Michael Bernhard Email & Phone Number

The overarching goal throughout my work-life has been to help people and organizations learn, unlearn and transform to sustainably realize their full potential. Currently, I do this through research and teaching in the field of adult education and organizational development. Prior work in education and leadership roles with innovative NGOs, universities, and for-profit organizations has taken me to 20+ countries with longer stations in Canada, France, USA, Ecuador, and most recently Germany, where I currently live, work and play.I have created and directed programs in education, community development, social services, and active travel. I studied Education, Psychology, Philosophy and Physiotherapy, and received an M.A. in Education from Hagen University in Germany. Presently, I am working as lecturer and research associate (akin to Assistant Professor, non-tenure-track) with the Faculty of Education at Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main where I am also conducting doctoral research as a PhD candidate.I worked in health care management in my native Germany, served in a refugee camp in Serbia and implemented a community-based rehabilitation program across Ecuador. Upon immigrating to Canada in 2002, I became a contributor to an innovative and thriving non-profit, first as a volunteer, then as an employment counsellor, and from 2007 to 2011 as part of the organization’s leadership team, which included the Order of Canada recipients Joe and Stephanie Mancini. From 2009 to 2013, I worked with the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University in the capacities of Adjunct Instructor, Project Manager, and Coordinator, coordinating the integration of academic theory with innovative community development practice. From 2011 to 2021 I created and managed active travel experiences with Backroads overseeing the development of a new and innovative business segment.

Listed skills include Community Outreach, Non Profits, Program Development, Volunteer Management, and 26 others.