We need Own The Podium for clean tech
TORONTO—Last week’s signing of the Paris climate accord marks the start of a new age, with huge implications for Canada. The fossil fuels that power the global economy today are entering a permanent (if slow) decline. Gone are cozy assumptions of endless growth in oil exports. Winners in the high-stakes global energy market of the […]
Energy, tech sectors dominate list lobbying Prime Minister Trudeau
Organizations from the energy and technology sectors account for more than one-third of the lobbyists that have made contact with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau since he took power, according to the federal lobbyists registry. Communications reports on the registry, as of last week, showed Mr. Trudeau (Papineau, Que.) has had contact with 28 different lobbying […]
Canada should reassert itself as a global leader in food security: Experts
It’s a ‘timely time’ to talk about food security; tomorrow is Earth Day and world leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, will be gathering at the United Nations to formally sign the Paris climate agreement. And considering that climate change and the resulting weather unpredictability is a major contributing factor to insufficient food supplies, and […]
Canada’s Big Challenges: Morneau’s got bold rhetoric on an innovation agenda, but can he deliver?
In his first budget speech, Finance Minister Bill Morneau promised that within the next year the government will deliver its innovation agenda—“a new vision for Canada’s economy as a centre of global innovation, renowned for its science, technology, resourceful citizens and globally competitive companies.” This, he said, will set out “our plans for real change.” […]
The birth of global internet TV
Since it launched in Canada in 2011, the company has been building to create it into a service that’s available globally, said Anne Marie Squeo, director of corporate communications at Netflix. “Canada was our first international, all-streaming market … and we’ve been building our service globally from there,” Ms. Squeo told P&I in an exclusive […]
Experts warn of perils in federal-municipal funding arrangements
When the federal government has money to spend on innovation, municipal leaders are often quick to vie for some of it in hopes of creating their own local hubs of innovation. Many cities are trying to replicate the innovation boom that happened in California’s Silicon Valley and, to a certain degree, in Ontario’s Kitchener-Waterloo region. “It is kind of a […]
Why universal, affordable internet access is a job for everyone
OTTAWA—The future of internet access in Canada takes centre stage this week at a major hearing focused on whether it is time to update the rules associated with universal access to communications services. Canada has long had regulations in place that ensure that basic telephone service is available to everyone, using a funding model […]
Very little benefit to joining TPP, panelists tell Broadbent Institute conference
The Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement is a power grab by corporations, panelists at the Broadbent Institute’s Progress Summit said Saturday. “Trade deals are designed for corporations to benefit and not designed for workers,” said Canadian Labour Congress senior economist Angella MacEwen during a panel discussion on the TPP. “These aren’t trade deals, so why are we […]
Engage Canadians on open government: lessons learned from Tony Clement
Tony Clement, the former president of the Treasury Board, is credited with hosting the government’s first Google Hangout. He was criticized by some for trying too hard to “look cool.” On April 6, 2016, Scott Brison, the current president of the Treasury Board, will follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, to host a Google […]
Liberals light on details for green innovation spending, opposition wants answers
The government is committed to growing Canada’s green economy, says Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna, but critics are calling for a concrete plan. In an email interview with The Hill Times last week, Ms. McKenna (Ottawa Centre, Ont.) was light on details when asked about how the government intends to spend a collective $300-million a […]
