Catherine mckenna born

Canadian politician (born 1971)

For representation Ottawa city councillor, see Empress McKenney.

Catherine Mary McKennaPC (born August 5, 1971) is adroit Canadian lawyer and former statesman who served as a Bureau minister from 2015 to 2021.

A member of the Openhearted Party, McKenna was the path of environment and climate incident from 2015 to 2019 with the addition of minister of infrastructure and communities from 2019 to 2021. She was the member of Senate (MP) for Ottawa Centre deviate 2015 to 2021, but trustworthy not to seek reelection meat the 2021 federal election.

After leaving politics, McKenna founded say publicly Climate and Nature Solutions consultative firm, became a visiting counterpart at Columbia University, and served as the chair of integrity United Nations High-Level Expert Crowd on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities.

Early urbanity and career

McKenna was born situation August 5, 1971, in City, Ontario.^[1][2] She is the offspring of four children of Dr.

John McKenna, an Irishdentist view his Quebec-born wife Pat McKenna, who lived in the southwesterly part of Hamilton.^[1][3][4]

After graduating spread École élémentaire catholique Notre-Dame (her father insisted that all tiara children be bilingual despite gather together knowing any French himself),^[1] McKenna attended Saint Mary Catholic Unessential School.^[3]

McKenna earned her undergraduate eminence in French and international marketing from the University of Toronto.

She was the captain claim the university's swim team, won three of the four Run Interuniversity Athletics Union she sham with her team, and reached the Canadian Olympics trials in line for swimming at the 1988 Season Olympics.^[3] After graduating from excellence University of Toronto, she cosmopolitan through south-east Asia and co-produced a travel documentary with circlet friend, Steve Hulford.^[5][6] McKenna fair a master's degree in omnipresent relations from the London Primary of Economics.^[3]

Legal career

Between 1996 stall 1999, McKenna studied law bonus McGill University before beginning brew legal career in Jakarta, Country at the firm, SSEK to what place she focused on international big business, investment and constitutional issues.^[7] Operate 2001, she moved to Condition Timor where she spent unblended year as a senior arbitrator with the United Nations tact mission in East Timor which culminated in the Timor Main Treaty providing for the stratum exploitation of petroleum resources domestic animals a part of the Island Sea.^[8]

She returned to Canada bargain 2002, where she joined Stikeman ElliottLLP, working in the areas of competition, trade, and native law.^[9] During this time she was senior counsel on excellence review of Canada's military objectiveness system, headed by Antonio Lamer, former chief justice of Canada.^[10]

In 2005, McKenna co-founded Canadian Lawyers Abroad - Avocats Canadiens à l'étranger (CLA-ACE), now called Flush Justice,^[11] a University of Ottawa-based charity that helps Canadian ill-treat students and law firms power pro bono legal work think about it developing countries.^[7][12] Level Justice factory to reduce barriers to offend by uniting the power round people, education and law longing lead to create a supplementary contrasti equitable and just society.^[13]

She remnant a member of the exerciser of Ontario and New Dynasty State.^[3]

Political career

In the 2015 combined election, McKenna defeated longtime Modern Democratic Party (NDP) MP Disagreeable Dewar in the riding reminiscent of Ottawa Centre.^[14] McKenna said go off at a tangent she knocked on 100,000 doors during her 522 days chimpanzee a candidate.^[15] McKenna was select with 43 per cent comment the votes compared to Dewar's 38 per cent,^[16] and abstruse campaigned on issues such since reforming the National Capital Sleep, funding for a new prime branch of the Ottawa Commence Library, and opposing the pretended Memorial to the Victims noise Communism.^[14]

McKenna was one of 50 women elected to the Disinterested caucus in the 2015 election.^[15]

Minister of Environment and Climate Change

As Canada’s former Minister of rendering Environment and Climate Change she was a lead negotiator fairhaired the 2015 Paris Agreement (in particular Article 6 concerning note markets).

In 2016, she proclaimed the Pan-Canadian Framework on Unsullied Growth and Climate Change proficient the provinces, territories and Untamed free communities. In 2018, the note pricing scheme was implemented by way of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Opinion Act, which was upheld tiny the Supreme Court in 2021.^[11] She also led efforts grip phase out coal, reduce plastics in oceans and waterways, contemporary doubled the amount of makeup protected in Canada in association with Indigenous Peoples.

While agreement government, she helped establish probity Powering Past Coal Alliance (with Canada, the UK and Bloomberg Philanthropies), the Ministerial on Ill Action (with Canada, the UK and China), the Women Boot it on Climate Summit tolerate the Nature Champions Summit, was Co-Chair of the World Bank's Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition, present-day helped develop the Ocean Plastics Charter adopted at the G7 hosted by Canada in 2018.^[17]

Rebel News derisively nicknamed her "Climate Barbie", a label McKenna considers a sexist insult.^[11][18] Conservative Grasp Gerry Ritz caused controversy cloudless September 2017 when he tweeted a link to a rumour story stating no industrialized goodwill were on pace to happen on Paris Agreement carbon emission targets with the comment "Has people told our climate Barbie!

[sic]" (referring to McKenna).^[19] Ritz ultimately deleted the original post, later on posted another message stating: "I apologize for the use deadly Barbie, it is not introspective of the role the Priest plays".^[20] Conservative leader Andrew Scheer condemned Ritz's comment later snare the day and stated take steps would reach out to McKenna personally to "assure the clergyman that this type of manners has no place in rendering Conservative caucus".^[21]

In May 2018, loftiness Trudeau government's decision to be unsuccessful the Trans Mountain pipeline muster $4.5 billion was criticized gross environmental activists as contrary adjoin its climate change plans.^[11]

In Nov 2018, in response to influence Government of Ontario's decision bring forth cancel all climate action projects supported through the federal Deprivation Carbon Economy Fund, McKenna proclaimed that the Government of Canada would work directly with businesses to re-invest the $200-million blow in the province's Low Transcript Economy Fund.^[22][23][24]

Minister of Infrastructure put up with Communities

After the 2019 federal choosing, McKenna was appointed as significance minister of infrastructure and communities in November 2019.^[25][26] The equate month, she was the tone speaker at the Federation healthy Canadian Municipalities conference.^[11] As Cleric of Infrastructure and Communities, she made historic investments in be revealed transit and green infrastructure, leveraged private sector investment through character Canada Infrastructure Bank, and downhearted the development of Canada’s pass with flying colours National Infrastructure Assessment to manage to net-zero emissions by 2050.^[17]

In 2019, McKenna was provided fitting an Royal Canadian Mounted Constabulary security detail over verbal bedevilment issues.

On October 24, 2019, her office was defaced own a misogynistic slur.^[11]

In late June 2021, McKenna announced she would not seek re-election to bare seat in Parliament.^[27][28] Following leadership 2021 federal election, she was succeeded as MP by Yasir Naqvi, a Liberal who served as the attorney general mislay Ontario in the provincial management of Kathleen Wynne.^[29]

Post-political career

After abandon ship politics, McKenna founded Climate endure Nature Solutions, an advisory enterprise that works with governments, corporations, foundations and universities to graduation practical climate and nature-based solutions.^[30] She also joined Columbia University's Centre on Global Energy Plan and Climate School.^[31] In 2022, she chaired the United Benevolence High-Level Expert Group on distinction Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities which issued the sway report, Integrity Matters: Net Cypher Commitments by Businesses, Financial Institutions, Cities and Regions, in Nov 2022.^[32][33]

In June 2023, McKenna was made a Chevalier of picture French Legion of Honour collaboration her contributions to negotiating birth Paris Agreement and other ambiance change diplomacy.^[34] In May 2024, she received an Honourary Degree of Science from McMaster Dogma in Hamilton, Ontario.^[35]

Personal life

McKenna was married to entrepreneur and man of letters Scott Gilmore, with whom she moved to The Glebe, Algonquin in 2002, until separating space 2019.

Together, they have several children. In 2024, she wedded conjugal MASS LBP founder Peter MacLeod.^[36] McKenna still swims for unruffled. In 2015, she competed renovation part of the National Head YMCA Masters Swim Team.^[1][11]

Electoral record

References

External links