Where cross-sector Xchange becomes commercial action

Dame Kimberley Van Vliet is a leading voice in Canada’s innovation and defence ecosystem, known for bridging commercial and military sectors across aerospace, defence, security, energy, mining, agriculture, construction, and advanced technologies.

Over 16 years ago, she founded WāVv, a group of companies accelerating cross-industry innovation worldwide. She’s also the creator of ConvergX Xpand, a global consulting practice, and ConvergX Global Congress, the world’s first Congress to unite decision-makers across industries to solve problems they didn’t know they had, with solutions from sectors they never expected could help.

Kimberley serves as Deputy Chair for NIAG’s Community of Interest with Allied Command Transformation (ACT), focusing on Innovation, C4ISR, and Logistics & Sustainment, and works closely with NATO divisions including NCIA, NSPA, STO, and DIANA, regularly engaging with NATO HQ, NORAD, and USNORTHCOM.

Recognized among Canada’s Top 20 Women in Defence and a 2022 Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference delegate, Kimberley brings a strategic, cross-industry perspective to Canada’s defence and security priorities globally.

Outside of work, she’s a proud Mum, a licensed private pilot, and a certified Divemaster.

Colorado’s first female fighter pilot and among the first women globally to fly fighter aircraft. A combat mission-ready F-16 pilot, leadership expert, and resilience coach. A retired Lieutenant Colonel with 22 years in the U.S. Air Force and Colorado National Guard, she flew worldwide missions, including post-9/11 presidential protection and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and Air War College, Tracy earned numerous military honors and logged 3,300+ flight hours as a pilot and AWACS Air Weapons Director.

Today, she is an internationally recognized keynote speaker, executive coach, and 4X Emmy-nominated PBS host, helping leaders and teams build accountability, resilience, and high-performance cultures. Tracy has worked with Fortune 100 companies, spoken at Harvard Business School, and shared stages with a U.S. President.

Dr. David Perry is the President of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, host of the institute’s Defence Deconstructed Podcast and a co-director of the Triple Helix MINDs Collaborate Network.

He is the author of multiple publications related to defence budgeting, transformation and procurement and a columnist for the Canadian Naval Review. He received his PhD in political science from Carleton University where his dissertation examined the link between defence budgeting and defence procurement.

He is an adjunct professor at the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary and a research fellow of the Centre for the Study of Security and Development at Dalhousie University.

He was previously the Senior Security and Defence Analyst of the Conference of Defence Associations Institute and Deputy Director of Dalhousie University’s Centre for Foreign Policy Studies. Embassy Magazine and The Hill Times has named him one of the “Top 100 Influencing Canadian Foreign Policy.”

Dr. Susan Skone is a researcher and innovator with over 25 years of experience in space-based technologies, specializing in space environment threats to satellite navigation systems, non-terrestrial networks, and high-frequency applications across aerospace and maritime domains.

As a Professor of Geomatics Engineering and Associate Vice-President Research at the University of Calgary, she has led more than 50 international and government-sponsored research projects. Her pioneering contributions include globally adopted licensed software for secure satellite services, and the founding of companies delivering electromagnetic spectrum management and quantum-resistant satellite signal technologies under NATO DIANA.

She led the development of low-cost GPS payload solutions for the CanX-2 nanosatellite, now deployed in missions worldwide, and has shaped policy on space domain awareness for U.S. national risk strategies and action plans.

In parallel, Dr. Skone served for 27 years as a Maritime Surface Officer in the Royal Canadian Navy (Reserves), holding key operational roles aboard minor warships. As co-lead of Space-Defence Technologies Alberta, she now drives collaboration between academia and industry to advance dual-use technology readiness and grow capacity of Alberta’s aerospace sector.

Chris Lohmann leads innovation and market development for aerospace energy systems and sustainability in Canada for Boeing. Over a twenty-year career he has worked on energy transition challenges in renewable fuels, waste-to-energy, energy storage, EV infrastructure, and microgrids.

Prior to Boeing, he led the performance warranty group at Energi Insurance, underwriting and insuring the technical and engineering risk of emerging energy technologies to support project financing. At the U.S. Department of Energy he served as a Senior Finance Policy Advisor, addressing the hurdles faced by technologies bridging the gap between government R&D funding and private capital. He began his career in the US Marine Corps as an F/A-18D Weapons and Sensors Officer.

He holds an MBA from the University of Southern California, earned a BA from Yale University, and graduated high school at Lisgar Collegiate in Ottawa.

Christine Hanson has had a distinguished career spanning over two decades in public service, both in Canada and internationally. As an international lawyer, diplomat, and senior government executive, she brings expertise in Canada-U.S. trade, foreign policy, and intergovernmental affairs. Christine is known for shaping public policy, negotiating international agreements, and fostering collaboration among global leaders and governments.

Christine’s early professional work was with Global Affairs Canada, where she held a variety of diplomatic roles. She served as a senior diplomat at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., managing Canada’s relationship with the U.S. Congress. She provided strategic advice to Canadian ambassadors, ministers, premiers, and parliamentarians on key trade and foreign policy issues related to the American political landscape. She also worked at Canada’s Mission to the United Nations in New York.

After many years of living and working abroad, Christine returned to her home province of Nova Scotia. She served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission from 2016 to 2021. Later, she took on a significant role as Executive Director and Chief Administrative Officer of the Mass Casualty Commission, a federal and provincial public inquiry into the mass casualty event in Nova Scotia in April 2020. Christine most recently served as the Regional Director of International Trade for Atlantic Canada at Global Affairs Canada. In this role, she led a team across the region that helped Canadian businesses expand into global markets and promoted economic growth through exports.

In addition to her professional roles, Christine has been serving on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Red Cross since 2020. Christine earned degrees in law, public administration, and political science from Dalhousie University in Halifax. She later earned a graduate degree in international law from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. From 2015 to 2016, she was an International Women’s Forum Global Leadership Foundation Fellow at Harvard Business School and INSEAD in France.

Christine was appointed to be the NATO Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) Regional Director for North America in 2025.

Mark Norton is an industry veteran in advanced manufacturing and currently serves as the Executive Director for the Northwest I-90 Manufacturing Alliance (NIMA) and Principal of Norton Strategic Consulting. His expertise is deeply grounded in business development for advanced manufacturing, economic development for industry, and workforce pipeline development for the trades. He is a thought leader on LinkedIn, frequently writing about emerging technologies and markets in manufacturing, and issues related to workforce development for the trades and industry.

Joy Romero is a metallurgical engineer with over 30 years of experience in the energy sector. She is currently Executive Advisor, Innovation at Canadian Natural Resources Limited, Past President of the Clean Resource Innovation Network (CRIN), member Co-Lead for the Pathways Integrated Emissions Strategy Working Group, advisor at the University of Alberta and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and serves on the Boards of Calgary’s Heritage Park.

She is an inductee of the Canadian Petroleum Hall of Fame, was recognized by Foresight Canada as one the top 20 women leading clean tech in Canada, a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal, an Honourary Doctor of Science from Athabasca University, a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering and member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Dr. Jonathan M. Morris is a Professor in the Departments of Radiology, Otolaryngology, Neurosurgery, Radiation Oncology, and Anatomy at Mayo Clinic. He earned his M.D. from Howard University College of Medicine, followed by an internship at Washington Hospital Center and research fellowships at NIH/NINDS/NLM. He then completed his radiology and neuroradiology fellowships at Mayo Clinic. Dr. Morris serves as the Medical Director of the 3D Printing Anatomic Modeling Unit and the Center for Biomedical and Scientific Visualization, as well as the Executive Medical Director of Immersive and Experiential Learning at Mayo Clinic. His expertise spans Point-of-Care manufacturing for digital twinning, preoperative and virtual surgical planning, and the development of patient-specific surgical devices.

A recognized leader in extended reality (VR/AR/MR), Dr. Morris is driving innovation in medical education, clinical applications, intraoperative navigation, workforce training, and medical capital equipment training. His current focus is on creating AI enabled photorealistic digital twinned humans to serve as medical experts. Clinically, he specializes in minimally invasive thermal ablation of tumors affecting the neuroaxis and musculoskeletal system. With over 270 published articles, multiple books, and book chapters, Dr. Morris is regarded as an international authority in his fields. He has been married to his wife, Trina, since 1996, and together they have four sons.

Dr. Emma Spanswick is an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Geospace Dynamics & Space Plasma Physics at the University of Calgary. She is an international leader in the development of space remote sensing infrastructure, with her science and space weather collaborations spanning the globe, involving national agencies such as NASA, ESA, the Canadian Space Agency, DRDC, DND, and the US Navy.

She has delivered on >$75M worth of sponsored projects related to dual-use technology development, autonomous remote sensors for northern environments, satellite sensor design, operational system development, and key scientific outcomes. She currently operates more than 120 sensors across Canada’s north, Alaska, and Greenland designed to remote sense the space environment and support strategic applications related to Canada’s needs in the Arctic.

Dr. Spanswick is also co-lead of Space-Defence Technologies Alberta, an initiative that aims to increase technology readiness within the academic research environment, supporting commercialization of relevant technologies in the space and defence sector.

Christopher Coates is a former senior Canadian military leader with extensive experience in defence, security, and allied operations. A helicopter pilot specializing in tactical and special operations aviation, he served in senior command roles in Canada and overseas, including as Deputy Commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and as Commander of Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC), leading to his focus on continental defence and the Arctic. Following military service, he worked in defence advisory roles both in Canada and internationally and now leads defence, security, and foreign policy programming at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, a leading Canadian public policy think tank.

Major-General Stéphane Masson began his military career in 1991 as a reservist with the 6e Régiment d’artillerie de campagne in Quebec City. In 2003, he transferred to the Regular Force.

Over the course of his service, he has held a variety of command and staff appointments. In 2008, as a Major, he commanded Q Battery, 5e Régiment d’artillerie légère du Canada at CFB Valcartier. Promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel in 2012, he served as Commandant of the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery School at CFB Gagetown. He later served in several staff and leadership roles, including at Canadian Joint Operations Command Headquarters and as Commander of Canadian Forces Base Kingston.

In 2024, he concluded his tenure as Commander of 5th Canadian Division, known as the Army’s “Mighty Maroon Machine”. He subsequently served as Chief of Staff Army Strategy at Army Headquarters. Promoted to his current rank in 2026, he now serves as Chief of Army Force Development and as the Senior Serving Gunner in the Canadian Army.

Major-General Masson has deployed operationally to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Afghanistan, and Egypt, and has supported a number of domestic operations. He is a graduate of the Canadian Land Forces Command and Staff College, the Joint Command and Staff Program, and the National Security Program. He holds a Bachelor of Science, a Master of Defence Studies, and a Master of Public Administration.

Outside of his military duties, he values time with his wife and their three children.

Joshua is the CEO of Kalashnikov USA (KUSA), an all-American firearms and munitions manufacturing powerhouse that brings AK-pattern precision to the modern battlefield and commercial market alike. Under his leadership, KUSA delivers operational excellence with a sharp edge (literally and figuratively) in defense manufacturing, product innovation, and national security support. KUSA’s strives to build better firepower, in America and always pursue innovation.

As a retired military officer, Josh completed over 27 years of servant-leader experience, culminating as a Colonel with U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), where he orchestrated global operations, led elite teams, and helped shape the modern doctrine of unconventional warfare. He served in over 47 countries (some of which are still trying to figure out what just happened) and specialized in Special Forces, Civil Affairs, PATRIOT missile defense, and multi-domain reconnaissance.

Josh earned five Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart (the enemy marksmanship badge) and has not worn a watch since 2006. He also established the Department of Defense’s first cybercrime and business intelligence fusion unit, because sometimes the best weapon is knowing what your enemy had for breakfast, digitally speaking.

In his “retirement,” he took up the light hobby of directing multimillion-dollar security and intelligence contracts, managing a $760M pipeline, forming strategic joint ventures, and writing proposals that won over $1B in federal awards. He also serves as Deputy Executive Director of the International Coalition Against Illicit Economies (ICAIE), where he assists global leaders and policy makers in cutting off illicit trade at the knees. He balances his time providing national security solutions and benefits for those customers in the government and commercial sectors, who require specialized security assistance programs.

Armed with two master’s degrees, a mild caffeine addiction, and vorpal sense of humor, Josh loves puppies and hates Hezbollah. He has served as an executive-level director in multiple disciplines and programs including firearms and munitions design and manufacturing, advanced technology integration, strategic planning, community development, full-spectrum security, intelligence, counter terrorism, counter threat finance, anti-money laundering, and special operations. He has successfully run organizations of over 500 employees across a distributed territory with a solid sense of purpose and excellence.

Rob Huebert is a professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Calgary. He also is the Director of the Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies.

He was appointed as a member to the Canadian Polar Commission (now renamed Canada Polar Knowledge) for a term lasting from 2010 to 2015. He is senior fellow with the Laurier MacDonald Institute; a fellow with the Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies; a research fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute; and a senior fellow with the Conference of Defence Associations Institute. Dr. Huebert has taught at Memorial University, Dalhousie University, and the University of Manitoba.

He publishes on the issue of Canadian Arctic Security, Maritime Security, and Canadian Defence. His work has appeared in International Journal; Canadian Foreign Policy; Isuma, Canadian Journal of Policy Research and Canadian Military Journal. He was co-editor of Canada and the Changing Arctic: Sovereignty, Security and Stewardship; Commercial Satellite Imagery and United Nations Peacekeeping and Breaking Ice: Canadian Integrated Ocean Management in the Canadian North. He also comments on Canadian security and Arctic issues in both the Canadian and international media.

Anton Sestritsyn is a VOSAVIS Principal based in Ottawa, bringing extensive experience in federal politics, public affairs, and strategic communications. His experience spans senior roles including Legislative Assistant, Campaign Manager, Strategic Communications Advisor, International Parliamentary Friendship Group Coordinator, and Manager of Stakeholder Relations for two Leaders of the Official Opposition.

With a strong background in foreign affairs, human rights, and multilateral engagement, Anton has advised international delegations at the United Nations, the U.S. Senate, and the U.S. State Department, as well as Canadian parliamentarians and party leaders. His professional background also includes journalism and NGO work focused on international policy issues.

In the private sector, Anton has held executive and consulting positions, including Director of Public Affairs Strategy, Executive Director of Canadian and international organizations, and a Vice-President role within a Canadian defence company.

Anton holds a degree in Public Affairs and Policy Management from Carleton University. He is fluent in three languages and has working proficiency in three others.

John Sheehan is a seasoned executive leader with more than 25 years of experience across the defense, aerospace, and technology sectors. He currently serves as CEO of AVX Defense Technologies, leading a 35-person team focused on developing disruptive capabilities for the warfighter and deepening AVX’s partnership with the US Army Aviation community; before AVX, he was VP of Corporate Strategy at Booz Allen Hamilton, led go-to-market for AWS’s Aerospace & Satellite Division, and spent 20 years at Lockheed Martin (including 10 years with Skunk Works) in engineering, strategy, and technology-program leadership roles.

He holds master’s degrees in Strategic Foresight (University of Houston) and Aeronautical Science (Embry-Riddle), bachelor’s degrees in Aerospace Engineering (University of Arizona) and Finance, summa cum laude (University of Connecticut), and is an FAA Certified Flight Instructor and Commercial Pilot with more than 2,000 flight hours.