Dr. Katie Lavigne
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University
Researcher and leader of the Douglas Open Science Program
Douglas Research Centre
Dr. Lavigne received a PhD in Neuroscience in 2018 from the University of British Columbia and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital and the Douglas Research Centre in 2023. Her research focuses on the nature and mechanisms of cognitive dysfunction in psychiatric disorders, using techniques such as ecological momentary assessment and multimodal magnetic resonance imaging. Her group also develops new tools to improve cognitive assessment, and makes these openly available to the research community.

Dr. Mary-Rose Bradley-Gill
Senior Program Analyst at the Natural Sciences and Engineering
Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
Dr. Bradley-Gill primarily works on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policy in college applied research grants at NSERC. She began working at NSERC in 2020 as a Mitacs Canadian Science Policy Fellow. Previously, she received her PhD in Biology from McGill University where she studied genes mutated in cancer and their role in the basic processes that control cell division and development using fruit flies as a model organism. During her graduate studies, Mary-Rose volunteered with Science & Policy Exchange (SPE), serving as Co-President in 2018. She is passionate about relating research to broader society, promoting evidence-based policy making as well as EDI in research. She is a mom of two young kids and currently enjoys taking them out for nature walks, knitting, keeping her streak in Duolingo and reading.

Virginie Hotte-Dupuis
Director of Engagement & Corporate Social Responsibility
L'Oréal Canada
Joining L'Oréal Canada in 2001, Ms. Hotte-Dupuis initially managed communications and training for Vichy and La Roche-Posay, later taking on Biotherm in 2007.
Transitioning to Corporate Communications, she championed L'Oréal Canada's best practices and led philanthropic programs like L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science, For Girls in Science, and Beauty for a Better Life. She also oversees the inclusive internship program with the Les Petits Rois Foundation, which has integrated eight young adults with intellectual disabilities into L'Oréal Canada since 2019. Currently, she manages philanthropic programs and employee engagement initiatives, fostering strong internal and external loyalty.
A Université de Montréal communications graduate, Ms. Hotte-Dupuis lives in Montreal and is a mother of two. Passionate about empowering women and promoting education, she serves on the board of Les Fées Marraines, having previously served on the board of the Saint-Luc High School Music Foundation. For two decades, she has dedicated herself to helping women and youth achieve their full potential and positively impact society.

Serge Villemure
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Consultant
Serge Villemure was the NSERC Director of the Chairs for Women in Science and Engineering Program from 2013-21. Also, he was responsible for integrating equity, diversity and inclusion considerations into policies and programs, and facilitating EDI analysis and capacity building across the Agency (where he performed the role of EDI Champion), and at the Tri-agency level. Serge sits on several committees and has spoken on multiple panels across Canada and internationally, focused on diverse aspects of equity, diversity and inclusion in the research ecosystem. He was responsible for the organization of Gender Summit 11, held in Montreal, in November 2017, and was Chair of its Steering Committee.
Serge left NSERC in 2021 and is now doing consultation work in equity, diversity and inclusion for research funding agencies, universities and other organizations.
Serge joined NSERC in 1991. He spent one year, from June 2000 to June 2001, at the Canada Research Chairs Program where he contributed to starting up the program. In 2004, he led the Physical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering team as Director and in 2010, he became Director of the Scholarships and Fellowships Division. He has a B.Sc. in Kinesiology and a Masters in Administration from the University of Ottawa.