About

As the CEO of Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS), the largest immigrant serving agency in Atlantic Canada, Paula draws on her own experience as an immigrant to Nova Scotia to champion the settlement support needs of newcomers who make Nova Scotia their home.

A seasoned public and private sector leader, Paula has been instrumental in driving social impact through a commitment to partnership and her innate ability to build common purpose across diverse stakeholder groups. Paula’s experience spans affordable housing, health and technology, leading large and complex organizations in the areas of strategy, business transformation, communications, and service delivery.

Paula’s commitment to community building has been recognized nationally and she is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals, Canada 150 Women in Business and Microsoft’s Chairman Award.

Megan Morris has worked in the immigrant settlement sector for over fifteen years and is currently the Executive Director of the Association for New Canadians (ANC), a community-based, non-profit settlement agency in Newfoundland and Labrador. Megan worked with various federal government departments, and served as a political aide to a former Cabinet Minister. With a long interest in immigrant and refugee issues, she has served on various Boards, Committees and Working Groups including, for example, the Coordinating Committee on Newcomer Integration, ARAISA, the Atlantic Metropolis, the Performance Measurement Advisory Group and the Professional Development & Sector Coordination Working Group.

Mohamed Bagha is the Managing Director of the Saint John Centre (SJNC). He has been involved in the Newcomer Settlement Sector for over 10 years. Mohamed is very passionate in carrying out the mission of the SJNC – to improve the socio-economic well-being of Greater Saint John by supporting newcomer settlement and promoting multiculturalism. He wants to see communities across Atlantic Canada, like Saint John, thrive through diversity, where newcomers actively participate in society by fully contributing their talent, skills and culture. Mohamed has a Master of Interdisciplinary Degree focusing on Community Economic Development from the University of New Brunswick.

Lisa Bamford De Gante is the Executive Director of the Multicultural Association of Fredericton Inc. (MCAF), in New Brunswick.

Alison Frise is the Managing Director of the Multicultural Agency of the Greater Moncton Area (MAGMA). With a background in human resources, she came to the settlement sector by way of the hotel and hospitality industry, where she enjoyed working within multicultural teams. She is also the daughter of an immigrant and grew up with an understanding that home can be far away, or, in multiple places. She has lived in Vancouver and Halifax, where she experienced the value of multiculturalism in larger communities and is committed to creating an inclusive and multicultural Greater Moncton. Alison joined MAGMA in 2019, and has helped facilitate its expansion and strategic path, as one of the largest settlement agencies in the Southeastern New Brunswick region.

Bernadette Reynolds is the Executive Director of Immigrant & Refugee Services Association of Prince Edward Island (P.E.I). Bernadette oversees a team of more than 40 staff who deliver settlement, employment, and integration services and programs to newcomers to P.E.I. Bernadette brings more than a decade of senior management experience with Western Union in both Canada and the U.K. Originally from P.E.I and holding a Bachelor of Business Administration from UPEI, Bernadette gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of the immigrant experience by volunteering with Breaking Barriers, a U.K. program that assists refugees to prepare to enter the job market and with Estacion Inglesa, a program in Spain that helps Spanish speakers improve their English.

As an immigrant from South Korea and an experienced and passionate person about immigration and settlement, Inhae has been an active community developer in the settlement sector for the past 20 years and she can speak to the needs and challenges newcomers face when they settle into new communities as well as opportunities and assets they bring.

Through her work with YMCA Immigrant Services Inhae has been involved with leading multiple projects which have contributed to a variety innovative and sustainable programs and activities.

For the past several years, as a Manager of Immigrant Services, Inhae has overseen various aspects related to program development, implementation and impact that ensures a positive and effective experience for the clients and communities being served through settlement programs and services. Through her career, she has gained extensive knowledge and insight in this sector and she has been actively participated in various committees and discussions on a local, regional and national level that include multiple stakeholders.

Renaud, who spent 20 years in the French Education Nationale, has now been helping newcomers to his new community in Edmundston for a little over two and a half years. He is constantly working to ensure that newcomers have the best possible settling-in conditions in this region, to help them project themselves permanently as full-fledged members of this community.
The importance Araisa attaches to accompanying and supporting the various organizations, particularly French-speaking ones, involved in welcoming new arrivals, gives him the full meaning of the collective steps needed to build a shared life project.