Our Board of Directors features a diverse group whose experiences range from strong business backgrounds to arts, cultural and non-profit work.
Miron Derchansky was born in Netanya, Israel and immigrated to Canada in 1988. After completing his PhD and MBA at the University of Toronto, he joined Monitor Deloitte where he helped Fortune 100 firms and government agencies in North America and Eastern Europe build and launch growth strategies. Miron has since held multiple executive roles in organizations requiring strategic turnarounds and sits on the Boards of numerous technology and biotech startups, where he provides guidance on commercialization and go-to-market strategy. Butterflies in the Storm is a project dear to Miron’s heart as his family survived the Holocaust, braved the forced deportation of Lithuanian Jews to Siberia and was actively involved in the partisan movement across Europe during the Second World War.
Smadar Meiri was born in Kfar Saba, Israel and immigrated to Canada as a child in 1967. She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, Sociology and Art History at the University of Windsor in 1981, and received an honours degree in 1982 at the University of Toronto, where she also received a Bachelor of Education. In the 1980s, Smadar worked in Toronto in arts administration. From 1984 to 1986, she was a Program Coordinator at the Ontario Arts Council in Toronto for a grants program that serviced over one hundred art project sites throughout Ontario. Since 1991, Smadar has been an active member of the Israeli Artists Group of Toronto. Throughout the 1990s, she has participated in Jewish communal activities including UJA’s Sephardi Network and has been a committee member of a Sephardi Program at York University. She began her teaching career with the York Region District School Board in 1998 and continues to teach today. For many years, Smadar has advocated through her writings for peace in the Middle East.
Maurice Amzallag, MBA, is a graduate of the Schulich School of Business and ESSEC International Business School in Paris, France. He has over 15 years of strategic planning and operational management experience at the executive level. He currently serves as Vice President, Strategic Planning and Operations at Eurofase Lighting. Maurice takes great pride in his Sephardic heritage, and is serving a second term as Chairman of the Board of Magen David Sephardic Congregation. Previously, he has served as Vice-Chairman of the Vaughan Public Library Board, and as a member of York University’s governing Senate. In his spare time,Maurice enjoys film and aviation.