Overcoming DE&I Challenges in Environmental, Engineering and Ocean Sectors

Speaker: Janelle Caballero (she/her) MEd, PMP
Director of Cluster Workforce Growth

Janelle is a highly skilled educator, coach, and DEI advocate with expertise in workforce development across various industries, including university career advising, careers in the construction industry, and talent development in the blue economy. She is a strengths-based International Coaching Federation (ICF) PCC certified coach who prioritizes relationship building and team cohesion as the foundation of all successful partnerships. Janelle utilizes strategy to align talent with company mission, values, and strategic planning initiatives, ensuring an exceptional experience for candidates. She is a PROSCI certified consultant who prioritizes a growth mindset when implementing and customizing new talent frameworks, and her Certified Scrum Master (CSM) and Project Management Professional (PMP) designations enable her to expertly orchestrate individual and cross-functional facets of workplace project management from implementation to deliverables. Janelle's PGCE (Oxford Brookes) and M. Ed (St. Petersburg) provide her with a solid foundation for creating engaging learning tools and platforms for learners of all ages. Janelle's passion for purpose-based career alignment stems from the career philosophy of "ikigai" (from the Japanese "reason for being"). She has held various positions, including a Research Chair position in Goalsetting and Motivation Theory at Crofton House school, where she studied the impacts of community support in achieving career aspirations for young females. As a Career Education Department Head and Work Placement Facilitator, Janelle successfully launched over 200 students into the broader community to foster experiential learning opportunities. During her time at Sauder School of Business at the Business Career Centre, Janelle designed strategic plans to align career coaching and advising practice across a team of 40+ career coaches, optimizing career pathways for University of British Columbia students to apply their skills from MBA, PMBA, Specialty Masters, B+MM, and BComm programming. At Broadway Subway Project with the Ministry of Transportation, Janelle was instrumental in the design and implementation of a Learning Hub to highlight key STEM principles and career opportunities in the construction industry, paving the way for K-12 talent in BC. Janelle's diverse experience positions her well as a voice in blue economy workplace development, ranging from youth through adult career placement.

Speaker: Alison Proctor Ph.D., P.Eng.
COO at Ocean Floor Geophysics Inc

Alison is a Mechanical Engineer with internationally recognized experimental research on dynamic modelling and control of underwater vehicles. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, a Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and earned her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Victoria. Alison joined OFG in 2015 as an AUV pilot and control system engineer. She has run many offshore projects for the company including OFG's collaboration with the winning GEBCO-NF Alumni Team in the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE, and is now the Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining OFG, Alison worked at the University of Victoria as Chief Underwater Vehicle Engineer. During her tenure, she was the principal engineer for the Bluefin 12 AUV and designed and implemented various algorithms for the vehicle. Alison is a certified operator of a number of ROVs and AUVs including the Saab-SeaEye Falcon, Bluefin-12, ISE Explorer 3000, WHOI REMUS 6000, OceanServer IVER and the Kongsberg Hugin.

Speaker: Angel Valerio, PhD
VP of Operations at clir

Angel is an Operations Executive with a decade of experience spanning Mexico and Canada's manufacturing, engineering, and high-tech agri-food and energy industries. Currently serving as the VP of Integrated Operations and Technical Services at Clir Renewables, Angel assumes responsibility for the success of Clir's most valuable assets: its people and culture. By spearheading the integration of human resource policies and infrastructure, Angel has fostered the development of an effective and results-driven team meticulously aligned with the company's core values that thrive in supporting the business to achieve its purpose of minimizing humankind's impact on the climate. Angel effectively leads the Integrated Operations team, encompassing various critical departments such as Global Operations, Finance, IT & Security, Business Intelligence, Technical Services, Revenue Operations, and People & Culture. Angel holds a Doctorate in Engineering Physics from The University of British Columbia and a Master of Science in Energy Engineering from Tecnologico de Monterrey.

Speaker: Dr. Yogendra Chaudhry
VP of Professional Services | ECO Canada

Yogi oversees the development and delivery of professional services to support the rapidly growing network of the Canadian environment and sustainability workforce. He provides strategic insight and technical support for environment and sustainability programs, and works closely with a diverse range of stakeholders including government, industry and the environment & sustainability professionals. During his more than two decades of career in Environment and Sustainability, he has worked in numerous countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America. Yogi holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and supports a number of Canadian and international academic institutions, standard-setting organizations, and industry associations in various professional capacities.

Facilitator: Harvey Taphorn
Senior Manager Training Programs | ECO Canada

Harvey has an extensive education ; he graduated from University of Alberta, and has obtained multiple certificates at the Canadian institute of Management, the Computer Security Institute, the Disaster Recovery Institute, the Toastmasters Institute where he developped his excellent communication skills, and Crestcom International. Harvey lives in Calgary with his wife and they have four sons.

Speaker: Ray Bertani
COO at Keystone Environmental

Ray Bertani has over 25 years of progressive experience in Human Resources and Business Management having held senior positions in several small and medium sized firms in multiple industries including, Engineering, Construction, Steel Fabrication, Hospitality and Environmental Consulting. He joined Keystone Environmental in June of 2010 as the HR/Operations Manager and in 2014 was promoted to Chief Operating Officer. As COO he is responsible for managing all Operational and Human Resources aspects of the Company. In collaboration with the company’s President, Department Heads and Board of Directors, Ray participates in developing Operational and Human Resources policies, systems and strategies and implements these across the organization in a manner that will allow Keystone Environmental to continue to grow and fulfill its mission of becoming both the supplier of choice and employer of choice in the Environmental Consulting Industry. Ray is most proud of the fact that Keystone Environmental has been named as one of “Canada’s Top Small and Medium Employers” for the last six consecutive years. Ray graduated with Honours from the Human Resources Program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 2002 and is a member of the “Chartered Professionals in Human Resources of British Columbia”.