About Us

Cascadia Mega-Region

Cascadia is one of 16 mega-regions in the United States. A mega-region is larger than an individual city or community — it is a shared economic zone, that connects several municipalities. In the case of the Cascadia mega-region, our boundaries cross two states and an international border, with a reach from Portland, Oregon to the south and Vancouver, British Columbia to the north.

  • Nearly 10 million people call our region home — and we saw a 30% increase in our population from 2000-2020.
  • Our combined GDP is $600 billion — about the same as the entire country of Belgium.
  • We are known for our entrepreneurship (in 2022 both Oregon and Washington were some of the top states for business in the United States) and world-class tech talent (Vancouver and Seattle are in the top 10 cities in the world for tech talent).
  • We expect 3-4 million more people will call Cascadia home by 2050.

Our Vision

In 2020, we outlined our plan to become the world’s first sustainable mega-region. In pursuit of this goal, we are focused on three main pillars:

  • The affordable housing crisis
  • Transportation congestion
  • The climate goals of the Paris Accord

Each of these pillars is critical to building a sustainable mega-region, but none is sufficient on its own. All three must be considered as an integrated unit, each supporting and leading to the others.

Through our annual conference and the work of our sub-committees, we focus on these pillars, and other areas of shared importance to the mega-region, including the health of our technology sector and the flow of goods and people across our international border.

With an expected population increase by 2050 — 30% above our 2020 population — we know incremental improvements to the status quo won’t be enough. Through the Cascadia Innovation Corridor, we embrace big, bold ideas that will prepare our mega-region for the continued growth to come and preserve it for future generations.

OUR VISION: Become the World’s First Sustainable Mega-Region

Our Vision

In 2020, we outlined our plan to become the world’s first sustainable mega-region. In pursuit of this goal, we are focused on three main pillars:

  • The affordable housing crisis
  • Transportation congestion
  • The climate goals of the Paris Accord

Each of these pillars is critical to building a sustainable mega-region, but none is sufficient on its own. All three must be considered as an integrated unit, each supporting and leading to the others.

Through our annual conference and the work of our sub-committees, we focus on these pillars, and other areas of shared importance to the mega-region, including the health of our technology sector and the flow of goods and people across our international border.

With an expected population increase by 2050 — 30% above our 2020 population — we know incremental improvements to the status quo won’t be enough. Through the Cascadia Innovation Corridor, we embrace big, bold ideas that will prepare our mega-region for the continued growth to come and preserve it for future generations.


The Cascadia Innovation Corridor Steering Committee

CO-CHAIRS

Chris Gregoire, CEO, Challenge Seattle

Chris Gregoire

CEO, Challenge Seattle

Laura Jones, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Business Council of British Columbia

Laura Jones

President and Chief Executive Officer of the Business Council of British Columbia

SUB-COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS

Infrastructure

David Hoff, Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Community Investment, Ledcor

David Hoff

Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Community Investment, Ledcor

Paula Hammond, Senior Vice President, National Transportation Market Leader, WSP

Paula Hammond

Senior Vice President, National Transportation Market Leader, WSP

Public-Private Partnerships for Climate

Angela Becker-Dippman, Director, Energy & Environment Directorate’s Program Development Office, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)

Angela Becker-Dippman

Director, Energy & Environment Directorate’s Program Development Office, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)

Dave Robertson, Chief Public Affairs Officer, Port of Portland Co-Chair, PPP for Climate

Dave Robertson

Chief Public Affairs Officer, Port of Portland

Sustainable Agriculture

Dani Gelardi, Ph.D.

Senior Soil Scientist, Washington State Department of Agriculture

Rickey Y. Yada, Ph.D., Academic Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, UBC

Rickey Y. Yada, Ph.D.

Academic Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, UBC

Staci Simonich, Ph.D., Dean and Reub Long Professor, College of Agricultural Sciences, OSU Director, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station

Staci Simonich, Ph.D.

Dean and Reub Long Professor, College of Agricultural Sciences, OSU Director, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station

Transformative Technologies

Molly Jones, Vice President, Government Affairs, Payactiv

Molly Jones

Vice President, Government Affairs, Payactiv

Pamela Saunders, Director of Communications & Engagement, Microsoft Vancouver

Pamela Saunders

Director of Communications & Engagement, Microsoft Vancouver

US/Canada Cross-Border

Laurie Trautman, Ph.D., Director, Border Policy Research Institute, WWU

Laurie Trautman, Ph.D.

Director, Border Policy Research Institute, WWU

Matt Morrison, CEO, Pacific Northwest Economic Region

Matt Morrison

CEO, Pacific Northwest Economic Region

Workforce

Tom Roemer, Ed.D., Principal, Tioga Communications Inc.

Tom Roemer, Ed.D.

Principal, Tioga Communications Inc.

Sonya Doucette, Ph.D., Professor, Bellevue College; Climate Justice Faculty Development Lead

Sonya Doucette, Ph.D.

Professor, Bellevue College; Climate Justice Faculty Development Lead

AT-LARGE MEMBERS

Andrew Hoan, President & CEO, Portland Metro Chamber

Andrew Hoan

President & CEO, Portland Metro Chamber

Bill Tam, Co-Founder, Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster​

Bill Tam

Co-Founder, Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster​

Ken Macartney, Executive Director, International Relations, Intergovernmental Relations Secretariat (IGRS) Office of the Premier, Government of British Columbia

Ken Macartney

Executive Director, International Relations, Intergovernmental Relations Secretariat (IGRS) Office of the Premier, Government of British Columbia

Steve Mullin, President, Washington Roundtable

Steve Mullin

President, Washington Roundtable

Rachel Smith, President & CEO, Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce

Rachel Smith

President & CEO, Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce

Kris Peters, Chairman, Squaxin Island Tribe

Kris Peters

Chairman, Squaxin Island Tribe

Ian Campbell, Hereditary Chief, Squamish Nation

Ian Campbell

Hereditary Chief, Squamish Nation

Mike Fong, Director, Washington State Department of Commerce

Mike Fong

Director, Washington State Department of Commerce

Chris Gregoire, CEO, Challenge Seattle
Chris Gregoire
CIC Co-Chair

Christine Gregoire is the CEO of Challenge Seattle, which is an alliance of CEOs from 22 of the region’s largest organizations who work together to tackle some of our most pressing civic challenges, such as homelessness and racial equity. As CEO of Challenge Seattle, Chris serves as the Washington co-chair for the Cascadia Innovation Corridor.

Previously, Chris served for two terms as Governor of the State of Washington with a $32B biennial budget and over 60,000 employees. In her first term as Governor, she created the Department of Early Learning and led on reforms to the K-12 system and investment in higher education.  Chris led the state in a historical investment in infrastructure including the building of the largest floating bridge in the world and the largest transportation tunnel to open up Seattle’s waterfront.  She addressed the water wars in the state and established the Puget Sound initiative to restore one of the nation’s major estuaries.  She led an historic number of trade missions, reformed the foster care system to protect children, and was among the first to lead in health care reform. During her second term, Chris led the state in major reforms, management, and budgeting to position the state as one of the most financially secure to come out of the “Great Recession”.

Prior to becoming Governor, Chris served for three terms as Attorney General for the State and prior to becoming Attorney General, Chris served four years as the Director of the State Department of Ecology.

In addition to being CEO of Challenge Seattle, Chris is a former chair of the Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center and former Member of the National Bipartisan Governor’s Council.

Gail Murphy, Ph.D., VP Research & Innovation, UBC
Shwetak Patel, Ph.D., WRF Endowed Professor, Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, UW
Irem Tumer, Ph.D., Vice President for Research at Oregon State University
David Hoff, Senior Vice President, Government Relations and Community Investment, Ledcor
Paula Hammond, Senior Vice President, National Transportation Market Leader, WSP
Rickey Y. Yada, Ph.D., Academic Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, UBC
Rickey Y. Yada, Ph.D., Academic Dean of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, UBC
Molly Jones, Vice President, Government Affairs, Payactiv
Pamela Saunders, Director of Communications & Engagement, Microsoft Vancouver
Laurie Trautman, Ph.D., Director, Border Policy Research Institute, WWU
Matt Morrison, CEO, Pacific Northwest Economic Region
Tom Roemer, Ed.D., Principal, Tioga Communications Inc.
Sonya Doucette, Ph.D., Professor, Bellevue College; Climate Justice Faculty Development Lead
Angela Becker-Dippman, Director, Energy & Environment Directorate’s Program Development Office, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)
Andrew Hoan, President & CEO, Portland Metro Chamber
Bill Tam, Co-Founder, Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster​
Ken Macartney, Executive Director, International Relations, Intergovernmental Relations Secretariat (IGRS) Office of the Premier, Government of British Columbia
Steve Mullin, President, Washington Roundtable
Rachel Smith, President & CEO, Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
Kris Peters, Chairman, Squaxin Island Tribe
Ian Campbell, Hereditary Chief, Squamish Nation
Mike Fong, Director, Washington State Department of Commerce
Staci Simonich, Ph.D., Dean and Reub Long Professor, College of Agricultural Sciences, OSU Director, Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station
Laura Jones, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Business Council of British Columbia
Dave Robertson, Chief Public Affairs Officer, Port of Portland Co-Chair, PPP for Climate
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