Keynote Speakers
Friday’s Speaker
Arad Gharagozli – NSCC Engineering Technology (2014); Dalhousie University Bachelors of Electrical Engineering (2019 expected).
Gharagozli is a computer systems specialist and electronic engineering technologist. During his career, Gharagozli has worked to design and develop commercial scale projects in both public and private sectors. These projects include embedded systems, analog and digital circuit design, as well as the implementation and management of IT infrastructure for medium and enterprise scale organizations. He currently holds a Canadian patent for an emergency response system, and holds a license for commercial software being used in construction and real estate industry by SMEs.
Gharagozli is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at Dalhousie University. In his role as the President and founder of the Dalhousie Space Systems Lab(DSS), Gharagozli now manages Nova Scotia’s first satellite mission, LORIS which involves more than 50 students and several faculties from the Engineering department. LORIS is scheduled for launch by 2021.
Saturday’s Speaker
Professor William Lahey – President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of King’s College – BA, BA (Juris) (Oxom), LLM (Toronto)
Lahey received his undergraduate arts degree from Mount Allison University, followed by degrees in jurisprudence from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar, and a Master of Laws from the University of Toronto.
President Lahey has worked to make Nova Scotia an increasingly sustainable province. In Nova Scotia’s Provincial Government as Deputy Minister for the Department of Environment and Labour from 2004 to 2007, President Lahey spearheaded the development of the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act, a far-reaching piece of legislation designed to improve environmental law and policy. He later co-authored a highly-regarded review of the province’s aquaculture industry, recommending significant changes in accordance with the concepts of sustainable prosperity.
President Lahey played a leading role as Board Chair in the founding of Efficiency Nova Scotia, now operating as EfficiencyOne. It is largely responsible for Nova Scotia’s nation-leading success in reducing electricity use and greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency programs. Today, President Lahey continues to work on important public policy concerning sustainable development such as forestry practices and environmental protection.