Mr. Gerhard Weber is performing the duties of the Deputy Director, Nuclear Policy Directorate at NATO HQ in Brussels, Belgium. The Directorate provides policy support to the Secretary General and others at NATO HQ on matters related to NATO nuclear deterrence. It organizes the work of NATO’s Nucler Planning Group, develops and implements NATO nuclear policy, and organizes as well as leads HQ exercises, policy symposiums, and education and training programs.

Prior to his NATO International Staff assignment, Mr. Weber was the Defence Counsellor and Policy Advisor for Nuclear Policy in the German Delegation to NATO. Before this assignment with the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Weber was the desk officer for NATO Nuclear Policy at the German Ministry of Defense.

His military career started in 1985 when he joined the German Air Force. Since then, Colonel Weber (General Staff) has held various positions, including operational, academic, staff, and leadership at national and international level. This included an assignment as an Assistant Professor at the United States Air Force Academy and multiple combat tours under United Nation and NATO command in Former Yuguslavia and Afghanistan. He is a command fighter pilot with over 2.500 hours on various fighter and trainer aircraft. Mr. Weber holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations and a second Master’s Degree in Military Operational Art and Science.

The Honourable Anita Anand was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Oakville in 2019. She has previously served as Minister of National Defence and as Minister of Public Services and Procurement.

Born and raised in rural Nova Scotia, she moved to Ontario in 1985. Minister Anand is a devoted leader with a proven record of service. In her Oakville community, she has served on the Board of Directors of the Lighthouse Program for Grieving Children, the Oakville Hospital Foundation, and Oakville Hydro Electricity Distribution Inc.

Minister Anand has worked as a scholar, lawyer, and researcher. She has been a legal academic, including as a Professor of Law at the University of Toronto, where she held the J.R. Kimber Chair in Investor Protection and Corporate Governance. She served as Associate Dean and was a member of the Governing Board of Massey College and the Director of Policy and Research at the Capital Markets Research Institute, Rotman School of Management. She has also taught law at Yale Law School, Queen’s University, and Western University.

Minister Anand has completed extensive research on the regulation of financial markets, corporate governance, and shareholder rights, and has appeared regularly in the media to discuss these topics. In 2015, she was appointed to the Government of Ontario’s Expert Committee to Consider Financial Advisory and Financial Planning Policy Alternatives. She has conducted research for Ontario’s Five-Year Review Committee, the federal Wise Person’s Committee, and the Task Force to Modernize Securities Legislation in Canada. In 2019, the Royal Society of Canada awarded her the Yvan Allaire Medal for outstanding contributions in governance relating to private and public organizations. Minister Anand holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Political Studies from Queen’s University, a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Jurisprudence from the University of Oxford, a Bachelor of Laws from Dalhousie University, and a Master of Laws from the University of Toronto. She was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1994. Minister Anand and her husband, John, raised their four children in Oakville.

Rachel Curran is a lawyer by training, with nearly fifteen years of experience providing strategic and policy advice to the Prime Minister of Canada and federal and provincial Cabinet ministers. She worked as a senior associate with Harper & Associates Ltd., and as an instructor with Carleton University’s Riddell Program in Political Management. She also appeared as a regular panelist on CBC’s “Power and Politics”, commenting on issues of policy and politics. Rachel is currently Head of Public Policy, Canada for Meta Platforms.

Michael Ward is a transformational global business leader, Chief Innovation Officer and Marketer. He is currently a Senior Advisor at Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Previously, he was the Managing Director and Global Head of Innovation at Diageo, the world’s leading premium drinks company with 200+ brands, operating in 180 markets.

In a highly regulated industry, the Innovation division was responsible for delivering growth strategies, upstream technologies and a dynamic pipeline of new products. Previous roles included General Manager for North America Innovation, VP Marketing for Smirnoff, RTD Brands and Guinness. Michael started his career at Procter & Gamble in Toronto with ascending marketing roles in beauty care. He is a Fellow & Mentor at The Marketing Academy and Advisor on numerous drinks and tech start-ups. He graduated from Queen’s in 1992 with an HBA in Economics.

Karen is a strategy, communications, and engagement specialist with Crestview Strategy. Throughout her two-decade long career Karen has built a reputation for her mastery of crisis management, her ability to identify challenges, and leverage opportunities to deliver client objectives. An expert at fostering collaboration among parties by identifying common goals and objectives, she offers clients expertise in community, stakeholder, and Indigenous engagement, transformative leadership, change management, and policy development.

Prior to joining Crestview Strategy, Karen led an environmental consulting firm, building on a previous role serving First Nations leadership as Director of Justice at Chiefs of Ontario where she advanced innovative and strategic policy solutions to legacy challenges. In 2016, she co-founded BOLD Realities leading initiatives to advance economic reconciliation and partnered with TakingITGlobal to co-create whose.land, a web-based mobile app that provides users with information about Indigenous territories.

Karen previously led Ontario’s administrative justice system at Tribunals Ontario, where she was responsible for strategy, stakeholder engagement and consultation, legal compliance, communications, Indigenous services, and modernization for its 19 constituent tribunals, including key transformations at the Licence Appeal Tribunal, Ontario Parole Board, Human Rights Tribunal Ontario, and the Landlord and Tenant Board. She successfully led Tribunal Ontario’s first public engagement strategy at the onset of the pandemic to hear directly from Ontario citizens on matters relating to access to justice.

A graduate of the University of Toronto, the University of Ottawa’s French Common Law Program, and Osgoode Hall’s Intensive Program in Aboriginal Lands, Resources, and Governments, Karen was the youngest and most recent graduate to be inducted into the Faculty of Law’s Honour Society in 2014 for using legal education as a foundation for making significant contributions to society. She received CivicAction’s 2018 Emerging Leader Award and was named Public Policy Forum’s 2018 Prime Ministers of Canada Fellow.

A sought-after speaker and advisor on Indigenous reconciliation, Karen brings her expertise to a number of advisory and governance boards including Venture For Canada, Canadian Club Toronto, Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada, TC Energy, Connected North, Resource Works’ Indigenous Partnerships Success Showcase, and Ontario’s Judicial Appointments Advisory Committee. She serves on juries for Canadian policy awards The Donner Prize and The Hunter Prize and is a contributing writer at thehub.ca

Karen is Ojibwe from Dokis First Nation.

Petra Schadeberg-Herrmann is one of two managing partners of Krombacher Brauerei “Brewery”. The family owned and operated brewery is the largest beer brand in Germany. In addition, since 2006 the family holds a full license for the brands Schweppes, Dr Pepper, and Orangina for Germany and Austria. Furthermore, Petra Schadeberg-Herrmann founded her own family office in 1998. The single family office operates in real estate development with a focus on Northern America, capital markets, and active investor positions in both young and mature companies.

Since 2005 she serves on the advisory board of HSBC Germany, HSBC is one of the largest banks in the world. In addition, she was called to the supervisory board of Commerzbank AG, the second largest business bank in Germany from 2013 to 2015. Since 2011 she serves on the supervisory board of Krones AG. Krones AG is a publicly listed company and the world leader in the production of machinery and equipment for filling and labeling of liquid beverages. Furthermore, she sat on the supervisory board of the chocolate manufacturer Chocoladenfabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG in Switzerland from 2014 to 2018.

In 2017 Mrs. Schadeberg-Herrmann was crowned as one of the most influential women business leaders in Germany.

She holds a masters degree in business from the European Busines School with studies in Germany, Paris, and London.

Mavra’s practice focuses on privacy and data protection related matters, as well as litigation and dispute resolution. Mavra regularly advises clients on privacy compliance and data breach response and litigation arising from breaches. She also advises clients on privacy compliance laws in relation to M&A transactions and financings. Mavra will be speaking about the legal landscape of AI in Canada.

Major-General Craig Aitchison joined the Canadian Armed Forces as a reserve infantry soldier in January 1985 and then transferred to the Regular Force through the Regular Officer Training Plan in 1987. He attended the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, graduating with a Bachelor of Business Administration. He completed his Infantry Phase training in 1991 and was badged into The Royal Canadian Regiment where he served in a variety of command and staff positions over three regimental tours with the 2nd and 3rd Battalions.

He deployed three times with The Regiment to the Former Republic of Yugoslavia: once on Operation CAVALIER and twice on Operation PALLADIUM. He deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan on Operation ATHENA where he served for nine months as the J3 Current Operations at Headquarters Regional Command (South). In August of 2017, he deployed to Baghdad, Iraq as the Chief of Staff for the Combined/Joint Forces Land Component Command, Operation INHERENT RESOLVE.

Major-General Aitchison served extra-regimentally at the Canadian Forces Officer Candidate School in Chilliwack, British Columbia, the Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec, and the Tactics School in Oromocto, New Brunswick. He has also served as Director of Army Staff and Director of Infantry. He was also very fortunate to act as the Deputy Commanding General for Operations in U.S. Army Alaska from 2018 to 2020.

He commanded at each level up to and including formation at Base Gagetown: platoon command and company command at 2 RCR, Commandant Infantry School and in 2015 he took command of Combat Training Centre. In 2020, on return from Alaska, he was promoted to Major-General and took command of the Canadian Defence Academy. He retired from that role in June of 2023, and is now attending St Lawrence College’s Culinary Arts programme.

Major-General holds master’s degrees in Defense Studies from Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) Kingston, and Military Arts and Science from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He is a graduate of the Canadian Army Command and Staff College, the Joint Command and Staff Programme at the Canadian Forces College, and the Advanced Operational Art Studies Fellowship at the School of Advanced Military Studies in the United States.

In 2023 he was invested into the Order of Military Merit at the rank of Commander. He has also been twice (2019 and 2021) awarded the U.S. Legion of Merit at the rank of Officer.

An avid distance runner, functional fitness enthusiast, a restorer of antiques and a gourmet cook, Major-General Aitchison and his wife Sally are also the proud parents of two adult children, and recent grandparents to a beautiful granddaughter.

Tabatha is Anishinaabe, a proud member of Nipissing First Nation. As CCAB’s president and CEO she is committed to help rebuild and strengthen the path towards reconciliation and a prosperous Indigenous economy to benefit all Canadians. As an electrical engineer, Tabatha is committed to supporting Indigenous inclusion and diversity in Canada’s energy sector.

Serving the Indigenous community through CCAB’s commitment to support the Indigenous economy, Tabatha is often asked to provide input to the federal government, including through her attendance at the 2023 North American Leaders Summit with delegates from Canada, Mexico, and the USA. She participated on the Indo-Pacific Advisory Committee, providing perspectives and recommendations on the Indo-Pacific strategy that aims to advance Canada’s goal within trade diversification, inclusive growth, and climate change. And as a past member of the government’s COVID-19 Supply Council, advocating for Indigenous businesses to be included in Canada’s response to the pandemic.

In 2022, Tabatha received the award of CEO of the Year from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, Ontario Business Achievement Awards (OBAA). The award is given to a CEO who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership.

Tabatha advocates for the Indigenous economy through her work with various organizations, committees, and boards on Indigenous economic development.

An appointee of the Catalyst CEO advisory board in Canada, Tabatha collaborates with some of the world's most powerful CEOs and leading companies to help build workplaces that work for women. Also, a member of Queen’s University Dean of Engineering’s Circle of Advisors, Centennial College’s Indigenous Circle, C.D Howe Institute’s Energy Policy program, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce board, and the Board of the Dexterra Group, Tabatha is dedicated to diversity and removing systematic barriers to improve opportunities and business competitiveness across all industry sectors.

Tabatha is an appointee of CN’s inaugural Indigenous Advisory Council. The Council is comprised of accomplished and respected representatives of Canada’s First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities of every province and territory. Their mandate is to advise CN’s Board and company President and Chief Executive Officer on issues relevant to CN’s relationship with the more than 200 Indigenous communities in which CN operates.

Tabatha has appeared on numerous occasions in the Senate and House of the Parliament of Canada, discussing, advocating, and advising on various Indigenous business issues. She was recommended to the Deputy Minister of International Trade at Global Affairs Canada to join the Trade Advisory Council where she is one of a 12-member panel. The Council’s overarching mandate is to advise on issues related to export promotion, investment attraction, trade policy and negotiations, and international science, technology, and innovation.

Tabatha is also a main judge on Bears’ Lair, an Indigenous TV series that aired on APTN, which was dedicated to the growth of Indigenous entrepreneurs.

Above all else Tabatha is a mom to two incredible young men and is most comfortable cheering them on from the side of the hockey rink or lacrosse field.

Han holds a BMath degree with a double major in Computer Science and Computational Mathematics from the University of Waterloo. His professional journey has been marked by a keen interest in financial technology (Fintech) and innovation with a broad range of experience in capital markets roles prior to contributing to the CBDC initiative at the Bank of Canada. Today his interests are in areas such as digital payments technologies, reinforcement learning, and distributed ledger technologies. Han has made significant contributions to the field, including publications and presentations on topics like blockchain in Fintech, smart contract security mechanisms, and understanding participant behaviour in payments systems using reinforcement learning.

At the Bank of Canada, Han currently serves as a long time Fintech Researcher on the CBDC Research team. He contributes his extensive knowledge and expertise in virtual currency, digital payments, and distributed ledger systems where he leads discussions on the topic of programmable money.

Neil Appalsamy is a software engineer and innovator in the financial technology sector, where he is a co-founder and CEO at 4PAY INC. enabling collaborative AI banking for micro finance and utilities across underserved markets in Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America. He frequently provides strategic technology, compliance and cyber security advice to Government, Enterprise and NGOs. Neil graduated from York University and Harvard Business School.

Neil was a member of the Governor General's Horse Guards in the Canadian Armed Forces.

With thirty years’ of experience in the Canadian Financial Services industry, Andrew McKinney’s career experience spans Digital Transformation, Application Development, Infrastructure Operations, Project Delivery, Architecture and Relationship Management.

Andrew McKinney is currently the Senior Vice-President of Corporate Technology and Application & Business Architecture, where he is responsible for managing IGM Financial’s core Wealth and Asset Management platforms in service of IG Wealth Management, Mackenzie Investments and Investment Planning Counsel.

Prior to IGM, Andrew held the position of Vice-President of Wealth Management Technology at the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), where he was responsible for delivering and supporting Technology solutions for CIBC’s Brokerage, Asset Management and Private Wealth businesses. He has also held senior management roles at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Fidelity Investments and Richardson Partners Financial Ltd.

Providing privacy advice to private and public sector organizations and governments for 25+ years

10+ years experience in software development, program implementation, and audit delivery.

25+ years of experience in marketing, communications, strategy development for multinational organizations.

Mark is the co-founder of commonsku, a CRM, Order Management and E-commerce application for the $25 Billion promotional products industry. He launched commonsku as a bootstrapped tech startup in 2012 before attracting private equity investment in 2023.

Before commonsku, Mark was the founder of Rightsleeve, a highly regarded promotional products agency that helped build some of the world’s most admired brands (Shopify, Red Bull, Facebook etc) with physical advertising media. He sold Rightsleeve to Genumark in 2019.

Mark loves working at the intersection of technology, branding and design. He has always believed that true differentiation in business lives at the crossroads of art and science.

Mark has been a long time podcaster, blogger and public speaker. He likes to write and talk about how to build successful and profitable businesses that stand out from the masses.

Mark is passionate about building community, finding ways to connect people and helping others. He has done this over the years with non profit organizations like University of Toronto’s The Hatchery, motionball, Don't Mess with the Don, Evergreen and PromoKitchen.

Jon is an adjunct faculty member at Queen’s University (2011) and Cornell University (2020) in the finance and fintech areas. He has founded innovative courses on artificial intelligence and finance, alternative investments, impact investments, fintech and its impact and other graduate and executive courses. Jon is the founder of an artificial intelligence consulting firm, NordAi Analytics, and a law firm, Matrix Law. Previously, Jon was Vice-President and Counsel at Citigroup Global Markets, the investment bank in London, U.K. Jon has a law degree from Queen’s University, an MBA from the University of Oxford (Brasenose College), an MA in Philosophy (Ethics) and has completed advanced certificates on artificial intelligence and fintech from MIT. Jon is a Chartered Investment Manager and qualified lawyer in Ontario, England, and Wales. In terms of volunteer and advisory work, Jon sits on the investment committees for Victoria University at the University of Toronto and the Canadian Bar Association. He is an advisory board member of the Master of Finance (MFIN) and the Master of Financial Innovation & Technology (MFIT) program at Queen’s University. He was a member of a think-tank with the Federal Reserve of Chicago focusing on risk management, market stability and systemic risk issues. Jon will be hosting our panel on Financial Technology as well as our conversation with Rachel Curran, Head of Public Policy at META.

Ugurhan G. Berkok is an Associate Professor of Economics at the Royal Military College, and Adjunct Professor at Queen’s University's Economics Deptartment (BA Economics from Bosphorus University, Turkey, MA Quantitative Economics from University of East Anglia, UK and PhD in Economics from Queen’s University). His previous positions were at Laval, McGill, Montréal, UQAM, Concordia and Sussex in the UK. His current teaching interests and areas of research include defence and national security economics, and health economics. Berkok will be hosting QCBG’s conversation with Gerhard Weber (Deputy Director of Nuclear Policy at NATO).