How scientists and engineers turn their purpose into policy
Prof. David Green
Director, McGill Redpath Museum
Member of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC)
Prof. David M. Green obtained his B.Sc. in Zoology from the University of British Columbia and his M.Sc. and Ph.D., both also in Zoology, from the University of Guelph. He came to the Redpath Museum of McGill University in 1986 and is now a Full Professor and the Director of the Museum.
Prof. Green was Chair of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and served as co-chair of COSEWIC’s Amphibians and Reptile Subcommittee for 14 years. He was a member of the Science Advisory Council of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and currently is on the Council of Canadian Academies’ Panel on the State and Trends of Biodiversity Science in Canada. He is an Associate Editor for the journal Diversity and Distributions and the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, and is a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London.
Prof. Green’s research concerns the ecology, genetics, and evolution of amphibians. He has particular interests in species at risk, including the determinants of species’ ranges and population declines, population dynamics, dispersal and recruitment in amphibians, and declining amphibian populations. He has authored well over 100 refereed publications, including 17 book chapters, and more than 100 miscellaneous other publications and reports. True to his calling, most of his publications mention frogs or toads in some manner.
Geoff Smith
Canadian Electricity Association
Geoff Smith is the Director, Government Relations for the Canadian Electricity Association (CEA). Founded in 1891, the CEA is the national forum and voice of the evolving electricity sector in Canada. At the heart of CEA is a core of corporate utility members that account for about 95 percent of Canada’s installed electricity generation, transmission and distribution capacity.
Prior to joining CEA, Mr. Smith served ten years in the federal government in advisory roles to the Federal Minister of Industry, Citizenship and Immigration and several Members of Parliament. Mr. Smith holds B.A. (Honours) degree from Queen’s University in Political Studies.
Steven Lightfoot
Consulting engineer
Volunteer, Westmount Ville-Marie Riding Association
Steven was born and raised in Montreal and attended McGill University where he studied Mechanical Engineering, graduating with distinction in 1988. He worked for both Pratt & Whitey Canada and Rolls-Royce Canada over a seventeen-year career as a gas turbine Engineer. During that period he held numerous positions in fields as diverse as mechanical design, engine performance, engine testing, control systems development, and customer support. He currently works in the Thermal Power Division of SNC-Lavalin in Montreal where he is involved with many aspects of electrical power plant development, ranging from feasibility studies to on-site commissioning. Steven is a member of the Ordre des Ingénieurs du Québec.
In addition to his technical background, his entrepreneurial instinct has led to his involvement in some local businesses including a brewpub and the development of the art business Bodycast.com.
He is involved as a volunteer in the Westmount Ville-Marie Riding Association of the Liberal Party of Canada, and seeks to contribute his Engineering and business experience to the public discourse on energy policy and economic recovery. Some of Steven’s views were recently published in The Metropolitain newspaper at http://themetropolitain.ca/articles/view/873.
Our society is facing unprecedented challenges relating to climate change and energy use. Steven feels strongly that these challenges will only be met successfully by a better representation of people with technical and industry experience active in the political process.
Dr. Philippe Couillard
Québec Minister for Health and Social Services, 2003-2008
Born in 1957, Dr. Couillard completed his secondary and pre-university studies at Collège Stanislas in Montréal in 1974. He was admitted to the Faculty of Medicine at the Université de Montréal the same year, obtaining his Doctorate in Medicine (M.D) in 1979. Postgraduate studies in neurosurgery led to his obtaining his specialist status in 1985.
While a consulting neurosurgeon at Hôpital St-Luc in Montréal, Dr. Couillard was appointed department head in 1989 and senior lecturer in the Faculty of Medicine. In 1992, he was recruited to found a neurosurgery department in Dhahram, Saudi Arabia. In 1996, he was recruited by the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke. He was successively assistant professor, training program director and associate professor, being appointed surgeon-in-chief and department head at the university in 2000. As a member of the Council of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, he took part in the public debate about this country’s healthcare system.
In April 2003, he was elected a Member of the National Assembly for the riding of Mount-Royal, under the banner of the Quebec Liberal Party. He was appointed Minister of Health and Social Services and Chair of the Ministerial Committee on Social, Educational and Cultural Development. After being re-elected in 2007 in the riding of Jean-Talon, in Quebec City, , he was appointed Minster responsible for the Quebec City region and Chair of the Priorities Committee. In 2006, he received the Medicine, Culture and Society Prize from the Faculty of Medicine at the Université de Montréal, and he received the Jacques Cartier Medal at the 2007 Entretiens Jacques-Cartier conference in Lyons.
On June 25, 2008, after more than 5 years of public service, Dr. Couillard announced that he was leaving politics. He embarked on a new career in business, joining Persistence Capital Partners LP, Canada’s first private equity fund dedicated to heatlhcare, as a partner. In 2009, he was appointed Senior Fellow in Health Law at McGill University, a cross-appointment between the Faculties of Medicine and Law. In this capacity, he teaches health care governance and participates in related activities. On June 11, 2009, Philippe Couillard was nominated on the Board of Canadian Royalties Inc., a mining company that was traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (T.CSS). He is a member of the Board of Directors of two Canadian biotechnology companies, both listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange ( Amorfix Life Sciences and Thallion Pharmaceuticals). Dr. Couillard also sits on the international advisory board of the Minister of Health of Saudi Arabia.
On June 21, 2010, at the residence of Canada’s Governor General M. Couillard was sworn in as a member of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada. In this capacity, he will serve on the Security and Intelligence Review Committee.