Our executive leadership team is accountable for day-to-day operations and oversees the AER’s divisions and branches.
Laurie Pushor
President and Chief Executive Officer
Prior to joining the AER, Laurie Pushor served as Deputy Minister for the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources for two years, from 2018 until 2020. He served as the Deputy Minister for the former Ministry of the Economy from 2014 to 2018, and served four years as Chief of Staff for several government departments in Saskatchewan, including Social Services, Energy, and Health.
Mr. Pushor’s previous roles include Director of Recruitment and Admissions for the University of Saskatchewan, where he was responsible for Canadian and international recruitment and activities. Prior to this, Mr. Pushor and his family spent three years in Nova Scotia where he played a similar role for St. Francis Xavier University.
Mr. Pushor and his family lived in Edmonton for many years before relocating to Nova Scotia.
In Edmonton, Mr. Pushor worked with the provincial government in a number of roles, including with the Ministry of Economic Development. Early into his career, he worked for the Lougheed government as well as the Klein administration.
Mr. Pushor’s private sector experience includes managing a consulting operation involved with marketing, public opinion research, and fundraising counsel.
Mr. Pushor’s wife Debbie is a Professor at the University of Saskatchewan with research interests in parent engagement and parent knowledge. They have three sons.
Martin Foy
Chief Operations Officer
In June 2020, Martin Foy became the AER’s Chief Operations Officer, having previously served in this role on an interim basis since October 2019. He has 30 years’ experience leading people and managing natural resources. The division is responsible for regulating the full life cycle of energy resource development, from issuing approvals to managing closure and liability.
Mr. Foy joined the AER in 2015 as the vice president of the Environment and Operational Performance Branch, where he oversaw emergency management, incident response, and enforcement and compliance assurance, as well as education and engagement activities.
Before joining the AER, Mr. Foy already had over 23 years’ regulatory experience. Most notably he held various management positions in Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP), including executive director of AEP and director of Alberta Environment and Water (South).
Mr. Foy holds a bachelor of science from the University of Alberta. He lives with his wife Lisa and their two daughters in Calgary.
Sean Sexton
Executive Vice President, Law Branch, and AER Counsel General
In May 2022, Sean Sexton became the executive vice president of the Law Branch and general counsel of the AER. He was previously the vice president of the Law Branch, starting in 2018. He has extensive knowledge of the AER’s legal and regulatory environment.
Mr. Sexton is counsel to the chair and board of directors on all matters, including corporate governance, enterprise risk management, the conduct of board meetings, and annual financial statement review and disclosure. Mr. Sexton is the AER’s liaison with the Alberta Public Agency Secretariat, as well as the chair of the AER’s Ethics Committee. In addition, he is responsible for overseeing the drafting of legislation, regulations, directives, and other regulatory documents that the AER administers.
Mr. Sexton has been in-house counsel for energy regulators for more than 12 years, joining the AER’s predecessor, the Energy Resources Conservation Board, in 2010. Prior to this, Mr. Sexton practised at a law firm then joined the Alberta Municipal Government Board, where he acted as counsel to the Board for tax assessment appeals on oil and gas wells, pipelines, and facilities.
Mr. Sexton holds a bachelor of science from the University of Calgary and a bachelor of laws from the University of Alberta. He was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 2005. He lives in Chestermere with his wife, two sons, and daughter.
Mike Dalton
Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Mike joined the AER in 2020, and is responsible for financial management, supply chain and real estate. Previously, he was employed by ATCO, Raytheon Canada, Canadian Natural Resources and PricewaterhouseCoopers and served 24 years with the Canadian Armed Forces.
Mike holds the ICD.D, CPA (CA), CIA and SCMP designations and also earned an Executive MBA. Over the years, he has contributed his time and expertise in strategy and finance to the business community by serving on a variety of boards and committees. Currently he is the board director for Supply Chain Canada and the audit committee chair for the Calgary Co-op, a retail cooperative with $1.2 billion in annual sales. Recently, he completed a six-year term as a board member with the Mental Health Commission of Canada and a four-year term as a citizen member of the Audit Committee for The City of Calgary.
Erin Kurchina
Vice President, People, Culture and Learning
Erin Kurchina joined the AER in 2020 as the Vice President, People, Culture and Learning. In this role, she is accountable for aligning business and people strategies, adding value, and fostering corporate performance. Through human-centric leadership and strategic partnership, she oversees the development of talent programs and creates a safe, inclusive, and empowering culture so that all employees can reach their full potential and contribute to AER's success.
Before joining the AER, Erin was an HR Consultant for KurMeta Group, a company dedicated to helping companies and individuals excel in the digital age. She also held the position of Vice President, Human Resources, Environment, Health and Safety for ENMAX Corporation.
With over 25 years of human resources, governance and leadership experience across various sectors, including utilities, provincial government and education, Erin has led unionized and non-unionized environments. She thrives on building modern, future-ready human resources functions while shaping and evolving corporate culture to attract, retain and align talent to evolving business needs.
A life-long learner, Erin has a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Toronto, where she also pursued Ph.D. studies in leadership. In addition, Erin holds a Canadian Institute of Corporate Directors ICD.D designation from the University of Calgary and is a Certified Coach.
