Emerging Leaders and Trade Partnerships with Middle Powers

As global trade architecture shifts amid great-power competition and supply-chain realignment, middle powers — states with the diplomatic weight and economic capacity to shape outcomes without dominating them — are emerging as pivotal partners for Canadian business and policy. This board-level luncheon brings together senior diplomatic and trade leadership from several alternative leader and middle-power nations to offer their governments’ perspectives on deepening commercial and strategic ties with Canada.

Moderated by Sara Wilshaw, Canada’s Chief Trade Commissioner, the discussion will give board members direct insight into how these countries view Canada as a trade and investment partner, where the greatest near-term opportunities lie, and what a new generation of trade leadership — on both sides — will need to navigate an increasingly multipolar economy.

Direct, candid access to sitting ambassadors and trade commissioners is a rare opportunity to hear unfiltered government-to-government perspective — useful input for boards weighing market entry, supply-chain diversification, or geopolitical risk in their strategic planning.