Executive Leadership Team

Carole Saab
Chief Executive Officer
(613) 907-6283

Matt Gemmel
Executive Director | Policy and Public Affairs

Matt is passionate about building more sustainable, prosperous and inclusive communities of all sizes across Canada.

As Executive Director of Policy and Public Affairs, Matt is proud to lead an exceptional team of professionals who are dedicated to advocating to the federal government on behalf of municipalities. Uniting communications, government relations, member engagement and policy and research functions, FCM’s Policy and Public Affairs department works every day to bring the voice of municipal elected leaders to the federal government, deepening intergovernmental collaboration to address Canada’s most pressing public policy challenges—from economic growth, to housing affordability, to public safety and climate change. 

Beginning his career in the public sector through a management internship with the Government of Manitoba, Matt worked for the department of energy and mines on renewable energy policy and administered an incentive program for ground-source heat pumps. Later, as an advisor to the Premier of Manitoba, Matt gained invaluable firsthand experience with the machinery of government and political decision-making processes.

Since 2014, Matt has been a champion for local government at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Through progressively senior positions, Matt has contributed to the development and execution of FCM’s annual federal budget advocacy and our campaigns to influence the 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2025 federal elections. Among some of the notable achievements that Matt has helped to secure for municipalities are multi-billion dollar infrastructure funding programs like the Canada Public Transit Fund, the Universal Broadband Fund and the Canada Community-Building Fund, federal policies like the National Adaptation Strategy, and improvements to federal legislation like the Fisheries Act—striking a balance between environmental protection and streamlined regulation of municipal infrastructure projects.

Beyond 9-5 you can find Matt outside, cross-country skiing, mountain biking and exploring the forests and lakes around Ottawa-Gatineau with his partner, Josina, their two kids, Ryan and Marlowe.

Chris Boivin
Chief Development Officer, FCM & Managing Director | Green Municipal Fund

Chris Boivin is the Chief Development Officer for the FCM and the Managing Director of the Green Municipal Fund (GMF). In these roles, Chris oversees the development and delivery of FCM’s programs focused on sustainability and social inclusion. He oversees a diverse and multi-disciplinary team who develop solutions that help make communities of all sizes more sustainable and resourced to better serve Canadians of all walks of life.

As the Managing Director of the FCM’s flagship GMF, Chris is responsible for executing the vision for the $2B Government of Canada investment in support of municipal projects that advance innovative solutions to environmental challenges. A focus of this work helping communities across Canada achieve Net-Zero emissions and climate resilience faster. Since taking over the role in 2017, the GMF team has grown the Fund and its reach more than four-fold.

Chris previously held senior roles at Sustainable Development Technology Canada. He has worked on climate change for over 20 years and has led over $1.5B in public investments in climate change projects in pursuit of Canadian emissions reductions goals. He is passionate about making a difference in all he takes on. He is equally passionate about building and enabling people and teams to do the same.

Ji Liu
Senior Director, Corporate Services & Finance | Corporate Services

Ji Liu is the Senior Director of Corporate Services and Finance at FCM. Before joining the FCM, he held a senior/executive management role for over 8 years in the Government of Nunavut and her crown corporation responsible for Finance, HR, IT, Procurement and Health & Safety.

In his role with FCM, Ji is responsible for all aspects of the company’s financial operations, encompassing accounting and financial reporting, as well as IT, procurement, property management and treasury. He also collaborates with the leadership team providing integrated strategic insight and tactical guidance to develop a balanced and sustainable corporate strategic plan.

Combined with his academic background as an MBA and CPA, Ji is passionate in leveraging Finance, corporate services, and modern technologies providing accurate business insights for efficient and effective operation through an inclusive approach. He believes in the power of people.

Mara O’Brien James
Chief Operations Officer | CEO’s Office

As FCM’s Chief Operations Officer, Mara’s compassionate and direct leadership style has moved FCM’s trust culture forward through her oversight of the People & Culture, Corporate Services, AREI and Transformation & Strategic Planning units.

Throughout the pandemic’s first two years of unprecedented disruption and change, Mara led the successful development and implementation of FCM’s future of work, enabling FCM to be even more strategic, impactful, equitable and inclusive in pursuit of an ambitious advocacy and programming agenda.

Mara has 18 years of strategic leadership experience specializing in creating exceptional organizations, most recently as Executive Vice-President and interim President & CEO of CARE Canada. Mara’s career as a transformational leader has spanned Africa, Latin America and Asia, these experiences inform her approach to her work in the Canadian context.

While Mara and her family now live in one of Ottawa’s urban neighbourhoods, she grew up on a small farm in a rural community in Southern Ontario. Both big and small municipalities feel like home to her.

Karen Racicot
Senior Director | People and Culture

As Senior Director, People & Culture, Karen Racicot plays a vital role in shaping an inspiring and cohesive workplace that aligns with FCM’s mission and vision. She believes that strength lies in the dedication and talent of people, and that fostering a strong, collaborative culture is essential to achieving our shared goals.

With over 25 years of experience in Human Resources, Karen brings a wealth of expertise from her work across private and nonprofit sectors, including health science, clean-tech, residential construction and high-tech industries. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a proven track record of driving high performance at both organizational and individual levels through innovative programs, tools, and leadership development initiatives.

Passionate about growth and development, Karen is a certified Integral Master Coach™. She works closely with individuals to explore new ways of being that enhance both their professional results and personal well-being, fostering a culture of continuous learning and transformation at FCM.

Sarah Sims
Chief of Staff | CEO’s Office

Sarah has spent the majority of her career advising and representing remarkable executives and leaders. As the Chief of Staff at FCM, Sarah oversees the CEO’s Office and works alongside the CEO to support, advise and assist, ensuring maximum organizational effectiveness and impact.

Prior to joining FCM in 2018, Sarah spent nearly a decade on Parliament Hill working with Members of Parliament and senior political officials. Sarah has an education degree and, prior to moving to Ottawa, worked at universities in Ontario and BC to ensure a positive first year experience for new students.

Sarah firmly believes “if you’re not uncomfortable, you’re not learning” and carries that mantra with her to work each day. Outside of work, Sarah is a passionate community advocate.

Ty Smith
Senior Director, Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion | Corporate Services

For more than 20 years, Ty Smith has recognized the workplace as a key site for social change and growth. As the Senior Director for Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion at FCM, Ty brings a passion for facilitating individual and organizational growth and development in fostering a culture of belonging and equitable inclusion.

Ty excels at facilitating groups to identify and address barriers to embedding and advancing equity and inclusion policies, practices, and programs – and he has drawn on his vast experience to develop and launch FCM’s first in-house Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion unit. Employing a participatory systems-based approach, he has facilitated equity-based organizational change for not-for-profit and public sector organizations in Canada and internationally. Prior to joining FCM, Ty has helped to lead Equity and Inclusion practices for leading Canadian institutions, including the Toronto Police Service.

Marieke Cloutier
Senior Director, Programs, GMF | Green Municipal Fund

As Green Municipal Fund’s (GMF) Senior Director, Programs at FCM, Marieke provides strategic leadership to maximize GMF’s ability to accelerate the transformation of Canadian municipalities towards creating net zero, resilient sustainable communities by fostering equity informed climate action. She passionately executes, with her awesome team, her mandate to oversee the design, implementation, performance and evolution of existing and future GMF programs.

Environment, ecological transition, and innovative solutions have always been pillars of Marieke's career. For more than 20 years, Marieke has been a strategic leader in large organizations in terms of climate change, urban resilience, partnerships, mobilization and behaviour change. Marieke has worked with all levels of government as well as well as with the private sector, non-governmental organizations and international organizations such as the Organisation of Economic Co-operation Development (OECD). In 2002, she decided to dedicate herself to the municipal government level (Union of Municipalities of Quebec, City of Longueuil).

Prior to joining GMF, Marieke spent almost 10 years at the City of Montreal, where she headed multiple departments focused on adaptation and emissions reductions, biodiversity protection, environmental regulations and monitoring. Marieke was one of the main architects behind the elaboration and implementation of Montreal’s Climate Plan 2020-2030. She grew up in the Outaouais region and lives in Montreal with her family.

Angelica Smallwood
Senior Director, Client Services, Funding and Investments | Green Municipal Fund

As the Senior Director of the Client Services, Funding and Investments (CSFI) unit at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Green Municipal Fund (GMF), Angelica is responsible for driving excellence in client services and delivering innovative funding solutions that align with GMF’s mandate while preserving and growing the GMF endowment. Under Angelica’s leadership, the CSFI unit focuses on optimizing financial resource management, ensuring compliance with the GMF Funding Agreement, and taking appropriate risks to achieve impactful, sustainable results. The unit’s work is pivotal in supporting municipalities across Canada to achieve their sustainability goals.

With over 20 years of experience in finance, corporate strategy, mergers and acquisitions, and investments, Angelica has worked with executive teams globally across various industries and organizational sizes. Her career has taken her around the world, including significant stints in South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, and the United States, where she has driven impactful financial and social initiatives.

Angelica holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BS in Finance from North Carolina A&T State University. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family, traveling, and volunteering.

Kate Fleming
Senior Director, Operations | Green Municipal Fund

As Senior Director, GMF Operations at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Kate leads a multidisciplinary team overseeing planning, governance, internal communications, organizational performance, continuous improvement, and risk management. Kate is a proponent of systems-based approaches, empowering staff to be strong stewards of the organization and its mandate. Kate’s goal is to enable GMF to meet the highest standards of client-centered, cost-effective delivery of transformative programs to Canadian communities.

Kate has more than 25 years of experience in operations and program management. Prior to joining FCM in 2017, Kate worked with Canadian entrepreneurs in the clean tech and health care sectors, supporting the development and demonstration of the benefits of their technology. She is an environmental scientist by trade but has used her knowledge and experience to design and deliver impactful programs.