Mr. Ron Church
Chief Technology Officer
Cistel Technologies Inc
Mr. Church is the Vice-President & Chief Technology Officer of Cistel Technology. He began working at Cistel in 1997 as a Consultant until 2013 where he assumed his current position. Between 1977 and 2013, Mr. Church worked in various positions such as: Senior Systems Analyst at Algonquin College; Senior Software Specialist at Digital Equipment Corporation; Manager, Software Engineering Services at Mitel Corporation; Project Leader, Systems and Operations at Documented Circuits Inc., Consultant at Kingston Computer Services. He held the positions of Analyst/Programmer, Supervisor Computer Systems, Head of Systems Development and Head of Transit Systems at OC Transpo and as a Consultant with Nortel. Mr. Church has extensive knowledge in real-time application, architecture and design. He is an experienced team builder, accomplished in coordinative, supervisory and management duties in all aspects of computer support and administration. With over forty years of experience in the field, his background includes service management, management consulting and senior management.
Dr. Hassan Kojori
VP Program Management
Sparq Systems Inc.
Dr.Hassan Kojori holds a PhD from the University of Toronto and is an IEEE Fellow and licensed Professional Engineer. He has over 30 years of experience in power electronics, Li-ion batteries, energy optimization and systems control for aerospace, automotive and utility. His original work on many technology firsts has resulted in 48 patent disclosures (27 granted), several trade secrets and more than 50 technical papers and proprietary reports. Currently, as a Senior Principal Engineer with Honeywell, he is the Conversion Portfolio Leader in the Aero Advanced Tech and responsible for R&D for More Electric Aircraft and tactical vehicles. He has been actively engaged in collaborative research with leading local and international universities. He was adjunct professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at the University of Toronto and Ryerson University (2000-2012) and an industry professor in the Institute for Automotive Research and Technology at McMaster University from 2012-2017. Currently, he is Associate Editor, IEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification, a board member of the Advisory Council for ECE department at Ryerson University and University of Toronto Institute for Multidisciplinary Design & Innovation and represents Honeywell at The Downsview Aerospace Innovation and Research Consortium.
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Dr. Praveen Jain, Director
Professor and Canada Research Chair
Queen's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Dr. Praveen Jain holds a PhD from the University of Toronto and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), the Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC) and the Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE). He is also a recipient of the 2021 IEEE Medal in Power Engineering, the 2017 IEEE Canada Electric Power Medal, the 2011 IEEE William Newell Power Electronics Award, and the 2004 Engineering Medal of the Ontario Professional Engineers of Ontario. Dr. Praveen Jain holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Power Electronics at Queen’s University. His research contributions have resulted in over 550 publications, including 107 patents. He has received over $33M in external research funding, and is active in most major international conferences in the power electronics field. Dr. Jain's industrial experience has included work as a power electronics engineer for Canadian Aeronautics where he contributed to the design and development of high frequency power conversion equipment for the International Space Station, as an advisor for Nortel Networks and as a consultant with Astec Advanced Power Systems. He has also consulted with many organizations including Ballard Power, General Electric and Intel. In addition, he secured venture funding to establish a new company, CHiL Semiconductor, from research innovation at Queen’s University.
Dr. Majid Pahlevani, Associate Director
Associate Professor
Queen’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Dr. Pahlevani, Associate Professor with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Queen’s University,is the Associate Editor of the IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics and a Member of the IEEE Power Electronics Society. He is also the recipient of numerous awards such as the “Early Research Excellence” Award form Alberta, Canada, “Research Achievement Award” and “Teaching Achievement Award” from the University of Calgary, “Engineering and Applied Sciences Outstanding Thesis” Award from Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada, “Research Excellence Award” from IEEE Canada, and “Distinguished Research Award” from the University of Calgary. He was was an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, from 2016 to 2019. He was also the Chief R&D Engineer and then the VP of Technology with SPARQ Systems, Inc., from 2011 to 2016. At SPARQ, he invented multiple innovative power circuitry and digital control techniques for SPARQ’s main product, QUAD micro-inverter. He collaborated with Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., where he was the Leader of a research team working on the design and implementation of the power converters for a pure electric vehicle from 2008 to 2011. He has conducted more than 20 industrial projects in renewable energy systems, energy storage systems, electric vehicles, and LED lighting. He has authored more than 130 journal and conference proceeding papers and is the holder of 50 U.S. patents (issued/pending).
Dr. Amir Fam
Vice-Dean (Research)
Stephen J.R. Smith Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Professor Fam is the Donald and Sarah Munro Chair in Engineering and Applied Science and the Vice-Dean (Research) in the Smith Engineering at Queen’s University. He holds a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering from Alexandria University and an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering (structures) from the University of Manitoba. From 2000 to 2002, he was a Post-doctoral Fellow and Instructor at North Carolina State University (NCSU), Raleigh, NC. Dr. Fam joined Smith Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering at Queen`s University as an Assistant Professor in 2002, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2009. He held the position of a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Innovative and Retrofitted Structures (2003-2013). Dr. Fam has served as the Chair of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Civil Engineering and currently serves as a Queen's Senator. In 2009, he was a Visiting Professor at Monash University, Australia and from 2014 to the present he holds the Jinshan Visiting Scholar position at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, China.
Dr. Warren Mabee
Associate Dean, Arts and Science,
Director, School of Policy Studies,
Director of the Queen’s Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy
From 2003 until 2008, Dr. Mabee was a Research Associate in the Forest Products Biotechnology group at UBC, where he was involved in the development of new bioenergy and biofuel technologies – both in Canada and around the world. His main area of focus was exploring policy tools to evaluate the efficiency of new energy systems, and to deploy these types of technologies in commercial application. Much of this work was done in conjunction with the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Dr. Mabee has been at Queen’s University since 2008 and currently hold an appointment in the Department of Geography and Planning. He is also the Director of the School of Policy Studies and an Associate Dean in the Faculty of Arts and Science at Queen's University. Dr. Mabee holds cross-appointment to the School of Environmental Studies. He is currently the Director of the Queen’s Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy.
Dr. Brian Amsden
Associate Vice-Principal (VPR Office)
Dr. Brian Amsden is the Donald and Joan McGeachy Chair in Biomedical Engineering at Queen’s University, as well as the Associate Vice-Principal, (Vice-Principal, Research Office) at Queen's University. His research focus is on the creation of effective biodegradable and biocompatible polymers for biomedical applications. These applications include localized growth factor delivery for therapeutic angiogenesis and for stem cell differentiation, scaffolds for soft connective tissue engineering, and ocular drug delivery. Polymer systems being developed include biodegradable elastomers, electrospun crimped fibre scaffolds, injectable thermoplastics, and mechanically enhanced hydrogels. He is interested in elucidating the mechanisms of degradation of the polymers in vivo to better design these materials for given applications, determining the mechanisms governing drug release, the role polymer biomaterial mechanical properties play in mediating cell proliferation and differentiation, and in controlling polymer surface properties to improve cellular interactions. The work is multidisciplinary and Dr. Amsden routinely collaborates with orthopaedic and cardiovascular surgeons, and colleagues in mechanical engineering and cell biology.