NanoCanada is the catalyst for the commercialization of advanced materials, quantum, and nanotechnologies. Being a part of the NanoCanada community provides the opportunity for national and international exposure for your organization. NanoCanada delivers a competitive advantage to all its members through its wide network of industrial, research, and government partners.

NanoCanada has a set number of goals to respond to the needs of its stakeholder community:

Marie D’Iorio is a Senior Strategy Advisor with the Office of the Vice President Research at the University of Ottawa and is President of NanoCanada. Prior to joining the University of Ottawa, she led the National Institute for Nanotechnology (2011-2016) and the Institute for Microstructural Sciences (2003-2011) at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). Dr. D’Iorio obtained a Master’s and a Doctorate degree in Solid State Physics from the University of Toronto. After a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at IBM Zurich Research Laboratories, she joined the NRC, where she established Canada’s first very low temperature, high magnetic field laboratory to study quantum semiconductor devices and later led one of Canada’s first research programs on organic light emitting devices.

In 2015 she launched NanoCanada, to connect the nanotechnology community across the country and to facilitate partnerships and collaborations between academia, industry and government linking facilities and expertise to support the translation of scientific breakthroughs to the marketplace. She has served as President of the Academy of Science of the Royal Society of Canada and President of the Canadian Association of Physicists.

Janice Warkentin is the Director of Business Development and Corporate Board Secretary for NanoCanada. Janice started her career working for non-profit organizations. She moved to the federal government and now has over a decade of experience working for both the Canadian House of Commons and the National Research Council. Her experience includes communications, stakeholder engagement and consultation, public relations, and business development. Janice has been with NanoCanada since the launch of the program in 2015 and has been instrumental in building and developing a global network of industry, government, and academic connections. She travels regularly to Asia, Europe, and North America, leading delegations that showcase Canadian excellence in emerging technologies.

Janice also has volunteered on a number of community boards and served as corporate secretary and chair of church and school councils.

Patricia I. Tokunaga is the Director of Operations at NanoCanada. Patricia oversees the business functions of NanoCanada and has been part of the NanoCanada team since it launched in 2015. She is responsible for implementing strategic initiatives within NanoCanada and engaging a wide range of stakeholders. Patricia is passionate about helping member companies find ways to connect with partners all around the globe. Her experience comes from working in a wide range of corporate, non-profit, and government environments in various roles. She holds a management degree with a major in international management from the University of Lethbridge and holds a Facilities Management Administrator designation.