MEET YOUR
30FORWARD TEAM
Our Story
30Forward was born from a simple idea: Canadian policing is stronger when women are fully represented, supported, and advanced.
Decades of international research tell a consistent story. Women officers bring proven strengths — they use force less often, build deeper trust with communities, achieve stronger outcomes for victims of crime, and face fewer misconduct complaints. These are not aspirations; they are evidence-based results that directly strengthen public safety and organizational performance.
Yet across Canada, women remain underrepresented in policing, just under 23% of sworn officers today. Progress has slowed, and the profession is at risk of stalling at a time when modernization and rebuilding public trust are more critical than ever. Research shows that reaching 30% representation is a tipping point — the moment when culture and leadership begin to shift in lasting, systemic ways.
30Forward was created to meet this challenge. Inspired by the U.S. 30×30 initiative but uniquely designed for Canada, it reflects our structure, our provincial oversight, and the realities of services both large and small. Through mentorship, leadership development, and measurable commitments, 30Forward is moving Canadian policing toward a future where diversity is not an exception, but the norm.
Valarie ( Val ) Gates
Co-Creator & Co-Lead
Barrie Police Service
Inspector – Investigative Services
Inspector Valarie Gates has served in policing for 28 years and is committed to strengthening leadership, professionalism, and accountability across the policing profession. She believes lasting change comes from collaboration and the willingness to evolve how police engage with both colleagues and communities.
Throughout her career with the Barrie Police Service, Valarie has championed trauma-informed approaches and evidence-based practices that improve outcomes for victims and strengthen trust in policing.
She co-authored the Canadian Framework for Collaborative Police Response on Sexual Violence and the Canadian Framework for Trauma-Informed Response in Policing. Her leadership and contributions have been recognized with the Medal of Merit of the Police Forces, the Ontario Women in Law Enforcement Excellence in Performance Award, and the International Association of Women Police Award for Excellence in Policing
Viktoria Tumilowicz
Co-Creator & Co-Lead
Barrie Police Service
Business Planner & Analyst
Auxiliary Sergeant
Viktoria Tumilowicz is a strategic and forward-thinking professional dedicated to advancing evidence-based practices within Canadian policing. As a Business Planner with the Barrie Police Service, she bridges strategy, data, and design to help develop trauma-informed and community-focused approaches that strengthen trust and accountability.
With a background in research and project management, Viktoria has contributed to several national initiatives, including co-authoring the Canadian Framework for Trauma-Informed Response in Policing, and project managing the Building Bridges at Blue Evidence-Based Policing Conference, started in 2025. Her work reflects a commitment to collaboration between police services, academia, and communities.
A certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Viktoria combines analytical insight with creative problem-solving to support organizational growth and culture change. Through 30Forward, she continues to champion mentorship, leadership development, and gender equity across the policing profession.
Andrea Torrie
Executive Member
Chair/Ontario Women in Law Enforcement
IAWP Region 11 Coordinator
Inspector, Hamilton Police Service
I am an active 27-year member of the Hamilton Police Service. I have been with Ontario Women in Law Enforcement (OWLE) for over 20 years but took on an executive board position in 2015. I am the current Chair of the OWLE and work with an incredible team. I am excited for OWLE to be involved in the 30Forward Initiative and looking forward to seeing what this initiative opens up for this career in our future.
Dr. José Luís Couto
Director of Government Relations & Communications
Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police
Dr. José Luís (Joe) Couto is a veteran public policy and communications professional who brings 37 years of proven government relations and communication experience. He is currently in his 21st year as Director of Government Relations and Communications for the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police. Prior to serving with OACP, he was Senior Consultant with Enterprise Canada Consultants Inc., one of Ontario’s leading government relations and communications firms, where he developed expertise in several important areas of public policy, including municipal affairs, housing, energy, taxation, and fiscal policies.
In addition to his professional work, Dr. Couto is also an Associate Faculty member in Royal Roads University’s School of Humanitarian Studies and School of Communication and Culture and a part-time Professor at the University of Guelph-Humber and Humber Polytechnic in Toronto. His area of research is identity building in law enforcement, with a focus on 2SLGBTQI+ police officers and intersectionality in gender, sexual orientation, and organizational culture. Dr. Couto is the author of Covered in Blue: Police Culture and LGBT Police Officers in the Province of Ontario and Female (2014) and Gay. Cop: The Intersectionality of Gender and Sexual Orientation in Police Culture (2018), both landmark academic studies of gay police officers in Canada. His doctoral work, The Constructing of Canadian Police Officers’ Identity (2023), was published by and made available to senior Canadian police leaders by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.
A native of Brazil, Dr. Couto holds a Doctor of Social Sciences from Royal Roads University. He also has a Master of Arts in Professional Communications degree from Royal Roads University and a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) degree from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).
Dr. Couto was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contributions to policing and public safety in Canada in 2013 and the Serving With Pride Ally Award in 2016.
Valarie ( Val ) Gates
Co-Creator & Co-Lead
Barrie Police Service
Inspector – Investigative Services
Inspector Valarie Gates has served in policing for 28 years and is committed to strengthening leadership, professionalism, and accountability across the policing profession. She believes lasting change comes from collaboration and the willingness to evolve how police engage with both colleagues and communities.
Throughout her career with the Barrie Police Service, Valarie has championed trauma-informed approaches and evidence-based practices that improve outcomes for victims and strengthen trust in policing.
She co-authored the Canadian Framework for Collaborative Police Response on Sexual Violence and the Canadian Framework for Trauma-Informed Response in Policing. Her leadership and contributions have been recognized with the Medal of Merit of the Police Forces, the Ontario Women in Law Enforcement Excellence in Performance Award, and the International Association of Women Police Award for Excellence in Policing
Viktoria Tumilowicz
Co-Creator & Co-Lead
Barrie Police Service
Business Planner & Analyst
Auxiliary Sergeant
Viktoria Tumilowicz is a strategic and forward-thinking professional dedicated to advancing evidence-based practices within Canadian policing. As a Business Planner with the Barrie Police Service, she bridges strategy, data, and design to help develop trauma-informed and community-focused approaches that strengthen trust and accountability.
With a background in research and project management, Viktoria has contributed to several national initiatives, including co-authoring the Canadian Framework for Trauma-Informed Response in Policing, and project managing the Building Bridges at Blue Evidence-Based Policing Conference, started in 2025. Her work reflects a commitment to collaboration between police services, academia, and communities.
A certified Project Management Professional (PMP), Viktoria combines analytical insight with creative problem-solving to support organizational growth and culture change. Through 30Forward, she continues to champion mentorship, leadership development, and gender equity across the policing profession.
Andrea Torrie
Executive Member
Chair/Ontario Women in Law Enforcement
IAWP Region 11 Coordinator
Inspector, Hamilton Police Service
I am an active 27-year member of the Hamilton Police Service. I have been with Ontario Women in Law Enforcement (OWLE) for over 20 years but took on an executive board position in 2015. I am the current Chair of the OWLE and work with an incredible team. I am excited for OWLE to be involved in the 30Forward Initiative and looking forward to seeing what this initiative opens up for this career in our future.
Dr. José Luís Couto
Director of Government Relations & Communications
Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police
Dr. José Luís (Joe) Couto is a veteran public policy and communications professional who brings 37 years of proven government relations and communication experience. He is currently in his 21st year as Director of Government Relations and Communications for the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police. Prior to serving with OACP, he was Senior Consultant with Enterprise Canada Consultants Inc., one of Ontario’s leading government relations and communications firms, where he developed expertise in several important areas of public policy, including municipal affairs, housing, energy, taxation, and fiscal policies.
In addition to his professional work, Dr. Couto is also an Associate Faculty member in Royal Roads University’s School of Humanitarian Studies and School of Communication and Culture and a part-time Professor at the University of Guelph-Humber and Humber Polytechnic in Toronto. His area of research is identity building in law enforcement, with a focus on 2SLGBTQI+ police officers and intersectionality in gender, sexual orientation, and organizational culture. Dr. Couto is the author of Covered in Blue: Police Culture and LGBT Police Officers in the Province of Ontario and Female (2014) and Gay. Cop: The Intersectionality of Gender and Sexual Orientation in Police Culture (2018), both landmark academic studies of gay police officers in Canada. His doctoral work, The Constructing of Canadian Police Officers’ Identity (2023), was published by and made available to senior Canadian police leaders by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.
A native of Brazil, Dr. Couto holds a Doctor of Social Sciences from Royal Roads University. He also has a Master of Arts in Professional Communications degree from Royal Roads University and a Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) degree from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University).
Dr. Couto was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contributions to policing and public safety in Canada in 2013 and the Serving With Pride Ally Award in 2016.
INTERNATIONAL ADVISORS
30Forward is proud to be guided by international leaders advancing women in policing across the globe. Our collaboration includes advisors from the 30×30 Initiative in the United States, co-founded by Maureen “Mo” McGough and Dr. Tanya Meisenholder, whose expertise has been instrumental in shaping our Canadian adaptation of this movement.
We are also honoured to be supported by Myra James, Executive Director of the International Association of Women in Policing (IAWP) and Retired Sergeant with the Hamilton Police Service. Myra brings decades of experience in policing, mentorship, and international advocacy for women in law enforcement. Her leadership with both IAWP and the Ontario Women in Law Enforcement (OWLE) reflects a lifelong commitment to empowering women and building community within the policing profession.
Through these partnerships, 30Forward is strengthened by global best practices, research, and a shared vision of a more inclusive, equitable, and representative future in policing.
Myra James
Executive Director – International Association of Women in Policing
Ret. Sergeant – Hamilton Police Service
Myra James is a retired Sergeant from the Hamilton Police Service where she served as a Victim’s of Crime detective, patrol supervisor, Vice and Drug Branch detective, Crime Manager, motorcycle officer and a seconded instructor at the Ontario Police College.
Since retirement, Myra continues to instruct recruits at OPC on a seasonal part-time basis. She is currently the Executive Director of the IAWP and past President of OWLE. Other IAWP roles that Myra enjoyed include Region 11 Coordinator, 3rd Vice President and 2nd Vice President. Myra continues to support OWLE as a member of the Board of Trustees.
Myra has been a Rotarian for 32 years and continues to enjoy the initiatives that support community. She is a humble recipient of the OWLE and IAWP mentoring award as well as the IAWP Heritage Award. Supporting women in law enforcement continues to be a lifelong commitment for Myra. She welcomes the opportunity to celebrate the success of others in any areas of law enforcement.
Maureen “Mo” McGough
30×30 Initiative Co-Founder
Maureen “Mo” McGough is the co-founder of the 30×30 Initiative, a national movement improving both the representation and experiences of women in law enforcement in the US and Canada. She also serves as the strategic advisor for the Center for Excellence in Policing and Public Safety (EPPS) at the University of South Carolina School of Law, where she was also the founding Executive Director. Previously, she served as Chief of Strategic Initiatives for the Policing Project at the New York University School of Law, where she oversaw collaborative efforts to establish basic minimum standards for fair and effective policing.
Maureen spent a decade with the federal government in various roles with the US Department of Justice and US Department of State. She served as Senior Policy Advisor to the Director of the National Institute of Justice where she led agency efforts to advance evidence-based policing, implement systems-level criminal justice reform initiatives, and support counter-poaching efforts in East Africa. Additional federal experience includes serving as counsel on terrorism prevention to the Deputy Attorney General, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and coordinator for federal AIDS relief efforts through the U.S. Embassy in Kigali, Rwanda. Maureen is a member of the FBI’s Law Enforcement Education and Training Council, an executive board member for the American Society of Evidence-Based Policing, and is a recent public leadership executive fellow with the Brookings Institution. Maureen is an attorney and earned her J.D. from the George Washington University Law School.
Tanya Meisenholder, Ph.D.
30×30 Initative
Tanya Meisenholder, Ph.D. is Director of Police Research at the Policing Project at NYU Law, where she leads the 30×30 Initiative, working with more than 400 law enforcement agencies to strengthen the representation, experience, and well-being of women in policing. She brings nearly 30 years of law enforcement experience, including service as Deputy Commissioner of Equity and Inclusion at the NYPD, where she drove organizational change in the nation’s largest police department. Her expertise spans strategic planning, training, professional development, and policy innovation, with a focus on data-driven decision-making, risk management, and employee engagement. Dr. Meisenholder has advised on national police reform efforts, collaborated with oversight agencies, and advanced policies to improve recruitment, hiring, promotions, retention, and accountability.