UNBeknownst

Ambassador Deborah Lyons (BA'71, DLitt'15) is a diplomat with 21 years of professional experience in political affairs, international cooperation and economic development. Her most recent assignment was as Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan , having served prior to that as Ambassador of Canada to Israel and before that as Ambassador to the Islam...

John Leroux (PhD'20) is an architect, art historian and currently Manager of Collections and Exhibitions at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton, New Brunswick. John has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the fields of art history, architecture, visual art, curation, and education. He holds a Bachelor of Architecture from McGill University, an M.A. in Art History from Concordia Universi...

Krista Jones (BScEE'88) has been a passionate innovator and builder of technology-based businesses for over 30 years. She leverages her deep entrepreneurial and leadership experience to advise founders, inspire teams and create programs to scale Canada's most innovative companies. Currently Senior VP of Ventures Services at MaRS Discovery District, she recently founded MaRS Momentum, an exclusive...

Donald Savoie (MA'72) holds the Canada Research Chair in Public Administration and Governance at the Université de Moncton, as well as the Clément-Cormier Research Chair in Economic Development. Over his career, he has served as an advisor to federal, provincial and territorial government departments and agencies, the private sector, independent associations, OECD, the World Bank and the United Na...

Emilie Chiasson (BPHIL'15) is a design and innovation expert who's worked with government and NGO organizations to co-create meaningful solutions to persistent problems in developing countries and regions. After graduating from UNB's Renaissance College, she completed a Master's in Global Affairs from the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and  since then has gai...

Josh O'Kane (BSc/BA '09) is a reporter with The Globe and Mail who has covered the technology sector for much of the past five years. His coverage focuses on the relationships between tech companies and human beings, governments, economies, and each other. His latest book, Sideways: The City Google Couldn't Bu y, investigates the failed effort by Google sister company Sidewalk Labs to build a futu...

Mitch Cobb (BA'02) is co-owner and CEO of Upstreet Craft Brewery, on Prince Edward Island. But Upstreet isn't just a brewery (even though it's grown to become a major player in the Atlantic Canada brewing industry), it's a Certified B Corp, intent on doing business differently and making a positive impact in their community. Mitch has been named one of Atlantic Canada's Top 50 CEOs by Atlantic Bus...

Julia Wright (BA'07) is the host of CBC Information Morning on CBC Radio 1 in Saint John and is also an award-winning writer and photographer. Born and raised in Saint John, New Brunswick, Julia was a contributor to Vice, Buzzfeed, and various local and provincial newspapers before taking on radio hosting duties in 2019. Earlier, she founded and edited two independent Saint John creative writing a...

Brandon Mitchell (BIS'16, MEd'18) is a Mi'kmaq graphic artist, published writer and entrepreneur from Listuguj, Quebec, now residing in Fredericton. Brandon is a two-time graduate of UNB, with a Bachelor in Multimedia and Art Culture and Master in Education, Adult and Continuing Education. He is the founder of Birch Bark Comics and creator of the Sacred Circles comic series. His work includes a se...

Tom Liston (BBA'96) is one of the most sought-after minds in Canada's tech investment sector. Tom currently serves on several Board of Directors for public and private technology companies, and he has a strong track record of shareholder value creation in that capacity. As Chief Investment Officer of a leading technology-focused venture capital firm, he made investments in SaaS, FinTech, and Healt...

Mike Harrison (BScKin'02, MScExSS'05) is a flight surgeon as well as an emergency medicine and critical care physician at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida. He was recently one of the flight surgeons for SpaceX's Crew-1 Dragon - which launched in 2020 and returned in 2021. Mike graduated from UNB with a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology and a Master of Science in exercise and sport science...

Alexandra Pope (BPhil'06) graduated from UNB's Renaissance College Bachelor of Philosophy in Leadership program and went straight to work in social media and journalism for local newspapers. She jumped to The Weather Network and then joined Canadian Geographic as digital editor – a dream job. Recently, she was named Editor-in-Chief of Canadian Geographic magazine and its sister publication, Canadi...

Ash Furrow (BCS'09) is a compassionate software developer who launched his career while still a computer science student at UNB. After graduating, Ash and his partner moved to Toronto, then Amsterdam, and then New York, where he joined Artsy as it was just beginning to grow into the world's largest online marketplace for art. He finally moved home to New Brunswick in 2020 and is now working at Sho...

James Gitau (BBA'87, MA'89) came from Kenya to Canada in the 1980s to study at UNB and later returned to Africa to cultivate an esteemed career with UNICEF across the globe. He's part of UNICEF's senior leadership and operations group, and over the years has developed cross-cultural team leadership skills and has gained international experience within the humanitarian and development context. He's...

Olive Ozoemena is Director of Programs and Operations for the New Brunswick Multicultural Council. Olive is from Nigeria and came to New Brunswick in 2015 to study in the MBA program at UNB Saint John. She stayed in the community and has been an integral part of helping to build a multicultural society that is welcoming and inclusive for newcomers and people from all backgrounds. She is also a mem...

Asif Hasan is an alum from UNB's Electrical and Computer Engineering and TME programs, and the CEO and co-founder of SimpTek Technologies, a Fredericton startup company that helps residential homeowners and electric utility companies to better understand, engage and predict energy usage. He's a world citizen - born in Bangladesh, educated in India and Canada, and now building a company in New Brun...

Jason Stephen (BA'98) graduated from UNB Saint John with a degree in history and political science and is now a realtor and real estate expert.  Jason has been involved in organized real estate for more than 20 years and just recently concluded his time as President of the Canadian Real Estate Association. He talks about the hot real estate market and trends, as well as coping with the ups and dow...

Matt Anderson (BA'92) and Chris Simpson (BSc'90) took very differe nt routes to get to  t op leadership positions in healthcare in Canada . Matt   graduated with an  a rts degree  and  began his career in data analytics and IT. He went on to earn a master's degree in Healthcare Administration and Management from the University of Toronto  and is now  CEO of Ontario Health .  Chris Simpson graduate...

Samantha Stewart (BRSS'13, BA'14, MEd'19) moved to Fredericton in 2009 to study Recreation and Sport Studies , and d uring that time, began competing internationally as a member of Team Canada's wrestling team. Since then, she's become a ten-time national medalist, been named Most Outstanding Female Wrestler in Canada twice, was the Rio 2016 Olympic alternate, and  recently  won bronze at the 202...

Eric Cook is Executive Director and CEO of RPC, New Brunswick's provincial research organization that provides science and engineering services to over 1100 clients annually. Eric's career spans leadership in the application of science and technology in sectors including advanced manufacturing, space science, aerospace, and wireless communications. He's served as the project engineer for Canada's...

Cayman Grant (BBA'01) graduated from UNB's Saint John campus with a BBA in 2001 and has since become an Emmy award-winning writer and director who's been making films and TV that have been screened in over 100 film festivals worldwide. She's written and directed several projects, including Playing for the Mob, which earned her an Emmy for the feature-length documentary. Her film, The Boy, was a fi...

Natalie Weigum (BSc'10) is currently living in Washington, DC working as a Climate Change Specialist at the World Bank, where she helps integrate climate change into the organization's development lending. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Physics and Chemistry at the University of New Brunswick she completed her PhD in Atmospheric Physics at the University of Oxfo...

Michaela D'Intino  (BScE'16) is a young alum, having graduated from Civil Engineering at UNB just five years ago . But Michaela didn't go into a typical engineering firm or construction job. She went into supply chain and process improvement roles in the food and beverage sector. After working for a number of years with food and beverage giant Pepsi, she's now with Nova Scotia-based Made  With  Lo...

Pam Palmater (LLB'97) is an award-winning public speaker, author and social justice activist. She was one of the spokespeople and public educators for the Idle No More movement and continues to advocate alongside other social movements focusing on Indigenous rights, social justice and climate action. She is also a well-known media commentator and public speaker - considered one of Canada's Top 25...

Jason Goldlist (BPHIL'06), graduated from UNB with a Bachelor of Philosophy in Leadership from Renaissance College and is currently  CEO and co-founder of Venue, an online platform for virtual special events that inspire and engage. He's also co-founder of  TechTO  and has an impressive resume, including as Head of Marketing and General Manager of  Wealthsimple .    In this episode:   Lessons lear...