Dr. Cicha delivers financial project support, assorted technical/business advisory services, and regional, national and international networking guidance to accelerate the growth of innovative Canadian firms (SMEs), with a focus on those developing advanced materials (including nanomaterials), systems and processes critical to driving the ongoing energy transition. He serves as an Advisor on the Board of the NRC Materials for Clean Fuels Program, is a former Advisor on the Board of NRC’s Nanotechnology Research Center, and is a former Director on the Board of the Pacific Energy Innovation Association (PEIA). Dr. Cicha’s past R&D work at DuPont and General Electric (GE) in the U.S. resulted in 11 patents and two new commercialized processes. In 1997, a DuPont technical team led by Dr. Cicha received the American Chemical Society’s Hero of Chemistry Award for its contribution to environmental industrial engineering. Dr. Cicha’s first “real job” was with the Cameco Corporation’s R&D Department in Saskatoon, SK (1990-92), where he contributed to the development of novel laser isotope enrichment technology for the nuclear industry. He has a B.Sc. (Hons) in Chemistry and a Ph.D. in Fluorine Chemistry from UBC, and is an Adjunct Professor in UBC’s Materials Engineering Department. Dr. Cicha regularly delivers invited presentations at conferences and universities, as well as internally. Sports, music and family are his prevailing passions outside of work.

Walter will be presenting on the state of Battery Production in Canada. 

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cicha/