Hub for Sustainability Integration Conference 2025

Dilhari Fernando is the Chief Sustainability Strategy Officer at the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories where she oversees operational decarbonization and sustainability/ESG across the organization. Prior to this role, Dilhari held leadership roles at the PSP Investment Board and was the first head of sustainability at Canada Post. Dilhari is also a proud alumnus of the Government of Canada, where she held many roles in public policy and international affairs in the environmental and resources sector. She credits her attraction to sustainability as a direct result of her work for the federal Government where ESG factors were implicit in policymaking.

Currently living in Ottawa, Dilhari sits on the Board of Directors for the OECM and the Carleton Place Hospital Foundation.

Joshua Goodman is the Head of Corporate Sustainability at Sobeys. A leading national grocer, Sobeys sees sustainability as a critical element of its ambition to be the best retailer in Canada. In his role, Joshua is responsible for developing, implementing and overseeing sustainable business strategies and initiatives across the company’s approximately 1,600 stores in all 10 provinces. With nearly 20 years of experience, Joshua has held sustainability roles with several leading Canadian companies across multiple sectors, including retail, financial services, consumer product goods and real estate. Prior to that, he worked in the US and Europe focusing on national security policy. Joshua holds an LL.M. specializing in international economic regulatory systems from the University of Kent.

Melissa Ireland is the Director of Indigenous Relations at the University of Waterloo and a proud member of Curve Lake First Nation.

A leader dedicated to advancing reconciliation and Indigenous success in higher education, Melissa draws on more than twenty years of experience in strategic leadership, Indigenous inclusion, social work, and community development. Her work focuses on developing programs and practices that center Indigenous knowledge, promote decolonization, and foster ethical, reciprocal relationships.  As a voice for systemic transformation, she works to ensure Indigenous worldviews and values are integral to the University’s commitments to sustainability, equity, and inclusion. 

Through her vision and relational approach, in areas like the University of Waterloo's Indigenous Strategic plan 2023-2028, Melissa champions pathways for structural change—helping to shape a more just, accountable, and sustainable future for all.

Dr. Jennifer Lynes is associate professor at the University of Waterloo in the School of Environment, Enterprise and Development. Her area of expertise is at the intersection of sustainability and marketing, with a particular focus on how organizations communicate information about climate change.  She holds an advisory position with the Privy Council’s Program of Applied Research on Climate Action.  

For over two decades she has demonstrated leadership in sustainability through her research, teaching and long-standing support of community initiatives. This includes 10 years as a board member for REEP Green Solutions and six years as director of Canada’s leading program in the environment and business. Her work has been featured in the Nature Energy, the Globe and Mail and on CBC’s The Current. 

Claire is an Assistant Professor at the University of Waterloo, and Associate Director at the Hub for Sustainability Integration.

She is a seasoned sustainability professional, management consultant and skilled project manager, with over 15 years of direct industry experience in the sustainability space.  She holds a Masters in Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo, and also holds the Sustainability and Climate Risk (SCR) certification.

Claire leads the Hub for Sustainability Integration, and will be building out the student consultancy course in collaboration with the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) and the School of Environment Enterprise and Development (SEED).

Dr. Alexie Tcheuyap joined the Faculty of Arts as dean on July 1, 2024. Prior to joining the University of Waterloo, he was Associate Vice-President and Vice-Provost of International Student Experience at the University of Toronto (2021-2024). Previous academic leadership roles at U of T include Vice-Dean, Academic Life and Equity, Faculty of Arts and Sciences (2019-2021); Chair, Department of French (2017-2019); and Associate Chair, Undergraduate Studies, Department of French (2016-2017).  He holds a BA in Bilingual Studies and two graduate degrees, Maîtrise and Doctorat de Troisième Cycle, in African Literature from the University of Yaoundé. He completed his PhD in French Literature at Queen’s University in 2000 and subsequently held faculty positions at the University of Calgary from 2000 to 2006.

Dr. Tcheuyap is a scholar of African literary, cinema and media studies, with particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa and Cameroon, the country in which he was born and educated. He has investigated, published and taught about issues relating to madness and literature, film adaptation, African cinematic productions, politics and media. His scholarship crosses several disciplines, spaces, and illustrates how postcolonial experiences lend themselves to global canons and theoretical investigations. His books include Postnationalist African Cinema (Manchester UP, 2011) Autoritarisme, presse et violence au Cameroun  (Karthala, 2014), Avoir peur. Insécurité et roman en Afrique francophone (with Hervé Tchumkam, 2018), and African Documentary Cinema (2024). Dr. Tcheuyap was a Senior Fellow of the European Institute for Advanced Study ( 2017, Collegium de Lyon)and was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) in 2021.

With over two decades of industry experience, Kevan Thompson is a nationally recognized authority in construction risk management. His expertise spans a comprehensive range of commercial insurance solutions, including project-specific insurance programs, contract review and modeling, contract surety, and subcontractor default insurance (SDI).

Kevan launched his career at the world’s largest global construction brokerage, where he spent a decade managing major construction accounts and driving business development. He subsequently joined one of Canada’s premier brokerage firms, serving on the leadership team and directing the construction and surety division. He later assumed dual leadership roles as Head of Fenn & Fenn and Vice President of Construction at HUB International, where he oversaw one of Canada’s largest roofing programs as a Lloyd’s of London coverholder and managed strategic construction accounts nationwide.

Currently, Kevan serves as National Senior Vice President, Construction, Contractors & Real Estate at Axis Insurance, where he continues to lead innovative risk solutions for complex construction portfolios.

Kevan has held several prominent industry board positions, including Chair of the Surety Association of Canada (SAC), and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Grand Valley Construction Association (GVCA).

A sought-after speaker and panelist, he has shared his insights with the Ontario Bar Association, municipal bodies, construction associations, and leading construction organizations. Notably, he contributed to the sub-committee that advised the Attorney General of Ontario in drafting the Construction Act, which came into effect in 2018.