On November 24th, 2022, the Lawrence National Centre for Policy & Management hosted the 2022 Policy Summit, titled, Realizing Canada’s Potential in an Era of Global Volatility, at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. The day-long Summit, which also marked the 20th anniversary of the centre, convened thought leaders representing business, government and other key stakeholders across Canada to discuss national policy priorities in the post-pandemic world.
From price instability to talent scarcity, fallouts from geopolitical conflicts, the fourth industrial revolution and Net Zero imperatives, Canada faces substantial, disruptive forces. These forces intensified when Canada’s long-term growth was already projected to decline. Against this backdrop, the Summit explored ways in which Canada could build economic resilience, as well as generate sustained growth and prosperity, putting particular emphasis on fostering innovation and enhancing human capital. The purpose of the Summit was to not only examine such critical issues, but also propose concrete, actionable policy recommendations and drive action from stakeholder towards a dynamic and robust future for Canada.
Summit Programming
The Summit began with opening remarks from the Centre Director on the objectives and agenda for the day, as well as remarks from the Dean of Ivey Business School on how the school was repositioning its strategy to address critical issues facing organizations and societies.
The opening remarks were followed by a keynote address by the Chair of LNC’s Advisory Council and former Governor of Bank of Canada, Stephen Poloz, which set the economic stage for the panel discussions to follow.
The first panel discussion was constructed to draw out sectoral perspectives on the opportunities, obstacles and lessons in scaling innovations and creating socio-economic impact. The second panel examined the role of policy in developing innovation ecosystems for effectively support commercialization and growth.
Next, a fireside chat with Thomas d’Aquino reveals some important lessons in policymaking through his collaboration with the late Jack Lawrence, who inspired the establishment of the Lawrence National Centre (LNC).
The third panel brought sectoral insights into the major shifts in skills demand and changing nature of work, delineating the workforce needed for the future. The fourth panel examined pathways through which Canada can grow and build a resilient workforce that increases opportunities for everyone, including Indigenous populations and racialized Canadians and new Canadians.
All four panels delved into key issues and priorities within their respective topics, and importantly offered actionable policy ideas. Finally, the fifth panel focused on the summation and synthesis of issues and ideas that emerged from the earlier sessions, and shed insights into driving sound policymaking in the current political environment.
The Summit offered an engaging platform for the thought leaders to interact and challenge themselves, and in the process, advance the conversation on policy priorities and actionable solutions.
Recordings of Key Summit Sessions
Watch the dynamic and engaging sessions that took place: Capitalizing on a Volatile Future | Unpacking Opportunities and Obstacles in Scaling Innovations through Sectoral Perspectives | The Centre that Jack Lawrence Inspired: Celebrating Jack’s Legacy | Understanding Canada’s Labour Market Needs for Tomorrow’s Workplace | The Upskill Climb: Realizing the Potential of Every Canadian Community | Towards an Action Plan for Growth & Prosperity
Capitalizing on a Volatile Future
Stephen Poloz, Chair of LNC Advisory Council & former Governor of Bank of Canada
In this era of global volatility, there is an opportunity to chart our path, and invest in resilience so that we can better manage risk, says Stephen Poloz. “In fact, when we are prepared for risk, we will find ways to capitalize on risk.” Chair Poloz offers his outlook on the Canadian economy, and his policy recommendations for building economic resilience needed to capitalize on a volatile future.
Unpacking Opportunities and Obstacles in Scaling Innovations through Sectoral Perspectives
Jason Field, President & CEO, Life Sciences Ontario
Alison Sunstrum, Founder & CEO, CNSRV-Inc; Founding Partner CDL-Rockies
Flavio Volpe, President, Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association
Heather Scoffield, Ottawa Bureau Chief and Economics Columnist, The Toronto Star (Moderator)
Why is Canada so good at creating inventions… and yet so far behind in bringing new inventions to market and scaling up? Listen to these panelists dissect opportunities and obstacles that their industries face in commercialization of new technology, scaling up ventures and driving new technology adoption for socio-economic impact. They offer their own set of actionable policy ideas to address some of the obstacles.
How to Build an Effective Innovation Ecosystem?
Karimah Es Sabar, CEO & General Partner, Quark Venture LP; Former President & CEO CDRD
Iain Klugman, Partner NorthGuide; Former CEO of Communitech
Salim Teja, Partner, Radical Ventures; Former President of Ventures, MaRS Discovery District
Paul Wells, Journalist and LNC Policy Fellow (Moderator)
Ever wondered what innovation ecosystems really are? Well, watch this session as experts describe the key pillars of innovation ecosystems, lessons learned from our own and global jurisdictions, and more importantly how we can close the gaps in our innovation ecosystems through policy and action.
The Centre that Jack Lawrence Inspired: Celebrating Jack’s Legacy
Thomas d’Aquino, Chairman & CEO, Intercounsel Ltd, Founding Chair of LNC Advisory Council
Mahmood Nanji, Power Corporation of Canada Fellow, LNC (Moderator)
Thomas d’Aquino shares stories of the late Jack Lawrence, who inspired the establishment of the Centre. He delves into his collaboration with Jack on advancing important policy issues of the past and explains why Jack’s call for bridging the gap between business and government remains fundamental to sound economic policymaking today.
Understanding Canada’s Labour Market Needs for Tomorrow’s Workplace
Angela Mondou, President & CEO of TECHNATION
Michael Lindsay, President and CEO, Infrastructure Ontario
Dr. Kevin Smith, President & CEO, University Health Network
Mahmood Nanji, Power Corporation of Canada Fellow, LNC (Moderator)
Leaders from three sectors—Healthcare, ICT and Infrastructure—shed light on the major shifts in skills demand and changing nature of work, delineating the labour force that is needed for the future. They tackle the role of policy for training, attracting and retaining a highly skilled workforce.
The Upskill Climb: Realizing the Potential of Every Canadian Community
Tabatha Bull, President and CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business
Chisanga Puta-Chekwe, Former Ontario Deputy Minister, Citizenship and Immigration
Sharon Hodgson, Dean, Ivey Business School
The Honourable Hassan Yussuff, Senator, Senate of Canada
Paul Wells, Journalist and LNC Policy Fellow (Moderator)
Given the needs for tomorrow’s workplace, how can Canada build a resilient workforce that increases opportunity for everyone? Perspectives from academia, business and the labour movement describe the particular needs of Indigenous communities, new Canadians and racialized Canadians, and the opportunity of and actionable policy ideas for including them — and everyone — in a new dynamic labour market.
Towards an Action Plan for Growth & Prosperity
Perrin Beatty, President & CEO, Canadian Chamber of Commerce; LNC Advisory Council Member
The Honourable Peter Harder, Senator, Senate of Canada
Tabatha Bull, President and CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business
Salim Teja, Partner, Radical Ventures, Former President of Ventures, MaRS Discovery District
The panel draws together the key insights and top policy priorities that emerged from the earlier sessions and explored how the actionable ideas proposed throughout the summit could be translated into policy, driving action from governments, businesses and other stakeholders--all with the purpose of enhancing Canada’s economic growth and prosperity.
Speakers
Stephen Poloz
Former Governor, Bank of Canada; LNC Advisory Council Chair
Perrin Beatty
President & CEO, Canadian Chamber of Commerce; LNC Advisory Council Member
Tabatha Bull
President and CEO, Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business
Chisanga Puta-Chekwe
President, Masomo Education Foundation, Former Ontario Deputy Minister, Citizenship and Immigration
Alison Sunstrum
Founding Partner, CDL-Rockies; Founder and CEO, CNSRVS-Inc
Flavio Volpe
President, Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association
Karimah Es Sabar
CEO & General Partner, Quark Venture LP; Chair, Health Biosciences Economic Strategy Table
Michael Lindsay
President and CEO, Infrastructure Ontario
Hon. Hassan Yussuff
Senator, The Senate of Canada
Iain Klugman
Partner, NorthGuide; Former CEO, Communitech
Angela Mondou
President and CEO of Technation
Hon. Peter Harder
Senator, The Senate of Canada
Salim Teja
Partner, Radical Ventures
Jason Field
President and CEO of Life Sciences Ontario
Dr. Kevin Smith
President and CEO of University Health Network
Thomas d’Aquino
Chairman and CEO, Intercounsel Ltd; LNC Advisory Council Founding Chair
Sharon Hodgson
Dean, Ivey Business School
With generous support from:
Power Corporation of Canada
Mitchell and Kathryn Baran Family Foundation
About Lawrence National Centre for Policy & Management
The only leading policy think tank housed within a top Canadian business school, the Lawrence National Centre (LNC) engages governments, businesses, academia and communities to advocate for sound policy that will ensure a powerful future for Canada. Its evidence-based policy research, education and outreach programs focuses on critical issues on innovation, human capital and trade that are fundamental to unlocking Canada’s competitive advantage on the global stage.