People
Hope Latta
Hope is in her senior year of Computer Science at Acadia University. She loves teaching and encouraging people to learn computer science. While in her undergrad, she worked two co-op terms in the security industry. This past summer she studied web design and directing at Harvard University. Locally, she won the Best Overall Physical Sciences Project grades 7-12 two years in a row at the Annapolis Valley Regional Science Fair. She also represented Nova Scotia at the Canada Wide National Science Fair. When she isn’t coding, she loves dance and various performing arts activities.
Ian McKay
“Creative Technician”…what the heck is that?
I see my role, primarily, as that of a possibilitist. I listen closely to your ideas, what you hope to create, the problem you are working and then share with you the possibilities technology may offer. My years of immersion in Maker culture, joyfully exploring new and unusual uses for the wonders of emerging and age-old tech, provide me with a deep pool of possible solutions to your creative problems. While I am happy to help suggest solutions and inform you of the possibilities and challenges, I always keep in mind that the piece is YOUR work and will strive to help YOUR vision come to fruition. In those cases where a more collaborative model is what you are seeking, I would love to work with you to make our ideas a reality.
Jeremy Lutes
Jeremy Lutes is a Partner at Equilibrium Engineering. Jeremy has been successfully managing and operating businesses since 1998. Previous to Equilibrium, Jeremy was the Business Analyst for Internetworking Atlantic (IAI), a private Halifax based telecommunications company.
From a volunteer perspective, Jeremy was previously on the Board of Directors of the Halifax Pop Explosion for twelve years, and the Music Nova Scotia Board of Directors for three years. These positions illustrate a long-standing passion for the arts.
John Frost
John Frost is a Senior Manager, Satellite Products, at PrecisionHawk. John worked extensively in geophysical research and exploration before returning to university to complete studies in International Relations/Intercultural Studies. With broad national and international project exposure, he is a cross-cultural specialist in technology adaptation. Through the Aerhyve brand, the company focused on the analysis of UAV data with Machine Learning, providing actionable intelligence for agricultural and industrial applications. An entrepreneur and technophile, John is always pursuing opportunities which make a local-global impact.
Justin Bezanson
Since 2000 I have continued to expand my knowledge and skills and worked hard to be the best developer I can be.
I enjoy meeting challenges and working hard to find creative and user friendly solutions.
My goal is to continually improve my development process, delivering higher quality and efficiency.
Specialties: PHP, ASP.NET MVC, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, CodeIgniter, Zend Framework, AJAX, Windows, Linux, MySQL, SQL Server, WordPress, ASP.NET
Justin, pictured here, is The Thing from the Fantastic Four.
Keegan Francis
My name is Keegan Francis, i have been working with, interested in, and invested in cryptocurrencies and blockchain since 2014.
- Invested in bitcoin and dogecoin in 2014
- Graduated with a degree in computer science in 2015
- Built my first mining rig in 2017
- Have given several lectures and presentations to Nova Scotia universities in 2017 and 2018
- Attended an international blockchain conference in Shanghai, China, 2018
- Co-founded Atlantic Blockchain Company Inc. in November 2018
Keith Diehl
Keith got his first glimpse of HTML with NCSA’s Mosaic browser in 1994. A few “View Sources” later and he was hooked.
Soon after, he got his first web job as Webmaster for the Arizona Daily Wildcat. Over the years, Keith has worked for several newspapers and Fortune 500 companies including Coca Cola and Aflac insurance. He has been the Webmaster for North America’s premiere training provider CED Solutions for over 15 years.
Laura Simpson
Lover of music and truth. Listen to the poets. Founder of The Syrup Factory, Make.Do.Camp. and Side Door.
Laura Simpson is a music industry professional, living with her family in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She founded The Syrup Factory, which began hosting house concerts 2011 and offering strategy and services to artists in 2015.
She has been an organizer in the arts scene since she was 14, going to all-ages shows and then eventually taking live music photography and freelance writing about shows and artists. That led her to be a journalist for seven years, working for CBC and Rogers Radio.
Leanne Strathdee
Leanne Strathdee is the Manager of Innovation and Incubation for Acadia Entrepreneurship Centre . In this role, she manages the Rural Innovation Centre – an incubator for start-up companies at Acadia University , that are connected to the services and amenities that Acadia offers in research, data analytics, tidal energy or business - skills development. Additionally, she manages all the student entrepreneurship programming through the provincial sandbox, launchbox.
In her time with AEC, Leanne has worked to help young and established entrepreneurs connected to the many resources and opportunities available here in the Annapolis Valley. She is passionate about supporting youth, women and rural entrepreneurs. As an Acadia grad, she is very proud of the work the university is doing to support entrepreneurs in the community and on campus, and strongly believes that the Annapolis Valley is a hotbed of entrepreneurial activity.