After seven years of outstanding service as a key member of the Foundation’s small team, Simone is moving on to new personal and professional opportunities in the Ottawa area.

On behalf of the entire Foundation, community of Fellows, and extended Sauvé community, we thank Simone for her energetic devotion to every aspect of the Foundation’s work, and wish her continued success in all that she undertakes.

As Director of Programs, Simone was central to the articulation and implementation of the Foundation’s new mission and vision. Simone was integral in developing our three new program pillars: the Jeanne Sauvé Public Leadership Program to promote leadership in the public interest; the Jeanne Sauvé Forum to generate public conversations on globally significant issues and to celebrate thought leadership; and Network programming to catalyze collaboration and exchange amongst the nearly 150 Sauvé Fellows around the world.

She also created links between these three program pillars, infused each with a focus on public leadership, and built strong partnerships within and well beyond the academe to support our work and enhance our impact.

In particular, Simone was instrumental in the design and implementation of the Jeanne Sauvé Public Leadership Program, introduced in 2015. She spearheaded the conceptualization and framing of the Foundation’s first selected theme (Public Leadership for Culturally Diverse Societies) and designed the first iteration of the new program around the challenges and opportunities facing diverse societies.

Simone drove many innovative changes to program design and delivery. She brought a focus on issues of justice, reconciliation and decolonization to the Foundation’s work, invited Fellows to build toward an understanding of intercultural leadership, infused the program with tools for taking up difficult conversations across differences, incorporated a new field component, and designed mechanisms for Fellows to collaborate in learning and in action.

Over her years of service at the Sauvé Foundation, Simone also made her mark on many other aspects of the Foundation’s work, including the recruitment and selection of Fellows, shaping our communications strategy, and overseeing all day-to-day activities associated with our Programs, from organizing large-scale public addresses to running intimate workshops.

Perhaps most notably, with her characteristic thoughtfulness and calm, Simone directly supported over 50 Sauvé Fellows individually in their professional, intellectual, personal, and project goals.

Our entire community has been fortunate to benefit from Simone’s considerable and versatile talents, dedication, and energy, and we extend our warmest wishes to her for her continued success.