Board of Directors

Thomas Mueller – President and CEO
(Ex-officio)

Stephen Smith (Chair)
Manulife Real Estate
Seat: At Large

Caroline Bordeaux
Canderel
Seat: Real Estate Owners and Developers

Clare Ashbee
EllisDon
Seat: Constructors, Builders, Home Builders, Trade

Conrad Schartau (Vice-Chair)
Integral Group
Seat: Professional Firms

Jean-Rock Tourigny
Public Services & Procurement – Government of Canada
Seat: Government & Policy

Jenny McMinn
Urban Equation
Seat: At Large

Joanne Perdue (Secretary)
University of Calgary
Seat: Academia and Research

John Pontarollo (Treasurer)
CRH Canada Group Inc.
Seat: Product Manufacturers, Suppliers and Retail

Martin Nielson
DIALOG
Seat: Professional Firms

Michael Brennan
Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
Seat: Not-for-Profit and Industry Associations

Michele Walkau (Vice Chair)
First Capital Realty
Seat: Real Estate Managers & Tenants

Morgan McDonald (Chair, Chapter Advisory Committee)
Ledcor Group
Seat: Chapter Network

Stephen Smith (Chair)

Manulife Real Estate
Seat: At Large

Steve has more than 25 years' experience in the commercial real estate industry. He's held a diverse set of roles including; leasing, marketing and asset management. Currently, Steve is responsible for oversight of all activities within Manulife Real Estate's western portfolio. Prior to that, Steve held a progression of senior roles within Oxford Properties. Among his more unique endeavours, Steve has developed an industry leading national call centre and a world class sustainability initiative.

Steve is a graduate of the University of Toronto and a happy transplant to beautiful British Columbia.

Clare Ashbee

EllisDon
Seat: Constructors, Builders, Home Builders, Trade Contractors

Clare Ashbee is the Vice President of Sustainable Building Solutions (SBS) at EllisDon, a world-leading construction and building services company. The SBS team is responsible for EllisDon’s work in leading and accelerating the transformation of the construction industry toward high-performance, resilient and green buildings, with a dedication to improving the wellness of their occupants. Clare joined EllisDon in February 2018 as a Director of Business Development focused on strategy and relationship building for the International and Capital Teams and was promoted to her current role in just under a year. With a background in consulting and project financing gained from international firms including Investec Bank in Toronto and PwC in London, England, Clare has a wealth of experience in originating and closing large scale energy, transportation, waste and social infrastructure projects.

Her experience also includes international development having held positions at the Aga Khan Foundation and the African Development Bank. Having lived and worked in 4 continents and traveled to 52 countries, throughout her career Clare has gained a breadth of insight into different ways to approach problems and building cross-cultural relationships.

Clare has a master’s degree in Economics from the University of British Columbia and an undergraduate degree in Applied Economics from Queen’s University. In 2015, Clare was nominated for the Canadian Women in Infrastructure Emerging Leader Award. Clare currently serves as Director and member of the Finance and Audit Committee for the Board of Directors of Canadian Feed the Children.

Jean-Rock Tourigny

Public Services & Procurement – Government of Canada
Seat: Government & Policy

After completing a Bachelor of Arts degree at Université Laval and an Honours degree in Philosophy from the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Mr. Tourigny joined the federal public service in 1972. Since that time, he has worked in various departments and agencies, including Information Canada, Supply and Services Canada (SSC) and the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission (CEIC).

He completed a Bachelor of Applied Science degree at the University of Ottawa in 1992 and a Master of Applied Science degree at the École Polytechnique de Montréal in 2000. Mr. Tourigny returned to the public service and has been working for Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) / Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) since 1996. He has been involved in several major environmental projects at the regional level, such as PCB destruction, land decontamination, the multi-material recycling program, and significant environmental assessments.

Mr. Tourigny has been the Director of Environmental Services and Senior Director of Environment, Health and Safety at PWGSC/PSPC’s Real Property Branch Headquarters since 2006. His responsibilities include environmental compliance, Canada Labour Code compliance, climate change management (mitigation and adaptation), contaminated sites management and the sustainable development program for Real Property Services.

Joanne Perdue (Secretary)

University of Calgary
Seat: Academia & Research

Joanne Perdue is the Chief Sustainability Officer for the University of Calgary. In this role she is responsible for defining strategic direction and facilitating organizational change to enable the university to meet its goal of becoming a North American leader of sustainability in higher education. Under her guidance, the University of Calgary has attained a Gold rating under the Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment &smp; Rating System™, a North American framework for evaluation of sustainability in higher education. She is a recognized leader in both Canada and the US in the fields of sustainable building and community design, as well as organizational change for sustainability.

Joanne is an architect, a LEED Fellow, and a member of the International Society of Sustainability Professionals. During her 20 years of practice she has been devoted to advancing green buildings and sustainable community design; as well as a key contributor to a number of award winning projects.

Martin Nielson

DIALOG
Seat: Professional Firms

Architect AIBC, MRAIC, OAA, P.Eng., LEED® AP
Principal

Martin Nielsen is a Principal with DIALOG, a multi-disciplinary design firm with 650 staff across Canada. A registered architect and mechanical engineer, Martin brings over twenty-five years of experience and leadership to the firm’s urban design, mixed-use development, higher education, and transportation projects. He is passionate about developing sustainable design solutions that are socially, economically, and environmentally responsible, with a portfolio of work that has been recognized with awards for planning, architecture and innovation.

Martin’s recent project work at UBC includes the new LEED® Gold certified Campus Energy Centre, the Transit Exchange, and Gage South Student Residences. He led the sustainable planning approach and LEED® certification process on the University of Calgary’s U-District neighborhood, one of the largest LEED® ND Platinum projects in North America.

Prior to joining DIALOG, Martin led the design and construction of UBC’s Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS); a LEED® Platinum certified and Living Building, considered one of the greenest institutional projects in North America. He has taught at the UBC School of Architecture and Faculty of Engineering and has served as chair of the UBC Advisory Urban Design Panel. He is currently serving on the UBC Land Use Committee, Squamish Nation Advisory Design Panel, and has served as chair on the City of Vancouver Urban Design Panel.

Michele Walkau (Vice Chair)

BA, M.Sc.
First Capital Realty
Seat: Real Estate Managers & Tenants

Michele Walkau est la vice-présidente principale, Image de marque et culture, chez First Capital Realty. À ce titre, elle assume la direction générale des personnes, de l’image de marque et des communications. Avant de se joindre à First Capital, elle a été vice-présidente principale, Services généraux et renforcement de l’excellence pour la firme Conseillers immobiliers GWL où elle a dirigé les services des ressources humaines, de l’image de marque, de la durabilité et des communications de l’entreprise. Michele est titulaire d’un diplôme de maîtrise en science (en éducation) de la Niagara University de Niagara Falls, NY, et d’un baccalauréat avec distinction (langue anglaise et littérature) de l’University of Western Ontario. Elle siège au conseil d’administration du Royal Canadian Military Institute et elle est la cofondatrice de l’Historic Murray Canal District, un groupe à but non lucratif qui œuvre à l’amélioration de la qualité de vie dans la région du canal Murray dans les comtés de Northumberland, de Quinte West et de Prince Edward.