Authors

Contributing analysis and perspectives across the Foundation’s knowledge products

  • vina headshot

    Vina Nadjibulla

    Former Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada
    Vina was APF Canada's Vice-President, Research & Strategy (through July 31, 2026), leading the Foundation’s research, policy, education, and programmatic work on Canada’s engagement with Asia and the Indo-Pacific. She also oversaw the Foundation’s granting and research fellowship programs, as well as development and capacity-building projects. She is a frequent media commentator on geopolitics, Canadian foreign policy, and Canada-Asia relations, with a focus on India and China.
     
    As an international security and peacebuilding specialist, Vina has more than two decades of professional experience in high-level diplomacy, advocacy, policy-making, and political risk analysis. From war zones to boardrooms, Vina has worked with national governments, non-profits, and philanthropic organizations in Canada, the United States, China, and a number of countries in Africa and Central Asia.
    Recent work: Building Canada’s Place in the New Critical Minerals Order
  • Elizabeth headshot

    Elizabeth Donkervoort

    Senior Advisor, China Programs, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

    Elizabeth Donkervoort is the Senior Advisor, China Programs for the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She holds a JD and a Master of Asia Pacific Policy Studies from the University of British Columbia and specializes in legal and institutional policy analysis of governance, security, and regulatory frameworks, with attention to rights-protective safeguards, emerging technologies, and real-world governance implications in People's Republic of China-related and comparative contexts.

    Recent work: Explainer: Geely, Chinese EVs, and Canada’s Auto Strategy
  • Nanae Baldauff

    Nanae Baldauff

    Indo-Pacific Research Fellow APF Canada; Senior Associate Fellow, NATO Defense College; Associate Research Fellow UNU Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies; Senior Researcher, Keio Research Institute at SFC

    Dr. Nanae Baldauff is the inaugural Japan-focused Indo-Pacific Research Fellow at APF Canada and a Senior (Non-Resident) Associate Fellow at the NATO Defense College in Italy and is currently serving as an academic mentor at the College. She is also Associate Research Fellow at the United Nations University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS) in Belgium, as well as Senior Researcher at Keio Research Institute at SFC, Japan.

    She is the author of a monograph Japan’s Defense Engagement in the Indo-Pacific: Deterrence, Strategic Partnership, and Stable Order Building (Springer, 2024). She has published peer-reviewed articles, numerous research papers, and policy briefs, on topics covering space security, defence technology co-operation, and the defence industry. She has given lectures at numerous universities including courses at the NATO Defense College. 

    Nanae obtained a Ph.D. in Political Science (Ghent University, Belgium) in 2022. She is a recipient of the Japan Foundation fellowship (2021). Nanae was Research Fellow at the NATO Defense College (2024) as the first Japanese national to be awarded this position. Additionally, she serves on the board of International Security Industry Council Japan. 

    Her main research and interests include Japan’s defence policy, the Indo-Pacific security and strategic environment, Japan-Europe defence co-operation (NATO, EU, and individual countries), space security, and defence innovation and industry.

    Recent work: Shared Awareness, Shared Security: A Canada–Japan Partnership for Space Co-operation
  • Zoraver

    Zoraver Cheema

    Research Scholar, South Asia
    Zoraver is Research Scholar for South Asia at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. He holds a Bachelor's in Global and International Studies from Carleton University’s Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs and recently earned a Master’s degree from Columbia University (GSAS/SIPA) in the United States. His research focuses on economic nationalism, international political economy, international trade, and nationalism theory — with a particular focus on how diaspora politics informs the formulation and orientation of foreign policy.
     
    Recent work: Operationalizing the Australia–Canada–India Technology and Innovation Partnership
  • Julia Bentley Headshot

    Julia G. Bentley

    Distinguished Fellow, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada; External Research Associate, York Centre for Asian Research, York University

    Julia G. Bentley is currently a Senior Fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, an External Research Associate of the York Centre for Asian Research at York University, a Non-Resident Fellow at National Taiwan University's Centre for China Studies, and a member of the Board of Governors of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Malaysia. Julia is also a Distinguished Fellow with the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

    She served in the Canadian foreign service with distinction for 32 years, occupying several senior executive positions at Global Affairs Canada related to Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia.

    Julia has also represented Canada as a diplomat abroad. She served as Canada’s High Commissioner in Malaysia (2017-2020) and previously at the Canadian Embassy in Beijing (twice), the Canadian High Commission in Delhi, and the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei.

    Combined with other roles including as a teacher, development consultant, and head of an international organization, she spent 22 years working in Asia. 

    Recent work: Charting Canada’s Submarine Future: Defence Industry and Maritime Security Considerations in the Arctic, Atlantic, and the Indo-Pacific
  • Jarine Kim

    Jarine Kim

    Director of Research, Canada Korea Business Council

    Jarine Kim is Director of Research at the Canada Korea Business Council. She holds a Master of Global Affairs from the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on Canada-Korea relations, defence-industrial co-operation, and Indo-Pacific security. 

    Recent work: Charting Canada’s Submarine Future: Defence Industry and Maritime Security Considerations in the Arctic, Atlantic, and the Indo-Pacific
  • Barrett Bingley

    Barrett Bingley

    Asia Regional Director, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

    Barrett Bingley is Asia Regional Director for the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, based in Singapore. His research interests include international trade, geoeconomics, and strategic studies. He was previously Senior Policy Advisor to Canada's Foreign and Trade Ministers and Head of Growth Partnerships for the Asia-Pacific at The Economist.

    Recent work: Connecting the CPTPP and the EU: The Case for a New Collaborative Framework
  • Research Director Charles Labrecque

    Charles Labrecque

    Director of Research, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

    Charles Labrecque has worked in various roles at the Foundation since 2013, initially as a Project Manager (2013-2015) and since 2018 as Research Director. Between 2015 and 2017, Charles was Lecturer in International Relations and Canadian Politics at Simon Fraser University. He graduated with a master’s degree in international studies from Université de Montréal in 2008 and a PhD in Political Science from Université Laval in Quebec City in 2016. His research interests cover Canadian foreign policy in Asia, subnational relations, and Canada-China relations with a specific focus on human rights.

    Recent work: Summary Report: Economic Security: The Future of Canadian Trade and Investment with Asia
  • Vlado Vivoda

    Vlado Vivoda

    Strategist, Strategic Minerals Advisory and Research

    Dr. Vlado Vivoda is a scholar and geopolitical analyst specializing in critical minerals, energy security, and geoeconomic strategy. He is an Honorary Fellow at the Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland, and Editor-in-Chief of Resources Policy.  

    His work focuses on critical mineral supply chains, industrial policy, and economic security across the Indo-Pacific. 

    Recent work: Canada’s Strategic Moment: From Resource Endowment to National Capability