Surrey City Leadership Series Welcomes Mayor of Edmonton

The Mayor of Edmonton, Amarjeet Sohi, was the keynote speaker recently at the Surrey Board of Trade City Leadership Series. Thank you to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority for their sponsorship of this event. This event series began in 2018 to see mayors from other cities speak, to focus on their:

• Economic development initiatives

• Transportation infrastructure

• Arts and culture infrastructure

• Emergency infrastructure

• and other leadership initiatives

This is an ongoing opportunity to obtain new ideas for Surrey.

About Mayor Amarjeet Sohi

He was sworn in as the 36th Mayor of Edmonton on October 26, 2021. Sohi was born in Punjab. Growing up in a Sikh farming family, he was 18 when he moved to Edmonton. Settling into a new country, Sohi often faced bullying and racism for how he looked and acted. He worked in fast food franchises flipping burgers, cleaning buildings, delivering newspapers, then started working as a taxi driver, and eventually moved on to driving buses for the Edmonton Transit System (ETS). While working at ETS, Sohi became involved in his local union, advocating on behalf of his fellow members. He also became a passionate community advocate, helping to launch the

Mill Woods Crime Council and volunteering his time to support arts, culture, and community recreation.

After being elected on to Edmonton City Council, he was instrumental in advocating for investment in the LRT system, and in the approval of the Valley Line to southeast Edmonton. Dedicated to improving Edmonton's infrastructure and liveability, Sohi represented the city on the Canadian Urban Transit Association and strongly advocated for public transit. He also brought forward his passion for inclusive city-building through his representation at the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association and in leading city council's Immigration, Multiculturalism, and Racism Free Edmonton initiatives.

In 2015, Sohi was elected as the Member of Parliament for Edmonton Mill Woods. He was appointed as the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities. In 2018, he was named the Minister of Natural Resources and worked to ensure the Trans Mountain Pipeline could move forward in the right way and advocated for the clean-up of abandoned wells, all while supporting the expansion of solar and other green energy projects.

Recording is available on the Surrey Board of Trade's Youtube channel. youtube.com