Bernard Bressler received his M.Sc (Anatomy) and Ph.D. (Physiology) from the University of Manitoba. He did Postdoctoral studies in Neuroscience at McMaster University.
He is the former Vice President Research of Vancouver Coastal Health and Executive Director of the VCH Research Institute and Assistant Dean Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia.
Bressler has served as Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies for the Faculty of Medicine at UBC. He has served as Chairman of the Department of Anatomy, Associate Vice President Research for Health Sciences, and Vice President Research at the University of British Columbia.
In addition to his own research program in skeletal muscle biophysics, which has received support for 29 years from the Medical Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Bressler’s commitment to the advancement of research extends beyond UBC and VCHRI. He has been an active member of the Canadian Association of Anatomists, serving as Secretary, Vice President and President. He was President of the Canadian Federation of Biological Societies, an organization of 3,600 members. He has served as a member of the Cell Physiology Committee of the Medical Research Council (MRC) of Canada and then as Scientific Officer and Chair of that Committee. He served as Co-Chair of the Committee of Vice Presidents Research/Directors of Research Institutes of the Association of Canadian Academic Healthcare Organizations and is currently on the Board of Research Canada.
During his terms as Associate Vice President and Vice President Research he was involved in the development of the technology transfer office at UBC and the development of a program of start-up company creation from technology discoveries at UBC. For these and other accomplishments in the area of commercialization of inventions Bressler was recognized in April 2008 with a Lifetime Achievement Award from Life Sciences BC.
Bruce Clayman completed his doctorate in Condensed Matter Physics at Cornell in 1968, after earning a B.S. in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1964. He joined Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Vancouver in 1968 and was promoted to full Professor in 1980. At SFU, he served as Associate Dean of Graduate Studies (1976 – 79), Dean of Graduate Studies (1985 – 2000) and Vice-President, Research (1993 – 2004). He has served as President of Discovery Parks, Inc., the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies, the Western Association of Graduate Studies, the Canadian Association of University Research Administrators, and SF Univentures, SFU’s for-profit commercialization arm.
Clayman served (Sept 2004 – Dec. 2006) as the first President and CEO of the Great Northern Way Campus in Vancouver. The Province of BC awarded a $40.5M grant to establish a professional Masters Digital Media program and the World Centre for Digital Media at the Campus, in response to a proposal submitted by Clayman and Lynda Brown, President of the industry association New Media BC.
Clayman was a founding member and is now Chair of the Board of Directors of the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, the Provincial agency funding health research in British Columbia which has provided over $200,000,000 of support to health researchers in BC. He was a founding member and Chair of the federal Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics (2001-2007). He has served on the Vancouver Economic Development Commission (2006-9). He is a member and the former Director of the SFU Centre for Policy Research on Science and Technology and served as a Director of the Association of University Research Parks (1998 – 2004) and a number of other organizations. He has assisted with the assessment of proposed new graduate programs for the B.C. Degree Quality Assessment Board and with the assessment of the New Opportunities Program for the Canada Foundation for Innovation.
Clayman has been recipient of over $1M in research grant and contract funding and is the author of over 100 refereed articles and conference proceedings on Condensed Matter Physics. In recent years, his research interests have centred on the commercialization of intellectual property arising from university research as a tool for economic development. He is author of two refereed publications and nine reports on the commercialization of university research, clusters, spin-off companies and related topics.
David H. Turpin, PhD, FRSC, became the sixth President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Victoria in 2000.
Under Dr. Turpin’s leadership, the University of Victoria adopted a strategic plan, which was renewed in February 2007, and a campus plan to guide the physical development of the campus. The strategic plan, A Vision for the Future – Building on Strength, sets long-term goals and expresses the vision of being a university of choice for outstanding students, faculty and staff from British Columbia, Canada and around the world.
Dr. Turpin obtained his PhD in botany and oceanography from the University of British Columbia in 1980. Before joining the University of Victoria, he served as Vice-Principal Academic and Dean of Arts and Science at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. An internationally recognized scholar, Dr. Turpin has been listed as a highly cited researcher by Thomson ISI for his work in the fields of plant biochemistry and physiology. He has received numerous academic honours and distinctions for his many contributions to research and teaching, including the Steacie Fellowship and election to the Royal Society of Canada.
Dr. Turpin serves on numerous boards and commissions, including as Chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada’s Standing Advisory Committee on International Relations and the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN). He also plays a leadership role in the events that make a difference in the lives of community members in the region and served as Chair of the United Way of Greater Victoria campaign.
Don Wright has been President of BCIT since March 2008. Prior to that, his career had spanned the academic, government and private sectors. His government service has included positions as Deputy Minister in the ministries of finance, forests, economic development, and education in the Saskatchewan and British Columbia provincial governments. Don has been a Vice-President at Weldwood of Canada. Immediately prior to joining BCIT he was the principal of Analytica Consulting, which provided advice to public and private sector clients. Don holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Saskatchewan, a Masters degree in Economics from the University of British Columbia, and a PhD in Economics from Harvard University. He and his wife Nancy have three children.
Dr. John R.G. Challis is President and CEO at the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. Dr. Challis took up the appointment on July 1, 2008.
A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Dr. Challis received his undergraduate education at the University of Nottingham and PhD from the University of Cambridge. He conducted postdoctoral work at the University of California, San Diego and at Harvard Medical School before returning to the University of Oxford as a research scientist in 1974. He came to Canada in 1976 as a faculty member at McGill University and joined the faculty at the University of Western Ontario two years later. Dr. Challis served as founding Scientific Director of the Lawson Research Institute at St. Joseph's Health Centre and as the Centre's vice-president (research).
He joined the University of Toronto as Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology in 1995. In 2001, he was appointed as the founding Scientific Director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health. Dr. Challis served as Vice-President, Research and Associate Provost at the University of Toronto, between 2003 and 2007.
An internationally-recognized researcher in the fields of physiology, obstetrics and gynecology, Dr. Challis’ specific areas of research interest include hormone mechanisms during pregnancy, fetal and placental endocrinology and the influence of intrauterine development on disease after birth. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and was recently elected Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. He has published more than 500 scientific papers and articles, trained more than 70 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows and has served as President of several professional associations in his field of research.
John Mould is Ombudsman and Privacy Officer for HSBC Bank Canada. He retired from full time employment with HSBC in January 2001 from the position of Chief Financial Officer. He joined HSBC in October 1985.
Mr. Mould is past president of the Society of Management Accountants in British Columbia and past chair of the B.C. CMA Discipline Committee. He is currently the Chairman of the Board for Covenant House, Vancouver a crisis shelter for street youth.
Dr. Nightingale has a broad professional background in aquatic sciences, specializing in using them to enhance public awareness, education and promote conservation.
A professional biologist and public educator, Dr. Nightingale has been responsible for the development and operation of some of the world’s best aquariums. His background and lifelong work in public communications, and both formal and informal public education, make him a leader in the current rapid development of new conservation efforts in aquariums, zoos and museums.
During his sixteen years at the Vancouver Aquarium, he has guided the expansion of the Aquarium’s leadership in conservation and research while focusing operations on sustainability and solid fiscal performance. As a result, the Vancouver Aquarium is not only one of the “greenest” cultural institutions in Canada, it is the only one that is financially self-sufficient, operating without an annual subsidy from Government.
Michael Stevenson became the eighth President of Simon Fraser University in 2000, and was reappointed for a second term in 2005. Prior to coming to British Columbia to assume the Presidency of SFU he was Vice-President Academic and Provost at York University. Under his leadership, Simon Fraser University has been involved in significant expansion and innovation, including the new SFU campus in Surrey, the establishment of a new Faculty of Health Sciences; the opening of the new Segal Graduate School of Business in downtown Vancouver; the award winning market housing development, UniverCity, and extensive new research and teaching facilities on the Burnaby Mountain campus. Dr. Stevenson is an accomplished scholar and has published widely on the post-independence politics of Africa as well as on political culture and public policy issues in Canada. His book on shifts in public opinion and public policy in the 1970s and 1980s, coauthored with Michael Ornstein, won the 2000 Harold Innis Prize for the best book in the social sciences published in Canada. He has served as Chair of the University Presidents’ Council of British Columbia and on the Board of the Mathematics of Information Technology and Complex Systems (MITACS). He is Chair of the Standing Committee on Educational Issues and Funding of the Association of Colleges and Universities of Canada, Chair of the British Columbia Council for International Education, and Chair of the Council of Western Canadian University Presidents. He also serves on the Board of Genome BC.
Pascal Spothelfer was appointed President and CEO of the BC Technology Industry Association in November 2007.
Pascal, who was born and raised in Switzerland and moved to Canada in 1994, has held a number of senior management roles across several industries both in Europe and Canada. Prior to joining BCTIA, he was President and CEO at Spectrum Signal Processing, a Vancouver-based provider of advanced wireless communication systems which was recently purchased by Vecima Networks.
Before Spectrum Signal Processing, Pascal was the Senior Vice-President, Strategic Development at Teekay Shipping (Canada) Ltd and from 1994 to 1998, served as the Chief Operating Officer and later President and CEO of NovAtel Inc., a high tech company specialized in global positioning systems. Before moving to Canada Pascal was involved first as a management consultant with The Boston Consulting Group and then as a member of the executive team in the turnaround of Jenoptik AG in Germany.
Pascal holds a Master of Law and a PhD in law from the University of Basel, Switzerland and a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD in Fontainebleau in France.
Phil is the CEO of Vancouver Economic Development Commission where he leads a talented team of employees dedicated to strengthening the economy of the city of Vancouver by helping existing businesses, attracting new businesses and making policy recommendations. VEDC serves as the voice of business to Vancouver City Hall.
Previously Phil spent many years in the special events business running consumer shows, conferences with trade shows, the Molson Indy Vancouver and Hastings Park Racecourse. He also work with BC Pavilion Corporation managing their public assemble facilities.
Professor Stephen J. Toope is the 12th President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of British Columbia. His five-year term began in July 2006.
An International Law scholar who represented Western Europe and North America on the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances from 2002-2007, Prof. Toope’s academic interests include public international law, legal theory, human rights, international dispute resolution, and family law.
Prof. Toope is active on many associations, currently Chair, World University Services Canada (WUSC), Director of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC), Member of the Research Council of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIAR), and Chair, Research University Council of British Columbia.
Prior to joining UBC, Professor Toope was President of the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, a position he held since 2002. From 1994-1999, Prof. Toope served as the youngest dean in the history McGill University’s Faculty of Law. Previously, he served as Law Clerk to the Rt. Hon. Chief Justice Dickson of the Supreme Court of Canada from 1986-1987. He continues to conduct research and teach on many aspects of international law and is currently working on issues of human rights and culture, and international human rights law.
A Canadian citizen, Professor Toope earned his PhD from Trinity College, Cambridge, England (1987), his undergraduate degree in common law (LLB) and civil law (BCL) with honours from McGill University (1983), and graduated magna cum laude with his AB in History and Literature from Harvard University (1979).