Immigration policy must build bridges and align with economic, social, education and multicultural policy
I was recently invited to share my thoughts and take a futuristic peek at the role of immigration in the post-COVID-19 economic recovery. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada invited me to speak at its annual executive leadership summit that included more than 250 decision-makers in the executive branch. My presentation spanned the unresolved immigration issues…
Immigrant wages in oil and gas extraction in Canada are 71 per cent higher than in manufacturing and are rising faster than in other sectors
By Mark Milke and Ven Venkatachalam Canadian Energy Centre A few years ago, one of us took an early morning taxi ride in Vancouver. The driver, originally from Latin America, began to complain – without prompting – about how crazy it was that local anti-oil-and-gas protesters were trying to block the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.…
Canadians believe in equality and compassion; we don’t believe in pitting one group against another
Canada has always prided itself on being one of the most open and least racist countries in the world. This view may not have always been true, particularly when it comes to our past immigration policies, which only became colour neutral in the 1960s. But since then, and continuing today, the vast majority of our…
The only way to stop people from fleeing their countries is to hold their governments' culpable for their citizen's suffering
Even when boundaries define arbitrary lines between territories, they embody deeper symbolic, cultural, historical and religious meaning that’s often contested for legitimacy. Our belief that borders are indisputable has at times led to remarkable efforts to establish permanent barriers as statements of sovereignty and against foreign intrusion. The Great Wall of China, built for defence…
There are surprising commonalities in the rise and fall of 11 historic empires. Canada is on the same path
Could Canada soon meet its end, given its many divides and increasing public debt? If Sir John Glubb is right, the answer is yes. Glubb’s 1976 work, The Fate of Empires and Search for Survival, found surprising commonalities in the rise and fall of 11 historic empires. Although they spanned 3,000 years and varied geography,…
Of more than 33 million international child migrants, most are from Africa and Asia, according to UNICEF estimates. Many carry the scarring trauma of war, gun violence, poverty and human trafficking. Some travel with their parents, some alone. But not much is known about how these children fare once displaced. As a result, their physical…
Arts-based research project will help young Syrian women articulate the challenges they face – and the supports they’ve found
Jasmine Nathoo considered herself fortunate as she joined high-school classes after moving from Kenya to Canada as a teen. She already spoke English and came from an academically strong program. Yet it was still a challenge. “I had to repeat some courses which weren’t recognized. I was having to advocate for myself in the school…
Four areas of focus – now and in the coming years – are interprovincial trade, streamlined taxation, immigration and innovation
Social engineers are eager for Canadians to buy into the same madness touted across the globe for post-pandemic recovery: more government spending. Now is precisely when technocrats must take a back seat and let markets take the wheel. On Nov. 30, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland presented the 2020 Fall Economic Statement to Parliament. The report…
Two centuries ago, clergyman Thomas Malthus expounded the proposition that population always outruns food supply. He said population increases geometrically while food supply increases, at best, only arithmetically. Half a century ago the Green Revolution, enabling massive increases in agricultural production, allayed such fears. Arguably, however, it will be impossible to repeat that revolution. Even…
English language learners in Grades 7 to 9 perform worse than monolingual classmates in vocabulary, grammar and reading comprehension
A sizable proportion of junior high school students whose first language is not English are falling behind in oral language and literacy skills, according to a recent linguistics study. After testing 227 Edmonton and Vancouver English language learners in Grades 7 to 9, University of Alberta's Johanne Paradis and her colleagues found that many performed below…
I was recently invited to share my thoughts and take a futuristic peek at the role of immigration in the post-COVID-19 economic recovery. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada invited me to speak at its annual executive leadership summit that included more than 250 decision-makers in the executive branch. My presentation spanned the unresolved immigration issues…
