Canada’s climate change ambassador spent $254K on travel: report

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Canada’s Ambassador for Climate Change Catherine Stewart spent $254,000 on travel since she was appointed to the position two years ago, an Ottawa-based publication reported.

Stewart’s role includes putting the federal government’s environmental policies into practice and providing advice on climate change considerations to ministers. However, in her role, she has racked up some hefty travel bills. She opted for business class tickets for flights and, while abroad, stayed at luxury hotels — some that came with a price tag of up to $623 a night, per Blacklock’s Reporter.

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On a trip to Paris, Stewart stayed at a hotel near the Eiffel Tower that went for $428 a night, according to the publication. She was in France to “to ‘inform’ the French about Canada’s carbon tax.”

The publication uncovered the details of Stewart’s spending habits by filing Access to Information requests.

Some of Stewart’s travel expenses are available online through the federal government. One of her more expensive trips was to Brazil in 2023. She spent $17,462.51 in only six days — with the cost of airfare listed as $15,698.12. The purpose of the trip was to “engage in outreach with the new Lula Administration in Brazil given their focus on environment and climate change issues,” according to the department.

The Blacklock’s Reporter found that Stewart opted to travel by air even when taking the train was an option, the Toronto Sun reported.

For example, Stewart took a plane to Ottawa from Toronto for a climate conference last year. During her stay in the country’s capital, Stewart spent $323 a night at the Sheraton Centre Hotel. The trip cost a cost a total of $10,096.

As climate change ambassador, Stewart has also travelled extensively on an international scale. Some of the destinations include the Netherlands, Indonesia, Denmark, Switzerland, Egypt, Finland, Italy, Brazil, Austria, United Arab Emirates and the United States.

For a trip to London, England in 2023, the department justified the need for her to travel by saying “in-person outreach was required to have candid conversations.” It was required to “showcase Canada’s leadership,” the Sun reported, quoting the department.

In London, Stewart stayed in Trafalgar Square at the Club Quarters Hotel for $412 a night. The trip was for “carbon pricing outreach.”

More recently, Stewart was in Oslo, Norway for the Ministerial Dialogues on Nature. She engaged “with partners on urgent climate and nature action,” she wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

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Prior to her role as Canada’s Ambassador for Climate Change, Stewart worked at Environment and Climate Change Canada since 2014 in senior executive positions, it says on a webpage about her published by the Government of Canada.

“With over 27 years in the federal government, she has contributed to public policy issues ranging from international affairs, clean technology promotion and trade, defence and security and military procurement,” per the federal government.

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