Lead, Evaluation & Monitoring, Canadian Centre for Safer Communities (Canada)

Melanie Bania, PhD, joined the Canadian Centre for Safer Communities (CCFSC) in 2023 and supports the development of Community Safety & Well-Being plans across Canada, as well as the monitoring and evaluation of plans and programmes. Melanie was part of the team at the Institute for the Prevention of Crime that launched the Canadian Municipal Network for Crime Prevention in 2006. She is thrilled to be back as part of the team at the CCFSC! She holds a PhD in Criminology and her areas of expertise include collaborative governance, community-based crime prevention, youth violence prevention, youth justice, programme evaluation and performance measurement. Melanie has a unique blend of front-line, senior management, and academic experiences, allowing her to see issues and solutions from various angles. Her approach relies on genuine engagement, authentic relationship-building, and focuses on continuous learning. She grew up in rural Northern Ontario, is fluently bilingual in English and French and is committed to working from community-centred and anti-oppressive lenses. Melanie resides on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishnaabeg People, colonially known as Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.