Virgil Grandfield

Who is Virgil Grandfield?

Virgil Grandfield is a Canadian whistleblower and international aid worker. In 1999-2000, he worked with a project evaluation unit for the Disasters Emergency Committee in Central America after Hurricane Mitch. He became an Overseas Delegate for the Canadian Red Cross in 2002, after serving as Red Cross team leader on floods on the Blood Reserve in Standoff, Alberta. In 2003-2004 he researched a cover story on migrant worker issues on the U.S.-Mexico border for Red Cross Red Crescent magazine. In 2005-2006, he was Information Delegate for the tsunami operation of the International Federation of Red Cross Red Crescent Societies in Aceh, Indonesia. He returned to Aceh in 2007 to work for the Canadian Red Cross and resigned as a delegate in 2008.

After leaving the Red Cross, in 2009 he returned to Aceh with an investigative and advocacy organization called Brigade Cahaya which has been responsible for uncovering and making public a scandal in which some 50,000 or more Javanese construction workers were victims of human trafficking on UN, Red Cross and other NGO tsunami projects in Aceh.