FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Canadian Global Affairs Institute appoints
Janice MacKinnon, Kathleen Monk and Jack Mintz to Advisory Council

CGAI welcomes three additional thought leaders to Advisory Council

CALGARY – August 24, 2017 – The Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI) is pleased to announce the appointment of Janice MacKinnon, Kathleen Monk and Jack Mintz to its Advisory Council, effective immediately. This announcement comes on the heels of the addition of Hon. Rona Ambrose to the Advisory Council.

“MacKinnon, Monk and Mintz bring diverse public policy backgrounds to CGAI,” said Kelly Ogle, President of the CGAI. “We continually seek expansion of our knowledge-based expertise, and we are confident that these thought leaders will help us inform Canadians about the connection between international affairs and a secure, prosperous Canada.”

MacKinnon is currently an Executive Fellow at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy and a Professor of fiscal policy at the School of Public Health at the University of Saskatchewan. In this position, she provides commentary and analysis on Canadian fiscal issues, health policy and politics. MacKinnon has served as the Chair of the Board of the Institute for Research on Public Policy, has been a board member of the Canada West Foundation and is currently an advisor to the Eco-Fiscal Commission. She brings 10 years of experience as a cabinet minister in Saskatchewan and held various portfolios including Minister of Finance, Minister of Social Services, Minister of Economic Development, and Government House leader. 

“I am honoured to join CGAI’s esteemed Advisory Council,” said MacKinnon. “In addition to all the important research and analysis they provide, I look forward to helping CGAI present public policy issues to Canadians in user-friendly formats, so they can understand Canadian issues and their place within them.”

Kathleen Monk is a strategic communications professional with over 15 years of experience in media, government and the non-profit sector. She is currently a Principal at Earnscliffe Strategy Group and regularly makes appearances on CBC The National’s political panel, The Insiders. She is an active volunteer with Equal Voice where she focuses on how to field, nurture and promote more women candidates to every level of political office in Canada. Monk has previous experience as the founding Executive Director of the Broadbent Institute, and as the Director of Strategic Communications for New Democrat Party leader, Jack Layton, during the 2011 Canadian federal election campaign.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to join CGAI’s Advisory Council and look forward to offering a different perspective,” said Monk. “With multiple trade deals being negotiated and new international alignments emerging, I am happy to work with CGAI as they provide Canadians with the tools necessary to make informed opinions.”

Dr. Jack Mintz has an extensive background in finances, social sciences and humanities, with a current position as VP and Chairman of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. He has been the President’s Fellow of the School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary since 2015, and previously served as the Palmer Chair and Director for seven years. He also serves on the boards of Imperial Oil Limited, and Morneau Shepell. Dr. Mintz became a member of the Order of Canada in 2015 and was awarded the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 for service to the Canadian tax policy community.

“I am proud to join CGAI’s team of prominent Canadian thought leaders and use my experience to help Canadians understand alternative policy viewpoints,” said Dr. Mintz. “We aim to help Canadians recognize the important link that our standard of living and international trade have on our economy, something I am extremely passionate about.”

MacKinnon, Monk and Mintz will join 12 others on CGAI’s Advisory Council including Chairman Hon. John Manley and members Hon. Rona Ambrose, Ian Brodie, Hon. Jean Charest, Laura Dawson, Richard Fadden, Bob Fowler, Hon. Dan Hays, Marie-Lucie Morin, Hon. Bob Rae, Christopher Waddell and Rob Wright.

The Canadian Global Affairs Institute is a charitable, non-partisan, non-advocacy organization that provides a window into all aspects of Canadian foreign policy. We seek to promote understanding amongst Canadians by creating publications and hosting events regarding defence, foreign aid and resources and trade policies. This year, the CGAI is moving towards an increased focus on Canadian resources and trade relations. MacKinnon, Monk and Mintz are dynamic additions that will help the CGAI analyze issues within resources and trade relations and better inform Canadians of current and critical international issues relevant to our nation.

About CGAI

The Canadian Global Affairs Institute is Canada’s most credible source of expertise on global affairs. The work of its researchers, fellows and advisors sparks impassioned nation-wide discussions and debates that are designed to help Canadians better understand their role on the world stage. Established in August 2001 and based in Calgary and Ottawa, the Canadian Global Affairs Institute is a registered charity, which comments repeatedly in the media and publishes extensively on defence, diplomacy, trade and development.

For further information and Council member bios please visit: www.cgai.ca

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For further information, please contact:

Kelly Ogle
Canadian Global Affairs Institute
403-231-7693
[email protected]

Shauna MacDonald
Brookline Public Relations, Inc.
403-538-5641 ext. 101
[email protected]