Keynote Address

Doubling Down--Making a Difference by 2030 (Zoom)

with the Honourable Bob Rae, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the UN in New York

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, Feb. 8, 2024

Launched in 2015, the UN Sustainable Development Goals provided focus and hope that by 2030, we could address our most pressing global challenges. Now, at the halfway point, it is clear that on many fronts, we are far behind in achieving our goals.  Canada’s Ambassador to the UN, Bob Rae, will highlight where progress has been made and where we must double down in the time remaining to 2030 to achieve our commitments and realize the promise of the SDGs.

Moderator: Dr. Andy Knight, FRSC, PhD, Professor (Arts) and Provost Fellow in Black Excellence and Leadership

Honourable Bob Rae was appointed in 2020, to serve as Canada’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York. Prior to his current appointment Mr. Rae served as Canada’s special envoy on humanitarian and refugee issues, continuing the important work that he began in 2017 as Canada’s special envoy to Myanmar.

The former premier of Ontario and former interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, Mr. Rae was elected 11 times to federal and provincial parliaments between 1978 and 2013. He stepped down as a member of Parliament in 2013 to return to legal practice and, in particular, to work with Indigenous communities and continue his work in education, governance and human rights. His passion for social justice dates back to his early days in student politics and community service.

Mr. Rae is a privy councillor, a companion of the Order of Canada and a member of the Order of Ontario and has numerous awards and honorary degrees from institutions in Canada and around the world. He received his Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Modern History from the University of Toronto and a Master of Philosophy degree as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, and graduated from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.