OPENING REMARKS: ESG – WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

Heather Taylor, Partner, Climate Change & Sustainability Services, EY

Heather L Taylor is a Partner at Ernst & Young, she brings 25+ years of professional finance experience, including senior roles in both the private and public sector.

She has been recently recognized as a Top 100 of Canada’s most powerful women by WXN for her leadership and trailblazing in the sustainability arena. 

At EY her focus is sustainable public finance and helping clients drive forward their sustainability agendas through strategy and reporting.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: GOVERNANCE TO BUILD BETTER COMPANIES

Rahul Bhardwaj, President & CEO, Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD)

As President and CEO of the Institute of Corporate Directors, Rahul Bhardwaj leads a Canadian not-for-profit association of more than 17,300 members committed to improving national outcomes by growing the board leadership and governance capacities within Canadian businesses, agencies and not-for-profits. Mr. Bhardwaj currently serves on the boards of Waterfront Toronto, the Institute of Corporate Directors, the Canadian Foundation for Governance Research, the Leader Council at the Ian O. Ihnatowycz Institute for Leadership at Ivey Business School, and Director Emeritus at the Rideau Hall Foundation. His corporate governance vision has made Mr. Bhardwaj a sought-after presenter, speaker and media commentator in Canada and across the globe.

FEATURED SPEAKER: BUILDING TRUST AND CREDIBILITY IN A “SHOW ME WORLD”

Andrea Barrack, SVP, Corporate Citizenship & ESG, Royal Bank of Canada

As Senior Vice President, Corporate Citizenship & ESG, Andrea Barrack leads RBC’s ESG strategy, including performance management, reporting, and scaling knowledge across the enterprise. Andrea is also responsible for RBC’s global Citizenship and D&I strategies, and serves as the Executive Director of the RBC Foundation, one of Canada’s largest corporate donors. 

PANEL 1: THE “G” IN ESG

Luka Matutinovic, Co-Founder and Principal, Purpose Building

Luka Matutinovic is a Professional Engineer, Certified Passive House Consultant and Principal at Purpose Building, a firm specialising in accelerating real estate to planet-positive performance. He combines technical depth with business know-how to make high-performance real estate solutions possible, help people collaborate better, and inspire confidence in developing healthy, low-carbon buildings that are financially successful. Luka has served in a variety of management and technical leadership roles on more than 150 new and existing building projects in nearly all sectors.

 

Jamie Gray-Donald, Senior Vice President,, Sustainability & EHS, QuadReal Property Group

Jamie Gray-Donald joined QuadReal as the Vice President, Sustainability in February 2017 and has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Sustainability & Environmental, Health & Safety as of January 2019. From development through to asset management, Jamie finds ways that sustainability practices can enhance prudent growth and sustainable returns. He helps colleagues play effective roles in nurturing vibrant communities and residential and commercial environments. In his role as leader of QuadReal’s Environmental, Health and Safety team, Jamie works to ensure we quantify and manage a range of environmental risks such as contaminated soil through to providing training and on-going support, so our employees have a safe and healthy workplace.

 

Ali Hoss, Chief Sustainability Officer, Triovest

Ali Hoss is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Triovest, responsible for advancing ESG performance, asset decarbonization and resilience, and implementation of smart technology and renewable energy. Ali is well-regarded as a strategic builder of unique products and services for design and implementation of energy conservation and GHG emission mitigation strategies. His experience managing multi-million-dollar projects and teams of diverse disciplines enables him to support partners with developing and implementing portfolio-wide sustainability goals and bring projects to a successful conclusion.

 

Toni Rossi, Chief ESG Officer, Infrastructure Ontario

After a decade as President of Real Estate at IO, Toni Rossi has assumed responsibility for the development of the agency’s corporate Environmental, Social, and Governance strategy as IO’s new Chief ESG Officer.

A 30-year real estate professional, Toni led IO’s Real Estate division from 2012 to 2023. She was also IO’s Interim President and CEO, President of IO’s Lending Division, and a key member of the agency’s Executive Team during IO’s merger with the Ontario Realty Corporation in 2012. 

Prior to joining IO, she held managerial positions with Oxford Properties and Cadillac Fairview. 

Toni currently serves as a member of the Allied REIT Board of Trustees, the Dexterra Group Board of Directors, and the North York General Hospital Board of Governors. 

She was the first female Vice-Chair and then Chair of REALPAC from 2018 to 2022, a long-time director on the boards of Habitat for Humanity Toronto and Canada, and a member of the Urban Land Institute (Toronto) Advisory Board and the Toronto Metropolitan (Ryerson) University Real Estate Advisory Board. 

Toni co-chaired the Toronto 2017 Real Estate Forum, the Urban Land Institute’s Women’s Leadership Initiative Committee, and shared her strategic talents on the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Public Sector Realty Committee. 

She has an Honours BPHE from the University of Toronto, an ICD.D from the Rotman School of Management (University of Toronto), and an ESG Designation from Competent Boards. She has been the recipient of several leadership awards, including the 2020 Women’s Infrastructure Network Outstanding Leader award. 

 

Della Wang, Director, ESG, Fengate Asset Management

Della Wang is Fengate’s Director of ESG working across the organization’s infrastructure, private equity and real estate portfolios. She is responsible for overseeing the environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and corporate governance of the Firm’s investment and asset management activities. Prior to Fengate, Della was a manager in the sustainability and climate change practice at Deloitte, leading teams to support clients on a wide range of emerging and complex topics, with a focus on climate strategy, decarbonization modeling, and capital optimization. She was also the national sustainability learning lead and led the national efforts on nature and biodiversity. Prior to that role, she was a valuation and financial modeling professional supporting M&A due diligence, business valuations, purchase price allocation, litigation support, and fairness opinions. She graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business with Honours. She is a Chartered Professional Accountant and a One Young World Ambassador.

PANEL 2: CLIMATE SMART BUILDINGS ALLIANCE

Karim Bardeesy, Executive Director, the Dais, Toronto Metropolitan University

Karim (he/him) is a public service leader who has worked for a better democracy, a more educated and engaged population, and better public policy throughout his professional career. In 2017, he co-founded the Leadership Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University, and took on additional responsibilities as Executive Director of the Brookfield Institute in January 2023. Karim also co-teaches SSH505, “Making the Future,” for which he has won two teaching awards from TMU’s Faculty of Arts.

 

Jody Becker, COO, and EVP Infrastructure, Services & Technology, EllisDon

As Chief Operating Officer, Jody oversees strategic planning for EllisDon. She works directly with EllisDon’s CEO and Board of Directors to forecast areas of growth and to develop execution plans. Jody prepares EllisDon’s annual strategic planning report and works with all operational divisions to monitor progress with respect to short and long term objectives.

Jody is also responsible for overseeing the Infrastructure Services & Technology division which is comprised of the Facilities Services; Transit Services; Energy and Digital Services; Furniture, Equipment and Design; Project Advisory & Management; and, Sustainable Building Solutions. Jody also oversees EllisDon’s international operations.

As part of EllisDon’s executive leadership team, Jody’s mandate is to transform Ellisdon’s business with a view to making EllisDon the most technologically advanced and environmentally responsible construction services company.

 

Brad Carr, CEO,Canada, Mattamy Homes

I’m the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Mattamy Homes Canada. I was named CEO in September 2018 after joining the company as President, Canada in June 2013. Together, with a best-in-class leadership team, we are responsible for leading all aspects of Mattamy’s homebuilding lifecycle from land acquisition to closing in the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton. Working with a talented group of more than 1,400 people, we are reimagining the future of living in Canada through innovative urban and low-rise communities, all with the collective goal of delivering the best homeowner experience.

Theresa Do, Director, Strategic Programs, RBC Climate Action Institute, Royal Bank of Canada

I lead strategic programs for RBC’s newly created Climate Action Institute in service of our mission to inform and inspire Canada’s journey to Net Zero. Previously, I was a strategy advisor to senior management and executives in RBC’s Personal and Commercial Banking business.

2024 ULI TORONTO ESG SYMPOSIUM CHAIR

Antonio Gomez-Palacio, Partner, DIALOG

As one of DIALOG’s partners, Antonio’s career has been built at the intersection of design disciplines. As DIALOG Chair, his mission is to leverage the

collective creativity and innovation within DIALOG to continue delivering design solutions to the many challenges we face globally – from climate change and equity to social wellbeing.

Antonio’s project work has spanned communities from Halifax to Victoria, from Iqaluit to Mérida. A common thread has been the integration of diverse perspectives, through a creative process, for purpose-driven outcomes. As a result, Antonio is internationally recognized for creating transformational and vibrant urban spaces that support their social, economic, and environmental context.

Antonio is frequently called upon to lead conversations on how the design of the built environment can contribute to community wellbeing. He has acted as chair of the Toronto Society of Architects and Vaughan’s Design Review Panel. Antonio is active on several research and advocacy groups, including the Rethinking Rental Roundtable and Planning Research Advisory Committee with CMHC-SCHL and the Advisory Committee for HealthyDesign.city. He became a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada College in 2018, recognized for his outstanding contributions to the design community

WORKSHOP SPEAKER

Paddy Harrington, Founder, Frontier

Paddy is the founder of Frontier, a design office focused on collaborations, media, and products with a purpose driven performance philosophy. He has almost 20 years experience in the design field. He has degrees in literature and architecture and has worked in research, architecture, advertising, and design. Among clients he has collaborated with are PepsiCo, MaRS, Unilever, The National Arts Centre, Electronic Arts, the Holy City of Mecca, and the Fogo Island Inn in Newfoundland. He is an award winning writer and filmmaker and has spoken at several design conferences as well as at Brown, Harvard, and the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. Paddy is formerly the SVP design innovation and digital creative director at Indigo Books and, prior to that, executive creative director at Bruce Mau Design.