External Advisory Council

Eric Choi

Director of Business Development, GHGSat Inc.

Biography: Eric Choi is director of business development at GHGSat. Over the course of his career, he has held positions of increasing technical and managerial responsibility in both the aviation and space sectors, the latter including work on QEYSSat (Quantum Encryption and Science Satellite), the Meteorology (MET) payload on the NASA Phoenix Mars Lander, the Canadarm2 on the International Space Station, the RADARSAT-1 Earth-observation satellite, and the MOPITT (Measurements of Pollution on the Troposphere) instrument. An alumnus of the International Space University, he holds a B.A.Sc in engineering science and an M.A.Sc in aerospace engineering, both from the University of Toronto, and an MBA from York University. In 2009, he was one of the Top 40 finalists (out of 5,351 applicants) in the Canadian Space Agency’s astronaut recruitment campaign. Besides his aerospace career, he is also an award-winning science fiction writer and editor.

Marianne Mader

Executive Director, Canadian Association of Science Centres

Biography: Dr. Marianne Mader is the Executive Director of the Canadian Associations of Science Centres (CASC), one of the largest membership-based associations of informal science learning organizations in Canada, collectively reaching more than 10 million citizens per year. CASC is a key partner in initiatives tackling science misinformation online and in engaging youth across Canada in climate action. Dr. Mader has dedicated her career to sharing her passion for science and space exploration through innovative public engagement, participatory education, planetary science research, and science communication.

Michelle Mendes

SATCAN

Biography: Michelle Mendes is an innovation strategy leader focussed on commercial space. She is the Executive Director of the Satellite Canada Innovation Network with over 20 years of experience in business, finance and law. To advance commercial space she has led programs and has worked on behalf of the United Nations to further space advocacy. Michelle sits on the Government of Canada Space Advisory Board and Canada's Global Affairs Remote Sensing Space Systems Act Advisory Committee. She holds a Bachelor of General Studies degree from Simon Fraser University in Canada, is a Fellow Chartered Secretary in Canada and UK and holds an Executive Master of Business Administration in Space Commerce from the International Space University in Strasbourg, France.

Chamirai C. Nyabeze

VP Business Development and Commercialization, CEMI

Biography: Chamirai holds a Bachelor of Mining Engineering and a Masters in Business and Administration (MBA). As the Vice-President Business Development and Commercialization for the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation, Charles endeavours to create long-term value (commercialization, revenue generation, leveraging funds, networking, collaboration) for organizations and clients by identifying business development opportunities with both the public and private client segments. His role also includes leading in proposal development initiatives, securing global partnerships and collaborators to participate in program or project initiatives. Charles also works to advance the overall organizational strategic objectives.

Cameron Ower

MDA

Biography: Cameron Ower is currently MDA’s Director of Engineering and Chief Technology Officer for the company’s Robotics and Automation business site. These responsibilities include ensuring the integrity of engineering activities, strategic research and development and intellectual property management within the Robotics business. He has been with MDA for over 30 years, holding a number of engineering leadership roles over that time including control systems design lead for the Canadarm 2 and Dextre, Director of Systems Engineering and Director of Research and Development. He has Bachelor and Master of Applied Science degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toronto and a Doctorate in Aerospace Engineering from Carleton University. He is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies and serves on industry advisory boards at Western University, Queen’s University and the University of Toronto.

James Slifierz

Skywatch

Biography: James is the Co-Founder and CEO at SkyWatch Space Applications. He is also a Co-Founder and Chair of MaxQ, Canada’s first organization focused on developing the space startup ecosystem, and the Lead Organizer for NASA Space Apps Waterloo. In 2014 James was a part of the team that won the NASA International Space Apps Challenge, beating out over 650 other projects. He’s an alumnus of Google for Entrepreneurs, Next Founders, and Techstars; a member of the International Astronomical Union’s Working Group on Time-Domain Astronomy and the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy, and the Canadian Space Commerce Association; as well as an advisor to the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space Canada and many startups and founders across North America. Every Wednesday he publishes This Week in Space, a weekly newsletter covering the biggest stories in space & astronomy. James is on a mission to build Canada’s space industry back into a global leader.