Our Board of Directors

Kevin O’Brien, Board Chair

Mr. O’Brien, a graduate of Wilfred Laurier University, has a career that spans 40 years in international cooperation, community development, and humanitarian aid, with both domestic and international civil society organizations.

Mr. O’Brien began his career as a community development worker and teacher in Sierra Leone, living and working in a remote rural village for two a half years. His career would take him to England, back to Sierra Leone, as well as Senegal, West Africa, where he worked as the Country Director for Plan International, with the overall responsibility for the design and implementation of an integrated community development program in remote rural areas while working within the host government’s strategic development framework.

Returning to Canada in 1991, Mr. O’Brien acted as Director of Residential Services with SUREX, an organization providing 24-hour care and training for adults with developmental disabilities, before becoming the Executive Director of Canadian Feed the Children in 1997. Under his leadership CFTC expanded from being primarily a commodity-based relief organization to one utilizing responsive integrated development programs/strategies. In 2002 Mr. O’Brien was recruited and appointed Executive Director of Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief, an NGO building healthy communities in Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi and Tanzania, with a focus on primary health care, food security, water, sanitation, hygiene and livelihoods utilizing cross country themes of gender equity, environment and prevention of HIV.

Mr. O’Brien is currently an International Development, and Organizational development and management consultant.

Dr. Jim Beaubien

Dr. Beaubien has over 40 years of experience as a consultant, facilitator, and educator, sharing his knowledge, skills, wisdom, and humour with corporations and schools of business throughout North America.

In addition to being a managing partner at HOPE Learning with his wife Karen Caesar, Dr. Beaubien is also an adjunct professor for the Executive Education Program at the University of Alberta, and Organizational Development and Leadership MA at the Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara. He has taught with the Society of Certified Management Accountants’ Strategic Leadership Program, the Canadian Medical Association, and the University of Calgary. Students in the MBA program at the University of Alberta jointly selected Dr. Beaubien and his wife as Professors of the Year for 2003.

In addition to his work with HOPE Learning, Dr. Beaubien is a managing partner with Flowpoint Systems, a privately owned manufacturer and distributor of intelligent bulk water and fluid distribution stations, fluid receiving stations, and the Flow+ Access Terminal and Software system.

In his consulting work, Dr. Beaubien specializes in strategic planning, organizational development and leadership with an emphasis on implementation.

Dr. Beaubien is a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) and a member of the Canadian Speaking Hall of Fame. He holds a PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of Alberta.

Dr. Zelaikha Anwari

Dr. Zelaikha Anwari is a public health specialist with over two decades of experience managing health programs and projects for national and international organizations in Afghanistan and cross-border initiatives for Afghan refugees in Pakistan. She holds a medical degree from Kabul Medical University and a Master’s degree in Public Health from the Institute of Management Sciences in Pakistan.

During her tenure as Director of the Reproductive Maternal and Child Health (RMNCH) program at the Ministry of Public Health in Afghanistan, Dr Anwari demonstrated exceptional leadership and strategic acumen. She revitalized networks with national and international organizations, international development agencies and global forums, including Family Planning 2020 (FP-2020) and Partnership Maternal Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH). Dr. Anwari played a pivotal role in mobilizing technical and financial resources, with a focus on reproductive, maternal, and child health programs. A notable achievement was the introduction and integration of the Mother and Child Health Handbook (MCH Handbook) initiative in the health system of Afghanistan, aimed at improving the quality of and increasing access to maternal and child health services in Afghanistan, a country with one of the highest maternal and child mortality rates worldwide.

In her role as a Senior Technical Advisor for Policy and Planning at the Ministry of Public Health, Afghanistan, Dr. Anwari made significant contributions to the development of various national health policies, strategies, guidelines, and tools. Additionally, she has extensive experience in designing and delivering specialized training courses for healthcare professionals, further strengthening the capacity of the healthcare workforce.

In early 2022, Dr. Anwari immigrated to Canada and obtained permanent residency. In February 2023, she achieved membership in the WHO Collaborating Center/Ottawa University, further solidifying her dedication to advancing global health initiatives.

Tom Magyarody P.Eng., MBA, ICD.D

Mr. Magyarody has a wealth of experience as a CEO, board member, consultant and strategic advisor. He is the principal of Magyarody Strategy and Governance Consulting. He also provides Executive Coaching to C-suite executives as well as Board Directors.

He is currently a Director of Blue Pier Pension Administration Inc,  a member of the Board of Governors for the Ontario Medical Foundation and Vice Commodore at the Etobicoke Yacht Club.

With particular expertise in the health-care sector, Mr. Magyarody has been CEO of the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) and the Ontario Dental Association; an independent director of Centric Health Corporation; Executive Director, Corporate Affairs and Administration with OMA; Managing Director of Community Telephone Health Management Co.; a Senior Vice President with Commercial Union Assurance; and Director of HR with McDonnell Douglas.

Mr. Magyarody holds an ICD.D via the Rotman School of Management and MBA and Engineering & Management degrees from McMaster University. He is an honourary member of the OMA and has been recognized by McMaster Engineering as a top-150 graduate. He is currently working on attaining his Associate Certified Coach standing via Royal Roads University, Victoria BC.

Dr. Allon Reddoch

A resident of the Yukon Territory for 45 years, Dr. Reddoch works as the Chief Medical Consultant to the Yukon Workers’ Compensation Health and Safety Board. Since completing his medical studies, Dr. Reddoch has actively worked as a family physician since 1974, complementing his knowledge with post-graduate studies in dermatology, allergy and disabilities and impairments.

Professionally, Dr. Reddoch’ s many leadership appointments include seeing him elected by his peers to the roles of President of the Yukon Medical Association (1979 to 1990) and the Canadian Medical Association (1998-1999).

An active and engaged community member, Dr. Reddoch is a Member of the Rotary Club of Whitehorse (1975 to present) where he served as President in 1983, the St. John Ambulance charitable organization, the Ramesh Ferris Cycle to Walk Society (polio eradication, education and rehabilitation) and other charitable and community building organizations. Dr. Reddoch was elected to the Board of Trustees for the Canadian Medical Foundation in 2018.

Janet Hatcher Roberts

Over the past three decades, Mrs. Hatcher Roberts has been involved in the design, monitoring and evaluation of global health and development and gender and health programmes and projects at IDRC, CIDA, CIHR (Institute on Gender and Health), the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada. From 1998-2013, she was the Executive Director of the Canadian Society for International Health. She spent 2007-2008 in Geneva where she was Director of the Migration Health Department with the International Organization for Migration, now UN Migration.

In her volunteer time, Mrs. Hatcher Roberts was the Chair of the Board for Action Canada for Population Development and was a Board member and Past Treasurer of the Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research. She was a Board member of the US-based Council of Graduate Foreign Nurses (CGFNS) from 2007- 2016. From 2009-2019, she was appointed by an Order in Council as Board member to Public Health Ontario (PHO) where she also sat on the Strategic Planning Committee and Governance Committee. From 2018 to 2020, Mrs. Hatcher Roberts also has served as an ex-officio member and now board member of the Ottawa Centre Liberal EDA. She also served for four years on the National Board of Make Poverty History.

Since January 2021 Mrs. Hatcher Roberts also has served as a member of the Advisory Committee for the newly formed Pegasus Institute and is a member of the newly formed Transition committee for the new Canadian Association for Global Health, an amalgamation of the Canadian Society for International Health and the Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research.