Conference Speakers

Keynote Speaker

Natalie Panek - MDA, Aerospace Engineer

Natalie is a rocket scientist, adventurer, and advocate for women in technology. Learn more about Natalie here.

Featured Speakers

After a welcome from Forests Ontario CEO Rob Keen and Larry McDermott of Plenty Canada, keynote speaker Natalie Panek will kick off the conference with an energetic and insightful presentation to inspire action.

The session will focus on current efforts to ensure livable communities for the future. Explore how we can enhance healthy, resilient urban forests, and how we can ensure that everyone has a chance to experience the benefits that our forests provide for generations to come.

• Lacey Rose (Moderator) – County of Renfrew, County Forester
• Gene Matthews – City of Guelph, General Manager, Parks
• Sheila Boudreau – SpruceLab Inc., Principal Landscape Architect and Planner
• Martin Litchfield – Trees For Guelph, Vice President
• Shannon Miedema – Halifax Regional Municipality, Director, Environment & Climate Change
• Mark McDermid – Forests Ontario, Seed & Stock Specialist

Recognizing that the world is changing and we need to adapt, this session will focus on what green infrastructure is best suited to our changing climate.

• Jade Schofield (MSc, EP) (Moderator) – WSP Canada, Senior Advisor, Climate Risk and Resilience
• Ingo Ensminger – University of Toronto, Associate Professor, Department of Biology
• Paul Gregory Ronan – Ontario Parks Association, Executive Director
• Dr. Mark de Jong – Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Fire Research Scientist
• Yuill Herbert – Sustainability Solutions Group, Principal

We must get creative to make better management decisions for our forests and this session will focus on how we need to respond to the changes from a science, policy and management perspective and what we can do differently and progressively to move forward.

• Jim Farrell (Moderator) – Forest History Ontario, Chair
• Christian Messier – Université du Québec à Montréal, Professor of Forest Ecology and Urban Forestry
• Jamie Stephen – TorchLight Bioresources, Managing Director
• Lennard Joe – BC First Nations Forestry Council, CEO
• Kate Lindsay – Forest Products Association of Canada, Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer

Forest management and the health of our forests, grasslands and wetlands all have a role to play in lessening the impacts of climate change locally and the severity of climate change globally.

• Dan McKenney (Moderator) – Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Senior Scientist and Director, Integrative Ecology and Economics
• Megan Finlay – Anew, Analyst
• Meg Baskerville – Environment and Climate Change Canada, Physical Science Officer
• Bill Thompson – Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority, Manager, Watershed Plans and Strategies
• Dr. Kevin Solarik – National Council for Air and Stream Improvement Inc., Director of Forestry Research, Canada and Northeastern/Northcentral US

Learn how forest managers are dealing with the challenge of how forests and forestry operations can be adapted to be more resilient and soften the impact of climate change.

• Christine Leduc (RPF) (Moderator) – Interfor, Chief Forester
• Patrick James – University of Toronto, Associate Professor, Institute of Forestry and Conservation
• Sean Rootham – Ducks Unlimited Canada, Conservation Programs Specialist
• John Pedlar – Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Research Scientist
• Kristen Sandvall – Forest Gene Conservation Association, Seed and Climate Change Program Coordinator
• Jonathan Ruppert – Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, Senior Research Scientist

All life is affected by forestry. This session will focus on biodiversity and the interconnectedness of biospheres, forestry and life on earth.

• Alexandra Farkas (RPF) (Moderator) – Forsite Consultants Ltd., Forest Analyst
• Scott Jackson – Forest Products Association of Canada, Director, Conservation Biology
• Emily Conger – Algonquin to Adirondacks Collaborative, Secretary
• Ian R. Fife – Birds Canada, Ontario Forest Birds Program Coordinator
• Isabelle Allen (RPF) – Wahkohtowin Development, Project Forester

Forests Ontario Chief Operating Officer Elizabeth Celanowicz will moderate a panel discussion with experts from each sector of the tree-planting supply chain to discuss the importance of integration and working together to achieve the goals of the program.

• Elizabeth Celanowicz (Moderator) – Forests Ontario, COO
• Kerry McLaven – Forest Gene Conservation Association, CEO
• Collin Phillip – PRT Growing Services, CCO
• Judi Tetro – Brinkman Reforestation Ltd., COO
• Anne-Hélène Mathey – Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service, Executive Director, Natural Climate Solutions Division
• Eric Boysen – New Leaf Forest Services, Partner