Sir John Daniel is one of the world’s most eminent practitioners and thinkers in open, distance and technology mediated learning. He has helped to progress the international development agenda in education globally and has been a distinguished leader of universities and intergovernmental organisations in Canada, France and the United Kingdom. A citizen of both Canada and the UK, he was knighted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for services to higher education in 1994 and holds 31 honorary doctorates from universities in 17 countries.
Sir John Daniel obtained his full-time university education in Metallurgy at the Universities of Oxford and Paris and later demonstrated his commitment to lifelong learning by taking 25 years to complete a part-time Master's degree in Educational Technology at Concordia University. The internship for this programme, which took him to infant UK Open University in 1972, was a life-changing experience. He saw the future of higher education and wanted to be part of it.
This career took Sir John on an international odyssey with appointments at the Télé-université, Québec (Directeur des Études, 1973-77); Athabasca University, Alberta (Vice-President for Learning Services, 1978-80); Concordia University, Montreal (Vice-Rector, Academic, 1980-84); Laurentian University, Ontario (President, 1984-90); the UK Open University (Vice-Chancellor, 1990-2001); UNESCO, Paris (Assistant Director-General for Education, 2001-04); and the Commonwealth of Learning, Vancouver (President and CEO, 2004-2012). His non-executive appointments have included the presidencies of the International Council for Open and Distance Education, the Canadian Association for Distance Education and the Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education. He also served as Vice-President of the International Baccalaureate Organisation. He is currently Education Master with the Beijing DeTao Masters Academy, China. Among Sir John's 320 publications are his books Mega-Universities and Knowledge Media: Technology Strategies for Higher Education (Kogan Page, 1996) and Mega-Schools, Technology and Teachers: Achieving Education for All (Routledge, 2010).
Mdm. May Hsu
Member of Advisory Board
Ms. Hsu has over 20 years of experience in market research, business development, management consulting and marketing for international businesses. Her experience includes identifying and securing high-profile clients and conducting market research for firms such as Multi-Fineline Electronix Inc., a high-tech manufacturing company with nearly 4,000 employees in China and the U.S. Ms. Hsu also assists North American firms establish business in Asia and helps Chinese companies set up businesses in the U.S.
Ms. Hsu was appointed as the Acting Secretary of State for California in 1990, and Senior Consultant to Zhuhai New Hi-Tech Industries Development Zone in China in 1997. She also served as Advisor to Suzhou Machinery Holding (Group) Co. Ltd. in China in 1999.
Ms. Hsu is affiliated with numerous community organizations in California, including the Young Generation Asian Professionals, Asian American Senior Citizens Service Center, Bowers Museum and Pan Pacific Performing Arts.
Raymond D. Schachter, LLB
Member of Advisory Board
Mr. Raymond D. Schachter has a Masters Degree in Mathematics, a Bachelors Degree in Commerce and a Graduate Degree in Law. Mr. Schachter is a commercial and corporate lawyer with the law firm Quorum Law Office in Vancouver, BC. Mr. Schachter began practicing law in 1972 and prior to moving to British Columbia in 1984, he was a partner of Witten Binder, a major law firm in Edmonton, Alberta. His expertise includes general corporate and commercial law and corporate structure. Mr. Schachter has acted for CIBT Education Group and its subsidiaries since late 1980s.
Madam Guo Yiqing, Consulate General, People’s Republic of China (retired)
Member of Advisory Board
Madam Guo was the Education Consul for the Consulate General of The People’s Republic of China before her retirement in 2000. Over the past 30 years, she has represented China’s Ministry of Education at Chinese embassies and consulates located in New York, Washington, Australia and Canada. From 1983 to 1992, Madam Guo served as the Division Chief of American Oceania Affairs, Foreign Affairs Bureau, and Ministry of Education of People’s Republic of China. From 1979 to 1983, Madam Guo served as Third Secretary at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC, also Vice Consul at China’s Consulate General in New York.
In addition to her exemplary service as a diplomat, Madam Guo was a scholar and teaching professor at Nankai University, China. As a professor and leader in the exchange of high quality international academia, Madam Guo has extensive experience and contacts in both the education and international political circles.
Mr. Allan Ebedes, CA, MBA, President & CEO, Management Mentors International Inc
Member of Advisory Board
Mr. Ebedes has over 25 years of professional, business, management, entrepreneurial and teaching experience. He earned a B.Com degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, an MBA degree from the University of Toronto in 1976, and is a qualified CA and member of the Canadian and Ontario Institutes of Chartered Accountants. Mr. Ebedes founded and currently serves as the CEO and President of Management Mentors International Inc., www.managementmentors.ca a company providing training, coaching and mentoring to managers, executives and business leaders.
Mr. Ebedes is a member of the World Presidents’ Organization (WPO), and was previously a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO). He serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management Integrative Management Challenge program for MBA and Commerce students. He has published a business case study for use by the MBA students of the University of Western Ontario’s Richard Ivey School of Business.
Since 1979, Mr. Ebedes has been actively engaged in the education and training sector in Canada and abroad. Mr. Ebedes was the founder, Chairman and CEO of the Toronto School of Business, International Business Schools and the CompuCollege School of Business. He orchestrated the acquisition of The Career College of Alberta, Success Business College of Manitoba, and the Career Canada College of Ontario. In 1989, Mr. Ebedes completed the successful Initial Public Offering of International Business Schools Inc (“IBSI”) on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange in New York. Another publicly traded company on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in South Africa subsequently acquired IBSI. Mr. Ebedes has also served as the CEO of LaunchLife International Inc. c.o.b. the Academy of Learning headquartered in Richmond Hill, Ontario with over 100 locations across Canada and 25 other locations in South Africa and in 6 other countries.
In addition to his business experience and entrepreneurial spirit, Mr. Ebedes has been instrumental in the training of over a quarter of a million adult students across Canada. He has personally taught and addressed many thousands of students, and has been rated as an outstanding teacher, facilitator, public speaker and motivator by his students and other faculty members. Mr. Ebedes has been listed in Who’s Who in American Education. Mr. Ebedes and his company were recently featured in the Saturday, Sept. 4th “Report on Business” section of The Globe and Mail.
Prithep Sosothikul, BSc
Member of Advisory Board
Mr. Sosothikul is a well-known business executive in Thailand with extensive contacts in the IT industry throughout Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Cambodia, India, Laos, Malaysia and the Philippines. Mr. Sosothikul completed his studies in the U.S. and returned to Thailand in 1980. Since his return to Thailand, he has worked for major international corporations such as Loxley Public Co., Ltd., the Seacon Group, Datamat Public Company Ltd., HCL, and Perot Systems of Singapore. For three years, he served as the president and executive director of Datamat Public Company Ltd. of Bangkok, Thailand. During these years, he guided Datamat in its international expansion plan and doubled their annual revenue from CAD$65 million to over CAD$130 million. He is responsible for establishing corporate and marketing policies for his family’s asset, Seacon Center located in Bangkok, Thailand. Seacon was ranked the fifth largest shopping center in the world, and the largest in Asia. He is also a Director of various private and public companies in Thailand. Mr. Sosothikul became an active Director of his family’s company, the Seacon Group in 2006. Seacon Group is one of the largest conglomerates in Thailand with businesses in construction, shopping malls, hotel, food ingredients, rubber shoes manufacturing and real estate holdings. Mr. Sosothikul adds tremendous value to the company’s expansion into the ASEAN (Association of South East Asia Nations) region.
David Richardson
Member of Advisory Board
David Richardson – President and CEO of Octaform Systems Inc., a unique patented stay-in-place concrete forming system. Founded in 1997, Octaform has developed numerous applications for its product in diverse markets. This innovative PVC technology, allows for design efficiency and flexibility that architects, engineers, and contractors demand. Octaform's utility extends to all types of construction including agricultural, aquaculture, commercial / industrial, as well as residential and specialty projects. Mr. Richardson has a B. Comm. Honours from the University of Manitoba. He is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors with the professional designation ICD.D.
Prior to pursuing his own endeavors, Mr. Richardson worked with James Richardson & Sons, Limited in the capacity of Manager Food and New Product Development, focused on value added processing in Western Canada. Concurrent with and supporting his experience with the family enterprise, Mr. Richardson was actively involved in government lobby activities. He was a founding member and director of the Asia Pacific Foundation and was co-leader in various government trade missions to Asia while on the Board of the Canada China Trade Council.
Mr. Richardson is a founder and director of Kodiak Exploration Limited, a Canadian based mineral exploration company actively pursuing properties with strong potential for base metals, copper and nickel, as well as gold and uranium. He is a Director Emeritus of Ducks Unlimited Canada following 20 years on that board and remains dedicated to serving several private, public, and philanthropic boards.
