In 1987 he led, with Margie Coghill, the successful campaign to include sexual orientation in the Manitoba Human Rights Code.

[12] He helped establish Winnipeg's Village Clinic, the first integrated community based prevention, care, and treatment centre for HIV/AIDS in Canada.

Subsequently, he became the Clinic's Director of Prevention and Outreach programs working street involved and homeless people at high risk for HIV infection.

Significant Winnipeg events during Murray's term included the 1999 Pan American Games and the C5 Summit, a joint initiative of urbanist Jane Jacobs and Allan Broadbent which gathered the mayors of five major Canadian cities.

[20] Murray worked closely with Aboriginal communities to propose new approaches on issues such as jobs, recreation, and public safety.

[21] This was a way to raise awareness surrounding Aboriginal people who live in the urban city of Winnipeg and create accessibility to civic services.

Cultural, demographic, and socio-economic challenges have been addressed as a way to foster effective urban planning and ensure the wellbeing of the Aboriginal people.

[23] Murray provoked a revitalization plan to help create more affordable housing for low and moderate income citizens.

[24] The project was part of a bigger picture concept of helping to create a vibrant, safe, and healthy inner-city neighbourhoods.

[25] Murray worked closely with Moe Levy and Gail Asper to lead the city government to provide the first public funds and land for the New Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Murray had won a significant majority of the votes in the Charleswood and St. James communities in the previous mayoralty election but could not translate that support in what was a close race against the rising popularity of the recently merged Conservative Party.

The Liberals had held the seat by small margins in tight three-way races with the right-wing Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative parties.

He was a founding member of the Canadian AIDS Society he was also the Director of Health Education and HIV Prevention Services at the Village Clinic in Winnipeg.

[38] Murray was appointed by Prime Minister Paul Martin as chair of a National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy in March 2005.

[39][40] In 2006, the Round Table released a report stating that Canada could reduce greenhouse gas emissions using existing technology.

Murray led the development of a series of research papers that offered the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper a strategy to achieve a 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

CIP established the President's Award in 2006 to recognize achievement by a Canadian individual or organization whose significant contribution to the planning community warrants acknowledgment on a national level.

[3] On May 11, 2011, Murray announced to a group of 120 supporters in the 519 Church Street Community Centre that he would campaign to defend his seat in the October provincial election.

[52] Near the end of the meeting, Morrison alleges that Murray dismissed all staff members and attempted to intimidate her into moving forward with development, claiming that he could make 'complaints' about her 'go away'.

In support of the Open Ontario plan to engage the global economy, Murray signed an agreement with Singapore on the development of clean water technologies that is the first of its kind in the world, and he completed an agreement to create the Ontario-Quebec Life Sciences Corridor to stimulate the flow of ideas and investment between these two robust innovation leaders.

Within weeks of assuming his new position Murray launched the McGuinty government's ground breaking 30% off Ontario Tuition grant.

[citation needed] Murray ran as a candidate in the 2013 Ontario Liberal Party leadership election but withdrew two weeks prior to the convention to throw his support to the eventual winner, Kathleen Wynne.

Following the 2014 provincial election, in which Murray retained his seat with an increased majority, he was moved to the position of Minister of Environment and Climate Change.

[7] On April 29, 2020, Murray announced that he would be running to replace Elizabeth May in the 2020 Green Party of Canada leadership election after months of speculation.