BIOGRAPHY: Rebecca Gowan

Senior Policy Advisor, Human Rights Promotion Branch, Canadian Human Rights Commission

Rebecca Gowan currently works in the Human Rights Promotion Branch at the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC). As a Senior Policy Advisor, she provides advice on disability and human rights, including substance dependence in the workplace. She has taught in the Trauma/Addiction Recovery Studies certificate program at Algonquin College in Ottawa and provided peer crisis intervention counseling with Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW) in Vancouver.

Rebecca has extensive experience on domestic and international human and labour rights issues. In addition to providing disability-related policy advice to federal employers, she leads the Canadian Association of Statutory Human Rights Agencies’ technical working group on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Prior to joining the CHRC in 2012, Rebecca worked with the federal Labour Program in international and Aboriginal labour affairs. Her experience includes participation in the negotiation of international labour standards within the International Labour Organization. Rebecca has also investigated social and workplace policy issues within the federal government, as well as within non-government organizations, such as the Canadian Council on Social Development.

Rebecca has a Master of Arts degree in Canadian Studies from Carleton University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Women’s Studies from the University of British Columbia. She currently resides in Ottawa.