Profiles

Dr. ElAlfy is a leading scholar in sustainability disclosure and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) issues, with a particular focus on non-financial reporting practices. His research explores the significance of sustainability risks and opportunities through a double materiality lens, connecting financial and non-financial metrics to aid decision-makers in promoting sustainable growth and responsible investment strategies. He serves as the Associate Director of the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics (WISA), where he focuses on enhancing ESG performance within the aeronautics sector.

Charles H. Cho, PhD, CPA is Professor of Sustainability Accounting and the Erivan K. Haub Chair in Business & Sustainability at the Schulich School of Business, York University. His research interests include Social and Environmental Accounting; Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); and Accounting and the Public Interest. His work was published in leading academic journals such as Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Accounting, Organizations and Society, Business & Society, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, European Accounting Review, and the Journal of Business Ethics. He currently serves as an Editor of Accounting Forum; the Accounting and Business Ethics Section Co-Editor of the Journal of Business Ethics; and Associate Editor of Business & Society.

David Del Rey Fernández is an Assistant Professor at the University of Waterloo, Department of Applied Mathematics. Before joining the University of Waterloo, he was first a postdoctoral researcher and then a research scientist at NASA Langley Research Center and the National Institute of Aerospace. His research interest is in developing efficient and robust numerical algorithms for the solution of partial differential equations based on novel numerical methods with provable properties, applicable to high-performance computing systems. David’s research is focused on developing the mathematics and algorithms for the efficient solution of a broad class of time-dependent partial differential equations in the context of mathematically rigorous numerical frameworks. In particular, the emphasis is on:1) robust numerical methods, 2) mesh adaptation, 3) approaches for dealing with geometric complexity and moving meshes, and 4) machine-learning algorithms for automation and increased efficiency. 

David Ostler is currently the Chief Academic Officer at the International Test Pilots School in London, Ontario. He has been flying for more than 30 years and has over 20 years of flight test experience in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the civil industry.
David served 7 years as a fixed wing pilot in the Australian Army flying Pilatus Porter and Nomad before transferring to the RAN to fly helicopters. David is a graduate of the Empire Test Pilots School (ETPS) and, in addition to his engineering degree, holds a Master of Science in Flight Dynamics from Cranfield University and a PhD in Mathematics from Swinburne University.

Diana Facchini is the Acting Director of Research and Development at the National Research Council Canada's (NRC) Advanced Materials Research Facility in Mississauga, where she oversees its operations and R&D portfolio. Ms. Facchini's early career included roles as an industrial researcher and program lead in structural nanomaterials, as well as fostering industry-academic partnerships in clean technology and manufacturing. She holds a MASc in Materials Engineering from the University of Toronto.

In January 2018, Dr. Yimer was appointed as Director General of the NRC's Aerospace Research Centre. Following a successful career in applied reserach in the field of gas turbine combustion and fuels, Dr. Yimer has held positions of increasing responsibility at the NRC, including Director of the Gas Turbine Laboratory for 10 years.

He is well recognized in the Aerospace science and technology community where he currently serves as Vice-Chair of the International Forum for Aviation Research (IFAR) and a Director on the board of AeroMontreal, WestCARD, International Society of Air Breathing Engines (ISABE), and International Congress of Aeronautical Sciences (ICAS).

Dr. Yimer holds and MSc and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario.

Dr. Martin (Marty) Smith completed his undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Waterloo and since completing his Ph.D. in Psychology from the Université du Québec à Montréal 28 years ago he has developed numerous decision-making software solutions that target and mitigate the psychological drivers for operational non-compliance.  Airlines, Air Navigation, and Airport Authorities around the world have deployed his solutions. Marty is a noted conference speaker and consultant to IATA, ICAO, TSB, NTSB, Eurocontrol, and Flight Safety Foundation.  Most importantly Marty remains an active pilot, having accumulated numerous endorsements and licenses over his 43 years of flying.

Dr. Ewa Niechwiej-Szwedo completed her graduate work at the University of Toronto and joined the University of Waterloo in 2012. Her research program is grounded in systems neuroscience and focuses on discovering the fundamental mechanisms involved in the central nervous system control of eye and hand movements across the lifespan. She has expertise in the field of visuomotor neuroscience, including gaze behaviour, hand-eye coordination, motor skill development and learning. 

Gulnaz joined Geography and Environmental Management (GEM) in 2023, having spent 2 years as an assistant professor at the Eskisehir Technical University, Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Her research focuses on Operations Research in aviation, especially on optimization problems related to air transportation planning and scheduling, where she develops models and solution methods for large-scale optimization problems. She also collaborates in different fields of Aviation Management, concerning different aspects of sustainability in aviation, where quantitative data analyses are required.

As a fighter pilot and experimental test pilot on high-performance fighter aircraft in Canada, the UK, and the US, Jameel has penned some pretty unique journal entries, including most recently when he became the tenth Canadian professional astronaut and the first one to pilot a winged rocket ship. As a commercial spaceline pilot in Virgin Galactic’s spaceship Unity, Jameel flew as part of a crew that reached an altitude of 287,011 feet (54.4 miles) and a maximum speed of Mach 2.96. Looking back on this planet was profound and Jameel loves to share his experience with others.

CAAM is a Federal Not For Profit organization that acts as the catalyst for the new Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) industry in Canada. AAM is defined as unlocking Zero-Emission (Electric & Hydrogen) Aircraft to operate in Canada both as flying vehicles and larger commercial airplanes. AAM operations focus on moving people, goods and services in both piloted and remotely piloted aircraft on intra-urban and inter-regional routes.

Dr. Liu's research examines ways technologies can help older adults and family caregivers. As an investigator with Age-Well NCE, she has three funded projects to develop:

(1) an app using predicted risk levels to recommend personalized strategies for people with dementia at risk of going missing, (2) a scale to measure the usability of technologies to locate missing persons with dementia, and (3) a national coordinated strategy for collecting data on persons with dementia who go missing.

She also collaborates with researchers at Ryerson University to develop and evaluate algorithms for drones that find cognitively impaired people who are lost.

Mary Wells is Dean of Engineering at the University of Waterloo (July 1, 2020 - ), the ninth dean since the Faculty was founded in 1957. From 2017-2020, she was Dean of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University of Guelph.

Prior to her time in Guelph, Wells was a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo for 10 years. She received awards for graduate supervision from both the Faculty and the University in 2017.

Dr. Mehrdad Pirnia, a PhD Waterloo alumnus in Electrical and Computer Engineering, is a faculty member and Graduate Attributes lecturer in the Department of Management Sciences. His main research focus is enhancing the operation and planning of energy and transportation systems through artificial intelligence, optimization and stochastic techniques. He has previously held positions with California ISO, ALSTOM Grid, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

Dr. Vlasea is an Assistant Professor and the Research Co-Director of the Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing Lab. Her research focuses on innovative design, process optimization and adoption of new materials for powder bed fusion and binder jetting additive manufacturing processes. Dr. Vlasea collaborates closely with industry partners in the additive manufacturing supply chain and applications, including aerospace. In recognition of her scholarly work, student mentorship, and industry outreach, she was recognised as the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) 20 Most Influential Academics 2021 and as the SME Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer 2020.

Wendy Bailey is the Chief of Environmental Protection and Standards at Transport Canada, responsible for the implementation of national environmental standards, and the Civil Aviation environmental program. She is the CAEP Member for Canada on ICAO’s Committee of Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). Wendy is on the Advisory Board of the AVIATOR Consortium, an EU-funded multi-national study. She is a contributing author to Air Quality Management: Canadian Perspectives on a Global Issue, published in 2014. Wendy holds a Bachelor degree in Applied Science (Engineering Chemistry) from Queen’s University and a Master’s degree in Occupational Health and Safety from McGill. 

Shi Cao (“SHER TSAO”) studies human factors engineering. His research projects include human performance and workload modeling, human-machine system reliability, the applications of virtual and augmented reality, and new aviation training technologies. Cao has developed computational cognitive models and human performance prediction systems (Google Scholar list). He is also the director of Human Optimization Modelling Lab (HOMLab) and the Committee Chair of the Collaborative Aeronautics Program.

Dr. Suzanne Kearns is an aviation academic with a focus on education and optimizing pilot performance, receiving her PhD from Capella University in 2007. Her research explores how to optimize the next generation of aviation professionals (NGAP) by analyzing processes to attract people to the field of aviation, optimizing and innovating the traditional education pathway, and improving the retention of professionals within the field. She is a former airplane and helicopter pilot and is internationally recognized within the aviation industry.

A focus on sustainable energy conversion and chemical production processes! XiaoYu Wu is an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering. He obtained his PhD and was a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)He also obtained his MS and BS degrees in Zhejiang University. He is enthusiastic about sustainability, especially how clean technologies can impact sustainability and how developing countries can incorporate sustainability in development. He has published papers in journals such as Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, the Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, AIChE Journal and ChemSusChem. He serves as the Guest Associate Editor in an open-access journal Frontiers in Energy Research for a theme collection of “Sustainable Hydrogen for Energy, Fuel and Commodity Applications.” 

Today, Zoey is a First Officer on a Boeing 777. She is a Professor of Practice, serving as the inaugural Pilot-in-Residence at the University of Waterloo as a lecturer, supporting research, and collaborating with various departments, including the Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics, among many other responsibilities. She is an avid volunteer, having served on multiple non-profit boards, a keynote speaker, and a versatile musician who has performed twice with an orchestra. For her contributions to the aviation industry, she has been recognized by various organizations, including her selection as the 2023 Top 20 under 40 by Wings Magazine.