Mr. Michael Salib

Founder and Managing Partner of The Zeta Group, Mr. Salib has many years of comprehensive knowledge and understanding of all-hazards risk and emergency management at the municipal, provincial and federal levels of government and, as a management consultant, working with public and private sector clients. He has planned and managed major projects. He is an authority on risk assessment, critical infrastructure, program evaluation, emergency planning, training, communications, HAZMATs and CBRN. He has made significant contributions to developing guidelines, standards, protocols, training and custom software for emergency management; in particular, he developed a methodology for the identification, prioritization and assessment of interdependencies between and among critical infrastructures. He has developed and managed several national emergency management programs; he has chaired national and international committees and has extensive international experience in the USA, Mexico, Europe, Middle East China and Central America.

Dr. Eric Shipley

Having worked for over 30 years in emergency management, Dr. Shipley has both knowledge and experience in all aspects of the field, ranging from prevention and mitigation at one end of the spectrum through to response, disaster financial assistance and recovery at the other. He was for seven years the head of the federal government’s emergency management agency and has particular expertise in public-sector emergency legislation, policy, preparedness and response. A past chairman of NATO's Civil Defence Committee, Dr. Shipley has an extensive network of contacts both in Canada and abroad.

Dr. Saginur is a practising physician with an active research program in infectious disease, is an expert in infectious diseases in humans and on the public health impact of infectious diseases. In addition to his positions on a university faculty and a hospital professional staff, he has been actively involved in public policy regarding infectious diseases and clinical trials. He is a fellow of the Infectious Disease Society of America and President of the Canadian Foundation for Infectious Diseases. He serves on the Clinical Care Working Group of the Pandemic Influenza Committee of the Public Health Agency of Canada. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health, and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research. He was a member and chair of the Committee to advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel of the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). As a member of the Steering Committee of the Emerging Infectious Diseases Research Network, Dr. Saginur is leading research initiatives for medical preparedness for pandemic influenza and other mass emergencies and has recently organized and chaired the National Summit on Human Subject Protections in Outbreak Research.

Mr. Doshen brings an extensive background in military operations and experience in the national and international intelligence community to the field of emergency preparedness. The emphasis in his consulting work has been in project management, data mining and exercise design and control.

Disaster Risk Management and Project Management specialist with more than 15 years experience formulating plans, programs and projects for implementing risk reduction strategies in research, academia, training and education for the prevention, mitigation and preparation for response to emergencies and disasters. She has taught Risk Management and Emergency Response Systems to Master Program students at the Central American School of Geology. Her client list includes the United Nations system (UNDP, ECLAC, UNICEF, PAHO) Coordination Center for Disaster Prevention in Central America (CEPREDENAC), Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), World Bank (WB), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), hydroelectric plant Diquís Brunca of Costa Rica, the University of Costa Rica (UCR), among others. Ms. Alpízar has managed projects in Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean and South America.

Her achievements include: planning and project management of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response program; formulating the policy and national plan for establishment of the National Risk Management and Emergency Response program; authoring the National Prevention Plan; the creation of the Emergency Communications Network; developing virtual training programs on risk management and project management at the Estatal a Distancia University (UNED); representing Costa Rica in negotiating humanitarian aid post hurricane Mitch disaster; and, designed and implemented the Response Plan for Children without Parental Care, post the Haiti earthquake, in January 2010.

She was Costa Rica’s technical representative to the Coordination Center for Disaster Prevention in Central America (CEPREDENAC) where she spent over two years facilitating the implementation of the Risk Management and Emergency Response System Project. She authored many publication, among which is the book: Education and Disaster Risk Reduction in Central America: Risk Management – the work aimed at primary education teachers in the region, published by the Committee on Education and Culture of Central America (CECC), a body Member of the Secretariat of Central American Integration (SICA).

Business Administrator; Master’s Degree in Social Management; ULACIT-UMCA; Humanist leader in Costa Rica; Mediator in Alternative Dispute Resolution; expert in the prevention of personal and social violence; and, extensive experience in the planning and implementation of projects on Local Economic Development and Organizational Development. Experience in developing innovative projects in ICT (information and communication technologies for social organizations), municipal government decentralization, human rights houses, decentralization of public transport, development of social networks for social organizations, expert in social development and personal growth, as well as establishment of cooperative communications and local economic development. And experience in the field of social organization for emergency care.

The Zeta Group: Knowledge, experience and creativity in risk and emergency management.