Mitacs, HEC Montreal's Entrepreneurship Program, and over a dozen private corporations. He is a Fellow of the McGill Dobson Center for Entrepreneurship and a strong supporter of many other initiatives encouraging entrepreneurship. As a technical leader, Helge served as the General Chair for Display Week, the largest technical conference on displays, as well as President of the Executive Board of the Society for Information Display (SID). He has published over 20 journal articles, writes a regular column on venture capital innovation in the Information Display magazine, and holds over 80 US patents. Helge received a BSc in physics and a PhD in interdisciplinary studies on imaging technology in physics, computer science, electrical and computer engineering, and psychology from the University of British Columbia.
Job Titles:
- Research and Innovation Development Officer
Job Titles:
- Research and Innovation Development Officer
Job Titles:
- Research and Innovation Development Officer
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Vice - President, Research and Technology Partnerships
Manal Bahubeshi is Vice-President, Research and Technology Partnerships (RTP). She joined NSERC in October 2020, serving as Associate Vice-President of Research Partnerships, leading a talented executive team responsible for the operations and delivery of the directorate's programming for colleges and universities. Manal guided the expansion of strategic partnerships, and the launch of NSERC's Alliance programming in support of the Government of Canada's National Quantum Strategy.
Prior to joining NSERC, Manal's career in the federal public service focused on science policy. She served as the Director, Granting Agency Policy and Programs, in the Science and Research Sector at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED). She managed ISED's relationships with the granting agencies, advancing significant initiatives such as the Fundamental Science Review, new budget investments for the granting agencies, and the creation of numerous tri-agency programs. Manal previously worked at Health Canada, leading a team providing science policy advice in support of the department's mandate, and fostering collaborative partnerships with provincial health research agencies, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Her career in the public service began at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency in biotechnology policy and international affairs.
Manal has a master's degree from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Council
- Centre National En Électrochimie Et En Technologies Environnementales Inc
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Team
- Associate Vice - President, Research and Technology Partnerships
- Associate Vice - President, Research Partnerships
Robbyn Plumb joined NSERC as Associate Vice-President, Research Partnerships in July 2023. She began her career at the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) with the Evaluation and Statistics group and later moved into the Policy and Evaluation Division at NSERC, ultimately managing the Policy and International Relations team.
From 2004 to 2023, Robbyn was with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), holding various positions with progressive responsibility in the science and innovation policy space. She managed the Secretariat of the Prime Minister's Advisory Council on Science and Technology and led strategic policy functions in the Science Policy Branch of the Science and Research Sector. She also served as an executive leader in program delivery, responsible for implementing the Budget 2019 announcement to create the Strategic Science Fund. Earlier in her career, Robbyn spent four years on an interchange at the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) as a Senior Program Officer, delivering several of CFI's funds, including a joint funding opportunity with NSERC on the Automotive Partnership Canada initiative.
Robbyn holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance and International Business from the University of Ottawa and spent a year studying international finance and economics at the University of Aston in Birmingham, England. She is also a devoted advocate for children and youth with developmental disabilities, currently serving on the Board of Directors of Children at Risk.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Director
- Acting Deputy Director
Sheila Downer (Masters Technology Management Candidate (2022), Memorial University of Newfoundland) has lived and worked in Labrador for more than 37 years and is a strong advocate for the development of rural, Northern and coastal communities. Ms. Downer has worked as part of a team throughout Labrador to build local knowledge, skills and effective tools to support the way people live, work and do business in Northern communities, and she has been actively involved in a wide range of community, regional and international organizations.
Ms. Downer's work has primarily been focused in Labrador's municipal, business, education, health, tourism and regional development sectors and has been supported with experience in providing project partnership, regional network development and ICT services internationally. She currently works with the Memorial University of Newfoundland's Harris Centre and Office of Public Engagement as the Strategic Northern Liaison, and she also serves as the Vice President of Finance, Development and Engagement for the University of the Arctic.
Ms. Downer has been recognized as one of Atlantic Canada's Top 50 CEOs and is an active leader in many volunteer capacities on a local, regional and provincial basis, including SmartIce, International Grenfell Association, Labrador North Chamber of Commerce and University of PEI Institute of Island Studies Advisory Board.
The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport announces more than $29 million in support for 18 research teams across the country.