Staff

Our staff deliver the day-to-day operations of Forest Professionals BC to meet the responsibilities mandated by the Professional Governance Act and achieve the strategic goals and objectives set by FPBC Board.

Staff Organizational Chart

(currently unavailable)

Business Function Overview by Staff Team

Senior Leadership Team

Christine Gelowitz, RPF

Chief Executive Officer and Interim Registrar

Christine is Chief Executive Officer of Forest Professionals British Columbia (FPBC), a regulatory body that governs the professional conduct of 5,400 forest professionals licenced to practice professional forestry in British Columbia.

Christine is a change leader, policy designer, and regulated professional. She has held executive leadership roles since 2011, and has more than 20 years experience in policy and program development in the forest, natural resource, professional regulation, and association management sectors.

Christine knows how to partner to drive transformative business change, and how to turn strategy into real business results. Most recently, Christine led FPBC to transition its whole operations to operate under the Professional Governance Act after nearly 75 years of operating under the Foresters Act. Christine is also proudly supporting the organization to advance Indigenous reconciliation and gender equity in the forest sector.

Christine holds a professional designation as a Registered Professional Forester (RPF), and a science degree in Natural Resource Management with a forestry major.

Prior to joining FPBC in 2016, Christine worked in the BC provincial government for nearly 20 years in various forest and natural resource ministries, where she honed her skills delivering government business programs and received training and executive coaching in people leadership, policy design, business improvement, strategy development and execution.

Christine is grateful to live, work and play on Vancouver Island in the traditional territories of the Lkwungen peoples.

Tara Bergeson, RPF, MSc

Director of Practice

About Tara

Tara Bergeson, MSc, RPF, is the director of practice with Forest Professionals British Columbia (FPBC). She is responsible for ensuring standards of practice and competence are developed, reflective, and conveyed to all forest professionals of BC. She also leads professional practice and conduct advice for all registrants.

Previous to this role, she built her career working in forest management throughout the province and in western Canada, specializing in wildland fire and urban forest management. Tara regularly volunteers and contributes on several advisory panels, and understands the value in bringing the lens of governance, protection of the public interest, and strategic vision to all areas of her work.

Tara lives and recreates on the traditional lands of the Syilx Okanagan people, in Kelowna, BC.

Aga Jendo, CPA, CMA

Director of Finance & Administration

Aga is a registered finance professional, holding CPA and CMA designations, and has more than 20 years of financial and administrative experience, the past 12 at the director level.

Aga served as the director of finance and operations at West Point Grey Academy since 2017.

Admissions and Registration

Chi Cejalvo, MA, RD

Deputy Director, Registration

Sydney Kucera, BA.Hons

Certifications Lead

Sylvia Xie, BScF

Registration Coordinator

  • 604.913.4691

Harvinder Singh

Learning Management Coordinator

Complaints, Discipline, and Enforcement

Charlotte Mellstrom, RPF

Deputy Director of Compliance

Conrad Malilay

Compliance Manager

Finance and Administration

Eric Yang

Senior Accountant

Ondrej Sindar

Business Services Manager

Wendy Halasz Corless

Executive Assistant

Sabrina Kiupel

Administrative Coordinator

Professional Practice

Deputy Director, Competence & Practice

Troy Lee, MA, BScF

Manager, Learning and Development

Registrant Communications, Public & Stakeholder Engagement

Dean Pelkey

Director of Communications

Cheryl Waddell

Communications Manager

Michael Hall

Senior Online Communications Specialist