An entrepreneur turned investor who is extremely passionate about climate change and renewable energy – Rustam wears multiple hats. He works with one of Canada’s leading sustainable energy funding organizations (SDTC | www.sdtc.ca) while also teaching at the University of British Columbia and running research projects for the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP) at Johns Hopkins University.
Rustam sits on the board of many companies including Boond (www.boond.net – a company he founded in 2010 which is recognized as one of India’s most impactful and fast growing solar rooftop and microgrid companies), Mynergy (a solar asset management company that he co-founded in 2016) and Emsys Electronics (a high tech metering enterprise). He is also the Executive in Residence at the Foresight Cleantech Accelerator in Vancouver where he mentors other entrepreneurs on business modelling, marketing and fundraising.
Rustam has also authored books on impact investing and social enterprise models and talks regularly at public forums and universities to help and motivate others to fight climate change and create innovations on the ground. At home, Rustam likes to play with his 5 year old son and indulge in passionate discussions on the environment and sustainability with his wife (who is also at the University of British Columbia).
Jonathan Arnold has a diverse background in environmental policy with an expertise in energy, drinking water and wastewater, solid waste, and traffic congestion. Jonathan’s previous roles include Senior Research Associate with Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission and Economist with Environment Canada. He holds an MA in Public Policy from Simon Fraser University.
Mary Ellen is the Director of the Social Purpose Institute and United Way of the Lower Mainland. She is dedicated to fostering Social Purpose in businesses – across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley — to help companies benefit from the act of installing Social Purpose at their core, creating tangible and meaningful community benefits.
Mary Ellen has a Master in Health Administration from the University of Ottawa and a Certificate in Social Innovation from SFU.
Chris is the Alberta regional director at the Pembina Institute. He worked with the Institute from 1996 to 2016, then spent three years at the Alberta Energy Regulator before returning in 2020. He is a leading expert on responsible energy development, with specific expertise in oil and gas, oilsands and electricity.
Chris holds a B.Sc. in environmental and conservation science from the University of Alberta and a Master of Arts in environment and management from Royal Roads University.
Sandra turns visions into reality: as a Shared Mobility Architect she is in charge of overall service and market strategies.
Sandra has held Senior Management and Executive roles with Daimler, BCAA and BMW and has launched shared mobility systems in more than 10 cities world wide.
She is considered a world-wide expert on the subject, is a TED speaker and has been nominated as Women of Influence in 2017. She is also a regular contributor to various mobility publications.
Sandra is a certified Project Management Professional, holds a Master of Arts from University of Zurich, and has been granted an MBA by TrustForte Corporation in NY.
George Heyman was first elected as the MLA for Vancouver-Fairview in 2013, and was re-elected in May 2017. Born and raised in Vancouver, George has lived and worked here and throughout northwest BC. George currently serves as the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, and he previously served as the Opposition Spokesperson for Environment, Green Economy, and Technology.
Prior to his election as MLA, George was Executive Director of the Sierra Club BC, one of our province’s oldest environmental advocacy and education organizations. He also served three terms as president of the BC Government and Services Employees’ Union (BCGEU) from 1999 to 2008.
George has been a faculty member of Simon Fraser University’s Dialogue and Negotiation program, teaching courses in multi-party negotiations and collaborative decision making. He has guest lectured at a number of universities in BC and abroad, and served on advisory committees for post-graduate and undergraduate degree programs at three BC Universities.
He has also been a board member of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives – BC, the Columbia Institute, and the Workers’ Compensation Board. George is a passionate advocate in Victoria for issues facing Fairview constituents – including education, health care, the arts, child care, workers’ rights, transit, and affordable housing.
Since his appointment as the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Strategy, in July of 2017, George has been dedicated to advocating for the people and the environment against climate change. He took on a major role in creating the CleanBC plan, aimed at the reduction of air pollution, while creating more jobs and economic opportunities for people, businesses and communities in the renewable energy sector.