 | The 9th City Nation Place Americas conference will take place in Ottawa, Canada’s capital city, on May 21st & 22nd. Join us for the two-day event to hear the latest ideas and learn from inspirational examples of regions, cities, and communities building more successful place reputations and place economies. |
Join us at City Nation Place Americas to discover how government teams, destination marketing and management organizations, and economic development agencies are developing place-led approaches to solve challenges, leverage emerging opportunities, and invest in improving place attractiveness. Over two content-packed days, you’ll hear from place leaders and place experts who will share practical case studies, new research, and thought-leading ideas to inspire your own strategy.
We are thrilled to host City Nation Place in 2025! This prestigious event is an excellent opportunity to showcase Ottawa’s unique DNA and vibrancy as a city. Our strong partnerships and collaborative approach are key to enhancing Ottawa’s global reputation as a competitive destination and a vibrant city to live, work, play, and meet. Delegates will experience our rich cultural tapestry and innovative spirit, with special Insider Tours highlighting Ottawa’s distinctive qualities. We look forward to creating a memorable experience and elevating our city’s standing on the world stage.
We look forward to collaborating closely with our amazing partners from Ottawa Tourism to create an impactful and memorable experience for all delegates here in Canada’s Capital. This includes a tour of Area X.O, our R&D complex for next-gen smart mobility, autonomy and connectivity, and key clusters across our global tech and business hub.
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Adriana Acosta is the Marketing and Communication Director of PROCOMER (The Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promoter) and oversees the strategic direction of the country brand Essential Costa Rica. Adriana has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and advertising, and she had been the head of conception and development of strategies for brands of diverse sectors such as real state, wines and distillates, premium brands, services, and fast-moving consumer goods.
Prior to joining PROCOMER, Adriana as a Marketing Director and Senior Executive, developed marketing strategies, frame and conduct marketing research, develop customer journeys and lead the social media and advertising strategy for different clients and companies. She also explored her entrepreneur side creating and managing her own advertising agency for 8 years.
Adriana is graduate of the Costa Rica University of Communication and Advertising program and has an MBA in Marketing. She has experience developing new business, leading marketing teams, managing the relation with advertising, social media and public relations agencies, commercial partners, press media and events agencies and has served as the spokesperson of different companies.
Jerad Bachar has close to thirty years of tourism and economic development experience in an array of countries and business environments. He has worked in both developed and emerging markets in the areas of destination branding and marketing, economic development and diversification, and workforce development.
Jerad began his tourism development career at VisitPITTSBURGH in 2004. In 2008, he became Director of Business Tourism for the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing where he led the development of the city’s strategy for business, sports, and leisure events. In 2015, Jerad became an Executive Director at the Bahrain Economic Development Board where he was responsible for economic development of the travel, healthcare, education, and real estate sectors.
Jerad returned to Pittsburgh in January 2019 as the Executive Vice President of VisitPITTSBURGH, and as of May 2020 became President and CEO of the organization. Jerad holds an MBA from the University of Liverpool.
Anita Cassidy is an accomplished leader responsible for the strategic direction and management of Burlington Economic Development in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Anita has worked for Burlington Economic Development since immigrating to Canada from Europe in 2011. She has 25 years of experience in Economic Development blending the perspectives of an extensive background in European and North American economic development practice.
A graduate of the University of Glasgow, Masters of Economic Development program she is multilingual and has lived and worked in seven countries. She has led a number of transformational initiatives for Burlington including the Burlington Economic Vision and the GO Investment Corridor. In her role as Executive Director, she uses her multicultural perspective to deliver unique strategies that position Burlington for investment. Anita also co-founded TechPlace, an Innovation Centre led by Burlington Economic Development that has supported thousands of entrepreneurs since it launched in 2017.
Michael is a recognized leader in travel and tourism in Canada. In his current role, he leads Ottawa’s official destination organization, which spearheads sales and marketing initiatives for attracting visitors to Canada’s capital, while also making investments in the long-term stewardship and development of the destination.
Prior to joining Ottawa Tourism, Michael served as Senior Vice President with InterVISTAS Consulting, where he was responsible for the firm’s airline, air service development, and tourism practices in Canada. Michael has over 15 years experience at the management level with two of Canada’s major airports, the Winnipeg Airports Authority and the Ottawa International Airport Authority.
Michael is very active within the tourism industry and other business groups. He is a Board member with Destinations International, the Ottawa Convention Centre, the Ottawa International Hockey Festival, and the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO). He is the Co-Chair of the Canadian Destination Leadership Council. He is a volunteer member of the Advisory Council for Meeting Professionals Against Human Trafficking and the Advisory Committee for the Hospitality & Tourism Management Degree Program at Algonquin College.
Michael is a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, he is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, and he is an inductee to the Order of Ottawa.
Michael has a Master’s degree in Geography from the University of Manitoba, and he is a Certified Barbecue Judge.
Kelly Groff has led Visit Montgomery for over 25 years. She has spent her entire professional career in the hospitality industry. Prior to joining Visit Montgomery, Groff served as a Business Development Manager at the Baltimore County Office of Economic Development; Business Development Officer with the Baltimore City Office of Promotion and Tourism; and held several directors of sales positions with hotels in Baltimore.
Kelly is a Certified Destination Management Executive, a designation sanctioned by Destinations International. She most recently received the 2024 Distinguished Service Award, from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS). And in 2021 was named business advocate of the year by the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce for her leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kelly has immersed herself in the hospitality industry working as a founder and board member of the Foundation for Hospitality and Restaurant Management (FHRM). The Foundation works with Montgomery County Public Schools to encourage students to explore careers and post-secondary opportunities in the hospitality industry.
Kelly has taught third- and fourth-year hospitality and restaurant management students at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) Shady Grove Campus and first- and second-year college students at the Montgomery College Hospitality Program.
She is a Leadership Montgomery and Leadership Maryland graduate.
Kelly is a native Marylander with a passion for travel and the outdoors. Her biggest accomplishment—raising her two sons Matthew and Stephen White.
Karen Kühl serves as the Executive Director of Tour Cayuga, where she is dedicated to showcasing the beauty and vibrant culture of Cayuga County in New York’s Finger Lakes region. Her work centers on building community connections, supporting local businesses, and leading tourism initiatives that drive economic vitality while celebrating the unique character of the region.
Karen’s career includes impactful work in Nicaragua, where she developed a deep appreciation for sustainable tourism and cultural exchange. At Selva Negra, a renowned eco-lodge and coffee estate, she contributed to sustainable tourism practices focused on environmental stewardship and community support. Through her work with Tastefully Nicaragua, she highlighted the country’s culinary traditions, creating immersive travel experiences rooted in local culture and cuisine.
A passionate storyteller, Karen emphasizes the human and emotional impact of tourism, looking beyond traditional ROI to focus on values like community, support, and opportunity. Her vision is to foster a future where the Cayuga community thrives, residents feel supported, and visitors feel at home.
Matt Pivarnik is CEO of the Greater Topeka Partnership. The Partnership is a collaborative organization that houses the Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce, GO Topeka Economic Development Organization, Visit Topeka, Downtown Topeka Inc., the Riverfront Board, Topeka Area Sports Commission, FORGE Young Professionals and several other community and economic development organizations. Matt joined the Topeka team in January 2016.
He is the Past-Chair of the Chamber of Commerce Executives of Kansas, Past-Chair of the US Chamber Institute for Organization Management’s National Board of Trustees, Past-Chair of the Board of Regents for the US Chamber’s Institute for Organization Management at the University of Arizona, a graduate of the US Chamber’s Institute for Organization Management, completed the program at the Center for Creative Leadership, a Certified Chamber Executive, Past-Commissioner for the Certified Chamber Executive Program, serves on the American Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and past Executive Committee member, a member of the US Chamber’s Committee of 100, served on the President’s Advisory Council for Northeastern State University, is on the advisory board for the Washburn University School of Business, recently recognized as “Honorary Ichabod” by the Washburn University Alumni Foundation, Past-Chair of the Board for Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce Executives, appointed by the Governor as current chair for the Kansas Department of Commerce’s Team Kansas, and on the board of the Topeka Community Foundation. He recently completed a program through the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative in New York. Matt was the founder of MAKO, a regional educational conference for economic development and chamber executives from Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Matt moved to Topeka from Tulsa, OK, where he was with the Tulsa Regional Chamber which also housed the Tulsa’s Future Economic Development Organization, Visit Tulsa, Tulsa’s Young Professionals, Tulsa Sports Commission, Tulsa Film and Music Commission, MOSAIC and the Tulsa Small Business Connection.
Matt has a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma.
Casey Ressler has been with the Mat-Su Convention & Visitors Bureau for 18 years, serving as the Marketing Manager for 16 years and now as the President & CEO for the last two years. His team promotes the Mat-Su Valley, which is just north of Anchorage, Alaska and encompasses 23,000 square miles, an area the size of Ireland. He leads a staff of four people but firmly believes that you can accomplish big things with a small staff if they are the right people – and in his case, that is definitely true! He loves sharing Alaska and all its beauty with visitors from around the world.
Alex Sarian is the author of the critically acclaimed book, The Audacity of Relevance: Critical Conversations on the Future of Arts and Culture (ECW Press, 2024), and President & CEO of Arts Commons, where he is responsible for leading the $660 million Arts Commons Transformation (ACT) project—the largest cultural infrastructure project in Canadian history. Prior to moving to Calgary in 2020, he spent 18 years in New York City, where he served as a senior executive at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. A proud member of the 2022 class of Calgary’s Top 40 Under 40, he holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from New York University, is a graduate of the CommunityShift program at Western University's Ivey School of Business, and was an inaugural graduate of the Impact Program for Arts Leaders at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.
Sonya Shorey, President and CEO, for Invest Ottawa, Bayview Yards, and Area X.O, is a strategy executive and management consultant with more than 22 years of leadership experience with private and public organizations. With expertise in regional, national, and global technology, entrepreneurial, economic development, and innovation-based organizations, she specializes in corporate and communications strategy development and execution. This includes investment strategies that secure new cash and in-kind contributions from public and private sources. Since 2005, Sonya has led, strategized, authored and/or made a significant contribution to successful multi-year funding proposals and initiatives valued at more than $203 million from municipal, provincial, federal, and international governments.
Within her executive leadership role with Invest Ottawa, Bayview Yards and Area X.O, Sonya plays a pivotal role in developing, leading, and executing strategy for all three organizations. This includes:
Sonya launched her career as the Manager of Communications and Member of the Vice-Presidential Cabinet with the 10G Organization of Optical Networks for Nortel from 1999 to 2002, and then served as the Director of Marketing Communications for CMC Microsystems until 2007. Building on a decade of experience, Sonya launched her own strategy company in 2008, addressing the needs of S&T organizations, innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development agencies across Canada, and their partners around the world. She currently serves Vice President of Strategy, Marketing and Communications for Invest Ottawa, lead economic development agency for knowledge-based industries in Canada’s Capital.
Sonya is a Director of the Institute of Mental Health Research of the Royal Ottawa Hospital, Elevate International, and Mindtrust Leadership. She also serves as mentor and pitch coach with Women in Cloud, AI North America, and Technovation. She holds a Combined Honours in English and Political Science from Carleton University and has won 10+ international awards for communications, leadership, and women’s economic empowerment.
Cecelia Thompson serves as Executive Director of Action Greensboro. Action Greensboro, together with the Chamber of Commerce, serves as the city’s primary economic and community development agency. Formed in 2001, Action Greensboro is a collaborative effort of eight local charitable foundations working to leverage local philanthropic impact. In collaboration with business, higher education, and municipal government, Action Greensboro works to strengthen Greensboro's economy and ensure the continuation of its excellent quality of life. In her role, Thompson leads a variety of efforts from talent and workforce development, K-20 education, urban livability, advocacy campaigns and city marketing efforts.
In addition to her role at Action Greensboro, Thompson serves on the boards of the Guilford Education Alliance, the North Carolina Early Childhood Foundation, Union Square Campus, and is a gubernatorial appointee to the North Carolina Humanities Council. Originally from Gainesville, Florida, Thompson holds a B.A. in Political Science, Public Administration and Sociology from Elon University.
A recognized leader in Canada’s tourism sector, Andrew was recently appointed President and CEO of Destination Toronto following 18 years with the organization in a range of leadership roles, including Executive Vice President of Destination Development and Chief Marketing Officer.
A champion and frequent spokesperson for the industry, Andrew just completed a term as Board Chair of the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, and also serves on numerous other boards and committees including Destinations International and the Toronto Region Board of Trade. Prior to Destination Toronto, Andrew served as a senior advisor to an Ontario cabinet minister, and spent nine years in communications in the healthcare and biotech industry.
