Christopher Lee Primeau | Top 40 Under 40 2025

Age: 39

Occupation: CEO, Impact Society

In 2020, when Christopher Lee Primeau became the CEO of Impact Society, a youth-development organization founded in 1994, he led an organizational restructuring to position the local non-profit for scalable national growth. Primeau strengthened and formed new partnerships for Impact, and ultimately increased its annual reach from 1,800 youth served to more than 18,000 — including at-risk and homeless youth — through early intervention programs focused on preventing mental health crises.

Impact’s flagship initiative, Heroes, is delivered in junior high classrooms and after-school programs. The 20-hour, trauma-informed program helps youth aged 11 to 16 build confidence, empathy and self-esteem. Students participate in workshops on identity, goal setting and healthy relationships and complete journaling exercises. According to Primeau, Heroes has significantly improved the lives of more than 250,000 youth in Canada and around the world.

“It’s really an identity-development journey,” says Primeau. “We’re helping them understand they’re not defined by their fears, trauma or labels, but by their strengths.”

A recent Impact Society study found that students who completed the Heroes program reported a 45 per cent increase in long-term resilience, with improvements in mental health, school engagement and social connection.

Primeau led the launch of three new program streams: Heroes @ Home (supporting families), Reconciliation Through Education (an Indigenous Studies course co-designed with Indigenous educators and leaders), and a youth hockey program with the Ladd Foundation for U11 athletes and their parents and coaches. He established partnerships with Queen’s University, UCalgary’s Werklund School of Education, and Alberta’s Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction to ensure programs are evidence-based and culturally informed.

Last year, Impact partnered with more than 150 schools and supported more than 500 educators across Canada. It is currently expanding with mental health first-aid and formal referral networks to counselling and intervention services.

Primeau’s goal is to engage a million young people across Canada by 2030.

“What if we got there before recovery was even needed?” Primeau says. “That’s what resilience is.”

Thank yous
“My wife, Rachel, for being my biggest support; my daughter, Selah, for inspiring me every day; my son, Caspian, the most resilient 4-year-old in the world; the entire team at Impact Society, our board, especially Jordan Remple, for being my partner in changing lives for 15 years, as well as Jack and Collette Toth, for daring to make an impact back in 1994.”