Clean Air Champions






	About Us

	What is our mission? The mission of Clean Air Champions is to improve air quality by working with respected athletes to motivate and educate Canadians to adopt practices and lifestyles that enhance both environmental and personal health. Who are we? CAC is a national charity incorporated in 2002 with its head office in Ottawa, and affiliates in Southern Ontario (Toronto) and British Columbia (Vancouver and Victoria). Clean Air Champions (CAC) was founded in 2001 by three passionate individuals with education and careers in the sport and environment fields; David Chernushenko, Deirdre Laframboise and Anna van der Kamp. Today, CAC is managed by a volunteer Board of Directors, an Executive Director and staff, and an Advisory Board. Chair and Board of Directors Chris Weber (Chair) Graham Birkenhead (Vice Chair) David Crawford (Treasurer) Erin Down (Secretary) David Chernushenko (Director) Melanie Coulson (Director/Communications) Bob Boron (Director/Legal) Liza Campbell (Director) Adam Kreek (Director) Chair Christian Weber Profession: Project Manager - Climate Change, Canadian Standards Association Chris has been working in the environmental field since 1992. He has a Masters in Natural Resource Management and an undergraduate science degree from the University of Manitoba. He has worked and in the private sector, as a consultant, at the government of Manitoba, the Office of the Auditor General, Environment Canada and is now at CSA. Chris has worked at the cross-section of agriculture and environment, on air quality and smog issues in the federal-provincial domain and on policy and design issues of air pollutant and climate change emissions cap and trading programs. Chris was an elite track and field distance runner competing at an international level from 1988 to 2000. Chris may be the only Canadian distance runner who has won the national championship in all four seasons, cross-country, road racing, indoor track and outdoor track. As a proud Manitoban, he had the privilege of representing Canada at many international competitions including the world cross-country championships, the Francophone Games, the Commonwealth Games and other international competitions. Chris was Manitoba's Male Athlete of the Year in 1990 and was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 2002. Chris was also a member of the 1999 Winnipeg Pan-Am Games Environmental Committee Vice Chair Graham Birkenhead Profession: Search Consultant & Partner, Hawes Partners Executive Search Graham has a background as a military engineering manager and more recently as a change and management consultant where he specialised in applying lean thinking to business processes. He has Masters Degrees in Information Technology and Engineering Business Management and has a continuing academic interest in organizational development, knowledge, creativity and culture and their inter-dependency on leadership. While not a professional environmentalist, he does have a passion for the great outdoors; he is never happier than when exploring under the seas or walking in the mountains. He has grave concerns about the impact that humans are having on the environment which in-turn is impacting humans. He has instructed diving and promoted triathlon and understands that sport and adventure can be used as a force for good. Graham currently works in Ottawa with Hawes Partners Executive Search which is moving to specialise in the Clean Technology and Sustainable Development sector. Treasurer David Crawford Profession: Certified Management Accountant & a Canadian Certified Environmental Professional. David Crawford is both a Certified Management Accountant and a Canadian Certified Environmental Practitioner. He specializes in the integration of financial and non-financial performance measurement. David has previously been both a small-business owner, and employee of a multi-national waste management company. For eight years he was the Market and Technical Services Manager at the Manitoba Product Stewardship Corporation in Winnipeg where he provided operational, marketing, financial, and environmental consulting services to support waste reduction and pollution prevention programs, consistent with the principles of sustainable development. David co-chaired the Environment Committee for the 2002 North American Indigenous Games. In November of 2002, he received a Sustainable Development Award of Excellence from the Province of Manitoba's Roundtable for Sustainable Development for his work as co-chair. Shortly thereafter he championed the creation of the Spirit of the Earth Awards, an annual environmental awards program sponsored by Manitoba Hydro. The intent of this awards program is to promote environmental awareness and recognize the culture and history of Aboriginal people. In 2006 the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) selected two of David's magazine articles as Articles of Merit. These articles were selected as part of IFAC's annual Articles of Merit Award Program for Distinguished Contribution to Management Accounting. Originally published in CMA Management Magazine, the two articles are "Managing and Reporting Sustainability," by David Crawford, CMA, and "The Balanced Scorecard and Corporate Social Responsibility: aligning values for profit," by David Crawford, CMA, and Todd Scaletta, CMA, FCMA. On January 15, 2007 David joined the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Currently he is a Director and is responsible for the management of all business activities and processes for Vancouver 2010's accommodation program and continues to support the implementation of organizational sustainability objectives. Secretary Erin Down Senior Policy Analyst, Safe Environments Programme, Health Canada Erin has been a professional in the environmental field since 1998. She holds a graduate degree in economics and environmental studies (MA, Toronto), and an undergraduate degree in international business (BBA, Bishop's). She started her career working in environmental and energy policy at The Conference Board of Canada, and has since been employed by private environmental consulting firms, and as an environmental policy analyst in the federal public sector. Erin originally joined the CAC team as an interim Program Coordinator for Clean Air Achievers in 2005. Currently, Erin is a Senior Policy Analyst at Health Canada. Erin is also on the Board of Directors for Ottawa Kids Triathlon, a CAC partner. Erin has been a competitive amateur triathlete for several years, and has represented Canada at the age-group World Championships a number of times. She continues to train for triathlons, and maintains a consistent yoga practice to balance things out. Director David Chernushenko Profession: Sustainable Living Educator/ Speaker & Filmmaker -- Green & Gold Inc. David Chernushenko is a business owner, educator, public speaker and film producer. He works to promote prosperous communities and healthy livelihoods, and to protect and share the abundance of our world. He has written three books on sustainable management practices and is a co-founder of Clean Air Champions, a national charity that involves athletes in tackling air pollution and climate change while promoting physically active living. From 1998 to 2004, he served on the International Olympic Committee's commission on Sport and the Environment. He is vice-chair of Canada's National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, and he is a "green building" professional accredited by the LEED building certification program. David is currently promoting the Living Lightly Project, a global multi-media initiative that includes video, public speaking and online tools. It's goal is to share the stories, solutions and passion of a growing movement of people working to build a richer future for all on a healthy planet. His first film, 'Be the Change', was released in June 2008 and is available on DVD. Director / Communications Melanie Coulson Profession: Deputy Managing Editor, The Ottawa Citizen. Melanie has been an editor with the Ottawa Citizen since October, 2006. Prior to moving to the nation's capital, she worked in print and online for The Globe and Mail for six years. With a professional eye to the ever-increasing volume of stories on global warming, climate change and the changing environments in which we live, Melanie is keenly aware that global change starts with the individual at the local level. She has a personal interest in health and fitness: she is an equestrian, has raced on the water in rowing, and on land in marathons (and a little of both in triathlons). Melanie holds an undergraduate degree in English Literature and Mass Communications from Wilfrid Laurier University, and a Master's of Journalism degree from Carleton University. She and her husband enjoy raising their two young sons in Ottawa's green spaces. Director / Legal Bob Boron Profession: Lawyer and businessman Bob Boron has over twenty years experience in the telecommunications and e-commerce areas, having been with both large organizations and smaller, early stage companies. Bob served as Executive Vice-President and General Counsel for Call-Net Enterprises and Sprint Canada over a period of acute change and rapid growth. Bob was also a Co-Founder, Executive Vice-President and General Counsel at a start-up telecom venture, Riptide Communications. Bob was also elected to and sat on the board of directors of Microcell Telecommunications, and more recently, Bob had responsibility for global e-marketing and knowledge management for Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, one of the world's largest professional services organizations. Currently, Bob is a Co-Founder and President of Jade Tower Inc., a company that owns and manages wireless communications towers and antenna sites across Canada. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Dalhousie and McGill Universities and a law degree from Dalhousie Law School. Director Liza Campbell Profession: Senior Policy Advisor- National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy Liza has worked in both the sustainable development and fitness fields for over 18 years. Key areas of focus include natural resource management, water, climate change, international relations, wetland conservation, health and environment, and integrated landscape management from a policy, communications and multi-stakeholder perspective. In the fitness realm, she has experience as a personal trainer and instructor of aquavit, spinning, downhill and cross country skiing as well as having participated in a number of short course summer and winter triathlons. She has degrees in political science and geography, and strives to inspire action on health and environment! Director Adam Kreek Profession: Motivational Speaker, RBC Olympian and entrepreneur Adam has dedicated the last 12 years of his life to the pursuit of excellence in sport, culminating in an Olympic gold medal. He is now turning his focus and experience towards other areas. Professionally, Adam loves to pursue energy issues. He spent one year working on an oil rig in Northern Alberta, and has a degree in Geotechnical Engineering. He is currently interested in alternative energies. He built his own biodeisel reactor which he uses to brew biodiesel from wast vegetable oil. Adam is an RBC Olympian, working with the big blue bank to promote a corporate culture of excellence and responsibility. He promotes the Olympic spirit in the community and assists the department of environmental risk on projects like green building and the Olympic Torch relay. Adam enjoys sharing his time and love of life with others. He is an Athlete Ambassador for Right to Play and a Big Brother with Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Victoria. He loves public speaking, inspiring people of all ages, and enjoys coaching. Advisory Committee Dr. Andrew Pipe Jacky Kennedy Guy Laframboise Anna van der Kamp Brenda Taylor Professional Staff: Executive Director Deirdre Laframboise BES, MES Deirdre has an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies/Biology, a Masters degree in Environmental Management, and 16 years of environmental consulting experience in areas including environmental management systems, waste management, pollution prevention and program development and delivery. She was one of the founding members of Clean Air Champions and continues to manage its operations today. Deirdre was a member of the Canadian National Equestrian Team (Three Day Event) for four years and served as its athlete representative for almost a decade. She is past Executive Director of Athletes CAN (Canada's association for national team athletes) and served a nine year term as a member of the Canadian Olympic Committee's Athletes Council, including four years as its Vice-Chair. Deirdre is a certified trainee of The Climate Project (Al Gore), proficient in French, and is active in several sports including adventure racing, freestyle cross country ski, cycling and cross country running. Program Director Anna Van Der Kamp Anna van der Kamp has been able to combine her education, professional experience and athletic career in order to provide a unique set of qualifications to Clean Air Champions. Anna van der Kamp is an Olympic silver medallist in rowing from the 1996 Olympic Games. Her professional experience includes working on the "greening" of the Olympic Games, developing, implementing and evaluating climate change and air quality programs, and evaluating and formulating environmental policy. Her education background is in geography and environmental studies and she has researched environmental health issues extensively. Anna was instrumental in the founding and establishment of Clean Air Champions as a successful national charity. She served on the board for six years, and for two of those years she held the position of Chair. Anna lives in Ottawa and is married to a sustainability activist. She keeps active by running after her two young children and cycling as means of transportation. Program Manager Tricia Zakaria Tricia has a degree in Education (University of Ottawa) and an undergraduate degree in Sociology (Carleton University). Tricia has extensive program management experience delivering physical and health education programs to youth. She implemented recreation, leadership and school programs for the Department of Recreation and Athletics at Carleton University for five years. As an educator, she attended conferences on healthy living for youth and developed active programs for students. Tricia is enthusiastic about educating Canadians on air quality issues and promoting a message of health and wellness in everyday life. She lives in a small village outside of Ottawa with her husband and enjoys the country air. In her spare time, Tricia enjoys playing hockey and being active to stay healthy! Project Coordinator Tricia Rande Tricia has a degree in Microbiology and Education (University of Victoria). Her spark for environmentalism came as a result of working with neurotoxic chemicals in the UVic Biochemistry department while reading research on the correlation between growing cancer rates and toxins in our environment. After 5 years teaching on-call in her home-town of Golden, BC, Tricia moved to Ottawa and started volunteering with the Canadian Green Building Council. She has recently become a LEED-Accredited Professional, motivated by the desire to promote sustainable design in the built environment. Who are the Champions? The Champions are national team, Olympic and Paralympic athletes from across Canada who are our program ambassadors. Each of these athletes is passionate about promoting physical activity and protecting the health of our environment. Some have respiratory illnesses, such as asthma or bronchitis, which are adversely affected when air pollution levels are high. Others have professional careers in environmental science or medicine and are very knowledgeable about the issues. All share our concern for the health of the planet and our conviction that we can all make a difference. It's a perfect fit - athlete role models acting as spokespersons to motivate Canadians to reduce air pollution through physical activity. It's the right thing to do for our health, and for the environment. What do we do? Clean Air Champions reaches out through our Champions to educate the public about the issues related to air quality and healthy lifestyles. We do this by: Delivering programs we create and administer (see Programs). Co-delivering our message with our non-profit partners. The majority of these partners are in the fields of transportation, health, environment, education, and sport. Our athletes are also featured in local and national media as well as radio and T.V. Public Service Announcements. How can you help? Your donation is very important to our work and will help us continue to deliver our programs and services. One hundred percent of your donation will be used to educate Canadians, particularly our youth, on taking action for healthier lifestyles and a cleaner environment. For your donation please make a check payable to Clean Air Champions and mail it to the address below. How to contact us: For more information, or to contact Clean Air Champions' staff: Mailing address: Clean Air Champions 45 Fentiman Avenue Ottawa, ON K1S 0T5 E-mail: info@cleanairchampions.ca Executive Director – 613-730-7353; deirdre@cleanairchampions.ca