Catherine Leonard appointed INTO Secretary General

On September 11th at the close of the 16th International Conference of National Trusts, Dame Fiona Reynolds, Chair of INTO announced that Catherine Leonard had been appointed as the first Secretary General of INTO.

Catherine Leonard has served as the Head of the INTO Secretariat for 9 years.

Dame Reynolds told the conference attendees that the time had come in the establishment of INTO that it should be directed and managed by a Secretary General and that the Board of INTO was delighted to appoint Ms. Leonard to this position.

With a background in languages, Catherine Leonard spent four years developing teaching resources for children, including a year on the French island of La Reunion. Catherine then worked for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office before joining the National Trust (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) in 1999 as European and Overseas Co-ordinator, when she was responsible for the Trust’s work with overseas heritage conservation groups, running the European Exchange Programme and managing the European Network of National Heritage Organisations. Over the years, Catherine has been involved with National Trusts all over the world (from Australia, Bermuda and China to Slovakia, USA and Zimbabwe!). Catherine studied languages and literature at university and has spent time living and working in France, Germany, Italy and Russia

Catherine speaking to traditional healers at the last ICNT in Uganda 2013