Board Member Profiles

Chair

Mark Porter, P.Eng., StructEng., is a Designated Structural Engineer with over 25 years of experience. His work around sustainability and climate change has been recognized by the award of Fellowship in the Institution of Structural Engineers and Engineers Canada. A champion of sustainability since the early days of his career, he has led and been part of cross-disciplinary structural, mechanical, and electrical engineering teams on award-winning and boundary-breaking projects. Mark brings a deep recognition of the essential value of prioritizing people in design and in leadership, finding great motivation in investing in leadership development, mentorship, and serving with committees and code-development projects to advance sustainability in the built environment. He was the founding Chair of the Climate Change Advisory Group to Engineers Geoscientists BC , and also serves on the Wood First Advisory Committee for the Forestry Innovation Investment Group as well as CSA Code Development Committees. Mark is the Vice President of Engineering at Nexii Building Solutions.

Vice Chair

Karen Ling, P.Eng., is a well respected senior leader in the construction industry, experienced in mentoring teams, assessing risk, and overseeing revenue and profitability of operations. Having held roles such as Vice President of Operations and Project Director, she is skilled at strategic operations and change management, including development of succession plans and introduction of equity, diversity, and inclusion policies. Karen has served the engineering and geoscience community recently as the outgoing Chair of the Board of Directors for the Engineers and Geoscientists BC Benevolent Fund Society, and continues to focus on public outreach as a volunteer mentoring and educating children in engineering, science and technology in classrooms.  Karen is a collaborative communicator, directing team members’ focus towards common goals to build agreement and action. Overseeing project teams within the construction industry requires bringing a broad range of opinions to consensus, often involving stakeholders of differing backgrounds and motivations. Karen has had a wide variety of experience in leadership roles, including as a construction industry executive and as a small business owner.

Immediate Past Chair

Michelle Mahovlich, P.Eng., P.Geo., FCSSE, recently stepped down from her role as the Director of Engineering and Public Works for the City of Langford where she worked for the past 14 years. She currently has her own firm practising primarily in municipal engineering. Previously, Michelle was the Project Manager that oversaw the remediation of the former cement plant at the 1,500 acre Bamberton site and then the site’s Development Manager. Her 17 years of private sector work experience included both geotechnical and contaminated sites engineering work. Michelle holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology and a minor in Biology from McMaster University, along with a master's degree in geological engineering from the University of British Columbia. Prior to being first elected to the Board in 2020, Michelle served on Engineers and Geoscientists BC’s Investigation Committee as Vice-Chair and as an executive member of the Municipal Engineers Division. Michelle spends much of her volunteer time with the University of Victoria, Camosun College, and local school districts promoting women in STEM and is a strong proponent of ongoing professional development for her work team. She currently mentors five EITs/GITs working toward their professional designations. Michelle is an experienced volunteer with Engineers and Geoscientists BC and has served on the Board for more than 4 years. 

Board Members

Veronica Knott, P.Eng.,  is currently the Manager, Mining Technology Support Services at Newmont Corporation, providing technical expertise and program oversight of global mining technology solutions. She is a demonstrated mining leader with operational and engineering experience in surface and underground mining. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Mining Engineering from the University of British Columbia (UBC). In addition to her full-time work, Veronica has spent her time volunteering for various organizations advocating for youth, education, diversity and STEM, notably Girl Guides of Canada, the UBC Board of Governors, and Canadian Mining Games. 

Matthew Salmon, P.Eng., After serving 24 years with the British Army in the Corps of Royal Engineers, Matthew moved to Canada in 2015 with his young family and started working for the District of Lake Country where he is currently the Director of Engineering and Environmental Services. Matthew is a strategic leader and a natural problem solver and is proudly representing the Okanagan. Of particular interest to Matthew, is continuing to raise standards and accountability and ensuring the Continuing Education (CE) requirements are relevant and appropriate.   

Malcolm Shield, P.Eng., has worked in academia, government, non-profit, consulting, real-estate and utilities. His focus has been on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and managing climate risk through technology, regulation and policy. As a registered Project Management Professional and Certified Risk Manager, Malcolm develops organizational strategy, interdisciplinary teams and fosters enduring behavior change to guide individuals and organizations through the ambiguity of an increasingly complex world. Malcolm is committed to being a life-long learner and working in the service to others. He has sat on Engineers & Geoscientists BC’s Climate Change Advisory Group since its inception in 2012 and is on a number of other non-profit Boards. Malcolm is currently Vice President of Sustainability at Wesgroup Properties.

Jens Weber, P.Eng., is a professor in the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Victoria. His research, teaching and professional interests are in software safety and security engineering. Dr. Weber served as the Director of the accredited Bachelor of Software Engineering degree program from 2007–2014 and as Acting Associate Dean in 2021. He was an industry research fellow with the BC Advanced Systems Institute from 2004–2008. Dr. Weber has been licensed with Engineers and Geoscientists BC as a professional engineer since 2009. He received his doctoral degree from the University of Paderborn (Germany) and was awarded the Ernst-Denert Software Engineering Prize in 2000.
 

Dr. Gordon Zhou, P.Eng., is the Director of Transit Expansion at TransLink, where he leads the delivery of major rail and bus expansion programs, including integrating the Broadway Subway and Surrey Langley SkyTrain into the Metro Vancouver public transportation system. With extensive experience managing large-scale infrastructure projects in both public and private sectors, he combines technical expertise with strategic business objectives to ensure successful project delivery. Licensed as a professional engineer in Canada and the United States, Dr. Zhou has worked on diverse building and transportation infrastructure projects across North America. He is actively engaged in the engineering community, currently serving as a Board Member and Vice Chair of the Professional Practice Advisory Group for Engineers and Geoscientists BC. Passionate about lifelong learning, he also teaches project management as a part-time faculty member at Simon Fraser University and Vancouver Community College. Dr. Zhou holds a Master of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University and a Doctor of Engineering in Engineering Management from The George Washington University.

Government Order in Council Appointees

Bill Chan, CPA CGA, ICD.D, sits on the Board of Directors of Vancity Credit Union since 2018 and is the Chair of the Audit Committee and member of the Governance and Risk Committees. Bill also sits on the BC Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) that provides specialized health services (i.e., BC Women’s Hospital, BC Children’s Hospital, BC Cancer, BC Transplant, BC Centre for Disease Control). He is the Chair of the Finance and Operations Committee and a member of the Audit Committee. Bill has over 25 years of executive management experience with Encorp / Return-It depots in BC and was their Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Bill's career path has focused on building successful programs that bring together financial sustainability while being environmentally and socially responsible. Bill also volunteers his time with the CPABC (Chartered Professional Accountants of BC) board.

Cathy McIntyre, M.B.A., C.Dir., is a senior executive with over 30 years of business experience and 20 years of board experience.  Her management background includes corporate strategy, marketing, communications and stakeholder engagement   A seasoned board director, she is known for her passion for good governance, and as a champion of advancing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles.  Cathy currently serves on the Board of Directors of First West Credit Union, where she chairs the HR Committee.  Her past board experience includes Consumer Protection BC, CADTH, the University of Victoria’s Board of Governors, the Victoria Hospitals Foundation, the Arthritis Society of Canada and the CMA Society of BC, among others.  Cathy earned an MBA at the University of Victoria and a Post Degree Diploma in Accounting at Camosun College.  She is a Chartered Director (C.Dir), holds the Corporate Director Certificate from Harvard Business School, and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.  

Colette Trudeau, M.A. is a proud citizen of the Métis Nation British Columbia (MNBC) and serves as their Chief Executive Officer. With over 15 years of dedicated service to her Nation, Colette has demonstrated a strong commitment to public service, gradually ascending through various leadership roles from Director of Youth to Senior Director of Operations and Administration. As CEO, Colette has led by example, fostering strong relationships through collaboration and consensus-building. Colette's curiosity and passion for learning are evident in her extensive involvement in various committees and boards. Her commitment to community leadership is exemplified through her previous roles as an elected school trustee in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows and board member for Mamele’awt Qweesome Housing Society. She has also been a representative of the Surrey Urban Indigenous Leadership Council, the 4 R's Young Leaders Initiative, the Unified Aboriginal Youth Collective, and the Circle on Philanthropy and Aboriginal Peoples of Canada, to only name a few. Colette has completed her Master of Arts in Executive Leadership at Royal Roads University and is a passionate advocate for the inherent rights of Métis people in British Columbia under section 35 of the Constitution.

TJ Schmaltz, JD, FCPHR, SHRM-SCP, ICD.D, is currently the Chief People and Legal Officer with one of Canada’s largest credit union’s where he has oversight for employee experience, communications, governance, ESG and legal affairs.  TJ is an experienced board member having recently finished his term as Chair for the Chartered Professionals in Human Resources Canada as well as the North American Human Resources Association, representing over 360,000 HR professionals across the continent.  He currently serves on the Vancouver College Board as well as the BC Credit Union Pension and Benefits Trust, which oversees more than $1B in assets under management.  TJ holds the ICD.D, the Canadian Chartered Professional in Human Resources (CPHR) and American Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) designations. He earned a Bachelor of Common Law and a Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill University, and a Bachelor of Social Science from the University of Ottawa. In 2018, TJ was granted the title of Fellow Chartered Professional in Human Resources (FCPHR) for his contributions to the HR profession in BC and across Canada.