The Brian Mulroney Institute of Government’s Distinguished Speaker Series Presents
“A Different Kind of Love Than Before, But It’s There”: Alzheimer’s and Dementia Caregiving in Canada
The Honourable Lisa Raitt, PC
Moderator: Dr. Katie Aubrecht (Sociology, Mulroney Institute)
Monday, March 9, 2026
7:00 pm–9:00 pm
Mulroney Hall 2030
The Mulroney Institute of Government is pleased to welcome The Honourable Lisa Raitt (BSc ’89) as part of its Distinguished Speakers Series. While a sitting MP, Lisa Raitt’s world suddenly changed in 2016. Her partner was diagnosed with young-onset Alzheimer’s in his mid-fifties. Since then, Ms. Raitt has worked tirelessly as an advocate for Alzheimer’s and Dementia care and to bring recognition to the importance of caregivers. In this talk, Ms. Raitt will share her journey as a caregiver and the lessons she has learned along the way.
Moderator Dr. Katie Aubrecht is the Director of the Centre for Aging and Disability Justice and the Spatializing Care Lab, and Associate Professor, Sociology at StFX. She is also a Tier II Canada Research Chair Health Equity and Social Justice and a Mulroney Institute Fellow.
All are welcome.
The Honourable Lisa Raitt, PC
The Hon. Lisa Raitt, PC, is Vice Chair, Global Investment Banking, CIBC Capital Markets. Her current focus is on senior client coverage and business development in the energy, infrastructure, and industrial sectors. In 2008, Ms. Raitt was elected to the House of Commons. During her time in office, she held three senior portfolios: Minister of Natural Resources, Minister of Labour, and Minister of Transport. She was also the deputy leader of the Official Opposition and the Conservative Party of Canada. Ms. Raitt holds a Bachelor of Science from StFX and an MA in Chemistry from the University of Guelph. She also has a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. She was named a Woodrow Wilson Center Global Fellow of the Canada Institute in 2020. Ms. Raitt was named Chair of the StFX Board of Governors in 2025.
Dr. Katie Aubrecht
Katie Aubrecht is Canada Research Chair in Health Equity and Social Justice and Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at StFX. Dr. Aubrecht has a PhD in Sociology of Education from the University of Toronto and is an alumnus of the inaugural cohort of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR) Health System Impact (HSI) Fellows. She is a CIHR External Advisory Committee member working on the Institute’s accessibility planning work to meet its obligations under the Accessible Canada Act. As Director of the Canadian Foundation for Innovation-funded Spatializing Care: Intersectional Disability Studies Lab, she leads an interdisciplinary research program that maps health services, social policies, and community resources related to marginality, mental health, and resilience across the life span, with a focus on rural communities in Atlantic Canada. Aubrecht’s teaching and research in sociology draw on health policy studies, intersectional disability studies, gerontology, and participatory, decolonizing and arts-informed qualitative research methods to analyze disability, aging, and mental health education, policy and practice and explore creative cross-sectoral approaches to person- and family-oriented behavioural health care. Aubrecht is an Associate Scientist with the Maritime Strategy for Patient Oriented Research (SPOR) SUPPORT Unit and is Chair of the CIHR IHSPR Institute Advisory Board. She has also served as President and Executive Board Member of the Canadian Disability Studies Association and as Board Director with Eviance (Canadian Centre on Disability Studies).