Meet Our Speakers

George W. Bush served as 43rd President of the United States of America from 2001-2009. As Commander in Chief, President Bush worked to expand freedom, opportunity, and security at home and abroad. He entered office with a robust domestic agenda. His first initiative as President was the No Child Left Behind Act, a bipartisan measure that raised standards in schools, insisted on accountability in return for federal dollars, and led to measurable gains in achievement – especially among minority students.

Faced with a recession when he took office, President Bush cut taxes for every federal income taxpayer, which helped lead to an unprecedented 52 straight months of job creation. New free trade agreements enacted by the Bush Administration opened up American goods and services to new markets of more than 130 million consumers. Additionally, President Bush worked with Congress to modernize Medicare with a prescription drug benefit and introduced market forces to the healthcare system by establishing Health Savings Accounts. The Bush Administration also focused on a variety of environmental issues, including efforts to reduce emissions and create the world’s largest marine protected area.

Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, President Bush responded with a comprehensive strategy to protect the American people and wage a global war on terror. His administration built global coalitions to remove violent regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq that threatened America, liberating more than 50 million people from tyranny. Recognizing that liberty and hope are the best alternative to the extremist ideology of the terrorists, he provided unprecedented American support for young democracies and dissidents in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and elsewhere. President Bush also launched global HIV/AIDS and malaria initiatives that have saved millions of lives, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

President Bush grew up in Midland, Texas, as the eldest son of Barbara and George H.W. Bush – later the 41st President of the United States. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University and a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School. President Bush also served as a pilot in the Texas Air National Guard. Following business school, he returned to Midland and met Laura Welch. They were married in 1977. After working in the energy business in West Texas for several years, President Bush moved to Dallas and joined a group of partners that purchased the Texas Rangers baseball franchise. In 1995, he was sworn in as the 46th Governor of Texas.

After the Presidency, President and Mrs. Bush founded the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas. The Bush Center is home to the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum and the George W. Bush Institute, a nonpartisan public policy and leadership development center that engages communities across the United States and around the world by developing leaders, advancing policy, and taking action to solve today’s most pressing challenges.

President Bush is the author of three bestselling books: Decision Points (2010), 41: A Portrait of My Father (2014), and Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors (2017). In April 2021, President Bush released his fourth work, Out of Many, One: Portraits of America’s Immigrants, which brings to the forefront the stories of forty-three individuals who exemplify our proud history as a nation of immigrants with powerful paintings.

He and Laura are the parents of twin daughters: Barbara, married to Craig Coyne, and Jenna, married to Henry Hager. The Bushes also are the proud grandparents of Margaret Laura “Mila”, Poppy Louise, and Henry Harold “Hal” Hager. The Bush family also includes two cats, Bob and Bernadette, as well as Freddy the dog.
Read more...

The Right Honourable Stephen Harper served as Canada’s 22nd Prime Minister from 2006 to 2015, the longest-serving Conservative Leader to hold this office since Canada’s founding Prime Minister passed away in 1891. Prime Minister Harper created the modern Conservative Party of Canada and won three successive national elections, in 2006, 2008, and 2011. A strong advocate for free trade and open markets, Prime Minister Harper led a government that focused on pragmatic, growth-oriented economic policies and results-driven social policy. Under his leadership, Canada reduced federal taxes to their lowest level in 50 years, created 1.3 million new jobs, balanced the budget while making critical investments in health care and infrastructure, attracted new investment and fostered innovation.

During his time in office, Prime Minister Harper oversaw historic trade negotiations to expand Canada’s commercial relationships including: the conclusion of the Canada-Europe Trade Agreement, the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, a modernized Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement, and Canada’s entrance into the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Additionally, he served as an ally to developing economies, encouraging market liberalization in jurisdictions such as Colombia and Tanzania through bilateral investments, trading relationships and development assistance.

Prime Minister Harper implemented a clear and principled foreign policy. He oversaw Canada’s involvement in a series of complex conflicts in Afghanistan, Libya and Iraq, and stood staunchly by besieged allies Israel and Ukraine. Under his leadership, Canada was an unwavering supporter of the State of Israel’s right to exist, and Prime Minister Harper became the first Canadian Prime Minister to address the Knesset. Prime Minister Harper is a vocal critic of Vladimir Putin’s aggressive and expansionist foreign policy, particularly Russia’s invasion and ongoing occupation of parts of Ukraine. He openly expressed concern about the erosion of transparency in Russia, the consolidation of political power, and the suppression of dissidents. Prime Minister Harper led the global call for sanctions against Russia, and was a first-mover calling for Putin’s expulsion from the G-8. Prime Minister Harper’s government provided extensive technical and military aid to the Ukrainian government, including the deployment of Canadian Army trainers.

Prime Minister Harper oversaw a dramatic deepening of relations with India, and developed a strategic and balanced relationship with successive Chinese leaders while refusing to shy away from raising issues of human rights and trade imbalances. As the host leader of the 2010 G-20 summit in Toronto, and as an economist by training, Prime Minister Harper helped shape financial reform frameworks, implemented a sustainable approach to fiscal stimulus, and led the call for open markets and pragmatic, growth-oriented economic policy.

Prime Minister Harper also applied his pragmatic and results-oriented approach to international development challenges and building long-term geopolitical stability. He is known for his leadership in securing nearly $11 billion in new funding under the Muskoka Initiative to improve the health of mothers and children in the world’s most impoverished nations.

An ally of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and other multilateral development institutions, Prime Minister Harper sought to amplify the scale and impact of Canada’s contributions to these institutions by involving the private sector in issue-specific campaigns whenever possible.

Prime Minister Harper’s government worked collaboratively with successive US Presidents to ensure the world’s most valuable bilateral trading and security relationship remained productive and effective.

He undertook extensive work to deepen North American supply chain integration, ease regulatory burdens on small and medium-sized business and increase competitiveness and innovation. He oversaw unprecedented investments in post-secondary research, STEM programming and skills training curricula.

Prime Minister Harper resides in Calgary where he is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Harper & Associates, a global consulting firm. He and his wife Laureen have two children, Benjamin and Rachel.
Read more...