On Thursday Prime Minister Harper announced a few changes in the senior ranks of the federal government. Changes in areas directly involving Sustainable Development include the following:

Andrea Lyon moves from Associate Deputy Minister, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, to Associate Deputy Minister, Environment Canada. She has been with the federal government since 1993 and has no previous experience in the environmental area. She succeeds Bob Hamilton in the Associate DM Post. Hamilton had held the position since January 2009 but was moved to Senior Associate Secretary of the Treasury Board, effective March 7, 2011.

Claude Carrière moves from Foreign and Defence Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister and Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet to Associate Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. He has been with the federal government since 1980 working primarily on trade matters, was Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Trade, Economic and Environmental Policy Branch, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada in 2003-2004, and was Associate Deputy Minister, Natural Resources Canada in 2008.

George Da Pont, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, becomes President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Carole Swan, currently President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, is retiring. Da Pont is a historian who has held senior management positions with Fisheries and Oceans Canada and who has been Executive Vice-President of CFIA since June 2010.

Mary Komarynsky moves from Assistant Deputy Minister, Programs Group, Transport Canada, to Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. She was Director General, National Programs, Environment Canada from 1998 to 2000 and a senior official working on financial programs for Agriculture Canada from 2001 to 2005.

The role of Associate Deputy Ministers in the Government of Canada is not well defined. They are usually appointed to assist the Deputy Minister in specific policy areas.

The entire announcement can be viewed at http://pm.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?category=1&featureId=6&pageId=26&id=4182