Megan Leslie

Megan Leslie became the president and chief executive officer of World Wildlife Fund Canada in December of 2017 where she previously worked in ocean conservation. Before joining WWF, she was an NDP Member of Parliament, representing Halifax for two terms until 2015, during which she was deputy leader of the official Opposition, environment critic and vice-chair of the government committee on environment and sustainable development. In Ottawa, Ms. Leslie introduced a motion and guided its unanimous passage to add plastic microbeads to the list of toxic substances under the Environmental Protection Act. She also worked across party lines to successfully expedite the passage of a bill to create Sable Island National Park Reserve. Ms. Leslie is a senior fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, serves on the Advisory Board of Ontario 360, an evidence-based policy initiative housed at the University of Toronto, is a member of the Advisory Council of the Coady International Institute at St. FX University, and sits on the Advisory Board for the Election Debates Commission chaired by the Right Honourable David Johnston.

Ms. Leslie was raised in Kirkland Lake, Ont. She received a BA in social & political thought and history plus a certificate in refugee and migration studies at York University as well as a LL.B. from Dalhousie University. She is the proud recipient of Dalhousie University’s Arum Award for alumni making a difference in their communities and around the world, and of an honorary degree from Mount Saint Vincent University.