2025 Speakers

Alan Nursall is a longtime science communicator and former President and CEO of TELUS World of Science – Edmonton, where he led the $42-million Aurora Project. Prior to that, he spent 24 years at Science North in Ontario and founded NEXT Exhibits, creating science experiences across North America. He’s hosted The Alan Nursall Experience on Discovery’s Daily Planet for 22 years and has served on multiple national science boards. Since retiring in 2023, he’s held interim leadership roles at the Citadel Theatre and Fort Edmonton. Alan has proudly hosted Jasper Dark Sky Festival Trivia Night since it began in 2018.

Andrew is a Director of AI & Autonomy at Mission Control where he advances artificial intelligence technologies and products. With a background in aerospace and nanotechnology his expertise spans anomaly detection, imaging spectroscopy, and remote sensing data analysis. Andrew holds a PhD from the University of British Columbia (Physics) and a BSc from the University of Waterloo (Mathematical Physics). On weekends you can find him hiking, canoeing, or in a tent with a paperback.

Emma Lehnhardt is the Program Planning & Control Manager for NASA's Gateway Program, which will be a space station in orbit around the Moon and part of the Artemis campaign. A core member of the Program formulation and leadership team, in her role today Emma leads the team responsible for all the business operations, financial management, and program governance for the $7B+ Gateway program. Emma oversees daily operations and business controls for Gateway, comprising 4 international partners, 5 prime contracts ($10B+ potential value), 40+ support contracts, and 1,000+ personnel.

Jessica Mae Stover is the author of Impress of the Seventh Surge and the scifi novel series Astral Fall, and the screenwriter-director of the sci-fantasy movie Artemis Eternal, as well as the founder of the associated production startup. In her first media life she built a viewership of 5M as the teen creator and star of the earliest video show on the Internet from a studio conglomerate and the world of big tech. She earned a degree in English with a focus on writing and rhetoric, coupled with media studies, conservatory performance and filmmaking, and has studied the political sociology of disinformation, science and war.

Jim Ellis is professor of English at the University of Calgary and director of the Calgary Institute for the Humanities, Canada’s oldest humanities institute. As director of the CIH, he has edited a series of books on the environmental humanities: Calgary: City of Animals (2017); Water Rites: Reimagining Water in the West (2018); and Intertwined Histories: Plants in their Social Contexts (2019). With Noreen Humble, he co-edited Mythologies of Outer Space (2025). He is the series editor of the Calgary Atlas Project, which produces maps of alternative or forgotten histories of Calgary.

Kyle Flemmer is a writer, publisher, and digital media artist from Calgary in Treaty 7 territory. He completed an MA in English Literature at the University of Calgary, where he researched digital poetics and worked as a teaching and research assistant. Kyle holds a B.A. Hons. in Western Society & Culture and Creative Writing from Concordia University, where he earned the distinction of Faculty of Arts and Science Scholar in 2016.

Dr. Kris Lehnhardt is a proud Canadian (now also American) with expertise in Emergency, Extreme Environmental, and Aerospace Medicine. Currently, he is a Professor of Emergency Medicine and the Director of Space Medicine at UTHealth Houston. Previously, he served as an Associate Professor at the Baylor College of Medicine in the Center for Space Medicine and the Department of Emergency Medicine. From 2018-2024, Dr. Lehnhardt was the Element Scientist for Exploration Medical Capability in the NASA Human Research Program at the NASA Johnson Space Center. He is board-certified in Emergency Medicine in both Canada and the U.S.A and works clinically in the Emergency Department at the Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston.

Kyle Flemmer is a writer, publisher, and digital media artist from Calgary in Treaty 7 territory. He completed an MA in English Literature at the University of Calgary, where he researched digital poetics and worked as a teaching and research assistant. Kyle holds a B.A. Hons. in Western Society & Culture and Creative Writing from Concordia University, where he earned the distinction of Faculty of Arts and Science Scholar in 2016.

Landon Shepherd is the Vegetation and Fire Specialist for Parks Canada in Jasper National Park, with over 30 years of experience in fire management. He has served in key leadership roles on wild and prescribed fires across Canada and currently leads a team focused on fire management, forest fuel reduction, reforestation, and land reclamation. A former Rappattack crew leader, Yukon Smokejumper, and now an Incident Commander, Landon also holds degrees in Natural Resource Science and Conservation Biology. Outside of work, he’s a dedicated husband, father, mountain enthusiast, and ACMG winter ski guide.

Madison C. Feehan is the founder and CEO of Space Copy, an international space logistics and manufacturing company. Based in Edmonton, she blends a background in lunar instrument development and NASA innovations with business expertise, holding a Harvard Business School certification in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Madison leads initiatives at the intersection of space tech, STEM education, and international policy, serving as G100 Region Chair for Space Technology and Aviation in Alberta and Chair of the Lunar Chamber of Commerce. She also contributes to global STEM policy through volunteer work with organizations like the UN and Lifeboat Foundation.

Noreen Humble is professor of Classics at the University of Calgary and associate director of the Calgary Institute for the Humanities. As associate director, she runs the Institute’s Public Humanities programme, placing advanced humanities doctoral students into community organisations for 3-month work placements. She is co-editor, with Jim Ellis, of Mythologies of Outer Space (2025).

Dr. Robert Thirsk has academic backgrounds in mechanical engineering, medicine and business administration. He has flown on two space missions as a member of the Canadian Space Agency’s astronaut corps. Bob first flew aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 1996 as part of the Life and Microgravity Spacelab mission. His second flight in 2009 was a six-month expedition aboard the International Space Station. Bob and his Station crewmates performed multidisciplinary research, robotic operations and maintenance of spacecraft systems and payloads. Bob continues to be a strong promoter of a national economy based upon exploration, innovation and collaboration.

Dr. Tanya Harrison calls herself a "Professional Martian," having worked on rocks and robots on the Red Planet for a living. She was a science and mission operations specialist for cameras aboard NASA's Opportunity, Curiosity, and Perseverance rovers, and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Currently she is a fellow of the Outer Space Institute. Tanya holds a Ph.D. in Geology with a Specialization in Planetary Science and Exploration from the University of Western Ontario, a Masters in Earth and Environmental Sciences from Wesleyan University, and a B.Sc. in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Washington.