Steven Guilbeault

Steven Guilbeault (; born June 9, 1970) is a Canadian politician and activist who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Laurier–Sainte-Marie from 2019 to 2026. A member of the Liberal Party, Guilbeault was Minister of Canadian Heritage from 2019 to 2021, Minister of Environment and Climate Change from 2021 to 2025, and Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages.

A founding member of Équiterre, a Quebec community-supported agriculture organization, he was also director and campaign manager for the Greenpeace Quebec chapter for ten years. Guilbeault stepped down as senior director and spokesperson for Équiterre in November 2018, and announced his candidacy in the 2019 Canadian federal election in July. He resigned as a minister in the Carney ministry and as an MP due to the government's environmental policies.

Early life and education Guilbeault is of French Canadian descent although his maternal grandmother, Edna O'Farrell, was Irish Canadian. When he was five years old in his hometown of La Tuque in Haute-Mauricie, he refused to get down from a tree that he had climbed, in an effort to block a land developer from clearing a wooded area behind his home. The tree was felled a few days later, but the event is cited by Guilbeault as the genesis of his environmental activism.

After studying computer science in CEGEP (junior college), he enrolled in industrial relations at the Université de Montréal in 1989. A year later, he switched his major to political science. He minored in theology, exploring questions of international morality, liberation theology, poverty and the environment.

In 1997, Guilbeault joined Greenpeace Canada. He was put in charge of its climate change division and he managed the climate and energy campaign before being the organization's Quebec bureau chief in 2000. In 2005, he coordinated the climate campaign for Greenpeace International. On four occasions, Guilbeault made headlines for Greenpeace, such as when he scaled Toronto's CN Tower in 2001, accompanied by British activist Chris Holden. At the time the tower was the tallest in the world. After ascending to a height of 340 metres, they unfurled a banner that read: "Canada and Bush Climate Killers." Guilbeault and Holden were arrested and charged with mischief. The goal was to grab the world's attention a week before the UN's sixth conference on climate change, where the fate of the Kyoto Protocol would be decided. The stunt cost the CN Tower Corporation an estimated $50,000, and Guilbeault was sentenced to one year's probation and the court ordered him to pay a portion of costs. Guilbeault remained Greenpeace's Quebec spokesperson until June 8, 2007, at which time he announced his resignation.

In 2002, Gilbeault was arrested after climbing upon the house of Alberta Premier Ralph Klein. Gilbeault maintained that it was a stunt to pretend to install solar panels on the home, but Klein’s wife Colleen was terrified to see a nondescript van pull up and discharge men in orange jumpsuits who proceeded to climb onto the roof.

In 2008, he returned to Équiterre, which he had cofounded fifteen years earlier, to work on climate change issues. He left that position in autumn 2018.

Government work Guilbeault sat on the board of the from 2007 to 2009 and chaired the Committee on Emerging Renewable Energy from 2009 to 2011 for the Government of Quebec. He also sat on the climate change advisory committees of three successive Quebec governments: Jean Charest’s Liberals, Pauline Marois’ Parti Québécois, and subsequently co-chairing the committee formed by Philippe Couillard’s Liberal government starting in 2014.

Stéphane Dion, a former federal Cabinet minister, remarked that Guilbeault "is among the select few in the environmental community with whom it is important to remain in contact, because his reactions and his opinions will count". Kalee Kreider, formerly with Greenpeace and former communications director for Al Gore, said that Steven Guilbeault "has at once gained the respect of those in government, NGOs and industry."

Other professional activities Guilbeault has been a commentator for CBC/Radio-Canada, La Presse and Corporate Knights magazine, and has been a columnist for the newspaper for nearly a decade. He worked as a senior consultant for Deloitte and Touche, and served as co-chair of Climate Action Network International for five years. He also chaired the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal's Committee on Sustainable Development from 2007 to 2010.

Since 2009, Guilbeault is listed as a founding member of Cycle Capital Management, and since has been a strategic consultant for the venture capital fund, which is dedicated to developing clean technologies.

Political career On June 19, 2019, Guilbeault announced that he was seeking the Liberal Party of Canada nomination for the riding of Laurier—Sainte-Marie in the 2019 Canadian federal election. On October 21, 2019, he was elected with 41.77 per cent of the vote, flipping a riding once held by New Democratic Party MP Hélène Laverdière.

Minister of Canadian Heritage (2019–2021) On November 20, 2019, Guilbeault was named as the Trudeau government's minister of Canadian heritage, succeeding Pablo Rodríguez.

Bill C-10 (2021)

In 2021, Guilbeault introduced a bill (C-10) to amend 1991's Broadcasting Act, to modernize the legislation to include online broadcasting services. The proposed amendment faced round criticism in the media, with concerns that it could be used limit freedom of speech or expression on social media. Following calls by the New Democratic Party and Conservative opposition, the government introduced further amendments, clarifying that social media would not be regulated under the proposed legislation. Guilbeault has stated that users with a large social media presence could be considered "broadcasters," and thus be subject to government oversight and regulations.

Minister of Environment and Climate Change (2021–2025)

Following the 2021 Canadian federal election, Guilbeault was named as the new environment minister for the 44th Canadian Parliament, taking office on October 26. His appointment drew heavy commentary, with his background as a former environmental activist attracting both praise and criticism. Premier Jason Kenney expressed hope that "he will send a signal that he is willing to work constructively and cooperatively with us, as partners, in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while growing the economy," and also stated that he was worried Guilbeault would impose a "radical agenda that would lead to mass unemployment." Provincial environment minister Jason Nixon echoed Kenney's concerns and called Guilbeault a "radical environmentalist". The 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan is Canada’s first detailed, comprehensive roadmap to reach the country’s emissions reduction target of 40 to 45 percent below 2005 levels by 2030.

In April 2022, Guilbeault was specifically targeted by NDP and environmental organizations with criticisms of his government's approval of an offshore oil project in the Bay du Nord property.

In August 2023, Guilbeault was troubled by speculation over his engagement on a Chinese Communist Party board. His rebuttal was an accusation that opposition partisans were "trying to mislead Canadians" over his involvement, while various Chinese media outlets warned him not to take a "condescending tone". In December 2023 it was reported that his two-day trip to China cost taxpayers $140,000. In May 2024 he was summoned to appear before a Parliamentary committee and testify about his activities.

Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity, Parks Canada and Quebec Lieutenant (2025) On March 14, 2025, Guilbeault was named to the newly created position of Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity, Parks Canada as well as the Quebec lieutenant in Mark Carney's cabinet.

Guilbeault attracted controversy on July 1, 2025, after calling Harmonium lead vocalist and Quebec separatist Serge Fiori a "remarkable Canadian" following his death.

On November 27, 2025, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Carney and Alberta's government to build an oil pipeline from Alberta's oil sands to the British Columbia Coast, Guilbeault resigned as a Cabinet minister.

Backbench MP (2025–2026) Since November 27, 2025, Guilbeault sits as a Liberal backbench MP. Increasingly critical of the government's climate policies, Guilbeault announced on May 27, 2026 that he will be resigning his seat in parliament over the summer, saying "After almost seven years as Member of Parliament and Minister, I have come to the conclusion that it is time for me to pursue my fight for environmental protection and the fight against climate change in a different way.” He resigned his seat on August 28.

Honours In 2009, Guilbeault became a member of the . He is also an honorary fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. He was recognized as one of the 35 most influential figures in the past 35 years by the Fondation Marie-Vincent in 2010 and as an Americas Leader by the US magazine Americas Quarterly.

In 2012 Guilbeault received the . In 2014, he received the Blanche-Lemco-Van-Ginkel award from the for his significant contribution to urban planning in Quebec.

In 2016, Guilbeault received the award recognizing his contribution to the vitality of the French language and French culture.

Electoral record

Selected publications Steven Guilbeault, Le bon, la brute et le truand - Ou comment l’intelligence artificielle transforme nos vies, Montréal, (Québec), Éditions Druide, 2019. Steven Guilbeault and François Tanguay, Le prochain virage, Montréal, (Québec), Canada, Éditions Druide, 2014, 304 pages. Steven Guilbeault, Alerte! : Le Québec à l'heure des changements climatiques, Montréal, (Québec), Canada, Éditions du Boréal, 2010, 248 pages. Steven Guilbeault and Jean-Guy Vaillancourt, Changements climatiques, protocole de Kyoto et le rôle des organisations non gouvernementales dans le cadre de ces grandes questions internationales, in Gendron Corinne and Jean-Guy Vaillancourt, Développement durable et participation démocratique : De la contestation écologiste aux défis de la gouvernance, Presses de l’Université de Montréal, Montréal, 2003. Steven Guilbeault and Jean-Guy Vaillancourt, Protocole de Kyoto : économie, politique et efficacité environnementale, in Actes de colloque Sociologie, économie et environnement, ACFAS, Québec, May 2002, pp. 223–239. Regroupement montréalais pour la qualité de l’air, Pollution atmosphérique et impacts sur la santé et l’environnement dans la grande région de Montréal, Chapitre 3: « Les effets néfastes de la pollution atmosphérique d’origine anthropique sur l’environnement de la grande région de Montréal », pp. 155–173, Éditeur Direction régionale de la santé publique, Montréal, 1998.