The Honourable Dalton McGuinty is Ontario’s 24th premier. First elected as an MPP in 1990, Premier McGuinty’s career in politics has been characterized by hard work, a sense of integrity and a commitment to community service. He won the leadership of his Party in 1996, and led it to victory in 2003. Since forming a government, the Premier has been active in numerous areas, including education. His government has made investments in the many areas of education, including elementary, seconda...
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John Lau is the President and CEO of Husky Energy, one of Canada’s most important oil and gas firms. Under Mr. Lau’s direction, the company has carved out a leadership position for itself in the Alberta oil sands, on the Atlantic Coast, and in the promising field of ethanol production. John Lau is also a respected philanthropist.
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Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, C.C., C.M.M., C.O.M., C.D., is Canada’s Governor General and Commander-in-Chief. Born in Port au Prince, Haïti, Madame Jean and her family left that impoverished nation when she was a young girl, determined to build a new life for themselves in Canada. A deep commitment to social justice led Michaëlle Jean to pursue a successful career as a broadcaster. As Governor General, Her Excellency has made a dramatic difference, reaching out to Canadia...
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Françoise Héritier is a noted anthropologist and an honorary professor at the Collège de France, where she has directed both the Chaire d’étude comparée des sociétés africaines and the Laboratoire d’anthropologie sociale. Her research centres on the symbolic anthropology of the human body and on the workings of family structures and semi-complex marital kinship systems. Among her most notable accomplishments are the five years of groundbreaking field studies she led in Burkina Faso and in Mali....
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Raymond Breton is a world-renowned sociologist and a leading authority on how ethnocultural communities operate, and how they relate with one another. Throughout his long and impressive career, Dr. Raymond Breton has studied the linguistic and ethnic differences that define communities right across this country. In doing so, he has made an unrivalled contribution to our understanding of what it means to be Canadian. Dr. Breton is the author of 10 books and numerous other works. ...
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Alfred Bader is a true Renaissance man; an accomplished scientist, successful entrepreneur, renowned art connoisseur and philanthropist. After studies in chemistry at Queen’s University and Harvard, Dr. Bader founded the Aldrich Chemical Company, which is now the Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, one of the largest chemical firms in the world. A love of art led him to start Albert Bader Fine Arts in 1962, which has sold works to the Getty Museum, the National Gallery of Scotland, and the Rijksmuseum i...
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Yanick Villedieu is the host of Les Années lumière, a popular science-focussed radio program on Société Radio-Canada that he has helmed for the past 23 years. Under his guidance, the program has explored a galaxy of subjects, including engineering and technology, outer space and astronomy, the science of the brain, genetics, the environment, and many more. Mr. Villedieu, an award-winning broadcaster, author, and journalist, has also written a number of books on health and the health care system...
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Gail Valaskakis, PhD is the Director of Research for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. She has dedicated herself to helping Aboriginal Canadians address many of the challenges they face. During an illustrious academic career, she focussed much of her work on the question of Northern and Aboriginal media and communications. In addition to her work within the Foundation, she was also a founding member of the first post-secondary institution in eastern Canada, Manitou College, designed specifical...
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Jozef Straus, PhD, DSc (Hon.), is the founder of JDS Uniphase and is recognized for his rare combination of scientific credentials, business acumen, and an unconventional and unpretentious approach to management. After launching JDS Fitel in 1981 with some colleagues, Straus led the firm through a period of unprecedented success. The 1999 merger with Uniphase made Straus’s firm one of the largest optical component makers in the world. ...
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Denise Robert is an Academy Award-winning film producer. As President of the Montreal-based independent production company Cinémaginaire, Ms. Robert has helped create many critically acclaimed, popular films, including Le Confessionnel, C’t’à ton tour Laura Cadieux, Mambo Italiano, and The Barbarian Invasions. Denise Robert has contributed to the flowering of Québécois cinema, the most vibrant and successful film scene in Canada. ...
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