From Crises to Courage | Catherine Gurtin

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Meet Catherine Gurtin, Chief Executive Officer of PathFinders Hong Kong. PathFinders mission is to ensure the most vulnerable and unsupported children in Hong Kong are protected and respected, and their migrant mothers are empowered to find a path to a brighter future.

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A Journey of Passion and Purpose

Catherine Gurtin’s journey spans over a decade of work on child rights and protection across Asia. Passionate about uniting people for common goals, Catherine’s commitment led her to PathFinders in 2019, after a significant tenure with Save the Children. But her story doesn’t stop at the professional; she’s also a devoted wife, mother of two, and, in Hong Kong, a working professional thanks to the invaluable support of a migrant domestic worker.

Lessons in Humanity

PathFinders, in its 15th year, strives to protect vulnerable children and empower migrant mothers toward brighter futures.

In our conversation, Catherine shares insights into her complex and transformative experiences with PathFinders. From facing the crises that unfolded during the pandemic to impactful collaboration with her peers, she unveils the depth of her learnings about humanity.

“It’s only when you step outside of your comfort zone that you realize you have so much more courage and strength than you ever knew you were capable of”
Catherine Gurtin

Celebrating the Community

Catherine’s emphasis on teamwork is evident in a heartfelt sharing of each team members’ and ambassador community contribution towards their common goal.

“People often comment that from the moment they walk through our door, they feel an overwhelming sense of energy. Truly, one would be hard pressed to find a more passionate, committed and talented group of people. Thank you team, for the daily inspiration and support that you offer me. I couldn’t be more proud of all that we are achieving together to ensure every child born to a migrant mother is protected and receives a fair start in life!”
Catherine Gurtin shares on Pathfinder’s Social Media channels

There’s so much to learn from Catherine’s lessons about motivating a team during the most challenging moments too. Because how can you keep showing up despite the setbacks, the often heartbreaking cases that their crises and prevention team works on. How do you keep showing up as a leader then? Catherine will share how.

Building Community Amidst Crisis

PathFinders’ emblem is the sunflower, symbolizing resilience and warmth. Catherine shares the organization’s values, emphasizing collaboration, dedication, and the importance of diverse backgrounds and skills in making it through hurdles and setbacks.

This season on #impact is all about community, and PathFinders lives and breathes this spirit. In our conversation, Catherine candidly discusses two challenging moments—both tied to the impact on migrant domestic workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. These experiences reinforced the vital work PathFinders does.

But it’s not just about challenges – it’s about humanizing migrant domestic workers. Catherine invites you to see them as daughters, sisters, and mothers with dreams and aspirations, breaking through societal barriers to forge brighter paths for themselves and their families.

What has Catherine’s work taught her about humanity? How to motivate your team in moments when you yourself – as the leader of the organisation – might feel despair? How can leaders find courage and resilience in moments of crises.

If you listen all the way to the end you will hear us explore how each and every one of us can bring more humanity and kindness in our daily interactions with complete strangers too.

It’s the most wonderful and magical thing – the human connections, ever so fleeting, ever so magical, ever so encouraging as we feel a sense of community no matter our background, profession or achievements.

Listen on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts or any of your favorite Podcast players.

In this episode you will learn:

04:38 What Catherine’s work taught her about being human
16:06 Moments where migrant domestic workers find themselves in crises
19:19 How to move from crisis to prevention
22:31 Finding courage and resilience in the face of fear
30:13 The challenges that unfolded during the pandemic
37:00 Learnings on leadership built on diversity and trust
40:12 Empowering others to use their voice and lift themselves up

Featured Guest

Connect with Catherine Gurtin on LinkedIn
Follow and connect with Pathfinders at www.pathfinders.org.hk / @pathfindershk

If you enjoyed this episode you will also love:

Our conversation with Joanna Bowers on The maternal sacrifice of Migrant Domenstic Workers. Listen here.

Connect with us

Connect with the #impact team on Instagram @hashtagimpact or just send us an email at hello@hashtagimpact.com

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