Core Team
Keith Driver, M.Sc., P.Eng., MBA ~ President
Keith has developed a broad skill set and experience across the North American regulatory and voluntary carbon markets. Working closely with project developers and personally completing countless GHG quantification exercises, Keith is one of Canada's foremost experts on quantifying and reporting carbon emission reductions, and project development. Keith has been a key contributor, and developer of Alberta's provincial offset quantification and trading system. He has been deeply involved across North America, providing guidance on various greenhouse gas reduction strategies and offset systems. Keith's work focuses on the development of the technical and policy infrastructure required for functioning carbon markets. This experience extends across a wide variety of project types, including: biofuel, agriculture, enhanced oil recovery, carbon capture and storage, renewable energy, forestry, biochar and energy efficiency (oil and gas, and buildings). He has also been involved in the development of a wide range of interesting and innovative projects that require an understanding of the emerging environmental credit markets (GHG, LCFS, RPS, RFS) to maximize their value.
A serial entrepreneur, Keith has over 13 years of experience in the environment industry. Most notably, Keith was formerly VP of Operations with Blue Source having been with the Canadian predecessor company Baseline Emissions Management Inc. since 2003.
Keith's credentials are extensive and focused on environmental management and sustainable business as a Professional Engineer and environmental practitioner. Keith has undergraduate and graduate degrees in environmental engineering from the University of Guelph, and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Calgary.
Inge Gondwe, MBA ~ Manager Project Development
Inge has a Masters of Economics and Business Administration from the International University of Maastricht in the Netherlands. With an extensive background of 17 years in several industries in Europe as a management consultant and business development manager for different companies, Inge has focussed on sustainable business development in East Africa in the renewable energy sector.
Prior to joining Leading Carbon, Inge has worked for Cap Gemini Ernst and Young as a management consultant creating and developing new businesses. She has been part of the management team of a biofuel start up in Malawi, Africa were she paved the way for a first of its kind Grouped Project Approach for the sequestration of Jatropha as a biofuel feedstock under the Voluntary Carbon Standard. Inge was at the forefront of all stakeholder consultations with relevant ministries, regulators and NGO's, driving policy development to create a new and sustainable biofuel industry and she successfully created a Biofuel Advisory Council as well as a Biofuel Association. As a project manager for the United Nations World Food Programme in Africa, Inge implemented a new project to ensure schools participating in the School Feeding Development Programme were provided with an essential package consisting amongst others food for education and skills to enhance agricultural productivity.
Inge is a passionate entrepreneur and has an interest in renewable energy as a way to mitigate climate change. Inge has been engaged by Leading Carbon to further manage and develop its project portfolio.
Alison Lennie, M.Sc. ~ Project Manager
Alison is a Master’s of Science graduate with a specialty in Forest Biology and Management, from the University of Alberta, and has a B.Sc. in Environmental and Conservation Sciences, majoring in Conservation Biology from the University of Alberta. She has developed a thorough understanding of sustainability, management and conservation projects, current environmental issues and best-practices, and a strong technical background in the natural sciences. Ms. Lennie’s expertise relate to the environmental, ecological, social and economic impacts of sustainable and conventional land and resource management practices, and urban sustainability initiatives. She also has experience as an environmental consultant and technical writer in the Boreal Forest, Alberta and Yellowstone National Park. Ms. Lennie has been involved in quantification protocol development and offset market research during her time with Blue Source Canada and her subsequent move to Leading Carbon Ltd.
Ian Kuwahara, P.Eng., M.Sc. ~ Project Manager
Ian is a graduate from an international Master’s of Science degree in Management and Engineering of Environment and Energy through the European Commission’s Erasmus Mundus scholarship program. He subsequently worked as a consultant in France at Bio Intelligence Service prior to joining Leading Carbon. In that role, he made significant contributions to Europe’s Eco-Design initiative for demand based energy efficiency improvements. He specializes in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and policy development related to energy and environmental issues. Prior to his activities overseas, Ian completed a B.Sc. in mechanical engineering. He worked as a consultant and project developer in the power, oil and gas industry in Calgary, AB. Mr. Kuwahara has been engaged at Leading Carbon as a consultant to energy clients on climate change policy issues and to help develop, and deliver carbon offset solutions.
Gillian Godfrey, M.Sc. ~ Project Manager
Gillian is a graduate from an international Masters of Environmental Management degree with a speciality in Sustainable Development from the University of Queensland, Australia. Her educational background and work experience focus on aligning economics with project development in emerging environmental markets. Gillian has a particular interest in contemporary issues concerning electricity production and consumption, primarily relating to the development of renewable energy alternatives.
Prior to joining Leading Carbon, Gillian was an Economic Development Project Officer for a remote First Nation community in Northern Ontario. There she gained experience managing a small scale biomass renewable energy project in conjunction with the Ontario Feed- In Tariff Program. As a member of the Leadon Carbon team, Gillian focuses her efforts on expanding Leading Carbon’s project portfolio and developing individual biomass projects in various locations across North America.
Hannah Simmons, B.Sc. ~ Project Analyst
Hannah is a Bachelor of Science graduate from McGill University, majoring in environmental sciences and specializing in earth science and economics. Hannah believes that commoditizing emission reductions through the creation of carbon markets is an excellent mechanism to help mitigate climate change. She worked as an intern for ERA Carbon Offsets Inc. as well as in the field as a project supervisor for their Community Ecosystem Restoration Program (CERP) activities, where she managed the nursery and supervised the trans-planting of over 100,000 trees. Hannah is passionate about the environment and interested in forest carbon, fuel switch and energy efficiency offsets, sustainable development policy, and green financing.
Lana Norgaard, B.Comm ~ Manager, GHG Markets & Policy Services
Lana has a strong interest in the advancement of market based solutions to reduce greenhouse gases and is responsible for leading the development and delivery of GHG market and policy service activities. She brings a wealth of commercial experience and broad climate change knowledge to government, not-for-profit and private sector companies looking to maximize opportunities in the carbon market space, and is currently on part-time secondment to IETA as a policy advisor.
Prior to joining Leading Carbon, Ms. Norgaard was an Environmental Advisor and then a Carbon Markets Specialist for Capital Power Corp. While there she sourced, developed and invested in GHG emission reduction projects in the compliance and voluntary offset markets, built expert knowledge regarding the emerging Canadian & US GHG regulations and verification standards, and actively participated in the lobbying process to influence the development of regulations and policies dealing with air emissions and emission trading.
A strategic thinker, Lana is capable of understanding complex climate change and air emissions policy issues with respect to its direct and indirect impacts to industry, has participated on numerous technical work group committees and was a key contributor to the development of industry proposed national Greenhouse Gas offset quantification methodologies.
Associate Entities
Willis Climate Group
The Willis Climate Group provides strategic advice to corporations on the development and execution of risk management plans to address climate change in a time of regulatory uncertainty. For governments, WCG provides analysis and advice on policy options and system design for developing carbon markets.
DRD Associates
DRD Associates provides strategic policy support on agricultural climate change mitigation and market-based ecosystem services. We help agricultural sector clients navigate the legislative and regulatory environments, and develop policy constructs that reward innovation, delivering net societal benefits.
KHK Consulting
KHK Consulting is a leader in carbon market infrastructure and offset system design, processes for protocol science coordination and review, as well as quantification protocol development. These services are provided to Canadian provinces, at a national level in Canada and in the United States.