civic engagement

This report examines current levels of public support for democracy, democratic institutions and the political system in Canada and how these have evolved over the past decade.

How can communities best measure the well-being of their citizens? Often this is done using economic measures of employment, income and inequality. There are also statistics reporting on incidences of crime, of homeless or of disease (most recently focusing on cases of COVID-19).

Populist, anti-government sentiment continues to surge in many countries with democratically-elected governments — most recently with the emergence of Andrej Babis, the new anti-establishment leader of the Czech Republic.

A groundbreaking research study of the "lived experience" of individuals across the Greater Toronto Area who self-identify as Black or of African heritage.

The AmericasBarometer is a 29 country public opinion survey on democracy, governance and civic engagement, conducted every two to three years by a consortium of of research partners across the western hemisphere.

Although mass migration has been happening for decades, in recent years the flight of refugees from conflict zones in Africa and the Middle East has produced striking images of desperate people searching for a safe place to land.

"Because it's 2015," was Justin Trudeau's memorable response to a reporter's question about why he had made it a priority to have gender parity in his cabinet. The composition of the 42nd Parliament suggests that Canadians agree with their new Prime Minister that as one of the world's most diverse countries approaches its 150th birthday, the identities of its political representatives should match the identities of its population.

It wasn’t long ago that Canadians voted in large numbers. Just a few decades ago it was normal to see turnout rates for federal elections in the mid-70s.

Justin Trudeau, leader of a Liberal Party that many recent polls have found nudging ahead of the Conservatives, is fond of describing his growing army of young volunteers across the country.

In conjunction with the Ninth Annual Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Conference, entitled "The Common Good: Who Decides?”, the Environics Institute for Survey Research conducted a national survey of Canadians around this theme of defining the common good.