The global economy and Canada’s place in it are going through a period of tumultuous change, with an energy transition underway, and a major reconfiguration of trade patterns in the offing. The implications for Canada’s entire workforce are significant, but they are even more important for communities with higher concentrations of employment in sectors susceptible […]

Like its neighbourhood of houseboats that bob in the waters of Great Slave Lake, Yellowknife is used to ups and downs. For decades after the Second World War, the city was kept afloat by the two mighty gold mines on its outskirts. The Giant and the Con not only created hundreds of jobs for generations […]

Canada will host the 51st Group of Seven (G7) summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, from June 15 to 17, 2025. During last year’s meeting in Italy, G7 leaders issued a declaration stating that members would “remain committed to strengthening the rules-based multilateral trading system.” Since then, G7 countries have faced one of the most challenging geopolitical […]

This study explores the potential impact of generative AI on the Canadian workforce over the next five years. Through two novel approaches — using ChatGPT to evaluate the generative AI automation risk of occupations and employing the recently established Occupational and Skills Information System (OaSIS) database — we analyze how generative AI might transform work […]

Canada stands at a critical economic crossroads. From the urgent transition to net-zero emissions, to the pursuit of secure supply chains in critical minerals and energy technologies, to addressing a national productivity crisis, the opportunities for transformation are vast — but remain unevenly distributed. Much of the country’s innovation policy infrastructure remains concentrated in major […]

At the head of the Douglas Channel, on British Columbia’s northwest coast, lie the ancestral lands of the Haisla people. Land, water and fishing have long been central to their way of life. The arrival of European settlers ushered in a period of disease, oppression and discrimination from which the Haisla people are still recovering. […]

The winding 300-kilometre Cabot Trail that loops around the rugged coastline of the northern tip of Cape Breton Island offers views of rolling green hills, steep cliffs and the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean. Originally know as Unama’ki by the Mi’kmaq, the island has seen significant turmoil over the years as the industries on […]

As part of the IRPP’s Community Transformations Project, we’ve thought a lot about how external shocks can disproportionately affect local workforces. Even when the shock seems manageable at the national level, it can significantly disrupt economic activity in certain communities across the country, with potentially long-lasting social and economic consequences. Our work has largely focused […]

U.S. President Donald Trump may have thought tariffs would push Canada toward greater integration with the U.S., but they have done the opposite. Canadians are avoiding American ­products, cancelling vacations and even selling their properties down south. Some still hold out hope for negotiations with the Trump administration despite the continually changing goal posts, broken […]

The following is a chapter from the 1979 IRPP-Harvard University book, The Future of North America: Canada, the United States, and Quebec Nationalism. Edited by Elliot J. Feldman and Neil Nevitte. Walter Gordon (1906-1987) was an influential Canadian accountant, businessman, philanthropist and politician who served as Minister of Finance under Lester B. Pearson. Two central […]