Anne Giardini, , , , is a Canadian business executive, journalist, lawyer and writer. She is the oldest daughter of late Canadian novelist

Carol Shields Carol Ann Shields, (née Warner; June 2, 1935 – July 16, 2003) was an American-born Canadian novelist and short story writer. She is best known for her 1993 novel ''The Stone Diaries'', which won the U.S. Pulitzer Prize for Fiction as well as ...

. Giardini is licensed to practice law in British Columbia (and formerly in Ontario and Washington State). As a journalist, Giardini has contributed to the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

'' as a columnist. She lives in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

with her husband of more than 30 years. They have three grown children. She has written two novels, ''The Sad Truth about Happiness'' (2005) and ''Advice for Italian Boys'' (2009), both published by HarperCollins. Giardini and her son, Nicholas Giardini, edited ''Startle and Illuminate'' (Random House Canada, 2016), a book of Carol Shields' thoughts and advice on writing. Giardini served as the 11th chancellor of

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a public research university in British Columbia, Canada, with three campuses, all in Greater Vancouver: Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, and Vancouver. The main Burnaby campus on Burnaby Mountain, located ...

from 2014 to 2020. From 2008 to 2014, Giardini was president of Weyerhaeuser Company Limited, a subsidiary of Weyerhaeuser Company, in the forestry industry. She joined Weyerhaeuser in 1994 and became Canadian vice-president and general counsel in 2006. Giardini is an active volunteer and on the board of a number of Vancouver organizations, including having served as Chair of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, Vancouver International Writers Festival (chair),

UniverCity UniverCity is a sustainable community located on top of Burnaby Mountain, adjacent to Simon Fraser University. It is modeled as a sustainable community. UniverCity has won several awards for sustainable planning and development. It is currently ...

at SFU, and

(deputy chair). She is also a supporter of Plan Canada and volunteer for Vancouver YWCA's

Women of Distinction Awards The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

and Young Women in Business. She has been on the boards of Hydro One, CMHC and TransLink, among others. Giardini was awarded a

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

in January 2013 for her fundraising efforts for Plan Canada's Because I'm a Girl campaign, which supports females in Tanzania. In 2016, Giardini was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with ...

. She was appointed an Officer of British Columbia in 2018.

Education

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, Trinity Hall — LLM, Law (1987 – 1988) *

The University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks among the top three ...

— LLB, Law (1981 – 1984) *

— BA, Economics (1978 – 1980) *

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottaw ...

/ Université d'Ottawa — Economics (1977 – 1978)

Bibliography

* ''The Sad Truth about Happiness'' (HarperCollins, 2005) * ''Advice for Italian Boys'' (HarperCollins, 2009) * ''Startle and Illuminate'' (Random House, 2016) (edited with Nicholas Giardini)

Awards

* Shortlisted for the Amazon.ca First Novel Award, 2005 * Winner of the

Audie Awards The Audie Awards (, rhymes with "gaudy"; abbreviated from ''audiobook''), or simply the Audies, are awards for achievement in spoken word, particularly audiobook narration and audiodrama performance, published in the United States of America. They ...

, 2007 * Appointed

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...

, 2010

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giardini, Anne 1959 births Living people 20th-century Canadian businesswomen 20th-century Canadian businesspeople 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian businesswomen 21st-century Canadian businesspeople 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian women writers Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge Businesspeople from Vancouver Canadian business executives Canadian newspaper journalists Canadian King's Counsel Women chief executives Canadian women lawyers Canadian women journalists Canadian women non-fiction writers Canadian women novelists Lawyers in British Columbia Lawyers in Ontario National Post people Officers of the Order of Canada Peter A. Allard School of Law alumni Simon Fraser University alumni University of British Columbia alumni Weyerhaeuser Women business executives Writers from Vancouver Members of the Order of British Columbia