Working visit to Iceland

October 12 to 15, 2022

Their Excellencies the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, and Mr. Whit Fraser undertook a working visit to Iceland, from October 12 to 15, 2022, on the occasion of the Arctic Circle Assembly.

Her Excellency’s participation in the Arctic Circle Assembly served to demonstrate Canadian leadership in the Arctic, and reinforce other priority issues for Canada in the north, including climate change, reconciliation, gender equality and youth engagement. 

The Governor General was a keynote speaker at the opening session of this year’s ACA, as well as a panellist in a plenary session entitled Gender Equality and Diversity in Arctic Leadership.

October 12, 2022

Their Excellencies arrived in Reykjavik and were greeted at the airport by Iceland officials.

October 13, 2022

This morning, the Governor General met with His Excellency Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson, President of Iceland, to discuss Canada-Iceland relations, including historic connections and the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

The Governor General also met with Her Excellency Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland, who will join her in tomorrow’s plenary panel on Gender Equality and Diversity in Arctic Leadership. Prime Minister Jakobsdóttir is the second woman to hold this position in Iceland.

In the afternoon, Her Excellency delivered a keynote address on global Arctic collaboration followed by an armchair discussion with Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson on Arctic issues and on Canada’s role and leadership in the Arctic.

October 14, 2022

This morning, Her Excellency was part of the Plenary Panel at the Arctic Circle Assembly on Gender Equality and Diversity in Arctic Leadership. The Governor General took part in this discussion to share her experience as a woman and as an Indigenous leader. She was joined by Her Excellency Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland, and Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s Minister of Finance and Gender Equality.

In the afternoon, His Excellency moderated a panel organized by the Arctic Circle Secretariat.

Later in the day, Their Excellencies, along with Jeannette Menzies, Ambassador of Canada to Iceland, met with Icelandic representatives from various sectors, including government, business, innovation, civil society, culture and academia.