The department in charge of Canadian arts and culture has a new minister.
Steven Guilbeault has been named as Minister of the Department of Canadian Heritage.
Canadian Heritage supports organizations like the Maple Bamboo Network Society, publisher of Canadian Filipino Net.
Guilbeault is a first-term Member of Parliament. He won the Quebec riding of Laurier—Sainte-Marie in the October 2019 federal election.
A known environmentalist, Guilbeault in 1993 co-founded Équiterre, the largest environmental organization in Quebec.
Guilbeault served as the group’s senior director from 2008 to 2018. He also worked as a director and campaign manager for Greenpeace.
According to his official profile, Guilbeault was a strategic advisor for more than 10 years at Cycle Capital Management, a Canadian fund dedicated to the development of clean technologies.
Guilbeault also worked for Deloitte & Touche, and Copticom, a consulting firm specializing in the green and social economy, and transportation.
The profile recalls that Guilbeault’s commitment to environmental issues “started at the age of five when he climbed a tree to protect it from real estate developers who were about to cut down the woods behind his home in La Tuque”.
“Twenty-five years later, he scaled the CN Tower in Toronto to call for Canada to ratify the Kyoto Protocol,” according to the official profile.
Guilbeault is a father of four and stepfather of two.
Before the election, Canadian Heritage was headed by Pablo Rodriguez, MP for Honoré-Mercier, a riding in Quebec.
Rodríguez’s new Cabinet post is a leader of the government in the House of Commons.
Canadian Heritage plays an important role in the cultural life of Canada.
“Our policies and programs promote an environment where Canadians can experience dynamic cultural expressions, celebrate our history and heritage and build strong communities,” according to the department’s corporate profile.
In addition, the department “invests in the future by supporting the arts, our official and indigenous languages and our athletes and the sport system”.
The department notes that globalization is “creating new domestic and international markets that provide significant opportunities to promote and invest in Canadian creative industries and Canadian creators”.
“The rise of new technologies and digital platforms are changing the way Canadians create, access and experience culture,” according to Canadian Heritage. “As the Canadian population becomes increasingly diverse there is an opportunity to build on Canada’s strength in achieving inclusive diversity.”
Canadian Filipino Net is an independent, non-profit digital magazine produced by volunteer writers, editors, and webmasters. Your donation will go a long way so we can continuously publish stories about Canadian Filipinos. Click on a donate button and proceed either through PayPal, Debit, or Credit Card.
