Canada's Economy, Explained

In this special episode, recorded live at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s AGM and Convention, host Marwa Abdou speaks with Minh Tri Dang, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Finance at Wilson, and Karla Congson, CEO and Founder of Agentiiv, about the intersection of work, leadership, and innovation at a critical moment for Canada’s economy. Technology is advancing faster than our ability to build the skills and leadership models needed to use it well. Nowhere is this more evident than in the rise of AI. Organizations that treat AI as a simple technological upgrade, rather than a shift in culture and capability, will struggle to remain competitive in a market that rewards adaptability, not just adoption. Marwa, Minh, and Karla examine what this means on the ground. They explore how the labour market is already being reshaped, and why the decline in entry-level roles is creating broken rungs in the career ladder. The traditional pathways that once helped young workers gain experience are narrowing, and the implications for opportunity and mobility are significant. All three agree on one thing: Canada needs a coordinated national workforce strategy that connects skills, innovation, and inclusion. Without it, the country risks falling behind at a time when the pace of change is accelerating. Links- Canadian Labour & Staffing Journal - Agentiiv  

Taxes shape more than government revenue. They shape trust. In this episode, host Marwa Abdou sits down with Heather Scoffield, founding CEO of the Canadian Tax Observatory, to explore how Canada’s tax and fiscal systems influence the country’s ability to build, grow and compete. Together, they unpack the tensions inside the 2025 Federal Budget, from the renewed focus on large-scale capital projects to the difficult choices around fiscal discipline, human capital, and long-term productivity. Heather explains why a modern industrial strategy must include people as much as physical infrastructure, and why simplifying parts of Canada’s tax system could strengthen the relationship between taxpayers and government. This conversation goes beyond line items and budget tables. It is a look at how Canada funds its ambitions, how those decisions affect households and businesses, and what a credible, sustainable path to shared prosperity might require. Links- Heather Scoffield - Bricks and mortar build out the federal balance sheet - Canadian Tax Observatory  

Canada’s immigration system isn’t one program; it’s an entire architecture. A maze of pathways, permits, and policies that shape who gets in, who gets to work, and who gets to stay. In this episode, host Marwa Abdou sits down with Dr. Mikal Skuterud, Professor of Economics at the University of Waterloo, and one of Canada’s leading labour economists, to unpack what he calls the country’s two-step system, where people arrive on temporary status before transitioning, often uncertainly, to permanent residency. Together, they explore the unintended consequences of a capless temporary system that neither fulfills the promise of permanence made to immigrants nor strategically addresses Canada’s deeper economic gaps. Their conversation challenges a familiar narrative: That immigration success can be measured by sheer numbers or GDP growth alone. Instead, they argue that immigration policy should be guided by a different goal — higher living standards for everyone. That means aligning inflows with investment in housing, healthcare and productivity, and ensuring immigration fuels tomorrow’s innovation rather than simply today’s labour shortages. This is an episode about recalibrating ambition and rethinking how Canada’s immigration system can match the scale of its promise. Links- Mikal Skuterud, University of Waterloo - Mikal Skuterud, C.D. Howe Institute - A Realistic Strategy to Wean Canadian Businesses Off Low-Skill Foreign Labour - The Growing Data Gap on Canada’s Temporary Resident Workforce - Optimizing Immigration for Economic Growth by Matthew Doyle, Mikal Skuterud, and Christopher Worswick - The economic case against low-wage temporary foreign workers by Fabian Lange, Mkal Skutrud & Christopher Worswick, IRPP Other Resources:- Are Immigrants Particularly Entrepreneurial? Policy Lessons from a Selective Immigration System by David Green- How does increasing immigration affect the economy?- From Roots to Routes: Immigrant Entrepreneurs and How they are Shaping Canada’s Trade Future- Trends in education–occupation mismatch among recent immigrants with a bachelor’s degree or higher, 2001 to 2021- Canada is Wasting the Talents of its Skilled Immigrants 

What’s the greatest comeback Canada has never seen?  According to special guest Carol Ann Hilton, Founder and CEO of the Indigenomics Institute, it’s re-centering Indigenous economic power and Indigenous participation. But part of that re-centering requires acknowledging that Canada was formed through Indigenous economic and cultural exclusion and that this exclusion has an impacted all Canadians, even generations far removed from the Indian Act. In this episode, host Marwa Abdou and Carol Anne Hilton unpack Indigenomics: a framework for redesigning economic systems around reciprocity, responsibility, and relationship to land. Together they explore how 150 years of exclusion produced today’s inequalities, why corporate Canada has a duty under Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action 92, and what it means to build economies where land is law, stewardship is strategy, and growth is measured through shared prosperity. Their conversation flows from examples of how Indigenous businesses operate from fundamentally different values, prioritizing community, future generations, and responsibility, all the way to the radical concept of "land as law" — starting with responsibility rather than impact assessment — and its role in reshaping infrastructure development. From clean energy and procurement reform to “land as governance,” this episode challenges listeners to rethink what reconciliation looks like — not as ceremony, but as economic design. Links- Carol Anne Hilton, Indigenomics Institute  - Indigenomics: Taking a Seat at the Economic Table (2021)  - The Rise of Indigenous Economic Power (2025) Other Resources:- Sharing the Wealth: How Resource Revenue Agreements Can Rebalance Canada’s Economy by Ken Coates - Living Rhythms: Lessons in Aboriginal Economic Resilience and Vision by Wanda Wuttunee - Upholding Indigenous Economic Relationships: nehiyawak narratives by Shalene Jobin - Resilience, Reciprocity and Ecological Economics Northwest Coast Sustainability by Ronald Trosper - What Can Tribes Do? Strategies and Institutions in American Indian Economic Development by Stephen Cornell and Joseph P. Kalt  - Economic Aspects of the Indigenous Experience in Canada by Anya Hageman and Pauline Galoustian  

Does your favourite social media app or e-commerce site’s algorithm hold more power than your country’s elected government? Do regulators really have to choose between innovation and security? Can algorithms be neutral? Listen as host Marwa Abdou and guests Vass Bednar (Executive Director, Canadian Shield Institute) and Kaylie Tiessen (Chief Economist, Canadian Shield Institute) discuss the profound and often invisible influence digital platforms and algorithms have on our society and economy. In this extended episode, explore how a handful of digital platforms act as “shadow regulators” — setting the rules of the game through opaque code and recommendation systems that shape markets, work, and opportunity far from democratic oversight. From gig work to competition law, the conversation reveals how Canada’s regulatory frameworks are racing to keep up. But it doesn’t stop at diagnosis. Together, Marwa, Vass, and Kaylie discuss what it would take to fill Canada’s “regulatory vacuum” — smart, adaptive rules that serve the public good while supporting innovation, trust, and competitiveness in the digital age. Links:- Canadian Shield Institute - Vass Bednar - Regs to Riches Newsletter - Vass Bednar – Center for International Governance Innovation - Kaylie Tiessen  - Kaylie Tiessen – Social Capital Partners - OECD Digital Economy Outlook (2024) - World Bank – World Development Report 2021: Data for Better Lives