Executive Committee

IPAC Vancouver Executive Committee

IPAC Vancouver is run by volunteer board members with the commitment and willingness to advance our mission. The programming and events offered by our regional group would not be possible without their time and dedication.

Laura Aucoin, Chair

Laura Aucoin's current role is to support Community Initiatives for Indigenous Services Canada. Throughout her career she has remained dedicated to supporting community-led development working with Indigenous communities and non-governmental organizations in Canada and internationally. Laura volunteers her time with International Public Administration of Canada to extend this experience, and further collaborate with diverse communities in order to better encourage dialogue and promote opportunities for collaboration. She completed a Bachelor degree in Community Health from Brock University.

Lisa Nye, National/Regional Representative for Western Canada and Indigenous Engagement Lead

Lisa has 28 years of experience in a variety of areas within the BC Public Service including: Indigenous Community Development, Indigenous Relations, Treaty Negotiations, economic development, post-secondary education, clean energy, program evaluation, post-secondary education/training and employment. She has received both the Lieutenant Governor’s Medal for Excellence in the Public Service and the Métis Order of the Sash. Lisa established her own consulting business in 2010 and works on a collaborative basis with Indigenous Nations and communities, governments, non-profit organizations and the private sector. Lisa was involved with the Institute of Public Administration in Victoria prior to joining IPAC Vancouver. Lisa has taken on various roles and is currently the National representative.

Melanie McNeill, Secretary and Logistics Lead

Melanie McNeill is a policy analyst at Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council. NSERC is one of Canada's three granting agencies, responsible for funding research in sciences and engineering. Melanie has been working with the federal government since 2005, in Ottawa, Mississauga and Vancouver, and has extensive experience in policy, program delivery, grant administration and procurement. She is new to the policy side of things, and has joined IPAC to be part of a strong network of local professionals. Melanie has an BA in Economics from Carleton University in Ottawa, and is currently completing a Master's degree in Public Policy at Simon Fraser University.

Penny Bruin, Treasurer

Penny has extensive local government finance experience both in Canada and in South Africa. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, organizational development, succession planning and financial management. She holds a Master’s in Business Administration and has a Chartered Professional Accountant designation. Penny is a long time member of the Government Finance Officers Association of US and Canada and provides conference program planning services to the Canadian Association of Government Finance Officers, formerly GFOA of Western Canada. She is also a member of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada and volunteers with the IPAC Vancouver Regional Group. In addition, Penny is a Volunteer Advisor with CESO and volunteers in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. In her spare time, she loves to hike, go four-wheeling and travel with her family.

Ashley Steuck, Treasurer

Ashley Steuck is an analyst at Health Canada. She holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of British Columbia and started in government as a Co-op student in 2013. As a new professional herself, Ashley was inspired to take on the Incite Co-Lead role in order to connect a wide range of new professionals and to provide opportunities for career development. During her spare time, Ashley enjoys: running with her 100 pound Bernese Mountain Dog, Bear; getting lost in a good book; listening to country music; and skiing on the local hills.

Lizzie Cheng, Communications & Marketing Lead

Lizzie joined us on the West Coast after living in Fredericton, New Brunswick for more than 13 years. She worked as a Team Lead for Settlement and Multiculturalism in the Government of New Brunswick. Lizzie received a BA in Economics from St. Thomas University and an MBA from the University of New Brunswick. Now Lizzie is a Program Officer at Women and Gender Equality Canada.

Lizzie always considers herself a “Busy Lizzie”. In her spare time, Lizzie volunteers in the BCFC Indigenous Interests and Issues Committee, works with various stakeholders on anti-racism projects, as well as takes on the Communications Lead role at the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) Vancouver regional board. She was also involved in organizing the 2019 OneTeamGov Unconference in Vancouver, and was a Jurisdiction Coordinator at the Youth Mandate for Greater Involvement (YMAGIN) at the Department of ESDC. In Fredericton, Lizzie was a Learning Events Chair at the IPAC Fredericton Regional Board for 4 years, and a Conference Chair from 2011 – 2013, at the Government of New Brunswick New Wave (New Professional) Executive Committee.

Blair Polychronopoulos, Membership & Partnerships Co-Lead

Blair Polychronopolous has been involved with IPAC since 2008, holding various Committee roles throughout the years. Blair has worked within the Federal Public Service for over a decade. Currently holding the position of Western Region Senior Manager of Real Property and Asset Management for Employment and Social Development Canada, she has also occupied positions with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as Asset Manager, and previously, with Public Services and Procurement Canada as a Real Estate Advisor. During this time, Blair worked on a wide range of Real Estate projects with a range of federal clients, as well as assignments with P3 National Centre of Expertise and Asset and Facilities Management. Blair holds a Bachelor of Arts from Simon Fraser University and a Diploma of Urban Land Economics at University of British Columbia.

George Poulakidas, Membership & Partnerships Co-Lead

George Poulakidas is a Genomics and Society Advisor at Genome British Columbia, a non-profit research organization that leads genomics innovation and facilitates the adoption of genomics in BC. His work is focused on the responsible uptake of genomics and the ethical, environmental, economic, legal and social implications of these technologies.

Having worked in various roles in the intersection of innovation, social impact and political science, George brings multiple perspectives. His previous role was Senior Advisor at the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. Other previous roles include researcher at the Innovation Policy Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto and intern at the United Nations in New York.

George is a Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at the University of Toronto, focusing on innovation policy. His research has been supported by various scholarships, including the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship from SSHRC. He holds a Bachelor's degree in International Studies from Simon Fraser University and a Master's degree in Political Science from the University of Toronto.

Aun Jaffery, New Professional Co-Lead

Aun Jaffery is an Advisor with BC's provincial immigration program and has worked in a similar capacity with Nova Scotia's Provincial government. It was here that he was first introduced to IPAC almost a decade ago and saw first hand the spark that happens when public servants from all walks of life and mandates interact to bring to fruition innovative ideas with enthusiasm. Aun is interested in seeing more dialogue around collaborative synergies to advance relationship building in sectors that are historically plagued with stagnation.

Namomba Shaputu, New Professional Co-Lead

Namomba is a Commercial Banking Associate at Canadian Western Bank where she conducts financial analysis and underwriting for small and medium sized businesses. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Commerce from the University of British Columbia.Namomba joined IPAC to learn and connect with professionals in Public Service. As a new professional herself, Namomba was inspired to take on the Incite New Professionals Co-Lead role and is excited about connecting and providing career development opportunities for New Professionals.

Sandra Nikolic, Director at Large

Sandra is the Manager of Intergovernmental Relations at the City of Vancouver where she works to advance priorities such as housing, transit, climate change, childcare, and COVID-19 recovery efforts. Prior to her current role, she managed Vancouver's Great Beginnings Program which aimed to restore Vancouver's funding neighbourhoods and establish a foundation for improvements to the economic, physical and social environments.

Esther Lee, Director at Large

Esther is an experienced government professional having worked in a variety of program areas and ministries within the BC Government since 2010. She has built expertise in advising policy makers and executives with the strategic use of qualitative and quantitative data using a range of methods to produce results that drive organizational efficiency and performance. A key component of her current role involves looking at how labour market participation could be increased by underutilized populations and how this can inform programs or policy. Serves as an executive committee member at IPAC and volunteers as a member of the Intercultural Association of Greater Victoria. She has studied at University of British Columbia (UBC) and the University of Victoria (UVIC), where she received an MA in Sociology.