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Michael von Herff
Managing Partner | Ottawa
Michael von Herff co-founded PAA in 2010 and works with clients to advance their public policy, regulatory and communications agendas in Canada, the United States and Europe.
Based in Ottawa, Michael has established a reputation as one of Canada’s leading public affairs advisors. He is responsible for the development of the firm’s strategic capabilities in Canada and internationally and is a day-to-day advisor for key clients.
Over the past 25 years, Michael has helped clients protect and promote their interests with governments, media and stakeholders on the issues that matter most to their organizations. He has delivered success on a range of challenging assignments. He led a multi-year effort that encouraged a UN body to adopt new safety regulations that accommodated the concerns of one of the world’s most important commodity groups. In 2011, he worked with the Brain Canada Foundation to secure $100 million in funding in the federal budget and helped to grow that commitment over the subsequent years. This achievement is noted as a “turning point for brain research in Canada” and he helped ensure a major Canadian services company did not fall victim to policy change during a major overhaul of financial services regulations. His experience outside of Canada includes extended postings in Brussels (1993-95) and London (2000), as well as work on major multi-country campaigns during his career.
Michael attended McGill University in Montreal, achieving a Master of Arts in History. He was a DAAD scholar at Ruprecht-Karls-Universitaet in Heidelberg and is fluent in German. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Royal’s Institute of Mental Health Research and is a founding member and Vice-Chair of the Board of Atlantik-Brücke Canada. He is a past president of SOS Children’s Villages Canada.