The Annual Hurtig Lecture on the Future of Canada
20th Annual Hurtig Lecture with Troy Lulashnyk
Canada in a Turbulent World
Thursday, September 17, 2026 @7:00 p.m.
Timms Centre for the Arts
Join us for this year’s Hurtig Lecture featuring Troy Lulashnyk, a seasoned diplomat with over 30 years of service at the forefront of international relations and crisis management. He brings a wealth of firsthand geopolitical expertise to this year's vital topic, Canada in a Turbulent World.
Mr. Lulashnyk currently serves as the Director General of Peace and Security Programs at Global Affairs Canada, where he leads national efforts to counter global threats, manage conflicts, and combat hybrid warfare. Prior to this role, his distinguished career on the world stage included serving as Canada’s Ambassador to Austria (and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Vienna), Ambassador to Egypt, and Ambassador to Ukraine during the 2011–2014 crisis and invasion of Crimea.
Learn more about the complexities of working in a complex international setting, from managing global non-proliferation to leading responses against international security crises. This year’s lecture will offer an unparalleled insider’s perspective on how Canada navigates an increasingly volatile global landscape.
About the speaker:
Troy Lulashnyk has worked in a number of capacities within the government of Canada for the past 30 years. He is presently the Director General of Peace and Security Programs at Global Affairs Canada. In this capacity, he manages projects to counter threats and address security crises globally. This covers a range of activities from conflict management and combatting hybrid warfare to countering terrorism and international crime to supporting the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Prior to this position, Troy served as Canada's Ambassador to Austria and Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Organizations in Vienna. This included, inter alia, the International Atomic Energy Agency, United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization and UN Office for Outer Space Affairs. He also led the response to Russia’s illegal seizure and occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. From 2017-21, Troy was the Director General of the Israel, West Bank and Gaza, Egypt and Maghreb Bureau (2017 to 2021) dealing with Middle East peace and security issues and, before that, he served as Canada's ambassador to Egypt from 2014-17 and Canada's ambassador to Ukraine from 2011 to 2014, during which Russia invaded Crimea. From 2006-11, Troy was the Director General of the Non-Proliferation and Security Threat Reduction Bureau.