External Advisory Committee on Regulatory Competitiveness: About the Committee

Laura Jones is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the British Columbia Business Council. In her previous role asthe Executive Vice-President and Chief Strategic Officer of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), she was responsible for the CFIB’s legislative, communications, research, and IT functions. 

Laura has spearheaded several high-profile campaigns on behalf of small businesses, including CFIB’s annual Red Tape Awareness Week^TM. She has led groundbreaking research on the costs of regulation in Canada and in the United States. Laura has also served on several federal and provincial committees that advise governments on reducing regulatory burden.

Laura has been providing advice to Canadian governments on effective regulatory reform for more than a decade, serving on a number of advisory committees including the Red Tape Advisory Committee for the Government of Canada. She has also authored a number of studies estimating the cost and impact of regulation, including studies for the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Mercatus Centre and CFIB.

Laura received her B.A. in Economics from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, and her M.A. in Economics from Simon Fraser University.

Yves Bourgeois is a professor, lecturer, and author on innovation and economic development. He is currently Dean of Studies at Université de Moncton’s Shippagan campus. Previously, he was the Director of the University of New Brunswick’s Urban and Community Studies Institute (2012-2016).

Yves’s primary research interests are in creating value and jobs from technological disruptions. He is currently involved in research on smart and sustainable cities, value and job creation in regions transitioning to the digital and green economy, growing start-ups in digital sectors, and digital skills and labour market integration. He also works closely with municipal, regional, provincial, and federal governments on public policy and programs, particularly in the areas of economics, sustainability and smart cities.

Yves holds a PhD in Urban Planning (Regional and International Development) from the University of California Los Angeles, an MA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Oxford, an MSc in Science and Technology Studies (Innovation Economics) from the University of Edinburgh, and a BA in Politics and Economics from Université de Moncton.

Christian Dandeneau is the Co-Founder and CEO of ID Fusion. Christian has guided ID Fusion’s software development and consulting projects with partners Robert and Daniel Piché. Together, they have built one of the most durable IT companies in Manitoba, developing integrated solutions for clients around the corner and the globe. Dedicated to building thriving communities and businesses, Christian values ID Fusion’s identity as a Métis company, actively seeking opportunities to encourage Métis youth to pursue careers in the IT sector and to be a tool for positive change for Indigenous people. Christian’s Métis background is not only an essential part of who he is but a foundational piece to ID Fusion.

Christian is also the Co-Founder of mylocalstore.com Inc., an online sale and distribution tool for small and medium retailers and the first fully integrated e-commerce platform developed for SME-sized retailers worldwide. Through his involvement with Tech Manitoba, he has participated in committees working to develop career path opportunities for youth and a pilot diploma project for Aboriginal students at the University of Winnipeg. Christian was invited in 2017 to participate as a member of the Digital Industries Table, one of six Canadian Economic Strategy Tables responsible for identifying sector challenges and proposing actionable roadmaps designed to unlock innovation potential in Canada. He also served as Past Chairman of the Board for Tech Manitoba, is a member of the Minister’s Advisory Council on Workforce Development and the United Way’s Technology Advisory Committee, and previously served on the Manitoba Premier’s Economic Advisory Committee.

Robin Erica Ford has many years of experience of policy development, regulation, and public law, including hands-on regulatory supervision and enforcement in the insurance and capital markets sectors and across the financial services spectrum. Apart from a wide range of legal work for governments in British Columbia and Britain, she has served as head of the insurance legal department at the UK Financial Services Authority (as was) and as an executive commissioner with the BC Securities Commission.

She has also advised individual listed companies in Canada and the UK on more effective governance and compliance, and has worked with overseas regulators to help to build capacity and to provide technical assistance. She is a member of the Advisory Group of the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada and of IIROC’s Crypto Asset Working Group. At the heart of all her work is the principle that consumers should be treated fairly in a competitive marketplace and innovative economy.

Keith Mussar is a food consultant and Vice President of Regulatory Affairs for I.E. Canada (Canadian Association of Importers and Exporters). He has extensive experience in food manufacturing, product formulation and supply chain management.

He is a professor in the faculty of Health Science and Wellness at Humber College where he teaches courses on pharmaceutical and food regulatory compliance.

Keith is a member of advisory groups within a number of government departments including CFIA, Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, Treasury Board of Canada and he serves as member of the Minister of Health’s Advisory Board on CFIA.

Keith holds a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Waterloo.

Keith lives in Mississauga with this wife Debbie and their daughter Alexandra. They are avid campers and lovers of community theatre.

Shino Nakane is currently the Provincial Director for Autism Society Alberta, helping launch province-wide initiatives like Autism Alberta’s Alliance. She is also the Co Vice-Chair for the Autism Alliance of Canada where she helps coordinate national conversations about autism.

Shino has volunteered on a variety of boards and committees over the past decade, most recently with the Alberta Children’s Hospital Ethics Committee. She is a member and past Vice-Chair for the Premier’s Council on the Status of Persons with Disabilities, an advisory body for the Government of Alberta.

Shino is a community advocate focused on helping non-profit and public sector organizations with initiatives where all people are able to live in accessible and inclusive communities.

Nancy Olewiler is an economist and professor in the School of Public Policy, Simon Fraser University. Her PhD is in economics from the University of British Columbia. Nancy's areas of research include natural resource and environmental economics, regulation, and public policy. She has published widely on a wide range of environmental and natural resource issues, including studies on energy and climate policy, natural capital and ecosystem services, managing catastrophic risk, and federal tax policy.

She has served on federal and provincial government advisory committees and currently is Co-Chair of BC’s Climate Solutions Council, Chair of the Macroeconomics Accounts Advisory Committee for Statistics Canada, and a member of the Mitigation Expert Committee of the Canadian Climate Institute. She has been a board member of TransLink, BC Hydro, and the Pembina Institute, and currently is on the boards of the Institute for Research on Public Policy, Technical Safety BC, and Genomics BC.