Catherine Senecal

Catherine Senecal is a senior operations manager in IISD’s Resilience Program and is currently seconded to the Institute’s strategic optimization project, where she leads change management efforts to strengthen operational effectiveness across IISD.

Since joining IISD in 2016, Catherine has played a central role in building and scaling complex international initiatives. She has overseen the Resilience Program's operations during a period of rapid growth, supporting a fivefold increase in revenue over 4 years by strengthening financial management, operational planning, and delivery systems. Notably, she has also been a key contributor to establishing and expanding the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Global Network, now one of IISD’s flagship initiatives.

Catherine brings deep expertise in operational management of program portfolios, as well as multi-year, multi-country programs, including the administration of bilateral funding and the coordination of diverse, cross-functional teams. She has been at the forefront of internal capacity building at IISD, leading and delivering institute-wide training on financial forecasting and budgeting.

Prior to joining IISD, Catherine worked as a professional associate at McGill University’s Brace Centre for Water Resources Management, where she supported internationally focused projects across Brazil, Central Asia, and the Caribbean.