Ottawa, ON, November 1, 2011—The Board of Directors of The Natural Step Canada is pleased and proud to announce that after a nation-wide search, it has selected Chad Park as its next Executive Director. He will assume the role presently held by Kelly Hawke Baxter on January 1, 2012.

Chad is a founding member of The Natural Step Canada team and is an experienced sustainability advisor, having worked with many of The Natural Step’s partners since 2002. As Director of Programs and Strategy, Chad currently oversees strategy and delivery of the organization’s programs. His competencies and experience position him well to lead The Natural Step Canada through a new phase in its evolution.

The Board of Directors is excited to have Chad lead our next phase of growth. The organization is well positioned to leverage our strategic approach to sustainability through collaborative relationships, and Chad is an ideal steward of our vision of a sustainable Canada.

Chad’s appointment will ensure a smooth transition for the organization and the opportunity to build on a solid track record. Under Chad’s leadership, The Natural Step Canada will increase its work with businesses and municipalities to support the development of role model organizations committed to sustainability-driven innovation. It will expand its learning programs for sustainability champions and scale up its work with emerging leaders across Canada. Chad will also provide leadership for the development of The Natural Step Canada’s newest initiative, The Sustainability Transition Lab, an innovative model for multi-stakeholder collaboration in strategic sectors of Canadian society.

Chad was recently named one of Canada’s Clean16—the 16 individuals in Canada who have done the most to advance the cause of sustainability and clean capitalism—honoring his leadership and accomplishments in working with leading Canadian businesses and municipalities to help them integrate sustainability into their strategy, operations, products and services, and organizational culture. Chad was also recently selected as one of the AIESEC Alumni 40 Under 40, which recognizes promising young leaders of tomorrow from around the world.

Chad is also The Natural Step’s lead sustainability advisor to The Co-operators Group Ltd., which was named the top corporate citizen in Canada by Corporate Knights Magazine in 2011.

To read Chad’s complete bio, please click here.

This succession is part of a well-planned strategic transition. The Board of Directors thanks Kelly for her leadership in establishing The Natural Step Canada as a dynamic national charity and social enterprise that is helping Canadians accelerate the transition to a sustainable society in a meaningful way. Kelly is stepping down to spend more time with her family, but will continue to actively support the work of The Natural Step Canada.

On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire team, we extend our congratulations to Chad.

Sincerely,

Monica Pohlmann
Chair, The Natural Step Canada