January 10, 2014
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Mr. Martin was Prime Minister of Canada from 2003 to 2006 and Minister of Finance from 1993 to 2002. Before entering politics, he was Chairman and CEO of The CSL Group Inc., the largest self-unloading shipping company in the world.
After leaving politics, Mr. Martin founded the Martin Aboriginal Education Initiative focusing on education for Aboriginal students and the Capital for Aboriginal Prosperity and Entrepreneurship Fund, an investment fund investing in Aboriginal business.
He is also chairman of the Congo Basin Forest Fund, a 200 million dollar British-Norwegian-Canadian poverty alleviation and sustainable development fund for the ten-nation Congo Basin Rainforest. He sits on the Advisory Council of the Coalition for Dialogue on Africa, sponsored by the African Union, the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the African Development Bank. Mr. Martin is also a commissioner for the Global Ocean Commission.