David Hughes

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

SKILLS

ABOUT DAVID HUGHES

David Hughes is the President and CEO of Generate Canada (formerly The Natural Step Canada), which works with leaders from industry, government, academia and civil society to generate solutions for a strong and inclusive economy that thrives within nature’s limits. Since joining the organization in 2016 it has expanded its research and public policy expertise through a partnership with the Smart Prosperity Institute, and increased its scale, scope, and impact through the development of a number of innovation-focused multi-stakeholder “Solution Spaces”. These now include the Canada Plastics Pact, the Canadian Alliance for Net-Zero Agri-food (CANZA), Circular Economy Leadership Canada, the Energy Futures Lab, and the Nature Investment Hub. Collectively these initiatives are enabling and incentivizing climate-smart and nature-positive systems change. To learn more go to: previously led Habitat for Humanity Canada and Pathways to Education Canada during periods of unprecedented growth and impact. Prior to that he spent 10 years in senior positions at SOS Children\'s Villages International which included postings to Africa, Asia, Europe, USA and the United Nations (New York and Vienna). Other management roles have included serving as Senior Vice President of YMCA Canada and President of AIESEC Canada. He also founded and operated The Impact Group, a management consultancy which provided strategic counsel to companies and not-for-profit organizations that were working to \"bridge the gap between commerce and compassion\".David is a Senior Fellow of the Smart Prosperity Institute (SPI), an inaugural member of the Business for Purpose Network (B4PN), and has previously served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Stem Cell Foundation, The Natural Step Canada, the Canadian branch of Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project, and AIESEC Canada. He holds an economics degree from the University of Western Ontario, a postgraduate degree in social policy and non-profit management from the London School of Economics (LSE), an executive leadership certificate from Harvard University, and has been recognized as a Clean50 Honouree for “outstanding contribution to clean capitalism”. He lives in Toronto with his wife Laura and his two children, John and Alexandra, who collectively provide the inspiration and incentive to challenge the status quo and strive for a better future for Canada and our planet.