Meet the Speakers

Cody Battershill,
Founder,
Canada Action

Cody Battershill is a Calgary realtor and founder/spokesperson for CanadaAction.ca, a volunteer-initiated group that supports Canadian resource development and the environmental, social and economic benefits that come with it.

Matt Beck

Senior Director Carbon Management and Sustainability,
The Delphi Group

Board Member, Battery Metals Association of Canada (BMAC)

With over 17 years of experience working at the intersection of energy systems, sustainability, and climate change across a wide range of sectors, Matt advises many of Canada’s largest companies on developing and implementing net zero and energy transition strategies. He is also a board member at BMAC, a leading voice on the development of a robust battery metals supply chain across Canada. Matt is an enthusiastic advocate for collaborative systems-level innovation that supports new economic opportunities for all Canadians.

Kimberly Berman
Independent Consultant

Kimberly, now an independent consultant, joined BMO Capital Markets Equity Research as a special projects analyst in 2017 to develop the thematic research platform and build in-house expertise surrounding battery chemistry, the power storage market, hydrogen and related fuel cell technologies, renewables and the metals used in the energy transition. The future demand for these technologies will have a significant impact on extractive industries such as metals and mining as the need for specialty inputs continues to grow in order to meet the many decarbonization plans that have been proposed by both the public and private sectors.  

Kimberly is a seasoned research professional and has written extensively on the science behind many innovative industries such as lithium ion batteries, next generation solid state and hydrogen fuel cells and formerly covered the Canadian healthcare and biotech sector. She has an MA in international economics and finance, a B.Sc in applied chemistry and biology, and a BA in political economics focusing on sustainability. 

Troy Boisjoli,
President & CEO
Murchison Minerals Ltd.

Mr. Troy Boisjoli, previously held positions of Vice President Operations and Project Development and Vice President Exploration and Community for NexGen Energy Ltd. While at NexGen, Troy has led the project team through the development of the Arrow Deposit in northern Saskatchewan and was involved with major milestones such as multiple mineral resource estimates, the preliminary economic assessment, the prefeasibility study, the feasibility study, operations development, the environmental assessment work done to-date, and multiple discoveries along the Patterson Lake corridor. In addition, and foundational to mineral resource development, Troy maintained and established important local relationships with communities close to the Arrow project resulting in the successful signing of Impact Benefit Agreements with two Indigenous communities.

Prior to joining NexGen Energy in 2016, Mr. Boisjoli worked as an exploration geologist for Cameco Corporation on projects throughout northern Saskatchewan and Australia. Troy was also the Chief Geologist at the underground Eagle Point uranium mine, where he led a team that increased the mineral resources threefold while reducing drilling and discovery costs. In addition, while at Eagle Point, Troy led a team that implemented innovative processes that led to improved grade control, production reconciliation and short-range and life of mine planning.

Mr. Boisjoli holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, as well as a geoscience license with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan.

Nicole Brewster
President & CEO
Renforth Resources Inc.

Don Bubar
President & CEO
Avalon Advanced Materials Inc.

Don Bubar is a geologist with over 45 years of experience in mineral exploration and development in Canada. Mr. Bubar is a graduate of McGill University (B.Sc., 1977) and Queen’s University (M.Sc., 1981). From 1984 to 1994, he worked for Aur Resources Inc. as Exploration Manager and later VP, Exploration following the discovery of Louvicourt Cu-Zn-Ag-Au deposit in 1989. Mr. Bubar has been President and CEO of Avalon since 1995.

Mr. Bubar served as a Director of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) for nine years and Chair of its Aboriginal Affairs Committee from its creation in December, 2004 until retiring from the PDAC Board in March, 2013. Throughout his career, Mr. Bubar has been an advocate for increased Indigenous participation in the mineral industry, first through the PDAC and later through the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines. Mr. Bubar serves on the Advisory Board to the Faculty of Science of McGill University and on the Board of Directors of PDAC’s Mining Matters earth science education program.

Robert Cameron, P.Geo.
President and CEO
Commander Resources

Mr. Cameron is an economic geologist with over 35 years of international experience in the mining industry. Prior to Commander he held positions that include President and CEO of Valley High Ventures and Bearing Resources Ltd. as well as Vice-President and Manager of Exploration for Phelps Dodge Corporation of Canada Limited (a then subsidiary of Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc.). In addition, he has extensive market and finance experience including a term as mining analyst for Research Capital. He is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia. He has been involved in the discovery of several mineral deposits including the QR gold deposit (with Dome Exploration), the Kasperske Hory gold deposit (with TVX) and the Cordero silver deposit (with Valley High Ventures).

Michael Chick
Senior Policy Advisor
Calgary Chamber of Commerce

Mike currently serves as a Senior Policy Advisor with the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, helping drive policy development and advocacy on a range of Chamber priorities. Mike works directly with businesses, community stakeholders, and government partners to develop policy positions that are reflective of business interests, positioning the broader Calgary business community for success. Mike has previously worked as a Consultant with Deloitte Canada, and as a Strategic Policy Advisor with the Government of Canada. Mike holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Political Science, specializing in North American Security and Strategy, from the University of Calgary. He is also fluently bilingual, having spent a semester abroad at L'Institut d'Études Politiques de Lille, in Lille, France. 

Magdel Combrinck
Geophysical Processing Manager
NRG/Axiom Exploration

Magdel studied Exploration Geophysics at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, culminating in a PhD on the modelling of Time Domain Electromagnetic data.  She has been involved on contract basis in groundwater exploration, mineral exploration and engineering geophysics since 1996. She lectured at University of Pretoria for four years and has spent another four and a half years working for Geotech Ltd.  In 2010 she moved to Canada and partnered in launching Tau Geophysical Consultants, based in Calgary.  

She started working with NRG in 2015, participating in the development and launch of the Xcite helicopter EM system.  Currently she is acting as data processing manager for NRG, and still enjoys unravelling the mysteries of time domain EM. 

Judson Culter
Director & CEO
Rover Metals 

Mr. Culter is an experienced start-up entrepreneur and co-founded Rover Metals in 2014. Mr. Culter has over ten years of international finance, capital markets, and accounting experience. He has helped to raise over $20MM in private and public financings for start-ups and growth orientated companies in the Pacific Northwest, Asia Pacific, and South America. He has taken several mineral resource companies public, most recently Rover Metals, and prior to that the Dolly Varden Silver project (TSXV: DV), whereby he was a co-founder and also managed the exploration drill program (pre-Hecla Mining investment).

Nancy Curry
VP Corporate Development
Kodiak Copper

As a senior corporate communications and development professional with over 25 years of experience Nancy brings industry recognized best practices to shareholder and stakeholder communication to Kodiak, Ms. Curry has focused her career in the resource sector and been nominated twice for Best Investor Relations by of a TSX Venture Exchange Company by IR Magazine. 

Pieter Du Plessis
Vice President, Technology and Director, at OMG Capital

Axiom Group

Pieter Du Plessis, VP of Technology is a Professional Geoscientist with Tertiary education in Geology, Chemistry, Soil Science, Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Terrain Evaluation, including satellite analysis and Business Administration. His career started in the 1990’s where geological expertise and satellite analysis was applied to mineral exploration projects. He has a broad spectrum of international experience from mineral exploration to corporate strategy across several commodities, including gold, diamonds, uranium, coal, base metals, oil shales and mineral sands.  Pieter has previously managed US$100 million per annum exploration programs that employed over 300 people in Canada.

As the VP of Technology for the Axiom Group, Pieter provides advanced data analytics, including pattern recognition and machine learning, with data forecasting services for mineral exploration, agricultural, environmental, forestry, satellite, UAV, mineral and soil data, to facilitate optimized business decisions through enhanced efficiencies.
Pieter founded a company for satellite analysis on mineral exploration and developed novel Artificial Intelligence models to utilize satellite and soil sample data to quantify organic matter, nutrients and micronutrients in agricultural applications. He also developed Machine and Deep learning models for applications in exploration, forestry and environmental rehabilitation using satellite, helicopter and UAV based spectral data to identify tree and other vegetation species.

Doug Engdahl, P.Geo
President & CEO

Axiom Group

Mr. Engdahl is a professional geologist and the current President & CEO of Axiom Group. Doug received his B.Sc. from the University of Saskatchewan in Geological Sciences and a Citation Program in Applied Geostatistics with Clayton Deutsch from the University of Alberta. He is Professional Geoscientist registered with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan (APEGS), Engineers & Geoscientists British Columbia and Ordre des geologues du Quebec (OGQ).

R. Bruce Fair
President
Mench Capital Corp.

Bruce Fair was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He attended high school in Nipawin, Saskatchewan and has an Honours degree in Political Science and English from the University of Saskatchewan obtained in 1981. Mr. Fair is President and founder of Mench Capital Corp., which was incorporated in Vancouver, BC on April 20th, 1999. Mench Capital Corp. is a Canadian merchant banking firm that provides corporate finance & financial consulting services and access to private or public capital to established, mid-market companies. Mench Capital Corp. has participated in and, or originated in the formation of in excess of $500M+ in private and public equity transactions over the past 22 years mainly focused in the Canadian Resource Industry - oil & gas & mining & alternative investment products & strategies.
Mr. Fair has previously served on numerous Boards as an independent Director including various Maple Leaf Flow-Through Limited Partnerships (2009-2016), Nationwide I Self Storage Trust, Maple Leaf Energy Income Limited Partnerships (2009-2016), Maple Leaf Royalty Corp, Richfield Ventures Inc., Orsa Ventures Corp., and Cliffmont Resources Ltd. 
Mr. Fair currently acts as the President and CEO of Cordillera Minerals Group Ltd., an entity which creates and provides Investor's access to diversified portfolios of Canadian Junior Exploration Mineral Companies through a tax efficient structure. Mr. Fair is also the President & CEO of the Cordillera Minerals 2021 Flow-Through Limited Partnership and the Cordillera Minerals 2022 Flow-Through Limited Partnership. Mr. Fair is currently a Director of Searchlight Resources Inc. (TSX.V:SCLT), and Golden Sky Minerals (TSX.V:AUEN). 

Cindy Gray
CEO & Managing Director
5 Quarters Investor Relations, Inc.

Cindy is a financial communications practitioner with over 20 years of experience in investor relations and capital markets. She has held senior and executive positions at a number of public companies, and globally led business development for one of the TSX & TSX Venture Exchange practice groups. She has been involved in the design and execution of tactical and strategic communications programs across multiple industries, including natural resources, technology, real estate and financial services. Cindy holds an MBA from the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business and currently serves as a board member of Toronto-based Think Research (TSXV: THNK), an industry leader in delivering integrated digital healthcare solutions. She is also a member of the Local Advisory Committee (LAC) for TSX Venture Exchange in Calgary and recently joined the board of Providence school, a Calgary-based not-for-profit.

Sam Grier
CEO
Stirling Merchant Capital Inc.

Mathias Grum
Senior Portfolio Manager

Grum & Associates Wealth Management Team - Raymond James

As a Chartered Investment Manager (CIM®) and former analyst, Matias builds tailored wealth solutions for high-net-worth families, business owners and professionals. His international experience, years of portfolio management and research background, coupled with broad range of services offered by his team at Raymond James, provides his clients with the peace of mind they want and need, knowing their investments have been researched thoroughly and monitored consistantly to match their goals.

Over the years Matias has been an active member of the arts community in Calgary, serving as a Board Member of the Calgary Opera (2021-14) and the Alberta Ballet (2015-2021). 

He is also actively involved in the sports community as a Board Member for the UofC Dino’s Tennis Society.

Erin Herman
Project Engineering and Operations Director, Rare Earth Element Division

Saskatchewan Research Council

Erin is the Project Engineering and Operations Director, Rare Earth Element Division. Erin previously held the position of Vice-President of Engineering at SmartSand Inc in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

He has over 15 years' experience as a private business owner in the field of R&D, successfully developing and commercializing technology and equipment. Erin is a life-long resident of Saskatchewan, where he received a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Saskatchewan.
In this role, reporting to the Vice-President of the REE Division, Erin is leading the group to support industry partners and all SRC Divisions with innovative applied engineering, research, design, construction and maintenance projects. Erin is also supervising a team of engineers and scientists to navigate the design, construction and commissioning of the Rare Earth Processing Facility. In addition, Erin is responsible for building the Facility operations team and delivering on the execution of the next planned phases of the project.

Dennis Kambeitz
CEO
EZ-Robot

Dennis is globally recognized as a leader in robotics and A.I. education.  He is regularly invited to be a guest on podcasts and to speak at education and robotics conferences from around the world.  He has helped more than 40,000 people understand how these technologies will transform the workforce, and what we need to do to prepare.

Over the last two years, Dennis has been asked to share his knowledge with members of the Canadian Heavy Oil Association (CHOA), Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA).  

People that have seen Dennis’ presentations have described them as “paradigm changing” and “something everyone needs to hear”.

Peter Krauth
Author

Peter is the author of The Great Silver Bull (www.thegreatsilverbull.com), and editor of the silver-focused investment newsletter Silver Stock Investor (www.silverstockinvestor.com). Krauth has written about investing in silver for more than 20 years, using his extensive industry network to uncover outstanding opportunities. As a precious metals expert, he is a frequent contributor to financial websites such as Kitco and Forbes. He is a regular presenter and moderator at investment conferences, such as the Metals Investor Forum.

Sylvain Laberge
President and CEO
1844 Resources Inc.

After obtaining a degree in Hotel management Sylvain entered into a sales career different sector. He became part of a new company founded in 1999, Renmark Financial Communication an enterprise specialising in Investor Relations, where he became Vice –President and develop an interest for emerging companies and especially mining exploration.  Sylvain has been managing 1844 since 2013 and also managed other junior companies during that period. He presently  is a director of Omineca Mining and a director of Royal Helium.

J.Francois Lalonde
President and CEO
StellarAfrica Gold Inc.

Mr. Lalonde holds a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering and has been a member of the Order of Engineers of Quebec for 30 years. He is an independent consulting civil engineer and has worked for and consulted to multinational engineering and construction companies such as SNC-Lavalin (Canadian company based in Montreal) and Bouygues Travaux Publics (French firm based in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines). Mr. Lalonde has also participated in international business development for the Quebec firm Pomerleau Construction. He has in-depth knowledge of markets in Canada, United States, Middle East and Africa, where he most notably participated in large-scale energy, motorway and other infrastructure development projects.

Before his appointment as President and CEO of Stellar Africagold, Mr. Lalonde was already a Director of the firm since 2011. He currently sits on the Board of Sylla Gold (TSXV: SYG), Granite Creek Copper (TSXV: GCX) and was formerly a director of Algold Resources LTD. (TSXV: ALG)

Chris Mamen
Vice President, Engineering
OMNI Conversion Technologies

Chris Mamen, M.Eng., P.Eng. was an early contributor to OMNI’s core IP development at Plasco Trail Road, where he showed himself to be an innovative, multidisciplinary solution provider.
He then moved to the oil and gas industry, where he led unconventional infrastructure development in Western Canada, and guided companies on emissions reduction strategies, clean technology development, emissions controls, and emissions offsets.  Chris was the Vice Chair of a CSA Standard that sets guidelines for emissions controls devices in the oil & gas industry.  He holds a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, and is a registered Professional Engineer in Alberta and Ontario.

In 2021, Chris rejoined with OMNI as Vice-President of Engineering, leading the team that is commercializing OMNI’s best in class GPRSTM technology worldwide.

Cornell McDowell
V.P. of Exploration & Qualified Person
Aben Resources

Cornell McDowell is a professional geologist registered in both Alberta and British Columbia and serves as Vice President of Exploration for Aben Resources Ltd. and is the Qualified Person. He has been self-employed as a geological consultant since graduating with a Bachelor of Science (Specialization in Geology) from the University of Alberta in 2005. He has worked with both privately held and publicly listed mineral exploration corporations, most recently with Gold Reach Resources on the Ootsa Project, where in excess of 100,000 meters of drilling has advanced the project from initial stage through resource development to the delivery of a positive PEA. He also serves on the Board of Directors and Audit Committee for Manson Creek Resources Ltd.

Kelsey MacCormack
Director, Geology and Resources
Alberta Geological Survey/Alberta Energy Regulator

Kelsey completed both her undergraduate and graduate degrees at McMaster University, with an M.Sc. in 3D geologic and hydrogeologic modelling in southern Ontario, and a Ph.D. focusing on geomodelling and the application of geostatistics to improve the accuracy of 3D subsurface models. Kelsey then did a post-doc at the University of Guelph applying the concepts and workflows developed during her Ph.D. to numerous multidisciplinary resource characterization studies. In 2012, Kelsey joined the Alberta Geological Survey and Alberta Energy Regulator as a geomodeller responsible for developing the Alberta Geological Framework, a provincial-scale 3D model designed facilitate the integration of geospatial information to more accurately and efficiently evaluate relationships between surface/subsurface properties and interactions, ultimately allowing for improved characterization of geospatial data and information to support evidence-based decision making, enhancing stakeholder communication of complex geological concepts. The workflows developed by the AGS to construct a multi-scale, multi-dimensional, geostatistically optimized, 3D geological model with built-in feedback mechanisms for improved accuracy, have been steadily gaining international attention. In 2014 Kelsey became the Manager of the Bedrock Geologic Framework Team, and in 2016 became the Director of the Geology and Resources Group. Kelsey enjoys looking for new and innovative ways to enhance our subsurface geological understanding and access to geological information and data through collaboration with colleagues in academia, government, industry, public, and around the globe.

Don Mosher
President & Board Director
Desert Mountain Energy Corp.

Alexander Muir
CFA, Manager, Corporate Development and Investor Relations
Copper Corp.

Alex previously held roles at Toronto Stock Exchange and Canaccord Genuity.

Jim Pettit
Director, Chairman & CEO
Aben Resources

Jim Pettit has been President and Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Aben Resources Ltd. since November 2002. Mr. Pettit is currently serving on the board of directors of five publicly traded companies and offers over 25 years of experience within the industry specializing in finance, corporate governance, executive management and compliance. Mr. Pettit was previously Chairman and C.E.O. of Bayfield Ventures Corp. which was bought by New Gold Inc. in January 2015.

Max Porterfield
CEO, President and Director
Callinex Mines Inc.

Mr. Max Porterfield has nearly two decades of experience in natural resources and capital markets. Callinex has thrived under Mr. Porterfield’s leadership and vision for creating sustainable growth in key Canadian mining jurisdictions. Through his efforts, Callinex has attracted top talent and capital which have collectively led to accretive acquisitions and discovery of significant base and precious metals rich deposits. This is aligned with and contributes to the Company’s long-term goal of lasting job creation in remote mining communities, with a strong focus on best practices in social and environmental standards. 

Max was previously with Gold Mining Inc, Uranium Energy Corp and US Global Investors where he was instrumental in attracting capital for each respective organization.  Mr. Porterfield is a graduate of Texas Tech University, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. He currently resides in Vancouver, BC and is a dual citizen of the United States and Canada.

Honourable Jim Reiter
Minister of Energy
Government of Saskatchewan

Jim Reiter was first elected as the MLA for Rosetown-Elrose in the 2007 provincial election. He was re-elected in 2011, 2016 and 2020.

In May 2009, Jim was first appointed to cabinet as Minister of Highways and Infrastructure. In June 2012, he was designated as Minister of Government Relations, as well as Minister responsible for First Nations, Métis, and Northern Affairs. During his time in this portfolio he was also responsible for SaskEnergy and SaskTel. In August 2016, Jim was appointed to serve as the Minister of Health. In 2020, he was named Minister of SaskBuilds and Procurement, and Minister responsible for SaskGaming, for the Public Service Commission, for the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority, and for the Global Transportation Hub Authority. Jim currently serves as Minister of Energy and Resources. 

Greg Robb
President & CEO
Helium Evolution

Greg Robb has worked as a geologist in Western Canada since 1984. Mr. Robb has broad experience in all facets of the oil and gas industry including exploration and development, acquisitions and dispositions, and reserve valuations. He has held executive level positions in several exploration and production companies and in 2006 founded Salvo Energy Corp. Mr. Robb has been involved in heavy oil, shallow gas, coal bed methane, deep basin tight gas and conventional oil and gas plays, evaluating over $500 million of acquired assets across his career. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Alberta, a B.Sc. in geology from the University of Calgary, and a M.Sc. in geology from the University of Alberta.

Dr. Abani R Samal
Principal
GeoGlobal LLC

Dr. Abani R Samal holds is educated in the field of mineral exploration, geostatistics, and deposit evaluation in major institutions/ universities in the USA, Great Britain, and India. He is in the mining industry since 1996.  Currently, he is the principal and owner of GeoGlobal, LLC, where he provides consulting services to exploration and mining companies, major financial institutions worldwide, and government agencies for the development of mineral resources. He is an active member of the SME, CIM, SEG, GSA, and SAIMM. He serves on the editorial boards of two international journals.

Alfred (Alf) Stewart, B.SC. Geology, MBA
Chairman, Director, VP Corporate Development
Searchlight Resources Inc.

Alf Stewart, has a career spanning over 40 years in the resource and investment industries. Mr. Stewart’s career includes time spent as a geologist, stock exchange regulator, investment banker, analyst and investment advisor. Mr. Stewart has worked for such firms as Bank of Montreal, Esso Minerals, Erickson Gold Mining, Canaccord Capital, Haywood Securities, Golden Capital, and Raymond James. He has been involved in financing mining companies for over twenty-five years, including discoveries in the base and precious metals sectors.

Dr. Venkataraman Thangadurai
Professor, Physical Chemistry
University of Calgary

Dr. Venkataraman Thangadurai is full professor of chemistry at the University of Calgary, Canada. He has more than 230 peer-reviewed papers in journals, his work being cited over 17,000 times with an overall H-Index of 59 and was amongst the top 1% of Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) journals in terms of citations in 2020. He is elected as a Fellow to the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK, and fellow of the Electrochemical Society (USA), He received the Keith Laidler Award from the Canadian Chemical Society (CSC) for outstanding early career contributions to physical chemistry in Canada and the Award for Research Excellence in Materials Chemistry by the CSC. Dr. Thangadurai was appointed as a Scientist and Mentor at the Creative Destruction Lab - Rockies, a non-profit organization that offers programming to enhance the success of scalable, seed-stage science-and technology-based companies. His current research activities include discovery of novel solid state materials for advanced solid state ionic devices.

Jason Thompson
President
Superior Strategies

A proud member of the Red Rock Indian Band, Jason Thompson brings a wealth of knowledge to the Superior Strategies Inc. and Warrior Engineering Ltd teams. With over 20 years of business and management experience, Mr. Thompson has proven to be a skilled executive and visionary entrepreneur.  Jason sits as the President of both Superior Strategies Inc. as well as Warrior Engineering Ltd, both are majority Indigenous Owned and Operated Businesses, and have demonstrated continued growth year after year. The never setting and opportunistic traits, are also evident in the recent launch of his very own Warrior Brand, which includes a variety of PPE, Work Wear and most recently Warrior Apparel. Throughout his career Jason has always demonstrated strong leadership skills and has realized the importance of building and maintaining a successful team. Never settling, collaborative, out of the box thinker are a few adjectives that can be used to explain Jason. A proud father of three, who recently welcomed his second Grand Child, Jason and his wife high Tara (High School Sweethearts) are celebrating 26 Years of Marriage, ultimately linking his success to his strong family support.  Jason remains a very strong advocate for meaningful participation of Indigenous People and Businesses on a local and National level.