Open North is pleased to announce the addition of three new board members: Léa Berlinguet, Vanessa Henri, as well as Chad Lubelsky who will be holding the title of President of the Board of Directors. Their combined expertise in data privacy, AI, ethics, leadership, and non-profits make them invaluable assets in our work. We look forward to joining forces with them to promote our new vision: For data and technology that empower transparent, accountable and inclusive communities.
Léa Berlinguet has devoted her entire professional life to non-profit organizations. A graduate of HEC Montréal, she joined the Conseil des relations internationales de Montréal for four years. She has now joined the Montréal International team, where she works for the city’s economic development. Prior to Open North, she sat on the board of directors of the Fondation Jacques-Bouchard, a charitable organization working to promote access to palliative home care, from its creation 12 years ago to its recent merger with a sister organization. She is also a member of external committees, including the AI committee of our city’s life sciences cluster, Montréal Invivo.
At Montréal International, Léa has been responsible for attracting foreign investment to the Life Sciences and Health Technologies sector for the past five years. In this fast-growing sector, including the exciting crossroads between health and artificial intelligence, she contributes to Montréal’s avant-garde positioning by representing the city on prospecting trips and at specialized conferences. By accompanying a growing number of projects in the sector, she develops her interest in the concepts of ethics, data access and cutting-edge research in this dynamic field.
Vanessa Henri specializes in data protection and information security law. She advises organizations on the operationalization of related concepts such as privacy and security by design.
She is a Certified Data Protection Officer (CDPO) with proven experience in assisting organizations with data protection legislation, such as the General Data Protection Regulation, and other standards affecting entities operating in a data-driven market. Vanessa helps organizations, in particular in the sector of emerging technologies, to manage legal risks relating to data in a preventive manner, allowing organizations to build trust with their customers and acquire a competitive edge.
Vanessa has aided organizations negotiating commercial agreements involving security and privacy requirements in the technology sector. She also advises boards of directors on risk management relating to data protection and information security, ensuring that both they and their organizations are compliant and avoid liability.
Vanessa holds a Master of Law (LLM) from McGill University on the topic of cyberespionage and teaches Corporate Cybersecurity Practices at St. Thomas University (Florida, USA), where she is also a member of the Board of Advisors for the LLM program in Cybersecurity and Privacy. Her studies on the Dark Net were funded by the Quebec Bar Association and published in the Canadian Journal of Law and Technology.
Chad Lubelsky is a Program Director with the McConnell Foundation where he is the lead on strategy and program development for public interest journalism and post-secondary education.
Prior to joining the Foundation, Chad was the Executive Director of Santropol Roulant – a Montreal-based award-winning community centre, developed leadership and community engagement programs for the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, worked as an Assignment Editor for NBC news in San Francisco; managed global Internet Rights advocacy for the South African based Association for Progressive Communications, and was a Founding Trustee of the Montreal Awesome Foundation. Chad has served on numerous boards and is an active volunteer. He holds a BA in Communications and Master’s Degrees in Communications and Leadership.
We would like to express our deepest gratitude to the outgoing members of the Board for their dedication and wisdom: Prof. Tracey Lauriault, Henri-Francois Gautrin, and former President of the Board Jonathan Brun, who has been with us since the foundation of Open North.