Community Leadership

Building Stronger Organizations Through Systems, Strategy, and Community

Throughout my career, I’ve believed that leadership is about more than achieving results during your own term. Effective leadership creates systems, builds relationships, develops future leaders, and leaves organizations stronger than they were before.

My leadership experience spans business, nonprofit organizations, international chambers of commerce, disability advocacy, community development, and volunteer governance across Canada and Taiwan.

Although each organization had different goals, my approach remained remarkably consistent: listen carefully, understand the existing systems, identify opportunities for improvement, and work collaboratively to create sustainable change.

Rather than focusing solely on individual projects, I enjoy strengthening the underlying structures that allow organizations to thrive long after a project has ended. This includes improving communications, developing operational systems, supporting volunteers, building partnerships, strengthening governance, and creating resources that future leaders can continue to build upon.

Leadership Highlights

Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan

Serving in multiple executive leadership positions, including Chairwoman, Communications Director, Small Business Chair, and Supervisory Committee Chair, I helped strengthen one of Taiwan’s most active international business organizations.

During my time with the Chamber, I contributed to the growth and development of major initiatives including Canada Day Taiwan, the Maple Ball Charity Gala, Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan, digital communications, website development, governance improvements, sponsorship development, and member engagement.

My goal was never simply to organize successful events. It was to build systems that future volunteers could inherit and continue to improve. I was and still am the most successful Chair of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan.

Canada Day Taiwan: Building Sponsor Experiences and Community Impact

When I joined the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan in 2013, the organization did not have a formal playbook for Canada Day. One of my first contributions was developing sponsor proposals and helping create stronger systems for sponsor engagement, communications, and event planning.

By 2017, I had helped transform Canada Day Taiwan into a more strategic, experiential, and sponsor-focused community celebration. Rather than treating sponsors only as financial contributors, I created branded zones and interactive experiences that gave each sponsor meaningful visibility and a clearer connection to the event.

For Canada 150, I helped develop major event features including the Canada Pavilion, the Canada Day Maple Leaf Stage, the DJ booth, and the Manulife Canadian Walk of Fame. The Walk of Fame featured life-sized cutouts of well-known Canadians placed at the event entrance so guests could interact with them, take photos, and learn more about Canadian culture. At the end of the evening, the cutouts were auctioned to raise additional funds.

I also secured permission to use the Canada 150 logo and helped arrange a sponsor donation of 500 limited-edition event T-shirts. To honour the Chamber’s history, I tracked down founding members of the Canadian Society in Taiwan and shared their stories as part of the celebration.

This approach changed how the Chamber presented sponsors and documented community impact. During my leadership years, event photo albums expanded from standard event coverage into detailed storytelling tools, with hundreds of labelled photos highlighting sponsors, volunteers, performers, and community partners.

Canada Day Taiwan became more than an annual event. It became a platform for sponsorship, community storytelling, Canadian culture, live music, small business visibility, Pride inclusion, volunteer engagement, and cross-cultural connection.

Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan

One of my proudest initiatives at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan was creating Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan, a signature small business event designed to showcase entrepreneurship, innovation, and community collaboration.

As Chair of the Taiwan Small Business Network, I recognized that many entrepreneurs lacked opportunities to present their businesses to a supportive audience while receiving meaningful feedback from experienced business leaders. I developed Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan to create that opportunity with my Co-Chair, Andrew Lunman. We came up with the idea in a little cafe in Zhongxiao Dunhua while waiting for the rain to stop. Shortly after that, our team of two became four when we brought in John Kellenberger and Elias Ek.

Inspired by the spirit of entrepreneurial pitching while adapting the format to Taiwan’s international business community, the event brought together entrepreneurs, business owners, Chamber members, sponsors, and experienced judges for an evening focused on mentorship, networking, and business growth.

The event became one of the Chamber’s signature small business initiatives, strengthening relationships between entrepreneurs and the wider business community while creating valuable exposure for emerging businesses.

Developing Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan reinforced my belief that strong communities are built by creating opportunities for others to succeed. By bringing together diverse perspectives, encouraging collaboration, and celebrating innovation, the event demonstrated how thoughtful leadership can strengthen an entire business ecosystem.

Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan is now under the steady hand of Elias Ek and friends while I get to sit back and watch it grow in its 11th year.

Media Recognition

Dragons’ Chamber Taiwan quickly grew beyond a Chamber networking event to become a recognized platform for entrepreneurship within Taiwan’s international business community. The event attracted media attention for bringing together entrepreneurs, experienced business leaders, and investors to encourage innovation, mentorship, and cross-cultural collaboration.

Coverage by Meet Global highlighted the event’s role in supporting foreign entrepreneurs in Taiwan and reflected the Chamber’s growing commitment to fostering a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem.

This recognition reinforced my belief that strong communities are built by creating opportunities for others to learn, connect, and succeed together.

Featured in: Meet Global – Foreign Entrepreneurs Highlight Challenges in Taiwan (2016)

Disability Inclusion Taiwan

As Co-Founder of Disability Inclusion Taiwan, I worked alongside legislators, nonprofit organizations, and community members to advocate for disability inclusion for foreign permanent residents living in Taiwan.

This collaborative work contributed to legislative changes that expanded disability rights and access to government support for disabled foreign permanent residents. It reinforced my belief that meaningful systems change occurs when lived experience, community engagement, policy analysis, and collaboration work together.

Community Leadership

Beyond these roles, I have served numerous organizations through governance, communications, strategic planning, conference development, public education, volunteer leadership, and patient advocacy.

Whether supporting healthcare communities, professional organizations, or nonprofit initiatives, my focus has remained the same: helping organizations become more effective, sustainable, and inclusive.

My Leadership Philosophy

I believe leadership is measured not by what you accomplish during your own term, but by whether the organization is stronger after you’ve left.

For me, success means creating systems that continue to work, developing leaders who feel confident to carry projects forward, and building communities that become more resilient over time.

This philosophy has shaped every stage of my career and continues to influence my consulting work, advocacy, writing, and future graduate studies in social work.

Leadership, at its best, is not about being indispensable.

It’s about creating organizations that no longer depend on you because you’ve helped them become stronger.

My greatest satisfaction has never come from being the person on stage, but from knowing the event succeeded because hundreds or thousands of people created memorable moments together.