Couchiching Annual Conference

Jody Thomas

Keynote Address

Jody Thomas returned to Victoria in 2024, after more than 35 years of experience in the federal public service. In her last role, she served as National Security and Intelligence Advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau from 2022 until 2024. Ms. Thomas joined the naval reserves at age 17, and as a diesel mechanic was among the first women to serve on a Canadian military vessel. Subsequently, she began her public service career in 1988 when she was appointed Chief of Business Planning and Administration with Public Works and Government Services Canada’s Atlantic Region. From 1995-2010, she held increasingly senior roles at Passport Canada, culminating in Chief Operating Officer.

In 2010, Ms. Thomas joined the Canadian Coast Guard where she held the positions of Deputy Commissioner of Operations and became the first woman Commissioner of the Coast Guard. In March 2017, she joined the Department of National Defence, serving as Senior Associate Deputy Minister and in October 2017, she was appointed as Deputy Minister of National Defence, a role in which she served until January 2022. Jody holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Carleton University.

Importantly, Ms. Thomas has been at the centre of some of the most seminal domestic and international decisions in recent Canadian history, including: Canada’s security posture concerning the war in Ukraine; critical intelligence and counsel to the Prime Minister and Cabinet during the occupation in Ottawa that ultimately led to the Emergencies Act; response by the Canadian Armed Forces to BC wildfires, Fraser Valley Flooding and the COVID-19 pandemic; concerns over Canada’s sovereignty in the Arctic; and Canadians being held illegally by foreign governments.