Louise Arbour took over as President & CEO of the International Crisis Group in July 2009. From 2004 to 2008 she served as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

A Canadian national, Ms. Arbour began an academic career in 1974 at Osgoode Hall Law School of York University in Toronto. In December 1987 she was appointed to the Supreme Court of Ontario, and in 1990 to the Court of Appeal for Ontario. In 1995, as Commisioner of an inquiry into the Prison for Women in Kingston, Ontario she produced a report which accelerated the move towards modern institutions specifically designed to meet the security and programming needs of women inmates.

In 1996, Ms. Arbour was appointed by the Security Council of the United Nations as Chief Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda. After three years as Prosecutor, she resigned to take up an appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Ms. Arbour has received 39 honorary degrees and is affiliated with many distinguished professional societies and organisations. In 2009, she became a member of the Advisory Board for the 2011 World Bank Development Report: ‘Conflict, Security and Development’; in 2010, she joined the Global Commission on Elections, Democracy and Security; and in April 2011, became a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy.

Ms. Arbour is a Companion of the Order of Canada (2007) and a Grande Officière de l’Ordre national du Quebec (2009). She is the recipient of numerous medals and awards, including the Franklin D. Roosevelt Freedom from Fear Award (2000) and the French Legion of Honour (2010). Alongside former President of Brazil Luis Inácio Lula da Silva, Ms. Arbour received the North-South Prize of the Council of Europe in March 2011.

Louise Arbour was born in Montreal, Quebec and has three children.

Founder, CEO and Chair of the Board of Administration of the Centre d’entreprises et d’innovation de Montréal (CEIM) since 1996, Ms. Hélène Desmarais holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance from HEC Montréal. CEIM is a business incubator, with an emphasis on startups as well as the development of innovative IT, multimedia, industrial technology and biotech companies. CEIM supports the emergence of viable, innovative and successful companies from those sectors which are an economic priority for the Greater Metropolitan Area of Montreal and the province of Quebec.

In 2003, Ms. Desmarais was appointed first female President of HEC’s Board of Administration, to which she had been named in 1999. She is Co-President and founder of the International Advisory Board of HEC Montréal (1990), is chair of the University of Montreal’s Faculty of Medicine Advisory Committee (2006), is chair of the advisory board of the Consultative Committee of the Hospital Centre of the Université de Montréal (CHUM) (2008), is President of the Advisory Board and member of the Board of Governors of the Conference of Montreal (International Economic Forum of the Americas, 1995), is President of the Board of Administration of The Montreal Economic Institute (2007) where she has held a seat since 2002, is Chair of the Canadian Joint Regional Committees of the C.D. Howe Institute since 2006. She is founder and Chair of the Board of Administration and of the Entrepreneurial Development Committee of the Société de développement économique Ville-Marie (SDEVM) since 1998. She is both Chair of the Board of Administration and of the Financial Assistance Committee of the SDEVM’s Société d’Investissement Jeunesse (SIJ) Loan Guarantee Program.  She was President of the Board of Directors of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, was on its Board from 2002-2009 and has sat on its Executive Committee since 2005. She has been Deputy Chair of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Chair and founder of its Fondation since 2008.  She chaired a commission formed by the Province of Quebec to study the healthcare industry (1997).

Ms. Desmarais also sits on the following Boards of administrations : Garda World Security Corporation (2006); C.D. Howe Institute (2005); the Institute for Governance of Private and Public Organizations (2005); of the IRCM – The Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (2005), of Génome Québec (2002), of VAL-CHUM — Société de valorisation des recherches du CHUM (2004). She is a member of the Conseil des partenaires de l’innovation (CIP), which falls under the aegis of Quebec’s Ministry of Développement économique, Innovation et Exportation (2006), of the City of Montreal Economic Orientation Committee (2005), of the advisory board of Biotechnology Research Iinstitute, National Research Council of Canada (1998−2001) and of the Investment Committee, Hydro-Quebec CapiTech - Innovation Fund (2001−2004).

Recipient, Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee Medal 2002; Order of Merit, Université de Montréal 2007; Medal of Honour, Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal 2009; Doctor of Laws honoris causa, St. Francis Xavier University 2009; Order of Canada, Chancellery of Honours 2009; Prix entrepreneurship of Conseil du Patronat du Québec 2010; Grande Montréalaise (economic sector), Académie des grands montréalais and la Chambre de commerce du Montréal métropolitain 2010.

Mr. Molson is the President and CEO of the Club de hockey Canadiens Inc., evenko and the Bell Center.

Mr. Molson most recently served as Vice-President of Marketing for Molson in Canada, where he played a strategic role in the development of company brands and in strengthening partnerships with key stakeholders.

He has worked for Molson in various other roles in the US and Canada, including positions at Molson USA such as Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, and Vice‑President of Quality and Distributor Development.  Geoff currently represents MCBC as Ambassador, representing the Molson Family in key strategic areas of the business.

In addition to the Molson family foundation to support philanthropic initiatives across Canada, Mr. Molson also serves on the board of the St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation and the Montreal Canadiens Children’s Foundation, and is active in many key community initiatives across Canada.

Mr. Molson is also a member of the Board of Directors of CHC Group, Molson Coors Brewing Company, Res Publica, Rona Inc and a member of the Board of Governors of the National Hockey League.

As the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Caisse since March 2009, Michael Sabia is responsible for the strategic direction of the institution and determines the necessary course of action to fulfill its mission. He also chairs the Executive Committee.

Before joining the Caisse, Mr. Sabia was with BCE, holding such positions as President and Chief Executive Officer, Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Executive Officer of Bell Canada International. From 1993 to 1999, he occupied various roles with Canadian National Railway, including Chief Financial Officer. He spent the preceding decade working as senior official in the Government of Canada.

Mr. Sabia obtained a Bachelor of Arts in economics and politics from the University of Toronto and holds graduate degrees in economics and politics from Yale University.

Mr. Sabia is a member of the governing council of Finance Montréal. He was also a member of the North American Competitiveness Council from 2005 to 2008. Mr. Sabia has been very active in the community over the past few years; some of his endeavours have notably included serving as the Honorary Chairman of the Bal du Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec, chairing the fundraising campaign for Maison Saint- Gabriel and co-chairing the campaign for the Montréal Heart Institute Foundation. In 2006, he co-chaired the campaign for Centraide du Grand Montréal.

Thierry Vandal has been involved in the North American energy sector for nearly 30 years. He has worked in the oil industry (operations and marketing), the petro-chemical industry (production and international marketing), and the natural gas industry (business development and strategic planning).

Mr. Vandal joined Hydro-Québec in November 1996. He served as Vice President–Strategic Planning and Business Development, and then in 2001 became President of Hydro-Québec Production. In April 2005, he was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Hydro-Québec.

Mr. Vandal holds an engineering degree from École polytechnique (Université de Montréal, 1982) and an MBA from École des hautes études commerciales (Université de Montréal, 1995). In 2007, the Université de Montréal awarded him an honorary doctorate to underscore his outstanding professional contribution to the energy sector.

Mr. Vandal is Chairman of the Board of the Société d’énergie de la Baie James and Hydro-Québec International, and Chairman of the Board of BioFuelNet Canada. He sits on the boards of The Conference Board of Canada, École des hautes études commerciales de Montréal and McGill University, where he also serves as Chair of the Finance Committee.

In June 2012, Mr. Vandal was elected a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. In the same month, he was awarded the 2012 Canadian Energy Person of the Year award.