Date of Birth: 1950-12-10; Place of Birth: Winnipeg, MB.

Education:     LL.B, University of Western Ontario, 1976; LL.M, in International Laws, University of London (London School of Economics), 1977

Awards:          Public Service Award of Excellence (1988) for contributions to the development of the Montreal Ozone Protocol.

Languages:   English, French, Spanish

Born in Winnipeg in 1950, Jon Allen (LL.B., University of Western Ontario, 1976; LL.M., International Law, University of London School of Economics, 1977) joined the then Department of External Affairs in 1981.

In addition to postings abroad in Mexico City and New Delhi, Mr. Allen held the positions of Minister (Political Affairs) at the Canadian Embassy in Washington (2004-2006), and Assistant Deputy Minister for the Americas (2010-2012).

From 2006 to 2010, he was Canada’s Ambassador to Israel and from 2012 to 2016 he was Ambassador to Spain and Andorra. From 2012-2014, he served concurrently as the Chargé d'affaires at the Canadian Embassy to the Holy See.

He is currently a Senior Fellow at the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History at the University of Toronto, a Distinguished Fellow of the Canadian International Council, and the Chair of Rozana Canada, a not for profit whose objective is to build bridges between Palestinians and Israelis via the health sector.