Death by Chocolate
2019
Celebrating women in leadership
Death by Chocolate is a Schulich School of Engineering signature event. Our alumni, students and their colleagues get together for an evening of chocolate, wine and discussion. The pinnacle of the evening is an exciting keynote address by an inspiring woman in engineering leadership.
The evening is a celebration of the unique position people from all backgrounds are in, offering diverse perspectives and ideas to an innovative future.
Keynote address: "It's Possible"
As a proud Calgarian - focused on future-proofing business and our province - Judy will inspire us on the power of a positive, ever-learning mindset and unconventional partnerships that turn challenges into opportunities. This Schulich School of Engineering alumna will share her thoughts on how Calgary’s unique DNA of entrepreneurship, community-mindedness and amazing women leaders are the secret to unlocking our next economic wave.
About our speaker
Judy Fairburn, a UCalgary alumna with a BSc and MSc in chemical engineering, is a seasoned change-maker, impacting industrial corporations and start-ups. She has a proven track record in building ahead-of-the-curve business ventures and providing sage advice to CEOs/boards that enables businesses to be “built to last.”
She is a serial co-founder of innovative ventures, including the The51. This recently founded, private-sector initiative enables Canada’s successful females to create economic value by investing in talented female entrepreneurs. Judy also co-founded several ventures for Canada's energy sector to bolster its economic and environmental competitiveness. Two highlights include a “first-of-its-kind” industry/entrepreneur venture fund focused on digital/cleantech (Evok Innovations) and being the inaugural chair of Canada's Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA) - a world-leading innovation alliance that set the model for sharing intellectual property to accelerate environmental performance.
Judy is also a highly sought-after board director (energy, tech, public policy) and avid CEO mentor (Creative Destruction Lab). She is also past chair of Alberta Innovates, having successfully enabled the merger of four corporations and hiring of a globally respected CEO.
Judy, who is also an MBA, draws upon a unique mix of c-suite industry, public policy and start-up/venture capital experience. She was the first chief digital officer and executive vice-president of Business Innovation in the Canadian energy sector. She has over 30 years of energy sector experience (upstream to downstream) including strategy, governance, digital innovation, portfolio management, technology commercialization and sustainable development. She is also skilled in health and safety, and operations management.