insight & evidence
Lessons for Canada from Nova Scotia’s Experience by Bernie Miller Introduction: Volkswagen and Canada’s Ambition for Leadership in the Green Economy Imagine it is late 2027 and the Volkswagen plant in St. Thomas, Ontario, funded with a $16B federal subsidy, is ready to go into production. There is a grand ceremony. Dr. Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG addresses...
By Bernie Miller Economics and public policy have lacked a unifying, people focused objective. Committing to an overriding objective of promoting opportunities for the well-being of all citizens could be our best economic development policy. This paper is intended to assimilate and generate knowledge about new ways of approaching the question of how to achieve inclusive economic growth and...
Place Based Economic Policy By Bernie Miller Developing economic policy for a region has traditionally tended to follow political, jurisdictional boundaries. Therefore, there was always a Nova Scotia economic development policy – one size fits all. If positive GDP growth were achieved overall, it would be deemed a success. More frequently, if it resulted in low overall growth, a failure. To the...
What the Data Tell Us By Peter Nicholson This document presents a statistical portrait of the pre-pandemic state of health care in Canada. The data are placed both in an international comparative context and also disaggregated by province.[1] The portrait is focussed on 2019 and the years immediately preceding, owing partly to the latest data that is available, and partly to avoid the exceptional...
Achieving Well Being through Convergence, Collective Action and Collective Impact by Bernie Miller The 40 years prior to the pandemic was far from a “golden age of shared prosperity in North America” and it was more like the “Gilded Age” of the late 19th Century. In March 2020, when COVID-19 changed lives across the globe, Nova Scotia – and many other societies — were faced with puzzles...
TO CONTROL COVID-19 IN CANADA Testing is not an end in itself but is undertaken to inform the decisions needed to control the virus responsible for COVID-19 while minimizing unintended consequences. In A “Smart” Testing Strategy To Control Covid-19 In Canada, Vivek Goel has partnered with the PolicyWonks, Peter Nicholson and Jeff Larsen, to argue that Canada should be testing a great deal more...
PROTECTING CANADA’S BORDER AGAINST INTRODUCTION OF COVID-19 Updated July 14, 2020 COVID-19 continues to pose a social and economic challenge at our border. In Protecting Canada’s Border Against Introduction Of Covid-19 Peter Nicholson and Jeff Larsen have partnered with Dr. Vivek Goel to propose a procedure to manage international entry to Canada in a way that minimizes the risk of introducing...
How to Let People In, While Keeping the Virus Out COVID-19 presents a particular challenge at our border, the 49th Parallel which is the longest undefended border in the world. The Border Dilemma, a paper created by Peter Nicholson and Jeff Larsen, describes a path where we can let people in while keeping COVID-19 out. The following is a short excerpt from the paper –...
A Five-Point Strategy to Reopen with Confidence COVID-19 is here and we must live and work with it being present. Test, Trace, Repeat is a five-point strategy, created by Peter Nicholson and Jeff Larsen, to reopen the economy in Nova Scotia (and elsewhere) with confidence. The following is a short excerpt from the strategy – please download Test, Trace, Repeat – A Five-Point...
PolicyWonks.ca is the brainchild of Peter Nicholson and Jeff Larsen. It’s a place to share ideas about innovation, the economy, science and society, with a focus on Nova Scotia, the Atlantic provinces and Canada. Bernie Miller has joined us in publishing on this site. If you are someone who studies or develops strategies and political policies, with a keen interest in...
insight & evidence