Latest Policy Bytes

February 2025 - What Northern Ontario Should Want for Valentine's Day 

January 2024 - The federal Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) has proven highly successful in attracting new people to rural and northern Canada. RNIP has been so successful that the federal government is moving to make it a permanent program. Could Ontario learn from and mirror this success? Absolutely.

March 2023 -Anyone who uses social media is familiar with recent discussions on misinformation and data privacy. Even those who are not active on these platforms have heard about it in the news or from friends.

January 2023 - If you’ve been reading the news lately (or maybe you’re experiencing this first-hand), you’ll know that unemployment rates are low and businesses are facing difficulties hiring qualified employees. If you’re a job seeker, this is great news. If you’re an employer looking to hire more workers to keep up with demand, or fill gaps caused by former employees switching industries or retiring, the current situation is less than ideal.

December 14, 2022 - If you live in a Northern Ontario community – or any community for that matter – you either a) were born there and stayed, or b) left one community and settled in another.  Multiple factors can influence your decision to stay in a community: the presence of family and friends, educational and/or job opportunities, and a sense of welcoming and belonging. But the same factors that can influence a person to stay in a community, can push someone else away from a community where there is absence of family and friends, educational and/or employment opportunities, and a sense of welcoming or belonging.

November 2022 - One of the most unique – and important – acts of reconciliation and political innovation in Canada is currently underway in Northern Ontario.  Three First Nations – Animbiigoo Zaagi’igan Anishinaabek, Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek, and Lac des Mille Lacs First Nation are seeking to rebuild their nations after years of being unable to use their reserve lands to build a stable foundation that can spur economic growth.

Here we are again. Another summer finished with our Experience North summer placements. You’d think we’d have toughened up by now, but if you could pass the tissues to us, that’d be great, thank you.

August 2022 - If you feel like you see a lot of “we’re hiring” signs around your community these days, you would be right. That’s because Northern Ontario has a shrinking labour force due in part to baby boomers reaching the age of retirement but also low birth rates and youth out-migration.

May, 2022 - This article first appeared in The Walleye Magazine, May issue.

April 2022 - All roads lead home: Immigration flows into Ontario’s north and what this means for RNIP impacts, lays out current immigration levels and characteristics in Northern Ontario’s five largest cities: North Bay, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, and Greater Sudbury.