DEAN'S PUBLIC LECTURE: BOB RAE ON RECLAIMING CANADIAN SOVEREIGNTY
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2026 7:00PM
Presented by: Ontario Tech University Faculty of Social Science and Humanities
Sponsored by: Carpenter's Local 397
Join us for an evening with Bob Rae, former Canadian ambassador to the UN, to discuss urgent challenges facing Canada at this pivotal moment. Drawing on his career in politics, policy, and diplomacy, Rae will explore threats to Canadian sovereignty and ideas for a vibrant and sustainable future. His recently edited book, Reclaiming Canadian Sovereignty in a Ruptured World, brings together leading thinkers to reflect on what a ruptured global order means for Canada at home and abroad. Trade disputes and foreign wars interrupt supply chains and drive up the cost of living; calls to make Canada the 51st state stoke populism and challenge national security; big tech companies strengthen their hold on Canadian markets; and climate change impacts our everyday lives. On the eve of the municipal election on October 26, we will also ask what these disruptions mean for us locally: How can we strengthen national unity, expand our political vision, and deepen democratic participation in our own communities? What is the role of youth in driving social change?
Following his talk, Rae will join a panel of community representatives to continue the discussion on our current political juncture and sources of hope for the future.
Doors open at 6:30pm.
Recommended Age: 14+
Age Restrictions: 2+
Presented by: Ontario Tech University Faculty of Social Science and Humanities
Sponsored by: Carpenter's Local 397
Join us for an evening with Bob Rae, former Canadian ambassador to the UN, to discuss urgent challenges facing Canada at this pivotal moment. Drawing on his career in politics, policy, and diplomacy, Rae will explore threats to Canadian sovereignty and ideas for a vibrant and sustainable future. His recently edited book, Reclaiming Canadian Sovereignty in a Ruptured World, brings together leading thinkers to reflect on what a ruptured global order means for Canada at home and abroad. Trade disputes and foreign wars interrupt supply chains and drive up the cost of living; calls to make Canada the 51st state stoke populism and challenge national security; big tech companies strengthen their hold on Canadian markets; and climate change impacts our everyday lives. On the eve of the municipal election on October 26, we will also ask what these disruptions mean for us locally: How can we strengthen national unity, expand our political vision, and deepen democratic participation in our own communities? What is the role of youth in driving social change?
Following his talk, Rae will join a panel of community representatives to continue the discussion on our current political juncture and sources of hope for the future.
Doors open at 6:30pm.
Recommended Age: 14+
Age Restrictions: 2+
Bob Rae has been deeply engaged in a full range of public policy issues at the international, national, and provincial levels of government throughout a career that stretches for more than half a century. He was Premier of Ontario from 1990 to 1995, served multiple terms as a federal MP, and was interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2011 to 2013. He was Ambassador to the United Nations from 2020 to 2025, including a term as President of the Economic and Social Council, and now serves as The Visitor of Massey College, a Distinguished Fellow of the Munk School at the University of Toronto, a Matthews Fellow in Public Policy at Queen’s University, and Adjunct Professor at Victoria University in the University of Toronto. Most recently he has served as one of 3 co-facilitators to a working group making recommendations on the renewal and transformation of the UNAIDS Joint Program. He is a Privy Councillor, a King’s Counsel, a Companion of the Order of Canada, and a member of the Order of Ontario. He is the author of many books, including What Happened to Politics? and Exporting Democracy: The Risks and Rewards of Pursuing a Good Idea. Bob Rae is married to Arlene Perly Rae, a writer and public advocate on issues affecting women and children. They have three daughters and six grandchildren.