Ümit Kiziltan has joined our volunteer team as the advocacy program officer for Ottawa and Nunavut.
Federal Retirees is pleased to welcome Ümit Kiziltan as the new advocacy program officer (APO) for Ottawa and Nunavut.
Ümit is an economist and educator with a long-standing commitment to public service and community development. Over the course of his federal career from 2006 to 2023, he played a leading role in advancing data and evidence-based policy to support systemic change. At Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, he held several senior roles, including director general of research, head of evaluation and chief data officer. Prior to that, he led policy development initiatives in the areas of refugee health, multiculturalism and citizenship.
Before joining the federal public service, Ümit spent more than a decade working with the Tl’azt’en Nation in British Columbia and the Assembly of First Nations on initiatives in Indigenous education, community development, adult learning and treaty negotiations. He also spent five years in international development with CUSO, supporting civil society projects across the global south.
As a settler of Anatolian origin, Ümit brings a deep commitment to justice, reconciliation and equity to his work. He remains actively engaged in addressing the ongoing impacts of colonialism on Indigenous communities and is driven by a concern for the erosion of democratic values worldwide. These commitments ground his dedication to fostering inclusive, accountable and solidaristic public policy.
Please join us in welcoming Ümit to the advocacy program officer team!