Alison Sunstrum is a visionary Canadian entrepreneur and global leader at the intersection of agriculture, innovation, and investment. As Managing Partner of NYA Ventures and CEO CNSRV-X Inc., she backs diverse founders addressing agriculture’s most urgent challenges.  Alison was formerly the Co-Founder and CEO of GrowSafe Systems,  a Canadian garage-based startup that grew into a global AgTech leader recognized for its groundbreaking, science-based innovation to reduce livestock emissions, improve animal well-being and on-farm profitability. Alison holds patents and has spoken widely on sustainable agriculture and frontier technology. She is a Founding Partner and Fellow at CDL-Rockies, serves on Ivey’s Centre for Building Sustainable Value Advisory Council, and mentors the Weston Foundation’s Homegrown Innovation Challenge. An advocate for women in STEM, she is a  champion of inclusive progress in innovation.

Ian Affleck, is the Vice-President of plant biotechnology for CropLife Canada. In this role, Affleck works with domestic and international agricultural stakeholders and governments on the development of policies, regulations, and science related to plant biotechnology. Prior to joining CropLife Canada, Affleck worked at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for 10 years. His work there focused on the regulation of novel plants and new varieties. Affleck holds a B Sc from Nova Scotia Agricultural College and a Masters from the University of Guelph. Affleck has been involved in agriculture from an early age, having grown up on a potato farm in Bedeque, PEI.

Nate Ort is a crop physiologist and agronomist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Ottawa. His research focuses on crop physiology, phenomics, and abiotic stress tolerance in canola, soybean, spring wheat, winter wheat, and corn. Nate has a PhD from the University of Saskatchewan and has experience working on farms, conducting scientific research, and supporting practical agronomic knowledge exchange.

Dr. Chadwick Koscielny is currently the North American Canola Breeding Lead at Corteva Agriscience. He is responsible for the breeding, testing and advancement of canola hybrids for Canada, the U.S and Australia.

Chad grew up on a grain farm in Cardale, Manitoba and attended the University of Manitoba where he completed his BSc in Agriculture, MSc in Agronomy and PhD in Plant Breeding with a focus on breeding for canola heat tolerance. He has worked in soybean and canola breeding for the past 26 years in numerous agronomic and breeding roles.