Lawson Climate Institute is pleased to present Toronto Climate Week (TOCW) as a Title Sponsor. Recognizing that delivering climate action at scale takes experience, perspective, and trusted guidance, TOCW is proud to introduce the Toronto Climate Week 2026 Advisory Team.
This group of leaders, builders, and connectors supports the TOCW mission behind the scenes, helping sharpen its strategy, deepen its impact, and guide growth as its community expands. Their insight helps shape the themes strengthening TOCW programming and expanding national and international visibility.
Joining the team are Joannah Lawson from the Brian and Joannah Lawson Family Foundation, and Lawson Climate Institute’s Shatha Qaqish-Clavering.
As co-founder and president of her family foundation, Joannah partners with universities, not for profits, think tanks, and other foundations for maximum impact. The Lawson Climate Institute is named in honour of Brian and Joannah Lawson, in recognition of their transformative $60-million donation to help establish the institute.
Shatha is a strategic leader who brings over a decade of experience working on climate issues, sustainability, clean technology, and innovation. Through her leadership, U of T’s Climate Positive Energy had mobilized over $40M in government and industry partnerships to address climate issues related to technology, policy, and community. Shatha has been nominated for Clean50 Award and represented the University of Toronto at COP28 and IEA Energy Innovation Forum.
The Advisory Team brings together passionate individuals who provide ongoing strategic guidance and deep engagement. Their expertise and insight help steer the initiative’s long-term direction, ensuring its relevance, impact, and ability to connect across sectors and communities.
Meet the Advisory Team:
Cindy (Fan) Allen
Board Member, Dartmouth Climate Alliance
Cindy is a Board Member of the Dartmouth Climate Alliance and partner at InsightAI Capital, where she supports new ventures at the intersection of technology, sustainability and social impact. Previously, she served as a strategy director at RBC and as a consultant at Oliver Wyman. She actively collaborates with universities, nonprofits, and international organizations to support research into climate solutions, sustainable materials and the clean economy.
Joannah Lawson
President, Brian and Joannah Lawson Family Foundation
As co-founder and president of her family foundation, Joannah partners with universities, not for profits, think tanks, and other foundations for maximum impact. The foundation’s mandate is the widespread adoption of sustainable practices to promote human health and to protect the natural world. A key pillar of the foundation’s work is enabling nutrient rich food systems that are produced sustainably to help mitigate climate change.
Michelle Li
Founder, Clever Carbon & Women and Climate
Michelle is a global climate champion who built her career in Silicon Valley leading tech companies. She founded clever carbon, a carbon literacy project; Women and Climate, a community that creates a joyful and safe space for women to learn and talk climate; and at New York Climate Week ‘23, she launched the Carbon Newbie Summit, to make climate literacy and action accessible to all.
Murray McCaig
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, ArcTern Ventures
Murray is the Founder and Managing Partner of ArcTern Ventures. Established in 2012, ArcTern invests globally in breakthrough technology companies tackling climate change and sustainability. The firm is currently deploying its $350 million Fund III into early growth climatetech companies across energy, mobility, food systems, and industrial decarbonization. He is also a former Olympian, having represented Canada in the 1992 Games.
Nelson Switzer
Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Climate Innovation Capital
Nelson Switzer is co-founder and managing partner of Climate Innovation Capital, a Toronto-based climate venture fund. A pioneer in corporate sustainability and sustainable finance, he brings 20+ years of experience, including leadership roles in sustainability at Nestlé, PwC, and RBC. He’s advised Fortune 500 companies, investors, and governments, and taught at Northwestern University and The University of Waterloo. Nelson’s insights have been featured by CBC, CNN, Forbes, and more.
Nicholas Parker
For over three decades, Nick has been creating ventures and platforms for positive, exponential impact. Today, as Chairman of Parker Impact, Nick makes principal investments – presently in solar, carbon-to-value, fintech, energy storage and artificial intelligence, while advancing his latest initiative -CleanAI. Founded in 2022, the Initiative’s mission is to accelerate decarbonization and sustainability through smart digital technology. Nick is currently a Board Member of GRE&T Centre, SNOLAB and the Centre for Social Innovation.
Oksana Chikina
Climate Change and Sustainability Services / EY Canada Sustainability Leader
Oksana is a Partner in EY Canada’s Sustainability Advisory Practice, based in Toronto. With over 20 years of global experience, Oksana specializes in designing, implementing, and measuring the impact of large-scale transformation initiatives rooted in behavior change. Over the past six years at EY, Oksana has guided private and public sector clients in embedding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles into business strategies, risk frameworks, and operations.
Randy Tyrrell
TOCW Advisor
Randy is an entrepreneur, event producer, marketer, and speaker with over 30 years of experience. He co-hosts Green Drinks Toronto, a monthly environmental networking event, and founded Toronto Greenhouse, which produced green business events and the Green Business Strategy Summit. He’s consulted for the Green Living Show and Green Jobs Forum, drawing 30,000+ attendees. Randy has built a LinkedIn network of 27,000+ contacts, bringing deep expertise in marketing, business development, and leadership.
Scott Pielsticker
Scott is serial software entrepreneur who’s current venture, ContactMonkey, has been recognized by Deloitte Technology Fast 50 and the Globe and Mail as one of the fastest growing companies in Canada. Recent interest in ocean and wildlife conservation brought him to Toronto Climate Week. Outside of software and conservation he is a music executive producer.
Shatha Qaqish-Clavering
Executive Director (Interim), Lawson Climate Institute
Shatha is a strategic leader who brings over a decade of experience working on climate issues, sustainability, clean technology, and innovation. Through her leadership, Climate Positive Energy has mobilized over $40M in government and industry partnerships to address the climate issues related to technology, policy and community. Shatha has been nominated for Clean50 Award and represented the University of Toronto at COP28 and IEA Energy Innovation Forum. She is an active panelist and speaker at climate and industry events.
Tonya Surman
CEO, Centre for Social Innovation (CSI)
Tonya Surman is a pioneering Canadian social entrepreneur and founding CEO of the Centre for Social Innovation (CSI). She’s behind tools like the Community Bond and Constellation Model, which have supported 6,000+ initiatives and raised $10M+ for impact real estate. Tonya also co-founded Social Innovation Canada to strengthen the national ecosystem.