You’re invited to a CCBC business seminar held at UBC Sauder School of Business’ downtown campus on November 30. Following CCBC’s 45th AGM Business Forum in Beijing on October 31, this event will highlight the present and future state of the Canada-China relationship. Guests will hear speakers covering topics discussed at the AGM Business Forum, such as the Chinese consumption shift and a discussion on natural resources, investment, and Indigenous engagement. There will also be insights from attendees of the AGM and three other trade missions that took place at the same time.

Join us to hear from these distinguished speakers:

• • • • Remarks on the Canada-China relationship – Vina Nadjibulla, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada’s newly appointed VP Research and Strategy
      • Chinese consumers and how Canadian brands can tap into the Chinese market – Peter McMath, Chief Revenue Officer, WPIC Marketing + Technologies
      • Marketing a Canadian brand at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai – David Tan, President & CEO, Sunnylife Health Enterprises
      • The role of Canada’s natural resources, inward investment from China and how collaboration with Indigenous communities can play a role – Grand Chief Edward John (Akile Ch’oh), Hereditary Chief of Tl’azt’en Nation, and Wei SHAO, Partner and National Practice Group Co-Leader for the China Service, Dentons

The event will include networking breaks, including registration at 9:30 am PST, a mid-morning coffee break, and a light buffet networking lunch from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm PST. The event will be a great opportunity for participants to network with the speakers and local Canada-China business community.

Tickets:
CCBC Members: $50 + tax (includes lunch)
Non-Members: $90 + tax (includes lunch)

Venue:
Sauder School of Business, UBC Robson Square, 800 Robson St,
C150, Bentley Lounge (Classroom Level)
Vancouver, BC

Agenda:
9:30 am – 10:00 am PST: Registration and Networking
10:00 am – 11:30 am PST: Welcome Remarks, Presentations, Panel Discussion
11:30 am PST: Networking Lunch
12:30 pm PST: Event ends

Please contact Lotta Ygartua, CCBC Regional Director, Western Canada, for more information or sponsorship at lotta@ccbc.com.

About the Speakers:

Grand Chief Edward John (Akile Ch’oh), LL.B.
Hereditary Chief of Tl’azt’en Nation

Grand Chief Edward John is a Hereditary Chief of Tl’azt’en Nation located on the banks of the Nak’al Bun (Stuart Lake) in Northern B.C. He is an Indigenous leader who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of social and economic justice for Canada’s Indigenous people, having worked as a leader in Indigenous politics, business and community development. Grand Chief John has been a lawyer for over 30 years. He holds a B.A. from the University of Victoria (UVIC), an LL.B from the University of British Columbia and Honorary Degrees from UVIC and the University of Northern BC.

Grand Chief John has served in many leadership roles at the local, provincial, national and international levels. He is a long serving elected member of the First Nations Summit political executive, which is mandated to carry out specific tasks related to Aboriginal Title and Rights negotiations with the governments of BC and Canada and other issues of common concern to First Nations in BC. He participated in the development of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in September 2007. He served a three-year term as the North American Representative to the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (January 2011 – December 2013) with a mandate to discuss indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights.

Peter McMath
Chief Revenue Officer
WPIC Marketing + Technologies

Peter McMath is the Chief Revenue Officer of WPIC Marketing + Technologies.

Originating from an entrepreneurial background as a founder and executive, Mr. McMath is obsessed with solving problems. Having built and executed solutions across every department of a company, Mr. McMath is now committed to leveraging his holistic experience in value creation and growth for organizations seeking market entry and market growth in the Asia Pacific regions.

From ideation to execution, Mr. McMath has developed products, built consumer brands, managed international sourcing and complex supply chain logistics and discovered partnership opportunities. Ultimately, Mr. McMath’s impact has created value for organizations and customers in over 40 countries.

Mr. McMath’s strong ability to identify and understand the core problems, then communicate a concise and appealing vision forward allows him to effectively identify key objectives and execute a plan to profitability and success.

Vina Nadjibulla
Vice-President, Research & Strategy
Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

Vina Nadjibulla joined the APF Canada as Vice-President Research & Strategy on November 7, 2023.

An Adjunct Professor at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia, Ms. Nadjibulla’s career includes two decades of experience in high-level diplomacy, strategic planning, policy analysis, and program management, with a focus on political risk analysis, conflict prevention, women’s rights, peacebuilding, and global governance.

As a Senior Research Fellow at the Soufan Center and a Fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, Ms. Nadjibulla’s recent research has focused on hostage diplomacy, Canada-China relations, and Canada’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific region. As an international security and peacebuilding specialist, she spent a significant portion of her career at the United Nations headquarters in New York and in peacekeeping and peacebuilding missions in West and Central Africa. She also has extensive experience working with national governments, non-profits, and philanthropic organizations in Canada, the U.S., Central Asia, and China.

Ms. Nadjibulla has been a long-time advocate for human rights and social justice. In 2018, she led an international advocacy campaign that helped to secure the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who were detained in China for more than 1,000 days.

Ms. Nadjibulla holds a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University and is fluent in English, Russian, and Farsi, and speaks intermediate Mandarin Chinese. A citizen of Canada, she was born in the Soviet Union, raised in Afghanistan, and educated in the U.S.

Wei SHAO
Partner and National Practice Group Co-Leader for the China Service
Dentons

Wei SHAO is the national practice group co-leader for the Canada China Country Collaboration group and specializes in international business transactions focusing on China. He has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, corporate and project financing, cross-border counseling, and general corporate and commercial transactions.

Mr. Shao has represented Chinese investors and entrepreneurs, sovereign and investment funds, private and public companies as well as major SOEs in various significant transactions in Canada, especially in natural resource and mining. Mr. Shao has also advised Canadian and international companies in natural resources, manufacturing, high-tech, environment, infrastructure and financial transactions in China. He has also provided legal advice to government agencies and diplomatic missions from both Canada and China. He is a frequent speaker at various conferences on matters related to investment in or from China.

Prior to his legal career Mr. Shao worked for the United Nations in New York. Mr. Shao is an interpreter accredited by the United Nations and by the federal government of Canada. As an interpreter or consultant, Mr. Shao has been involved in numerous ministerial and prime ministerial meetings or negotiations between Canada and China. Mr. Shao was a Mission Advisor of CCBC’s 2023 Indigenous Trade Mission to China that was held around the time of CCBC’s 45th AGM Business Forum in Beijing, China.

David Tan
President and CEO
Sunnylife Health Enterprises

David Tan is the President and CEO of Sunnylife Health Enterprises Inc., which offers a complete solution to wholesale, private label and OEM bee products and herbs. Mr. Tan is an entrepreneur who started his business in 2005 in Vancouver when he saw the market needed a one-stop contract manufacturing service for entrepreneurs who want to create and promote their own brands, so that they can control the sales channels. Mr. Tan will participate again in this year’s China International Import Expo (CIIE), an annual event in Shanghai.

Mr. Tan actively contributes to the healthcare industry by holding prominent positions in various associations and boards. He serves as the Vice President of the Canadian Medicines and Health Products Importer and Exporter Association, Deputy Secretary-General of the Chinese Medical Association Canadian Office, and Deputy Secretary-General of the World Chinese Doctors’ Association Canadian Office. Additionally, Mr. Tan is the Deputy Director of the Clinical Nutrition Committee of the North American Medical Alliance and the Director of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Medicines and Health Products.

Furthermore, he plays a pivotal role as the Deputy Secretary-General of the Belt and Road Medical Device Innovation and Application Alliance in Shanghai. His influence extends to being the Canadian Advisor to the Belt and Road Medical Education Alliance in Shenyang and the National Cardiovascular Association in Suzhou. Mr. Tan is also a Collaborating Partner of the Sinclair Laboratory Research Fund at Harvard Medical School and serves as the US Contact for the Nutrition Office of the FDA.

Moreover, he contributes as the Supplier of Health Product Export Price Index for the US Department of Commerce and serves as the Domestic Conference Executive for the US Senate Health Committee Advisor. In the realm of international cooperation, Mr. Tan acts as the US-China Cancer Research Center Liaison for Nanjing Zhongmai.

In the business sector, Mr. Tan holds positions as executive at or advisor to companies involved in natural, anti-aging, pharmaceutical and Chinese medicine products.