What to Expect From the 2026 Maclean’s Ideas Summit: The Year Ahead

The annual Maclean’s Ideas Summit is taking place on Feb. 18 at The Selby, bringing together influential voices to examine the year ahead as Canada is having a major moment in global news. Speakers will discuss the challenges facing Canada in leadership, housing, the future of AI and youth, with the overarching question, will Canada endure?

The event is hosted by Maclean’s in partnership with Tricon, Mastercard, and Northeastern University. Guests will be welcomed at The Selby, an award-winning purpose-built rental residence by Tricon, for an evening featuring speakers who are shaping Canada’s national identity, accompanied by meaningful networking amongst these key economic players and like-minded attendees.

Doors open at 6:00 p.m., with the evening beginning with networking, food and beverages from elle cuisine. Followed by welcome remarks from Maclean’s Editor-in-Chief, Sarah Fulford, and Senior Managing Director, Head of Multi-Family for Tricon, Andrew Joyner.

Keynote Fireside Chat

The night will kick off with Erin Elofson, President of Mastercard in Canada, joining Jason Maghanoy, Publisher of Maclean’s, for a candid conversation on the future of commerce — exploring how trust, security and personalization must evolve as AI increasingly makes decisions on our behalf.

Meet the Speaker:

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Erin Elofson, President, Mastercard, Canada

Erin Elofson is the President of Mastercard, Canada, leading with a focus on driving strategic growth in all avenues of the company, and a deep commitment to strengthening customer service. She has over twenty years in the tech industry, with a skill of scaling businesses. Before Mastercard, she worked as the Head of Canada and APAC of Pinterest, where she opened the company’s Canadian office. Prior to this, Elofson worked in leadership positions at Meta and Microsoft. Her influence was recognized when she was named a DMZ Woman of the Year in 2022.

Thought Leadership Panel

Next up will be a panel discussion hosted by Jason Maghanoy, featuring key leaders in the future of housing, AI and youth in Canada. The panelists include Andrew Joyner, the senior managing director, head of multi-family at Tricon, Aliza Lakhani, Managing Director - Global Campuses, CEO and Dean, Toronto Campus, Northeastern University, Kevin Smith, the president and CEO of University Health Network, and Pamela Snively, the chief data & trust officer at TELUS.

They will discuss the intersection of the forces challenging the country in leadership, youth, housing and the future of AI. With their roles as leaders in key Canadian companies, they will have thoughtful conversations discussing problems in Canada and proposing solutions, during this panel.

Meet the Panelists:

Andrew Joyner, Senior Managing Director, Head of Multi-Family, Tricon

Andrew Joyner leads Tricon’s multi-family rental platform, the most active developer, owner and operator of new purpose-built rental apartments in the Greater Toronto Area. He designs and implements strategy, sources investments, and oversees teams responsible for business plan execution including development, construction and ongoing asset management. Before Tricon, he held senior roles at CPP Investments in Toronto, focusing on real estate investments in North America, and has worked in the UK at Hines London, and New York at Goldman Sachs in the banking division. Joyner is a former recipient of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40, and he serves on the MaRS Discovery District Board of Directors, the University of Toronto Real Estate Advisory Committee, and is a member of Urban Land Institute’s Multi-Family Product Council.

Aliza Lakhani, Managing Director - Global Campuses, CEO and Dean, Toronto Campus, Northeastern University

Aliza Lakhani has experience expanding and transforming businesses from large companies to start-ups, across education, finance and technology sectors. She brought this spirit to Northeastern University, and is currently leading Northeastern’s first international campus, the first U.S. university to have a successful campus in Ontario. Through her leadership, the Toronto campus has grown to be Northeastern’s second largest campus. Prior to Northeastern, Lakhani was the head of business development and international at the DMZ, the highest ranked tech incubator globally. She has financial experience from working at RBC capital markets, JP Morgan Chase, and Bank of Montreal in Toronto and New York. She has served on advisory boards like the C.D. Howe Institute Human Capital Council, #MoveTheDial and Wealthsimple foundation.

Kevin Smith, President and CEO, University Health Network

Kevin Smith is the president and CEO of University Health Network, Canada’s largest academic health and sciences centre, which is recognized as one of the top 10 hospitals globally. Smith has a career committed to education, research and impeccable patient care, and is a pioneer in advancing integrated care models in health and social services. He is a professor at the University of Toronto in the Department of Medicine, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Rotman School of Management. Smith was appointed to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest civilian honour, for his contributions to health care. He has also been the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Silver and Golden Jubilee Medals, and the King Charles III Coronation Medal.

Pamela Snively, Chief Data & Trust Officer, TELUS

Pamela Snively is the Chief Data and Trust Officer for TELUS. Under her leadership, TELUS has emerged as an award-winner in the responsible and ethical use of AI and data. She is responsible for AI governance, privacy, data ethics and data governance and actively participates in national and international think-tanks and governance bodies related to these topics. She is known for challenging organizations on data ethics, AI literacy and governance. Snively served as a Canadian delegate to the G7 Business forum, supporting the development of AI standards and was a featured speaker at the United Nations’ ITU AI for Good Summit in Geneva. Her leadership has been recognized by awards like, Women in AI’s 2025 Executive of the Year and 2025 CDAO AI Leader of the Year, the 2024 WXN Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada.

Live Audience Q&A and Closing Remarks

Guests will have the opportunity to ask deeper questions to the speakers in a live Q&A session. Jason Maghanoy will guide the conversation with the speakers, before inviting attendees and speakers alike to enjoy the remainder of the night in good company, and more intimate conversations in The Attic, where everyone will be able to mingle in a more relaxed environment and discuss the topics further over a game of pool or foosball.

Afterparty

Closing off the evening with refreshments, snacks and networking, giving guests the opportunity to converse with the featured speakers and like-minded attendees. This is an opportunity to connect with the esteemed speakers and have guided conversations with fresh ideas presented from the panel with others passionate about the future of Canada.

General admission tickets are available for $50 per ticket, or $45 for Toronto Life Insiders.

Official Rental Housing Partner:

Event Sponsors: