Explore our list of current & past Poets Laureate across Canada. We aim to keep a full and current list, however Canada is vast! If you have a correction or would like to add a Poet Laureate, please email info@poets.ca.

To learn more about the role of a Poet Laureate, check out our blog post, All About Poets Laureate.

Parliamentary Poet Laureate

GEORGETTE LEBLANC
2018 – 2020
—
GEORGE ELLIOTT CLARKE
2016 – 2018
—
MICHAEL PLEAU
2014 – 2016
—
FRED WAH
2011 – 2013
—
PIERRE DESRUISSEAUX
2009 – 2011
—
JOHN STEFFLER
2006 – 2008
—
PAULINE MICHEL
2004 – 2006
—
GEORGE BOWERING
2002 – 2004

Alberta

BANFF POET LAUREATE:
Steven Ross Smith
2019-2020
—
Amelie Patternson
2017-2018

CALGARY POET LAUREATE:
Sheri-D Wilson
2018-2020
—
Micheline Maylor
2016 – 2018
—
derek beaulieu
2014 – 2016
—
Kris Demeanor
2012 – 2014

EDMONTON POET LAUREATE:
Nisha Patel
2019 – present
—
Ahmed “Knowmadic” Ali
2017-2019
—
Pierrette Requier
2015 – 2017
—
Mary Pinkoski
2013 – 2015
—
Anna Marie Sewell
2011 – 2012
—
Roland Pemberton
2006 – 2011
—
E.D. Blodgett
2007 – 2009
—
Alice Major
2005 – 2007

British Columbia

COMOX VALLEY POET LAUREATE:
Natalie Nickerson
2017-2019

NANAIMO POET LAUREATE:
Valina Zanetti (Youth Poet Laureate)
2019 – 2021
—
Tina Biello
2017 – 2020
—
Kailey DeFehr (Youth Poet Laureate)
2017 – 2018
—
Naomi Beth Wakan
2013 – 2016

NEW WESTMINSTER POET LAUREATE:
Alan Hill
2017 – present
—
Candice James
2010 – 2016
—
Don Benson
1999 – 2007
—
Edna Anderson
1998 – 1999

SURREY POET LAUREATE:
Renée Sarojini Saklikar
2015 – 2018

TOFINO POET LAUREATE:
Joanna Streetly
2018 – present

VANCOUVER POET LAUREATE:
Miss Christie Lee (Christie Charles)
2018-2021
—
Rachel Rose
2014 – 2017
—
Evelyn Lau
2011 – 2014
—
Brad Cran
2009 – 2011
—
George McWhirter
2007 – 2009

VICTORIA POET LAUREATE:
John Barton
2019 – 2022
—
Yvonne Blomer
2015 – 2018
—
Argatu Ali (Youth Poet Laureate)
2018 – 2019
—
Maita Cienska (Youth Poet Laureate)
2017 – 2018
—
Ann-Bernice Thomas (Youth Poet Laureate)
2016 – 2017
—
Janet Marie Rogers
2012 – 2014
—
Linda Rogers
2009 – 2011
—
Carla Funk
2006 – 2008

 

Manitoba

WINNIPEG POET LAUREATE:
Di Brandt
2017-present

New Brunswick

SACKVILLE POET LAUREATE:
Shoshanna Wingate
2019 – 2021
—
Marilyn Lerch
2013 – 2017
—
Douglas Lochead
2002 – 2011

Newfoundland and Labrador

ST JOHN’S POET LAUREATE:
Mary Dalton
2019 – 2020
—
George Murray
2014 – 2017
—
Tom Dawe
2010 – 2013
—
Agnes Walsh
2006 – 2009

Northwest Territories

 

Nova Scotia

CAPE BRETON POET LAUREATE:  
Rita Joe (1932 – 2007)
Lifetime
“Poet Laureate of the
Mi’kmaq people”

HALIFAX POET LAUREATE:
Dr. Afua Cooper
2018 – 2020
—
Rebecca Thomas
2016 – 2018
—
El Jones
2013 – 2015
—
Tanya Davis
2011 – 2012
—
Shauntay Grant
2009 – 2011
—
Lorri Neilsen Glenn
2005 – 2009
—
Sue MacLeod
2001 – 2005

Nunavut

 

Ontario

BARRIE POET LAUREATE:
Victoria Butler
2018 – present
—
Damian Lopes
2014 – present

BRANTFORD POET LAUREATE:
John B Lee
in perpetuity

COBALT POET LAUREATE:
Ann Margetson

COBOURG POET LAUREATE:
Jessica Outram
2019 – 2022
—
Ted Amsden
2011 – 2018
—
Jill Battson
2009 – 2011
—
Eric Winter
1997 – 2009

DUFFERIN COUNTY POET LAUREATE:
Harry Posner
2017-present

EMERY POET LAUREATE:
Laurence Hutchman
2018 – present

KINGSTON POET LAUREATE:
Jason Heroux
2019 – present
—
Helen Humphreys
2015 –  2019
—
Eric Folsom
2011 – 2015

LONDON POET LAUREATE:
Tom Cull
2016 – present
—
Penn Kemp
2011 – 2013

MISSISSAUGA POET LAUREATE:
Paul Edward Costa
2019 – 2021
—
Pujita Verma (Youth Poet Laureate)
2018 – 2020
—
Wali Shah
2017 – 2019
—
Rebecca Zseder (Youth Poet Laureate)
2016 – 2018
—
Anna Yin
2015 – 2017

OTTAWA POET LAUREATE:
Margaret Michèle Cook (French) & Diana Young (English)
2019 – 2021
—
Andrée Lacelle (French) & Jamaal Jackson Rogers (English)
2017 – 2019

OWEN SOUND POET LAUREATE:
Lauren Best
2017-2019
—
Rob Rolfe & Larry Jensen
2015 – 2017
—
Terry Burns
2013 – 2014
—
Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm
2011 – 2012
—
Kristan Anderson
2008 – 2010
—
Liz Zetlin
2007 – 2008

SUDBURY POET LAUREATE:
Chloé LaDuchesse
2018 – 2020
—
Kim Fahner
2016 – 2018
—
Thomas Leduc
2014 – 2015
—
Daniel Aubin
2012 – 2013
—
Roger Nash
2010 – 2011

TORONTO POET LAUREATE:
A. F. Moritz
2019 – 2022
—
Anne Michaels
2016 – 2019
—
George Elliott Clarke
2012 – 2015
—
Dionne Brand
2009 – 2012
—
Pier Giorgio Di Cicco
2004 – 2009
—
Dennis Lee
2001 – 2004

WINDSOR POET LAUREATE:
Mary Ann Mulhern
2019 – 2022
—
Samantha Badaoa (Youth Poet Laureate)
2019 – 2020
—
Marty Gervais
2011 – 2019, Poet Laureate Emeritus

 

Prince Edward Island

PROVINCIAL POET LAUREATE (PEI):
Julie Pellissier-Lush
2019 – present
—
Deidre Kessler
2016 – 2019
—
Diane Hicks Morrow
2013 – 2016
—
Hugh MacDonald
2009 – 2013
—
David Helwig
2008 – 2009
—
Frank Ledwell (1930 – 2008)
2004 – 2007
—
John Smith
2002 – 2004

Quebec

 

Saskatchewan 

PROVINCIAL POET LAUREATE (SK):
Bruce Rice
2019 – present
& Alasdair Rees
Youth Poet Laureate

Brenda Schmidt
2017-2018
—
Gerald Hill
2016 – 2017
—
Judith Krause
2014 – 2015
—
Donald Kerr
2011 – 2013
—
Robert Currie
2007 – 2010
—
Lousie B. Halfe
2005 – 2006
—
Glen Sorestad
2000 – 2004

MOOSE JAW
LIFETIME POETS LAUREATE:
Robert Currie & Gary Hyland

 

Yukon

PROVINCIAL POET LAUREATE (YT):
pj johnson
1994 – present