An aide to Gregor Robertson said Vancouver's mayor won't be globetrotting for the time being.
Since May, Robertson has visited Paris, Singapore and London, in addition to domestic trips to Penticton and Saskatoon.
"The mayor doesn't have any trips scheduled for out of Canada for the rest of the year at this time," director of policy and communications Kevin Quinlan told the Courier.
Robertson was part of the $100,000 Vancouver Economic Commission trade junket to Canada Olympic House in London on the first weekend of August. He missed Canada Day celebrations in Vancouver to attend the July 1-4 World Cities Summit in Singapore where organizers paid $2,902.94 for his flights and hotel room. Quinlan said the trip cost taxpayers a net $327.
Taxpayers were billed $1,076.12 for the inaugural B.C. Mayors' Caucus May 16-18 in Penticton and $3,101.23 for Robertson's trip to Saskatoon to attend the June 1-4 Federation of Canadian Municipalities convention.
The string of trips began May 9 when Robertson and assistant Lara Honrado departed for Stuttgart, Germany, to attend the FMX animation, effects and video games conference.
Robertson cancelled his late afternoon flight on May 12 from Frankfurt to Paris to take a direct midday train from Stuttgart to Paris instead. Quinlan said Robertson met West Vancouver writer and artist Doug Coupland in Paris to prepare for the May 14-16 New Cities Summit.
Taxpayers were billed $314.32 to cancel Robertson's airline ticket and $451.63 for his train transportation. A $109.98 refund was granted for cancellation of the Stuttgart to Frankfurt train ticket. Robertson's two nights in the Stuttgart Maritim Hotel cost $362.15.
Robertson spoke in the opening session of the Paris convention on May 14. Coupland showed off his "V-Pole" wi-fi, streetlight and vehicle charger concept at the summit.
Documents obtained via Freedom of Information show the mayor's office manager Alison Arisheh sought reimbursement from the Paris event promoter for Robertson and Honrado's $5,140.87 travel and accommodation expenses on May 25. But the New Cities Foundation finally reimbursed the city two weeks ago, according to Quinlan.
The New Cities Foundation formed Aug. 13, 2010 in Geneva, Switzerland as a non-profit institution "dedicated to improving the quality of life and work in the 21st century global city" under chairman John Rossant, head of World Economic Forum organizer PublicisLive. Robertson met with Rossant in New York in April 2010 during a trip on which he also visited donors to his mayoral nomination and representatives of the Natural Resource Defense Council and Rockefeller Brothers Fund.
In a Feb. 11, 2011 email, obtained via FOI, Rossant invited Robertson to join the NCF board of trustees, which includes senior executives of GE and Cisco.
"Cities have the potential to be humanity's most important source of innovation, creativity and wealth creation," Rossant wrote. In a March 2011 update, Rossant told Robertson he was seeking alliances with non-profit organizations like the Climate Group, Clinton Climate Initiative and the Rockefeller, Ford and Casey foundations.
Rossant told Robertson he expected board of trustees' membership would require "a maximum one day of in-person presence per year" and members would receive "privileged invitations" to attend the summit and be invited to take part in "all of the foundation's activities should you so wish."
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