MWTC’s International Business Luncheon: Increasing Trade And Investment Between Montana And Canada, 6/25, Missoula

The Montana World Trade Center mwtc.org Hosts: "Increasing Cross Border Trade and Investment Between Montana and Canada."

June 25, 2007

11:30am to 1:00pm: Lunch Presentations by Canadian Trade Commissioners and Honorary Consul Shirley Ball

1:15pm to 3:45pm: One-on-one meetings with Trade Commissioners (limited schedule so please confirm ASAP)
Location: Gallagher Business Building, The University of Montana (Missoula), Room L09

Cost: FREE for MWTC members
$10.00 for Non-members

RSVP by June 18, 12007

Canada is Montana’s most important trading partner with more products shipped to our neighbor to the north than to all other foreign markets combined. Bio-tech, information and communication technologies, building materials, and energy are among the principal trade relationships. In 2005, Montana’s exports to Canada were valued at $354 million, and trade with Canada supported 16,000 Montana jobs.

Please join Canada’s Senior Trade Commissioner, Monica Heron, Honorary Consul of Montana, Shirley Ball, and the international trade staff of the Canadian Consulate General-Denver for a discussion on how your company can get a share of the profit! Trade Commissioners will cover the following key priority sectors (a full bio on each specialist is included at the bottom of this email):

Agricultural Advocacy and Agricultural Specialist – Kim O’Neil

Bioscience – Stephen Davis

Information Communication Technology and Building Products – David Smith

Energy, Mining, and Environment – Stan Pence

Aerospace and Defense – Philippe Taillon

Please contact Megan Harrington ([email protected]/406.243.5850) to confirm your participation and arrange a 30-minute one-on-one meeting. Individual meeting times are limited, so please confirm your time slot ASAP.

Trade Commissioners

1.) Shirley A. Ball, Honorary Consul of the State of Montana

The daughter of Elmer and Bernice Nybakken, Shirley was born and raised in Valley County in northeast Montana on a farm that was homesteaded in 1916 by her paternal grandmother. Her maternal grandparents were also homesteaders who came to Montana from Canada, where her Mother was born. A life long farmer, Shirley and her late husband, Merlin, raised spring wheat, barley, cattle and hay together in their farm in the Nashua area for over 45 years. The land is currently leased out.
Shirley is interested in community and state issues and has served on a number of committees, including economic development groups, energy groups, credit union, and as an officer in WIFE (Women Involved in Farm Economics) a national farm organization. As a WIFE member, she was an invited speaker at a Saskatchewan Women’s Agriculture Network convention on trade issues in the late 1980’s.
During the oil embargoes in the 70’s Shirley became interested in ethanol production as an additional market for grain. Shirley has remained interested in ethanol fuel and the DDG and has worked in many capacities to promote the products. In 1987 she was appointed to a USDA panel to “Study the Cost Effectiveness of Ethanol” and she served on the Montana Renewable Energy Advisory Council for four years. Since 1991 she has been the Executive Director and President of EPAC (Ethanol Producers And Consumers ) a national non profit membership organization that educates about ethanol.
Shirley was an elected member of the county committee for Farm Service Agency before being appointed in 1992 to the state committee, where she served for eight years. She served a three year term on the advisory council for Small Business, Labor and Agriculture with the Regional Federal Reserve Bank in Minneapolis. She is currently a member of the Valley County Planning committee and the Nashua Lions Club.
Shirley has three children, and seven grandchildren.

2.) Monica Heron, Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner

Monica Heron is currently with the Consulate General of Canada in Denver as Consul and Senior Trade Commmissioner. Her last posting was in Bogota, Colombia where she was Counsellor (Commercial) for three years .

Monica has served in Ottawa in the Western Europe Trade and Investment Development Division, in the Trade Commissioner Service Strategic Planning Division, and as Deputy Director of the Central Europe Division. Her postings have taken her to Berne, Switzerland as First Secretary (Commercial) and Consul; Harare, Zimbabwe as Counsellor (Commercial); Abidjan, Ivory Coast as Counsellor (Commercial) as well as the African Development Bank Liaison Officer; Dublin, Ireland as Counsellor (Commercial) and Hong Kong, China as Counsellor (Commercial). Monica was born in Toronto, Ontario and graduated from Carleton University in Ottawa , Ontario with a BA.

3.) Kim O’Neil, -Agricultural Advocacy and Agricultural Specialist

Kim O’ Neil is Consul, Agriculture Specialist at the Consulate General of Canada in Denver since August 2006. Kim was previously posted to Mexico City from 1999-2004 as Agriculture Counsellor. On return from Mexico she was Special Advisor on Canada –U.S. Advocacy in Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada International Trade Policy Division. Prior to her time in Mexico, she worked in Ottawa in the Mexico Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade and as Mexico Desk Officer in Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. She was Legislative and Special Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture and Executive Assistant to various Members of Parliament in the House of Commons for seventeen years.

Other Languagues:

Spanish

French

4.) Stephen Davis, Trade Commissioner-Bioscience

Stephen joined the consulate in March of 2005. Prior to that time he held international trade positions in several Colorado companies including Current, Inc., one of Colorado’s top 5 largest importers measured by volume of goods, Gerry Baby Products, and NatureSmart, a nutraceutical manufacturer owned by Wholefoods Markets. These positions afforded Stephen the opportunity to travel extensively throughout Asia and to specialize in managing trade relations with manufacturers of raw materials and finished goods from all over the world.

Stephen received a Bachelors of Science in Religion and Philosophy from Texas Wesleyan College, in Fort Worth, Texas and a Masters of Science in International Business from the University of Colorado, in Denver, Colorado.

His language skills include earning a certification in Chinese language studies from the University of Denver, a level two certification in American Sign Language from the Pikes Peak Center on Deafness and speaking Khmer (Cambodian) at a basic conversational level.

Stephen has lived in Colorado for the past 23 years with the exception of 16 months spent living in rural Cambodia, while volunteering with the International Human Rights Law Group and 3 months living at the Ichihara Elephant Kingdom in Ichihara, Japan.

5.) David Smith, Trade Commissioner-Information Communication Technology and Building Products

David Smith is the Business Development Officer responsible for the Information Technology/Communication industry sectors for the Consulate General of Canada located in Denver. David is responsible for Canada-U.S. trade/commerce relations in the states of Colorado, Utah, Montana, and Wyoming.

Prior to joining the Canadian Consulate, David worked for PeopleSoft implementing business software solutions for both U.S. and Canadian clients. David has also trained more than 300 end users in the financial and distribution software modules. Prior to his experience at PeopleSoft, he worked for Georgia-Pacific as a lumber buyer for softwood lumber products from Canada.

David received his Masters of Business Administration in International Business from the University of Colorado, and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from Brigham Young University. David is also bilingual in French and English after having spent two years living in Belgium and France.

6.) Stan Pence, Trade Commissioner-Energy, Mining, and Environment

Stan Pence is the Trade Commissioner responsible for the Energy, Mining and Environmental industry sectors for the Consulate General of Canada located in Denver. Stan is responsible for Canada-U.S. trade/commerce relations in the states of Colorado, Utah, Montana, and Wyoming. His primary focus in on the extractive industries, concentrating on developing commercial links between Canadian and US businesses along the “Rocky Mountain Corridor” from the Artic to New Mexico.

Prior to joining the Canadian government, Stan worked for Xcel Energy in Denver for the company’s corporate finance and energy trading divisions. He has a trading background having spent a decade in New York working for a number of Wall Street firms in fixed-income sales.

Stan received his Masters of Business Administration in Finance from Boston University, and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and French from the University of California at Berkeley. He also attended the Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales in Paris, a leading French business school and is bilingual in French and English.

7.) Philippe Taillon, Vice Consul and Trade Commissioner-Aerospace and Defence

Philippe Taillon is Vice Consul and Trade Commissioner responsible for the investment program and the aerospace and defence sectors for the Consulate General of Canada in Denver since August 2006. Philippe, along with his colleagues at the Consulate, is responsible for Canada – U.S. trade/commerce relations in the states of Colorado, Utah, Montana and Wyoming.

Prior to joining the Consulate, Philippe was an advisor at Canada Economic Development for the Quebec region since 2002. He graduated in 2001 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration.