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New Aviation Think Tank launched at Concordia University

Innovative platform propels forward-thinking ideas

Montreal, September 27, 2016 - A new Aviation Think Tank launched today at Concordia University will advance innovative ideas and propose evidence-based policies to support growth in the dynamic aviation industry.  The announcement comes during Montreal’s Civil Aviation Week, organized by Aéroports de Montréal (ADM) and running through October 3.

As the first of its kind in the world, the think tank will convene researchers and industry professionals to facilitate exchanges on key issues of strategy, business practices, and policy development for the benefit of the aviation industry and its diverse public and private stakeholders. 

“The Aviation Think Tank will provide a dynamic platform for dialogue to address the priorities of business, government and the public on issues ranging from sustainability to profitability,” says Concordia President Alan Shepard. “A key objective will be advancing academic research in this rapidly evolving field.”

The President and CEO of ADM, James Cherry, will serve on an international advisory board, featuring a cross-section of high-level professionals, to determine the strategic directions and research objectives of the Aviation Think Tank.

“This think tank will provide a unique forum for international, inter-sectoral, and interdisciplinary exchanges, as well as a channel for communicating forward-looking ideas,” says Cherry.

The advisory board will be chaired by Pierre J. Jeanniot, former Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association.

“Concordia has created this innovative platform to provide a forum for industry professionals and experts, researchers and academics to collaborate and weigh in on the most important issues facing the aviation sector,” says Jeanniot. “The knowledge and ideas generated will promote new policies, best practices and key actions to help set the pace in a complex arena."

The think tank will be independent and impartial, informed by research conducted by John Molson School of Business professors and students, in collaboration with researchers from Concordia and other universities. JMSB management professor Isabelle Dostaler is the academic director of the think tank. François Bouilhac, president of COMREL International, an international affairs consulting firm, will serve as executive director.

“Making an influential case for policy change starts with rigorous research,” says Dostaler. “Supported with the right information, aviation stakeholders will be better positioned to begin informed discussions about implementing new solutions.”

Dostaler will also serve on the advisory board. The other board members are:

  • Graham Carr, Vice-President, Research and Graduate Studies, Concordia
  • John W. Crichton, former President and CEO, NAV CANADA
  • Jean-Francois Lemay, General Manager, Air Transat
  • Aaron Nsakanda, Associate Professor, Carleton University
  • Michel Wachenheim, Senior Advisor to the CEO, Airbus; former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of France, ICAO Council

Concordia offers non-credit courses in leadership development and aviation management to partners in the aviation industry through the John Molson School of Business’s Aviation Management Institute.


Source

Fiona Downey
Fiona Downey
Public Affairs
514-848-2424, ext. 2518
Fiona.Downey@concordia.ca
@fiodow



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