Gregor Angus Bethune Robertson (born September 18, 1964) is a Canadian businessman and a progressive[2] politician, who served as the 39th mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia, from 2008 to 2018.
[7] After his parents divorced, Robertson grew up partly in Portola Valley, near San Francisco with his mother, and later with his father in North Vancouver.
[7][9] Robertson then completed Emergency Medical Technician (EMT/paramedic) training, but turned his career focus towards healthy food and nutrition.
[7] He worked on a ranch as a cowboy in the Cariboo[8] restored a wooden sailboat and sailed across the Pacific for 18 months, accompanied by his then wife, Amy, whom he had met in Colorado.
[8] Robertson later went on to co-found Happy Planet, a Vancouver-based company that produces and markets organic fruit and vegetable beverages and soups.
In June 2008, Robertson secured the Vision Vancouver party's nomination as its mayoral candidate,[14] defeating Raymond Louie and Allan De Genova.
[21] In 2011, Robertson created the city's first Economic Action Strategy which led to creation of jobs in sectors such as green energy and digital media.
On December 9, 2008, he announced low-barrier HEAT shelters to assist Vancouver's homeless citizens during an extremely cold winter,[26] which were filled to capacity.
The plan was aimed to protect low-income residents of the area who were struggling to afford rent amidst a rise in cost of living.
[37] In September 2017, the Government of British Columbia announced a funding commitment of $66 million towards Robertson's plan to build 600 units of temporary modular housing in Vancouver.
[41] A 2016 study by Simon Fraser University found that 52% of the homeless people surveyed in Downtown Eastside had migrated there from outside Vancouver, up from 17% a decade ago.
[44][45] In April 2009, Robertson and the Greenest City Action Team released a report outlining quick-start recommendations to move aggressively on its green plan.
Vancouver became the first city to regulate embodied carbon, and set a goal to eliminate fossil fuels and switch to 100% renewable energy by 2050.
[47] In 2013, Vancouver was named as the Global Earth Hour Capital by the World Wildlife Fund in recognition of the city's "actions on climate change and dedication to create a sustainable, vibrant urban environment.
[50] Vancouver also became the first city in North America to heat homes using thermal energy extracted from sewage and wastewater, which reportedly reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 65% in the False Creek neighbourhood.
Supreme Court because in part there was insufficient action to mitigate the effects of Canada Line construction on Cambie Street merchants.
[59] On September 17, 2009, Robertson called for adding a toll to the Sea-to-Sky Highway, the primary driving route between Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, and to all major crossings of the Fraser River to help fund Translink.
[65] In preparation for the 2010 Winter Olympics in July 2009, the Vancouver Council approved several temporary bylaw changes—including security checkpoints, closed-circuit cameras, prohibition of "disturbance or nuisance interfering with the enjoyment of entertainment on city land by other persons", and prohibition of commercial flyers at celebration sites—which were controversial for some civil liberties advocates who argued that they "make it more difficult to exercise [the] fundamental constitutional rights to free speech, peaceful assembly and free expression.
"[66] As part of the changes city manager Penny Ballem, an unelected official, was given special powers that were referred to by Coalition of Progressive Electors councilor Ellen Woodsworth as "wide open carte blanche.
"[67] Robertson defended council's position, explaining the temporary bylaw changes were necessary given what Vancouver was required to implement as the host city.
According to Robertson, "It is our ultimate obligation to ensure the safety and security of people who are in our city and this, I think, addresses a lot of the concerns proactively on that level while respecting the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
[citation needed] On January 12, 2009, Robertson requested an amendment to the Vancouver Charter to allow the city to borrow $458 million to fund the completion of the 2010 Olympic Village in False Creek without seeking approval from taxpayers in an election-day plebiscite.
[91] In 2024, the Global Covenant of Mayors, with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, appointed Robertson as a special envoy in the Coalition for High Ambition Multilevel Partnerships (CHAMP).
[99] Robertson is a tuba player; he and his former MLA colleague Nicholas Simons performed on country-punk musician Slim Milkie's 2010 album Silverado.