Team

Prof. Dr. Michael H. Eikerling is a Director at the Institute of Energy and Climate Research in Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, where he is leading a sub-institute for Theory and Computation of Energy Materials, and a full professor of materials science at RWTH Aachen. Prior to joining Forschungszentrum Jülich, Prof. Eikerling was a professor in theoretical chemical physics and electrochemical materials science at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC, Canada, from 2003 to 2019. In 2017, Prof. Eikerling was awarded the Alexander Kuznetsov Prize for Theoretical Electrochemistry of the International Society of Electrochemistry.

Ms. Diana Facchini is the Director of Research and Development for the National Research Council of Canada’s (NRC) new advanced materials research facility in Mississauga, ON. Ms. Facchini holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Toronto, and a Master of Applied Science in Materials Science and Engineering and Biomedical Engineering from the University of Toronto.

Since joining the NRC in 2018 as the advanced materials research facility’s first employee, Ms. Facchini has been instrumental in the planning and execution of its research initiatives in accelerated materials discovery and process optimization for clean energy technologies. She oversees the facility's operations and R&D portfolio, including focusing on strategic development, planning, and fostering collaborations with industry, academia, and government. Prior to her tenure at the NRC, Ms. Facchini spent her early career as an industrial researcher and program lead driving the design, development and commercialization of structural nanomaterials at a Toronto-based startup company, following which she fostered Canadian industry-academic research partnerships and built applied research capacity in health, clean technology and manufacturing areas at a Toronto-area college.

Dr. Frederich is a Junior professor for Artificial Intelligence for Materials Research at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. His research interest includes the development and application of machine learning methods and AI tools specifically for materials science and chemistry.

Prof. Elicia Maine is the W.J. VanDusen Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship, at the Beedie School of Business. She is also the Founder and Academic Director for the Invention to Innovation (i2I) program, a "mini MBA" in Science & Technology Commercialization, which develops entrepreneurial mindset in graduate scientists and engineers. In partnership with Mitacs, the i2I program is now being delivered in a hybrid online format across BC and Alberta, and was recently recognized with an international award from the global business school accreditation council. Professor Maine has deep interdisciplinary roots, with degrees in Materials Engineering, English, Technology & Policy and Technology Management from Queen’s, M.I.T., and the University of Cambridge. Her research, published in Research Policy and Technovation as well as in Nature Materials and Nature Nanotechnology, focuses on the dynamics of innovation in the advanced materials, nano-materials, biotechnology, and clean tech sectors with a focus on science & technology ventures.

Dr. Mark S. Kozdras is a professional engineer and an emeritus scientist at Natural Resources Canada’s, CanmetMATERIALS laboratory, as well as the Canadian representative and international co-lead of the Materials for Energy (M4E) Collaboration Platform of Mission Innovation. In addition, Kozdras is an NRCan representative in the joint NRCan/NRC design/development team for the Centre for Accelerated Materials Discovery and Innovation (CAMDI). Recently retired, he plans to maintain his close ties with the energy innovation community for the foreseeable future.

Prof. Ulrich Panne is president of the Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM). He also holds an honorary professorship for Instrumental Analytical Chemistry at the HU Berlin. He is spokesman of the AG Ressortforschung and chairman of IGAFA. Professor Panne is co-initiator and speaker of the HU Graduate School for Analytical Sciences Adlershof and a co-founder of the Werner-von-Siemens Centre for Industry and Science. He is a member of the Presidential Board of DIN, the Board of the GDCh and the Long Night of the Sciences Berlin.

Dr. Katherine Ayers is Vice President of R&D for Nel Hydrogen US, with responsibility for developing and executing Nel’s technology strategy in proton exchange membrane electrolysis. Her team is primarily responsible for development of advanced cell stack materials, designs and manufacturing processes, including external collaborations. Dr. Ayers is an Electrochemical Society Fellow and has been recognized by the US Department of Energy and other organizations for her expertise in water electrolysis.

Dr. Florian Huber received his MSc degree in chemical engineering from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, in 2002 and his PhD from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim in 2006. After the PhD research, he worked in the R&D department of Haldor Topsoe for five years, starting as Research Engineer and finally acting as Head of R&D for Catalytic Air Pollution Control. In 2011, Florian joined hte in the research department as project manager and acted later as head of Hydroprocessing & Biofeed processing. Since January 2021 he heads the New Technologies & Incubation department with focus on developing new technologies for high throughput testing in existing and emerging fields.

Jason Hattrick-Simpers is a Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto and a Research Scientist at CanmetMATERIALS. He graduated with a B.S. in Mathematics and a B.S. in Physics from Rowan University and a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Maryland. His research interests focus on using AI and experimental automation to discover new functional alloys and oxides that can survive in extreme environments and materials for energy conversion and storage.