All Research

Alain Brophy, LLM

Alain Brophy (Quebec Bar Association – 2002) is a lawyer who has been working in private practice for more than 20 years, mainly in business, corporate and environmental law. He acts as a corporate advisor for established companies in various fields, including fisheries and seafood markets, marine transportation, wines and spirits. Alain Brophy acted as General Counsel and Head of Government Affairs for the Coopérative de Transport Maritime et Aérien – Association Coopérative (CTMA) and was also a member of the board of directors of the St. Lawrence Shipoperators.

Alain holds a Master of Laws – Research Option (LL.M.) from the Université de Montréal (Honour List of the Faculty of Graduate Studies). He has extensive knowledge and published articles on environmental law, climate change and international trade. Over the years, he has developed a business network in Quebec, Canada and internationally. Alain stands out for his calm, rigour, availability and his ability to synthesize information.

Gary Drouillard

Gary Drouillard is a proud member of the Cowichan Tribes and a lifelong subsistence fisherman and hunter. He shares a deep connection with his territory and the nature that grows and thrives on it. He is passionate about marine conservation and possesses a wealth of knowledge about the effects of marine shipping on his band’s territory.

Gary Drouillard is currently working as a First Crew Member for the Cowichan Tribes Salish Sea Watch, where he observes, records and reports on cultural sites, resource harvesting, pollution, and illegal activities throughout the territory. Gary is also very involved in his community, where he sits on the Cowichan Bay Fisherman’s Wharf Board, the Cowichan Tribes Community Land Use Committee, and the HFLP Seafood Garden Working Group.

Captain Christopher Hearn, MM

Captain Hearn is the Director of the Centre for Marine Simulation, a special maritime training and applied research facility within Memorial University’s Marine Institute.

In his role of Master Mariner and Marine Superintendent, Captain Hearn commanded several vessels in the deep sea and subsea sectors and supported at-sea operations for various shipping companies. Throughout his career, he maintained an active role in the advancement of the maritime sector with contributions to industry and government working groups focused on adapting new technologies into maritime training.

Captain Hearn is a graduate from the School of Maritime Studies (N.L.) and serves on several marine industry boards and associations including the Regional Coast Guard Advisory Board and Oceans Advance. He is a former National President of the Master Mariners of Canada.

Debbie Murray

Debbie Murray, BAH (Queen’s), MA (Ottawa), is Senior Director, Policy and Regulatory Affairs, Association of Canadian Port Authorities. Debbie will draw from her 25 plus years of international policy, regulatory, research and public affairs experience in the areas of sustainability, supply chains, innovation and governance. Since joining ACPA in 2017, Debbie has galvanized the policy and regulatory presence of CPAs with government and stakeholders alike. Debbie is the first elected chair of the newly formed Transport Canada National Seafarers Welfare Board of Canada, is co-chair of the Natural Resources Canada Hydrogen Strategy Ports and Marine Working Group, represents ACPA on the National Adaptation Strategy Economic Advisory Table as well as a broad range of government forums ranging from critical infrastructure to COVID response. Previously, with the Canadian Shipowners Association, Debbie led efforts at the International Maritime Organization and with the US EPA, on ballast water and decarbonization, and with the Government of Canada on the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement negotiations. Prior to joining the marine sector, Debbie worked on innovation, public research funding, sustainability, market access and human capital policy and advocacy with Universities Canada, Innovative Medicines Canada and The Conference Board of Canada.

Captain Ivan Oxford, MM

Captain Oxford is a Senior Master at Transport Desgagnés, a Director at the Nautical Institute-BC Branch as well as a part-time Instructor at the Camosun College. He is an experienced shipmaster, ice navigator, and educator. He graduated from Memorial University’s School of Maritime Studies and is a Master Mariner with over 35 years of experience at sea on commercial and government vessels engaged in near-coastal and foreign trade. Captain Oxford taught at Camosun College’s Nautical Department from 1999 to 2014, returned to sea, and is currently serving as Shipmaster and Ice Navigator on commercial heavy-lift vessels engaged in Arctic operations. He also sits on the Board of Directors of the Nautical Professional Education Society of Canada.

Sonia Simard, LLB

Sonia Simard, LLB, has more than fifteen years of experience as an advocate for sustainable maritime transportation. Throughout her career, she practiced law within the non-profit, public, and private sectors, in both English and French. Most recently, she was Director, Legislative and Environmental Affairs for the Shipping Federation of Canada, and prior to this, held positions at Fednav Ltd, and Environment and Climate Change Canada. Ms. Simard received her law degree from the University of Ottawa and her Masters of Law degree from the School of Law of the University of Washington. She’s also a graduate in international relations from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.

Francis Wiese, Ph.D.

Dr. Francis Wiese serves as Stantec’s Science Director for Climate Solutions and brings almost 30 years of experience working on marine and climate related issues around the world. Francis joined Stantec in August 2013 to lead their marine science practice after serving as the Science Director for the North Pacific Research Board in Alaska for 8 years. In that position, he designed, implemented, and managed large multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional marine ecosystems programs, and set annual research priorities to address pressing fisheries management and marine ecosystem needs. In addition to his diverse disciplinary background, he has vast international knowledge, having lived and worked in eight different countries on four continents. Throughout his career, Francis has extensively focused on climate change and other anthropogenic stressors on the environment, systems science, adaptive management, resilience, and environmental policy. Dr. Wiese has worked for and with academia, government, communities, non-profits, and industry and believes that we are better together, taking inclusive approaches and fostering partnerships across non-traditional lines. He is a technical reviewer for over 20 international journals and serves on a variety of national and international committees, science panels, and working groups, including the Gulf Research Program Division Committee for the US National Academy of Sciences. He has also provided expert testimony for oil pollution related issues in Canada and the United States. Dr. Wiese received his B.S. in marine biology from the University of Victoria and Ph.D. in conservation and marine biology from Memorial University of Newfoundland.