Bob Rae is the Liberal member of parliament in the federal riding of Toronto Centre. He served as Ontario’s 21st Premier, and has been elected eight times to federal and provincial parliaments.

Mr. Rae has a B.A. and an LLB from the University of Toronto and was a Rhodes Scholar from Ontario in 1969. He obtained a B.Phil degree from Oxford University in 1971 and was named a Queen’s Counsel in 1984. Mr. Rae has received numerous honorary degrees and awards from Canadian and foreign universities, colleges, and organizations.

From 1996 to 2007 he was a partner in the law firm, Goodmans LLP one of Canada’s leading international law firms. He has extensive experience in negotiation, mediation and arbitration, and consults widely on issues of public policy both in Canada and worldwide. He remains connected with the mediation and arbitration firm of ADR Chambers.

He has served on the boards of a number of public companies and charities. He was Chancellor of Wilfrid Laurier University from 2002 to 2007. Mr. Rae completed a review of Ontario’s Postsecondary School Education for the Ontario Provincial government, with a report entitled Ontario: A Leader in Learning, which in turn led to significant policy and budgetary change.

In the spring of 2005, Mr. Rae was appointed a special advisor to the Canadian Minister of Public Safety on the Air India bombing of 1985. His report, Lessons to be Learned was published in November of 2005 and led to his further appointment as Independent Counsellor to the Prime Minister of Canada.

Today, Mr. Rae will discuss the impact of the new economy on higher education in Canada - the challenges and opportunities.