Kathleen Gnocato is the Vice-President, Strategic Engagement at the Public Policy Forum. In this role, Kathleen works with public, private, non-profit, and philanthropic partners around Canada’s critical policy challenges and developments. Throughout her career, Kathleen has been passionate about convening stakeholders to address complex problems, and positioning Canada as a leader on the world stage.

Kathleen was most recently Senior Director for Corporate Innovation at the MaRS Discovery District, where she was responsible for establishing strategic partnerships with medium-large organizations to accelerate the adoption of innovative technologies and business models. She worked to bridge the divide between these organizations and 1,300+ Canadian ventures, to address market challenges such as decarbonization. Kathleen is schooled in the design, build, and financing of high quality, measurable and results-oriented initiatives involving such sectors as business, academia, and government. She has worked across sectors such as energy, health, finance, and enterprise, and across jurisdictions, leading projects across Canada, in New York, California, Chile, Colombia, and Japan.

Kathleen’s professional background includes an advisory role at Canada’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York and collaborative projects for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and the MaRS Centre for Impact Investing. Kathleen was also the Director of the Global Ideas Institute based out of the Munk School of Global Affairs.

Kathleen holds a Master’s of Global Affairs from the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs and a BAH from Queen’s University.

Outside of her professional roles, Kathleen is active in the volunteer sector with the Pembina unGALA, the Masomo Education Foundation (which operates in Zambia), the Hospital for Sick Children, and the Leukaemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada.