NUCLEAR NOW: Achieving our clean energy future

Kirk Atkinsin

Kirk Atkinson is an expert on Small Modular Reactors in the marine context. He served on the Physics Working Group and Science Support Network for the UK Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program and was part of the team assessing nuclear power options for future Royal Navy submarines.
A visiting lecturer at the University of Manchester, where he taught on the UK’s NTEC MSc Program, he joined the Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science at Ontario Tech University as an Associate Professor in January 2019.
As naval reactors are the original SMR’s, he is perhaps the only Canadian academic with real-world experience working in a successful program encompassing the design, manufacture, operation and disposal of small pressurised water reactors (PWRs).

Travis Besanger

For over a decade Dr. Travis Besanger has built a career in commercialization of radiopharmaceuticals and medical isotope products. Currently, Dr. Besanger serves as Business & Technical Director – Medical Isotopes at Kinectrics where he Is responsible for building and directing a new commercial medical Isotopes division. In particular he Is leading the commercial efforts for Kinectrics to establish large-scale production of Lutetium-177 In partnership with Bruce Power and Framatome.

Bill Breckenridge

Bill Breckenridge began his public sector career with the Department of Justice in Newfoundland and Labrador in 1998 following two years as Ph.D. candidate in History at Memorial University. In 2002 Mr. Breckenridge joined the Council of Atlantic Premiers Secretariat as a Regional Coordinator responsible for several energy, environmental and education files. In 2007 he accepted a position with the New Brunswick Department of Energy as Director of Renewable Energy and Emerging Technologies. In 2017 he was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister for Energy and Mining with the Department of Natural Resources and Energy Development.

Tom Burnett

Thomas Burnett is vice president and general manager of BWXT Isotope Technology Group Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of BWX Technologies, Inc. where he has been responsible for all aspects in the establishment and direction of the BWXT ITG Canada operation since October of 2017. Prior to joining BWXT, Mr. Burnett held numerous roles in the nuclear medicine industry of varying levels of responsibility in marketing, sales and general management.

Ken Canavan

Ken Canavan joined Westinghouse as the Chief Technology Officer in January of 2018. Mr. Atkinson leads the Global Technology Organization, and is responsible for ensuring that the Westinghouse’s technology vision and business strategy are aligned.
Mr. Canavan brings 34 years of nuclear experience to the position – half utility plant experience and half research and development experience. He most recently served as Director of Engineering, for the Electric Power Research Institute. While at EPRI, he turned industry needs into compelling research and development plans. These plans resulted in solutions to improve the safety and performance of the global nuclear fleet.

The Honourable Dustin Duncan

Dustin Duncan was first elected as the MLA for the constituency of Weyburn-Big Muddy in a by-election in June 2006 at the age of 26. He was re-elected in the 2007, 2011, and 2016 provincial elections.
Mr. Duncan was appointed Minister of Environment and Minister responsible for SaskPower.

Previously, he served as Minister of Energy and Resources, Minister of Health, Minister responsible for SaskEnergy, Minister responsible for SaskWater, Minister responsible for the Global Transportation Hub, and Minister responsible for the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency. He was first appointed to cabinet in May 2009 as Minister of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport.

Heather Ferguson

Heather is responsible for building and managing relationships with OPG’s stakeholders, including senior officials and government stakeholders, industries and communities. Her responsibilities also include developing corporate communications strategies that support OPG’s business goals.
With over 20 years of experience in the resource development, energy and electricity sectors, Heather’s previous roles at OPG included VP of New Business Ventures, VP of Environment, and Director of the Hydroelectric Business Development Group. She worked previously as a consultant in the Calgary office of Golder Associates on environmental assessments for large-scale resource development projects in the mining and oil & gas sectors.

John Gorman

John Gorman has been the President & CEO of the Canadian Nuclear Association since May of last year.
Immediately prior to this, John was the President & CEO of the Canadian Solar Industries Association (CanSIA), the national trade association for Canada’s solar energy industries. In this position, he oversaw all of CanSIA’s activities including government affairs, research, communications and industry leadership.
Before joining CanSIA, he was the Senior Vice President of Empower Energies, an innovative, global integrator of energy systems.

John serves as Canada’s Designate to the International Energy Agency (Executive Committee – PVPS), and sits on the Executive Council of the Canadian Council on Renewable Energy. He has served as a director on the boards of numerous community and corporate organizations, including one of the nation’s largest electric utilities.

John has been recognized as one of Canada’s CLEAN50 and is the recipient of the “40 Under 40” business award for excellence in business practices. He was awarded the designation of Climate Project Ambassador by Nobel Laureate Al Gore in 2008.

Mark Lesinski

Mark Lesinski oversees CNL’s operations across Canada, that include the delivery of major environmental remediation projects, and the modernization of the Chalk River Laboratories, a $1.2 Billion program of work which will transform the site through the revitalization of essential site infrastructure, the decommissioning of aging buildings and the construction of new, world-class facilities.
A distinguished senior executive, Mark has a strong record of delivering major accomplishments in high-profile leadership positions across all areas of the nuclear sector.

Mike Marsh

Mike Marsh became President and Chief Executive Officer of SaskPower on April 3, 2015. He joined SaskPower in 1991, following 12 years in the construction industry in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
At SaskPower, Mr. Marsh began his career at Boundary Dam Power Station in engineering and maintenance. He went on to various positions in the company, notably as Manager of Business and Financial Planning and Vice-President of Transmission and Distribution. In 2012, he became Vice-President of Operations and Chief Operations Officer, responsible for all operational areas including Power Production, Transmission Services and Distribution Services.
He is a Board member of the Canadian Electricity Association, and is Past Chair of the CEA Transmission Council. He has also held positions on the CEA Distribution Council

Tom Mitchell

Tom Mitchell has over 40 years of nuclear energy leadership experience. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of FirstEnergy Corporation and is Chair of the Board’s Nuclear Committee and a member of the Governance Committee.

He is the retired President, CEO, and Director of Ontario Power Generation in Canada. In that role, and as Chief Nuclear Officer, Mr. Mitchell was directly responsible for the safe, reliable, and cost-effective operation of 10 CANDU-design nuclear units with 6600 MW of capacity. He also served as CNA’s Chair for a number of years.

Mr. Mitchell was Vice President of International Programs and Assistance at INPO and served as Deputy Director of the WANO Atlanta Centre. While at OPG, he was a member of the Atlanta Centre Governing Board and its Chair from 2012 to 2015.

Mr. Mitchell has served on the Board of the US Nuclear Energy Institute and was Chair of the WANO Post-Fukushima Commission.

Karen Mossman

Dr. Karen Mossman is the Acting Vice-President, Research of McMaster University. Previously she was the Associate Vice-President (Research) for McMaster University. She is a professor with tenure and holds a joint appointment in the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine and the Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences. Dr. Mossman has made seminal contributions to the understanding of how cells sense viral infections, and in turn, how viruses evade detection by host cells.

The Honourable Seamus O’Regan

The Honourable Seamus O’Regan was elected Member of Parliament for St. John’s South–Mount Pearl in 2015 and re-elected in 2019. He is Minister of Natural Resources in the Government of Canada. Previously, he served as Minister of Indigenous Services and, before that, as Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence.

Minister O’Regan studied politics at St. Francis Xavier University and University College Dublin and marketing strategies at the INSEAD Business School, near Paris. He received his Master of Philosophy degree from the University of Cambridge, where he studied Indigenous participation in Canadian natural resource development.

Known to many Canadians for his 10 years as co-host of CTV’s Canada AM, he was the first journalist named to Canada’s Top 40 Under 40. He is proud to have been an Ambassador for Bell Let’s Talk, focused on eliminating the stigma surrounding mental illness.

Mircea Preda

Mike Rencheck

Over the past 30+ years, Mike Rencheck has served in a number of roles and prior to assuming the role of President and CEO of Bruce Power, he was the Deputy Chief Operating Officer for AREVA overseeing its extensive Global capital portfolio of nuclear and renewable projects. Prior to this, he served as President and CEO of AREVA Inc. in North America leading its diverse nuclear services business in Canada and the United States with a workforce of about 5,000 people.

In 2014, Mike was recognized by the National Safety Council for his leadership demonstrating a personal commitment to worker safety and health as part of ‘CEO’s who get it.” He also has demonstrated a commitment to many organizations that make a difference in people’s lives including Habitat for Humanity and United Way. He is a Professional Engineer and certified senior reactor operator.

The Honourable Greg Rickford

The Honourable Greg Rickford was elected to the Ontario Legislature as the MPP for Kenora—Rainy River on June 7th, 2018, and currently serves as the Minister of Energy, Northern Development, and Mines, as well as Minister of Indigenous Affairs Ontario.

Before coming to Queen’s Park, Minister Rickford represented the people of Kenora—Rainy River in Ottawa as the Member of Parliament.
During his seven year federal term, he was appointed to Cabinet where he served as Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, Minister of Natural Resources, and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs.

At both the federal and provincial levels, Minister Rickford has served the people of Ontario and Canada by building relationships with Indigenous communities and leaders—listening and giving voice to their concerns.

Laurie Swami

Laurie Swami is the President and CEO of the NWMO. She was appointed to the role in 2016 and is responsible for implementing Canada’s plan for the long-term management of used nuclear fuel.

Ms. Swami previously served as Senior Vice-President of Decommissioning and Nuclear Waste Management at Ontario Power Generation (OPG). Her responsibilities included overseeing operation of OPG’s nuclear waste management facilities, as well as implementing OPG’s low- and intermediate-level nuclear waste deep geologic repository. She began her career at OPG in 1986 and held various roles with increasing responsibility in the Nuclear Division.

She holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Chemistry from Queen’s University and a Master of Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business.

Gaëtan Thomas

Serving as President & CEO of NB Power since February 2010, Gaëtan Thomas is a committed industry leader and agent of change. A loyal and lifelong employee of the utility, he has worked in all aspects of the business including as Chief Nuclear Officer and Vice President of both Nuclear and Distribution and Customer Service divisions. He is also a Board Member for the Canadian Electricity Association, an electric vehicle advocacy group Plug’n Drive Canada and the New Brunswick Business Council. In 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019, Gaëtan was honoured by Atlantic Business Magazine as one of He serves as a mentor for the Wallace McCain Institute of Entrepreneurial Leadership.

Rumina Velshi

Rumina Velshi was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) for a five-year term beginning August 22, 2018. Ms. Velshi has had a long association with the CNSC. She was appointed as a permanent, part-time Commission member since 2011.

Ms. Velshi has extensive technical, regulatory and adjudication expertise in the area of energy. Throughout her career, she has worked in various capacities at Ontario Hydro and Ontario Power Generation. Ms. Velshi also previously served as a part-time Board member on the Ontario Energy Board, the economic regulator of the province of Ontario’s electricity and natural gas sectors.
A key priority of Ms. Velshi’s is ensuring regulatory readiness, both in Canada and internationally. She is a champion of international collaboration to best navigate this era of innovation and accelerating technological change, and of harmonizing regulatory reviews. Specifically, the CNSC has been preparing for small modular reactors (SMRs) by reviewing designs under a pre-licensing vendor design review service, and through work under an arrangement with the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission to collaborate on regulatory reviews of SMR technologies.

Ms. Velshi was recently nominated Chairperson of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Committee on Safety Standards for a four-year period. This role will allow Ms. Velshi to build on Canada’s contribution and to champion the importance of greater harmonization of standards and ensure they support nuclear innovation while never compromising safety.

Public trust is also a key priority for Ms. Velshi, who is committed to meeting with leadership from Indigenous communities, civil society organizations and stakeholders to establish relationships based on mutual respect and to better understand issues of interest or concern.
Ms. Velshi holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Civil Engineering), a Master of Engineering (Chemical Engineering) and a Master of Business Administration – all from the University of Toronto.