Universities wrong to accept so many foreign medical students, leave us holding the bag when they leave
The tension between Canada and Saudi Arabia has exposed backroom deals by universities with rich foreign nations for admission to medical schools that didn’t put Canadians’ interest first. As a result we are now left in limbo, and lives could be put at risk due to the possible shortage of medical professionals in hospitals if […]
Bill C-69: Is anybody thinking about how to implement it?
In a recent piece for The American Interest, political scientist Francis Fukuyama laments that public policy schools are failing because they train students to conduct policy analysis, but completely ignore implementation. The kids are designing ever-more elegant policy proposals, but not how to actually implement them. One wonders if Bill C-69, the federal government’s sweeping […]
There’s no one-size-fits-all sex-ed policy
OTTAWA—Ontario’s hot, steamy summer just got warmer, as Ontario Premier Doug Ford fulfilled his campaign promise to cancel the sex-education curriculum that was introduced in 2015 and to revert to a dated, 20-year-old version. That reversal lasted one entire weekend because as of Monday the Ford government had flipped to a 2014 plan. The Ford […]
Pay your copying bill, or pay a much bigger bill
In a recent op-ed in this paper, Glenn Rollans from the Association of Canadian Publishers called on government to encourage educators to come back to the negotiating table for copyright licensing. One simple change at the Copyright Board would go a long way toward that outcome —an increase in statutory damages. Nothing encourages payment like […]
Parliament should consider U of O model to support staff
I have read many articles in your publication about a lack of resources or knowledge of resources for parliamentary and political staffers to help them with problems regarding their roles, health, workloads, goals, harassment, professional responsibilities and relationships, stress, and other important matters. While obviously a different context, I wonder if it might be worthwhile […]
Amidst chaos, G7 Summit unleashed a quiet, yet powerful force
Families ripped apart, children detained: these tragic images are flooding our timelines and televisions. Halfway around the world, a boat of migrants travelling from Libya is turned away by Italy. One after the other, more boatloads of people in search of safety are left lingering on the open seas, in limbo and unsure if or […]
Trudeau government’s promise on Indigenous education gets a failing grade
What would you do if education officials in your children’s school board falsified graduation rates or failed to track why so many children were unable to pass basic literacy tests? What would you do if, year after year, education officials covered their tracks by ignoring orders to compile useable data to ensure better education outcomes? […]
Canada leads the way to a historical pledge of $3.8 billion at G7 for girls’ education in conflict and crises
It’s been more than five years since I spoke to Zeinab, a young girl from Syria living in a tattered tent within a makeshift refugee camp in Lebanon. But her story is seared into my memory, one of both paralyzing fear and burgeoning hope. It’s Zeinab who I think of today when celebrating the G7’s historic […]
Canada needs its youth to show swagger to be global leaders in the entrepreneurship and innovation game
Our global reputation for being nice means we sometimes take a back seat on the world stage when it comes to creating the next big ideas, organizations, or initiatives. This puts Canadians at a disadvantage in business, economic, and political development. My co-founder and I are both Canadian. We started 42 Technologies, a big data […]
Increase in longevity a remarkable success, but can also pose big economic, social risks
TORONTO—How much health care, education, and other public goods we value can we afford? It’s an important question for Canada as we face the challenges of an aging society and weak productivity growth. It’s certainly something each of our political parties should be thinking about as they prepare their platforms for next year’s federal election. […]
