As Mayor of Victoria, British Columbia since 2014, Lisa Helps was elected on a platform to use City Hall and city government as a to help unleash the potential of citizens and local business and to create inclusive, sustainable prosperity. As mayor, she takes inspiration from the UN Sustainable Development Goals, with a particular emphasis on Goal 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities.

In her inaugural address, Mayor Helps highlighted the role that municipalities play in fostering economic, social, and environmental well-being within the community. In pursuit of this, she is committed to directly measuring individual and collective well-being in order to inform city decisions.

Mayor Helps believes that the best way to address complex challenges is to bring people from a diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and experiences together and to truly listen to each other. In her experience, listening deeply with empathy and generosity and taking in new information can enable us to change our minds or at least to broaden our perspectives. She’s honoured to have been elected as Mayor of Victoria and to serve her community in this capacity.