Karen Mazurkewich

Prior to joining the GTAA, Karen was Vice-President of Strategic Communications at MaRS, the largest innovation hub in North America. At MaRS, she also built a unique in-house agency and content studio supporting hundreds of entrepreneurs and founded a new type of think tank that produces data-driven insights about the Canadian ecosystem.

Karen spent a decade as a senior journalist at the Wall Street Journal in Asia and the Financial Post in Toronto, covering a wide variety of topics ranging from business innovation to international art markets. After leaving journalism, she co-founded a tech start-up, and managed her own consulting practice to help traditional media companies tackle digital transformation.

She has authored reports on innovation for the Canadian International Council and the University of Waterloo, programmed events for various creative agencies such as Interactive Ontario, and directed documentaries for the Discovery Channel. Karen began her career as a communications officer for the National Film Board of Canada. She is the author of books on Canadian animation and Chinese antique furniture.