Rick comes to this United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) consultancy with a rich background of international experience in human rights and social policy advocacy as well as senior management experience in regard to refugee status determination issues in Canada.

In his capacity as an international human rights and social policy advocate he has met with heads of government, Nobel Laureates, political leaders, business leaders and labour and social leaders from virtually every corner of the world. Much of Rick’s international work has involved the direct strengthening of international human rights compliance.

Over several years as the International Director of the 2.8 million member Canadian Labour Congress, Rick participated in the organization and conduct of parallel conferences with heads of government prior to G8 Summits and Commonwealth meetings as well as meetings at the United Nations and Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation. He has also represented Canada at the International Labour Conference of the UN and the International Human Rights Conference in Vienna.

Rick’s extensive experience with the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada began in 1997 as the Deputy Chairperson for the Western Region. In that capacity he carried out the senior management and oversight responsibility for federal court reviewable decisions handed down by the Board to refugee applicants coming from countries world-wide. In his management role Rick had responsibility for the supervision of numerous government-in-council appointed refugee determination decision-makers.

In 2008, Rick was appointed as the Director of Development for the International Association of Refugee Law Judges (IARLJ) in the Americas region. Working closely with the UNHCR, the IARLJ promotes legal standards for refugee determination around the world and organizes conferences and symposia for the judiciary and decision-makers engaged in refugee status determination.

Rick has had extensive experience in dealing with unanticipated influxes of refugee claimants in Canada as well as backlogs in pending inventories. The innovative case management procedures developed to expedite these claims continue to inform the process of refugee status determination in Canada and elsewhere.

Rick is currently an Expert Regional Consultant to the UNHCR in the Americas region. In this capacity he leads a project in five Latin American countries, (Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Brazil and Argentina) which assists governments in strengthening their capacity to fairly and efficiently process applications from those seeking refugee protection in the region.

During 2014 Rick has been engaged in a round of regional inter-governmental meetings in Latin America and the Caribbean to advance the concept of complimentary refugee protection under the auspices of the Cartagena Declaration process as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.

In Canada Rick maintains a private practice as an executive coach working with professionals and executives helping them achieve their maximum potential while maintaining their professional independence and integrity. (www.rickjackson.ca).