Denise LeBlanc-MacDonald is the Director General of the Aquatic and Crop Resource Development Research Centre (ACRD) at the National Research Council (NRC).  Denise is responsible for NRC research centres in Saskatchewan, Quebec, Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia.  

Prior to this position, Denise has held various positions within NRC including assignments as the Acting Director General of the former NRC Institute for Marine Biosciences and as a strategist in Ottawa with the Vice-President of Corporate Services. Prior to this, she served as Director of Corporate and Business Relations to help Canadian industry tap the federal research expertise and infrastructure at the NRC's facilities in Halifax and Charlottetown.

Earlier in her career at the NRC, she served in a research officer and group leader capacity, and managed the Certified Reference Materials Program based in Nova Scotia. Before joining the NRC, Denise attained several years’ experience working in private industry.

Ms. LeBlanc earned an MSc from the University of Ottawa and a BSc from St. Francis Xavier University, specializing in chemistry (analytical and natural products) for both degrees. In 2003, Ms. LeBlanc completed her Executive MBA at Saint Mary's University in Halifax.