A diverse group of leaders from the medical, legal and business communities, the UNICEF Canada Board of Directors exercises overall responsibility for the policies, programs and direction of the organization and provides advice and counsel on a broad range of policy and operational matters.

The composition of the board, whose members are elected, is chosen to reflect a broad range of expertise, with all members having a strong and demonstrated commitment to the world’s most vulnerable children. Board members adhere to UNICEF Canada’s confidentiality and conflict of interest policies.

OFFICERS

  • President and CEO: Sevaun Palvetzian
  • Chair: Katrin (Kathy) Nakashima
  • Vice-Chair: Jeannine Bakeeff
  • Treasurer: Mabel Wong
  • Secretary: Sébastien Gittens

Board of Directors


Kathy Nakashima (QC)
Board Chair

Kathy Nakashima is a nonprofit leader, lawyer, and former business executive. She was Corporate Secretary and Vice-President of Imasco Limited and served on its 8-member Management Committee before it was taken private.


Jeannine Bakeeff (NS)
Vice-Chair

Jeannine is a passionate advocate and philanthropist. She spent several years as a corporate finance lawyer with McInnes Cooper, one of Atlantic Canada’s leading firms, and also served as corporate secretary and legal counsel to a TSX-listed company. She served as a director and secretary of 2b theatre and is currently a trustee to a private foundation.


Mabel Wong (ON)
Treasurer

Mabel is a senior finance executive with 20 years of experience in financial services and asset management. Mabel is currently the Chief Financial Officer at Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan responsible for Finance activities globally, supporting informed financial decision-making and sound governance. She is responsible for financial management and reporting; valuation, risk analytics; investment operations; and strategic finance initiatives.


Sébastien Gittens (AB)
Secretary

Sébastien is a partner at Bennett Jones LLP and advises clients both domestically and internationally on all matters relating to the management and commercialization of intellectual property, as well as data security and privacy. Engaged with his community, he currently sits on the board of UNICEF Canada and the City of Calgary's Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund. He previously served on the board of the Westmount Charter School Society, the Calgary International Film Festival Society, and the Calgary Parking Authority.


Aliénor Armand-Linot (QC)

Aliénor is a Senior Director on the Natural Resources team at PSP Investments (PSP). She has over 15 years of experience across Mergers & Acquisitions, capital markets and management of cross-functional teams. She is a member of PSP’s Natural Resources Investment Committee and sits on various Boards of Directors for agriculture businesses.

Prior to joining PSP, Aliénor started her career on Wall Street at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in New York where she was first Investment Banking Analyst and later Corporate Banking Associate.


Sarah Chapman (ON)

Sarah is Chief Marketing Officer for Canada Segment and Global Head of Digital Transformation and Customer Experience at Manulife Canada.

As Chief Marketing Officer, she is responsible for enterprise marketing strategy, brand management, digital marketing, customer experience, and AI across Individual Insurance, Group Benefits, Affinity and Manulife Bank.


Alfredo Cunanan Mendoza Tan (ON)

Alfredo Cunanan Mendoza Tan is a global executive focused on transformational leadership, commercial impact and elevating consumer experiences. He is currently the Global Chief Digital & Information Officer at Canada Goose, where he oversees the strategy and implementation of global digital platforms and enterprise technology services across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Mainland China.

Mr. Tan was a pioneering leader at Meta Platforms Inc. (Facebook/Instagram/WhatsApp). As one of the first 1,000 employees globally, he played a critical role in transforming the company into a global media and technology powerhouse through his work across North America, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. His deep executive experience also includes senior executive leadership roles at Loblaw Companies Limited, Rogers Sports & Media, WestJet Airlines, and Yahoo! Inc.


Maxime Dea (QC)

Maxime Dea is responsible for global relations and regulatory affairs for La Caisse. Based in Montréal, he works closely with the teams located in La Caisse’s offices around the world as well as with the investment teams in charge of the various assets classes to ensure the organization’s optimal positioning and outreach outside of Quebec.


Robin Dhir (BC)

Robin is the President of Twin Brook Developments Ltd. and has spent his career as a Business Executive and an Entrepreneur, with a passion for community service. He is also a Senior Strategic Advisor at MNP and Chair of LaSalle College Vancouver Board of Directors.


Anthony Giuffre (AB)

Anthony is the Founder, CEO, and Executive Chair of Avenue Living, an owner and operator of more than $9 billion in real estate assets across North America. With over 25 years of experience building businesses, he brings a disciplined, entrepreneurial approach to long-term value creation and leadership. He remains actively engaged across multiple ventures as a founder, CEO, mentor, and educator.


Ash Lawrence (ON)

Ash Lawrence is Head of AGF Capital Partners and a member of the Executive Management Team at AGF Management Limited. In addition, he serves as Chair of the Boards for both Kensington Capital Partners and New Holland Capital.

Ash is a seasoned leader with two decades of experience in alternative investments across private markets sectors. He and his team identify tenured alternative asset managers with demonstrated expertise in their fields, and structure partnerships to offer long-term strategic support, resources and capital to enhance their growth.  Prior to joining AGF, Ash was with Brookfield Asset Management, where he worked in real estate investments and portfolio management in North America and Brazil, ultimately leading the firm's Canadian real estate business.


Natalie Higgins (NS)

Natalie Higgins is a seasoned executive with a distinguished career in the insurance industry, currently serving as the Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President at Intact Insurance. She began her journey with Intact Financial Corporation in 2004 in Human Resources and has since held various senior leadership roles, spanning across Corporate Affairs and Communications, Corporate Development and Operations.


Amy Hurley (ON)

Amy is an Executive working in Customer Research and Marketing at Mattamy Homes Canada. She provides analysis of submarket groups, customer sentiment and the competitive landscape across the Greater Toronto Area.

Having previously spent 16 years working as a Clinical Psychologist, Amy is passionate about Children’s Rights, and particularly, child protection. She has been a member or UNICEF’s Women UNlimited philanthropy group since 2020 and has seen first-hand the incredible programs UNICEF supports globally.


Naren Kalyanaraman (ON)

Naren is a Partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers Associates based out of Toronto. He leads PwC Canada's Cybersecurity, Privacy and Financial Crimes teams nationally. He has extensive experience advising US, Canada and global financial services organizations on cybersecurity, fraud, and financial crimes. Over the last 15 years, he has specialized in helping organizations deal with high-pressure situations such as cyber breaches, regulatory criticism, insider threats and other related issues. He is a regular speaker at industry events and conferences on these topics.