In 2024, we welcomed our sixth cohort, with 29 new students representing 12 different nationalities. We hosted series of events, among them our second annual 9I制作厂免费 Max Bell Lectures, the Slater Family Canada-US Policy Series, our annual trip to Ottawa, and various other notable guest speakers. We celebrated five cohorts of MPPs at our first (of many!) reunions. And, we bid a heartfelt farewell to our founding director, Chris Ragan, we remain deeply grateful for his leadership and the strong foundation he built at 9I制作厂免费. His contributions have shaped a thriving academic environment that continues to inspire future policymakers.聽
Here are some highlights of our eventful year!
Our fifth cohort completed their capstone research projects in their聽Policy Lab. MPPs got a chance to apply their skills and knowledge in real-world contexts, working on projects sponsored by leading organizations such as TELUS, Intact聽Foundation, Transport Canada, INTERAC, and other organisations.
Alumnus Aftab Ahmed MPP'23 and his Policy Lab team got featured in聽CBC for featuring their team鈥檚 on tackling the negative implications of a less-cash society, as well as his research work on this issue. After 厂补苍诲谤颈苍别听顿别蝉蹿辞谤驳别蝉 MPP'23 participated in our聽inaugural Evaluation Capacity Case Challenge (EC3), she wrote an for a special issue on Evaluation Capacity Building for the Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation.
贵辞谤听惭础齿听Policy聽this year:聽Vincent Rigby and Eugene Lang wrote on聽Canada's insufficiency on a long-term strategy for supporting Ukraine in the war against Russia,聽Chris Ragan called carbon pricing a national dumpster fire, and Chloe Aboud and Sean Celi wrote the winning Jack Layton Prize essay聽on the role of competition in reducing inequality.
Events
Max Bell hosted a wide variety of events this year, encouraging discussions on relevant topics between members of the Max Bell community and beyond. This year was full of making connections and sharing knowledge, which our school was proud to facilitate.聽
Our first conference of the year gathered individuals and organisations to explore the intersections between advancing climate initiatives and achieving policy objectives in Canada. Unexpected Climate Connections聽focused聽on the intersection of the economy and the environment,聽 co-organised with The Walrus and sponsored by TELUS.
Each year the Max Bell School offers a graduate student essay contest and accompanying policy discussion in collaboration with the Douglas-Coldwell-Layton foundation to celebrate the memory of 9I制作厂免费 alum, activist, and scholar Jack Layton. MPPs Chloe Aboud and Sean Celi won the 2024 Jack Layton Prize for a Better Canada with their essay Invisible Hand, Visible Impact 鈥� Unlocking the Role of Competition and Reducing Inequality, which addressed the rising problem of corporate concentration.
Max Bell hosted a distinguished panel聽of diplomats and government officials of Global South nations for an enlightening discussion.聽The panel discussion was organized by MPPs Jamil Tanimu, Pallawi Anand, and Rebecca Kresta. Representing a collective population of 1.940 billion, the panel explored the potential of enhanced partnerships between Canada and the Global South.聽
In April, we hosted a launch to celebrate the release of , co-authored by Max Bell professor Pearl Eliadis. The authors engaged in an important discussion on the need for a paradigm shift from 鈥渢reating鈥� homelessness to preventing it.聽They further discussed the best approaches to preventing homelessness. A video of the panel can be found . 聽
The second annual聽Evaluation Case Capacity Challenge聽included 4 teams who were challenged to create policy to embed a sustainable evaluation practice at Fraser Health Authority鈥檚 virtual health department. Policy scholars from across North America collaborated to generate creative solutions. 聽
We celebrated the fifth cohort of the聽Max Bell School of Public Policy at our first reunion, dubbed AlumFive. Alumni and others involved with the success of the school joined to celebrate聽its accomplishments. Outgoing director Christopher Ragan reflected on his time at Max Bell, expressing his appreciation for having been a part of the school鈥檚 history.
The annual installment of Max Bell鈥檚 Slater Family Canada-US Policy Series took place in May. Max Bell collaborated once again with the Wilson Center to聽discuss avenues for collaboration between the US and Canada in response to China鈥檚 rise on the world stage. Scholars and professionals addressed topics such as trade, human rights, and regional security.聽聽
For the second year, Max Bell facilitated a series of lectures on economic ideas for a stronger Canada. The 2024 lectures were hosted in Vancouver, Montreal, and Toronto. They drew from newly released book, , which exposes the social and economic costs of corporate concentration in Canada. Authors Vass Bednar and Denise Hearn spoke with guest interviewers to further their discussion of how to聽create economic and corporate policy for a stronger Canada.聽
In November, incoming director Jennifer Welsh moderated an important roundtable with academic and UN peacekeeping experts. The participants discussed methods for future UN peacekeeping operations in an era of increasing geopolitical instability.聽
We were proud to host a variety of guest speakers聽invited by our faculty to expose students to diverse areas of public policy. Speakers included聽Alasdair Roberts, who discussed his new book on the importance of adaptability, and Dr. Joanne Liu, who spoke about her new book on migration and new role as targets hospitals have taken on in the post 9/11 era of fear.
The Max Bell School of Public Policy thanks every student, alumni, faculty member, scholar, and staff member that made this past year聽such an amazing one. We鈥檙e looking forward to another eventful year in 2025!聽
