About Clear Seas:
Supporting Sustainable Marine Shipping
Who We Are
Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping is an independent not-for-profit research centre that supports safe and sustainable marine shipping in Canada.
Clear Seas was established in 2014 after extensive discussions among government, industry, environmental organizations, Indigenous peoples and coastal communities revealed a need for impartial information about the Canadian marine shipping industry.
What We Do
RESEARCH • ENGAGE • INFORM
Clear Seas provides impartial information on marine shipping in Canada to policy makers and the public. Our mandate is to initiate and interpret research, analyze policies, identify best practices, share information and facilitate dialogue.
Our research focuses on the human, environmental and economic impacts of marine shipping. That includes practices for safe handling of bulk commodities at marine terminals, impacts of oil and liquid natural gas shipping, spill prevention and response, impacts on coastal and Indigenous communities, and much more.
We collaborate with Indigenous groups, stakeholders and experts to identify knowledge gaps, share results of existing studies, and facilitate new research to ensure decision makers have access to accurate, up-to-date information.
Indigenous Relations & Participation
Clear Seas recognizes the unique place of Indigenous peoples in Canada, which affords them special rights, as protected under Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution and as recognized in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This may include titles or rights and associated stewardship over their territories, including marine areas.
Accordingly, Clear Seas strives to actively involve Indigenous communities in carrying out its mission concerning research and engagement on safe and sustainable marine shipping in Canada. In particular, Clear Seas seeks to:
- Create awareness among Indigenous communities of Clear Seas’ mission and activities;
- Learn about Indigenous communities’ perspectives on marine shipping issues;
- Identify areas where Clear Seas can contribute to addressing marine shipping issues using research capacity, communication, and convening power;
- Incorporate traditional ecological knowledge into research, where possible;
- Provide opportunities for Indigenous communities to lead or participate in research activities, including associated employment and business opportunities; and
- Foster trusting relationships between Clear Seas and Indigenous communities.
Our Team
Peter Ellis
Executive Director
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Dr. Jody Wright
(on leave)
Director of Communications & Engagement
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Edward Downing
Acting Director of Communications & Engagement
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Meghan Mathieson
Research Manager
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Andrea Mitchell-Rozario
Executive Assistant/Coordinator
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Sarah Landry
Manager of Communications
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Simon Zhang
Research Associate
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Jim Hodgson
Research Associate
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Board of Directors
How We Operate
Clear Seas received seed funding in 2015 through equal contributions of $3.7 million from the Government of Canada (Transport Canada), the Government of Alberta (Alberta Energy) and the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP). Our funders saw the need for an independent organization that would be a source of objective information on issues related to marine shipping in Canada.
As an independent research centre, Clear Seas operates at arm’s length from our funders. Our research agenda is defined internally in response to current issues, reviewed by our research advisory committee, and approved by our board of directors.
Our board of directors is composed of scientists, community leaders, engineers and industry executives with decades of experience investigating human, environmental and economic issues related to our oceans, coastlines and waterways.
All our reports and findings are available to the public here at clearseas.org.
Read our 2018/2019 Directors’ report available here.
Board of Directors
Bud Streeter
Board Chair
Bud Streeter retired as President Lloyd’s Register Canada Limited and Americas Manager of Naval Business and External Affairs at the end of 2017, capping a career of nearly 50 years in the marine business. He is a 1973 graduate in Marine Engineering from the Canadian Coast Guard College. His early career was spent as an Engineering Officer on various ships, as an Instructor in Marine Engineering Technologies at the Canadian Coast Guard College and as a Marine Safety Surveyor, Examiner and Manager in various offices. In 1987, he joined Marine Atlantic Inc. as Manager of Marine Technical Services. He left as Vice President Safety and Regulatory Affairs in 1996 to join Transport Canada as Director General Marine Safety, in which capacity he was the Head of the Canadian Delegation to various meetings at the International Maritime Organization and other international gatherings. Bud joined Lloyd’s Register, a global safety and risk management organization in 2002 and held various positions with Lloyd’s Register including Vice President, Lloyd’s Register North America, Inc. responsible for Canada and as Vice President Lloyd’s Register North America Inc, responsible for business in North America and the Caribbean. He was then appointed as President Lloyd’s Register Canada Limited and concurrently as President of Martec Limited, which was a Lloyd’s Register affiliated consulting company. In 2014 he took on the role of President of Lloyd’s Register Canada Limited and Americas Regional Manager of Naval Business and External Affairs.
He has served as a Board Member for Meridian Shipping Limited and on various of the Lloyd’s Register affiliated companies. He was appointed to the Canadian Advisory Council on National Security and served as a marine security advisor between 2005 and 2009. In 2013, he was presented with the inaugural Medal of Excellence from the Canadian Institute of Marine Engineering and was cited for his long commitment to marine safety and the mentoring of young maritime professionals. Bud has been a Director of Clear Seas since its founding and assumed responsibility as Chair of the Board of Directors on 20 February 2018.
Kim Baird, C.M., O.B.C.
Board Vice-Chair
Kim is the owner of Kim Baird Strategic Consulting and offers First Nation related and strategic advice to industry, government and First Nations. While Chief of the Tsawwassen First Nation, she negotiated and implemented British Columbia’s first urban treaty. Kim serves on several boards, Including the Infrastructure Bank of Canada, and is the recipient of both Orders of Canada and British Columbia. Kim holds an Institute of Corporate Director’s designation.
Christopher Causton
Christopher Causton is currently a Goodwill Ambassador and Captain of Victoria Harbour Ferries. He is also the former Mayor of Oak Bay. Past service includes Chair of the Capital Regional District Board, Chair of the Victoria Regional Transit Commission, Vice-Chair of BC Transit, Chair of the CRD Parks Board, Chair of the Oak Bay Police Board, and Chair of the Regional Housing Trust. He has also served as a member or in Board positions for several other organisations such as the Victoria Homelessness Coalition, the Association of Vancouver Island Coastal Communities, the Union of British Columbia Municipalities, the BC Ferry Authority, and the Municipal Insurance Association. Mr. Causton holds an Honours Diploma from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland.
Murray Coolican
Murray Coolican has held leadership positions across a number of sectors including not for profit, government, and the private sector. He has worked on environmental and aboriginal issues, in the energy and natural resources sectors, and in financial services.
He served as Senior Executive Vice President at Maritime Life, and Vice President at a number of companies including Nova Scotia Power, Corporate Communications Limited and National Sea Products. In government he worked as Deputy Minister of Energy and Business in the Government of Nova Scotia, Deputy Minister of Native Affairs in the Government of Ontario and Special Assistant to the Rt. Hon. Robert Stanfield. He was also Executive Director of the Canadian Arctic Resources Committee, an environmental NGO when it won the Governor General’s Conservation Award.
As a volunteer he Chaired the Halifax Metro United Way, the Halifax Chamber of Commerce and served as Vice-Chair of the Dalhousie University Board of Governors. He has also served as a Director of the Canadian Geographic Society and the World Wildlife Fund (Canada.)
Serge Alain Le Guellec
President & General Manager, Transport Desgagnés
Mr. Le Guellec is President and General Manager Transport Desgagnés Inc. He holds a Bachelor degree in Mechanical Engineering (Royal Military College of Canada), a Master’s degree of science in Project Management (University of Hull, Quebec, Canada) and a Master’s degree in Aerospace Vehicle Design (Cranfield Institute of Technology, UK). A former uniformed member of the Canadian Forces, Mr. Le Guellec has worked in turn in the defence, aerospace and maritime transportation industries, first in engineering specialist roles and, later in his career, in project / program management and senior management roles. As a result, he possesses a unique mix of experience in aerospace engineering, manufacturing, supply chain management, project / program management and, lastly, general management.
As the President and General Manager of Transport Desgagnés inc., Mr. Le Guellec is responsible for the technical management of a varied fleet of tanker vessels, bulkers, general cargo / heavy lift and cargo / passenger vessels. As a senior maritime transportation industry executive, Mr. Le Guellec is a strong advocate of safety as well as the protection of the environment, explaining in public forums those applicable regulatory frameworks, procedures and best practices the maritime industry follows to first prevent an incident from happening and, should it become necessary, those emergency protocols and procedures to be enacted in order to minimise the impact and consequences of a given maritime accident.
Dr. John W. Hepburn, FRSC
John Hepburn is the Vice-President, Research at CIFAR. He holds a BSc from the University of Waterloo, a PhD from the University of Toronto, and he was a NATO Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California Berkeley. He has been a Fellow of the A.P. Sloan Foundation, a Foreign Research Fellow of the CNRS (France), and a Canada Council Killam Fellow. He has also been awarded the Rutherford Medal and the Noranda Prize, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the American Physical Society and the Canadian Institute for Chemistry. John also serves as a Board member for numerous organisations, including membership on the Scientific Advisory Committee for the Council of Canadian Academies.
Dr. Kate Moran, PhD
Kate Moran is currently the President and CEO of Ocean Networks Canada. She is also a Professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Victoria. Previously, she was a Director of NEPTUNE Canada. From 2009 to 2011, Moran was seconded to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy where she served as an Assistant Director and focused on Arctic, Polar, Ocean, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and climate policy issues. Moran received degrees in engineering from the University of Pittsburgh (BS), University of Rhode Island (MS), and Dalhousie University (PhD).
Roger Thomas
Roger Thomas retired as Executive Vice President, North America at Nexen Inc. As EVP, he had responsibility for operations in Canada and the United States as well as responsibility for business development activities in Mexico. Mr. Thomas attended the University of Toronto, graduating in 1974 with a B.A. in Economics/History. He also graduated from the Executive Program at the University of Michigan in 1994. Mr. Thomas is a Past Chairman of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Past President of the Alberta Chamber of Resources, Past Chairman of the Canadian Oilmen’s Executive Association, and Past Chairman of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP). He has served on numerous other corporate and not for profit Boards. Mr. Thomas was Canada’s representative to the 2008 G8 Business Summit in Sardinia, Italy. He advised the Government of Alberta as they conducted a competitiveness review of the oil and gas industry. He was also a member of the Premier’s task force on Carbon Capture and Storage. Mr. Thomas currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of Fortis Alberta Inc. He also serves on the Board of Phoenix Energy Inc.
Duncan Wilson
As Vice President, Environment, Community and Government Affairs, Duncan Wilson leads the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s environmental programs, community engagement, aboriginal engagement, communications, and government affairs functions. With more than 25 years of experience working in communications, public engagement and marketing, Mr. Wilson also has a distinguished track record of community leadership, having served three consecutive terms as Commissioner on the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, including three years as Chair of the Board. Mr. Wilson currently serves as Immediate Past Chair of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. He previously served on the boards of the Vancouver Aboriginal Skills and Employment Program (VanASEP), Vancouver Public Library, Downtown Vancouver Association and Hastings Park Conservancy.
