
An Important Conversation
CatIQ Connect is a content-driven discussion to foster collaboration before, during and after catastrophic events. This conference provides a detailed overview of catastrophes, discusses strategies in catastrophe management and explores sector perspectives. Overall themes are on preparedness and resiliency, available tools, and impacted stakeholders and policy makers working together for the greater good of all Canadians.
Who Should Attend?
CatIQ Connect brings together industry, academia and government to discuss Canadian natural and human-made catastrophes. Participants will have the opportunity to engage and collaborate with experts from a variety of sectors. Past attendees include professionals from the following areas:
- Insurers & Reinsurers
- Government representatives from various levels
Academics & Researchers
- Engineers
Emergency Managers & Emergency Responders
- CAT Modelers
- Risk Consultants
- Regulators
- Finance
- Urban Planners
- Builders
- IT Executives supporting their business associates
What Past Attendees Have Said
What attendees of past CatIQ Connect events have had to say!
CatIQ Connect
2021
This conference is very much recommended for risk professionals. CatIQ did a very good job of bringing disaster impacts to life, particularly in a virtual setting.
CatIQ Connect
2020
It was a blast to participate in CatIQ Connect. The conference offered a fabulous opportunity for the insurance and risk management industries to think about how to handle increasing disaster load in Canada. We need creativity and financial innovation to rise to the challenge. Together we identified lots of low hanging fruit and areas that will require novel partnerships and ways of thinking. Can’t wait to see what people do over the next year.
CatIQ Connect
2019
My favourite part was that not only re/insurers joined the conference but so many people from governmental agencies and academia joined as well. This provided a great forum for much more thorough discussions and getting multiple angles on climate change issues. The topics covered were relevant and the speakers had great insights and opinions to share. It was also a great opportunity to network.
This is perhaps the top emergency management conference I’ve attended, for this reason – connecting the horizontal linkages between ‘silos of excellence.’ The cross-section of industry, government and academia is a truly innovative approach to explore different perspectives with regards to disasters
I had the chance to meet with representatives of different institutions, and discuss the questions and issues proposed in the workshop. It was rewarding to meet with new people, create connections, and solve the proposed problems by giving and connecting ideas from our broad range of backgrounds
This was my first CatIQ Conference – it was really well done, and I will recommend it to others next year
Steering Committee Members

Caroline Floyd
Director
Catastrophe Indices and Quantification

Charlene Ferris
Manager, National Property Major Events
The Co-operators Group

Cindy Curtis
National Catastrophe Manager
Crawford & Company

Erika Schurr
Chief Actuary
Travelers Canada

Glenn McGillivray
Managing Director
Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction

Izzy Graham
Senior Reinsurance Broker
Aon

Jim Abraham
Past President and Fellow
Canadian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society

Karen Francis
Senior Vice President
Guy Carpenter

Kathryn Bakos
Managing Director, Finance and Resilience
Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation

Kelly O’Neill
Senior Natural Catastrophe Pricing Analyst
SCOR

Ken Mok
Executive Vice President
Gallagher Re

Kyle Winston
Chair
CRU GROUP

Laura Twidle
President and CEO
Catastrophe Indices and Quantification

Marjorie Brans
Global Catalyst
The League of Intrapreneurs

Nevina Kishun
President
MSA Research

Phil Donelson
Vice President, Public Policy
Insurance Bureau of Canada

Rebecca Wagner
Associate Director
Environment and Climate Change Canada

Sharmalene Mendis-Millard
Director
Partners for Action - University of Waterloo

Vincent Accardo
Senior Manager, Property & Marine Claims | National CAT Manager
Zurich Canada