Female Founders Funders and Fortifiers Speaker Series

Organizer: Accelerate Okanagan and BDC

Location: Sandhill Wines

Registration Link

Description:

BDC’s Thrive Venture Fund for Women, Accelerate Okanagan, and e@UBCO are thrilled to host the next edition of the Okanagan’s 4F event series. Join us on International Women’s Day at Sandhill Wines in downtown Kelowna for a celebration of gender equity and the advancement of women in technology!

This event features a panel discussion hosted by Krista Mallory of the COEDC. Krista will interview three female entrepreneurs who are at various stages of the entrepreneurial journey. Each panelist provides a diverse perspective and valuable insights from their unique experience building a business. Attendees are encouraged to stay after the panel for additional networking and peer connection.

Come celebrate the achievements of women in technology and be inspired by the entrepreneurial journeys of our panelists.

Agenda

4:00-4:30 Doors Open & Networking

4:30-4:40 Opening Welcome

4:40 – 5:15 Panel Discussion

5:15-6:00 Networking

Meet Our Moderator

Krista Mallory is the manager of the Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission, a service of the Regional District of Central Okanagan based in Kelowna BC. A believer in the power of working together, Krista supports Canada’s fastest growing metro area by developing and nurturing relationships and connecting newcomers, businesses and entrepreneurs to community resources and networks. In addition to acting as a connector, Krista leads a team of six highly skilled professionals and a 45-member Advisory Council in advancing workforce development, business retention and expansion and investment and talent attraction initiatives.

Meet Our Panelists

Vanessa Lo is a fourth-year nursing student at UBCO. She is also a research ambassador, and research assistant for The Health Informatics and Equity lab, and The Create in Immersive Technologies Graduate Training Program. She co-founded VanTech Medical, a research and development startup aimed at developing cost-effective and innovative medical devices and platforms. VanTech Medical is currently part of e@UBCO’s Mentor2Market program and the team is working on their first medical device aimed at solving the issue of difficult intravenous access.

Amanda Holyk is the Founder and CEO of iMaster Health, a MedTech startup focused on digitizing rehabilitative care for chronic health conditions. She is a certified Clinical Exercise Physiologist and has a Bachelor’s of Human Kinetics from the University of British Columbia Okanagan. Amanda’s experience working in academia and healthcare allowed her to recognize a global gap in rehabilitative care, and build a business focused on implementing technology-based solutions to reduce a major strain on the healthcare systems and improve patient’s quality of life.

Ashley Ramsay co-founded the animation studio Yeti Farm Creative in 2007. She had previously spent over a decade honing her production and business skills at leading Vancouver studios in various roles. As CEO and Momma Yeti, Ashley embodies Yeti’s core values leading the studio management team, corporate strategy, partnerships, acquisitions and intellectual properties. Ashley is extremely active with government initiatives and industry boards, serving as a Director for the Canadian Media Producers Association and as a Director on the British Columbia Business Roundtables. She is currently a board member at Accelerate Okanagan and has previously served with the Okanagan Film Commission.

Ticket includes a glass of wine and light appetizers. Please bring ID and drink responsibly.