SOLD OUT -- Transportation Symposium, Day 2: Connecting and Building our Region's Economy

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Speakers:

• Jan De Silva, President and CEO, Toronto Region Board of Trade

Bio:

Jan De Silva, President and CEO, Toronto Region Board of Trade

Jan De Silva is President and CEO of the Toronto Region Board of Trade, one of the largest and most influential business organizations in North America. She is spearheading efforts to make Toronto one of the most competitive and sought-after business regions in the world.   

Jan brings to the role more than 14 years of international CEO experience building ambitious, high-growth organizations. Anchored in her leadership is her belief in the power of economic development to lift communities. 

Prior to joining the Board, she served as CEO of Sun Life Financial’s Hong Kong and Mainland China businesses and co-founded and later sold Retail China Limited. Jan also served as Dean of Ivey Asia for Ivey Business School of Western University.

Highly respected for her business advocacy and government engagement, Jan has been Chair of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, Chair of the Canada China Business Council in Beijing and served on the Board of the Asian Corporate Governance Association. In 2019, she was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to represent Canada on the APEC Business Advisory Council. Jan also sits on the board of Intact Financial Corporation, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

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‎One of the most important transportation challenges is the fragmentation of our region’s transit network. When a driver crosses a municipal boundary, the only thing they will notice is a sign that welcomes them to the city. Transit riders, however, are too often burdened with inconvenient transfers and punitive double fares. This keynote will address the development of a comprehensive and affordable plan to address these challenges and create a transit system that is as integrated as our region’s economy.

Introductory Remarks:

• Olivier Marcil, Vice-President, Public Affairs Canada, Alstom Canada

Speaker:

• The Hon. Stan Cho, Associate Minister of Transportation, Government of Ontario

Concluding Remarks:

• Virginia Borkoski, Market Sector Lead - Transportation, SNC-Lavalin

Bios:

The Hon. Stan Cho, Associate Minister of Transportation, Government of Ontario

Stan Cho is Ontario’s Associate Minister of Transportation and MPP for Willowdale.

First elected in 2018, Minister Cho served as Parliamentary Assistant to the President of the Treasury Board and to the Minister of Finance, before being appointed to Cabinet in 2021.

Upon his re-election in 2022, Minister Cho was once again called to Cabinet by Premier Doug Ford.

At the Ministry of Transportation, Minister Cho eliminated double fares for most local transit around the GTHA when using the GO network and introduced new fare discounts for youth and post-secondary students. Most recently, Minister Cho announced a new credit card payment option when using Brampton, Oakville, MiWay, and GO transit.

Minister Cho continues to champion local transportation issues while working closely with Minister of Transportation Caroline Mulroney to modernize policy and promote coordination and integration of all transit projects in the Greater Golden Horseshoe.

Before joining politics, Minister Cho began his career at Mercedes-Benz, where he worked his way up from an entry-level role to become one of the company’s auditors. It was during this time that he travelled extensively throughout Ontario to communities large and small.

Born in Rexdale and raised in Willowdale, Minister Cho proudly holds the distinction of being the first Canadian-born person of Korean descent to hold public office in Canada.

Minister Cho graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in philosophy.

He lives with his wife and their French bulldog, Kevin.

Olivier Marcil, Vice-President, Public Affairs Canada, Alstom Canada

Olivier Marcil recently joined Alstom, a world leader in the rail industry and one of the largest manufacturing companies in the country. As Vice-President, Public Affairs for Canada, Mr. Marcil develops and supports relations with the various partners of the company, paying particular attention to relations with governments, to sustainability initiatives and the company's social commitment to communities where it operates.

Mr. Marcil was previously Vice-President, External Relations at Bombardier from 2016 to 2021, as well as Vice-Principal, Communications and External Relations at McGill University from 2011 and 2016.

He also held senior positions in the Government of Quebec from 2003 to 2011. He acted as advisor to Premier Jean Charest; as Chief of Staff to the minister of Economic Development, Innovation and Export, and as Chief of Staff to the minister of Canadian Intergovernmental Affairs, Aboriginal Affairs and the Reform of Democratic Institutions.

Mr. Marcil holds a bachelor's degree in History from the University of Sherbrooke and a master's degree in History from the University of Montreal. He is the author of a variety of articles on Claude Ryan, former leader of the Quebec Liberal Party and director for the daily paper Le Devoir, including the book entitled Reason and Balance: Liberalism, Nationalism and Catholicism in Claude Ryan’s thought (1962- 1978).

Olivier Marcil has always been active in his community. He is currently a member of the boards of directors of the University of Sherbrooke; the Pointe-à-Callière Museum, the Serge-Marcil Foundation and Youth Fusion.

He was previously a director of the Association francophone pour le savoir (ACFAS), Savoir Média, CORIM, the AéroMontréal cluster and the J-Armand Bombardier Foundation.

He received ICD.D certification from the Institute of Corporate Directors (McGill/UofToronto) in February 2017.

Virginia Borkoski, Market Sector Lead - Transportation, SNC-Lavalin

Virginia is the Market Sector Lead, Transportation, Engineering Services, Canada at SNC-Lavalin. She is responsible for driving the success of the Rail & Transit, Ports & Airports and Roads & Bridges markets, focusing on generating a new level of client centricity and aggressive growth.

Virginia’s career in advancing the built environment spans over 30 years, including public and private sector executive level experience. Her expertise in planning, design, contracting and construction of international transportation projects reflects her passion for delivering on and exceeding client expectations. Virginia has led transit mega-projects worldwide, including the Fulton Center, NYC; Government Center Station, Boston; Eglinton Light Rail stations, Toronto; and Doha Metro Stations, Qatar.

Virginia is currently serving a second term on the Board of Trustees, Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), where she is a Fellow and Chartered Construction Manager and previously served as Chairperson, Qatar Centre. She is also a Chartered Architect, Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and has previously served as Director, Womens Transportation Seminar (WTS) Foundation Board, and Founder and Past President, Toronto Chapter.

Virginia holds an MSc in Transportation Management from New York University, and an MSc in City & Regional Planning and Bachelor of Architecture from Pratt Institute. She is a frequent speaker at international conferences on various topics including leadership and transportation infrastructure project delivery.

Marine transportation is an important part of the region’s linkages to the world, and there are notable moves to expand its usage. The Port of Montreal, which is a critical link between the Toronto region and global markets, is undergoing an unprecedented expansion. It is the only major east coast port that has a major expansion underway, and this will be a unique opportunity for Toronto businesses to grow export markets. This especially includes European markets opened up by CETA, and fast-growing markets in India and Southeast Asia. Marine transportation also has the potential to provide useful alternatives for local waterfront transportation.

Speakers:

• Martin Imbleau, President and CEO, Montreal Port Authority
• Jeff Bellerud, Director of Intermodal and Port Operations, CN
• Nicole Wang, Partner, Infrastructure Advisory, Deloitte

Moderator:

• Fatima Syed, Ontario Reporter, The Narwhal

Bios:

Martin Imbleau, President and CEO, Montreal Port Authority

Martin Imbleau has been President and Chief Executive Officer of the Montreal Port Authority since January 2021. With close to 25 years of experience in the public service sector, Mr. Imbleau drives forward a vision of the Port of Montreal as a strategic asset and major economic engine, an engaged community stakeholder and a leader in environmental and sustainable development. 

Before joining the MPA, Martin Imbleau held key positions in two prominent energy companies: Energir, where he led corporate development and renewable energy operations; and Hydro-Québec, where he ran corporate strategies and business development. 

The author of numerous works on international human rights law related to genocide, Martin Imbleau holds a Bachelor of Law degree from the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) and a Master of Law degree from the Université de Montréal, and is a member of the Quebec Bar. He chairs the Board of Directors of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair of Strategic and Diplomatic Studies at UQAM and of Cargo M. He co-founded the Chair in Energy Sector Management at HEC Montréal.

Jeff Bellerud, Director of Intermodal and Port Operations, CN

Jeff Bellerud is the Director of Intermodal and Port Operations at the Canadian National Railroad.  With 20 years of experience in the transportation and container sector, Mr. Bellerud has extensive knowledge of both port and inland operations.  Responsible for seven inland terminals across Western Canada and the Port Operations across CN’s network, Jeff brings a holistic picture of the movement of goods across North America. 

Prior to joining CN, Mr. Bellerud spent nearly a decade at Global Container Terminals in Vancouver, leading the operational planning and strategy, among other leadership roles.  Jeff started his career at APM Terminals in the Port of Los Angeles, where he managed vessel and yard operations. 

Jeff holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Norther British Columbia (UNBC).

Nicole Wang, Partner, Infrastructure Advisory, Deloitte

Nicole is a Partner in the Infrastructure Advisory practice at Deloitte, with experience strategic investments and government policy from the UK, Australia, Canada and the US. Since moving to Canada 18 months ago, Nicole has been advising Transport Canada on their air sector recovery strategy; MTO on their integrated provincial transportation plan, looking into opportunities in marine, EVs, long range transportation planning etc.; IO and Translink on their respective TOC programs; Washington State Department of Transportation on the Cascadia High Speed Rail Program; and the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator Program in Chicago. Back in the UK, Nicole was advising on the East Midlands Freeport proposal, as part of the UK Government’s Green Freeports initiative, aiming to promote regional development, establish hubs for global trade and investment, and foster innovation in a sustainable and equitable way.

Nicole also serves as a Board Member for IPFA – a global infrastructure and energy network for policy makers and infrastructure professionals globally.

Fatima Syed, Ontario Reporter, The Narwhal

Fatima Syed is a Mississauga-based journalist with The Narwhal, an online award-wining publication that offers indepth coverage of environment and energy issues across Canada. She has worked for The Walrus, the Toronto Star, The Logic and National Observer, where she established the outlet’s Queen’s Park bureau. She is also the vice-president of the Canadian Association of Journalists. She was winner of the 2022 World Press Freedom Canada Award.

New transit infrastructure is essential to make new housing and commercial construction possible. It is especially important to make sure that the areas around new transit stations are densely developed with walkable communities that can drive ridership and, potentially, help to financially support transit construction. This session will discuss the government’s plans to implement transit communities around many of the new transit stations being built in our region.

Speakers:

• Jeremy Finkleman, Senior Transportation Planner, WSP
• Trajce Nikolov, Senior Manager, Engineering, Northcrest Developments
• Heather Grey-Wolf, Chief Development Officer, Infrastructure Ontario

Moderator:

• Julia Stefanishina, Senior Vice President and Associate Partner - Infrastructure Advisory, Ernst & Young (EY)

Bios:

Jeremy Finkleman, Senior Transportation Planner, WSP

Jeremy is the co-lead of WSP’s National Transit Centre of Excellence. He is a Senior Transportation Planner and Project Manager focusing on transit in WSP’s Transportation Planning and Science Department. Jeremy has a strong background in transportation analytics, network planning, transit service planning, and multi-modal integrated planning studies. His experience includes work in public transit, new mobility, planning for transit facilities, corridor planning, highway planning, business casing, and transportation master planning.  

Jeremy excels at translating analytics to ‘big picture’ results and believes strongly in the need to use available data and as a way to tell a larger story. He has worked with clients across Canada on network planning and transit assignments spanning rural, mid-sized, and large urban environments. Most recently, Jeremy led the development of the City of Pickering’s strategic assessment for a new station stop along VIA’s proposed High Frequency Rail corridor.

Heather Grey-Wolfe, Chief Development Officer, Infrastructure Ontario

As Chief Development Officer, Heather Grey-Wolf oversees IO’s work on transit-oriented communities, leveraging surplus lands for government priorities such as long-term care, and supporting master development exercises like the redevelopment of Ontario Place. 

Heather’s experience is a unique blend of development leadership across the public and private sectors. Most recently, as Senior Vice President at Capital Developments, Heather was responsible for a $2.1 billion development and construction portfolio. Prior to that, Heather established a $1 billion national multi-family development program with Realstar Management. 

As a senior development leader with the Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) for seven years, Heather led the revitalization of the 69-acre Regent Park, the largest urban renewal project in Canada. Heather’s team was responsible for the relocation of 2,000 families, the demolition of 54 buildings, and the delivery of roads, parks, community infrastructure, 300,000 square feet of commercial space, and 7,500 units of multi‐family housing. In five years, Heather and her team delivered over 1,850 units of multi‐family housing (over 700 rental units and 1,150 condominium units) on time and on budget. 

Heather is passionate about the outdoors and spends her spare time swimming, running, biking, and hiking with her family. Heather has an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, a B.Arch and B.Sc from McGill University, and is a licensed architect with the Ontario Association of Architects. 

Trajce Nikolov, Senior Manager, Engineering, Northcrest Developments

As Senior Manager of Engineering at Northcrest, Trajce is responsible for the planning and delivery of the infrastructure necessary to support the redevelopment of the Downsview Airport, a 520 acre master plan in North York that will house over 125,000 people in jobs in the next few decades. As part of his role, Trajce is responsible for both transportation and servicing infrastructure, as well as finding and leveraging innovative technologies and processes to help Downsview meet its ambitious vision.

Prior to joining Northcrest, Trajce worked for the City of Toronto, having led transportation efforts on numerous high-impact infrastructure and development projects, one of which being East Harbor, a 60-acre master planned development on the eastern edge of downtown Toronto.  

Trajce is a licensed Professional Engineer and has a B.A.Sc. and M.Eng from the University of Toronto.

Julia Stefanishina, Senior Vice President and Associate Partner - Infrastructure Advisory, Ernst & Young (EY)

Global perspective and international experience fuel Julia Stefanishina’s work as a senior vice president in EY Canada’s Infrastructure & Real Estate Advisory  practice.  Born in Ukraine, Julia’s career is a vibrant story of international experiences honed at some of the world’s leading professional services firms. From east to west, she’s led and contributed to more than 100 unique infrastructure and real estate initiatives. Wherever she’s working in the world, Julia leads with a distinctive spirit of innovation that sees her asking colleagues and clients alike: how can we do this differently, bolder, better?

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This session will feature a series of short presentations that highlight both local and global innovative technologies and new ideas for improving transportation and infrastructure.

SNC-Lavalin

• Johan Germishuys, Director, Digital Solutions

• Isabelle Smith, Global Director of Engineering Net Zero

Transit App

• Kaj Huddart, Business Development

Miovision

• Kurtis McBride, CEO

Hoverlink

• Chris Morgan, CEO

Cybeat

• Yoav Raiter, CEO

Bios:

Johan Germishuys, Director, Digital Solutions, SNC-Lavalin

Johan Germishuys has over 25 years of experience in various roles. Starting out his career on the operations side, gaining insights into the client contractor handover challenges, and managing various projects to maintain as-builts for several years. From there joining SNC-Lavalin always with a focus on improving project delivery to realize client benefits and expectations. 

Utilizing his broad industry knowledge working with various markets across the globe, from Mining, Oil & Gas and more recently infrastructure and nuclear. He has a keen focus on delivery, and a broad understanding of overall project management with careful attention to details by ensuring a hands-on approach to systems. 

Project and client delivery systems are grounded in data, and with experience in various toolsets and technology with a focus on continuous improvement has implemented data driven design and thought leadership to address numerous aspects of systems integration, reporting methods, best practices, workflows, and processes.  

Currently leading our Canadian Digital Solutions team, he stewards our BIM (Building Information Management) team, visualization, data analytics and machine learning teams. He is fluent in English and Afrikaans.

Isabelle Smith, Global Director of Engineering Net Zero, SNC-Lavalin

Isabelle Smith is Atkins and SNC-Lavalin’s Decarbonomics Development Director and Global Director for Engineering Net Zero. She has held several leading roles in technical, operational, and business development functions over the last 10 years at the company.   

An architect and building services engineer by training, previously leading our UK & Europe Net Zero Building Design Team, she now provides strategic leadership around creating and innovating new low carbon and sustainable solutions, products and services across a global multidisciplinary engineering, procurement, and construction services company.  Passionate about the development of the construction industry, both environmentally and digitally, Izzy chairs and works with cross-industry partners to develop policy and best practice to drive the industry to meet climate change targets.  

Focusing on the built, digital and natural environments and working across the win work, operational and delivery workspaces she brings a unique and highly effective approach to enabling our business to deliver value outcomes for our clients, as they address the Climate Change and Net Zero agenda.

Kaj Huddart, Business Development, Transit App

Kaj builds relationships with public transport agencies across North America as a member of Transit's Partnerships Team. Kaj previously worked on Transit's Customer Support team and as a Transit Data Analyst. Prior to joining Transit in 2018, Kaj worked as an environmental consultant and as a research assistant for FARMM Lab at McGill's Peter Guo-ha Fu School of Architecture.

Kurtis McBride, CEO, Miovision

Understanding traffic is fundamental to managing the evolution of our cities. But, when Kurtis McBride looked at how cities were measuring traffic, he saw methods that hadn’t changed in decades – people with clipboards counting cars. He co-founded Miovision in 2005, a fast-growing Kitchener-based company using computer vision, artificial intelligence and advanced analytics to help cities modernize their approach to managing traffic to make roads more efficient and safer.  

Kurtis is a graduate of the University of Waterloo, where he received his Bachelor of Engineering in Systems Design in 2004, and Master of Engineering in Systems Design in 2007.

Chris Morgan, CEO, Hoverlink

An accomplished entrepreneur who is currently operationalizing North America’s first passenger hovercraft service crossing Lake Ontario. Chris has extensive experience supporting global marketing efforts for major Fortune 500 companies including P&G, Walmart International, Disney, Universal/Alliance Atlantis, Nestle, Molson Breweries, Coors, Pirelli, Bridgestone, Formula 1, Suzuki Japan R&D team and Honda Canada.

Chris also has an Earth Sciences degree from McMaster University, providing him with unparalleled knowledge in urban planning, infrastructure and transportation.

Yoav Raiter, CEO, Cybeat

Public transit is a critical tool for governments to help revitalize communities, especially in downtown cores like in Toronto. It is crucial to ensure that public transit is affordable, reliable, and safe nationwide. This keynote will comment on the public transit components of both the federal and provincial government budgets.

Speaker:

• Marco D’Angelo, President and CEO, Canadian Urban Transit Association

Bio:

Marco D’Angelo, President and CEO, Canadian Urban Transit Association

Marco D’Angelo was appointed President & CEO of the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) in 2018. As president, he has continued to position CUTA as Canada’s voice for public transit and urban mobility. As CEO of Canada’s largest transit advocacy agency, Marco has focused on the role of transit systems and governments to rebuilding ridership, he continues to champion safety and security measures to combat the increase in violence/mental health crises on public transit and contributes to CUTA’s thought leadership and government advisory role with regards to public transit and city planning. 

Obviously, 2020 brought mounting challenges for transit systems due to the Covid-19 pandemic. D’Angelo mobilized the CUTA team, consulted with transit systems across the country, and tirelessly advocated for emergency support for transit. Under his leadership CUTA not only advocated for—but succeeded in securing, an unprecedented $4.6 billion in emergency operating support.

High-frequency rail is a major priority of the Government of Canada, which has recently pivoted to a public-private approach in which it has requested proposals from consortia that are interested in developing the rail project linking Toronto to Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City.

Video Remarks:

• The Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transportation, Government of Canada

Address:

• Robert Prichard, Chair, VIA High Frequency Rail

Bios:

The Honourable Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transportation, Government of Canada

The Honourable Omar Alghabra was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Mississauga Centre in 2015, and also served as the Member of Parliament for Mississauga—Erindale from 2006 to 2008. He has served as Minister of Transport since January 2021. 

Minister Alghabra also served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs) and to the Minister of International Trade Diversification, before becoming Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister (Public Service Renewal) and to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs in 2019.  

A longtime community activist, Minister Alghabra is passionate about his involvement with local organizations like Mississauga Summit and Youth Troopers for Global Awareness. He was a member of the community editorial board of the Toronto Star, where he authored columns on a wide range of provincial and federal issues. His work was also published in the Huffington Post. Among his many activities, Minister Alghabra has worked tirelessly to support initiatives that empower new Canadians through social and economic integration. 

He has worked in various roles with General Electric Canada, Enbala Power, and the Ontario Energy Board. 

A mechanical engineer by trade, Minister Alghabra holds a Master of Business Administration and was a Distinguished Visiting Fellow with the Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science at Ryerson University.

Robert Prichard, Chair, VIA High Frequency Rail

Mr. J Robert S. Prichard has had a career in higher education, law, business and public service.

Currently, he serves as chairman of Torys LLP and as a director of Onex Corporation, Wittington Investments Limited and Alamos Gold. He is a member of the International Advisory Board of Barrick Gold Corporation, and he is also President Emeritus of the University of Toronto.

At the University of Toronto, Mr. Prichard was a professor of law from 1976 to 2001, the Dean of the Faculty of Law from 1984 to 1990 and President of the University from 1990 to 2000. He also taught at the law schools of Yale (1982-83) and Harvard (1983-84 and 2000-01). He served as Chair of the Council of Ontario Law Deans and Chair of the Council of Canadian Law Deans.

Mr. Prichard's business sector experience includes serving as president and CEO of Torstar Corporation from 2002 to 2009, and Chair of BMO Financial Group from 2012-20. He has previously served on the boards of numerous other leading Canadian companies including George Weston, Brookfield Asset Management, Four Seasons Hotels and Moore Corporation. He was made a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors in 2016 for his contributions to good governance in Canada.

Mr. Prichard also served as President and CEO of Metrolinx from 2009 to 2010, and as Chair from 2010-18, and was the Vice Chair of Canada’s Science, Technology and Innovation Council from 2007-13.

Mr. Prichard attended Swarthmore College, earned his MBA at the University of Chicago, and earned law degrees from the University of Toronto (LLB) t and Yale University (LLM). Recognized by appointment as an officer of the Order of Canada and as a member of the Order of Ontario, Mr. Prichard has also received honorary degrees from 11 colleges and universities in Canada and the United States.

High-frequency rail is a major priority of the Government of Canada, which has recently pivoted to a public-private approach in which it has requested proposals from consortia that are interested in developing the rail project linking Toronto to Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City.

Speaker:

• Ian Hodkinson, Head of Technical Sales and Marketing - Transit Systems, Alstom

Moderator:

• Giles Gherson, Chair and EVP, Economic Blueprint Institute, Toronto Region Board of Trade 

Bios:

Ian Hodkinson, Head of Technical Sales and Marketing - Transit Systems, Alstom

Ian holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from McGill University and has nearly 20 years of varied experience in the rail industry with Alstom Transportation. Over the past few years, he has held various important roles within complex systems engineering projects, as well as in numerous public-private partnerships. As Marketing Director of Transit Systems for the Americas at Alstom, Ian is involved in business development opportunities and turnkey contracts of all kinds, whether light rail, hybrid, hydrogen and battery propulsion systems or high speed.

Giles Gherson, EVP and Chair, Economic Blueprint Institute, Toronto Region Board of Trade

Giles Gherson is the Executive Vice President and Chair of the Economic Blueprint Institute at the Toronto Region Board of Trade.

A seasoned leader, Giles has 15 years of experience with the Province of Ontario where he has served under different parties and leaders. He’s held Deputy Minister roles in multiple portfolios, including; Cabinet Office Policy; Cabinet Office Communications; Economic Development, Trade and Investment; Infrastructure and Government Realty; Research Innovation and Science; Red Tape and Regulatory Burden Reduction; Small Business; and Consumer Services.

Prior to his role in government, Giles held positions within the Canadian media landscape, including as editor-in-chief of the Toronto Star, political editor of the National Post and editor of the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business. 

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