Sonia Baxendale was appointed President and CEO of GRI in January 2019. The Global Risk Institute is the premier organization that defines thought leadership in risk management for the financial industry globally. It brings together leaders from industry, academia and government to draw actionable insights on emerging risks globally.

Ms. Baxendale is a Director on the Board of Laurentian Bank, Foresters Financial^TM, and RSA Group PLC. She is Chair of the Board of SickKids Foundation and a member of the Board of Trustees for the Hospital for Sick Children.

Prior to joining GRI, Ms. Baxendale was President of CIBC Retail Markets where she led the Retail and Wealth Management businesses from 2005 to 2011.

From 1992 to 2011, Ms. Baxendale played a key role in developing strategy and direction for CIBC and held various leadership roles including Senior Executive Vice-President, CIBC Wealth Management, Executive Vice-President, Asset Management, Card Products and Collections, and Executive Vice-President of Global Private Banking and Investment Management Services. Prior to CIBC, Ms. Baxendale held various positions with American Express Canada and Saatchi & Saatchi.

Ms. Baxendale is a graduate of the University of Toronto, where she was named University of Toronto, Victoria College Alumni of Distinction in 2017. She was named one of the “Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada” for three years in a row and then joined the ranks of the Top 100 Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2000, she was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.

Stéfane Marion is Chief Economist and Strategist for National Bank of Canada and National Bank Financial, a position he has held since November 2008. Mr. Marion is a sought-after speaker on economic trends and their financial implications and is ranked among the leading economists in Canada according to Brendan Wood International.

National Bank Financial's Economics and Strategy team is regularly ranked among the top Canadian forecasters and has won recognition for the accuracy of its projections.

In 2012, the C.D. Howe Institute appointed Mr. Marion to its Monetary Policy Council and to the newly established Business Cycle Council. He also sits on National Bank Pension Committee.

Mr. Marion joined NBF’s Economics Group in 1999. Previously, Mr. Marion worked for several years in the federal departments of Finance and Industry in Ottawa, where, in addition to economic analysis and forecasting, he also worked on microeconomics policy impact studies. In particular, he participated in the development of forecasting models and the analysis of the FTA and NAFTA free-trade agreements with the United States and Mexico.

Mr. Marion holds a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in Economics from the Université de Montréal.

Peter Levitt has led CIBC's Treasury since August 2012. In this role, Mr. Levitt is responsible for all aspects of CIBC's treasury functions, including asset liability management, structural balance sheet risk hedging, liquidity risk management, capital management and optimization, funding, cash management, treasury analytics, funds transfer pricing, and pension and treasury investment management.

Mr. Levitt was Executive Vice-President and Treasurer at Manulife Financial from 2007 to 2012. Prior to this, he led capital finance in TD Bank's treasury department, was head of treasury and Global Controller for TD Securities, and Chief Financial Officer of the retail wealth management group at Canada Trust up to and including integration with TD in 2000. Mr. Levitt held a number of roles in technology, treasury and finance at Canada Trust from 1982 to 2000.

Mr. Levitt was on the Board of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 2001 to 2016, was appointed to the Board of Frontier College and the Sinai Foundation Investment Committee, both in 2016, and the University of Toronto Faculty of Music Advisory Council in 2018. Mr. Levitt leads a number of inclusion and diversity initiatives, and holds an Executive MBA from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power is a leading voice internationally for principled American engagement in the world. - Twice named one of TIME’s “100 Most Influential People,” she is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, former war correspondent, and a Professor of Practice at Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Law School. Her upcoming book, The Education of an Idealist, will chronicle her years in public service and reflect on the role of human rights and humanitarian ideals in contemporary geopolitics.

Power spent half of her career explaining complex geopolitical events and eight years at the UN helping to shape them. Bringing to the stage her experiences in advocacy and diplomacy, Power discusses national security and foreign policy, the importance of leadership, and the future of human rights. As she examines the state of the world, she interjects her speeches with up-to-date facts and in-depth research on current events.

As the 28th U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., Power became the public face of U.S. opposition to Russian aggression in Ukraine and Syria, negotiated the toughest sanctions in a generation against North Korea, lobbied to secure the release of political prisoners, and helped mobilize global action against ISIL. From 2009 to 2013, she served on the National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights.

Called “a powerful crusader for U.S foreign policy as well as human rights and democracy” by Forbes, Ambassador Power was named one of Foreign Policy’s “Top 100 Global Thinkers.” The American Academy in Berlin awarded her the 2016 Henry A. Kissinger Prize. “She has an excellent and analytical mind,” said Kissinger, “I admire the way she has faced our challenges.”

Her book, A Problem from Hell”: America and the Age of Genocide won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award in 2003. The New Republic praised it as “Nothing less than a masterwork of contemporary journalism…An angry, brilliant, fiercely useful, absolutely essential book.”

Power also wrote the New York Times bestseller Chasing the Flame: Sergio Vieira de Mello, the Fight to Save the World (2008), and was the co-editor of The Unquiet American: Richard Holbrooke in the World (2011). The 2017 memorial edition of Elie Wiesel’s seminal memoir, Night, opens with a tribute by President Obama and foreword by Power.

Before joining the U.S. government, Ambassador Power was the founding executive director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, a columnist for Time, and a National Magazine Award-winning contributor to the Atlantic, the New Yorker, and the New York Review of Books.

Beginning her career as a journalist, Power reported from places such as Bosnia, East Timor, Kosovo, Rwanda, Sudan, and Zimbabwe.

Maryscott (Scotty) Greenwood launched the US business of Crestview Strategy, a Canadian-based public affairs consultancy. She serves as Partner and the Managing Director of the U.S. Greenwood is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian American Business Council. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Tilray (NASDAQ: TLRY) where she serves on the Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and chairs the Nominations/Governance as well as Special Transaction Committees. Scotty is also a member of the Board of Directors of Spartan Bioscience, a private Canadian company. Scotty is also a Member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Art & Preservation in Embassies where chairs the communications as a member of the Board’s Executive Committee.

A former American diplomat to Canada and a frequent media commentator and public speaker, Scotty is an acclaimed business and public policy advocate, communications expert, and political strategist to Fortune 500 companies, trade associations and nonprofit organizations. Greenwood has repeatedly been recognized by Canadian newsweekly The Hill Times, which has named her one of the country's "Top 100 Lobbyists" (2017), "Top 100 People Influencing Canadian Foreign Policy" (2014) and "Top 100 Most Influential People in Government and Politics" (2010).

In 2001, Scotty spent four years as chief of staff of the US Embassy in Canada, having been offered the diplomatic posting by President Clinton. During this time, she received the State Department's Meritorious Honor Award for her innovative outreach program to US governors and Canada's premiers to foster cooperation on issues of mutual concern. From 1993 to 1997, Scotty was director of intergovernmental affairs for the city of Atlanta, handling state and federal relations, including serving on the White House Interagency Task Force on Olympic Security and working on various other projects related to the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in that city. Prior to that position, Scotty was executive director of the Democratic Party of Georgia. She currently resides with her family in the National Capitol Region.

Throughout his career, Matt Rhoades has worked at the highest levels of political organizations and campaigns. He now applies those insights to the issues most important to his clients. Fortune Magazine described Rhoades as “a diligently low-key, data-oriented operator at the helm of the Romney campaign…”

As campaign manager of Romney/Ryan 2012, Rhoades managed a budget of nearly $900 million. Prior to his time as campaign manager, Rhoades served as Executive Director of Mitt Romney’s Free & Strong America PAC, Communications Director on Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign, Research Director on the Bush/Cheney 2004 presidential campaign, and in various senior-level positions with the Republican National Committee. Rhoades also spent time in the Bush White House as an Associate Director in the Presidential Personnel Office and as a White House Liaison in the Office of Personnel Management.

Rhoades brings nearly a decade of experience in the private sector to CGCN Group. During this time in the private sector, he played a significant role in building numerous political and issue advocacy organizations. He is also the co-founder of Defending Digital Campaigns – a bipartisan initiative to provide political campaigns with the resources to combat foreign and domestic cybersecurity threats.

Jane Ambachtsheer was previously Partner and Chair of Responsible Investment at Mercer, where she oversaw the strategy for the Responsible Investment team and advised investors around the world. Jane has spent over 20 years in the investment industry, with a focus on responsible investment since 2003, after joining Mercer as an investment analyst in 2000.

Jane was consultant to the United Nations through the development of the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), which are now supported by more than 1,800 signatories representing $70 trillion in assets. She is involved in a large number of industry initiatives, including as a Trustee of Carbon Disclosure Project, a member of the Financial Stability Board Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, and a member of the PRI Academic Working Group. Jane is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto, and a Research Affiliate at the University Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.

Jane holds a Master of Social Science from the University of Amsterdam and a Bachelor of Economics and English literature with honours from York University.

Lindsay Patrick is Managing Director and Head of the Sustainable Finance Group at RBC Capital Markets. She spearheads the provision of solutions and advice for RBC’s institutional and corporate clients across all areas of sustainable finance, incorporating both environmental and social perspectives.

Lindsay has more than 15 years of global investment banking experience spanning trading floors across North America, Europe, Australia and Asia. She started her career with RBC Capital Markets in investment banking in Toronto and followed with a 10-year stint overseas with Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London, where she held a variety of positions, including the Head of Global Equity Sales and Director of Macro Sales within the Global Equity Derivatives group. Lindsay returned to Toronto following her time in Europe and was most recently the Global ETF Strategist for RBC Capital Markets.

Lindsay is a co-chair for R-Women Canada, RBC Capital Markets’ employee-led resource group dedicated to fostering women’s career development within the bank, and is actively involved with the Women in Capital Markets organization.

Lindsay received her MBA with Honours in Finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, her BBA with Honours in International Business from Bishop’s University and is a CFA Charterholder. She is also on the Board of Directors for Children First Canada and is an active volunteer with the Halton District School Board, the Oakville Rangers Hockey Club and the Oakville Soccer Club. Lindsay is the proud mother of four young boys.

Barbara Zvan is the Inaugural President and Chief Executive Officer of the University Pension Plan Ontario (UPP) and former Chief Risk and Strategy Officer for the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. Recognized as a leading voice on sustainable investing and an ambassador for defined benefit pensions, Barbara is known for her efforts to bring institutional strength to complex challenges and forge new collaborative pathways for innovation and growth.

She serves on the boards of various global institutions and associations focused on pension management, risk and responsible investing, including the Global Risk Institute, Responsible Investment Association and the advisory board of the Institute of Sustainable Finance at the Smith School of Business. She was appointed to the Government of Canada’s Expert Panel on Sustainable Finance, is a member of the Advisory Committee for the new ‘Investing to Address Climate Change’ Charter and played a significant role in creating the G7 Investor Leadership Network.

Barbara is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, a holder of the Institute of Corporate Directors designation (ICD.D) and has a Master of Mathematics degree from the University of Waterloo. She is an honouree of Canada's 2020 Clean50 and Canada's 2008 Top 40 Under 40.

Carl has been with PwC for more than 28 years and has enjoyed a variety of senior leadership roles. As a partner for the last 17 years, Carl has led service teams with an exceptional track record spanning multiple industries. Carl now spends his time as a Lead Partner on some of PwC’s largest national (and global) priority clients. He is PwC Canada’s National Leader of Culture & Leadership and developed PwC’s service offering around enhanced Emotional Intelligence (“EI”) – helping PwC, and its clients, gain a stronger understanding about how to increase one’s capacity to cope and thrive amidst growing demands and expectations.

He is a certified performance coach and was PwC’s National Partner Coaching Leader where he led a faculty of professional external coaches, sat on several of PwC’s global steering committees and was a founding member of both the PwC Charitable Foundation and PwC’s Women in Leadership programs. Carl’s coaching leadership role afforded him the opportunity to work with some of the Olympic athletes that they sponsor (and in turn, some of their coaches)…all of which led to his compulsion to want to share what he has learned regarding leadership development and EI. Carl is also PwC’s National Client Experience leader and responds, when he can, to the numerous ongoing requests to be a keynote speaker. Carl has travelled the world providing talks and facilitating workshops that involve culture change, emotional intelligence and leadership acumen. Having helped numerous global companies, not-for-profit organizations and Professional Associations alike, he has travelled all across Canada and the United States and to Rome, Switzerland, Germany, London, Chile, South Africa and Australia. As he often says, it is his privilege and pleasure to serve wherever needed.

Laura Dottori-Attanasio leads Personal and Business Banking. This includes the teams that provide advice, services and products to best meet the needs of clients through their preferred channels as CIBC seeks to help make their ambitions a reality.

Prior to her current role, Laura oversaw CIBC’s risk management activities as Chief Risk Officer. Previous to that, she was Global Head of Corporate Credit Products responsible for Corporate and Global Banking, including all credit activities for CIBC's Capital Markets.

Laura is a strong proponent for improving communities and creating brighter possibilities for everyone. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, and an active member of Space at the Table and the Children’s Aid Foundation. In addition, Laura is CIBC’s Executive Sponsor of the Canadian Cancer Society CIBC Run for the Cure.

She has been recognized by the Association of Fundraising Professionals with the Outstanding Volunteer Award and received the King Clancy Award from the Canadian Foundation for Physically Disabled Persons.

Laura was inducted into the WXN “Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada” Hall of Fame. She resides in Toronto with her husband Mark. They have 4 children and 3 dogs.

Wes Hall is an established innovator, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. As Executive Chairman & Founder of Kingsdale Advisors, he has been named one of Canada’s most powerful business people. He is also the owner of QM Environmental, a leading environmental and industrial services provider; and Titan Supply, a top manufacturer and distributor of rigging and wear products serving industries in the oil, construction and transportation sector; and Harbor Club hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton, one of St. Lucia’s premier resorts.

[In 2009, Wes was recognized with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award for Ontario, Canada and, in 2011, received the designation ICD.D from the Institute of Corporate Directors’ (ICD) in partnership with the Rotman School of Management of the University of Toronto. In 2020, Wes was appointed to the Ontario government’s Capital Markets Modernization Taskforce, a five-person advisory group of experts tasked to review and modernize the province’s capital markets regulations.]

Wes is also known for generosity, leveraging his business success to benefit others with a number of impactful charitable initiatives. He is Founder and Chairman of The Canadian Council of Business Leaders Against Anti-Black Systemic Racism and the BlackNorth Initiative, committed to the removal of anti-Black systemic barriers negatively affecting the lives of Black Canadians.

He is also a director of SickKids Foundation and a board member of Pathways to Education and Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Wes has also changed the lives of thousands of children in the Caribbean, donating both his money and time. In 2015, Wes was the recipient of the Vice Chancellor’s Award and in 2017 received an honorary doctorate, both from the University of the West Indies.

Sonia Baxendale was appointed President and CEO of GRI in January 2019. The Global Risk Institute is the premier organization that defines thought leadership in risk management for the financial industry globally. It brings together leaders from industry, academia and government to draw actionable insights on emerging risks globally.

Ms. Baxendale is a Director on the Board of Laurentian Bank, Foresters Financial^TM, and RSA Group PLC. She is Chair of the Board of SickKids Foundation and a member of the Board of Trustees for the Hospital for Sick Children.

Prior to joining GRI, Ms. Baxendale was President of CIBC Retail Markets where she led the Retail and Wealth Management businesses from 2005 to 2011.

From 1992 to 2011, Ms. Baxendale played a key role in developing strategy and direction for CIBC and held various leadership roles including Senior Executive Vice-President, CIBC Wealth Management, Executive Vice-President, Asset Management, Card Products and Collections, and Executive Vice-President of Global Private Banking and Investment Management Services. Prior to CIBC, Ms. Baxendale held various positions with American Express Canada and Saatchi & Saatchi.

Ms. Baxendale is a graduate of the University of Toronto, where she was named University of Toronto, Victoria College Alumni of Distinction in 2017. She was named one of the “Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada” for three years in a row and then joined the ranks of the Top 100 Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2000, she was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.