Biographical notes – Diplomatic appointments

Tamara Mawhinney (BA Hons, University of Toronto, 1987; LLB, University of Toronto, 1991; Political Studies Certificate, Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris, 1998; Diploma of Public Administration, École Nationale d’Administration, 2000) joined External Affairs and International Trade Canada in 1993 after having completed her Articles of Law with the firm of McCarthy Tétrault in Toronto and Ottawa. She began her public service career as a Cabinet liaison officer and then as a lawyer in the International Trade Law Division. Her assignments overseas include the Permanent Mission to the UN in New York City (1995 to 1998), the Embassy to France (2001 to 2006 and 2013 to 2014) and the Mission to the EU, where she served as political section head (2007 to 2012). After two years as adviser to Michaëlle Jean, when the latter was secretary general of the International Organisation of La Francophonie, she returned to Ottawa in 2016 to lead the UN Security Council campaign team. In the summer of 2018, she joined the Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva as deputy permanent representative. Most recently, she served as ambassador to the Republic of Korea. She remains an attorney and is a member of the New York State Bar Association, and she sits on the advisory board of the Montréal Centre for International Studies.

Corinne Petrisor (BComm Hons [Commerce], University of Saskatchewan, 1999) joined Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada in 2009 following several years of experience in the private sector. At Headquarters, she has served in the Strategic Initiatives Division, contributing policy and strategic guidance on initiatives such as the Global Commerce Strategy, and as departmental adviser to the Office of the Minister of International Trade. Overseas, she has served in Russia, with accreditation to Armenia and Uzbekistan, and as the first-ever Canadian senior trade commissioner and commercial counsellor in Bangladesh. Most recently, she was senior trade commissioner and commercial counsellor in Sweden (2021 to 2026).