Fisher Family Visiting Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Former Deputy Prime Minister
Former Minister of Finance of Canada
The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of Canada, currently serves as Economic Advisor to the President of Ukraine and is the incoming Chief Executive Officer of the Rhodes Trust.
Chrystia was elected in five consecutive national elections and served as a Member of Parliament from 2013 to 2026.
From 2020 to 2024, Chrystia served as Minister of Finance, becoming the first woman in Canadian history to hold the position. Her stewardship during and after the COVID-19 pandemic protected jobs and businesses and delivered a historic soft landing for the Canadian economy, while preserving Canada’s AAA credit rating and securing the lowest debt and deficit ratios of any G7 country. During this period, she played a central role in the global response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including the seizure of Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraine.
From 2019 to 2020, Chrystia served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, helping to lead Canada’s united response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
From 2017 to 2019, as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chrystia led the successful renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the United States and Mexico. As Canada’s top diplomat, she championed the global protection of human rights, a feminist foreign policy, the defence of democracy, and the importance of a rules-based international order.
From 2015 to 2017, as Minister of International Trade, Chrystia led the successful negotiation of a landmark free trade agreement between Canada and the European Union, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
Chrystia has received numerous international honours. In 2025, she received the Foreign Policy Association Medal for her defence of democracy and the rules-based international order. In 2020, she was awarded Freedom House’s Mark Palmer Prize for her leadership in advancing democracy and human rights. In 2018, she was named Foreign Policy’s Diplomat of the Year and received the Eric M. Warburg Award from Atlantik-Brücke for strengthening transatlantic ties.
An esteemed journalist, editor, and author before entering public service, Chrystia was born in Peace River, Alberta, Canada. She completed degrees at Harvard University and the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes Scholar.
