Lainy Destin joined the School as an executive faculty member in February 2025.
In her over 15 years as a public servant, Lainy has held Chief of Staff positions supporting senior leadership in establishing new organizations, reframing stakeholder relationships, and developing innovative government investments in the areas of Indigenous community infrastructure, international environmental relations, international security cooperation, and organizational transformation. Lainy has worked in the private sector, policy, and politics in Canada and the US. In the Canadian federal government, she has served in various departments, including Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Defence, Indigenous Services Canada, and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs. She attributes her career progression to remaining curious and open to diverse perspectives, and being able to draw from varied information in order to provide strategic thinking and effective solutions. She believes that cultivating meaningful relationships and collaborations with internal and external partners is essential to impactful government policy and program development and sustainable results.
"I teach because learning from peers is crucial to reinforcing professional development. I teach because I want to transmit my passion for serving Canadians to reinvigorate my peers as they navigate their careers. I teach because I understand that teaching is reciprocal and I remain open to gaining further knowledge from the expertise and experiences of our course participants/learners."
Expertise
- Leadership
- Diversity and inclusion
- Strategic policy
- Organizational transformation
- Environmental law enforcement, Indigenous rights and reconciliation
- International security
Credentials
- LLB (Common Law) Degree and BCL (Civil Law) Degree, McGill University – Montréal, Quebec, Canada.
Focus: Environmental law and regulation, Aboriginal law and corporate law
- BA in Political Sciences (International Relations), Columbia University – New York, New York, United States.
Focus: International organizations, Latin-American politics, Canadian foreign policy.
- Fellowship in negotiations and mediation with the Ron H. Brown Center for Commercial Diplomacy
