Arts Whistler Appoints Maureen Douglas as New Executive Director

IMAGE: ARTS WHISTLER

Arts Whistler has appointed long-time Sea to Sky events, culture, and communications professional, Maureen Douglas as its executive director.

Douglas led VANOC (Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games) during its Olympic preparations. Since then, she has collaborated with municipalities and not for profit organizations as a strategist and facilitator. Douglas also brings a decade of experience as the director of festivals and events at Tourism Whistler and more recently four years with the Arts Whistler board of directors.

“Maureen brings a rich skillset of leadership, facilitation, event management, and community engagement combined with decades of local knowledge living and working in the Sea to Sky corridor,” said Heather Paul, chair of Arts Whistler’s board of directors, in a press release. “I am extremely pleased to have such a strong leader join the organization to build on the strong foundation we have established over the years and take us to the next stage.”

“With the resort community’s increasing focus and investment into advancing cultural tourism and building capacity in our cultural community, Arts Whistler will continue to be instrumental in Whistler’s cultural and economic development,” said Maureen Douglas. “I am thrilled and honoured to take on this role and look forward to leading the great team at Arts Whistler in this exciting time for arts, culture, and heritage.”

Douglas was originally contracted as a managing consultant after stepping down from the board of directors to bridge a gap in leadership when Doti Niedermayer left the position earlier this year. Niedermayer was the organization’s first executive director, who left after 13 years to take on a role at the City of West Vancouver. Douglas has been working with the organization since February 2016.