Jessica Winters

Executive Director

Arctic Inspiration Prize

Jessica Winters is the acting Executive Director of the Arctic Inspiration Prize. Originally from Makkovik, Nunatsiavut, Jessica brings a perspective shaped by her lived experience as a northerner, her background in science, and a career spanning arts, culture, community development, and program leadership.

Jessica is also an award-winning artist and arts advocate. Her work across the arts and community sectors has focused on creating opportunities, amplifying northern voices, and exploring contemporary northern experiences. Through her work with the Arctic Inspiration Prize, she supports locally driven ideas and the people behind them, finding ways that investment, collaboration, culture, and capacity can help northern communities shape their own futures.

Operations Manager 

Nunatsiavut Government

Stephanie Webb is an Operations Manager with the Nunatsiavut Government, supporting tourism, Inuit programming, research, partnerships, and operations in the Torngat Mountains region. With family roots in the Torngats, her connection to the region is both personal and professional. Her work with the Torngat Mountains Base Camp and Research Station and programming in Hebron involves bringing together Nunatsiavut Government departments, program leads, partners, researchers, stakeholders, and contracted operators to navigate the unique realities of delivering tourism and programming in a remote and culturally significant region. With a background in environmental studies and experience in contracting and operations, Stephanie is passionate about tourism that supports Inuit-led programming, meaningful opportunities, and connections between people, culture, and place.

A/Strategic Advisor, Office of the Senior Vice President, Operations
Parks Canada / Government of Canada

Julie M. LeBlanc joined the federal public service in 1998 as a student with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). Following graduation, she held a variety of leadership roles within DFO, including positions in the Small Craft Harbours Program, as Executive Advisor to the Deputy Minister, and in senior management roles in New Brunswick supporting Indigenous fisheries and partnerships. In 2018, Julie joined Parks Canada as Acting Field Unit Superintendent for the New Brunswick South Field Unit and was appointed to the position in March 2019. Following the merger of the Northern and Southern New Brunswick Field Units in 2025, she continued to lead the newly established New Brunswick Field Unit.

Throughout her tenure, Julie worked closely with Acadian and Francophone communities across Atlantic Canada, building partnerships that support the protection, presentation, and promotion of places central to Acadian history, culture, and identity. Through collaboration with community, tourism, and Indigenous partners, she helped advance shared goals related to heritage conservation, visitor experience, and cultural tourism at iconic sites including Kouchibouguac National Park, Fort Beauséjour-Fort Cumberland National Historic Site, Monument-Lefebvre National Historic Site, and Grand-Pré National Historic Site. She also represented Parks Canada as a member of the Atlantic Official Languages Network.

Julie has represented Parks Canada on a variety of national committees and, in 2022, served as Acting Field Unit Superintendent for Western Newfoundland and Labrador during the peak operational season. In September 2026, Julie was appointed Executive Director of Parks Canada's Alberta and Mountains Region, where she now leads one of the Agency's largest and most diverse operational regions. Julie holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Université de Moncton. Originally from Bouctouche, New Brunswick, she is a proud francophone New Brunswicker and now resides in Calgary, Alberta, with her spouse, Michel, and their son, Simon.

CEO

Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island 

Corryn Clemence believes in the power of tourism, not just as an economic driver, but as a vital part of community identity, pride, and connection. After ten years with Port Charlottetown, Corryn joined the Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island (TIAPEI) in 2020 and now serves as its CEO. She is passionate about showcasing the hard work, resilience, and impact of the people behind PEI’s tourism sector. Throughout her career, Corryn has focused on building strong partnerships between government, businesses, and tourism operators while advocating for a resilient and sustainable tourism industry. Under her leadership, TIAPEI has advanced initiatives focused on season extension, visitor experiences, innovation, and evidence-based planning. Most recently, Corryn led TIAPEI’s work to better understand and respond to climate change impacts on PEI tourism. TIAPEI has completed a Climate Risk Assessment and Adaptation Plan and recently presented the findings and recommended actions to tourism operators and industry partners across the province. Her contributions have been recognized with the 2024 Reconciliation Award and the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2023. Corryn remains committed to building a tourism industry that is economically strong, environmentally responsible, and resilient for the future.

Co-founder

ConnectSeven Group

Alexis is a co-founder of ConnectSeven Group, a consultancy using tourism and events to drive meaningful, measurable change. She is at the forefront of initiatives that embed

sustainability, risk mitigation, and climate adaptation into how destinations and

businesses plan, operate, and evolve. Alexis leads high-impact projects that move

organizations from ambition to action, helping them navigate disruption, build resilience,

and create long-term value for communities and visitors alike.

Director of Tourism

Nunatsiavut Government

Jillian Larkham is an Inuk from Makkovik, Labrador and is the Director of Tourism with the Nunatsiavut Government. She graduated from Memorial University with a Bachelor of Arts double major in Archaeology and Folklore. Ms. Larkham joined the Division of Tourism with the Nunatsiavut Government in 2013. She is passionate about preserving and maintaining her Inuit culture. She oversees art and craft development, tourism development and marketing for Nunatsiavut, and leads various other files such the Torngat Mountains Base Camp and Research Station and the Hebron National Historic Site. Jillian sees tourism as an opportunity to preserve Labrador Inuit culture and to share our stories with the world.

AI and education facilitator

Keyin College

Andrew Mercer began teaching in Newfoundland and Labrador schools in 1994. Since the mid-90s, Andrew has been a pioneer in educational technology innovation in both the public and private sectors. His innovative work has been profiled in CNN, Popular Science, The Wall Street Journal, The Globe and Mail, Nippon TV, and Canadian Music Educator. Since 2004, his teaching has been entirely online through the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation. His proven track record in the creation and dissemination of content via social media has produced a YouTube channel with over six million views, and social media followers tipping 25,000. Andrew has been sought out as an advisor to many national and internation organizations including the JUNOs (MusicCounts), Yamaha US, Intel Corp, and school districts throughout Canada and the US. He has shared his work at

national and international conferences and symposia including the ISME Conference

(Italy), TEDx, MTNA National Conference (US), National Association of Music Merchants

(NAMM) and MENC: National Association of Music Educators (Washington, DC). He has

been a member of several Boards of Directors including the Canadian Music Educators’

Association and the Coalition for Music Education in Canada. He is currently a member of MUN’s Board of Regents, a director with Debut Atlantic and a member of the NL Music

Educator’s Association.

Director, Business Development

Keyin Workforce 

Caroline McDonald is a proud Newfoundlander and Labradorian with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and an MBA from Memorial University. She has built her career at the intersection of innovation, education, and community impact—developing and growing workforce training programs that meet real industry needs across the province and beyond. As Director of Business Development for Keyin Workforce, Caroline leads strategic partnerships and growth across a portfolio of industry-aligned micro-credential programs spanning tourism, healthcare, manufacturing, technology, and the skilled trades. She works closely with government, industry associations, and employers to build practical, accessible training solutions — including applied AI programs for small and medium-sized enterprises — delivered in urban, rural, and remote communities across Atlantic Canada. Beyond her professional role, Caroline contributes her time to regional growth and the arts through Taskforce NL, Stella's Circle, and the Lady Cove Women's Choir, and she serves on the Board of Shallaway Youth Choir.