New Board Members Appointed To Cuso International Board Of Directors

Ottawa, Ontario – At its September 25, 2020 annual general meeting, Cuso International elected five new members to its Board of Directors.

Patricia Perez-Coutts now serves as Chair of the Board, and is pleased to announce the following individuals who have joined the Board: Grant Curtis, Lucie Edwards, Darrell Louise Gregersen, Rosemary McCarney, and Lori Spadorcia. Continuing Board members are Jeff Cates, Lynn Graham (Vice-Chair), Bruce A. McKean, Nora Murdock, Wayne Robertson, and Justin Winchiu (Treasurer). CEO Glenn Mifflin serves as Secretary.

“I am excited to welcome this group of new Board members who bring considerable insights from their diverse breadth of experience to the Cuso Board,” said Patricia Perez-Coutts, Chair, Cuso International. “This has been a challenging time for the nonprofit sector, and I am confident their collective expertise will be a terrific addition to our leadership team as we work to improve futures for millions of underserved around the world.”

NEWLY ELECTED BOARD MEMBERS INCLUDE:

Grant Curtis
Grant Curtis is the Deputy Director of the Centre for the Study of Security and Development at Dalhousie University. He began his career in international development as Cuso Field Staff in Nigeria (1982-84). Over the next thirty years he held a number of field-based assignments in several countries in Africa and Asia with United Nations system agencies, international NGOs, and the Asian Development Bank, working largely in post-conflict reconstruction and development. Most recently Grant served as a Cuso volunteer in Myanmar (2016-2017). He has served on the Board of Capital Health (Nova Scotia’s then-largest health district) and is a volunteer with Big Brothers/Big Sisters.

Lucie Edwards
In her 34-year career with Global Affairs Canada as Chief Strategist, Lucie Edwards worked to integrate foreign policy and program delivery. To mark her retirement, she was awarded the Department’s Lifetime Achievement Award of Excellence for 2009. She had previously served in Ottawa as Assistant Deputy Minister for Corporate Services. Overseas, she served as Canadian High Commissioner to India, South Africa, and Kenya. Throughout her career Lucie has specialized in international development, with a particular interest in food security, and rural poverty in Africa and Asia. Today Lucie serves as a Senior Mentor in the National Security Program of the Canadian Forces College in Toronto. She previously taught International Relations and Public Policy in the Political Science Departments at the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier, and Trent University.

Darrell Louise Gregersen, Mus.Bac, FAHP, ICD.D
Darrell Louise Gregersen is an experienced fundraising professional who has earned an outstanding reputation in Canada leading major organizations to transformational fundraising results over the last 30+ years. In 2018 Darrell retired from her role as President and CEO with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Foundation and is now a strategic advisor in fund development to a variety of Canadian charitable organizations in health, the arts, and global issues. While at CAMH she led two highly successful back to back campaigns of $100M and $200M. Darrell has held senior leadership positions at the Hospital for Sick Children and the National Arts Centre. She is a Fellow of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy and a recent recipient of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Toronto Chapter Outstanding Fundraising Executive Award.

Rosemary McCarney
An award-winning humanitarian, recognized international development expert, business leader, public speaker and author, Rosemary McCarney is the 2020-2021 Senior Fellow in Foreign and Defence Policy at Massey College, University of Toronto. She currently teaches Multilateral Diplomacy and Global Governance at Trinity College, University of Toronto where she was appointed the inaugural 2020 Pearson Sabia Distinguished Visiting Professor in International Relations. She is an award-winning author of several children’s books, bringing to life human rights and responsibilities to a new generation of human rights activists. From September 2015 to September 2019, Rosemary served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the Office of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament based in Geneva, Switzerland. Immediately prior to this appointment, she successfully led Plan International Canada as President and Chief Executive Officer.

Lori Spadorcia
Lori is the Executive Vice-President of Public Affairs and Partnerships and Chief Strategy Officer at CAMH. A passionate advocate, Lori is changing the conversation about mental health, improving awareness, and understanding of mental illness and working with governments and communities to improve health systems and policy. She supports the alignment of mission critical activities designed to be responsive to CAMH’s many stakeholders and is engaging partners and resources to better position the hospital to make a sustainable system contribution to mental health. As a former senior political advisor, Lori has advanced public policy in areas such as early learning, childcare, skills, and innovation. She is devoted to building healthy communities and driving social change.

Cuso International would like to thank retiring Board Chair Frank O’Dea and Board members Chris Snyder and Susana Galdos for their outstanding contributions over the past several years.

For a complete list of Cuso International’s Board of Directors, visit cusointernational.org.

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About Cuso International
Cuso International is a Canadian charity focused on ending poverty and inequality. It works in partnership with governments, civil society organizations, multilateral agencies, and the private sector. It delivers programs aimed at advancing gender equality, promoting the empowerment of women and girls, and improving economic opportunities for young people. Each year, Cuso mobilizes hundreds of skilled volunteers who work alongside local partners to maximize their impact and build capacity.

Media Contact
Eileen Melnick-McCarthy
eileen.melnick@cusointernational.org
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