Governance · Oxfam Canada
The Board of Directors
Friends in the room. Quiet in public.
These are not independent watchdogs. Many board members have close ties to Lauren Ravon and senior leadership — friends in the same circles, comfortable in private, quiet when it counts. Their public bios read like a manifesto for equity, feminism, and justice. Their silence during the first strike in 44 years of Oxfam Canada history speaks for itself.
Not one has publicly called on leadership to return to the bargaining table. Not one has challenged the April raises for executives while staff were denied COLA. The tone from the top is matched by a Board that would rather stay quiet than govern.
Words vs. Silence.
Read what they say about themselves. Then notice what they are doing now — which is staying quiet, while workers strike for values Oxfam claims to stand for.
Their bio
Candice is the Executive Director at the Ending Violence Association of Canada; a national non-profit organization that works collaboratively with its member organizations and others to provide a unified voice on the issue of sexual violence.
What they’re doing now
She leads a national voice on sexual violence — yet has not spoken up while Oxfam Canada management strips domestic violence protections from the bargaining table.
Their bio
Lee Burton is a philanthropic advisor and nonprofit leader with nearly 20 years of experience advancing equity, systems change, and community-led giving. As Director of Philanthropic Services at MakeWay, they oversee a boutique portfolio of donor-advised funds and impact investments.
What they’re doing now
Twenty years of equity and systems change — and not one public word pressuring leadership to fix the pay gap that triggered the first strike in Oxfam Canada's history.
Their bio
Sabeen Awan, CPA, CA is a senior accounting professional with extensive experience in advisory and governance in both the private and public sectors.
What they’re doing now
Treasurer. Governance expert. Silent while surplus earned by staff was sent abroad and workers were told COLA was unaffordable.
Their bio
Sahar is an intersectional feminist dedicated to advancing socially just and rights-based systemic change.
What they’re doing now
Intersectional feminist. Rights-based change. The systemic injustice is happening inside the organization she governs — and she has not spoken up.
Their bio
Iraz is dedicated to reducing inequalities among women and children.
What they’re doing now
Vice Chair. Dedicated to reducing inequality among women and children — while the women and parents on strike are told to accept less.
Their bio
Amelia is a feminist lawyer committed to achieving long-term social change by ensuring that women and other equity-seeking groups achieve justice.
What they’re doing now
Feminist lawyer. Justice for equity-seeking groups. The equity-seeking group on the picket line is her own staff — and the Board has offered them nothing.
Their bio
Fae (she/they), MSW, is a leading voice on 2SLGBTQIA+ issues in Canada.
What they’re doing now
A leading voice on 2SLGBTQIA+ issues — while gender-affirming care is fought at the table and the Board has stayed quiet.
Their bio
Rita brings to Oxfam Canada's Board a long and abiding commitment to community development and to supporting local aspirations for safe, just and sustainable livelihoods.
What they’re doing now
Safe, just, sustainable livelihoods — for communities abroad, apparently. Not for the Oxfam Canada workers who generate the revenue.
Their bio
Karen is a feminist and a serial philanthro-preneur. She has played leading roles in launching two charitable organizations that took an innovative approach, using social purpose business and entrepreneurship as drivers of social change.
What they’re doing now
Co-Chair. Feminist innovator. The Board could call for a return to the bargaining table. They have not.
Their bio
Larry is a professor at the School of Environment, Enterprise and Development and a faculty member of the Water Institute at the Balsillie School of International Affairs and is cross-appointed to the School of Planning and the Department of Geography and Environmental Management.
What they’re doing now
Professor of development and enterprise — studying inequality globally while the inequality inside Oxfam Canada goes unchallenged from his seat.
Their bio
Robert is a credentialed program evaluator with more than ten years of professional experience conducting evaluations.
What they’re doing now
Program evaluator. Ten years measuring outcomes. The outcome here is the first strike in 44 years — and he has not evaluated whether leadership is failing.
Comfort Over Accountability.
A real Board holds an Executive Director accountable — especially when trust between staff and senior leadership is at a 44-year low and the organization faces its first strike ever. Instead, this Board has stayed close to Lauren Ravon and senior leadership — friends who share the same worldview, not challengers willing to speak up when it matters. Their silence is a governance failure, not a neutral choice.
You cannot preach fairness globally and stay silent when your own workers are on the picket line.
The Board Should Act.
Tell every MP and the House to put pressure on Oxfam Canada — including its Board — to return to the bargaining table and practice what they preach.