The 2020 IGDA Board of Directors election has concluded and the results were certified by the board of directors. Congratulations to our newest board member, Sonia Michaels!

The results of the voting are as follows:

Sonia Michaels – 201
James Seetal – 187
Tim Cullings – 153
Chris Hood – 128
Zane Everett – 78
Cade Peterson –  50

The IGDA board has appointed current board of directors members Hans ten Cate as chair of the board, Christopher Hamilton as treasurer, Sylvia Cristina Amaya as the new vice-chair. They also welcome the board appointee Natasha Skult.

Sonia Michaels is a senior lecturer at DigiPen Institute of Technology. Michaels is an active mentor within the game industry, regularly participating in IGDA’s Mentor Cafes and facilitating GreekGirlCon’s annual networking event. She is passionate about improving labor practices, recognizing toxic work environments, and improving diversity and inclusion within the game industry.

Natasha Skult is the CEO & Creative Director of MiTale Ltd., a Finnish game development company focusing on mixed reality narratives. She is an active member of the Finnish games industry as Chairperson of IGDA Finland and one of the founders of The Hive – Turku Game Hub. Throughout her career, Skult has worked to improve freedom of speech, equality, and diversity in the gaming industry.

“Our new board members are dedicated to improving the lives of game developers and will help drive forward the IGDA’s mission to support and empower industry workers in general and especially in this time of global crisis,” said Renee Gittins, executive director, IGDA. “Their experience and insights will be valuable as we work with Take This to use the virtual Game Development Crisis Conference to promote good mental health practices while helping studios and their employees through these trying times.”

Thank you to all of these candidates, to everyone who expressed an interest in running, and to those who voted, for contributing to the future of the organization! We’d also like to thank those directors leaving the board for their years of service: Jen MacLean and Vesa Raudasoja. The new board members and roles will officially begin their terms on 1 April 2020.