fr
Français

Advisory Committees

Our Advisory Committees are comprised of representatives from our stakeholders in Canada’s research, education, and innovation sectors. This governance structure ensures that our programs and initiatives are tailored to respond to the evolving needs of the communities we serve.

CANARIE is supported by the following committees:

  • National Research and Education Network (NREN) Leadership Council (NREN LC)
  • Institutional Advisory Council for Cybersecurity (IACC)

National Research and Education Network (NREN) Leadership Council

The National Research and Education Network (NREN) Leadership Council equally represents all the partners in Canada’s NREN and is the confederated body that oversees the NREN’s evolution and the services it enables and delivers. The committee facilitates: 

  • ongoing communication between all partners, 
  • joint strategic and operational planning for network infrastructure and services, and
  • the coordination of the operation, monitoring, and evolution of the NREN. 

National Research and Education Network Leadership Council (NREN LC) Members

  • Barb Carra | President and CEO, Cybera
  • Chad Coller | President and CEO, SRNET
  • Sandra Cascadden | Executive Director, ACORN-NS
  • Todd Farrell | Associate Director Infrastructure Services, ACORN-NL
  • Jared Hougen | CIO and Director IT, Yukon University
  • Dennis Silva | President and CEO, BCNET
  • Richard Lacombe | President et Directeur général, RISQ (Chair)
  • Mike Tremblay | President and CEO, CANARIE
  • Jennifer Lane | CIO, Nunavut Arctic College
  • Alfonso Licata | President and CEO, ORION
  • Rod Bruinooge | CEO, MRnet
  • Hannah Vedamani | Manager, Information Systems & Technology Information, Aurora College
  • Marc Caduc | Interim CIO, ECN-PEI
  • David Totton | Interim Director, Technology, ECN-NB

Institutional Advisory Council for Cybersecurity (IACC)

The Institutional Advisory Council for Cybersecurity (IACC) is a national, institution‑focused advisory body that provides CANARIE with strategic guidance on cybersecurity priorities, trends, and needs across Canada’s research and education (R&E) sector. 

The IACC brings together institutional leaders from across the country to share insights, surface emerging issues, and help inform the direction of national cybersecurity services that support the sector. 

The IACC aims to strengthen connections between institutions and CANARIE, supporting better alignment between community needs and national cybersecurity initiatives has and to create space for shared learning and for diverse perspectives to inform CANARIE’s work. 

What the IACC does 

The IACC serves as: 

  • A trusted forum where institutional leaders share cybersecurity risks, priorities, and needs at a national level 
  • An early sounding board for emerging national direction and the evolution of shared cybersecurity services 
  • A structured channel for two‑way communication between CANARIE and the community 

The IACC is advisory in nature. It does not provide operational oversight, approve funding, or make decisions on behalf of institutions.

The selection process for the newly-formed AICC is nearly complete and members will be announced in late Summer 2026.

Some of the information that we share with committee members and/or Directors of the Board is, by its very nature, confidential. To protect the owners of that confidential information, as a key element of good governance, and ultimately to prevent lobbying of the CANARIE Board and our funder, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), all committee and Board members are asked to sign the CANARIE Confidentiality Agreement. This blog post explains.