Category: Participant Voices

One of the first techniques we learned during Canada Beyond 150 was scanning for ’weak signals’: taking in diverse sources on a contemporary issue, and identifying information that suggests potential disruptive changes to a system in the next ten to fifteen years. It goes beyond the expected future to consider the range of plausible outcomes.

Each Canada Beyond 150 team did several weeks of scanning for weak signals in their respective focus area. I was a member of the team looking at the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. In looking for weak signals, the team covered a diverse range of topics including impact bonds, microgrids, additive manufacturing, alternative modes of transportation, food sharing, and the psychology of being in nature. Our report traces our journey from this diverse range of topics to our policy intervention focused on creating an automated sustainability grading systems using new technologies such as blockchains.

I really appreciated learning about scanning for weak signals, because it is both easy to learn and a powerful technique for building a broader awareness of the current realities surrounding an issue, and how it may be changing.

I decided to start a scanning club in my policy team at the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. I asked everyone to think about the weak signal prompts as they read about Northern issues and events, and to bring their ideas to a short ‘scanning club’ meeting. We kept the tone fun and informal, and it became a team-building session. I was especially happy that it provided the students on the team with an opportunity to share their thinking and participate in policy discussions.

As other colleagues heard about it, they were also interested in participating. We opened up the scanning club to the other employees in the agency, including people in very different roles. Our shared discussions helped us create closer working relationships between the policy team and other parts of the agency. They also helped us develop a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with our mandate of strengthening Northern economies.

Resources:

More information on scanning for weak signals and how it supports foresight analysis

Laura Way

Laura Way is a Senior Policy Analyst with the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. Read more »

If digital technologies bring us closer, do they conversely run the risk of forcing us further apart?

Employing a Social Determinants of Health and Wellbeing lens, our group has explored this question in interviews with academics, NGO’s and government officials. Though new technology and profound socioeconomic changes occurring in parallel may be cause for concern, the news isn’t all bad.

Continue reading “A Precarious Balance: Technology and Wellbeing in a Changing World”

Jason Dunkerley

Through his lived experience of walking and talking the values of diversity and inclusion, Jason has sought to blaze his own trail and to invite others to accompany him on the journey. As a multiple Paralympic medallist in middle distance running events for athletes who are blind, he has sought to give back to a sport community which has given him so much and to encourage people of all abilities to realize the transformational benefits of sport, just as he himself did. Read more »

As we delve into the policy-making phase of Canada Beyond 150, I find myself reflecting on what a feminist government actually looks like. Beyond the superficial rhetoric and associated jargon, what does a feminist government mean to me? The stakes of not delivering on this complex, but important agenda are incredibly high—the possible consequences could bring more exclusion and inequality, especially for marginalized and vulnerable populations. And while I regret that this post doesn’t shed light on how we can achieve a feminist government, I want to share three key understandings that have emerged from many hours of consultations during this incredible journey with the Canada Beyond 150 feminist government team.

Continue reading “My Favourite F-Word and What I’ve Learned (So Far) About the Future of #FemGov in Canada”

Andreia Santos

Andreia is a proud Torontonian with a hyphenated identity. Currently an Analyst at Global Affairs Canada, she works on a range of issues relating to the rights and protection of children and youth with a particular focus on human trafficking and sexual and gender-based violence. Read more »

Have you ever felt like you were trapped inside a bubble? Have you ever wondered what’s going on outside your office walls? I was grappling with this feeling, which finally went away recently.

A few short months ago, I would have never believed how easy it was to collaborate with stakeholders from outside the Government, probably because I had never experienced this type of activity. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that a simple email was generally enough to almost immediately get a show of interest from dynamic people and leaders who are ready to give of their time to further a cause that is important to them. Everyone I contacted agreed to take part, even if they weren’t sure what it was all about or if they had never heard of the Canada Beyond 150 program. I was also pleasantly surprised by the generosity and candour of the stakeholders I contacted. We had honest and profound discussions, sometimes on touchy subjects such as private companies’ responsibility to the environment—subjects that do not have widely accepted solutions. These discussion sessions were one of the most important things I learned from the program, and I quickly realized that collaboration is the key to the development of relevant, integrative policies.

Étienne Lepage

I am a member of the Sustainable Development Team on the Canada Beyond 150 project.  Throughout the Insight and Scenario portions of the project, my team came to the point where we needed more information than we could provide ourselves. We realized that in order for us to look into what the future may look like, we need to talk to the people who are currently working on Sustainable Development Goals here in Canada.

Continue reading “Seeing Beyond My Own Perspective”

Frank Assu

Hello, my name is Frank Assu, otherwise known as Tlakwatsi. I am a member of the We Wai Kai First Nation on Quadra Island, BC.

I am a husband, father of 4, grandfather of 1, and a young 43 year old! I love fishing, tennis, hiking and biking. I am a volunteer fire fighter and first responder with Comox Fire Rescue. I currently work with Canada Border Services Agency in Comox, BC as a Border Services Officer. Read more »

The speed and convenience of commercial services has dramatically increased in recent years. Today, a whole host of things – music, news, books, and movies – are available instantly from the push of a digital button.  This isn’t a strictly digital phenomenon; physical services have also sped up and improved customer service as a result of digital interfaces and more real-time connectivity– you can order a faster and cheaper taxi through various apps, you can get mail-ordered groceries online, Amazon has a diaper subscription service, etc.

Continue reading “Is “Tell-Us-Once” the Future of Government Services?”

Kayle Hatt

Kayle Hatt has with an h.BA in Political Science and a Master’s in Public Administration and is currently an analyst working on airport policy at Transport Canada. Read more »