Jean-Charles Le Vallée
Canadian country representative, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
Dr. Jean-Charles Le Vallée is the Canadian country representative of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) with headquarters in Costa Rica. Before joining IICA, Jean-Charles was a former research associate director for agri-food at the Conference Board of Canada, agricultural economist at the World Bank, lead for food aid in Sub-Saharan Africa at Global Affairs Canada, Canada's first coordinator for the Food Security Bureau at AAFC, and consultant for ITK, IFPRI, USAID, FAO and the Development Gateway.
He has extensive international experience in leadership, teaching, and field research in more than a dozen countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, including universities such as Ryerson, UoOttawa, Cornell, Michigan State, and the World Food Prize Youth Institute. He is a co-founder of Food Secure Canada, Just Food Ottawa, and the Canadian Food Studies Association. He has over three dozen publications including a food strategy for Canada, a book on food system resilience in Belize, and a book chapter in India to foster political will for food security. He has served as a jury member for Canada's Food Waste Reduction Challenge, Statistics Canada's Agri-Food Committee, the Global Food Systems Countdown Initiative 2030, advisor to Canada's Climate Action Genomic Initiative, and witness at several senate standing committees on food policy, food trade, agriculture and more.
Patrick Cortbaoui
Senior Managing Director, Margaret A. Gilliam Institute for Global Food Security
Renowned leader sought-after for his capacity to provide expert and strategic counsel and deliver bespoke advisory solutions to global food systems challenges. With significant field experience enabling an understanding of the nuance and intricacies of international development programs. Broad history of operational excellence and implementing innovative, scalable solutions. Embodies leadership by supervision and mentoring of others and through ambassadorship and role-modeling.
Dr. Cortbaoui is an agricultural engineer, food security consultant and project manager with over 15 years track record in providing solutions to alleviate food insecurity in different regions of the world including North America, Latin America & the Caribbean, Africa, Middle East and Asia. He currently serves as the Managing Director at the Margaret A. Gilliam Institute for Global Food Security (IGFS) of McGill University, strengthening the Institute’s contribution, visibility and partnership between academia, the private sector, governments and NGOs. In this capacity, he oversees all operations, functions and activities of the Institute including Research-for Development, Interventions Programs Partnership Building and Resource Mobilization, Strategic and Operational Planning, Communication and Outreach Management, and Team Mentoring and Training. Throughout the past years, he undertook leadership roles in professional training and international development, setting forth a vision and strategy for program design. He participated in strategy sessions to advise teams on the competitive landscape, partners preferences, and evidence-based approaches. He also provided demand-driven technical support to projects, such as serving as a thought expert to help solve technical implementation of innovative approaches for capacity building. As part of his contribution to McGill University, he researched cutting-edge tools, frameworks, or approaches available for potential project piloting and adoption. He also helped train and cultivate a cadre of staff with expertise in varying sub-specialties within our areas of work. He currently serves as McGill champion of the UN-Sustainable Development Goal (SDG #2) for the University Global Coalition Initiative and a University representative of the Quebec Coalition “Feeding Humanity Sustainably”. He also served as faculty member of the governing council of “sustainability projects fund”, where he captured project innovation and learning to repurpose for larger community use.
Gisèle Yasmeen
JW McConnell Professor of Practice, Max Bell School of Public Policy, McGill University
Gisèle is JW McConnell Professor of Practice, Max Bell School of Public Policy, McGill University for 2025-26. She was previously Global Fellow at the Wilson Center and Associate Vice-President, International at uOttawa. She was also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Asian Research – part of the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs - from 2014 to 2023. Her expertise is on food-systems, on which she has published and consulted widely since the early 1990s with both Canadian and international clients. From 2019 to 2022, Gisèle was Executive Director of Food Secure Canada – a pan-Canadian bilingual organization with policy influence. She is a former senior federal government executive - most notably the former Vice-President of Research and Partnerships at SSHRC where she served for seven years - and has advised numerous Canadian and international clients and has served on numerous boards of directors. She provides regular media commentary in English and French and has studied Spanish, Thai, Urdu and Mandarin. Gisèle has a Ph.D. from UBC, a master’s from McGill and a BA Honours from the University of Ottawa.
Martin Webber
Executive Vice President Emeritus and Board Member, J.E. Austin Associates, Inc. (JAA)
Agribusiness and Economic Growth Expert
Martin Webber is a global leader in developing and applying competitiveness, value chain, enterprise development, and other approaches to the needs of agricultural, service and manufacturing market systems and value chains in developing and emerging economies.
Mr. Webber has worked in more than 75 countries, leading insightful analysis, program design and implementation. He has supervised and implemented hundreds of assignments, ensuring transfer of skills and knowledge, impactful deliverables, and close communication with clients. He led JAA’s agribusiness and market systems, decentralized economic development, value chain competitiveness and entrepreneurship & ecosystems practices. Martin has advised national competitiveness initiatives in 12 countries. He has served as strategy consultant and technical advisor to more than 35 agribusiness and other clusters and 50 value chain initiatives. He has developed numerous analytical tools and implementation approaches that are now widely used by practitioners and advisors.
For 25 years, Martin Webber was co-owner of J.E. Austin Associates, a Washington DC-based consultancy that catalyzes economic growth in developing and emerging economies through responsible and competitive business performance. After a rewarding career with JAA, Martin now serves as the company’s Emeritus EVP, advising and guiding company initiatives and personnel. He also serves on several Boards. He previously held senior positions with consulting firms operating in the fields of transport infrastructure, water and environment.
A graduate of McGill University’s Faculty of Management and the Harvard Business School, Mr. Webber is from Montreal, where he maintains strong ties. He was co-awarded the “Making a Difference Award” by the alumni of Harvard Business School.
Martin is a frequent speaker, lecturer and mentor, and has authored several articles and co-authored two books.
Carola Weil
Dean of Continuing Studies, McGill University
Since 2018, Dr. Carola Weil has served as Dean of Continuing Studies, McGill University’s interdisciplinary faculty dedicated to adult professional education, experiential and community-based learning. Specialized in organizational development, human security and conflict transformation, and humanitarianism, Dr. Weil’s career has straddled public policy, non-profit and philanthropic sectors in addition to higher education. She has held teaching, research and administrative appointments at leading universities in the United States, including at the Center for International Development and Conflict Management University of Maryland, supported grantmaking in conflict zones in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America, and co-founded and directed an international non-profit network, Women In International Security (WIIS). Carola Weil has authored or co-authored studies on humanitarian intervention, critical information needs of communities, humanitarianism as well as on topics related to gender and inclusion.
A dual citizen of Germany and the US, she holds a PhD and Master’s in Political Science (International Relations/Security), a MPM in Public Management from the University of Maryland, and a Bachelor’s Degree in History from Bryn Mawr College. She is multi-lingual and has lived, worked or travelled on most continents.
Sanjeev Asthana
Chief Executive Officer of Patanjali Foods
Sanjeev Asthana is the Chief Executive Officer of Patanjali Foods, a leading Foods, FMCG and Oil Palm Plantation company in India.
Sanjeev is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) and holds a master’s degree in business administration and management from Institute of Rural Management (IRMA). A highly recognized and active industry leader he has nearly four decades of experience in Food, Agribusiness, Retail and Private Equity. He has been in top management roles at large organizations including Cargill India, Reliance Retail and ITC Global Holdings. Sanjeev joined as CEO of Patanjali Foods (erstwhile, Ruchi Soya Industries) in 2020. He successfully led the turnaround of the company within a short span of three years, leading it out of bankruptcy phase to become a $3.8 billion company.
On the policy and advocacy side, he has worked closely at policy level with some of the key government and international institutions like GAIN, UNICEF, World Bank, IFC, ADB, etc. He has served as a key member of various committees established by the Government of India, including the Chairmanship for Taskforce of Planning Commission for the 12th five-year plan. His international affiliations include IIED UK, Columbia University, New York and The Chicago Council, a leading think tank of US on policy issues.
Sanjeev also serves as an Independent Director on the boards of various organizations including IndusInd Bank, NCDEX eMarkets (NeML), and NABARD Consultancy Services (NABCONS). He is the current President of Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEA), the largest edible oil association in India.
Sanjeev has been conferred with ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ at GlobOil India, 2022. In September 2024 ‘Millers for Nutrition’ added India to its Global effort and announced Sanjeev as their Ambassador of Fortification and Nutrition.
Salwa Karboune
Dean, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Associate Vice-President, Macdonald Campus
Professor Salwa Karboune is Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Associate Vice-President of Macdonald Campus. She is a graduate from the University of Marseille, France, in Food Biotechnology. Her main research expertise is in the design and development of new "green" approaches for the synthesis of novel functional food ingredients that can improve the quality and the functionality of food products.
Her research program is based on a multidisciplinary approach combining food chemistry, enzyme technology and nanotechnology and focuses on carbohydrate-based bioactive molecules. Such a research is important as the structural and molecular roles of oligo/polysaccharides in biological systems are increasingly being recognized. Her research work also contributes to the sustainability of the Agri-Food sector by developing innovative biocatalytic approaches to generating highly added value functional ingredients from food-processing by-products. Her multidisciplinary research program has garnered national and international recognition through the sustained excellence of the research her group conducted. Her research has attracted funding from CFI, FRQNT, NSERC and MAPAQ. As part of her R&D collaboration with industries, she has led NSERC Engage and CRD grants and has partnered with MITACS.
The research of her group has been covered in media, such as the McGill Reporter, CBC and Journal of Montreal. At the national and International level, she is a committee member of the CFI Science Advisory Board, CIFST’s Scientific Expert Council, and the European Innovation Commission Advisory Board. In 2015-2016, she chaired the NSERC Scholarships and Fellowships Selection Committee for Plant and Animal Biology. She also serves on editorial and advisory boards for journals in her field. Professor Karboune is passionate about science and active learning, and she is a strong supporter of hands-on projects. She successfully mentored teams of students to first place prizes at the prestigious IFT Food Product Development competition.
Charles Palmer Larson
Adjunct Professor, McGill School of Population and Global Health
Dr. Larson completed his medical degree and subsequent specializations in Pediatrics and Preventive Medicine & Public Health at McGill University. His global health career began in 1987 when he joined the McGill-Ethiopia Strengthening Community Health Project, which he directed from 1989 to 1992. Dr. Larson then returned to McGill as an Associate Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics and Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health (EBOH). He also headed the McGill Global Health Office within the Faculty of Medicine and led a five year McGill population child health project in Chelyabinsk Russia. In 2002 Dr. Larson moved to Bangladesh where, on secondment from McGill, he directed the Health Systems and Infectious Diseases Division at the International Centre for Diarrheal Diseases Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b). In 2008 Dr. Larson returned to Canada, joining the Department of Pediatrics at the University of British Columbia as Professor and Director of the UBC-BC Children's International Centre for Child Health. He subsequently returned to McGill in 2015, joining the new School of Population and Global Health. There he led the establishment of the Department of Global and Public Health and Directed McGill’s Global Health Programs from 2019 to 2023. He is currently an adjunct professor in the School.
André El Khoury
Full Professor at the Faculty of Sciences, Saint Joseph University of Beirut (USJ)
Professor André El Khoury is a distinguished scientist, academic leader, and regulatory consultant specializing in mycotoxicology, food safety, and risk management, with over 19 years of experience in academia, research, and consultancy. He is a Full Professor at the Faculty of Sciences, Saint Joseph University of Beirut (USJ), where he chairs the Master’s Program in Food Chemistry and directs the Laboratory of Mycotoxicology and Food Safety.
An internationally recognized expert, Professor El Khoury is also a Visiting Scholar at the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF), Laval University (Quebec, Canada), contributing to global initiatives on mycotoxin risk evaluation and mitigation. His research has led to extensive publications and three patents on innovative mycotoxins decontamination methods. He has delivered presentations at international conferences, congresses, and webinars.
He has extensive experience advising government ministries, standardization bodies, and international organizations, including the Lebanese Standards Institution (LIBNOR), the Ministries of Public Health, Agriculture, and Environment, the Lebanese National Council for Scientific Research, and the International Network of Biotechnology (INB) under UNICRI. He served as a member of the scientific expert panel for post-crisis biosafety assessments following the Beirut Port explosion.
Professor El Khoury is a committed mentor and educator, having supervised numerous PhD students in interdisciplinary topics spanning food toxicology, biosafety, and antimicrobial resistance. He holds a Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (HDR) in Mycotoxicology from the University Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier, a PhD in Environmental and Process Engineering from the National Polytechnic Institute of Toulouse (France), a master’s degree in agri-food engineering from the Lebanese University, and master’s degrees in food chemistry and physiology from Saint Joseph University of Beirut.
