Manager, Economic Development, City of Surrey

As a manager of Economic Development, Stephen developed Surrey’s first Economic Strategy with a vision to transform Surrey into a regional nexus for commerce and a nationally recognized centre for innovation within the next decade. Over the past five years, Stephen has been responsible for negotiating and securing several high-profile investments in Surrey including Skydance Studios and Damon Motors. Stephen is also a Board Director for the national Consider Canada City Alliance as well as the ex-Chair for Metro Vancouver’s Regional Economic Advisory Committee. Between 2017-2019, he was a part of a Global Affairs Canada and FCM-led mission to support economic development capacity building in South Africa. Prior to joining the City of Surrey, Stephen was a senior consultant for GLOBE Advisors, a leading global green economy consultancy and has led sector development initiatives for both the Government of Canada and the Province of British Columbia. In 2021, Stephen co-authored the West Coast Green Economy Study for the Pacific Coast Collaborative and the BC Government which was used to support the business case for development of SFU’s Sustainable Energy Engineering programs. Stephen holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Cell Biology & Genetics from the University of British Columbia as well as a Master of Business Administration (MBA), and a Master of Science (MSc) in Strategic Planning from the Edinburgh Business School (UK).