Our Team
Building a diverse and collaborative work culture that supports and celebrates innovation at all levels.
Our Team
At Edmonton Unlimited, we know that entrepreneurship isn’t a straight path—it’s built on experimentation, learning fast, and pushing boundaries. We embrace trial and error, seeing even a misstep as a step forward. Our team is here to back the thinkers and problem-solvers shaping what’s next, no matter their background or stage of growth. Because when bold ideas have the right support, there’s no limit to what’s possible.
Tom Viinikka
CEO
Tom Viinikka is the CEO of Edmonton Unlimited, with the mandate of empowering the organization to move into the next level of scale and integration locally and globally, while supporting Edmonton’s innovators who are solving the world’s toughest problems.
As a passionate, community-centric, long-time entrepreneur and investor, Tom has founded, acquired, exited and invested in businesses spanning technology, construction, retail and energy.
Prior to joining Edmonton Unlimited, Tom served as the CEO of Edmonton Screen Industries Office (ESIO), where he oversaw economic development in the film, TV and video games industry. He has also held senior roles at AlignVR and vrCAVE—both of which he cofounded—along with Enzo Energy Services and Allsports & Cycle.
Tom is a Venture Mentoring Service (VMS) mentor at the University of Alberta, where he supports entrepreneurs building high-impact ventures in Edmonton. He holds an MBA and a Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in international business and minoring in business law, from the University of Alberta and is fluent in Spanish.
Beyond work, Tom loves spending time with his wife and six kids. Together, they share a zest for sports and cycling, adventuring in the great outdoors and exploring the world!
Sangeet Brar, CPA, CA
COO
Stephanie Gillis-Paulgaard
Vice President, Brand & Strategic Partnerships
Chris Diaper
Vice President, Data & Infrastructure
Wynand Odendaal
Director of Venture
Mo Ghashghavi
Director of Founder Success
Ahmed Khokhar, CPA - CGA, FCCA
Director of Finance
Seanna Baxter
Head of Community
Seanna Baxter is a meticulous, task-driven administrative professional with over a decade of experience. In her role at Edmonton Unlimited, Seanna has the unique privilege to work closely with the Directors providing administrative assistance. Seanna supports the day-to-day administrative, financial, and operational functions by working collaboratively with management. Seanna keeps an open channel of communication within and between departments. She also provides technical and logistical support to special projects and brings a ‘can-do’ attitude to her job.
Before joining the team at Edmonton Unlimited Seanna has provided high-level administrative support in the Edmonton region. Seanna believes an administrative profession must model diplomacy, adaptability, and professionalism as a trusted partner to senior executives. Seanna has managed fast-changing schedules, coordinated travel logistics, created professional correspondence, planned events, and handled sensitive information with a high level of confidentiality. Seanna is upbeat, energetic, and highly motivated. Seanna’s hobbies include cooking, gardening, and camping.
Shalon McFarlane
Senior Venture Portfolio Analyst, IP Specialist
Shalon has extensive experience in technology commercialization, innovation, and technical communication. For over 8 years she has been assisting researchers, local entrepreneurs, and SMEs in the greater Edmonton region with their intellectual property and business development needs: everything from evaluating technologies for their patentability and commercial potential, formulating commercialization strategies, supporting grant applications, performing market intelligence research, and negotiating commercial agreements.
Shalon has a strong scientific research background; she obtained her BSc with a specialization in Physics in 2010 before completing her MSc in Experimental Condensed Matter Physics in 2012, both from the University of Alberta. Shalon enjoys spending time doing anything fitness-related, is a nationally ranked powerlifter and a very active volunteer for the Alberta Powerlifting Union.
Kelsey Torres
Facilities Manager
Andrea Motta
Senior Accountant
Marc Bendico
Creative Lead, Brand & Design
Lauren MacMaster
Marketing Generalist
Jose Jasso
Events Specialist
Sai Lakshman Balaji
Performance Reporting Lead
Reza Mohseni
Investment Analyst and Lead, EOD
Muhammad Husain
Intermediate Accountant
Catherine Sherstan
Executive Assistant, CEO
Harish Babu
IT Systems Specialist
Zack Storms
Senior Business Development Lead, Venture Groups & Pilots
Mahtab Hoorzad
Receptionist
Katherine Mills
Senior Marketing Manager
Veronica Garth
Programs Lead, Venture Pilots
Ali Sidki
Founder Success, Operations Lead
Annamieke Johannes
Workshop Facilitator Lead
Maggie Johnson
Executive Assistant, COO
Sean DeWitt
Head of Venture and Engagement
Anil Vinayak
PSI Engagement Lead
Our Board
Lindsay Dodd
Board Chair Edmonton Unlimited
Lindsay Dodd is Chief Executive Officer of Cashco Financial, a consumer finance company based in Edmonton, Alberta. Initially a member of the Board of Advisors for the company, he stepped into the CEO role in 2021 with a passion to create a social enterprise dedicated to ending financial exclusion by bringing one million Canadians on a path to financial health.
Lindsay is also a Managing Partner of Sprout Fund LP, an early-stage technology investment fund in Alberta, and he is the former CEO of Savvia Inc., a technology-advisory firm acquired by CompuVision Systems Ltd. in 2016. Before launching his company, Lindsay was a Partner with the international IT consulting firm of Sierra Systems and held management roles with both ATB Financial and PCL Construction. Lindsay is a Director with the Edmonton Elks Football Club and a member of the Edmonton Executive Committee of the Institute of Corporate Directors. He is the former Chair of several community boards including the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce.
In addition, he is a member of the A100 and a mentor with the VMS program at the University of Alberta. Lindsay holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors. He earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree with distinction from the University of Alberta and a Master of Business Administration from the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University.
Arden Tse
Investment Manager, Yaletown Partners
A venture capital Investment Manager with Yaletown Partners, Arden leads a team focused on Alberta-based technology startup companies. He is an accomplished investment professional with almost 20 years of private and public sector experience and is highly active in the Alberta startup community. Coming into venture with a strong background in commercial real estate and public equities, Arden’s career as a professional investor in multiple asset classes gives him a broad perspective on capital markets and various ways to look for value. He brings this experience and a love for business to early-stage venture capital investing and enjoys the up close and personal aspect of being able to work directly with entrepreneurs. As a trained Executive Coach and former business owner, Arden helps founders understand how their business and capital raising strategies align.
Blaine Labonte
President, DJI Capital
When Blaine LaBonte joined Cougar Drilling Solutions in 1992, few people realized he'd eventually transform the small Canadian firm into an international oilfield services provider.
He jumped at the chance to buy Cougar in 2005 and become its president. In 2011, he became the CEO of Cougar Drilling Solutions. He sold the company to international investors in 2019. Today, Blaine spends his time on family, community projects, startups, and angel investing.
Farzad (Haider) Alvi
Assistant Professor of Innovation Finance at Athabasca University
Dr. Haider Alvi is a former corporate financier turned academic and company director. Having grown up in North America, he has worked in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Latin America. Dr. Alvi’s research investigates Innovation Finance, examining the individual agency and entrepreneurial orientations exhibited in high-growth firms, and the adaptation of strategy to volatile contexts.
At Athabasca University, Dr. Alvi has been involved in pilot projects with IBM Watson in applying artificial intelligence to teaching materials and testing that improves learning outcomes for students. Additionally, he teaches Innovation Finance in Athabasca’s online MBA program – the online MBA is an innovation pioneered in Edmonton over 25 years ago. Dr. Alvi holds degrees from the University of Cambridge (PhD), University of Toronto (MBA), Indiana University – Bloomington (JD), and University of Chicago (AB).
Jacquelyn Cardinal
Founder and CEO, Naheyawin; Inaugural member of Edmonton Unlimited’s Innovation Growth Council
Jacquelyn Cardinal is a sakāwithiniwak (or Woodland Cree) entrepreneur and Indigenous technologist from the Sucker Creek Cree First Nation in northern Alberta. In her role as Founder & CEO at Naheyawin, a storytelling and education social enterprise based in amiskwacîwâskahikan (or Edmonton, Alberta), Jacquelyn works to integrate and mobilize diverse knowledge systems to realize the promise of our treaties. She has received an Esquao Award for Achievement in Business and a SHEInnovates Award from the UN Women's Global Innovation Coalition for Change for her ongoing entrepreneurial pursuits. As an artist, she has received the 2019 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for Outstanding New Play given to Lake of the Strangers, her first play co-written with her brother.
Launa Aspeslet
Chief Translational Officer, API
Dr. Launa J. Aspeslet is the Chief Translational Officer of API. Dr. Aspeslet also serves as Chairperson for the Board of Directors of Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation, an industry-led not-for-profit organization that serves as a catalyst to support the development of life science products and companies in Canada.
Dr. Aspeslet has over 25 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry overseeing large operating budgets and dozens of multiple-phase clinical trials. Prior to API, Dr. Aspeslet was the CEO of TRIO, a global clinical research organization headquartered in Edmonton that runs oncology trials around the world, a biotechnology consultant working primarily with early stage companies through their product development strategy, and Chief Operating Officer for Isotechnika Pharma Inc., a former Edmonton biotechnology company.
Maureen Moneta, CPA, CA, ICD.D
CPA and Board Member for: Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation, Mainroad Group and AGLC
Maureen Moneta is a dynamic and caring Indigenous leader within the Métis Nation of Alberta, Edmonton and Alberta.
Maureen has spent the last decade in executive leadership roles, with a passion for community building and driving social impact.
Maureen’s experience spans diverse industries including health, education, construction, cannabis and gaming within private business, government, regulatory and charitable sectors. Maureen currently serves on the Board of Directors of CPA Alberta, Alberta Gaming Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC), Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation (AIOC) and the Mainroad Group and is also on the ICD Edmonton Chapter Executive. In 2020, Maureen’s accomplishments were acknowledged with both a CPA Alberta Early Achievement Award and Edify Magazine’s Top 40 under 40 Award (YEG). Maureen has earned Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D) designations.
Nicole Janssen
Co-Founder and Co-CEO at AltaML
PRDV 0204-SP01Nicole Janssen is Co-Founder & Co-CEO at AltaML Inc. and Co-Founder & CEO of Janalta Interactive, both based out of Edmonton, Alberta. In two and a half years AltaML has grown rapidly from a handful of people to nearly 100 employees in three cities, prompting an expansion of its headquarters that reflects and support its evolution from startup to scaleup. Nicole considers herself to be a serial entrepreneur and is recognized for her plethora of ideas, seemingly at a moment’s notice. She is a valued mentor who also believes in giving back to the community, serving as the Chair on the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Northern Alberta & NWT. Nicole holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Alberta.
Justin Riemer
CEO, Emissions Reduction Alberta
Justin Riemer has dedicated his career to strengthening Alberta. As Chief Executive
Officer of Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA), Justin leads one of Canada’s most
impactful innovation organizations—driving investment into transformative technologies
that improve environmental performance, accelerate industrial competitiveness, and
position Alberta as a global leader in clean growth. Under his leadership, ERA has
advanced a diverse portfolio of projects spanning energy, agriculture, manufacturing,
and emerging environmental solutions.
Justin is widely recognized for his ability to operate at the intersection of innovation,
entrepreneurship, and public policy. He has built a reputation as a strategic leader and
ecosystem builder—connecting industry, startups, investors, and governments to unlock
new opportunities for growth and commercialization. His work has helped catalyze
billions of dollars in investment, support high-impact ventures, and scale solutions that
deliver both economic and environmental returns.
With more than 25 years of senior executive experience, Justin has delivered results
across regional economic development, industry expansion, investment attraction, and
innovation system development. Before joining ERA, he served as a senior official in
both the Governments of Canada and Alberta where he led efforts to strengthen
economic resilience and foster entrepreneurship across the province.
Justin also contributes his expertise through board leadership and advisory roles,
supporting organizations focused on innovation, health care delivery and
entrepreneurship. He is known for his collaborative approach, strategic insight, and
ability to bring diverse partners together to achieve meaningful outcomes.
Nir Katchinskiy, PhD
CEO, PulseMedica
Nir Katchinskiy, PhD is a biomedical engineer and medtech entrepreneur focused on translating advanced laser technologies into clinical impact. His doctoral work centered on femtosecond laser applications in ophthalmology, spanning conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, and symptomatic vitreous opacities.
In 2020, Dr. Katchinskiy co-founded PulseMedica, where he serves as CEO, leading a multidisciplinary team of over 35 engineers and scientists. Under his leadership, the company has raised over $20M USD and is developing next-generation imaging and treatment solutions for eye diseases. He built a strong governance structure by assembling a board of directors and advisory group that includes globally recognized leaders in ophthalmology and medical technology.
Beyond ophthalmology, Dr. Katchinskiy’s technical background includes innovations in laser-based cancer therapies and non-invasive biosensing, reflecting a broader track record of applied scientific innovation.
Dr. Katchinskiy is particularly focused on bridging the gap between deep technology and commercialization; demonstrating an ability to move from early-stage research to venture-backed product development, regulatory pathways, and scalable company building.
Edmonton Unlimited would like to thank and recognize the contributions and governance from our inaugural board: Naseem Bashir, Ashlyn Bernier, Joanne Fedeyko, Aaryn Flynn, Farzad (Haider) Alvi, Shaheel Hooda, Nicole Janssen, Sheetal Mehta Walsh. These business leaders set the foundation of our organization, approved our strategic and business plans, and determined the location of our new home on Jasper Avenue, which opened in May 2023.
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Reach out today for a free, 30-minute meeting to learn how we can help you with your idea, business and passion for innovating.