President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Electricity Association
The Honourable Sergio Marchi was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Electricity Association (CEA) in February 2015. As President of CEA, Mr. Marchi acts as spokesperson on issues of national concern to the electric utility industry.
The Honourable Sergio Marchi was elected as a Toronto City Councillor in 1982, and was subsequently elected as the Member of Parliament representing the Toronto riding of York West in 1984. During his time in the federal government, he served as Cabinet Minister in three key portfolios: International Trade; Environment; and Citizenship and Immigration.
After voluntarily leaving the political arena in 1999, Mr. Marchi was appointed Canadian Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations (UN) Agencies in Geneva, where he served for five years. In 2003, he was nominated by the Canadian government and the UN Secretary General to serve as Commissioner on the UN Global Commission on International Migration, a position he held until 2005.
Prior to joining CEA, Mr. Marchi held a number of positions in the private sector, and was a frequent public speaker and commentator on international issues, including global migration, international economy, trade, and investment. Mr. Marchi is also a visiting professor at the University of Ottawa in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.
Mr. Marchi graduated from York University with an Honours Bachelor of Arts Degree in Urban Planning. He is married, with two children.
Today’s electricity systems reflect yesterday’s model. Utilities set up grids to serve large, centralized, mostly fossil fuel fired generation plants, far from load centres. But the future will be renewable, distributed, and more resilient.