Chrystia Freeland Keynote Speaker

Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (2019–2024)
Minister of Finance of Canada (2020–2024)
Appointed Next Warden and CEO of the Rhodes Trust

Chrystia Freeland's Biography

Chrystia Freeland is a globally recognised leader at the intersection of economics, geopolitics and democratic resilience. With experience spanning cabinet-level decision-making and frontline international reporting, she brings audiences a clear-eyed understanding of how power, markets and security are reshaping the world and what credible leadership looks like when the stakes are global.

Freeland served as Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (2019–2024) and Minister of Finance (2020–2024), helping steer national policy through a period defined by pandemic recovery, inflationary pressure and heightened geopolitical risk. She also held senior cabinet portfolios including Minister of Foreign Affairs (2017–2019) and Minister of International Trade (2015–2017), placing her at the centre of major negotiations that reshaped North American trade through the USMCA and strengthened Canada’s economic alliances with Europe and the Indo-Pacific.

Before elected office, Freeland built a distinguished career as an international journalist and editor, serving as Managing Editor of the Financial Times, Global Editor at Reuters, and Deputy Editor of The Globe and Mail. Her reporting from Moscow, Kyiv and Washington focused on the forces transforming post Cold War politics and global capitalism. She is the author of the international bestseller Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and Sale of the Century: Russia’s Wild Ride from Communism to Capitalism, both widely praised for their insight into wealth, power and political change.

In 2025, Freeland continued her international engagement as Canada’s Special Envoy on Ukraine’s economic recovery, reinforcing her longstanding commitment to democratic cooperation and economic resilience. Drawing on decades at the highest levels of journalism and government, she delivers sharp analysis, strategic clarity and a global perspective that equips audiences to navigate uncertainty with confidence. She has been appointed as the next Warden of Rhodes House and CEO of the Rhodes Trust, beginning 1 July 2026.

Geopolitics and the new global economic order

Leadership and decision-making in high stakes environments

Trade, protectionism and North American competitiveness

Democracy, disinformation and democratic resilience

Inequality, capitalism and the politics of wealth

She has operated at the highest levels of government as Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, bringing audiences a cabinet-level view of how markets, inflation and geopolitical shocks translate into real policy choices.
She has represented Canada in G7 and G20 finance leaders’ discussions, offering leaders a pragmatic understanding of how global coordination is shaped, negotiated and delivered.
She has led major economic diplomacy as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of International Trade, sharing hard-won lessons on negotiating with allies and competitors when national interests and supply chains are on the line.
She translates the forces behind inequality, wealth concentration and political change through bestselling reporting and authorship, helping boards connect power dynamics to strategy, risk and reputation.
She brings the instincts of a senior international journalist and editor, combining rigorous analysis with clear storytelling that equips audiences to make decisions under pressure and communicate with credibility.