Margaret Trudeau
Margaret Trudeau, who became the youngest prime minister's wife in Canadian history when she married Pierre Elliot Trudeau in 1971 at the age of 22, has led a rich and interesting life. She has raised five children and traveled throughout Canada and the world, working as a photographer, actress, writer, and television host.
Margaret Trudeau’s interest in water issues began during HABITAT, the historic first United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, held in Vancouver in 1976. Carrying a bucket of water, she led a parade to the shore of Jericho Beach to represent global citizens living without clean water.
Subsequently, she became a supporter of WaterCan after learning of the organization’s work during a visit to a WaterCan booth at her daughter’s school. In 1996, she began volunteering with WaterCan on special projects and as a committee member for various WaterCan events.
In 1997, Margaret visited Uganda to learn more about WaterCan’s work in the field. She was quoted about her experiences in Uganda in Ottawa Life Magazine in April 1998: “To actually see the difference from what we’re doing through WaterCan was very exciting. Twice I got to hook up wells, and I knew that they’d be a source of health and real social improvement.”
She returned to Uganda in January 2000 to visit “Michel’s Well”, which had been constructed in honour of her late son, Michel Trudeau. She was accompanied by a team from CTV’s W5 who gathered footage for the documentary, Margaret’s Pilgrimage.
In 2002, Margaret was appointed Honorary President of WaterCan. In this role, she has spent countless hours making the public aware of the importance of clean water and sanitation in developing countries through speaking engagements, interviews, and awareness campaigns.
Margaret has described her volunteer work with WaterCan as her life’s second calling, stating “It’s a role that I just love…I have a voice and I can use it.”
In the fall of 2006, Margaret traveled to Ethiopia with WaterCan and her daughter-in-law, Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau. While in Ethiopia, their experiences were documented the CTV special, A Window Opens: Margaret and Sophie in Ethiopia, which aired across Canada in May 2007.
Learn more about Margaret and Sophie’s trip to Ethiopia.
Watch a clip from CTV’s A Window Opens: Margaret and Sophie in Ethiopia, produced by 90th Parallel Productions.
Ben Mulroney
WaterCan is delighted to welcome Ben Mulroney on as its new National Ambassador.
As the host of etalk, Ben delivers entertainment news from the Bell Media headquarters in Toronto. Ben also travels the world to interview the biggest stars and report from the hottest red carpet events, including the OSCARS®, GOLDEN GLOBES® and the JUNO Awards. A veteran of entertainment reporting, Montreal-born Ben Mulroney is regarded by many Hollywood stars (north and south of the border) as a friendly face, a respected journalist and an industry pro.
Along with his mega-watt star power, Ben brings a passion for international development and a respected voice to WaterCan's public engagement and communications efforts just in time for its 25th anniversary celebrations in 2012.
In his role as WaterCan's National Ambassador, Ben is committed to engaging the Canadian public in WaterCan's vision of Clean Water for All through participation in events such as the Kilimanjaro Climb for Life, slated for October 2012.
Learn More and Support Ben's Kilimanjaro Climb
Peter Bregg
Over the past four decades, internationally renowned photographer Peter Bregg has traveled to more than 75 countries and captured some of the world’s most compelling stories on film.
Before working on private commissions, Peter was photo editor at HELLO! Magazine, and chief photographer and photo editor at Maclean’s. He has also worked as a photographer and editor with the Canadian Press, and the Associated Press in London, New York and Washington, DC, and was the official photographer to Brian Mulroney between 1984 and 1985.
His journalism assignments have included eight Olympic Games, several Stanley Cups, World Series, Presidential trips, Vietnam in 1973, the Iranian hostage crisis in 1979-80, and the imposition of martial law on the Solidarity movement in Poland in 1981.
He was also in New York to cover the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre in 2001. In 2006, Peter accompanied WaterCan to Ethiopia, where he documented the visit of Margaret Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire to several of WaterCan’s clean water and sanitation project sites. In October 2009, he traveled throughout Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya documenting WaterCan’s development efforts for the purposes of developing Water for Life: An African Photo Exhibit.
Peter has won numerous awards including a World Press Photo Award, NPPA Regional Photographer of the Year, Canadian Press Photo of the Year, a Canadian National Newspaper Award and White House News Photographers Association Awards, to name a few.
Visit: www.peterbregg.com
Angela Hewitt
Angela Hewitt is a phenomenal artist who has established herself at the highest level, not least through her superb, award-winning recordings for Hyperion. Her ten year project to record all the major keyboard works of Bach has been described as "one of the record glories of our age" and has won her a huge following. She has been hailed as "the pre-eminent Bach pianist of our time" (The Guardian) and "nothing less than the pianist who will define Bach performance on the piano for years to come" (Stereophile).
With a vast repertoire ranging from Couperin to the contemporary, Ms. Hewitt's discography also includes CDs of Granados, Olivier Messiaen, the complete solo works of Ravel and most recently, the complete Chopin Nocturnes.
Angela Hewitt was awarded the first ever BBC Radio 3 Listener's Award (Royal Philharmonic Society Awards) in 2003. She was also made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2000, and in 2006, was awarded the Order of the British Empire by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Most recently, she was named the Gramophone Artist of the year 2006.
When asked why she chose to play for WaterCan, Ms. Hewitt's answer was simple and profound: "So many people in the world suffer from a shortage of clean water - something all of us take for granted. I think of this every time I brush my teeth. I would like to do my part to help WaterCan's activities, and to bring them to the attention of a wider public".
Visit Ms. Hewitt's website at www.angelahewitt.com
Watch CTV video: A Window Opens: Margaret and Sophie in Ethiopia
In October 2006 Margaret Trudeau and daughter-in-law Sophie Grégoire visited WaterCan’s Ethiopian projects.
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