Now in its 12th year, ACADA’s Maritime & Arctic Security & Safety Conference (MASS) has solidified its place as the signature event for exploring the challenges and opportunities associated with northern and maritime environments. Hosted by the Atlantic Canada Aerospace & Defence Association (ACADA), MASS dives into the topic of emerging threats and how Canadian companies are leading the way to provide a safe, secure, and successful future for Canada, North America, and the world with their innovative products, services, and research in this three-day international event.
For event Sponsorship information, download our Sponsorship Kit.
To learn more about exhibiting at MASS, download the Exhibitor Package.
Special thanks to our event Sponsors to date:
Special thanks to our Exhibitors to date:
Now in its 12th year, ACADA’s Maritime & Arctic Security & Safety Conference (MASS) has solidified its place as the signature event for exploring the challenges and opportunities associated with northern and maritime environments. Hosted by the Atlantic Canada Aerospace & Defence Association (ACADA), MASS dives into the topic of emerging threats and how Canadian companies are leading the way to provide a safe, secure, and successful future for Canada, North America, and the world with their innovative products, services, and research in this three-day international event.
MASS 2025 WILL FEATURE:
200+ attendees • 15+ exhibitors • Networking breaks • Facilitated B2B/B2G meetings • 10+ expert panels and presentations • Global attendee and speaker list • Panel discussions on trending topics • Breakthrough R&D presentations
For event Sponsorship information, download our Sponsorship Kit.
To learn more about exhibiting at MASS, download the Exhibitor Package.
*All prices are plus HST. Exhibit passes include one conference registration.
Special thanks to our event Sponsors to date:
Special thanks to our Exhibitors to date:
Sponsorship at MASS25 puts your business front and center during the Conference.
We have a variety of sponsorship opportunities to suit your budget and desired brand impact.
See the MASS25 Sponsorship kit by clicking HERE!
Special thanks to our event sponsors to date:
We have a limited number of spaces available for MASS25 event exhibitors!
These booths are an efficient way to promote your brand while interacting with our MASS25 conference guests.
Click here for our Exhibitor kit!
Special thanks to our Exhibitors to date:
Looking to raise the profile of your business at MASS 2025? Contact Darren Machado at Darren.Machado@ac-ada.ca to secure your sponsorship!
The St. John’s airport (YYT) is a short 10-minute drive to the Delta Hotels & Conference Centre (120 New Gower Street) and cabs should be available at the arrivals door of the airport.
Delta Hotel & Conference Centre
July 15 – sold out! Limited availability for July 16 and 17.
For additional nights please call the Delta Hotel directly. Toll Free: +1-888-793-3582
As details are organized and special guests confirm, this agenda will continue to update and is subject to change.
Delta Hotels & Conference Centre in St. John’s, NL.
120 New Gower St, St. John’s, NL A1C 6K4
July 16 – ACADA Meetings and Opening Reception
Salon D -11:00 – ACADA AGM
Salon D -12:00 – CADSI / ACADA Roundtable (Invite Only)
15:30 Arctic Showcase & Opening Reception at The Launch Marine Institute in Holyrood Bay, Newfoundland
Transportation departing the Delta St. John’s at 14:30
Up to 45 minutes travel to Northside Road, Holyrood, NFLD
Busses depart The Launch, Marine Institute at 18:30
07:00 – Registration and Networking
Exhibit Hall is open!
Salon BCD – Breakfast
Salon A – 08:15 – Opening Remarks – Welcome from ACADA and special guests
Salon A – 08:45 – Panel #1 – New Geopolitical World: Changing Landscape of Maritime and Arctic Security and Sovereignty
Salon A – 09:45 – Conference Keynote Speaker: Leslie Canavera, CEO of PolArctic
10:15 – Networking and Refreshment Break in Exhibit Hall
Salon A -11:00 – Panel #2 Setting The Stage: Arctic Opportunities Strengthening North America’s Defence and Sovereignty
Salon BCD -12:00 – Lunch – Presenting Sponsor Keynote: John Risley, Arctic Economic Development Corporation
Fireside Chat – John Risley and Indigenous Partners
Salon A -13:30 – Arctic Opportunities Roundtable with Northern Leaders & Conference Attendees
14:30 – Networking and Refreshment Break in Exhibit Hall
Salon A -15:00 – Industry Spotlight
Salon BCD -16:00 – ACOA B2B/B2G Program / Networking in Exhibit Hall
_______________________________________
Offsite – 18:00 – An Evening at Quidi Vidi – A Signature MASS 2025 Experience.
Join us for a special offsite event at Quidi Vidi Brewery, a picturesque and iconic location 10 minutes from downtown St. John’s. Nestled in the heart of the historic fishing village of Quidi Vidi, this exclusive evening offers MASS delegates a unique opportunity to network, connect, and unwind in an unforgettable coastal setting.
Separate Ticket Required – not included in Conference Registration.
Sponsored by:
Salon BCD – 07:30 – Networking Breakfast
Exhibit Hall is open!
Salon A – 08:30 – Opening Remarks, Welcome to Day 2
Salon A – 08:45 – Canadian Arctic Outlook – Featuring leaders from Canadian Armed Forces and Canadian Coast Guard
Panel Moderator: Admiral (Retired) Art McDonald (former Chief of the Defence Staff & Commander Royal Canadian Navy)
10:15 – Networking and Refreshment Break in Exhibit Hall
Salon A – 10:45 – Panel #3 – Icebreaker Collaboration Effort or “ICE PACT” – Innovating Icebreakers – What does this mean for Shipbuilding in Canada?
Salon A – 11:45 – Lunch & Panel #4 – Under the Surface: Enhancing Operational Readiness and Mission Effectiveness in Canada’s Submarine Fleet
Salon A – 13:30 – Final Perspectives on Maritime and Arctic Security
Salon A – 14:00 – Conference Close
Check back as we continue to confirm speakers and panelists.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Leslie Canavera, CEO of PolArctic
Leslie Canavera is the CEO of PolArctic, a data science company that develops new innovative Artificial Intelligence tools to solve Arctic maritime challenges such as seasonal sea ice forecasting, rapidly calculating nearshore depths and change, precision fishing analytics, and locating habitat conditions for aquaculture.
Leslie holds an MBA with a concentration in International Business and is a veteran of the US Air Force, where she served as a commissioned officer. From the USAF, she transitioned to NGA for five years, conceptualizing programs with complex geospatial components and analytics. She left NGA to found the technology start-up PolArctic LLC to bridge the gap between science and business requirements. Leslie is Yup’ik, Alaska Native, born and raised in Alaska. She was awarded the Women in Artificial Intelligence (WAI) North America Award for AI for Good: Environmental Social Governance (ESG) for 2022, and was listed as a 2021 Forbes Next 1000 entrepreneur.
_________________________________________________
Udlu Hanson, Vice President, Community and Strategic Development, Baffinland
Udloriak Hanson (Udlu) is the Vice President, Community & Strategic Development for Baffinland Iron Mines. She most recently served as Deputy Minister of the Department of Economic Development and Transportation for the Government of Nunavut.
She also served as Chief Operating Officer with Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) as well as NTI’s Chief Negotiator for Devolution.
Udlu worked as Senior Advisor to the Clerk of the Executive Council for the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador on Aboriginal Issues and Arctic Economic Opportunities. She also served as A/Executive Director and Special Advisor to Her Excellency Mary Simon, who was then the President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK), the national organization representing Inuit across Canada.
Udlu is co-founder and President of Annauma Community Foundation, Nunavut’s first community foundation. She is a Director Emeritus with the Board of Directors for the Rideau Hall Foundation.
Udlu holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from Okanagan University College and a Bachelor of Education from Brock University. She was born and raised in Iqaluit, Nunavut.
Follow on LinkedIn
_________________________________________________
Garry Best, President / CEO of Nunatsiavut Group of Companies
Garry Best is a Beneficiary of the Nunatsiavut Land Claim Agreement. Prior to his recent appointment as President and CEO of the Nunatsiavut Group of Companies (NGC), he was
Board Chair of the Labrador Inuit Capital Strategy Trust, the body that oversees NGC’s operations.
Garry holds both a Bachelor of Engineering from Memorial University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Naval Architecture from University College London, UK. He served in various leadership roles as an officer in the Royal Canadian Navy for more than 23 years, followed by a 17-year career as an executive in the Federal Public Service.
Garry has more than 35 years of progressively senior leadership and management experience, as well as experience working with Boards, developing corporate business strategies, managing budgets/ finances, and engaging in Indigenous-government relations.
Most recently, he was a Senior Advisor with Indigenous Services Canada as part of the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB).
_________________________________________________
Madeleine Redfern, COO, CanArctic Inuit Networks, Inc. / CEO, SednaLink Marine Systems
Indigenous woman involved in high-tech and innovation. Actively involved in transformative technologies in telecommunications, transportation and energy. COO of CanArctic Inuit Networks Inc committed to building 3000 km of marine fibre optic cable into Canada’s Arctic to significantly improve telecommunications in Inuit Nunangat and Nunavut. CEO of SednaLink Marine Systems which would transform segments of SednaLink fibre optic cable into a SMART (science monitoring and reliable telecommunications) to monitor marine climate changes, assist with environmental monitoring especially near marine protected areas plus assist in collecting marine intelligence.
As a businesswoman and a strong social advocate for transformative initiatives, Ms. Redfern’s advocacy, professional, and governance work shown her dedication and passion towards the development and delivery of programs assisting Indigenous, Inuit, northerners and Canadians that reflect their values, needs, and priorities.
_________________________________________________
MAJOR-GENERAL P. PEYTON, MSM, CD
NATO DIANA Military Deputy Director for North America
Major-General Peyton was born and raised in Goose Bay Labrador, Newfoundland. In 1989, after five years as an Army Cadet, he enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces as an armour officer. In 1991 he joined Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians), where he was privileged to command at the troop, squadron and regimental level.
Major-General Peyton’s operational experience includes tours with the United Nations Protection Force in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia, NATO Stabilization Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Operation ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan, Operation PROTEUS with the United States Security Coordinator in Jerusalem, and Operation INHERENT RESOLVE in Iraq. He also participated in several domestic operations, including commanding a Battle Group responsible for evacuation operations in Kananaskis during Operation LENTUS, the Canadian Armed Forces’ response to catastrophic flooding in Alberta.
Above the regimental level Major-General Peyton commanded the Canadian Forces Intelligence Group, and the 5th Canadian Division of the Canadian Army. His staff appointments include Future Operations Planner in Canadian Expeditionary Forces Command, Land SOF Integration with Chief Force Development, Executive Assistant to Commander Canadian Army, Chief of Staff Support Canadian Forces Intelligence Command, Vice Director, Plans and Policy – United States Cyber Command, and most recently Chief of
Force Development.
Major-General Peyton has attended the Mubarak Al Abdullah Command and Staff College in Kuwait and the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Military Arts and Science, a Master’s degree in Military Science, and a Master’s degree in Strategic Studies. He was appointed as the NATO Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) Military Deputy Director for North America in 2024.
He is married and the proud father of two exceptionally talented sons.
Member Conference Pass: $625
Non-Member Conference Pass: $900
Military or Coast Guard Conference Pass: $450
Government Conference Pass: $625
Student Pass: $120
Exhibits – Member: $1,250
Exhibits – Non-Member: $1,750
