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Yuen Pau Woo

Yuen Pau Woo is President and CEO of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. Mr. Woo is on the management board of the National Centre of Excellence in Immigration Research at UBC and Simon Fraser University (Metropolis BC), and is an advisor to the Shanghai WTO Affairs Consultation Centre and the Asian Development Bank. He is also on the International Advisory Council of the Asia Society in New York, a member of the Greater Vancouver Advisory Board for the Salvation Army, and a board member of the Mosaic Institute. Mr. Woo was born in Malaysia and grew up in Singapore. He was educated at Lester B. Pearson College, Wheaton College, the University of Cambridge, and the University of London. Mr. Woo has previously worked as a consultant on international marine affairs and as an economist for the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.

Mark E. Whitmell

Mark E. Whitmell
Head, Cultural Markets | HSBC North America

Mark recently joined HSBC as Head of Cultural Markets for HSBC North America. He has direct responsibility for developing and overseeing strategies to ensure HSBC is the leading provider of financial services for the multicultural / internationally minded consumer. Previously, Mark led cultural and new immigrant strategies for RBC Royal Bank.

Mark has more than 18 years of experience in the financial services industry, leading transformational change initiatives in sales, marketing, information technology, finance and strategy.

Born and raised on Vancouver Island, Mark spent most of his career in Vancouver followed by five years in Toronto. He has an MBA in Information Technology from Athabasca University and a degree in Marketing from Vancouver Island University.

Jack Austin

The Hon. Jack Austin, PC, QC, served in the Senate of Canada from 1975-2007, representing British Columbia. During that time, he served as Minister for Social Development, Minister for EXPO 86, and Minister for the Canada Development Investment Corporation in the Trudeau Cabinet of 1981-84. In the Martin Cabinet of 2003-2006, he served as senior minister and Leader of the Government in the Senate. Mr. Austin travelled to Japan and Hong Kong in 1958 as a young lawyer, acting in the developing mineral trade across the Pacific. He repeated those visits in the 1960s. From May 1970-74 he served as Deputy Minister of Energy, Mines, and Resources in Ottawa. In that office, he accompanied the first official mission to China in June 1971 and has travelled to China and most parts of Asia frequently since that time. He was president of the Canada-China Business Council from 1993-2000, and established the Team Canada missions to China under Prime Minister Chretien.  A longtime champion for stronger relations between Canada and Asia, Mr. Austin believes the well-being of Canada’s youth is as much based in Asia as it is in any other part of the world.

Nanon de Gaspé Beaubien-Mattrick

Nanon received a Bachelor of Arts from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Nanon was involved with Telemedia Corporation for 10 years as a Sr. Vice President. Nanon presently manages a small investment fund.
Nanon currently is on the Board of Directors for the following companies: Crofton House School, FWE (Forum for Women Entrepreneurs), and Lotus Wear (Yoga wear).

Hank Bull

Hank Bull was born in Calgary in 1949 and grew up in Ontario and Nova Scotia. In 1973 he joined the Western Front in Vancouver, one of Canada’s first artist-run centres. His has explored performance, video, radio and telecommunications art. Interested in networks of exchange, he has travelled widely and collaborated with artists from all over the world, particularly in Asia. In 1999, he was a co-founder of the Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art (Centre A), where he continues in the role of executive director.

Gerri Sinclair

Gerri Sinclair is currently the Executive Director of the Masters of Digital Media Program, as well as the CEO of the Centre for Digital Media, a collaborative partnership between the University of B.C., Simon Fraser University, Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design, and the B.C. Institute of Technology. Dr. Sinclair was also the founding director of the ExCITE lab at Simon Fraser University, the first multimedia educational technology centre in Canada. She is the recipient of several awards, including the Canadian Women in New Media Pioneer award, the Sarah Kirke award for the most outstanding Canadian woman in High Tech, and most recently the 2008 Canadian Public Policy Forum Testimonial Award. She holds a Ph.D. in Renaissance drama as well as an honorary Doctor of Science in Computer Science from the University of British Columbia. In her role as Director of the MDM program, Dr. Sinclair has worked to build collaborations with many universities and digital media industries in Asia, particularly those in China, Korea, Singapore and Japan.

Nobu Adilman

Nobu Adilman (www.nobu.ca) works in film, television, and online radio. He got his start in the media business writing episodic television. Since then, he has hosted a couple of CBC shows with his brother, Mio; acted in Trailer Park Boys; and is a co-creator and host of Food Jammers. Mr. Adilman recently launched a story-based podcast, www.captaineyeliner.com, and is completing an interactive documentary for NFB digital.

Ziya Tong

Ziya Tong serves as Co-Host and Producer on Discovery Channel Canada's flagship science program, Daily Planet. In New York, Ms Tong is also a correspondent for America's eminent science show, NOVA ScienceNow. She has travelled extensively, and received her Masters degree from McGill University with deans honors.