Canada-U.S.

Canada and the United States: What Does it Mean to be Good Neighbours?

On Monday, October 27, the Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute will hold its annual conference on the Canada-US relationship.  The conference will focus on examining outstanding unsettled issues between Canada and the United States from both sides of the border and suggesting ways to resolve those issues. The event will gather many talented speakers from academia, public service, and the corporate world, including Michael Kergin, former Canadian Ambassador to the United States, and Paul Cellucci, former American Ambassador to Canada.  The conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Ottawa.

http://www.cdfai.org/conf2008/

Foreign Affairs

North-South Institute: Review

The North-South Institute (NSI) has published its bi-annual magazine “Review,” with this season’s keynote article focusing on the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between North and South Sedan in January 2005 and the challenges that local governments face in their efforts to rebuild a region devastated by decades of conflicts and neglect.  In addition, Roy Culpeper, president of the NSI, writes that it is crucial that the Canadian electorate engage federal candidates on important issues affecting development, both at home and abroad, especially because recent polls find that Canadians are involved and interested in the world beyond their borders. http://www.nsi-ins.ca/english/pdf/Review_july08_e.pdf

FOCAL: Energy in the Americas

The Canadian Foundation for the Americas (FOCAL) has released its July issue of “FOCALpoint: Canada’s Spotlight on the Americas,” with this month’s edition focusing on energy policy and security in the Americas.  Higher global energy prices, accompanied by a wave of “hydrocarbonism nationalism” in Latin America, has given rise to tensions between buying and selling nations in the Americas such as the US and Venezuela or Brazil and Bolivia, writes Robert Simpson, guest editor of this month’s edition.  Other articles in the newsletter explore issues of sustainability, fuel subsidies and Latin America’s oil companies.

http://www.focal.ca/publications/focalpoint/index_e.asp

Journal of Military and Strategic Studies Releases Summer 2008 Issue

The Journal of Military and Strategic Studies (JMSS) has published its summer 2008 issue, which includes six articles examining different aspects of security on the national and international stage.  Five of the six articles are student papers, including the three winners of the JMSS Awards of Excellence.  These papers highlight the exceptional work being done in the field by students around the world.  The editorial is provided by Andrew Sullivan and Cindy Stromer, the organizers of the 2008 Strategic Studies Student Conference.  The one non-student article selected for the issue is an examination of the use of dissuasion in American security policy. http://www.jmss.org/2008/summer/index2.htm

What More Will It Take to Clean Up Beijing?

As the Summer Games approach, it's unclear whether China's promise to supply clean air both to Olympic visitors and to the 15 million citizens of the host city has been achieved, writes John Allemang in a report published by the Liu Institute for Global Issues of the University of British Columbia (UBC).  "Air quality has improved from what it was," says UBC environmental researcher Hisham Zerriffi. "But my concern is that it's temporary. It's touch-and-go whether they will meet their targets for the Olympics, but the bigger issue is whether they can improve air quality in the longer term."

http://www.ligi.ubc.ca/?p2=modules/liu/news/view.jsp&id=329

Domestic Policy

Shortsighted Tax Policies Creating Unequal Burdens on Industries, Undermining Reform

Canadian governments are undercutting progress in tax reform with counter-productive policies that impose unequal tax burdens across assets and industries, according to a study published by the C.D. Howe Institute.  In a new report, leading tax scholars Duanjie Chen and Jack M. Mintz track progress by the federal and provincial governments in reducing the marginal effective tax rate (METR) on business investment, a key measure of tax competitiveness in the global economy.

http://www.cdhowe.org/pdf/commentary_270.pdf

Provinces Must Take Lead on Housing

Housing conditions have deteriorated for many Canadians over the past decade, and the relative dearth of affordable housing is raising alarms, writes David Snow of the Canada West Foundation.  With provincial housing ministers set to meet in Newfoundland and Labrador this September, Snow offers several points of advice they should keep in mind in order to improve housing affordability and reduce homelessness.  http://www.cwf.ca/V2/cnt/commentaries_200807280856.php

One Size Fits None: Putting Kids' Achievement First, Comes with Putting Kids First

In a new commentary from the Atlantic Institute for Maritime Studies, co-authors Charles Cirtwell and Bobby O’Keefe move the focus away from the current dilemma in New Brunswick’s education system and propose changes for the whole system with the intention of putting children first.  Cirtwell and O’Keefe write that the evidence is overwhelming that fundamental choice in the province’s education system is what New Brunswick needs if it wants to provide the very best education for future generations. However, that choice cannot be limited to choosing between early and late immersion or between core and intensive French.

http://www.aims.ca/library/OneSizeFitsNone.pdf

Economy

New Tools for a Richer, Greener Future

Canada lags its economic peers when it comes to investment in new plant and machinery for its workers, finds a new study from the C.D. Howe Institute.  Co-authors Robin Banerjee and William B.P. Robson note that countries with more capital investment per worker improve their competitive edge, raise living standards, and reduce environmental stress, and Canada’s underperformance on this measure underscores the nation’s need for tax and regulatory policies to spur private investment. http://www.cdhowe.org/pdf/ebrief_60.pdf

Developing Countries Sustain Growth in the World Economy

Thanks to the strong performance of many emerging markets in Asia and Latin America, the global economy is showing resilience in the face of the slowdown in the United States, Japan and Europe, according to the Conference Board of Canada’s summer 2008 issue of “World Outlook.”  According to the report, the world economy is expected to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2008, with Latin America growing by 4.4% this year and the Asia-Pacific region having a real gross domestic product growth of 4.7% this year.

http://www.conferenceboard.ca/press/2008/world-outlooksummer08.asp

Conquering Canada’s Competitive Ambivalence

Red Wilson and his colleagues on the Competition Policy Review Panel are trying to make Canadians more active and willing participants in competitive markets; what is missing, however, is a recommendation that would bring the provinces and the big cities into the front lines of the battle for competitiveness, writes Judith Maxwell of the Canadian Policy Research Networks. In a new commentary, Maxwell offers recommendations on how to make the Canadian Competitive Council, the proposed competition watchdog of the nation, more effective and give it a better chance of survival. http://www.cprn.org/documents/50309_EN.pdf

Study: Market Share in the Retail Trade Sector

General merchandisers lost market share on most fronts in 2007 with one notable exception, food and beverages, shows a new report from Statistics Canada.  In 2007, general merchandisers lost market share in six major commodity groupings while gaining in only two categories. The most notable shift in the product line of general merchandisers was the continuing loss in market share for clothing, footwear and accessories, while they gained market share in food and beverages.

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/080731/d080731b.htm

Education

AUCC Statement on Compete to Win

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) has released a statement on “Compete to Win,” the final report of the Competition Policy Review Policy, noting that they strongly support the panel’s view that high-quality university education and cutting-edge research are necessary if Canada is to compete in the global economy.  The AUCC’s statement goes on to describe the most competitive aspects of Canadian universities and highlights particular recommendations made by the panel that it most strongly supports.  http://www.aucc.ca/_pdf/english/statements/2008/competition_policy_07_24_e.pdf

Canadian Studies

University of Washington Becomes Member of the University of the Arctic

Growing international interest in the Arctic led the University of Washington in June to become a member of the University of the Arctic. UW is one of only two member institutions in the U.S.  Global warming, Inuit self-government and sovereignty issues related to melting of the Northwest Passage have led to increased international focus on the Arctic, said Nadine Fabbi, associate director of the UW Canadian Studies Center. The UW joined the network for multiple reasons, including opportunities to increase faculty and student mobility and research in the Arctic, Fabbi said. Additionally, membership could make a UW undergraduate program in circumpolar studies possible. 
http://uwnews.org/uweek/uweekarticle.asp?articleID=42961

Western Washington University Celebrates 30 Years of STUDY CANADA

Western Washington University's Center for Canadian-American Studies marked the 30th anniversary of its annual STUDY CANADA Summer Institute for K-12 Educators last month.  STUDY CANADA is the oldest and best-known Canadian studies outreach program of its kind in the U.S., attracting 24 social studies teachers this year to its annual workshop. Despite the fact that most states do not mandate Canadian studies curricula, registrants traveled from Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Washington State to attend the six-day WWU institute to gain a stronger foundation for teaching about Canada.  http://news.wwu.edu/go/doc/1538/218810/