Accomplished business professional with exceptional communication skills and demonstrated ability in organizational leadership, financial management and strategic planning. Experience in a number of senior level positions in both the private and public sectors with particular expertise in the utility and energy industries. Proven capacity to deliver meaningful results through focus, discipline and constructive engagement at all levels of an organization.
Former EFL steering committee member for the Government of Alberta. Executive manager Government of Alberta and its agencies responsible for large-scale technology strategy, policy, governance and initiatives (e.g. climate change, hydrogen, CCUS); local and international research and innovation system advisory bodies; international private/public partnerships, special initiatives (e.g. technology centres – hydrogen, BBC – carbon fibre, cellular agriculture; programs, partnerships and new enterprises of significant scope), and innovation & technology guidance for large Canadian federal foreign investments. Private sector experience in information and telecommunications industries leading standards development, strategic planning, product development, systems development, new business development and intellectual property management.
Barbra Korol is presently employed as the Executive Director, Special Projects at Alberta Energy and Minerals. This is a transitional role as she has announced her intention to retire from the Alberta Public Service in mid-2024. Barbra has been at the nexus of natural gas industry for 24 years – both with industry and government – having lead accountability for key provincial files including hydrogen, LNG, plastics circular economy and petrochemicals. Barbra was ED accountable for Alberta CoLab and an active champion for the EFL for years. She has served as corporate media spokesperson and been a designated representative on various boards and business associations such as the Clean Air Strategic Alliance, Fort Air Partnership, Northeast Capital Industrial Association and Chemistry Industry Association of Canada. In 2022 she was awarded a Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal (QPJM) for outstanding service to Albertans. She has an honours B.A. (History) and a M.A. in Energy Policy History (2014), both from the University of Alberta.
Alison has a consistent leadership history of improving performance, profitability, and funding through organisational development, innovation, process optimisation, service, and product development. She has a proven history of facilitating changes in government policies and federal tax codes as well as a special expertise in the renewable energy, environment, social, governance (ESG), and geothermal energy development sectors.
Alison is a recognised thought leader on the clean energy transition and an expert evaluator of European Commission and US Department of Energy Clean Tech projects. She had many opportunities to deepen her thought leadership while a Fellow with the Alberta Energy Futures Lab.
Alison is committed to facilitating collaboration and consensus for high-profile, climate focused initiatives, educating the public about energy, economy and environment topics, and creating strategic vision and plans.
Claire is passionate about helping cities and communities translate the overwhelming problem of climate change into tangible solutions on the ground. Since 2008, she has been working with leading local governments in Alberta, BC, Ontario, and the Yukon to develop and implement creative solutions to the challenges of energy and climate change. She currently leads a team of diverse professionals as the Leader of the Community Energy team at the City of Calgary working to reduce city-wide GHG emissions in Calgary. She has been involved with the Energy Futures Lab since 2017 as both a Fellow and Ambassador. Claire holds a Masters of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo.
Wendy has worked for over 3 decades with some of Cda’s most respected media & communications firms, Wendy has worked closely with individuals and organizations working up and down most of our nation’s most prized business sectors, leading and launching hundreds of consumer marketing, B2B and cause marketing programs. Her work in energy and agriculture has impacted special interest groups in Alberta, nationally and internationally. In the course of her work, she has orchestrated dozens of live and digital events, workshops, ad and PR campaigns, special reports, and webinars – all serving the needs of a wide array of special interest groups that in many cases have differing motivations, agendas and viewpoints.
She currently sits as National Lead of Integrated Media, Industry Relations and Sustainability with Glacier Media while also acting as President for a busy marketing consultancy called Industries in Transition. Her organization’s reason for being is to help manage the evolution of change, tap into the “unsaid” and recognize when certain preconceived beliefs misguide either what’s best for the individual or what’s best for their environment. She has a unique combination of skills with the right blend of communications, partnership brokering and relationship management prowess. Her work in issues management allows her to go deep into the complexities that lie around our nation’s ability to transition to a more reliable, sustainable, secure, robust, and prosperous society; all the while ensuring we remain culturally aware, respectful and empathetic.
She is called on regularly for advice, stakeholder relations & comm’s support to corporate groups, regional consortiums, tech innovators, NGOs and ENGOs for the expressed purpose of optimizing end to end ESG considerations, cross sector connections, information sharing and new business development. She is a well-connected innovation ecosystem navigator who is part storyteller, fundraiser, change agent, and systems thinker. Her communications work serves to help governments, associations, corporations, and their supply chains first identify the challenges that are holding them back from meeting the growing needs of the communities they serve. The challenges often include a combination of misalignments in perceived safety, cultural understanding and/or confusion around the benefits of economic prosperity. These challenges manifest into the system generating polarization, fear, threat, and instability. She works to infuse innovators with researchers, students with scientists, indigenous with non-indigenous, educators with industries and all those with a mandate to offer a product or service (or message) to a distinct set of special interest groups.
Wendy believes that healthy communication, mutual understanding and purposeful storytelling are a wondrous means to guide our nation’s movement towards such things as greener buildings, more sustainable food production and cleaner fuels, however she believes that we cannot sustainably advance as a society if we don’t first address the impacts of mental health, the virtues of diversity, equity and inclusion and the responsible use of the technologies that underpin such change.
Sean is a serial entrepreneur deeply passionate about accelerating the sustainable energy transition. Sean is currently the CEO of Varme Energy, North America’s first specialized waste to energy with carbon capture and storage asset developers. Varme is creating a landfill free, carbon free future for garbage. Sean owns Remora Ventures, a seed stage venture fund that originates new climate focused project development companies. In previous career chapters, Sean served as co-founder of Terrapin Geothermics, Student Energy, The Next 30 and has taught case strategy courses at U of A and SFU’s business schools. Memorable moments include receiving Top 40 Under 40 in Edmonton, producing an award winning radio show called Energy Voices, speaking at the United Nations in New York twice and being a part of Canada’s contingent at COP 21 in Paris and COP 28 in Dubai.
Robin has an engineering background and over 15 years of experience in risk management, market analytics, commercial management, and strategy. In his current role, Robin looks after the development of corporate strategy and long-term financial planning. Robin is passionate about finding reliable, affordable, and decarbonized energy solutions to enable a net-zero future.
Stacie is an innovative, value-driven senior executive with extensive experience in international trade and investment, business development, business consulting and advisory, and government relations in the clean energy sector.
As Director of Investment, Energy at Invest Alberta, Stacie leads on increasing commercial investment into Alberta’s clean energy sector, providing tailored support to investors, and serving as a connector between business and government. In 2023, she was a Fellow at the Energy Futures Lab which is working to accelerate the transition to the energy system the future requires of us. Stacie is passionate about the exciting economic opportunities from the energy transition and journey to net zero.
Previously, Stacie represented the British Government in Canada leading on investment attraction from Canada to the United Kingdom’s energy sector. Earlier in her career, Stacie worked for a non-profit economic development organization, a global business accelerator in Panama, and integrated energy company, Suncor Energy. Stacie holds a Bachelor of Commerce with Distinction and a Minor in Spanish from the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business and the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico. She also studied intensive Spanish in Spain and Panama.