About

Kama Leier, Chair

Kama is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and is Vice President of Finance and Risk at SaskGaming

Active in her community, Kama has held several leadership roles including Chair of the Board of Governors for the Regina Symphony Orchestra and Chair of the Audit Committee for Access Communications.

She is also involved at CPA Saskatchewan and sits on the Registration Committee and as a Board Member for the CPA Saskatchewan Scholarship Fund.

Kama holds a Bachelor of Commerce from McGill University and completed the Chartered Director Education Program through Edwards School of Business at the University of Saskatchewan.

(306) 581-9493 Email

Jason Zhao, Vice-Chair

Jason is a skilled entrepreneur, and has built a successful career attracting outside investment to Saskatchewan across a diverse spectrum of economic sectors including creative industries, real estate and natural resource development. Jason has invested in numerous projects in the creative sector, and has served as Chair of the Regina Symphony Orchestra.

(306) 551-9199 Email

Amanda Baker

Amanda Baker has been the Revenue Development Coordinator at the Alzheimer Society Saskatchewan since mid 2021. This philanthropic, doner centric position focuses on organizing major fundraising events, donor stewardship activities and grant application management to maintain sustainable funding to the Society.

Previously held positions include the Outreach Coordinator at Elections Saskatchewan in preparation for the 2020 Provincial Election with a focus on Indigenous engagement and communications. Over twenty years of experience in various leadership, board and volunteer roles such as the Member Relations Manager and successor to the CEO at The Regina & District Chamber of Commerce.

At the MacKenzie Art Gallery she was a member of the Board of Trustees, Audit and Finance Committee and Chair of the Annual fundraising Gala. Other positions include sitting on the Pageantry and Protocol Committee for the JUNOs, the organizing committee for 2015 Canada Day Celebrations and Board Chair of Curtain Razors. Her career and volunteer work afford her experience in both the Arts and Business Community.

(306) 515-3045 Email

Peggy Hasein

Peggy Hasein is the former publisher and owner of the Biggar Independent which she and her husband purchased in 1989 and sold in 2019. At the moment she is retired and loving it! She holds a Certificate in Public Relations from the University of Victoria. She is a Past President of the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association and served on the Board of Directors of News Media Canada. She authored a syndicated column entitled Neighbourly News which was printed in weekly newspapers across the three Prairie provinces. She has been involved in many organizations in her community. She dabbles in genealogy and has written a series of four novelettes detailing the history of her maternal grandparents and is in the process of completing a book on her paternal grandparents. As for hobbies she enjoys reading, quilting and cross stitching.

(306) 948-2653 Email

Dr. Gwen Machnee

Dr. Gwen Machnee of Canora is originally from the UK. She came to Canada when she was in her twenties intending to stay two or three years and has never gone back. Gwen holds bachelor and doctoral degrees in Microbiology and a masters in Adult Education. Gwen heads up applied research at Parkland College having built the program from its inception, she also worked with university programs at the college building the program to be the largest off-campus program in the province. She is the Chair of the Saskatchewan Council on Agricultural Training and Education (SCATE) and vice Chair of the East Central Research Foundation. Gwen is an experienced board member having been elected to the local school board and division boards of both Crystal Lake SD and East Land Lakes SD, now part of Good Spirit School Division. Gwen also served for three terms on the board of SaskCulture and is currently on the executive board of the Saskatchewan Conference of Mennonite Brethren. Gwen and her husband live in rural Saskatchewan with a small flock of sheep from whose wool Gwen spins, dyes, and knits. She has also volunteered with the Yorkton Film Festival and plays in the Yorkton Community Band.

(306) 620-9887 Email

Dr. Has Malik

Dr. Malik is the Provost and Vice-President, Academic at Saskatchewan Polytechnic. With more than 20 years of post-secondary experience, Dr. Malik has served as the Associate Vice-President, Academic Pathways and Planning at Sheridan College in Ontario, as well as the founding Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Dean of Continuing and Professional Studies, and the Dean of Community and Liberal Studies. He was a member of the Home Suite Hope Industry Council in Ontario; engaged in the newly formed Online Learning Consortium: e-CampusOntario; served as a member of the Board of Directors for OntarioLearn; and was a member of the Community Task Force for William Osler Health System, in Brampton, Ontario.

(306) 290-6698 Email

Wally Start

Wally Start is President and Executive Producer of Angel Entertainment and Bamboo Shoots. He is an innovator with a proven track record of nurturing and growing successful production companies and creating outstanding international content.

With over thirty years in the industry, Wally has developed a keen eye for “the story” and exhibits an intimate understanding of the dynamics that can turn a good production into a great one.

Through Angel Entertainment, he is a hands-on producer, joining in the creative process of all his projects including features: Big Muddy (TIFF 2014) and Stained (The Indie Fest: Award of Merit – 2010), and TV series Rabbit Fall (twice-nominated DGC Best Dramatic Series), as well as documentary series: The Other Side (in its 8th Season on APTN) and Dirt Farmers (in its 3rd Season on CityTV SK).

Through Bamboo Shoots Inc., the production arm of Angel Entertainment, Wally has helped build the operation into one of Western Canada’s largest commercial and post- production houses with offices in Saskatoon, Regina, and Calgary.

Whether Wally is working on feature films or TV series, he injects each project with the same drive and passion. He is a great collaborator who is always looking to co-produce with like-minded producers, and his keen eye for original ideas means he always has several irons in the creative fire.

Wally is committed to growing the industry in Saskatchewan and has twice served on the board of SMPIA and currently serves on Creative Saskatchewan’s board.

(306) 222-4488 Email

Stephanie Yong

Stephanie is teh co-founder of Sohkisiwin Solutions. She is also principal/owner at Stephanie Yong Consulting, a consultancy that focuses on utilizing the tools of human-centred design thinking to help generate ideas, solve strategic problems and apply to community and social impact projects. Her specialties include engagement, analytics and integration of advanced technologies into existing business processes.

Stephanie has a BA in Political Studies and an MBA from the University of Saskatchewan. She has completed her Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) training and is a certified Corporate Director. Stephanie has also been a recipient of CBC Saskatchewan’s Top 40 Under 40 Award. Stephanie comes from a family of hard workers and has made it her life motto, “the harder you work, the harder you can play.”

(306) 241-7109 Email

Silvia Martini

Silvia L. Martini S.O.M., C.Dir, EBAC, BAC

Silvia’s passion is within efficiently and effectively aligning strategy to successful outcomes. She is the President & CEO of Interlink Research Inc., and Principal of Martini Consulting. She specializes in serving a select group of clienteles to whom she dedicates her expertise in strategy, governance, entrepreneurial/executive mentorship and leadership.

Silvia is a Charter Director with The Directors College (2017), through the DeGroote School of Business (McMaster University) and the Conference Board of Canada. She also holds a Certificate in Non-Profit Board Governance (2014) with the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) and the Rotman School of Management (University of Toronto). She is a member in good standing of the Institute of Corporate Directors. Silvia holds an Executive Certification with the University of Saskatchewan in Business Administration. She is a member in good standing of the Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce, Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan, and the Saskatchewan Landlords Association. Silvia is also a charter Director of the Board for The Princess Shop and led the development as Chair of its Governance Development Committee.

Silvia was on the Board for SaskWater (2014-2020). She was the Interim CEO of the Saskatoon & Region Home Builders’ Association (January – July 2022), and the Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce (May 1 – October 4, 2020. She is past President of the Board for The Word On The Street Saskatoon and was co-Chair of the 2017 Word On The Street Festival. She is a past Board member, and long-time business mentor with the Raj Manek Mentorship Program, and a past mentor with the Betty Ann Heggie Womentorship Program at the University of Saskatchewan.

An entrepreneur and market developer, Silvia’s career spans over 40 years with successful market development initiatives provincially, nationally and internationally; within corporations, associations and private business.

(306) 281-9019 Email

Joseph Gill

Joe is a tech lawyer that supports founders by providing market-focused legal advice and scalable legal solutions. His belief is that founders need the right legal infrastructure to attract investment and proactively defuse legal bombs so they can focus on building and scaling their startups. Joe actively seeks out thoughtful founders who understand that the right advice from Day 1 will accelerate their startup towards investment and growth.

Joe provides “cradle to grave” business planning focused on the stages of building, growing, scaling and exiting a business. He brings a unique business sense to his advice having co-founded a legal technology start-up that was a participant in Saskatchewan’s first pre-seed business accelerator program. He is counsel to dozens of start-ups in the software, technology, blockchain, and apparel industries. Joe also serves as the lawyer-in-residence for Co.Labs (a technology incubator in Saskatoon), the lawyer-in-residence for Cultivator (a technology incubator in Regina), a board member of the Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce, a board member of Ideas Inc. (a business incubator in Saskatoon), and acts as Founder and Chair of the firm’s Start-Up and Entrepreneur Practice Group. He regularly presents to groups in the start-up ecosystem on legal issues such as formation, tax matters, employee incentive planning, privacy and cybersecurity, securing government funding, and raising capital (angels, venture capital, and private equity). He also provides ongoing advice to investment funds and regular investors active in the startup space.

Joe is also a published tax lawyer, having written extensively on tax matters for organizations such as the Canadian Tax Foundation, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Law Society of Saskatchewan. He has completed the CPA Canada In-Depth Tax Course and is now an instructor for that course. In addition, he was formerly a sessional lecturer for a tax-focused class at the University of Saskatchewan College of Law. Joe advises a number of corporations and professionals (accountants, engineers, pharmacists, dentists) on tax matters and more general wealth planning.

(306) 664-1276 Email

Chris Triffo

Chris Triffo, csc, is an entrepreneur, producer, showrunner, director, and full member of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers. Chris is a principal partner and a founding member of Wavelength Entertainment Group. Chris has developed and produced/directed over 400 hours of programming for broadcasters like History Television, A&E, Discovery International, Warner Bros, Travel Channel USA/Canada, Discovery Channel USA/ Canada, Amazon Prime, History UK, Smithsonian Channel, ZoomerTV, HBO Europe, HBO, Foxtel Australia, ZDF, Vision, CBC, IFC, Rogers and many others.

His award-winning programming is seen in more than 120 countries worldwide in over 30 languages. Chris’ current projects include co-producing the new series Guardians of the North, co-directing the new feature-length documentary Children of War, and three seasons of the TV series Mobile MD. He has finished three seasons of the documentary series Nordic Lodge, two seasons of the docuseries Bridging Borders, and the VR360 documentary Bridging Borders -VR. Also, Recently, Chris was one of the producers of I Lived With a Killer, a 20 x 60 true crime series with Reelz Channel and TVA.

In addition to producing and directing, he has assisted with an ongoing balance of business, marketing, and the financing of over $100,000,000 in programming. Chris has also been heavily involved in building leadership strategies and training dozens of individuals in the content creation industry through direct hands-on training and mentorship programs.

Chris has received many awards, including an American Emmy® Award, several Gemini Awards, a New York Film Festivals Award, Best Director and Best Canadian Documentary at Hot Docs, Best Director and Best Documentary at Victoria Independent Film and Video Festival and several Yorkton Film Festival awards. He also received the prestigious Kodak Best Documentary Award and Best Cinematography at the Canadian Society of Cinematographers awards. His films have been screened at prestigious festivals like the Toronto Film Festival, INPUT 98 and the Australian International Documentary Conference.

(306) 501-0133 Email