Main Menu

Board of Trustees – Biographies

Today's Hours

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

See All Hours
Plan Your Visit

Carole Beaulieu, Chair

Toronto, Ontario

Carole Beaulieu is an innovative leader with significant expertise in corporate governance, strategic management, marketing, design thinking and public affairs. Through her work, she has acquired a profound understanding of the public, private, media and creative sectors, and their impact on Canada’s cultural industries.

From 2015 to 2021, Carole was Chair of the Board of Directors for Groupe Média TFO — a top-ranked Ontario agency and media company providing award-winning educational and cultural content on television and on digital platforms. In addition, she has been Vice-President of Advancement at OCAD University, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Culture and Francophone Affairs in Ontario, and Head of Marketing and Development at Canada’s National Ballet School.

Carole is a graduate of Laurentian University, les Hautes Études Commerciales, and the Rotman School of Management’s Directors Education Program. She is a member of the International Women’s Forum and the Institute of Corporate Directors and has an ICD.D designation.

Audit & Finance Committee member
Governance and Human Resources Committee member
Canadian War Museum Committee member

Narmin Ismail-Teja, Vice-Chair

Calgary, Alberta

Narmin Ismail-Teja is a Principal at impact@work inc. Since 1992, she has provided advisory services, training, and facilitation, bringing a high degree of skill, motivation and commitment to the delivery of effective programs at the local, national and international levels. Her work encompasses strategic leadership, team development, staff engagement and more, often incorporating theatre techniques, simulations and participatory learning to offer high-impact education that is both engaging and interactive.

She is also dedicated to her community, currently serving as Vice-Chair of the Board of the Calgary Foundation and as Board Member with the Canadian Forces Liaison Council. In addition, she is a senator at the University of Calgary, where she chairs the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, and is an Organizational Culture Change Consultant with the University of Central Asia in Kyrgyzstan.

Narmin recently completed her term as Board Member and Chair of YMCA Calgary, and as Chair of Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan. In the past, she has also worked with the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance in Switzerland, the Famous 5 Foundation, Vertigo Theatre, and various Calgary-based organizations. After serving as a trustee of the Canadian Museum of History since January 2019, she was appointed Vice-Chair of the Board in July 2021.

Canadian War Museum Committee Chair
Finance, Audit & Risk Management Committee member
Governance and Human Resources Committee member

Richard Boudreault, Trustee

Montréal, Quebec

Richard Boudreault is a recognized leader within the fields of governance, sustainability and technological innovation. He holds an engineering degree from Cornell University and an MBA in Finance and Innovation from the University of Sherbrooke. He is a Vanier Scholar as well as a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Richard has founded 19 companies and has served on more than 30 boards. He has led organizations as diverse as the Canadian High Arctic Research Station (CHARS) and Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) and has advanced space exploration as Chief Scientist of In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) for the Canadian Space Mining Corporation (CSMC). He is currently Chair of the Board of Governors for the First Nations University of Canada, Vice-Chair of Aurora College, and Director of the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) in Québec City.

Richard is proud of his Indigenous heritage and is deeply committed to inclusion and scientific research, particularly in the Arctic. His contributions have earned him numerous prestigious awards, including the Lionel Boulet Award, the Gold Medal of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and the George E. Pake Award from the American Physics Society. He is a member of several prestigious academies and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, and the World Academy of Art and Science.

Alex MacBeath, Trustee

Murray Harbour, Prince Edward Island

Alex MacBeath holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Prince Edward Island, as well as an MBA from Dalhousie University. He is a member of the Canadian, Ontario and Prince Edward Island Institutes of Chartered Accountants, and was named a Fellow in 2003. He holds his ICD.D designation through the Rotman School of Management and has completed Executive Education programs at Harvard Business School, the University of Oxford, and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Alex was employed with Grant Thornton LLP for 35 years, 26 of them as Partner. He was CEO and Executive Partner from 2001 to 2008. From 2008 until his retirement in 2012, Alex was Global Leader, Markets and Regional Leader, Asia Pacific at Grant Thornton International. He has extensive experience in business strategy, risk management, national and international markets, and change management in large and complex organizations.

Alex is Founder and Managing Partner of Island Capital Partners, a seed venture capital fund, and CEO of AtholBarra Inc. He is Chair of Sentry Water Monitoring Inc., Regen Wastewater Technologies Inc., and the UPEI Pension Plan, and currently serves on the boards of Crosby Molasses Co. Ltd., the University of Prince Edward Island, the National Angel Capital Organization, MedicAlert Foundation Canada, and Aurea Technologies Inc. Alex is Past-Chair of both the Wallace McCain Institute and Health PEI, and Past Vice-Chair of the Confederation Centre of the Arts.

Finance, Audit & Risk Management Committee Chair

Kendra MacDonald, Trustee

St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador

Kendra MacDonald is CEO of Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, which is responsible for the accelerated development and commercialization of innovation aimed at solving some of the world’s greatest ocean challenges. Kendra is leading the change in the culture of doing business in ocean from coast to coast to coast, increasing collaboration across ocean sectors, and expanding Canada’s ocean economy in digital, sustainable and inclusive ways. In recognition of her leadership in building the Ocean Supercluster from the ground up, Kendra has been named one of Atlantic Canada’s Top 50 CEOs by Atlantic Business Magazine for the past four years, and in 2022 was named one of the country’s Top Sustainability Leaders by Clean50.

Prior to leading Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, Kendra was a Partner in Deloitte’s Risk Advisory practice, and was the Chief Audit Executive of Deloitte Global.

Nicolas Marcotte, Trustee

Montréal, Quebec

Nicolas Marcotte is a Royal Canadian Navy officer with extensive business experience in inclusive leadership, diversity, equity, corporate social responsibility, and change management.

Mr. Marcotte is a leader known for his team spirit, creativity, and analytical skills. He is a results-oriented manager appreciated for his ability to listen and his talent for creating a shared vision with stakeholders. He is a creator of impactful events to promote awareness and brand, a strategist, and a risk manager to anticipate challenges and opportunities.

Mr. Marcotte has served on the boards of several for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, including those in the education and performing arts sectors, where he has used his skills in engineering, accounting, information technology, finance, risk management, financing, mergers and acquisitions, strategy, and governance. He has endorsed the cause of veterans, working with organizations such as the Last Post Fund and the National Field of Honour.

A 2015 recipient of the Canadian Board Diversity Council “Diversity 50” award, Mr. Marcotte is of Nipissing Métis descent.

Finance, Audit & Risk Management Committee member

Dr. Rodney Nelson, Ph.D., C.Dir., PAED, CAPA, Trustee

Ottawa, Ontario

Rodney Nelson is an advocate for sustainable economic development within Indigenous communities worldwide. He is a professor of International Business at Carleton University, where he teaches ethics, governance and international relations. He is also the current CEO and Principal of Governance for the Global Governance Group.

Rodney has a Ph.D. in Indigenous/Canadian Studies through Carleton University and Trent University. He holds a master’s degree in Medical and Corporate Anthropology, and bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Anthropology. He has Chartered Director certification from the Directors College at McMaster’s Degroote School of Business and is a Professional Aboriginal Economic Developer (PAED) and Certified Aboriginal Professional Administrator (CAPA).

Rodney is a corporate anthropologist with more than 30 years of experience working with both the public and private sectors. His interests include board governance, economic development, education, ethics, traditional knowledge and Indigenous relations. He sits on the boards of Scouts Canada and Indigenous Culture and Media Innovations and is Past-Chair of the Aboriginal Financial Officers Association. He was also Chair of the Pandemic Preparedness Working Group for Canadian Businesses, and a member of the Deputy Minister of Health’s Private Sector Working Group on Pandemics.

Rodney has presented to the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and has represented Canada at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on national pandemic planning.

Governance and Human Resources Committee Chair
Canadian War Museum Committee member

Jennifer Pereira, K.C., Trustee

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Jennifer Pereira is a lawyer at Robertson Stromberg LLP, where her legal practice focuses on insurance coverage, defence, and commercial litigation. She has been recognized by Best Lawyers in the area of Insurance Law, and by the University of Saskatchewan Alumni Association for contributions to her profession.

Jennifer is past-President of both the Saskatchewan Trial Lawyers Association and the Saskatoon Bar Association. She has served as Chair of the Professional Image Committee of the Canadian Bar Association (Saskatchewan), and as a member of the Court of Queen’s Bench Bar Judicial Committee. As a speaker, she has shared her knowledge of the law with many organizations, including the College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan.

Jennifer’s commitment to her profession is mirrored by her commitment to the community. She is Past-Chair of the Board of TCU Place, a performing arts and convention centre in Saskatoon, and of Persephone Theatre, a regional theatre company that operates its own venue. In addition to her work for the Canadian Museum of History and Canadian War Museum, Jennifer is a trustee for the Remai Modern Foundation.

Finance, Audit & Risk Management Committee member

Laurier Turgeon, Trustee

Québec City, Quebec

Laurier Turgeon is a Professor of Ethnology and History at Laval University. He has held the Canada Research Chair in Cultural Heritage from 2003 to 2017, is currently director of the Institute for Cultural Heritage at Laval University and Chair of the NGO FORUM of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

He was a visiting professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab in 2013-2014 and held the William Lyon Mackenzie King Chair in Canadian Studies at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University in 2006.

Laurier has held fellowships and visiting professorships from the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris, the Université Paris 1-Sorbonne, the Newberry Library in Chicago, the Beinecke Library at Yale University, and the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University. He has authored 10 books, some 40 peer-reviewed articles and approximately 40 contributions to book chapters and collections of essays. His most recent book is Une histoire de la Nouvelle-France: Français et Amérindiens au XVIe siècle (2019).

He received the Luc-Lacourcière Medal for his book Patrimoines métissés (2003) and a Summit International Award for the mobile application “Discover Quebec” (2014). He was given the Office québécois de la langue française award (2011) for the Encyclopedia of the Cultural Heritage of French North America, the Marius Barbeau Medal (2016), and an Excellence in Teaching Prize from Université Laval (2017). In 2018, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

Governance and Human Resources Committee Vice-Chair
Canadian War Museum Committee member

Mahalia Verna, Trustee

Westmount, Quebec

Mahalia Verna has been within the creative industries for more than 20 years, at organizations including the NFB and the CBC. Most recently, she was Chief Strategy Officer at Tripura Breath, a Montréal-based tech start-up. She led their Human Resources and Communications departments, developed and implemented company strategies, policies, and procedures, and represented the company at industry events and in strategic business relationships. In addition, as Senior Producer, she led the production of immersive experiences and brand activations, oversaw co-productions, and served as a liaison with distributors and launch partners.

Passionate about equity, inclusion, and nurturing next-generation talent, Mahalia contributes to these causes through her various community commitments. Since 2018, she has served as the Board President of Digital Moment, a Canadian charity that encourages digital literacy, with a focus on girls and youth from historically under-served communities. In 2021, she joined the Philanthropic Development Committee of the Foundation of Greater Montréal (FGM). She is also a member of the Women’s Impact Montréal Collective Fund at the FGM, which provides financial support to local nonprofits that help women and girls improve their life circumstances.

In 2022, in her role as Board President of Digital Moment, Mahalia won the inaugural Chair of the Board Award at the Women’s Executive Network’s (WXN) Canadian Equity Diversity and Inclusion (CEDI) Awards. She is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) and holds an ICD.D designation.

Governance and Human Resources Committee member

Dr. William Young, Trustee

Ottawa, Ontario

Bill Young is a former parliamentary officer and academic. In December 2011, he completed a six-year term as Parliamentary Librarian of Canada, overseeing parliamentary research, information, public outreach, and education. He presided over the rehabilitation, conservation and upgrade of the iconic Library building, and initiated and implemented a process of organizational renewal that refocused the Library’s services.

Bill joined the Library of Parliament in 1987, later serving as Director of the Library’s Political and Social Affairs Division. In 2004, he was seconded to the Public Service as Senior Policy Advisor to the Minister of Social Development and Minister of Canadian Heritage.

Bill is a founding Board member of the Samara Centre for Democracy and was Director of both the Canadian Association of Research Libraries and the Association of Parliamentary Librarians in Canada. In addition, he has served on the Board of ESSA (now the Canadian Association of Professional Employees [CAPE]) and the Conservation Review Board of Ontario. He has received several academic scholarships and an award from the Council of Canadians with Disabilities and was made an Honorary Member of the Canadian Association of Former Parliamentarians and Honorary Director of the Churchill Society.

Bill has a PhD in History from the University of British Columbia, and has taught at York, Simon Fraser, and McGill universities. He is a By-Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge, and has authored or co-authored four books, in addition to parliamentary publications, conference papers, and academic and popular articles.

Governance and Human Resources Committee member
Canadian War Museum Committee member