Jennifer Gillivan

Jennifer Gillivan is on a mission to cure one of healthcare’s most dangerous blind spots: the systemic bias against women in medical research, diagnosis, and treatment. As President & CEO of the IWK Foundation in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.  Jennifer leads the primary fundraising and outreach partner of the IWK Health Centre, raising millions of dollars to support critical care and research to women, children, youth, and families across the Maritimes.

A passionate advocate for gender equity in medicine, Jennifer is a credible and compelling voice at the forefront of a growing movement to challenge outdated norms and design a healthcare system that works for everyone—not just the default male body. Her insights are shaped by the groundbreaking research in Invisible Women and, numerous research papers,  brought to life in the IWK Foundation’s podcast The Fifth Wave, which explores the real-world consequences of excluding women from clinical research and medical innovation.

Through data-driven storytelling and bold vision, Jennifer’s keynotes ignite critical conversations at the intersection of health, leadership, and justice. She has presented to audiences of women, business leaders, nurses, physicians, policy leaders, and medical educators, using her platform to call for systemic change, deeper representation, and inclusive decision-making in medicine. Her talks ignite critical conversations around equity, challenge entrenched norms, and inspire audiences to demand—and design—a healthcare system that works for all.

Jennifer has worked with the European Union and signed their manifesto and contributed to their new women and gender equity health and research plan. Jennifer has led the IWK Foundation to undertake a groundbreaking survey of Maritime women’s health experience and her team is currently working with Deloitte Canada to present a case for a new national strategy for women’s health in Canada.

Jennifer brings more than three decades of leadership in philanthropy, strategy, media, and advocacy. Prior to joining the IWK Foundation, she spent 14 years with CBC, most recently as Director of Partnerships, Communications, Marketing and Brand across Canada.

She is a widely recognized leader, receiving numerous awards including Waterstone Human Capital Most Admired CEO in Canada in the social profit sector,  RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrants Award, RBC National Women of Influence award, Halifax Chamber Business  Person of the Year, and multiple Atlantic Business Magazine Top 50 CEO Awards including being inducted into the Atlantic Business Hall of Fame and Top 25 Most Powerful Women Award.

She serves on several boards including Past Chair of Canada’s Children’s Hospital Foundations and is a board member on Women’s Health Collective Canada. Jennifer is also a member of the Canadian Institute of Health Research, Advisory Board for women and gender equity as well as a member of the Frank H Sobey Awards Advisory Board. Jennifer has served on Save the Children Canada and was appointed by the Prime Minister to the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments in Nova Scotia. Jennifer was also Honorary Lieutenant Colonel with the Canadian Armed Forces and an Atlantic Ambassador for Women Get On Board.

Jennifer’s work is not just a talk—it’s a movement to empower women to find their voice and demand better healthcare and research and to work with scientists and medical institutions to identify the bias and work towards a more equal system. One keynote at a time, she is helping Canada reimagine healthcare through a lens of fairness, equity, science, and possibility.