Duncan Melville

Committee Chair – 2-Year Term

Duncan Melville is a returning member and is the incoming Chair of CSME. Mr. Melville is currently a Partner at Boston Consulting Group. He has a JD in Law from the University of Toronto, is a Chartered Financial Analyst and has a Masters (Hons) in Mathematics and International Relations from the University of St. Andrews. Much of his current practice focuses on improvement of performance internally and externally for international resource companies. He is a member of the New York State Bar and is past Chair of the Calgary Distress Centre during which time they created a new strategic plan and recruited a new CEO. He currently sits on the Board of the YMCA Calgary and is the Chair of the People and Governance Committee. 

Richard Main

1-Year Term - Expiring October 2024

Richard Main is returning as a member of CSME for a one-year term. Mr. Main is the General Manager for Delta Hotels by Marriott, Downtown Calgary and was the former Chair of the Calgary Hotel Association. He has been an active member of the CSME Committee and a member of the SAIT Hospitality Management Advisory Board. Previous committee work includes the Vancouver Hotel Association & Destination Vancouver, Edmonton Association of Conventions Hotels & Edmonton Tourism, and the Toronto Hotel Association & Toronto Tourism. Richard is also a past member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Mary Rozsa de Coquet, C.M.

Third 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Mary Rozsa de Coquet is Chair of the Rozsa Foundation, a philanthropic family foundation known for innovative arts management programs and contribution to public arts policies. Mary is a member of the board of the Alberta Foundation of the Arts. In 2015, Mary was named to the Order of Canada. Mary received the 2017 Women Who Make a Difference honour at the International Women’s Federation Houston conference.

Vicki Reid

Third 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Vicki is the former Director of Community Affairs at Cenovus Energy. She has over 20 years of experience in the energy industry, most recently in the areas of community investment, learning and development, and human resources. She is President of the Children’s Cottage Society and board chair of Calgary Reads. Vicki has served on the board of a wide variety of community organizations.

Ian Allison

Third 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Ian is Senior Vice‐President of Spruce Meadows. He is a member of the CBC Sports broadcast team for coverage of Spruce Meadows events and an expert in equestrian sports. Ian is also president of the Alliance of Jumping Organizers, part of the International Equestrian Organizers’ Alliance.

Karen MacNeill

Third 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Dr. Karen MacNeill is a performance and registered psychologist helping athletes, leaders and organizations consistently bring their best in high pressure situations. She is also a founding partner and Chief Product Officer at Headversity, a digital program that measures, tracks and trains resilience in the workplace. Karen has the unique experience of having both competed and consulted on the world stage. She has worked with athletes competing at the last 4 Olympic Winter Games, and competed herself at the international level for over a decade. She is the lead Mental Performance Consultant with the Canadian Olympic Committee.

Mike Franco

Second 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Mike Franco is the Vice President of Sales, Customer Service, Ticketing & Suites at the Calgary Sports & Entertainment Corporation and was the Senior Director of Business Operations for the Calgary Stampeders from 2016-2020. Mike was the Chairman of the 2019 Grey Cup Festival and is currently active on the following sports boards: Calgary Flames Foundation, Calgary Stampeders Foundation, Calgary Italian Open Society & Calgary Colts Junior Football Club. Mike has a Bachelor of Physical Education.

Chethan Lakshman

Second 2-Year Term – Expiring October 2024

Chethan is currently the Vice-President of External Affairs at Shaw Communications, responsible for all aspects of external communications, community investment and corporate sponsorship. He previously worked 15 years in the financial world and 5 years in journalism. Chethan was the public relations lead for RBC’s sponsorship of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, the Vancouver 2010 Olympic torch Relay and RBC Canadian Open. More recently, Chethan lead Shaw’s sponsorships for the past 7 years including 6 Grey Cup games & festivals, the Shaw Charity Classic & 3 Canada Games. Chethan has various board experience in the art, journalism and not for profit sectors. Chethan has an Honours Degree in Journalism and Political Science.

David Legg

First 2-Year Term

Dr. David Legg received his Bachelor’s in Physical Education from McMaster University, his Masters in Sport Management from University of Windsor and his PhD in Sport Management and Adapted Physical Activity from the University of Alberta. He is an Academic Professor at Mount Royal University. David co-founded the ActiveCITY Collective, which brings together community advocates for the active economy in Calgary and created the research/strategy behind those initiatives. Dr. Legg also founded Calgary Adaptive Hub, now sponsored by Jumpstart. Dr. Legg has been the recipient of a Calgary’s Top 40 under 40 award, a Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Award and has been inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame.

Alex Sarian

First 2-Year Term

Prior to joining Arts Commons as President & CEO, Alex Sarian spent seven years as a senior executive at the Lincoln Centre for Performing Arts in New York. Alex has a BS and MA in Educational Theatre and Performing Arts Administration from New York University. Alex brings experience in consumer brand activation, corporate sponsorship, as well as experience collaborating on bids and proposals for major events held at Arts Commons. He has furthered his education with an Impact Program for Arts Leaders at Standford University Graduate School of Business, the Community Shift Program at Western University Ivey School of Business, Non-profit Leadership Institute with the American Express Foundation and Conflict Resolution at the Instituto Para El Desarrollo Empresario Argentino.

Elise Ahenkorah

First 2-Year Term

Elise Ahenkorah received her BA Hons from Laurentian University in Law and Justice and a DE&I Strategy Management from Cornell University. She is currently the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager for MEG Energy Corporation and is the principal owner of Inclusion FACTOR Consulting. In 2023, Ms. Ahenkorah was the recipient of the City of Calgary Social Impact Award and she has won several additional awards, including L'Oreal Paris Woman of Worth, UNAC Innovator of the Year, and the Calgary Black Chamber Business & Entrepreneurship Excellence Award. Through Elise's leadership, the Calgary Pride Festival/Parade is now the second largest in Canada. Ms. Ahenkorah is passionate about ensuring that the events and sports brought to the city represent the diverse communities in Calgary.

Naomi Grattan

First 2-Year Term

Naomi Grattan is the Executive Director of Lougheed House National and Provincial Historic Site and serves as a volunteer Board Director for the Alberta Museums Association. She has a BA in Writing from the University of Waterloo and a MA in Leadership from Royal Roads University. Ms. Grattan has worked on 5 major cultural capital projects and has contributed to building the strategic direction of the National Music Centre, the SAM Centre at the Calgary Stampede, Hangar Flight Museum, Theatre Calgary, Alberta Ballet, Fort Calgary, Contemporary Calgary, and others. She also has a particular interest in the work of Truth & Reconciliation and has done significant training with Indigenous communities at Fort Calgary and the Lougheed House.

Steve McDonough

First 2-Year Term

Steve McDonough is the Past President and Chairman of the Calgary Stampede Board (2021-2023). Steve is a professional Mediator and CEO of McDonough Dispute Resolution Services, has worked as a master franchisor for American food product entry into Canada and for the Federal Government in the offices of President of Privy Council, Government House Leader and as a Senior Policy Advisor to the Rt Honourable Joe Clark, Federal Minister of the Environment. Mr. McDonough was the recipient of Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal. Steven McDonough holds an ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors from Haskayne Business School, a LL. B (Hon) from the University of Wales and a BA in Political Science and Business (Hon) from Acadia University.

Jeff Chase

Jeff Chase is currently the Director of Partnerships at the City of Calgary. Jeff brings 15 years of experience leading strategy, planning, economic development, and sustainability related portfolios and programs in both the private and public sectors. Jeff holds an MA in Planning (UBC) and a PhD in Human Geography and Politics (Newcastle, UK)

Amie Blanchette

Amie Blanchette currently serves as Chief of Staff to Mayor Jyoti Gondek. Amie’s career has spanned several sectors, including private and public. Amie was a regional manager with Pier 1 Imports, overseeing 15 big box stores throughout Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. She left Pier 1 to focus on communications and advocacy work with the Canadian Home Builders Association – Calgary Region where she was the Director of Policy and Government Relations. After almost 10 years with the organization, Amie joined the City of Calgary administration as the Manager of Partnership Services within Planning & Development and most recently was the Manager of Strategy & Business Operations within Real Estate & Development prior to moving into The Mayor’s office.

Carson Ackroyd

Carson is the Sr. Vice President of Sales at Tourism Calgary where he leads a team responsible for attracting sport & major cultural events to the city as well as meetings & conventions. Carson sat on the 2009 and the 2019 Grey Cup Committees. He started his career within media working for both the Edmonton Sun and the Calgary Sun in advertising, marketing, promotions and circulation sales, during which time he launched the Air Miles customer loyalty program with both papers. Carson then became the Vice President of Marketing and Communications for ATCO for more than a decade with 100+ person team responsible for all aspects of marketing and communications for this multi-national conglomerate in the energy, utility and structures and logistics business. Carson studied at the University of Calgary.

Carlee Savory

As the Director of Sport, Culture & Major Events, Carlee is responsible for promoting and selling Calgary as a host city to major event rights holders. She joined the team in 2013 after finishing her Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Calgary. Since then, Carlee has supported, led and endorsed bid campaigns for over 350 events of various scopes and scales including most recently the CCMA’s Country Music Week in 2022, the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Nations League and BreakOut West 2022. She is a former member of the Calgary Minor Softball Board of Directors and previously represented the Calgary Sport and Major Events Committee on The City of Calgary’s Event Advisory Committee.