Barbara Zvan is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the University Pension Plan Ontario (UPP) and former Chief Risk and Strategy Officer for the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan. Recognized as a leading voice on sustainable investing and a tireless ambassador for defined benefit pensions, Ms. Zvan brings institutional strength to complex challenges while forging new collaborative pathways for innovation and growth. 

She is a seasoned contributor and advisor to leading global institutions and associations focused on pension management, risk and responsible investing. She currently serves on the Boards of the Responsible Investment Association and Global Risk Institute, the Advisory Board of the Institute of Sustainable Finance at the Smith School of Business, the Council of Advisors of the Canadian Climate Institute, and was a member of the Advisory Committee for the ‘Investing to Address Climate Change’ Charter. She chairs the Steering Committee of Climate Engagement Canada, a new finance-led initiative to drive dialogue with Canadian companies on climate risks and opportunities. She was appointed to the Government of Canada’s Expert Panel on Sustainable Finance in 2018, and subsequently became a member of the federal Sustainable Finance Action Council created to bring sector insight to sustainable finance market infrastructure in Canada. She also played a key role in creating the G7 Investor Leadership Network in 2018. 

Ms. Zvan is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, a holder of the Institute of Corporate Directors designation (ICD.D) and has a Master of Mathematics degree from the University of Waterloo. She is an honouree of Canada’s 2020 Clean50 and was named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2008.