Chris Leithner studied at McGill and Queen’s universities, the Australian National University and the University of Strathclyde. He is Managing Director of Leithner & Co. Pty. Ltd., a “private equity” company based in Brisbane, Australia. Mr. Leithner also manages the Western Pacific Leithner Value Fund. The Western Pacific Financial Group, which presently has $A1.6 billion under management, is one of the largest independent financial groups in Australia. He is cited regularly in The Australian and The Australian Financial Review.

Tasha Kheiriddin is a political opinion leader who has written two bestsellers, Rescuing Canada’s Right and The Right Path. Based in Toronto, she is also the national political columnist for the Postmedia chain of newspapers and a lecturer at McGill’s Max Bell School of Public Policy.

With a humanities degree from Brébeuf and a law degree from McGill University, Ms. Kheiriddin practised law in Montreal and worked as legislative assistant for the Attorney General of Ontario. She then hosted and produced news shows for CBC Newsworld, CPAC, CTV News Channel, and Global News Radio, and was a political analyst for Radio-Canada and a member of the editorial board of the National Post. Ms. Kheiriddin has also worked for the Montreal Economic Institute, the Fraser Institute, and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, and ran her own communications consultancy. In 2016, the Women’s Executive Network named her one of Canada’s “Top 100 Most Powerful Women” in the media and communications sector.

Ms. Kheiriddin has served on numerous boards of directors, including for the Old Port of Montreal Corporation, the Manning Centre for Building Democracy, Apathy is Boring, Resources for Exceptional Children and Youth, and the COVID-19 Social Impacts Network. She currently serves on the boards of directors of Centre Ice Canadians and of 2 Intelligence Company Senate.

Professor Michael Wohlgemuth is Managing Research Associate at the Walter Eucken Institute in Freiburg, Germany.

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Valentin Petkantchin is an economist with more than 20 years of European and North American experience in academic research and in the applied analysis of public policies and regulation. He holds a PhD in economics and a master’s degree in finance from the Université Paul-Cézanne – Aix-Marseille III (France). He also has a degree in economic journalism and media from this same university.

Valentin has been Director of Research and Associate Researcher for several research institutes, including the MEI from 2004 to 2006. A specialist in health economics, tobacco harm reduction, and innovative nicotine products, he acquired experience in this field in the corporate world from 2014 to 2021.

Valentin has also been invited as a speaker to present his knowledge and expertise at national and international seminars and conferences. He has a wealth of media experience as well, commenting on economic and financial news and on public policies.

Valentin is the author of numerous scientific studies, publications in peer-reviewed journals, and opinion pieces on a wide variety of topics, from the economic analysis of Formula 1 racing to retail alcohol monopolies, and from pharmaceutical and health care innovation to competition in telecom markets. His opinion pieces have appeared in both English and French media and on both sides of the Atlantic, including among others the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Post, the San Francisco Gate, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Le Temps and L’Agefi in Switzerland, Le Soir and L’Écho in Belgium, and Les Échos and La Tribune in France.

Finally, he is the author of a 1996 book entitled Les sentiments moraux font la richesse des nations, which examines the thought of the “founding father of economics,” Adam Smith.

Yvonne Chan is the Principal of the Vaughn Next Century Learning Center in Los Angeles which serves students living in poverty. Her degrees include an M. A. in special education from California State University and a doctorate in education from UCLA. The Vaughn Next Century Learning Center was named the 1995 California Distinguished School and the 1996 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. Dr. Chan was profiled by the Time magazine, Prime Time Life, Good Morning America, National PBS, Education Week and many others. She received numerous awards including the National Educator Award by the California State Department of Education.

Yanick Labrie holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Concordia University and a master’s degree in economics from the Université de Montréal. Before joining the MEI, he taught economics at CEGEP St-Jean-sur-Richelieu and lectured at HEC Montréal’s Institute of Applied Economics, from 2006 to 2011. Prior to that, he was economist at the Center for Interuniversity Research and Analysis on Organizations (CIRANO) from 2004 to 2006. He has authored numerous policy papers and is also frequently invited to participate in conferences and debates, and to comment on economic affairs in the media. Many of his articles have appeared in the National Post, The Gazette, The Province, La Presse and other newspapers. Yanick Labrie left the MEI in December 2015. (High resolution photo)

Eric Boyko is co-founder and president (since 2007) of Stingray Digital Inc., an international company dedicated exclusively to digital media. He founded eFundraising.com, Corp. in 1991 and was its president until recently. A graduate from McGill University, Mr. Boyko has a specialization in accounting and became a certified general accountant in 1997. Winner of the Top 40 under 40 prize for 2006, he is a member of the board of directors of the Business Development Bank of Canada, of the Montreal Development Program, of the Young Presidents’ Association (YPO), of French for the Future and of the Anges financiers from the Jeune Chambre de commerce de Montréal.