SPEAKERS

Ilona is the Managing Director of the Youth and Innovation Research Project at the University of Waterloo. She is a regular commentator in the national media, and speaks to audiences internationally about tapping into the innovation potential of Millennials and Gen Z. In 2004, she co-founded Apathy is Boring, a Canadian non-partisan charitable organization that educates youth about democracy and encourages them to vote. She was named an Ashoka Fellow in 2009, and one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network in 2015.

Phil's a fourth year Management Engineering student at UWaterloo, former President of the Entrepreneurship Society, and the VP of Education at GooseChase Adventures - a 5 year old startup out of the Velocity Residence. Phil started his first freelancing company when he was 12 years old and continues to maintain clients while also working on a variety of side projects – such as DateTime.me and Kansana. Apparently he tracks every minute of his day (fun fact: he spent 119.57 hours in lecture and 154.03 hours in meetings last term), is crazy about productivity (clearly), and eats way too many chocolate chip cookies. When not “working” he can usually be found catching up on the latest episode of Suits, hanging out with friends, and/or snowboarding.

Jason Tham is the heartbeat and driving inspiration at Nulogy Corporation headquartered in Toronto, Canada. Jason grew up in Toronto, studied at the University of Waterloo, and is co-founder and CEO of Nulogy Corporation. Helping to drive the growth and strategy, today Nulogy is the recognized innovator and global leader of a cloud-based platform that connects brands and their strategic suppliers to launch and promote products to market. Jason has helped lead Nulogy to become one of the fastest growing technology companies in North America - achieving accolades such as Gartner Supply Chain Cool Vendor, Deloitte Fast50, Deloitte Fast500, and Aon Hewitt Best Employer awards. Today, Nulogy’s technology is used by the world’s leading supply-chain and logistics providers, and services the world’s most recognized consumer brands. Chances are a good proportion of consumer products in your local retail or grocery store have been touched by Nulogy.

Jason has several pending patents related to manufacturing, quality control and contract packaging. He serves on several industry association boards, has been a keynote speaker at numerous industry conferences and has a passion for helping start-up technology companies in Canada. Jason is a competitive marathoner and triathlete, competing as part of Team Canada at the ITU World Championships in 2012 and 2013. He currently lives with his wife Andrea and daughter Sophie in Toronto.

Kurtis McBride is the CEO of Miovision Technologies. He founded Miovision Technologies Incorporated in 2005 with two other Systems Design graduates from the University of Waterloo. Miovision develops video and web-based technologies to help traffic consultants and municipal governments reduce the cost of collecting, analyzing, and reporting accurate traffic data. Kurtis is passionate about fostering great working environments and about building strong company cultures. When not in the boardroom, you can find Kurtis on the pitching mound where he plays semi-competitive hardball.

After honing his skills as a Financial Advisor, Patrick helped to pioneer the role of a Banking Consultant to one of Canada’s largest, financial institutions. He spent the next decade giving expert advice to countless industry professionals and institutions such as the Toronto Police Services and the Canadian Armed Forces. Companies like Sony Canada, Edward Jones, and Adidas Canada have benefited from his strategies in cashflow management. His radio interviews on TALK 640 have helped him to spread his message to many seeking financial advice. But his greatest and most rewarding contributions have been in changing the lives of thousands of Canadian families that he has helped in restructuring their debt, savings and day-to-day banking more efficiently. Now, as a Regional Vice-President, Patrick spends his time coaching and mentoring others to do the same.

Karin is very fortunate in that the things she is passionate about are also the things that pay her bills. Namely, creating experiences people love, constant learning, and bringing people together with a shared goal. She has 10+ years of design and digital media experience and currently teaches User Experience Design (UX) in the University of Waterloo’s Global Business and Digital Arts (GBDA) program. When she is not in the classroom, Karin works with a team at the Conrad Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology Centre to develop Jamii, a virtual incubator for entrepreneurs around the world. She holds a Master of Digital Media from the Centre for Digital Media in Vancouver, accredited by Simon Fraser University, the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Emily Carr University of Art + Design, and the University of British Columbia. Karin is convinced that everything is just a little bit better with a cup of strong black coffee in her hand.

Mechanical engineering student Richard Yim is the force behind Landmine Boys, a venture dedicated to developing robots that defuse landmines without using TNT, which greatly reduces the danger for people involved in this typically hazardous field. Richard took the device to his native Cambodia to be tested, where it proved successful. Now, his Velocity-backed venture will bring hope to millions in developing countries. Richard’s story is a true testament to the amazing things that can happen when technology and social welfare intercept.

After losing her husband to suicide, Shawna Percy took to blogging and public speaking in order to help people going through similar traumas. Her talks and articles continually confront topics such as suicide, mental illness, resilience, and finding hope even in the darkest of times. Shawna’s has appeared on CTV, and 100 Huntley Street. She has spoken in front of several live audiences at universities, churches, conferences, and at Ignite Waterloo. She is the published author of Breathe, and a certified suicide prevention trainer. Shawna seeks to deconstruct stigmas surrounding suicide and mental illness.

While on his way to a PhD in American Poetry, J. Andrew Deman became unsatisfied with the direction of his studies, and made the unorthodox shift towards studying comic books. Now a professor lecturer in the University of Waterloo’s department of English Language and Literature, Andrew holds a PhD in English literature, with a specialization in graphic narrative. He is a leader in Canadian comic book scholarship. Andrew is deeply familiar with the comic books field, and is especially interested in exploring gendered politics within graphic novels, as well as their cultural impact on our society despite their status as a marginalized medium.

A global entrepreneur and visionary leader with Fortune 100 business fundamentals, Dana Fox is the Director of Global Business Software at Athena Software, where he is responsible for global sales and marketing activities. Dana comes from a diverse business background of both entrepreneurial ventures and Fortune 500 companies. Over the course of his career, he has become an expert on cognitive human services, and how they enable companies to discover trends and patterns that will help them deliver better services.