Accelerating Ontario and Canada’s Life Sciences Sector
Roundtable Luncheon with Jason Field, the Hon. Mary Ng and Durhane Wong-Rieger
Sponsored by:
Canada’s life sciences sector makes a significant and direct contribution to value added (GDP), employment and tax revenue to the economy. The federal Health/Biosciences Economic Strategy Table, along with emerging and established provincial life sciences strategies, are forming the elements of a coordinated sector strategy that could help Canada and Ontario follow a similar growth trajectory as other advanced life sciences jurisdictions. Taking advantage of these opportunities will require coordinated efforts between provincial and federal governments, collaboration between the public and private sectors, and a more certain and predictable policy environment for companies. Join our panel of experts on August 29 for a discussion on how Canada can develop a world-leading life sciences ecosystem and help Canadian companies scale-up and grow.
Jason Field, President and Chief Executive Officer, Life Sciences Ontario
Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, Government of Canada
Durhane Wong-Rieger, President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders
Panelist Biographies
Jason Field, President and Chief Executive Officer, Life Sciences Ontario
Dr. Jason Field is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Life Sciences Ontario (LSO). LSO collaborates with governments, academia, industry and other life science organizations across Canada to promote and encourage commercial success throughout the diverse sector. Jason obtained his PhD in Chemistry from the University of Massachusetts and his B.Sc from the University of Waterloo. Jason began his career in the pharmaceutical industry and later joined the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MEDT) where he led a team of senior advisors dedicated to growing Ontario’s life sciences and information and communication technologies sectors. Jason joined LSO as Executive Director in October, 2011 and was appointed as President and CEO in April, 2014. He serves on several boards and advisory committees including UofT’s Translational Research Program, ReMAP, BioTalent Canada and Research Canada.
The Hon. Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, Government of Canada
The Honourable Mary Ng was first elected the Member of Parliament for Markham–Thornhill in April 2017 and was appointed Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion in July 2018.
As the Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, Minister Ng helps Canadian businesses start up, scale up, and access new markets. She is also leading the Women’s Entrepreneurship Strategy which seeks to double the amount of women entrepreneurs by 2025.
Throughout her 20 years of public service, Minister Ng has been a devoted community leader and an advocate with a proven track record of results in the areas of public policy, job-creation, entrepreneurship, and scale.
Prior to serving as a Member of Parliament, Minister Ng worked as Director of Appointments in the Prime Minister’s Office, the Chief of Staff for the President of Ryerson University, and as the Director of Policy for the Minister of Education in the Province of Ontario.
From overseeing the creation of the Digital Media Zone (DMZ), Canada’s top university business incubator and a world-leading accelerator for tech startups in Canada, to successfully advocating for the Government’s inclusion of Markham’s tech-innovation hub, VentureLabs, in the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, Minister Ng remains committed to fostering the growth of Canadian innovation and the creation of good, quality jobs.
Durhane Wong-Rieger, President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders
Durhane Wong-Rieger, PhD is President & CEO of the Canadian Organization for Rare Disorders, Chair of the Consumer Advocare Network, President & CEO of the Institute for Optimizing Health Outcomes, Chair of Canadian Heart Patient Alliance and member of Genome Canada Steering Committee for the Rare Disease Precision Health Initiative. Internationally, she serves as Chair of Rare Disease International, Board member of Asia Pacific Rare Disease International, member of the Editorial Board of The Patient- Patient Centred Outcomes Research, member of the Global Commission to End the Diagnosis Odyssey for Rare Diseases and member of Health Technology Assessment International Patient /Citizen Involvement Interest Group. She is also a certified Health Coach.
Durhane has a PhD in psychology from McGill University and was professor at the University of Windsor, Canada. She is a trainer and frequent lecturer and author of three books and many articles.
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