George Brookman

Laura Dawson

Gillian McCormack

Kelly J. Ogle

David Perry

Craig Stewart 

George Brookman, C.M.

George Brookman is well known in Calgary’s business and volunteer community.  He is a third generation Albertan and was born in Calgary. Most of his early career was spent in the Real Estate Development Industry; initially with Manulife Financial and then later as Vice-President of Development for ATCO Ltd.   Most of this time was in the development and operation of high rise commercial and residential buildings.

In 1984, he acquired West Canadian Industries Group, Canada’s leading digital print and document management organization.   The company operates as West Canadian Digital Imaging in Calgary, Edmonton and Fort McMurray.  In addition to his own company, Mr. Brookman serves on the Board of Directors of Obsidian Energy and currently as the Chairman of the Board.   He is currently on the Board of Directors for the Calgary Flames Foundation and the Calgary Stampede Foundation.

As a volunteer, Mr. Brookman is the Past President and Chairman of the Board of the Calgary Stampede; Past Chairman of Tourism Calgary, past Director of Travel Alberta and Past President of the Downtown Rotary Club of Calgary which has presented him with a Paul Harris Fellowship.

In 2014, Mr. Brookman conceived and chaired a new event, "Breakfast on the Bridge" on behalf of the Military Family Resource Centre.  The three events have netted over $500,000.00 for MFRC. Over several years, Mr. Brookman has organized fund raisers for a variety of Charities, Arts & Cultural Organizations. His efforts have generated on excess of five million dollars including funding for a major art installation in Quebec City.

Mr. Brookman was a founder of "Transformation Calgary", a group of Calgary business leaders determined to enhance the quality of life in Calgary through encouraging development of sports, arts and cultural facilities within the city.

Mr. Brookman has been awarded the Pinnacle Award for Business; the Distinguished Business Leader Award from the Haskayne School of Business and the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Calgary Board of Education. He has also received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal, the Province of Alberta Centennial Medal and the Senate of Canada 150 Medal. In 2014, George received an Honorary Degree in Applied Technology from S.A.I.T. Polytechnic.

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Laura Dawson

Laura Dawson is the Executive Director of the Future Borders Coalition, a bi-national organization with a multi-year mandate to promote a cohesive vision of the U.S.-Canada border based on the principles of efficiency, safety, and security, supported by continuous improvements in technology, processes, facilities, and innovation. Formerly Dr. Dawson was the North America Lead at the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Institute, Director of the Canada Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C., Founder of Dawson Strategic, and Senior Economic Advisor at the U.S. Embassy in Canada. She is also on the teaching faculty at the Master of Public Policy program at McGill University in Montreal and serves on the Board of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. In addition, Dawson co-chaired the selection committee for the Government of Canada's 2021 New Frontiers in Research Fund and was named 2020 Person of Distinction by the Public Affairs Association of Canada. Dr. Dawson holds a PhD in Political Science from Carleton University.

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Gillian McCormack

In her current role as National Director, Clients & Industries, Gillian oversees a team working with Bennett Jones' leadership team, lawyers, external industry leaders and key clients to identify, understand and advance strategies to anticipate and capitalize upon opportunities and trends impacting business and investment. Her professional experience spans over 20 years including senior management roles with American Express Canada and Calgary Economic Development (CED). In her most recent position as Vice President, Investment and Trade with CED, Gillian earned valuable insights into global capital flows along with international experience into the importance of sound public policy in elevating Canada as an investment destination in a global economy.

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Kelly J. Ogle

Kelly J. Ogle is the Chief Executive Officer of the CGAI. He also manages the Energy Security Forum and is the host of Energy Security Cubed, a weekly podcast discussing all facets of energy security. Mr. Ogle is a serial entrepreneur, scholar, and published author. He has served as a board member of several companies, public, private and not for profit, including the board of the Humboldt Broncos hockey club, where is a proud alumnus. Mr. Ogle received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Saskatchewan, a Master of Strategic Studies from the University of Calgary and holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Canadian Directors.

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David Perry

Dr. David Perry is the President of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. He is the host of the weekly Defence Deconstructed Podcast and author of multiple publications related to defence budgeting, transformation and procurement. He is also 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.”

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Craig Stewart

Craig is an active rancher with varied business interests. He was the former Executive Chairman of RMP Energy Inc., Chairman, President and Chief Executive of RMP Energy Ltd., President and Chief Executive Officer of Rider Resources Ltd, Meota Resources Corp, and Poco Petroleums Ltd.

Craig is a Board member of Western Gas Equity Partners, a Houston based Corporation, as well as a former part owner and Board member of the Arizona Coyotes, an NHL hockey team.

He served as the Chairman of the Calgary STARS Helicopter Fundraising Campaign and was the Honorary Chairman of the Calgary dinner for Ducks Unlimited Canada.

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Ian Wild (Chair)

Mr. Ian Wild was, prior to his retirement, responsible for ATB Financial’s corporate finance division which provides custom built solutions for mid- and senior-market businesses operating in Alberta in the Energy, Real Estate and Diversified industries.

Ian started his 30+ year career in banking in London, U.K., working for National Westminster Bank Ltd. While there, he served in a variety of positions in their International Division including international credit, corporate finance and trade finance. After immigrating to Canada, Ian began working for Continental Bank of Canada (HSBC) and later moved on to RBC. During his time with RBC, Ian started in the Special Loans Group and as the economy improved, took roles in Oil & Gas Banking and Corporate Banking. Capping off his experience at RBC, Ian transferred to RBC Dominion Securities where he served as Vice President in their Investment Banking group.

In addition to Ian’s experience, he is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors, holds an ICD designation and is an associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of the United Kingdom. Ian is also involved with the Business Banking Board’s Corporate Executive Board, Calgary Economic Development, various current and past Advisory Boards for the Universities of Alberta and Calgary, the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters and other industry associations, and he is a past member of SAIT’s Chairman’s Circle.

Ian also currently serves as a strategic advisor having previously been a Board Director for AltaCorp Capital Inc., a Calgary-based financial and advisory services firm that provides solutions to the three cornerstones of the Alberta economy – energy, agriculture and diversified. He is a Director of Delphi Energy (TSX:DEE), a Calgary based E&P company and is Chairman of the Financial Services Advisory Committee for Calgary Economic Development.

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