There have been a few interesting items over the last few weeks. To start off, both Lakehead and Laurentian universities will be looking for new Presidents as Dominc Giroux and Brian Stevenson nearly simultaneously announced that they will be moving on. Both institutions are key components of the regional knowledge economy as well as significant economic engines in their own right and the choices made with respect to the next presidents will be critical to the region.
Lakehead University President Brian Stevenson to step down. CBC News. Thunder Bay, April 28th, 2017.
Dominic Giroux to leave Laurentian University for CEO's job at Health Sciences North. CBC News, Sudbury, April 26, 2017.
The actual role of a university president has become more difficult over the years given the increasing complexity of universities and the social and economic environments in which they operate. However, the key roles remain threefold: vision, fundraising and community relations. The day to day management of the university is generally delegated to sub-ordinates - or should be especially at larger places. In the end, a successful university president must be judged on their leadership role in terms of providing a general vision of the university's role and articulately communicating it, raising funds - a difficult task in the limited economic environment of northern Ontario - and diplomatic service among the many communities that the university serves ranging from alumni to business to government. Good luck to the respective search committees!
In other news:
Report urges new thinking for Northern Ontario. Sudbury Star, May 9th, 2017.
Another release by the Northern Policy Institute, this one authored by Charles Conteh at Brock University. This one makes the case that the usual divisions used to analyze and conduct economic development in the north combined with top-down management from government do not work. The report argues that northern Ontario is made up of 11 distinct economic zones and more fluid government management should recognize this.
Holliday pushes Northern Ontario separation. Chronicle-Journal. May 11th, 2017.
This type of "new thinking" is actually quite old as northern Ontario separatist movements have been around for at least a century. Every couple of decades, they seem to reanimate themselves. The most recent incarnation is the Northern Ontario Party and its leader Trevor Holliday who states that: “The biggest obstacle is getting Northerners to believe that it could actually work.”
The obstacles are a little bigger than that given the geographic dispersion of the north, the weak economic base as well as the fact that regional politicians and most of the public seem to like the current arrangement. The current arrangement includes provincial government spending in the region as noted by the current minister for Northern Development and Mines in a letter discussing why the recent Ontario budget benefits the north - but then what else would an Ontario minister of the crown be expected to say?
Sudbury letter: Budget good for Northern Ontario. Sudbury Star, May 6th, 2017.
And of course, the Ring of Fire issue is once again starting to burn as we move towards a provincial election. The provincial spring budget was notable in that there was not even the cursory cheer leading mention of the Ring of fire.
Province comes up dry again on Ring of Fire funding. Northern Ontario Business. May 1st, 2017.
However, we are approaching an election year and every seat counts so the Premier then struck back with this...
Kathleen Wynne to First Nations chiefs: Do not 'squander' $1 B Ring of fire promise," CBC News Thunder Bay, May 12th, 2017.
Apparently, the Premier is losing patience and is concerned that "the First Nations' push to work through concerns about jurisdiction and governance of the road and the broader mining development are slowing down the Liberal desire to spend money on a road." The response is a Wynne-Wynne situation (pun intended) for the Premier. If her intervention causes the project to pick up speed, she wins. If the project does not go anywhere, she can blame somebody else - in this case First Nations in the area.
And here are a few other economic stories....
Population in Sudbury District to drop-updated. Sudbury Star, May 13th, 2017.
Steel still drives Sault economy-report. The Sudbury Star, May 8th, 2017.
And finally, a story that truly reflects the essence of economic issues in the north in terms of the interplay between natural resources and government...
Moose tag quotas concern municipal leaders. North Bay Nugget. May 14th, 2017.
Have a great week.