Senior leadership appointments in the Government of Yukon public service

Katherine White

Katherine White, a former Deputy Minister of Finance for the Yukon government, was most recently the Deputy Minister for the Alberta Government’s Treasury Board and Finance. She previously served with the Alberta Government as Deputy Minister of Jobs, Economy, and Innovation, as well as Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Tourism, and Trade. White was also Chief Economist for the Alberta Government. She holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Dalhousie University.

Sierra van der Meer

Sierra van der Meer moved to the Yukon in 2003 and joined the federal public service in 2007. She held director positions with Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC), including with the Environment Directorate responsible for Type II Mines and Northern Contaminants Program. In 2015 she became regional director of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) where she championed COVID-19 economic relief programs that provided rapid and critical support to a wide range of Yukon businesses and organizations during the pandemic. She was promoted to vice-president of CanNor in 2021 and gained responsibility for all three territories. Van der Meer completed her Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Simon Fraser University.

Catherine Jones

Catherine Jones began her career with the Government of Yukon in 2013, starting in the Department of Education. Since 2018, she has been at the Yukon Workers’ Safety and Compensation Board, initially serving as director of Legislative Development and later as director of Corporate Services. In these roles, she was instrumental in the modernization of the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Act. She holds a PhD from St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto where she was awarded the Governor General’s Gold Medal Award for academic excellence. Her thesis looked at the interrelationship between manual labour, finance and macroeconomics in the Roman World.

Jeff O’Farrell

Jeff O’Farrell has many years of public service with the territorial government and municipal government.  He began his career with the Government of Yukon in 1999, holding several senior positions in multiple departments including the Executive Council Office, the Public Service Commission, Community Services and Energy Mines and Resources where he held an assistant deputy minister position. O’Farrell also served as Deputy Minister of Community Services from 2009 to 2012 and Deputy Minister of Tourism and Culture from 2012 to 2015. After which he moved to municipal government with the City of Whitehorse, where he has held several senior positions, most recently as City Manager, a role he has held since the spring of 2021. O’Farrell has a master’s degree in public administration. He and his wife have lived in the Yukon for 30 years and have two children in their late teens.

Paul Moore

Paul Moore has many years of public service experience with municipal, First Nations and territorial governments including director of Human Resources and Education for the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation, and the chief administrative officer for the City of Dawson. Moore joined the Government of Yukon in 2008 as director of Community Affairs and then became assistant deputy minister of Community Development. Moore has served as the Deputy Minister for Community Services, Deputy Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources and as the Public Service Commissioner. Moore holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Victoria and a Master of Arts in Conflict Analysis and Management from Royal Roads University.

Kelvin Leary

Kelvin Leary moved to the Yukon in 1985 to work for the federal government as a Resource Management Officer in several communities, including Mayo, Dawson City, Ross River and Watson Lake. He subsequently held several senior leadership positions in the Yukon government, including as the Deputy Minister of Environment, Deputy Minister of Community Services and Deputy Minister of the Executive Council Office. Leary is married and has four grown children. Leary’s formal education is in public administration, and he is an avid outdoorsperson who enjoys cycling, kayaking, hunting and fishing.