Event Date: Thursday, April 22nd, 2021

Steve was born in Hamilton, Ontario and lives in Toronto.
The Hidden Heroes of Public Service – Reflections and Learnings from a year of COVID-19
Event Date: Thursday, April 22nd, 2021
Event Time: 4.30-6.00pm

Ms. Dowdeswell has served the public interest at all orders of government and in the private sector. She contributed globally as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme. In Canada her diverse portfolios ranged from education and culture to environment and the management of complex public enquiries. She was the founding president and CEO of the Nuclear Waste Management Organization, and later the president and CEO of the Council of Canadian Academies. She has served on the boards of Canadian and international corporate and non-profit organizations.
Since taking office in late 2014, Ms. Dowdeswell has challenged Ontarians to think deeply about their role not just as residents of a province, but as global citizens. Building resilience and sustainability through inclusive economic prosperity, environmental stewardship, and social cohesion, as well as safeguarding democracy, has been the focus of her mandate.
Ms. Dowdeswell has a bachelor of science in home economics and teaching certificate from the University of Saskatchewan and a master of science in behavioural sciences from Utah State University. She is an officer of the Order of Canada, a member of the Order of Ontario, and the recipient of numerous distinctions and fellowships. She holds 11 honorary doctorates.


• Working with Ontario's health and safety system partners to prevent workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities.
• Reporting to the Minister of Labour on the performance of Ontario's occupational health and safety system through an Annual Report
• Setting province-wide training and safety programs standards
• The establishment and implementation of a new provincial occupational health and safety strategy
Under the CPO’s leadership, the Prevention Office has supported workplaces in Ontario to implement health and safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. This has included working on cross government and industry committees and producing over 200 workplace guidance resources which have been viewed over one million times.
Prior to his appointment as CPO, Ron was President and CEO of Public Services Health and Safety Association (PSHSA), a Health and Safety Association of the Ministry of Labour. Before joining PSHSA, Ron held senior positions within the private and not for profit sectors and in municipal government. Ron holds a Master of Business Administration, is a Certified Municipal Manager (CMM III) and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and Canadian Society of Safety Engineers.


Barb has 30 years of experience in the Ontario Public Service and has held executive positions in a wide variety of sectors including post-secondary education, employment and training, adult developmental services, corrections, and labour market policy.
Barb has a degree in Fine Arts from York University, is married to Alison, and has two children, Annie and Alec, with whom she never gets to spend enough time.

Prior to this, he has played key leadership roles in the Ontario Government’s Supply Chain Centralization Initiative, and in enabling supply chain transformation and innovation procurement in the Broader Public Sector. Before joining the Ontario Public Service, Christopher spent approximately 10 years with Motorola Inc., holding progressive leadership roles supporting strategic transformation in manufacturing, logistics, procurement, quality and IT.
Christopher has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Toronto, a Master of Business Administration from DePaul University’s Kellstadt School of Management in Chicago, Illinois, and is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt.