Élise Racicot began her career with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in 2002. In her first assignment, she became the first female Canadian trade commissioner in Iran. Ms. Racicot then worked on the integration of the Montréal regional office into the department’s national network; this was followed by 3 assignments in Brazil, including as head of mission for Quebec and, recently, as the senior trade commissioner for Canada’s Brazilian mission platform.

She also served for several years on the global council of the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service. She has served in various capacities at Headquarters, including in the areas of small and medium-sized enterprise export diversification, climate change, clean development finance and intergovernmental relations.

She was also involved in the development of a mentoring program, aimed at equity, for women diplomats.