5th Annual Gordon Osbaldeston Lecture - Featuring John Furlong

Nov 18 2010

In a passionate speech that had the audience on their feet at the end, John Furlong, CEO of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games delivered the 2010 Gordon Osbaldeston Lecture, . "A Vision Too Far? Lessons From the Games That Changed Canada," in Ottawa on November 18, 2010.

Click here to watch an interview with John Furlong.

Click here to listen to John Furlong's speech.

Innovation in Canada's Resource Sectors

Oct 22 2010

Canada's resource industries contribute nearly $150B to the Canadian economy, roughly 12% of GDP. As a central pillar of the Canadian economy, the natural resource sectors must maintain a globally competitive position, while also addressing new challenges including environmental sustainability and growing expectations from civil society for public engagement. In order to meet these emerging challenges, developing an innovation strategy for the natural resource sector must be considered an essential goal for both the resource industries, and for the Canadian government. On October 22, the Public Policy Forum convened a one-day conference in Calgary to discuss approaches to innovation in the resource sectors.

This gathering brought together senior representatives from the mining, forestry, oil and gas, and agricultural resource sectors in Canada, as well as leaders from the public and academic sectors. The goal of the conference was to better understand where innovation is currently occurring in the resource sectors and to identify new areas of opportunity. Participants sought to identify specific actions that can help make Canada's resource sectors more creative, competitive, and resilient.

Avrim Lazar, President & CEO, Forest Products Association of Canada provided a keynote luncheon address on Innovation in Public Engagement - bringing together stakeholders in new and provocative ways.

Click here to listen to Avrim Lazar's speech.

You can also access speaker presentations and photos from the conference on the event page. 

Making Parliament More Functional and Relevant

Sep 16 2010

Presenting the Keynote Address at the Question Question Period conference Ed Broadbent gives his thoughts on improving the civility and functionality of Parliament - both through rules changes and electoral reforms. He argues that in order to make Parliament more relevant for Canadians we must ensure that it serves its intended purpose as a platform for honest, articulate debate. The House of Commons, he suggests, should be able to accommodate political conviction without the unruly behavior we see today. But, he notes that our current party system and method of electing MPs hampers efforts to reduce the animosity in the House - major structural reforms in these areas, he argues, are needed.

23rd Annual Testimonial Dinner & Awards

Apr 29 2010

Each year at the Forum's Testimonial Dinner, over one thousand leaders from all sectors of Canadian society gather to pay tribute to distinguished Canadians who have made an outstanding contribution to the quality of public policy and public management in our country.

These men and women from various walks of professional life exemplify the Public Policy Forum's commitment to achieving greater understanding and cooperation between the public and private sectors to improve the quality of government in Canada. A jury appointed by the Public Policy Forum selects the honourees from among candidates nominated by Forum members.

The 23rd Annual Testimonial Dinner & Awards was held on April 29, 2010 in Toronto. The event was co-chaired by The Honourable Darrell Dexter, Premier of Nova Scotia, and Chantal Hébert, Political Columnist, The Toronto Star.

This years honourees included Phil Fontaine, Carole Taylor, Tony Dean and Preston Manning. The 2010 Hyman Solomon Award for Excellence in Public Policy Journalism was presented to Bernard Derome and the 2010 Emerging Leaders Award was presented to Gabriel Bran Lopez.

For more information on the event, please visit the Testimonial Dinner page.

4th Annual Gordon Osbaldeston Lecture - Featuring Martha Piper

Nov 24 2009

As this year’s Gordon Osbaldeston lecturer, Dr. Piper provided her insights on how the public service can adapt to our changing world. At the heart of her lecture was a single question: Will our public policies and institutions, many created in the previous century, allow us to address complex 21st century challenges? If not, how must the role of the public service change and how must public servants engage – or make contact with – stakeholders, communities and the public?

With a background in epidemiology and biostatistics, as well as a decade of experience as UBC’s president, Dr. Martha Piper offered a unique perspective on public policy and public service in the 21st century. Born in Ohio and a longtime Canadian citizen, she received the Order of Canada in 2002. Her commitment to public life remains strong. 

In 2007, Dr. Piper assumed Board memberships with CARE Canada, the Institute for Research on Public Policy, the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation and the Dalai Lama Centre for Peace and Education. In 2008,Dr. Piper joined the Canadian Institutes of Advanced Research and assumed the Chair of the Board of the National Institute of Nanotechnology. Dr.Piper currently is a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Montreal, TransAlta Corporation, Shoppers Drug Mart, and Grosvenor Americas Ltd and is a member of the Trilateral Commission, an organization of leading thinkers and former leaders from North America, Europe and Japan.

A Tribute to Kevin Lynch, Former Clerk of the Privy Council

Sep 24 2009

From 2006-2009, Mr. Lynch served as the Clerk of the Privy Council, which capped a distinguished public service career that included such prominent roles as the Deputy Minister of Industry and Deputy Minister of Finance, as well as Canada's representative to the International Monetary Fund. During his tenure as Clerk, he championed public service renewal and made significant contributions to public policy and governance in Canada. Mr. Lynch has also demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to strengthening relationships between the public service and the business, academic, and not-for-profit communities in our country. He has been an exemplary public servant, elevating  the importance of the public service as one of Canada's strengths.

To recognize the tremendous impact that Mr. Lynch has had throughout his career, this event brought together Canadian leaders who have been inspired by his dedication to public service and have been influenced by his enduring efforts to improve the quality of government.

Science Day in Canada - Lunchtime Addresses

May 27 2009

On May 27th, senior leaders from government, business and the research community gathered to discuss the state of science in Canada and its role in Canada's economic recovery and global impact. 

For more details of the event and speaker presentations, click here.

The Honourable Preston Manning's lunchtime speech, entitled  "Stimulating an Ailing Economy: The Crucial Role of Science, Technology and Innovation", can be downloaded in audio format on this page.

To download a text version of his speech, click here.