SVG Ventures | THRIVE

John Cassidy invested in 17 Canadian agri‑food tech companies, leads Canadian strategy, and uses CEO experience running a European fintech plus partnerships like Zone Agtech to help startups expand globally.

Marion Meyer is a strategist, business developer, and investor with over 20 years of management and leadership experience spanning strategic development, operations, and innovation management. She previously worked in strategy, M&A, and new business in the media industry before joining BayWa AG in 2012 as Head of Business Development, later becoming COO of Cefetra Group in 2016 and Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer for BayWa Group in 2019, where she founded and ran the corporate venture arm BayWa Venture GmbH. She focuses on AgriFood and ClimateTech innovation and holds a Diploma in Business Administration from Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University Ravensburg, with executive programs at Stanford and Harvard.

Danny O'Brien leads European investing and accelerators across Silicon Valley, Calgary and Melbourne, combining founder experience (two startups, a VC platform) with teaching and advisory roles in agri-management in Spain.

Greg Young is a Venture Partner at SVG Ventures, where he leads venture investing and deploys capital from the SVG Ventures Pioneer Fund into startups across the agrifood value chain. He has over twenty years in the biotech industry and is also co-founder and Managing Partner of Spruce Capital Partners, which manages the MLS Capital Fund II. He began his career as a molecular biologist at a San Diego biotech startup and later worked as an investor at a life science firm. He holds a BS in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from UC San Diego and an MS in Biotechnology from Northwestern University.

Aimee Elliott is a Business Development Analyst at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, supporting business development, market intelligence, and ecosystem engagement across the THRIVE platform, including partnership development and program execution in agri-food innovation. She has over five years of experience in supply chain and program management in agriculture, having previously worked in various roles within Fonterra Co-operative's Global Supply Chain division. She holds a Bachelor of Business from the University of Waikato and a Master of Business from Lincoln University.

Ben Lesage has over eight years of experience in venture capital, innovation, and startup support, concentrating on climate and Oceantech and the early-stage companies working on ocean health and the climate transition. Before joining SVG Ventures THRIVE, he worked at L'Atelier BNP Paribas in San Francisco analyzing emerging technologies and startups to advise corporate and investor clients on Cleantech opportunities. He later led venture support at Sustainable Ocean Alliance, helping accelerate more than 60 Oceantech startups across areas including sustainable seafood, ocean data, plastic alternatives, and clean shipping.

Carin Gerhardt is Director of Corporate Programs at THRIVE, the agrifood tech accelerator run by SVG Ventures. She previously led the TERRA food and agtech accelerator at RocketSpace, working with corporations such as Nestle, Graincorp, and Tate & Lyle to connect them with emerging growth companies. She began her career as a researcher in a foodtech microbiology lab and has held roles across field operations, manufacturing, and R&D innovation consulting.

Coleton Fisher is the Academy Manager at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where he supports early-stage agrifood tech companies in the THRIVE Academy Pre-Accelerator program, having previously spent two years as a Program Associate helping run five Academy cohorts. He also assists THRIVE's Pioneer Fund by analyzing potential investment opportunities, and earlier worked as a Venture Analyst at the Creative Destruction Lab evaluating startups in agriculture, energy, and health. He holds a Master's in Biomedical Technology from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience with a minor in Philosophy from the University of Lethbridge.

Dawn Trautman is Director of Corporate Innovation at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where she leads open innovation initiatives connecting global agrifood corporates with startups. She previously served as Manager of Agriculture & Food Innovation at Alberta Innovates and held research commercialization roles at the University of Alberta. Her background covers venture formation, partnership development, and startup evaluation across the agri-food sector.

Jessica Hockedy is a Research Associate at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where she helps manage the firm's global startup database, conducts startup market research, and supports research for the annual Top50 AgTech & Foodtech reports. She previously worked in retail sales and marketing and founded a freelance makeup artistry business. She holds a Diploma in Fashion and Media makeup and Digital Marketing, is an Adobe Certified Associate in Graphic Design & Illustration using Adobe Illustrator, and speaks fluent French.

Justin Massar is the Digital Operations & Venture Engagement Manager at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where he builds operational systems and works with early-stage startups to support their growth. He has helped more than 1,000 founders through accelerator and innovation programs, and previously built and sold The Fitness Foundation, a high-performance training studio. He holds a Master's in Management Innovation & Entrepreneurship from Smith School of Business and a Bachelor's in Kinesiology from York University, with certifications in UX Design, Strategic Doing, and Agile Leadership.

Laura Parker is a Marketing and Events Associate at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where she supports event planning, social media, design, and data analysis. She has more than ten years of marketing experience in agriculture and horticulture, including 12 years at Rambridge adapting international horticultural product brands for the North American market. More recently she worked with Controlled Environment Agriculture companies on business strategy, content, government liaison, and community integration as they expanded into North America.

Lisa Merdjan is Head of Canada Programs at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, overseeing delivery of the THRIVE Academy and THRIVE Canada Accelerator; she previously served as THRIVE Academy Manager across five cohorts. Before joining THRIVE, she worked at MaRS Discovery District, where she managed a program supporting early-stage startups in raising funding, growing revenue, and scaling teams across sectors including Health, Cleantech, Fintech, and Enterprise Software. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Development with a minor in Urban Systems from McGill University.

Megan Croft is the Head of Canada Ecosystem Partnerships at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where she supports THRIVE Canada's programs and operations, builds strategic relationships across the country, and manages government partnerships. Her background is primarily in the public sector, including industry engagement, business development, government relations, and applied research operations leadership focused on integrated food systems and agriculture innovation. She holds an MBA in entrepreneurship from Edinburgh Napier University and an MEd in sustainability, creativity, and innovation from Cape Breton University, along with a bachelor's degree in communications and a diploma in broadcasting.

Nancy Yuan has a background in innovation ecosystem building, startup programming, and education. She led the launch of Taiwan's innovation hub in Silicon Valley and previously worked at Extreme Tech Challenge, where she ran global startup competitions at events such as CES and TechCrunch Disrupt and developed partnerships across private, public, and social sectors, including the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. She holds a Master of Arts in Educational Psychology from UCLA and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Boston University.

Paula Elliott is Senior Operations Manager at SVG Ventures|THRIVE, where she develops the firm's international ecosystem and partnerships with innovation hubs, accelerators, and investors. She previously spent over 18 years in sales and marketing with AT&T across the EMEA region and later worked as a self-employed talent acquisition specialist, placing candidates in Europe and the Middle East. She holds a Diploma in Business & Marketing from the Henley Institute in London and speaks fluent German.

Peter Eckes spent 32 years at BASF SE, including serving as CTO of BASF's Agricultural Solutions R&D and Regulatory organization and as a member of the company's global Technology Leadership Team. His career spanned R&D, technology, production, business development, marketing, and business management across agriculture, nutrition, care, specialty chemicals, and industrial biotechnology. He holds a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Frankfurt and completed postgraduate study in Biological Chemistry at Harvard and MIT, along with executive training at INSEAD, Harvard, and Michigan.

Rachel Hartnett is a Venture Analyst at SVG Ventures|THRIVE, where she sources and evaluates investment opportunities, conducts market, technical, and financial diligence, builds investment materials and financial models, and supports investor relations, fund operations, and portfolio work. She holds a degree in Business Administration with a Finance major from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder. Before joining the firm, she worked in corporate finance, financial planning and analysis, and data analytics at Cadence Design Systems and AMD.

Simona Fernandes is a Corporate Innovation Manager at SVG Ventures | THRIVE, where she runs corporate innovation engagements for global agri-food enterprises and helps translate corporate growth priorities into open-innovation programs. She holds a Master's degree in Food Science from the University of Alberta and previously led corporate innovation and venture capital investment activities at Plug and Play Canada, supporting early-stage agri-food companies. She also serves as Calgary Chapter Lead for Canadian Women in Venture Capital and as a Champion-in-Residence at The51's Founder Lab.

Sofi Aguilera is a Senior Innovation Associate at THRIVE, where she leads technical evaluation and innovation work connecting startups with corporate partners. She is the lead author of THRIVE's Top 50 AgTech and FoodTech reports and the THRIVE Insights article series, and reviews Global Impact Challenge applications. She previously worked as an Associate at AgFunder sourcing and evaluating agrifoodtech startups, and holds a B.S. in Bioengineering from Rice University.

Technology and operations executive with over 20 years of international experience in business planning, supply chain, product, program management and global operations. She serves as COO of SVG Ventures and is Executive Director of the Irish Technology Leadership Group, having previously held senior roles at companies including Intel, Intuit, Novell, Lucent and Digital Equipment.

John Hartnett—25+ years in tech and agrifood; at Palm helped grow smartphone revenue to $3.5B, founded Forbes AgTech Summit, and works with USDA and the US Secretary on agrifood policy.