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Report 6: Three Areas in Which Pandemic Management Could Have Been Better

Members of Canada’s political class should on balance receive at least a passing grade for their management of the pandemic, and Canadians should be both proud and worried about policymakers’ performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The three areas in which they could have done better include: keeping schools open, using technology to combat the pandemic, and prioritizing vaccine targeting.

Learn moreabout Report 6: Three Areas in Which Pandemic Management Could Have Been Better

Publication

Rhetoric vs. Results: Shaping Policy to Benefit Canada’s Middle Class

Canada’s standard of living has been slipping: Between 1945 and 1976, parents could expect that their children would make twice the salary they did but today’s parents would be waiting 400 years for that to happen. Despite a professed desire to help the middle class, governments have done very little to do so; they fail to address this issue at their peril. This paper by PPF Fellow Don Wright provides several ways to fix the problem.

Publication

We Want Real Partnership: UNDRIP Gives Us the Means

In April 2020, the Energy Future Forum convened a plenary session on the critical importance of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and full Indigenous participation and ownership in Canada’s energy development. The following is a blended transcript edited for clarity and conciseness of Indigenous economic leaders Alicia Dubois, Tabatha Bull, Mark Podlasly, J.P. Gladu and Kim Baird. These leaders spoke about their vision for economic reconciliation, the challenge of access to capital and the opportunity UNDRIP presents to catalyze economic development by making real partnership a prerequisite for any project to move forward in Canada.

Publication

Automation, AI and COVID-19

A majority of Canadians indicate they have at least a basic understanding of AI and automation. Politicians have an opportunity to seize upon this perceived knowledge to address coming challenges by linking COVID-19 solutions to challenges — and potentially positives — presented by AI and automation. This new report by Peter Loewen and Blake Lee-Whiting shows signs that Canada has not seen a large populist backlash to the pandemic, but that could be coming, perhaps against immigration policies, if citizens feel the government is not following through on job creation.

Policy Speaking

Ep.54: Critical casualties? The Dichotomy & Discrepancy of Essential Work and Emerging Industries

In this week’s episode of Policy Speaking, Edward Greenspon connects with Jerry Dias, President of Unifor Canada. They reflect on the state of the ‘union’, the impact of the pandemic on Canada’s auto, manufacturing & service industries and the constant transition to new & different work. Jerry shares thoughts on industrial policy based on U.S. protectionism, the roles government, business and consumers play and how technology is not the workers’ enemy.

Policy Speaking

Podcast: What is Reconciliation About?

Last October, PPF welcomed Murray Sinclair into our honouree circle. In an on-stage interview he spoke about the state of reconciliation five years after the TRC. In light of the recent discovery of the remains of 2015 children at a former residential school in Kamloops, PPF is reposting the discussion.

Policy Speaking

Ep.53: Brave New Data

Vass Bednar takes over as host of Policy Speaking, for a special Brave New Work discussion on new data policymakers can use in this digital era. Joining the podcast is Paul Cowan, Chief Marketing Officer at FreshBooks who talks about the birds-eye-view insights his accounting company gleaned during the COVID economic crisis, and how sharing those trends helped Canada's policymakers. We also have Caitlin Stanley, Regional Manager at GoFundMe who talks about the early data points her company sees like rises in GoFundMes for medical expenses – even in Canada – and for other basic necessities during the pandemic. Finally we sit down with Murad Hemmadi, the Ottawa correspondent at The Logic to talk about the shift in public opinion on data sharing, from controversies of the past to the historic credit and debit card debt info sharing agreement begun by VISA and Interac with Canada's government.

Publication

Managing Transformation in Disrupted Sectors

There are lessons to be learned from industries that have survived and thrived through disruption, as well as those that have failed to navigate industry transformation. We need to learn from the past while we look for innovative ways of working together to rebuild the economy. To achieve these goals, we need to plan for inevitable change as all sectors, no matter how resilient writes Lori Turnbull. With the right tools, workers, employers and sectors can fortify themselves in a new economy.

Policy Speaking

Ep.52: When Your Boss is an Algorithm

Vass Bednar takes over as host of Policy Speaking, for a special Brave New Work discussion on algorithms that pit workers – especially precarious workers – against the clock. Joining the podcast is Emily Guendelsberger, author of 'On the Clock', who wonders: how do you measure misery at work and what do political solutions for misery look like when policymakers are insulated from the dehumanising daily experience of low-wage work. Later in the podcast, labour relations expert Sean O’Brady talks about how technology is driving workers out of work, rather than improving their work. And he touches on union solidarity-from-home.

Publication

Navigating Precarity in Non-standard Work

An estimated 30 percent of the Canadian workforce is engaged in non-standard, precarious work, with an inability to transition to something more stable. As the labour market has been upended by the COVID-19 pandemic, now is a critical time to examine what has played an integral part in shaping the current landscape of our labour market. This paper explores policy considerations around data, benefits and alternatives to envision a future where precarity does not have to be a reality.

Project

Skills for the Post-Pandemic World

The Future of Work is here to stay. This new PPF project explores the policy implications for skills, training, and employment for workers and learners across Canada.

Publication

Report 5: Reaching the Vaccine Hesitant

As the supply and availability of vaccines continue to increase across Canada, the only limiting factor on vaccination rates will soon be the willingness of otherwise-reluctant individuals to be vaccinated. Examining data from the Media Ecosystem Observatory, Dr. Peter Loewen provides a real-time view of the vaccine hesitant in Canada. Who are these people? Where do they live? How informed are they about COVID-19?

Publication

From Investment to Action: Building a Canada-wide Child Care System

As the current federal government endeavours to be the first to act materially on the promise of child care for all, questions of quality, affordability, accessibility and inclusion will stand in line behind jurisdictional bargaining.

Project

How can a mission-oriented approach to innovation policy help harness Canada’s strengths and resources to solve our most pressing collective challenges?

In the wake of COVID-19, Canada has an opportunity to reorient its innovation policy to maximize economic, social and environmental benefits. Through this project, the Public Policy Forum and Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship will chart an ambitious and practical road map for harnessing Canada’s innovation potential to drive economic growth and respond to our most pressing collective challenges.

Academy

Meet the 2021/22 Fellows

Action Canada and PPF are proud to announce the new cohort of Fellows who start their Fellowship in June 2021.

Article

Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression: Harms Reduction

PPF has been researching online hate and other harms alongside the future of journalism since 2016. The hate-motivated murders of a Muslim family in London, Ontario this week are issues examined in the recent report, Harms Reduction, of PPF's Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression and the related findings of the Citizens Assembly on Democratic Expression.

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Report 6: Three Areas in Which Pandemic Management Could Have Been Better

Rhetoric vs. Results: Shaping Policy to Benefit Canada’s Middle Class

We Want Real Partnership: UNDRIP Gives Us the Means

Automation, AI and COVID-19

Ep.54: Critical casualties? The Dichotomy & Discrepancy of Essential Work and Emerging Industries

Podcast: What is Reconciliation About?

Ep.53: Brave New Data

Managing Transformation in Disrupted Sectors

Ep.52: When Your Boss is an Algorithm

Navigating Precarity in Non-standard Work

Skills for the Post-Pandemic World

Report 5: Reaching the Vaccine Hesitant

From Investment to Action: Building a Canada-wide Child Care System

How can a mission-oriented approach to innovation policy help harness Canada’s strengths and resources to solve our most pressing collective challenges?

Meet the 2021/22 Fellows

Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression: Harms Reduction

Stay up-to-date with our policy initiatives and events

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