Park Development advisory panel
As you may have noticed, we @MIP have bold ambitions and plans. To go from bold plan to impactful reality, we need bold thinkers and leaders that have done it before. We are therefore delighted to have onboard three amazingly talented advisors, each a world-class expert in their own fields.
Ronald Soskolne, MIP’s Chief Park Development Advisor. Ron will be helping MIP develop and realize a world-class park design that enables spatial alchemy, maximizes collisions and makes economic sense to all stakeholders.
Dr. Sheila Singh, MIP’s Life Science Venture Advisor. Sheila will be helping MIP understand and address the unique ecosystem needs of emerging life science ventures.
Michael Wong, MIP’s Biotech Start-up Advisor. Michael will be working with MIP develop our biotech facilities and assist ventures looking to break into the biotech market.
Dr. Gail Martin, Ph.D., Biotech Start-up Advisor. Gail collaborates with MIP to assist with the development of biotech ventures.
Ronald Soskolne, Ronald L. Soskolne Associates Inc.
Ronald L. Soskolne Associates Inc. is a real-estate development consultancy that specializes in large-scale mixed-use developments and public/private projects, often incorporating the creation and animation of major public spaces. It conducts business under the abbreviated name “Soskolne Associates”. Its usual practice is to associate for a limited period of time with clients who require, on a short-medium term basis, a high level of development expertise for the execution of specific projects. Such clients are usually municipalities, developers, private corporations, institutions, or not-for-profit corporations. They have included entities such as The Walt Disney Company, the City of Toronto in collaboration with the Yonge Street Business and Residents Association, Ryerson University, Shell International, Canary Wharf Limited, and the City of Detroit.
Ron Soskolne, its principal, is a well-experienced real estate development professional. His qualifications in Architecture and Urban Design, his in-depth senior-level experience in municipal government in Toronto, and in major real-estate development projects internationally, have uniquely equipped him to be effective in both the public and private sectors and to interface between them. He has worked closely with some of the most accomplished and prestigious Architects and Planning firms in the USA, UK, Europe, Mexico, and Canada.
His demonstrated strengths, working as a leader of development teams include:
Strategic analysis of options for optimizing the use of potential development-sites in relation to the client’s functional and financial objectives;
Project conceptualization to maximize market impact, value creation, and architectural quality;
Co-ordination of urban planning and architectural design aspects of large-scale projects, and integration with construction, marketing, and financial feasibility considerations;
Negotiation with government officials regarding land acquisition, land-use entitlement, and co-ordination of public and private interests.
Creation of major urban civic places and spaces, including animation of regeneration areas, development of arts and events programming, and management of public spaces.
Dr. Sheila Singh, PhD
Dr. Sheila Singh is a professor of surgery and biochemistry, chief pediatric neurosurgeon at McMaster Children’s Hospital, Division Head of Neurosurgery at Hamilton Health Sciences, and scientist appointed to the Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute at McMaster University. She holds a Tier 1/ Senior Canada Research Chair in Human Brain Cancer Stem Cell Biology, and is Director of the McMaster Surgeon Scientist Program. Her PhD thesis described the novel identification of a population of cancer stem cells that exclusively drive the formation of brain tumours. Since 2007, Dr. Singh's lab applies a developmental neurobiology framework to the study of brain tumorigenesis. Building upon previous cell culture techniques developed for the isolation of normal neural stem cells (NSC) and applying them to brain tumours, and through development of a xenograft model to efficiently study brain tumour initiating cell (BTIC) activity, Dr. Singh's lab aims to understand the molecular mechanisms that govern BTIC self- renewal. Dr. Singh is currently studying the regulation of BTIC signalling pathways in glioblastoma, brain metastases and childhood medulloblastoma, with an ultimate goal of selectively targeting the BTIC with appropriately tailored drug and molecular therapies. Her laboratory is funded by CCSRI, CIHR, TFRI, CRS, the Stem Cell Network, McMaster Surgical Associates, Brain Canada and the Boris Family Fund. She is scientific founder and interim CEO of a start-up company, Empirica Therapeutics, a brain cancer therapeutics company that is seeking new, data-driven and polytherapeutic treatment options for patients with Glioblastoma and brain metastases. Empirica aims to translate research discoveries co-developed at McMaster University and University of Toronto through clinical trials and into the clinic.
Michael Wong is a scientist by training and entrepreneur by practice who is passionate about building startups that transform human health and sustainability. Michael joined Flagship Pioneering as an Associate in 2020 after completing the firm’s Fellowship program. At Flagship, Michael works as part of a venture origination team to create and build the next generation of transformative companies in human health, agriculture, and sustainability. In this role, he contributes to the venture concepts, research and development plan, intellectual property, and corporate strategy that form the foundations of breakthrough startups.
Michael completed his doctoral research in metabolism and reproduction at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada. During this time, he designed and built three-dimensional cellular models of the human placenta and conducted compound screening to understand the effects of maternal drug and toxin exposure on pregnancy. His work has been disseminated into numerous scientific publications and over 20 regional and international conference presentations. Michael’s academic excellence was affirmed by more than 40 awards and scholarships, including the prestigious Vanier Scholarship, where he was nationally ranked as one of the top four doctoral scientists by the Canadian Institutes of Health
Outside of the lab, Michael founded and led his first company in the software space in 2008 where he was involved in raising capital, building and leading teams, product development, and establishing relationships with external stakeholders. He subsequently founded ARCHITECHealth, a life sciences consultancy where he and his team supported and advised a range of clients from early-stage biotech startups to Johnson & Johnson and IBM. Michael was also dedicated to training future entrepreneurial scientists in his founding and leading of Industry Link, an organization connecting academic talent with the life sciences industry.
Michael earned his Ph.D. in Medical Sciences from McMaster University and his M.Sc. and B.Sc. in Physiology and Pharmacology from Western University.
Dr. Gail Martin, Ph.D
Dr. Gail Martin Gail completed her undergraduate Honours BSc in Microbiology at the University of Glasgow, UK, in 1998, her Ph.D. in Cell Biology at the University of Manchester, UK, in 2003 and her Postdoctoral Fellowship in Regenerative Medicine (CIHR funded) in 2007, at McMaster University.
Dr. Martin transferred to Business Development and Administration in 2007 in the McMaster Industry Liaison Office, and later at McGill University. Protecting intellectual property and moving technologies from academia to society, engaging industry partners to maximize the social and economic impact of university technologies from a broad range of sectors including biotech, aerospace, natural resources, and pharma.
As Executive Director of The Research Institute of St. Joe’s Hamilton, Gail supervised the research administration team providing full services, including: financial oversight, contract review, lab management, IT support services, and research marketing and public relations efforts to researchers, the Research Institute and other stakeholders.
As an Assistant Professor (PT) within the Dept. of Medicine at McMaster University, Gail is within the Division of Education and Innovation, and serves as a mentor within The Clinic programs at McMaster.
Gail is a co-founder of McMaster HealthLabs and serves as the Strategic Partnerships Director. McMaster HealthLabs (MHL) is a non-profit organization focused on curbing the human, economic and social costs of COVID-19 through research initiatives and testing solutions. MHL’s scientific research informs evidence-based decisions that keep Canadians safe and accelerate business recovery. MHL works with scientists and doctors who are affiliated with McMaster University, The Research Institute of St. Joe's Hamilton, and other Canadian Universities and research organizations.