Thursday June 4, 12:30pm – Transform adversity into your competitive advantage.
Mark Black
Mark Black is a Heart and Double-Lung Transplant Recipient – turned – 4- Time Marathon Runner.
A resilience expert, coach, and author, Mark helps people break through limitations and develop resilience so they can thrive through challenge and change.
Mark doesn’t just teach resilience, he embodies it. Born with a life-threatening heart defect, Mark underwent two open-heart surgeries before the age of one. He battled his condition and its limitations for twenty-two years until he was forced to deal with the biggest obstacle of his young life. His doctor informed him that his heart was failing, and without a rare and dangerous heart and double-lung transplant, he would not see his 25th birthday.
In 2002, Mark was fortunate that a suitable donor was found. He not only survived the surgery, but less than 3 years later, Mark became the only man in history to
run a marathon with someone else’s heart and lungs. Then he did it three more times.
Mark is a Certified Speaking Professional, a designation held by less than 1500 speakers in the world. He has inspired more than 175,000 people in more than
750 presentations and has worked with global brands including ExxonMobil and Mercedes Benz, as well as many national and regional associations.
Mark lives in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada where he spends as much time as possible with the most important people in his life; his wife Marise and their three children; Emma, Matteo, and Caleb.
Wednesday June 3, 1:15pm – Navigating Global Trade Realities in a Soft Domestic Market
Paul F. Jannke, FEA
Principal, Lumber
Paul Jannke is a founder and Principal of Forest Economic Advisors LLC, with a main area of expertise in North American lumber markets. Having spent over 30 years analyzing lumber markets and providing reliable, insightful forecasts, Paul is the industry’s top economic analyst. Beyond North American lumber, Paul has co-authored numerous studies on the international lumber and engineered lumber, timber, bioenergy, and panel industries. Paul holds a master’s degree in economics from Boston University and bachelor’s degrees in economics and German from the University of Connecticut. Prior to starting his career in the forest products industry, Paul was a research economist at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden, specializing in econometric modeling.
Wednesday June 3, 2:15pm – Digital Platforms Supporting EUDR and EPD’s
Louis Allard
Research assistant,Université Laval
Louis Allard is a research assistant at the FORAC Research Consortium (Université Laval). His work focuses on the development of a web-based platform enabling the geolocation of forest sourcing areas and the structuring of data required for regulatory compliance, particularly in the context of the EUDR.
His interests include geospatial data integration, sylviculture and forest ecology. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Forest Engineering from Université Laval and is currently completing a Master’s degree on the recruitment dynamics of American beech and sugar maple in response to partial harvesting.
Wednesday June 3, 3:15pm – From Two-By-Fours to Twenty Storeys: Wood’s Next Chapter
Donald MacDonald
Macklan Holdings Inc
Donald MacDonald is the founder and president of The Macklan Group, an integrated family of companies active in construction (DORA Construction), real estate development (Somerled Properties), and advanced wood manufacturing and offsite construction (Eastcut Wood Building Solutions).
Donald established DORA Construction in 2003 as a traditional construction company serving communities across Nova Scotia. Over more than two decades, he has expanded the business by embracing innovation, diversification, and the pursuit of higher levels of productivity in construction and project delivery. That growth has resulted in a unique integrated platform that combines a wide range of traditional construction methodologies, real estate development, and offsite construction and manufacturing of wood-first panelized systems and volumetric modular construction. The company also has a growing focus on mass timber and advanced, hybrid building solutions and innovation.
Based in Nova Scotia, Macklan has emerged as a regional leader in modern wood construction, with increasing capacity to serve clients locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally as demand for industrialized and offsite construction continues to grow.
With more than 30 years in the building industry, Donald has led projects across housing, healthcare, education, and commercial sectors while maintaining a strong commitment to wood-based construction and the long-term potential of the forestry and lumber industries in Atlantic Canada.
Donald’s connection to the sector is also deeply personal. He was named after his grandfather, Donald J. MacDonald, a lifelong lumberman in Ardness, Pictou County, who operated a mill in the community and logged on Glen Dhu. Those family roots continue to shape Donald’s belief in the enduring role of wood in the future of building.
In 2025, Donald was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Canadian Lumber Standards Accreditation Board.
Across his work, Donald is known for a practical, grounded approach to business, focused on building resilient enterprises, advancing the use of wood, and creating long-term value for communities.
Josh Dykens
Eastcut Wood Building Solutions Inc.
Josh Dykens is Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of Eastcut Wood Building Solutions, where he leads operations, manufacturing integration, and the continued advancement of modern wood-based construction systems across the Macklan Group.
With more than 20 years of experience in the building industry, Josh began his career in traditional construction, working across residential, commercial, institutional, and healthcare projects throughout Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada. Trained as both an Architectural and Engineering Technician and a carpenter, he brings a practical understanding of construction from design through on-site execution.
Over the past few years, Josh has played a leading role in the development of Macklan’s modern methods of construction (MMC) platform, including the growth and operation of Eastcut’s 160,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in Trenton, Nova Scotia. His work has included factory and team development, process design, equipment integration, logistics planning, and the implementation of wood-first panelized, volumetric modular, mass timber, and hybrid construction systems.
Josh has led or supported delivery of major modular housing programs, fully modular schools, panelized multi-unit residential buildings, and mass timber/hybrid projects across Nova Scotia. His experience bridges traditional construction expertise with advanced offsite manufacturing and industrialized construction processes.
Working closely with Donald MacDonald and the broader Macklan team, Josh continues to focus on improving productivity, quality, speed, and cost certainty through innovation in wood-based construction and manufacturing.
His work reflects a strong belief that the future of construction will combine the strengths of traditional building knowledge with advanced manufacturing, digital integration, and modern wood construction technologies.
Thursday June 4. 10:45am – Economic Update and Outlook
Mitch Villeneuve
Director – Economic Policy
ScotiaBank
Mitch Villeneuve joined Scotiabank in February 2025 as Director, Economic Policy. In this role, he leads Scotiabank’s provincial economic and fiscal analysis as well as provides analysis on major economic issues related to Canada and other large economies. Prior to joining Scotiabank, Mitch was a Senior Advisor at the International Monetary Fund. Previous to that, he served in a range of domestic and international economic policy roles at the Department of Finance Canada—most recently Director of International Monetary and Financial Policy. He holds an undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Saskatchewan and a master’s degree in economics from Queen’s University and is a member of Métis Nation of Ontario.
Thursday June 4. 11:15am – Growth Opportunities for Wood in North America
Rick Jeffery
President and CEO – Canadian Wood Council
Rick Jeffery became President and CEO of the Canadian Wood Council in February 2022, bringing deep sector knowledge and governance experience from his 14 years on the CWC Board. He previously served as Interim President and CEO from April 2018 to October 2019, guiding both CWC and WoodWorks through a pivotal period of evaluation and renewal. Rick led a full strategic review of the organization and developed a forward-looking Strategic Plan and Blueprint that were unanimously approved by the Board, setting the stage for CWC’s current direction and growth.
With over 30 years in the natural resources sector—and 20 years leading member-driven organizations—Rick brings a rare combination of strategic vision, operational discipline, and steady, integrity-focused leadership. His approach blends clear communication, sound fiscal management, and a commitment to excellence that strengthens every aspect of the Canadian Wood Council’s work.
Cees de Jager
President and CEO – Softwood Lumber Board
President and CEO – Binational Softwood Lumber Council
Cees de Jager leads two of the softwood lumber industry’s principal market development organizations, working across the U.S.-Canada border to grow demand for wood products in construction. Under his leadership, the Softwood Lumber Board (SLB) and Binational Softwood Lumber Council (BSLC) have helped shift how buildings are designed and built, positioning softwood lumber as the preferred choice for both the bottom line and the environment.
Cees began his forest products career with MacMillan Bloedel in 1995, advancing through sales, marketing, and leadership roles before joining Weyerhaeuser. In 2002, he founded Hunter Consulting International, a consultancy specializing in forest products and building materials market development across North America and internationally.
In 2008, Cees was engaged to lead the BSLC, and in 2012 he took on the additional role of Chief Marketing Officer for the SLB, having played a key role in establishing the new industry-funded organization. In December 2018, he was appointed President and CEO of the SLB to expand its scope, influence, and impact.
The results speak for themselves. In 2025 alone, the SLB and its funded programs (the American Wood Council, Think Wood, WoodWorks, and SLB Education) supported the conversion of 1,536 projects representing 62 million square feet of construction and generated 1.5 billion board feet of incremental softwood lumber demand. Cumulatively since 2012, SLB programs have driven more than 16.7 billion board feet of incremental U.S. demand, an average return of 85 board feet for every $1 invested and $43 in revenue for every dollar contributed by the lumber industry over the life of the program. Through the BSLC, Cees continues to advance binational coordination on issues that matter to producers on both sides of the border.
