Bioindustrial Innovation Canada adds 5 new industry leaders to board of directors

Bioindustrial Innovation Canada (BIC) announced the addition of five new members to the Board of Directors who will bring a unique range of experience, expertise, and diversity to the organization.

With leadership experience in research and development, business and financial strategy, and technical and sustainability expertise in both industrial and resource-based sectors, this group of exceptional individuals will become a tremendous asset to BIC as it extends and grows its mandate and awareness across Canadian bioeconomy clusters.

Rose Marie Gage joins BIC’s team as a sustainability (environmental. Social and governance – including diversity, equity and inclusion) champion and change maker with significant professional board experience. Based in Ontario, but leveraging her extensive national and international network, Rose Marie will fill BIC’s desire to keep grounded in the organization’s established agricultural roots while increasing its connectivity across agri and agri-food industries. Additionally, her government relations experience will complement BIC’s strategy. Rose Marie’s many professional board designations will bolster BIC’s governance, providing added confidence to stakeholders and ensuring a solid foundation for BIC’s board and team to build on.

From his home base in Spain, Marc-Lionel Gagnon brings private investment banking, and international trade experience to the table. Marc-Lionel will be an asset to BIC’s objectives of building international partnerships while also increasing capital investment opportunities in Canada’s early-stage green technologies. Marc-Lionel’s extensive network in both Canada and Europe’s financial and resource-based sectors makes him a great addition to BIC’s team.

Joining from Vancouver is Gurminder Minhas. As a managing director with Performance BioFilaments, Gurminder brings both technical and business leadership to BIC’s team. With significant domain knowledge in Canada’s forestry sector and an affinity for green innovation, Gurminder’s professional experience will support BIC’s efforts in identifying, validating, and de-risking innovative Canadian technologies poised to decarbonize Canadian industries.

Alana Prashad fosters strategic partnerships with government and industry to stimulate economic development opportunities for the forest industry and beyond. Her background is in international trade and SME growth, and brings expertise in energy, and energy-related systems including CCUS and bioeconomy development. Alana is a provincial leader for FPInnovations, Canada’s research and technology organization for the forest sector, and is well-positioned to help BIC increase its visibility both nationally and internationally while supporting its efforts in disseminating Canada’s low-carbon economy opportunities.

Mehdi Sheikhzadeh is Lambton College’s vic-president of research and innovation. He straddles Canadian provinces working with both industry and academia. Mehdi is well-positioned to support BIC’s objectives of building and training the workforce of the future while supporting the research and development needs of our early-stage companies. Mehdi’s experience working across both industry and academia will support BIC’s SMEs by helping them develop and commercialize their technology, thereby maximizing innovation output in Canada.

The BIC team and Board are excited to invite these individuals from across Canada to the BIC family as we continue to move Canada’s green economy forward. Their knowledge, experience, and cross-sectoral expertise will be key to supporting BIC’s business acceleration and the overall growth of Canada’s clean, green, and low-carbon economy.

BIC’s team would also like to acknowledge the dedication, contributions, and long-standing support of its outgoing board members. They include Paul Clark, Sam Kanes, Laurent Bernier, Don McCabe, Judy Morris, and Bernard West. Their time and guidance have helped BIC support over 100 early-stage companies including over 30 portfolio companies that are on track to achieve over 13 megatons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions by 2030 while supporting thousands of jobs in the process.