After a decade with the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, on 8 October 2021 Dr. Simon Adams will be stepping down as Executive Director in order to assume the role of President and CEO of the Center for Victims of Torture (CVT). CVT is the world’s largest organization providing treatment to torture survivors and also conducts advocacy aimed at promoting human rights and eradicating torture around the globe.

Since joining the Global Centre in August 2011, Dr. Adams has led the organization through immense institutional growth, built a strong and effective team, and facilitated the creation of many of the Centre’s signature products and programs, including Atrocity Alert and R2P Monitor. Each of these achievements have helped ensure that R2P remains a critical tool in responding to situations where populations face the risk of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Hon. Gareth Evans, Chair of the Global Centre’s International Advisory Board, said that, “Simon’s passionate commitment to R2P, his great organizational and communication skills, his energy, and his stamina have made GCR2P the global go-to place we all wanted it to be, and we will be forever deeply indebted to him, as will the whole global R2P community.”

Ms. Savita Pawnday, the current Deputy Executive Director of the Global Centre, has been named as the new Executive Director. Ms. Pawnday has been a member of the Global Centre team since the organization was founded in 2008, and has been instrumental in running a number of the Global Centre’s key programs, including the intergovernmental Global Network of R2P Focal Points. Gareth Evans said of Ms. Pawnday that she “is wonderfully well equipped to step into Simon’s shoes as Executive Director. I cannot imagine anyone better qualified in terms of knowledge of the issues and organization, ability, energy, experience, and government, UN-system and donor contacts.”