Areas Of Focus

Our startups develop solutions in areas such as:

Agri-tech

Technologies that enable sustainable farming and increased food production.

Advanced manufacturing

Technologies that help designers build better products.

Advanced materials

New materials engineered to improve existing products.

Energy

Solutions for storing, generating and distributing energy, and managing consumption.

Transportation

New ways to move people and products using eco-friendly fuel and vehicles.

Waste management

Technologies that treat and recycle industrial and household waste.

Water

Solutions for water purification and wastewater management.

Our Ecosystem

The MaRS Climate ecosystem consists of entrepreneurs, investors, scientists, policy makers, corporates and world-renowned research institutions.

Our team
Tyler Hamilton

Tyler Hamilton

Senior Director, Cleantech

Tyler Hamilton

Tyler Hamilton is Senior Director of Climate at MaRS and guides all climate-related activities for ventures, corporate partners and investors, including the flagship Mission from MaRS program. He is also on the board of the Ontario Clean Technology Industry Association (OCTIA) and a member of the XPRIZE Brain Trust. Previous to joining MaRS, Tyler spent two decades as a journalist and wrote extensively about Canada’s clean technology sector and global cleantech trends. Most recently he was editor-in-chief of business and sustainability magazine Corporate Knights. He also spent 13 years at the Toronto Star, where he reported on Canada’s energy sector and wrote a popular weekly column on clean energy technologies and trends. In 2011, Tyler authored Mad Like Tesla, a book that examines the various barriers to clean energy innovation and surveys the landscape of some potentially world-changing clean technologies. A recipient of the Cleantech Group’s “Pioneer” award for his early writings on the sector, Tyler was also recognized in 2016 on Canada’s “Clean50” list for his thought leadership on clean energy and climate issues.

Leah Perry

Leah Perry

Senior Manager, Cleantech

Leah Perry

Leah is the Senior Manager, Cleantech at MaRS Discovery District where she works closely with the MaRS cleantech portfolio through all stages of growth, primarily when they are raising capital. Managing MaRS’ Climate investor relationships and leading the MaRS Cleantech VC Syndicate, Leah supports in the preparation of venture investment rounds and connects the MaRS Cleantech portfolio to the capital they require to grow. Leah also leads the RBC Women in Cleantech Accelerator, a two-year cohort program at MaRS aimed to accelerate women-led cleantech ventures. Prior to MaRS, Leah worked at Export Development Canada (EDC), where she spent nearly seven years helping SMEs along their growth journey, including several years on EDC’s Cleantech Team. Leah holds an MBA from the Schulich School of Business, York University, is a Certified International Trade Professional (CITP), and was recognized as one of Corporate Knights' Top 30 under 30 Sustainability Leaders in Canada.

Andy Lam

Andy Lam

Manager, Climate Programs

Andy Lam

Andy is the Senior Manager of Climate Programs and leads Mission from MaRS, a series of initiatives that aims to tackle the climate crisis through accelerating the adoption of innovations. With Mission from MaRS, Andy is focused on several important topics including unlocking public sector procurement of cleantech, supporting the development of the Canadian carbon markets, and embedding climate innovation within the real estate sector. In 2022, Andy was recognized by Corporate Knights for its Top 30 Under 30 Sustainability Leaders.

Ana Gonzalez Guerrero

Ana Gonzalez Guerrero

Senior Manager, Climate and Cities

Ana Gonzalez Guerrero

Ana is the Senior Manager, Climate and Cities at MaRS, where she leads the implementation of CAANZero, a pilot program seeking to unlock finance and increase capacity for small and medium municipalities advancing climate solutions. Prior to her role, she led an Innovation Fund across six countries through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ (FCM) Partnership for Municipal Innovation in Local Economic Development. Ana also worked closely with local-level actors through the Municipalities for Climate Innovation Program, supporting over 340 local governments in their efforts to act on climate across Canada. In 2017, Ana co-founded Youth Climate Lab, where she oversaw the operations, programs, and co-led the vision and strategy of the organization. She is the Vice-Chair of the Tamarack Institute’s Board of Directors, and served as an advisor to Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy. Ana holds an MSc Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment as a Linbury Trust Scholar from the University of Oxford.

Ria Perrault

Ria Perrault

Associate, Climate Programs

Ria Perrault

Ria Perrault is the Climate Programs Associate at MaRS, where she works on Mission from MaRS projects and communications. She has spent several years working on environmental and policy issues in the built environment, and is driven by the need to create a more sustainable future. Ria earned an M.Sc. in Environmental Sustainability from the University of Ottawa in 2023, and previously graduated with high distinction from the University of Toronto with a B.A. in Architecture.

Niyat Gebreab

Niyat Gebreab

Coordinator, Cleantech

Niyat Gebreab

Niyat is the Coordinator, Cleantech at MaRS Discovery District where she supports climate program activities for ventures, corporate partners, and investors. Striving towards just, inclusive and sustainable business practices, she previously worked on environmental policy management and community engagement. She has a B.A. in Environmental Studies and Cognitive Science.

Deveney Bazinet

Deveney Bazinet

Associate, Climate and Cities

Deveney Bazinet

Deveney is the Associate, Climate and Cities at MaRS, where she supports the implementation of CAANZero, a pilot program seeking to unlock finance and increase capacity for small and medium municipalities advancing climate solutions. Prior to joining MaRS, she worked as the director of international programs for a Canadian sustainable development charity. Deveney also holds an MPA from the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose at University College London, where she completed research on community-driven and inclusive policy solutions for achieving net-zero.

Ian McCarter

Ian McCarter

Director, Corporate Innovation

Ian McCarter

Ian McCarter is the Director, Corporate Innovation, focused on creating meaningful, economic relationships between Canadian ventures and globally significant early adopters of innovation. In particular, Ian has been helping energy, transportation, real estate, mining, construction, and heavy industry partners inject Canadian innovation into their net-zero journey.

Prior to joining MaRS, Ian worked for 7 years as a technology consultant at Deloitte, working on large-scale, technology implementation projects in both the public and private sectors, acting as the Google translator between business objectives/outcomes and technical solutions. Ian holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from the University of Ottawa and an MBA from the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University.

Mick Malowany

Mick Malowany

Senior Manager, Corporate Innovation, Climate

Mick Malowany

Mick Malowany is the Senior Manager, Climate with MaRS’s Corporate Innovation team. He focuses on facilitating discourse and fostering relationships between large corporate partners and the Canadian cleantech innovation ecosystem. The overarching purpose of his work is to accelerate adoption of cleantech solutions and advance the transition to a sustainable economy. Towards this purpose, Mick brings capabilities in scenario analysis, adaptive pathways, interdisciplinary collaboration, systems thinking, and institutional dynamics, as well as subject matter expertise in green infrastructure and urban sustainability. Prior to joining MaRS, Mick spent three years leading innovation strategy and human-centred design research projects with Deloitte’s D.Studio and Doblin consulting practices; and five years leading large technical implementations with IBM and Loblaw Digital. Mick holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Harvard University and an MPhil in Engineering for Sustainable Development from the University of Cambridge.

Ian Spence

Ian Spence

Senior Manager, Business Development

Ian Spence

Ian Spence is a Senior Manager in Business Development at MaRS. His work ignites meaningful relationships between Canada’s brightest climate tech ventures and the greater, national, and international corporate ecosystem. He is passionate about unlocking the potential of Canadian innovation around the world. His approach to adoption collides industry narratives and re-focuses the power of technology to build better societies and businesses, wherever they may be. Prior to joining MaRS, Ian had a multidisciplinary background with organizations in energy, advanced AR/VR, IT, and consumer technology. Ian has 15 years of experience in sales and marketing and holds a BA Double Honours in Biology and Geography, Wilfrid Laurier University.

Sue Talusan

Sue Talusan

Director, Climate Impact Accelerator

Sue Talusan

With twenty years of experience in data analytics, evaluation, research, design, development, and innovation, Sue is an expert in the end to end innovation process. While at MaRS, Sue has been the lead designer and project manager on complex projects and programs in the areas of social and municipal procurement innovation, systemic design, experiential futures, and social innovation. She is currently leading the design, strategy, and product development of an innovation ecosystem impact accelerator, and supporting the public procurement – net zero mission. Sue is also the Co-Founder and Director of Operations for Creative Reuse Toronto.

Harvey Coleman

Harvey Coleman

Senior Advisor, Cleantech

Harvey Coleman

Harvey has been advising cleantech ventures at MaRS for more than 10 years, with a more recent focus on climate change prevention and adaptation. He has 40 years of experience in the IT industry. During his career he ran Global Sales Support and Marketing Strategy for the Olivetti Group and was Managing Director of the Acorn Group PLC, a computer manufacturer and fledgling designer of the ARM chipset. In Canada, he was the CEO of Olivetti, Dell, and EVP of GEAC, a multiproduct global software company. Throughout his career he also founded and held senior roles in several start-ups. His main focus as Senior Advisor at MaRS has been helping ventures establish their Product Market Mix and Go to Market Strategies, as well as helping them take this through to repeatable scalable sales.

Rick VanSant

Rick VanSant

Senior Advisor, Cleantech

Rick VanSant

Rick is a leader in the Canadian cleantech sector, a serial entrepreneur, and angel investor. He serves as a Senior Advisor to the cleantech sector at MaRS Discovery District. Rick is also a Director of Aclarus Ozone Water Systems, a Director of Sentry Water Monitoring Technologies, an Advisory Board member for the Canada Water Portal, a partner with Toronto based private equity investment group 1440 Capital, and past Chair of the Board of WaterTAP Ontario, the province of Ontario’s water technology accelerator.

Jon Dogterom

Jon Dogterom

Senior Advisor, Cleantech

Jon Dogterom

Jon is an experienced founder, executive, and board member of private and public entities in energy, mobility, and alternative fuels. He was formerly the Senior Vice President of Venture Services at MaRS. Prior to leading the Venture Services Team, he was the Managing Director of the Cleantech Practice. He is also the founder of the MaRS Advanced Energy Centre.

Prior to joining MaRS, he led business development for Hydrogenics Corporation (now Cummins) through the launch of the company’s fuel cell and hydrogen generation divisions. He also co-founded Sustainable Energy Technologies (now Eguana Technologies), a leading Canadian provider of power electronics for the solar power industry. He has also served on the Energy Transformation Network of Ontario, on the Board of Directors of the Ontario Clean Water Agency, and on the investment committee for Arctern Ventures fund 2.

CLIMATE INNOVATION BOARD

The MaRS Climate Innovation Board provides non-binding, strategic advice to members of MaRS leadership that serve our startup and partner communities.

David McFadden

David McFadden

President and CEO, Generation 4 Capital Corporation

David McFadden

David brings decades of leadership, including more than 30 years at Gowling WLG, and experience on the boards of Toronto Hydro, the Toronto Region Board of Trade, and the Des Nedhe Group.

George Cooke

George Cooke

Board Chair, OMERS

George Cooke

Since retiring as CEO of the Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, George has been a key advisor to the public and private sectors, most notably serving Ontario’s former deputy premier Robert Nixon.

Giles Gherson

Giles Gherson

Giles Gherson

Giles is the former Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and of Red Tape and Regulatory Burden Reduction for Ontario. He is a senior public and private sector leader with demonstrated success leading high profile organizations and driving tangible results in areas of economic development and investment, technology and innovation, policy and regulation and corporate change. Giles has strong issues and crisis management expertise within both corporate and government reflecting a solid media industry foundation and is a trusted strategic advisor to senior Federal and Provincial leaders on critical public affairs and strategic growth programs that build profile and credibility.

Lisa DeMarco

Lisa DeMarco

Senior Partner, Resilient LLP

Lisa DeMarco

With over two decades of experience in law, regulation, policy, and advocacy relating to energy and climate change, Lisa represents several governments and energy companies, including the Ontario Energy Board and the National Energy Board.

Martha Hall Findlay

Martha Hall Findlay

Chief Sustainability Officer, Suncor

Martha Hall Findlay

Martha Hall Findlay recently retired as Chief Sustainability and Chief Climate Officer for Suncor Energy, one of Canada’s largest companies. She led Suncor’s efforts to address the nexus of climate and energy, plus all other aspects of ESG (Environment, Social and Governance), including indigenous and other community relations, government and public relations and communications, working to build a future for sustainable Canadian energy.

Martha was instrumental in the development of the multi-company Oil Sands Pathways to Net Zero by 2050 initiative.

She was named a Canadian Climate Champion in 2021 by the British High Commission and the Canada Climate Law Initiative; she was named as one of Canada’s Clean50 for 2022; she was named by the Energy Council as a top global female oil and gas executive and one of the top 275 women influencers. She was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2023.

Prior to joining Suncor, Martha was the President and CEO of the Canada West Foundation, one of Canada’s most important public policy think tanks. She has written dozens of essays, articles and op eds for national publications in both official languages, most recently the ‘Energy and Climate Change’ chapter of “The Indo-Pacific – new strategies for Canadian engagement with a critical region” (2022, Fen Osler Hampson, Goldy Hyder and Tina Park, eds). She has frequently appeared as a thought leader in national print and broadcast media.

As a twice-elected Member of the Canadian Parliament, she served in the Official Opposition shadow cabinet for International Trade; Finance; Transport, Infrastructure and Communities; and Public Works and Government Services, and she served on the House of Commons Standing Committees for all of those portfolios.

She has many years of experience as a corporate lawyer, international trade expert, senior executive and entrepreneur, supporting major multinationals as well as start-ups – primarily in wireless telecommunications and mobile payments before diving into energy, both in Canada and in Europe.

Martha’s community engagement has included serving as an advisory council member, board director and executive for a variety of policy, environmental, community and cultural organizations. She is currently a member of the Deputy Minister of International Trade’s Trade Expert Advisory Council; of the Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council (ABLAC); the Steering Committee of the Canada-Korea Forum; and the Energy Advisory Board for MaRS.

Nicolle Butcher

Nicolle Butcher

Senior Vice President, Renewable Generation and Energy Markets, Ontario Power Generation (OPG)

Nicolle Butcher

Nicolle is responsible for OPG’s commercial business functions, such as energy trading, acquisitions and contracting. She brings over 20 years of experience in business development, asset management and more.

Paul Murphy

Paul Murphy

Board Chair, Ontario Energy Association

Paul Murphy

Paul has been involved with the planning and operation of the Ontario and North American electric system for over 35 years. A registered engineer, he was formerly president and CEO of IESO.

Steve Baker

Steve Baker

Board Member, IESO

Steve Baker

A Certified Professional Accountant and executive, Steve has over 30 years of experience in the energy sector, always applying sound strategy through the lens of strong financial acumen and governance.

Yung Wu

Yung Wu

Chief Executive Officer, MaRS Discovery District

Yung Wu

Yung is CEO of the MaRS Discovery District, one of the world's largest innovation hubs, and Canada’s premiere science and technology innovation ecosystem. The MaRS innovation community has raised over $16.7B in capital, generated over $9B in net revenues and contributed over $30B to GDP since inception, currently employing over 32,600 people in the health, cleantech, fintech and platform technologies sectors, and at all stages of growth.

As a serial entrepreneur and investor, Yung has built breakthrough scale-stage companies in enterprise software, mobile analytics and big data, media and entertainment, technology services and biotech. He is a co-founder of two not-for-profit organizations, the Coalition of Innovation Leaders Against Racism (CILAR) and DifferentIsCool (DiSC). Yung currently serves on the boards of OMERS, the Toronto Region Board of Trade, Antibe Therapeutics Inc. (TSX: ATE) and is a member of Green Shield Canada. He is a Governor in Council appointee to Canada’s Net-Zero Advisory Body.

Yung has been recognized as one of Canada's “Top 40 under 40” and for leading one of Canada’s “50 Best Managed Private Companies” in the nation. Yung has a B.Sc. Computer Science, Economics and Mathematics from the University of Toronto and is a graduate of the Entrepreneurial Master's Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the NACD Cybersecurity Oversight Certification Program at Carnegie Mellon University, a member of MENSA, the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D).

Luke Gilgan

Luke Gilgan

Director of Programs, Gilgan Family Office

Luke Gilgan

Luke completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Performance Acting at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) in 2005, followed by a brief period working in the field.

In 2010, Luke completed York University’s Bachelor of Education program, and went on to spend 4 years teaching in ‘at-risk’ settings in the Toronto District School Board.

Throughout that time, he was also serving as a board member for The Peter Gilgan Foundation. In 2014 he left teaching to lead a strategic review of Foundation giving strategies going forward and began managing the day-to-day operations of the Foundation. He also played a significant role in the development of the Gilgan Family Office throughout that period.

Luke then completed his Executive MBA at the Ivey Business School, graduating in 2020. Currently, Luke is the Director of Programs at the Gilgan Family Office and sits on the Board of Directors of Mattamy Asset Management, where he chairs the Sustainability Committee of the Board. Luke also serves on the Board of Governors at the Stratford Festival of Canada.

Luke resides in Toronto, is happily married, and is the father to a 10-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old son. They are the accomplishments of which he is most proud.

Marcius Extavour

Marcius Extavour

Chief Climate Solutions Officer, TIME CO2

Marcius Extavour

Marcius Extavour is a scientist and leader working at the intersection of deep tech innovation, business, capital, community, and storytelling to help solve problems that matter to people. As Chief Climate Solutions Officer at TIMECO2, he is building a media engine to help communicate the business value of decarbonization, the energy transition, and nature restoration. A widely published innovation practitioner and speaker, he is an active member of the U.S. National Academies of Science Board on Energy & Environmental Systems, University of Michigan’s Global CO2 Initiative, University of Ottawa’s Institute on Governance, Carbontech Leadership Council of New York University’s Carbon to Value Program, and Neste's Advisory Council on Circular Economy.

Dr. Extavour’s work has been featured by The Atlantic, New York Times, the Economist, Financial Times, Bloomberg, CNBC, Nature Physics, Physical Review Letters, Applied Physics Letters, PBS NOVA, BNN Bloomberg, Bloomberg Green, and TVO's The Agenda.He speaks globally on themes including the role of business and investing in solving for climate energy and nature, the role of science technology and innovation in building a net-zero nature positive and socially just world, and exponential technologies. In 2019 he was named a 2019 VERGE Vanguard Fellow as one of 20 dreamers, pioneers, entrepreneurs and others leading the clean economy.

He previously served as Chief Scientist and Executive Vice President of Climate & Energy at XPRIZE Foundation where he developed and led the execution of the foundation’s portfolio of energy and climate change innovation programs, including the $100M XPRIZE Carbon Removal funded by the Musk Foundation, and the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE. His work in the private sector includes roles at Ontario Power Generation, Nortel Networks, and the Council of Canadian Academies. Extavour has also shaped government policies and practices supportive of innovation in clean energy and critical materials as congressional AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow in the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources in Washington, DC. He holds a Ph.D. and MSc. in quantum optics and atomic physics, and a BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto.

Jane Kearns

Jane Kearns

Partner, Evok Innovations

Jane Kearns

Jane is a recognized leader in sustainable innovation and leverages over 25 years of experience in clean technology, sustainability and venture capital. She has co-founded, scaled and exited a renewable energy company.

Prior to Evok, Jane was Vice President, Growth Services and Senior Advisor, Cleantech at MaRS Discovery District, a launchpad for Canadian startups, where she oversaw development and delivery of products and services for 1,100 tech and hard tech ventures.

Jane sits on the boards of Clear Blue Technologies International (TSXV: CBLU) and Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corporation IV (NASDAQ: DCRD), is an advisory board member for StandUp Ventures and Amplify Capital, and was a member of the Expert Panel on Clean Growth for the Canadian Climate Institute. She is a Cleantech and Energy faculty member at Singularity University, and holds an MBA from Columbia University.

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