Avril Benoît

I’ve worked at the intersection of humanitarian action, leadership, and public trust—building organizations and teams that don’t just respond to crisis, but mobilize people, resources, and political will to act.

I spent 19 years with Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders, most recently serving as (term-limited) CEO of the U.S. organization. During my tenure, I led through complex global crises, strengthened organizational resilience, modernized systems and structures, and worked alongside diverse, high-performing teams united by a shared mission: to deliver lifesaving medical care where it is needed most.

My career spans executive leadership, fundraising and development, crisis management, strategic communications, and field operations. I’ve served as a country director and project coordinator managing humanitarian responses for refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants in Mauritania, South Sudan, and South Africa—experiences that shaped my belief in decentralized leadership, trust-based teams, and adaptive operating models. Other assignments took me to insecure crisis zones in Sudan, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Iraq, Syria, Ukraine and Nigeria.

Earlier in my career, I spent 20 years as an award-winning broadcast journalist in Canada. That foundation continues to inform my leadership: clear thinking under pressure, narrative as a catalyst for engagement, and transparency as a cornerstone of credibility.

I’m drawn to progressive organizations—nonprofit or public-sector—that are embracing innovation, technology, and new structural models to meet today’s global challenges with urgency, integrity, and impact. I bring a deep commitment to mission, a strong sense of team, and a pragmatic, future-oriented approach to leadership.

If your organization is ready to move people from awareness to action—and to build systems that make that action sustainable—I’m listening.

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