August 1, 2015 – Ottawa, Ontario – Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
The Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., Q.C., M.P. for Niagara Falls, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced the following diplomatic appointments:
Michael Gort becomes Ambassador to the Republic of Costa Rica.
Gwyneth A. Kutz becomes Ambassador to the Republic of Peru.
Jennifer May Alice Loten becomes Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C.
Daniel Maksymiuk becomes Ambassador to the Republic of Croatia, with concurrent accreditation to the Republic of Kosovo.
Biographical notes on the appointees follow.
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Michael Gort (BA [Economics and Political Science], University of Western Ontario 1987; MA [International Affairs], Carleton University, 1990) joined the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in 2003, serving in CIDA’s Asia Branch as a governance specialist and then as principal adviser and lead specialist until 2008. From 2008 to 2010, he was based in Accra as the director of CIDA’s Ghana Program. From 2010 to 2013, he was director of the UN, Commonwealth and Francophonie Division of CIDA’s Multilateral and Global Programs Branch. Most recently, Mr. Gort served as deputy permanent representative of Canada to the UN food and agriculture agencies, based in Rome. He has also undertaken short assignments with the UN in Guatemala and with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Before joining the Canadian public service, Mr. Gort worked for Canadian NGOs, including the Centre d'étude et de coopération internationale in Montréal and Central America, and Human Rights Internet in Ottawa. He has two daughters. Michael Gort replaces Wendy Drukier.
Gwyneth A. Kutz (BA [General Humanities], University of Calgary, 1987) joined the Department of External Affairs in 1988. She served abroad as a foreign service officer at the Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations in New York (1989) and at the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington, D.C. (1991-93), as well as at the Canadian embassies in Lima, Peru (1990-91), and Madrid, Spain (1997-99). In 1999, she opened and headed Canada’s first diplomatic presence in Tirana, Albania, before returning to Washington as deputy permanent representative of Canada to the OAS (2001-2004). She was subsequently appointed Canada’s first resident ambassador to El Salvador (2004-2006). At Headquarters, Ms. Kutz has served in the Energy and Environment Division, the Personnel Assignments Division and the Regional Security and Peacekeeping Division. She has also served as director of the Human Rights, Gender Equality, Health and Population Division; and as senior advisor to the Multilateral Initiatives and Advocacy Division. In September 2010, she assumed her duties in Buenos Aires as ambassador of Canada to Argentina and Paraguay. Gwyneth A. Kutz replaces Patricia Fortier.
Jennifer May Alice Loten (BA, Trent University, 1989; MPhil, University of Cambridge, 1990) joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in 1997. She served as consul for Canada in Anchorage, Alaska, as Canada’s interim representative to the Organization of American States in Washington and as second secretary at the Embassy of Canada to Brazil. She has held a variety of positions at Headquarters, including coordinator for Canada’s preparations for the Fourth Summit of the Americas in 2005, deputy director for Human Security and War Economies—where she was lead negotiator for Canada’s engagement in the Kimberley Process for Conflict Diamonds—and deputy director for Canada-U.S. policy with responsibility for Canada-U.S. border policy. In 2009, Ms. Loten won the Deputy Ministers’ Award of Excellence in Policy and Program Development for her work as the department coordinator for the National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility and the Canadian Extractive Industry in Developing Countries. Her work in this area led to the development of key government-wide initiatives to support sustainable natural resources management globally. Before joining the federal government, Ms. Loten served as country director for the Canadian University Service Overseas in Accra, Ghana, in 1995. She worked in the program office for Speaking Out On Violence Against Women at MATCH International in Ottawa, as gender and development research officer at the International Development Research Centre and on Canada’s 1990 Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies. She is married and has four children. Jennifer May Alice Loten replaces Allan Culham.
Daniel Maksymiuk (BA Honours, University of Saskatchewan, 1998; MA and MPhil, Columbia University, 1999 and 2002) joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in 2002. In 2004, he served as Canadian representative in Baghdad, Iraq, advancing Canadian interests with Coalition authorities and subsequently with the newly established Iraqi government. In 2005, he was posted as a political officer to Damascus, returning to Canada in 2008. He subsequently served with a departmental task force on the security of Canada’s missions abroad and travelled to Afghanistan and Mali on temporary assignments. He served at the Embassy of Canada in Tehran, with responsibilities for political, security and economic affairs, from 2009 until the mission’s closing in 2012, returning to Canada as deputy director responsible for Iran and Iraq. Mr. Maksymiuk became senior departmental advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2013. Prior to joining the public service, he competed at the international level in flatwater kayaking and pursued graduate studies in history and international relations while working with a concrete contractor in Saskatchewan. Mr. Maksymiuk is married to Minerva Hernandez Iraheta, and has two daughters, Catalina and Jane. Daniel Maksymiuk replaces Louise LaRocque.