Confronting Disruption: A Confluences Grand Challenge Action Dialogue

Monica Gattinger is Director of the Institute for Science, Society and Policy, Full Professor at the School of Political Studies and Founder/Chair of Positive Energy at the University of Ottawa.

Dr. Gattinger is an award-winning researcher and highly sought-after speaker, strategic adviser and media commentator in the energy and arts/cultural policy sectors. Her innovative research programme convenes business, government, Indigenous, civil society and academic leaders to address complex policy, regulatory and governance challenges. Gattinger is Fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, board member of the Clean Resource Innovation Network, and serves on advisory committees for the National Research Council Canada, the Nuclear Waste Management Organization, the Ontario Energy Board, the Ottawa Science Policy Network, the University of Calgary and Women in Nuclear Canada. She Chairs the Council of Canadian Academies’ expert panel on International Science and Technology Partnerships and is a member of the Government of Ontario’s Electrification and Energy Transition Panel. Monica is a columnist for JWN Energy’s Daily Oil Bulletin and she received the 2020 Clean50 Award for her thought leadership in the energy sector. She holds a PhD in public policy from Carleton University.

Jeff has almost 35 years of experience in government science, technology and innovation policy in the US and Canada.  His US experience includes the National Science Foundation, the National Academies and the Naval Research Laboratory. 

In Canada, Jeff has worked at Industry Canada, Natural Resources Canada and the Council of Science and Technology Advisors. In 2014, he supported the External Advisory Group on Government Science and Technology (the Knox Panel). More recently, he led the Federal S&T Secretariat supporting the Minister of Science, the Deputy Minister Champion for Federal S&T and related initiatives. From 2017-2022, he created and served as Executive Director of the science and innovation area of practice at the Institute on Governance. He is now at the Council of Canadian Academies directing an assessment on the state of science, technology, and innovation in Canada.

At the University of Ottawa, Jeff is Executive-in-Residence at the Institute for Science, Society and Policy (ISSP) and an adjunct at the Telfer School of Management. Jeff is a member of the board of the Canadian Science Policy Centre and advisor to the Ottawa Science Policy Network. He holds a PhD in public policy, a Master’s in science, technology and public policy, and a BS in physics.

Sarah Laframboise joined Evidence for Democracy with a deep understanding of science policy and a passion for advocacy. While completing her PhD in Biochemistry at the University of Ottawa, Sarah served as the President of her Graduate Student Association and founded the Ottawa Science Policy Network, a student-run club at the University of Ottawa. Over the last two years, Sarah has led the Support Our Science Campaign which has been advocating for increased funding to graduate students and postdocs in Canada. She was also recently named to Canada’s Chief Science Advisor’s Youth Council, and is a long-time volunteer and staff at the Canadian Science Policy Centre. In this role, Sarah is eager to blend her passions for science communication, policy, and advocacy, aiming to empower the science community to assume an even greater role in advocacy efforts throughout Canada.