Ensyn maintains a strong board of directors with rigorous governance standards. The members of Ensyn’s board of directors are as follows:
Dr. Robert Graham – Chairman of the Board
Canada's pre-eminent authority on pyrolysis, Dr. Graham initiated his work on thermal conversion technologies in 1978 at Forintek Canada Corp., a leading forest products technology company.
He developed the RTP™ process concepts at the University of Western Ontario. Since 1984, he has progressively developed the RTP™ process and Ensyn. Dr. Graham led the company as President and CEO from the start-up phase until mid-2007, when he relinquished the CEO position to continue serve as a non-executive Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Dr. Graham was a founding member and Director of the Biomass Energy Research Association (BERA) and was the Canadian delegate to the International Energy Agency for both the Gasification Committee Activity and the Energy Systems Analysis Activity.
He has published over 60 works in technical and trade journals, and has spoken at dozens of international conferences in North America and Europe. Dr. Graham has been granted numerous patents relating to biomass pyrolysis, and also sits on the board of Ivanhoe Energy.
Dr. Graham received a BSc from Carleton University, and an MEng and PhD from the University of Western Ontario.
Ian Barnett
Mr. Barnett has been on the board of various Ensyn companies since 1996 and is Executive Vice President, Finance, for Ivanhoe Energy. In addition, he is a Director and co-founder of Heptagon Investments Ltd., an investment business that specializes in development capital for growth companies.
He initiated his career with the Toronto-Dominion Bank in 1979, holding a number of management positions in the bank’s Latin American Division. In 1986, he joined UBS Securities Ltd., the London-based investment banking arm of Union Bank of Switzerland (subsequently UBS Philips & Drew and then UBS Ltd.). He worked initially in syndication and subsequently as co-head of Corporate Finance for the Nordic Countries.
Mr. Barnett holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University and an MBA from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France.
Barry Freel
Mr. Freel has worked with Ensyn Chairman Dr. Robert Graham on the development of the RTP™ technology as well as the development of Ensyn as a commercial enterprise since 1982. He is now responsible for the advancement of Ensyn’s technology and for ensuring that it is implemented effectively.
Mr. Freel has been granted numerous patents and has published over 40 articles in professional magazines and journals. He has spoken at a number of North American and European environmental conferences.
He holds a BESc from the University of Western Ontario.
Alan Freudenstein
Mr. Freudenstein is a Managing Director in the Private Equity Group of Credit Suisse First Boston, LLC., and is also a Vice President of Credit Suisse First Boston Management Corporation and Special Situations Holdings, Inc. – Westbridge.
From 1992 to 2000, he was a Managing Director at Bankers Trust Company, where he was responsible for incubation and venture investments within the New World Ventures Group. He is also on the board of directors of Ascent Assurance, Inc.
Mr. Freudenstein received a BA from John Hopkins University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
Aki Georgacacos
Mr. Georgacacos has been a board member of various Ensyn companies since 2004 and is a partner in Avrio Ventures, a Canadian venture capital firm specializing in the bio-tech sector.
Prior to joining Avrio, Mr. Georgacacos was a Managing Director of FCC Ventures and a Vice President at Deloitte Corporate Finance in Calgary. He has advised Canadian companies on public and private placements, mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, and strategies for maximization of shareholder value. He also spent time at Deloitte, where he led several assignments in the bio-technology, agri-food, distribution, health care, manufacturing, and oil and gas sectors.
A Chartered Accountant and CFA, Mr. Georgacacos holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan.
Robert Pirraglia
Mr. Pirraglia has worked with Ensyn since 1996, initially in a consulting capacity and since early 1998 as a senior executive.
An engineer and lawyer, Mr. Pirraglia has over 30 years of project development and management experience in the waste and energy sectors. He served as COO of a waste to energy business that grew from zero to $100 million in four years, and as General Counsel and President of another publicly traded company in the same sector. He also sits on the board of directors of Ivanhoe Energy.
Mr. Pirraglia received his BE in Electrical Engineering from New York University and a JD from Fordham University School of Law.
Dr. Stuart Smith
Dr. Smith has been a board member of various Ensyn companies since 1990.
He has occupied a number of senior positions in the fields of medicine, politics, science policy and environmental business. In 1994, he founded Philip Utilities Management Corporation, and was its President until 1997. Dr. Smith is currently President of Rockcliffe Research and Technology, Inc.
He won the leadership of the Ontario Liberal Party in 1976, and as Leader of the Opposition, he was a frequent spokesman on environmental issues. From 1982 to 1987, he was Chairman of the Science Council of Canada, and in 1995 was appointed by the Prime Minister of Canada as Chairman of the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy.
Dr. Smith graduated in Medicine from McGill University and for eight years was a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McMaster University Medical School. |
