Darren Touch

Background

About Darren Touch

Darren Touch is a Schwarzman Scholar and a graduate of the Master of Global Affairs at Tsinghua University in the People's Republic of China, the Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia and the University of Ottawa with a baccalaureate in the Joint Honours Political Science and Public Administration (Co-op) program. Darren’s interest and passion for public policy has led him to diverse roles in the public, private, and non-governmental sector in Canada and abroad. Currently, he is a Public Policy Manager with Meta, and a Schwarzman Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars with the Canada Institute and the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States in Washington, D.C. He was recently a Committee Member on the Government of Canada's Indo-Pacific Advisory Committee, providing independent perspectives and recommendations on Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy.He is the Founder and CEO of the Canada China Forum, a pan-Canadian organization that aims to convene a new generation of Canadian leaders that are globally-minded and China-competent to support Canada’s future engagement with China in service of the national interest.Previously, he was the Policy Lead at the Public Policy Forum, leading the Energy Future Forum, and a Senior Associate at Nordicity, a global managing consulting firm. He was formerly with the Government of Canada and TD Bank Financial Group. Darren’s interest in foreign policy led him to work at the Embassy of the United States of America in Ottawa, the Canadian Chambers of Commerce in Cambodia, and the Embassy of Canada in Beijing, the People’s Republic of China. Within his community, Darren previously served as the Graduate Representative on the UBC Graduate Council, Graduate Student Society, and the Alma Mater Society (AMS) Student Council, and was the former Senior Vice President for the Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs Student Association. He was also the youngest-serving president of the Cambodian Association of the Ottawa Valley and the former Vice-President of the Academic Affairs for the public administration program at the University of Ottawa. In 2012, Darren was awarded the TD Scholarship for Community Leadership, Canada’s top undergraduate awards for community leaders. His range of professional experiences has provided him with strong problem-solving, analytical skills and ability to be flexible to changing priorities and deadlines. Darren thrives in a fast-paced high-pressure environment.