Edmonton Social Planning Council

Category: ESPC Publications: Research Updates

  • Research Update: End-of-Life Decision Making—Progress Since 2011

    Research Update: End-of-Life Decision Making—Progress Since 2011

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    Note: this is excerpted from the March 2021 edition of our “Research Update” publication. The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews, prepared by our volunteers, on recently published social research reports and publications.

    A review by Shawna Ladouceur

    In 2011, the Royal Society of Canada (RSC) published End-of-Life Decision Making. This timely report framed the findings and recommendations of an expert panel convened by the RSC in response to questions of public policy around the legalization of medical assistance in dying (MAiD). A decade on, the RSC assembled a Policy Briefing Committee to assess the impact of the 2011 report to track policy and statutory progress and to identify ongoing challenges. Summarized here, the policy brief lauds success, but also looks ahead to next steps and work still to be done.

    Recognizing the impossibility of addressing MAiD in isolation, in preparing the 2011 report the RSC conducted an extensive review of literature exploring the full continuum of end-of-life care, which includes:

    • withholding and withdrawal of potentially life-sustaining treatment,
    • advance directives,
    • palliative care,
    • potentially life-shortening symptom relief,
    • terminal sedation, and
    • assisted suicide and voluntary euthanasia (i.e., MAiD).

    This in-depth examination of social attitudes, ethical issues, and legal statutes led the RSC to conclude that Canada should move forward with provisions for MAiD—for which they provided 30 recommendations to guide the process.

    Proving fortuitous, the 2011 report coincided with arguments heard in the groundbreaking case, Carter v. Canada (2015). Heard by the British Columbia Supreme Court, the case challenged Criminal Code statutes forbidding euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. Admitted into evidence on the grounds of providing expert opinion on the matter, the report was quoted and later echoed in the judge’s decision to declare the statutes in violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter). Insisting that inherent risks of legalization “could be very substantially mitigated through a carefully-designed system imposing stringent limits that are scrupulously monitored and enforced,” the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed findings in this case (p. 11). Given 12 months to amend the Criminal Code, the judgement required Parliament to move forward with legislation allowing legal access to MAiD in Canada. The resulting Bill C-14, however, departed from both the report and from recommendations of Parliament’s own commissioned experts on some key provisions.

    This divergence left work to be done at all six points along the continuum of end-of-life care and the door open to ongoing policy and statutory challenges. Although the policy brief shows there has been good progress in facilitating advanced care planning and moderate progress in expanding access to palliative care, the remaining areas have yet to be addressed—that is, clarifying legal status of withholding and withdrawal of potentially life-sustaining treatment, terminal sedation, and potentially life-shortening symptom relief. The policy brief outlines 31 remedial recommendations to address these deficiencies as well as those of current MAiD legislation. Ongoing challenges also hold promise in remedying several enduring expert concerns with current MAiD legislation. These concerns include the exclusion of persons not at the end of life or whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable; lack of provision for advance requests; exclusion of mature minors; and a 10-day waiting period.

    One challenge resulted in the important 2019 Truchon and Gladu v. Canada and Québec decision, in which the Québec Superior Court found MAiD eligibility criterion, including the requirement for death to be reasonably foreseeable, too restrictive and thus in violation the Charter. This provision therefore ceased to have any effect in Québec as of March 2020. The federal government chose not to appeal the decision. Québec has, however, “indicated its intention to address the issue of eligibility for MAiD where mental disorder is the sole underlying medical condition” (p. 29).

    Currently before the House of Commons, the federal government’s own Bill C-7 would mitigate other outstanding expert concerns. This Bill would allow advanced requests for MAiD in cases of reasonably foreseeable death and would eliminate the associated waiting period. Bill C-7 also appears to concede some ground to Truchon and Gladu (2019), adding language regarding natural death that has not become reasonably foreseeable. The federal government has also agreed to further study the issues of advance requests and mature minors during the five-year review required by the 2016 MAiD law.

    The retrospective provided by the policy brief indicates the 2011 report has been cited many times since its publication—most significantly in the landmark case heralding the advent of MAiD, but also in scholarly literature, policy documents, and the media—certainly exerting an effect on public opinion and events in intervening years. However, despite progress, concerns remain. The brief provides recommendations to redress deficiencies along the continuum of end-of-life care—including prevailing concerns with existing MAiD legislation—and leading options to address the issues that most certainly lie ahead.

    Publication Source:

    Sumner, L. W., Downie, J., Gupta, M., & Wales, J. (2020). End-of-life decision making: Policy and statutory progress (2011-2020). Royal Society of Canada https://rsc-src.ca/sites/default/files/EOL%20PB_EN.pdf 

    Get to know our volunteer:

    Shawna Ladouceur is a Registered Nurse who sees the impacts of the social determinants of health in ways that demand action. She has extensive experience working directly with vulnerable populations in the inner city. Her personal interests include skiing, hiking, biking, running, reading, and travelling.

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  • Research Update: March 2021

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    The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews on recently published social research reports and publications.

    In this issue, we have the following reviews:

    • Homelessness and COVID-19: A Look Into System and Shelter Impacts and Responses In 2020 – Reviewed by Jayme Wong
    • Privatization Pressure in Alberta Health Care – Reviewed by Jessica Shannon
    • Moving Forward and Building Back Better: Policy Considerations for a Resistant, Resilient, and Responsive Canada – Reviewed by Harnoor Kochar
    • Youth Empowered: Using Participatory Action Research to Understand ABC Youth Experiences with Mental Health – Reviewed by Asheika Sood
    • Basic Income as a Pandemic Recovery Option – Reviewed by Mohamed Mohamed
    • End-of-Life Decision-Making—Progress Since 2011 – Reviewed by Shawna Ladouceur
    • Edmonton Chamber Recommends Ways to Forge Our Future – Reviewed by Akshya Boopalan
    • Supporting Informal Caregivers in Canada – Reviewed by Harman Khinda
    • Recovering from COVID and Beyond—A Review of the Downtown Business Association of Edmonton’s Plan for Economic Recovery and Revitalization – Reviewed by Hanna Nash
    • Examining Mental Health Supports During a Pandemic – Reviewed by Aastha Tripathi
    • Current Obstacles to the Implementation of UNDRIP – Reviewed by Debyani Sarker

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  • Research Update: Colouring Outside the Lines

    Research Update: Colouring Outside the Lines

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    Note: this is excerpted from the December 2020 edition of our “Research Update” publication. The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews, prepared by our volunteers, on recently published social research reports and publications.

    Reviewed by Jayme Wong

    Colour of Poverty – Colour of Change (COP–COC) is an Ontario-based network of groups that collaborate to create community-based resources and tools that address and combat ethno-racial inequality and oppression. In January 2019, COP–COC submitted Proposed Framework for a New-Anti-Racism Strategy for Canada during a national consultation on a new Canadian Anti-Racism Strategy, informed by a community consultation that same month.

    The proposal provides a framework for a new Anti-Racism Strategy through manageable and attainable calls to action. Among the key principles and themes that highlight the need for an intersectional approach to policy-making, the proposal also includes 12 calls to action urging the federal government to make timely and specific changes to the New Anti-Racism Strategy. These actions address (p. 3):

    (1) racial inequalities in the labour market

    (2) the racialization of poverty

    (3) systemic racism in the criminal justice system and access to justice

    (4) racial discrimination in violence against women

    (5) racial discrimination in national security

    (6) systemic racism in child welfare

    (7) health inequities

    (8) inequities in accessing to basic necessities

    (9) inequities in access to education

    (10) systemic racism in immigration legislation and policy

    (11) systemic racism in citizenship legislation and policy

    (12) combating hate crimes

     

    The strategy takes an intersectional approach to anti-racism advocacy, suggesting that women, LGBTQ+ and two-spirited peoples, and people with disabilities face disproportionate institutional discrimination and oppression. The proposal acknowledges the historical and ongoing racism that affects Indigenous communities and communities of colour, prompting the need for a new Anti-Racism Strategy. Although many of the calls to action are directed towards the federal government, the proposal notes that “systemic racism and racial discrimination know no jurisdictional bounds” (p. 3). COP–COC highlights the importance for all levels of government—from federal to municipal—to work together to enforce and enact the new Anti-Racism Strategy.

    One recurring ask within the proposal urges the federal government to “require all Departments, Ministries, Divisions and other relevant institutions to collect and track disaggregated data with respect to ethno-racial background, and use this data to develop strategies for addressing systemic racism” (p. 4). Disaggregated data would show a trend in who is more likely to rely on government social services due to disproportionate rates of impoverishment and food insecurity, and who is also more likely to be discriminated against by pre-existing legal practices and their often biased practitioners. The publication of the collected data would act as an accountability and transparency measure by the institutions that had previously been gate-keepers to such information and excluded people of colour from the process.

    An important factor mentioned at the beginning of the proposal is that Indigenous communities and communities of colour can and should be able to choose their own approaches to the Anti-Racism Strategy. While this acknowledgement is only mentioned very briefly, it is important that the group has taken the time to acknowledge sovereignty and autonomy within communities of colour, and especially for Indigenous communities who have not had their rights respected by colonial institutions. The acknowledgement allows opportunities for negotiation and additions from Indigenous communities and communities of colour who wish to join in the process.

    There are a few calls to action which seem rather brief—one of which is the call to address inequities in access to education. The proposal only mentions funding more post-secondary scholarship programs for racialized and marginalized communities, and allowing Indigenous communities to regain control over their educational practices. There is no mention that people of colour face multiple barriers—not simply financial—when accessing education. Just a few of the unmentioned barriers may include language, gender, or culture. Furthermore, “[transferring] educational matters from pre-school to post-secondary education to local Indigenous authorities” (p. 11) does not fully address the traumatic experiences that Indigenous students have faced and continue to face in the colonial education system.

    Overall, the proposal is quite effective in painting a picture of what the future could be if an intersectional lens was used in all policy-making. The two most convincing tenets of this proposal are (1) the involvement of all racialized and marginalized in policy-making decisions, and (2) urging public institutions to be more transparent about their practices. Canada still has a long way to go with its Anti-Racism Strategy, but if even one call to action within COP–COC’s proposed framework is achieved, the country would be that much closer to eradicating racism.

     

    Publication Source:

    Colour of Poverty – Colour of Change. (2019). Proposed framework for a new anti-racism strategy for Canada. https://ocasi.org/sites/default/files/PROPOSED_COP-COC_FRAMEWORK_for_Anti-Racism_Strategy_Jan_2019_0.pdf

     

    ABOUT THE RESEARCH REVIEWER:

    Jayme Wong graduated from the University of Lethbridge in 2014 with a BA in English and Philosophy, and more recently graduated from the University of Alberta in 2020 with an MA in English and Film Studies. She currently works at a local non-profit, The Learning Centre Literacy Association.

    [/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.7.4″ custom_padding=”0px|20px|0px|20px|false|false” border_color_left=”#a6c942″ custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_testimonial author=”Posted by:” job_title=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3IiLCJzZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJiZWZvcmUiOiIiLCJhZnRlciI6IiIsIm5hbWVfZm9ybWF0IjoiZGlzcGxheV9uYW1lIiwibGluayI6Im9uIiwibGlua19kZXN0aW5hdGlvbiI6ImF1dGhvcl93ZWJzaXRlIn19@” portrait_url=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3JfcHJvZmlsZV9waWN0dXJlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnt9fQ==@” quote_icon=”off” portrait_width=”125px” portrait_height=”125px” disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _dynamic_attributes=”job_title,portrait_url” _module_preset=”default” body_text_color=”#000000″ author_font=”||||||||” author_text_align=”center” author_text_color=”#008ac1″ position_font=”||||||||” position_text_color=”#000000″ company_text_color=”#000000″ background_color=”#ffffff” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”0px|0px|4px|0px|false|false” custom_padding=”32px|0px|0px|0px|false|false”][/et_pb_testimonial][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.65)” header_font_size=”20px” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”||50px|||” custom_padding=”48px|||||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9jYXRlZ29yaWVzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiUmVsYXRlZCBjYXRlZ29yaWVzOiAgIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6ImNhdGVnb3J5In19@[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]

  • Research Update: Achieving Pharmacare For All

    Research Update: Achieving Pharmacare For All

    [et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.7.0″ custom_margin=”0px||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false”][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_4,1_4″ use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”2″ _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” width=”100%” custom_margin=”0px||||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false” border_width_bottom=”1px” border_color_bottom=”#a6c942″][et_pb_column type=”3_4″ _builder_version=”4.7.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_post_title meta=”off” featured_image=”off” _builder_version=”4.7.4″ _module_preset=”default” title_font=”||||||||” custom_margin=”||3px|||” border_color_bottom=”#a6c942″][/et_pb_post_title][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.7.0″ _module_preset=”default”][et_pb_image src=”https://edmontonsocialplanning.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/COLOUR-BLOCKS_spaced-300×51.png” title_text=”COLOUR BLOCKS_spaced” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _module_preset=”default” max_width=”100%” max_height=”75px” custom_margin=”0px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” custom_padding=”10px|0px|20px|0px|false|false” global_module=”96648″][/et_pb_image][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”3_4,1_4″ use_custom_gutter=”on” gutter_width=”2″ make_equal=”on” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” width=”100%” custom_margin=”0px|auto|0px|auto|false|false” custom_padding=”30px|0px|0px|0px|false|false”][et_pb_column type=”3_4″ _builder_version=”4.5.6″ custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.7.5″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” _module_preset=”default” text_font=”|600|||||||” text_text_color=”#2b303a” custom_padding=”||32px|||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9kYXRlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJkYXRlX2Zvcm1hdCI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJjdXN0b21fZGF0ZV9mb3JtYXQiOiIifX0=@[/et_pb_text][et_pb_button button_url=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9saW5rX3VybF9wb3N0Iiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsicG9zdF9pZCI6IjkzNjMwIn19@” button_text=”Download the December 2020 Research Update (PDF)” _builder_version=”4.7.5″ _dynamic_attributes=”button_url” _module_preset=”default” custom_button=”on” button_text_color=”#ffffff” button_bg_color=”#008ac1″ custom_margin=”||19px|||” custom_padding=”||5px|||”][/et_pb_button][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.7.7″ text_text_color=”#2b303a” text_line_height=”1.6em” header_2_font=”||||||||” header_2_text_color=”#008ac1″ header_2_font_size=”24px” background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” text_orientation=”justified” width=”100%” module_alignment=”left” custom_margin=”0px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” custom_padding=”25px||||false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ locked=”off” sticky_enabled=”0″]

    Note: this is excerpted from the December 2020 edition of our “Research Update” publication. The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews, prepared by our volunteers, on recently published social research reports and publications.

    Reviewed by Hanna Nash

    Canada’s universal health care is a keystone marker of what many Canadians would identify as, in part, what makes us proud to be Canadian; a nation of those who aid and support one another in all health matters, regardless of outcome. Though our country has continued to expand services under universal health care since 1966, one area remains unincorporated. In the Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare’s report, A Prescription for Canada – Achieving Pharmacare for All, the authors discuss how nationally implemented pharmaceutical access would benefit all Canadians and our country’s health care expenditures.

    Formed in 2018, this federally appointed advisory council made significant findings and key recommendations to the federal government after studying global pharmaceutical policies and interviewing diverse groups of Canadians in all provinces and territories such as: politicians, Indigenous leaders, patients, health care providers, business owners, and academics. What is perhaps most striking among their findings is an imminent need for universal pharmaceutical accessibility in Canada—its financial impact would not only benefit individuals, but would save Canadian taxpayers significant amounts of money each year, within its first year of operation even (p. 47).

    A transition phase beginning January 1, 2022 would allow the development of a Canadian drug agency to work with federal, provincial, and territorial governments to create a list of drugs that would be covered, and would continue to add recommended drugs and pharmaceuticals for a fully operational agency by January 1, 2027 (p. 78). When purchasing prescriptions drugs, Canadians would not be expected to spend more than $100.00 annually per household.

    Approximately 20% of Canadians either simply cannot afford medication or do not have adequate insurance to cover their required medication (p. 113). This means that many Canadians do not take their essential prescriptions, which can cause further health complications later on, or, as in the case of one million Canadians, they must borrow money to afford the cost of their medications. What is further distressing is that Canadians who are already at a financial disadvantage are also the most impacted, and are more likely to experience ill health due to inaccessibility to medication. The elitism of pharmaceutical accessibility in Canada is felt most disproportionately by women, young people, and low-income wage earners. The end result of this disjointed and unequal approach to pharmaceuticals is that too many Canadians fall into poor health and cost Canada’s health care system billions of dollars in visits to ERs, hospitals, and physicians each year while missing work and/or school—thereby further preventing them from improving finances and health (p. 169).

    The difficulty in managing Canada’s pharmaceutical costs is due to its collage of public (100) and private (100,000) drug plans that do not present significant clout when negotiating the cost of medications, as they are not unified. Among countries that offer universal health care, Canada is the only nation that does not have pharmaceuticals included under its health care plan. Additionally, the advisory council discovered that Canada pays some of the highest drug prices in the world compared to other OECD nations. The only countries that pay more for pharmaceuticals are the United States and Switzerland (p. 29).

    These findings pose too great a risk for Canada’s health care to continue without putting individuals and the government into further debt. The solution to saving federal money and aiding individuals is for each province and territory to place pharmaceuticals under universal health care. This would ensure that, as a single-payer nation, Canada would have greater bargaining power against pharmaceutical companies and would, in turn, be able to negotiate better prices for all prescription drugs—including new and ground breaking treatments and formulas.

    The authors tested their universal health care approach by calculating the costs of covering medications for those with diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic respiratory conditions. By covering individual expenses for those particular health conditions, Canadians could conceivably save up to $1.2 billon each year (p. 47).

    With these findings in mind, the authors advocate for a drug agency to push forward and come to fruition. However, one factor that must be considered is the co-operation of all provinces and territories in achieving this final stage of universal health care. If these recommendations can be fully embraced by provincial and territorial governments, the federal government could potentially see huge savings in medical costs, and a healthier, more productive, society.

    Publication Source:

    Government of Canada. (2019). A prescription for Canada: Achieving pharmacare for all. Health Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/corporate/about-health-canada/public-engagement/external-advisory-bodies/implementation-national-pharmacare/final-report.html

    ABOUT THE RESEARCH REVIEWER:

    Hanna Nash enjoys ballet performances and other live theatre, as well as outdoor sports, and travelling to new countries. Hanna is interested in sharing information and knowledge to Edmonton’s diverse communities.

    [/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.7.4″ custom_padding=”0px|20px|0px|20px|false|false” border_color_left=”#a6c942″ custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_testimonial author=”Posted by:” job_title=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3IiLCJzZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJiZWZvcmUiOiIiLCJhZnRlciI6IiIsIm5hbWVfZm9ybWF0IjoiZGlzcGxheV9uYW1lIiwibGluayI6Im9uIiwibGlua19kZXN0aW5hdGlvbiI6ImF1dGhvcl93ZWJzaXRlIn19@” portrait_url=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3JfcHJvZmlsZV9waWN0dXJlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnt9fQ==@” quote_icon=”off” portrait_width=”125px” portrait_height=”125px” disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _dynamic_attributes=”job_title,portrait_url” _module_preset=”default” body_text_color=”#000000″ author_font=”||||||||” author_text_align=”center” author_text_color=”#008ac1″ position_font=”||||||||” position_text_color=”#000000″ company_text_color=”#000000″ background_color=”#ffffff” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”0px|0px|4px|0px|false|false” custom_padding=”32px|0px|0px|0px|false|false”][/et_pb_testimonial][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.7″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.65)” header_font_size=”20px” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”||50px|||” custom_padding=”48px|||||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9jYXRlZ29yaWVzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiUmVsYXRlZCBjYXRlZ29yaWVzOiAgIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6ImNhdGVnb3J5In19@[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]

  • Research Update: December 2020

    Research Update: December 2020

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    The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews on recently published social research reports and publications.

    In this issue, we have the following reviews:

    * Working-Age Singles: The “Forgotten Poor” of Canada — Reviewed by Kara Abdolmaleki
    * Indigenous Homelessness in Canada — Reviewed by Shawna Ladouceur
    * Youth Homelessness in B.C. — Reviewed by Mohamed Mohamed
    * Achieving Pharmacare for All — Reviewed by Hanna Nash
    * Housing First as a Form of Intervention — Reviewed by Reem Saraya
    * Revisioning Coordinated Access — Reviewed by Asheika Sood
    * Basic Income as a COVID-19 Response in B.C. — Reviewed by Elaine Tran
    * Decriminalizing Race — Reviewed by Aastha Tripathi
    * Colouring Outside the Lines — Reviewed by Jayme Wong

    [/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″ _builder_version=”4.7.4″ custom_padding=”0px|20px|0px|20px|false|false” border_color_left=”#a6c942″ custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_testimonial author=”Posted by:” job_title=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3IiLCJzZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJiZWZvcmUiOiIiLCJhZnRlciI6IiIsIm5hbWVfZm9ybWF0IjoiZGlzcGxheV9uYW1lIiwibGluayI6Im9uIiwibGlua19kZXN0aW5hdGlvbiI6ImF1dGhvcl93ZWJzaXRlIn19@” portrait_url=”@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9hdXRob3JfcHJvZmlsZV9waWN0dXJlIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnt9fQ==@” quote_icon=”off” disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.4″ _dynamic_attributes=”job_title,portrait_url” _module_preset=”default” body_text_color=”#000000″ author_font=”||||||||” author_text_align=”center” author_text_color=”#008ac1″ position_font=”||||||||” position_text_color=”#000000″ company_text_color=”#000000″ background_color=”#ffffff” text_orientation=”center” module_alignment=”center” custom_margin=”0px|0px|4px|0px|false|false” custom_padding=”32px|0px|0px|0px|false|false”][/et_pb_testimonial][et_pb_text disabled_on=”on|off|off” _builder_version=”4.7.4″ _dynamic_attributes=”content” _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ header_text_align=”left” header_text_color=”rgba(0,0,0,0.65)” header_font_size=”20px” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”||50px|||” custom_padding=”48px|||||”]@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF9jYXRlZ29yaWVzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiUmVsYXRlZCBjYXRlZ29yaWVzOiAgIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6ImNhdGVnb3J5In19@[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]

  • Research Update: A Look at Alberta’s Oil and Gas Bailout

    Research Update: A Look at Alberta’s Oil and Gas Bailout

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    Note: this is excerpted from the August 2020 edition of our “Research Update” publication. The Edmonton Social Planning Council, in collaboration with our volunteers, strives to provide stakeholders and community members with up-to-date reviews, prepared by our volunteers, on recently published social research reports and publications.

    Reviewed by Hanna Nash

    In Alberta’s Failed Oil and Gas Bailout, authors Jim Storrie, Duncan Kinney, and Regan Boychuk discuss their dissatisfaction with the Government of Alberta’s investments in the oil and gas industry. These authors come from non-profit watch groups established to keep a continuous look on government decisions and protect the interest of Albertans.

    Storrie, Kinney, and Boychuk examine the actions of Crown investment manager Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), responsible for over $100 billion of provincial assets. According to the authors, this management company has allocated $1.1 billion from Alberta’s pension funds and the Alberta Heritage Saving Trust Fund to junior and intermediate provincial oil and gas producers and oil field service companies at the direction of the prior and current Alberta governments. The main focus of the report is the contention the authors have with AIMCo’s likely loss of millions of the public dollars it invested. Part of this loss is due to falling shares that each of the publicly traded companies it invested in have already experienced, in addition to the bankruptcies of companies that have received millions of dollars in AIMCo investments, the fallout from COVID-19 concerns, Russia and Saudi Arabia’s oil price war, and the expected cost of Alberta’s oil well environmental clean-up initiative.

    The report is a well researched and thorough review of AIMCo’s problematic relationship with Alberta’s current government, the United Conservative Party (UCP), and the lack of checks and balances in place that have allowed a mismanagement of funds to occur. The authors demonstrate how the UCP used their political influence to push the interests of oil and gas companies into AIMCo’s investment profile—largely due to the political donations that the UCP and their third-party advertisers received from oil and gas companies. The authors discuss the conflicts of interest these relationships present as they create an environment of investment focused solely in the oil and gas sector, without any attention given to alternate investment areas. Additionally, the passing of Bill 22, in the fall of 2019, now permits AIMCo to oversee investment management for many essential pension funds in Alberta such as the Alberta Teachers’ Retirement Fund (ATRF). This directive from the province has angered many Albertans as such pension funds and investments are now solely controlled by AIMCo. Despite ATRF’s dissatisfaction with AIMCo’s performance, they are not permitted to dissolve their relationship as Bill 22 does not provide any alternative methods or options of investment management. These investment protocols coupled with a lack of transparency from AIMCo have given many Albertans rise to feel distrustful where AIMCo is concerned.

    Storrie, Kinney, and Boychuk’s in-depth review of AIMCo’s investment practices presents troubling and worrying indications of how public funds in Alberta are being spent. The authors portray a very distrustful relationship between the UCP and those whose money is being invested in businesses that are operating at a loss rather than a profit. Notably, the money being used by the current provincial government is largely deferred money that Albertans earned and chose to invest in a retirement fund; they have not given permission for their government to invest through such methods.

    This report is very well researched and investigated, however, it is obvious that the authors present a very strong bias against investing public funds in non-renewable energy resources. At times, the report produced a more personal opinion of the current UCP government’s business practices rather than an unbiased presentation of information.

    The non-profit groups on behalf of which the authors are writing are undoubtedly interested in the current political climate of Alberta’s government, and how government action will impact future generations of investment and growth. The authors provide insight into the difficulties that Albertans currently face, and promote open and transparent interactions between the provincial government and its Crown corporation for the benefit of Albertans.

    PUBLICATION SOURCE:

    Storrie, J., Kinney, D., & Boychuk, R. (2020). Alberta’s failed oil and gas bailout. Progress Alberta. https://pressprogress.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/AIMCO-report.pdf

    ABOUT THE RESEARCH REVIEWER:

    Hanna Nash enjoys ballet performances and other live theatre, as well as outdoor sports, and travelling to new countries. Hanna is interested in sharing information and knowledge to Edmonton’s diverse communities.

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