Washington, D.C. — November 6, 2024 — Cadasta Foundation is pleased to announce the hiring of Heidi Burgess as its new Senior Director of Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships. With a career spanning over two decades, Burgess brings a wealth of experience in advancing social equality and environmental stewardship through strategic philanthropic initiatives that support Indigenous-led conservation, social justice, and community leadership efforts globally.
In her new role, Burgess will work closely with individuals, foundations, and partners to align philanthropic investments with initiatives that tackle some of the world’s most pressing challenges through the lens of land tenure and community-driven action.
“We are excited to welcome Heidi to the Cadasta Foundation team,” said Amy Coughenour Betancourt, President and CEO of Cadasta Foundation. “Her extensive background in philanthropy and strategic partnerships aligns perfectly with our mission. Heidi’s leadership will undoubtedly strengthen our work and drive impactful support for land tenure and rights-based solutions worldwide.”
Burgess has held previous positions in prominent philanthropic organizations, including United Way Toronto, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada, and Nature United. Most recently, she served as Director of Philanthropy, Canada, with the African Wildlife Foundation and currently serves as Chair of the Reaching for Rainbows Board, an organization that supports the healthy development of young girls through play. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Library and Information Science from McGill University.
“I am honored to join Cadasta Foundation and excited to contribute to an organization that is breaking new ground in land tenure and rights-based philanthropy,” said Heidi Burgess. “I look forward to working with Cadasta’s partners and supporters to create lasting, meaningful change for communities and the environment.”
For more information on Cadasta Foundation’s work and mission, visit www.cadasta.org.
About Cadasta Foundation:
Around the world, Cadasta provides communities, governments, and NGOs with the ability to map and document their lands and natural resources with modern technology solutions, training, and expertise at a scale and pace needed to overcome the urgent challenges of inequality, climate change, and biodiversity loss. Communities from Brazil to Uganda use Cadasta’s technology to delineate their territories and create the maps and data governments need to grant land rights efficiently. The data collected using Cadasta’s tools is also used to improve community land governance and land use for climate resilience and adaptability, protect biodiversity, and reduce conflict and encroachments.
Cadasta’s customizable model has supported 108 partners to map and document the rights of 7 million people in over 6,500 communities on more than 30 million hectares of land in 50 countries. This has resulted in more than 180,000 government-issued land documents and many more in process. Cadasta’s approach ensures that communities guide every step of the process and have full ownership of their mapping data.
Notes to Editors:
- Heidi’s Bio: https://cadasta.org/personnel/heidi-burgess/
- Q&A with Heidi: https://cadasta.org/meetheidi/
- Heidi’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidi-burgess-7540884b/
- Cadasta’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cadasta-foundation/
- Cadasta’s Twitter: @CadastaOrg