Ron Zieber

Nicholas's Bio

Nick Ayre is the Team Lead of Business Development Geosciences at Strathcona Resources Ltd., a rapidly growing Calgary-based company specializing in oil and gas resource development in Western Canada. In his capacity of Team Lead, Nick oversees all Geoscience contributions with acquisition appraisals, regional evaluations, sustainability initiatives such as carbon capture, and Petrophysics.

Before working at Strathcona, Nick has been employed in both large and small Calgary based energy companies establishing multi-year exploration and development drilling programs, mentoring staff, acquisition appraisals, and divestment program.

In addition to his role at Strathcona, Nick has been actively involved with the Canadian Energy Geoscience Association (CEGA) where he served as the Conference Director overseeing all society conferences between 2021-2023, and co-chaired/advised CEGA’s annual Core Conference between 2020-2024. Nick’s roles at CEGA underscore his belief that organizing geoscientific events are critical for the promotion of geosciences to the general public, professional networking, and career development within the energy and geoscience communities.

Strathcona Resources Ltd.

Valerie's Bio

Valerie Miller (she/her) holds a PhD in land reclamation from the University of Alberta, which focused on building soils using mine waste at a diamond mine in northern Canada.

As Outreach and Engagement Lead for Future Energy Systems, a research program at the University of Alberta, Valerie manages the Energy Explorers training program, coordinates the extensive outreach and engagement program, and works with numerous external partners to provide public access to research and researchers. She is the author of The Energy Adventures of Tommy and Remi series.

Future Energy Systems

Jennifer's Bio

Jennifer Chen serves as the GHG Impact Quantification Lead at Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA). ERA’s mandate is to invest in technologies that reduce GHG emissions and grow Alberta’s economy by accelerating the development and adoption of innovative technology solutions. In her role, Jennifer leads the evaluation of GHG quantification of project proposals and supports ERA’s emission reporting.

As a registered Professional Engineer in Alberta, Jennifer’s background includes process engineering design and operations in the oil and gas sectors, and polymer application and research. She graduated from the University of Waterloo with a BASc in Environmental Engineering, MASc in Chemical Engineering, and an MSc in Sustainable Energy Development with the University of Calgary. Jennifer is also a self-proclaimed “foodie”, who loves to eat and experiment on different recipes.

Emissions Reduction Alberta

Candice's Bio

Candice is the Vice President – Corporate Affairs at Enhance Energy with over 15 years of experience in technology development and innovation in energy systems. She is passionate about energy technologies, environmental performance and community impact, holding an authoritative voice in the safe, permanent and best practices of CO2 utilization and storage.

Her expertise is sought by governments, regulators, industry partners and the public. She holds a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Alberta and a MSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Calgary. She spends her free time hiking and snowboarding with her husband and two kids, and loves to do flips on a trampoline with her “gymnastics for grown-ups” group.

Enhance Energy