Inaugural major donor
Mr Geoff Cumming
Born into a medical family in Kingston, Canada, Geoff went on to become educated in economics at the University of Calgary, The London School of Economics (LSE), and the University of British Columbia. He initially worked in tax and international economics within the Government of Alberta before moving on to the Global Energy Group of the Royal Bank of Canada. Geoff led the bank’s venture capital group in Western Canada and then joined Peters & Co Limited, the Calgary-based investment dealer, as a partner.
He was subsequently appointed as President and CEO of Gardiner Oil and Gas and later became President and CEO of its parent company, Gardiner Group Capital of Toronto, and founded international investment companies Emerald Capital and Karori Capital. Geoff has been a director of over thirty companies in Canada, New Zealand and several other countries and chaired various companies in solar and other energy technologies. One early-stage company, Ryman Healthcare Limited, where he is the largest shareholder, has grown into a $5 billion-dollar, pre-eminent integrated retirement company active in New Zealand and in the State of Victoria, Australia. He has been, and is, engaged in property investments in various countries.
Geoff was active in the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) in both Canada and New Zealand, is a former Governor of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and was inducted into the Alberta Business Hall of Fame.
Geoff has become active in global philanthropy. He made one of the largest donations ever in Canada by gifting more than C$100 million towards long-term medical research at the University of Calgary, a contribution that was matched by the Government of Alberta. He has supported many international charitable organizations in public health, sanitation, the environment, global over-population and other critical global issues.
Geoff lives in Melbourne, Australia. He and his wife have two children.
