PLENARY SESSION “BUILDING A FAIR ECONOMY FROM THE GROUND UP”
Tuesday, September 25
Matthew Green was elected in 2014 to serve as Councillor for Ward 3 (Hamilton Centre) in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is the first Councillor of African-Canadian decent in Hamilton’s history.Matthew is a graduate of Political Science from Acadia University. He continued his learning at McMaster University and has completed Executive Education courses in the Marshall Ganz course on Leadership, Organizing, and Action from the Harvard Kennedy School and Governance for Non Profits from the Harvard Business School. Since being elected he has given keynote speeches and attended panels for many organizations including the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, the Broadbent Institute, the Ontario Federation of Labour, Toronto District Labour Council, C.U.P.E Ontario and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.Matthew has been awarded the inaugural Friends of Labour Award from Hamilton District Labour Council, a J.C. Holland Award from Hamilton’s Black History Committee, and a community appreciation award from the Hamilton Native Womens’ Centre.As a City Councillor, Matthew’s advocacy has focussed on ecological, economic, and social justice. Matthew passed the Blue Dot Motion, making Hamilton the first city in Ontario to adopt an environmental bill of rights. Matthew’s advocacy opposing police carding and racial profiling had a direct impact on provincial policy resulting in more stringent regulations on how local police interact with our community. He is a strong advocate for affordable, dignified housing, actively supporting inclusionary zoning, and serves as Vice Chair and Treasurer for City Housing Hamilton. He fought for improved consumer protections for residents by taking on the payday loan industry’s predatory lending practices and made Hamilton the first Ontario City to licence payday loan outlets.He currently lives in Ward 3, the community he serves, with his partner Jayde and his absolute purpose in life, his son Langston.
