After a busy fall session, the speaker portion of the International Policy Forum has come to a close.  In the past four months we have had the opportunity to meet with a great selection of experts from both inside and outside of the government to discuss a wide variety of issues affecting Canadians in distress abroad.  Whether in physical danger, legal trouble or simply stranded, the IPF has heard innovative solutions to a variety of situations.

Now it is time to reflect on the discussions of the past year and turn these ideas into concrete policy proposals.  We will continue to meet with experts, as appropriate, but the majority of IPF activity will be in small groups, working on the content of our final report, which will be released this spring.  Currently, members are brainstorming ideas and the structure of the report will be decided by the end of the month.  It seems like every day there are new stories about Canadians in distress abroad, so the IPF is very excited to be looking at such a timely and important issue.

A final big thank you to our members for their hard work this past semester and good luck with the new year!

-The IPF Executive Team

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The International Policy Forum (IPF) is pleased to announce the release of two new documents, both the product of labour during the 2008-09 academic year.

Planning for Tomorrow: A Blueprint to Reinvigorate Canada’s North is the third in a series of annual policy reports. Our yearly recommendations to the federal government on a matter of international concern constitute the core focus of Forum operations. This recent publication regarding the Arctic resulted from approximately eight months of study and debate.

Planning for Tomorrow: A Blueprint to Reinvigorate
Canada’s North
Click here to access the report (.pdf)

Not since the Cold War has there been such a focus on the Arctic. Unlike in the past, when attention was given due to the global jostling of superpowers, it has been the effects of a changing climate and the potential for high return on the region’s rich natural resources that have led outsiders to turn their eyes northward once again. In Canada specifically, the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper has shown more dedication to the Arctic than most of its predecessors. While this is a positive first step, the IPF strongly urges the Government of Canada to continue its investment in the North and not to lose interest should the political profile of the region wane.

In particular, Planning for the Future highlights three areas in which Canada’s current Northern Strategy could use to be refined: economic development; security and international cooperation; and regional adaptation. The report suggests that by making the region more accessible, establishing a strong Canadian Arctic identity and helping residents better integrate with a more interconnected world, the federal government can help provide the North with the tools necessary to succeed in the 21^st century.

The first volume of the Carleton Review of International Affairs (CRIA) is also available for download. This is a new annual cooperative initiative led by a Director of the IPF and the President of the Carleton United Nations Society.

Carleton Review of International Affairs, Volume One
Click here to access an electronic copy (.pdf)

The mandate of the CRIA is to provide a venue showcasing the best and brightest of Carleton University’s undergraduate scholarship that pertains to matters of global interest. It is the hope of both the IPF and the United Nations Society that this new project will help encourage and publicize the next generation of Carleton scholars.

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The International Policy Forum (IPF), in conjunction with the United Nations Society, is pleased to announce the creation of the Carleton Review of International Affairs (CRIA). An annual peer-reviewed undergraduate journal, the CRIA aims to provide greater exposure to the insightful work junior academics produce in their first years of study. Any current undergraduate student at Carleton University is eligible to submit up to two articles pertaining to global affairs, regardless of discipline, for the consideration of the publication committee. Ultimately, the CRIA aims to further the IPF’s central mandate of providing new venues for students to engage in foreign policy discussion and debate.

For more information regarding the CRIA, please visit its webpage located here. Details regarding the essay submission process and how to become a peer reviewer may be found at this address.

Please address any questions or inquiries regarding this new initiative to cria@internationalpolicyforum.com

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After a series of productive fall discussion sessions with authoritative Arctic experts, the Directors and Project Officers are looking forward to a promising 2009.

Finally, the Directors and Project Officers want to wish our members best of luck for the 2009 academic year!

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The application period for the 2008-09 session of the International Policy Forum (IPF) has come to a close. Although the selection process was difficult, the Directors are happy to officially commence the Forum for the 2008-09 academic year and wish to thank all those who took the time to apply. For those interested in this year’s topic, Arctic Transformation in the 21^st Century, please continue to visit the website throughout the year for updates into our developing research.

At present, the IPF will begin its semester-long speaker series. This process will bring together a unique panel of student participants with guest experts from a variety of fields relating to Arctic affairs.

Finally, past members of the IPF are encouraged to visit our new alumni page which has officially come online as of today. If you are an alumnus and wish to update your current status, please send a message to: alumni@internationalpolicyforum.com

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The 2008-09 International Policy Forum (IPF) application period has officially commenced. To become a part of this year’s team, please visit the Get Involved section of this website. Prospective members may submit applications to become either a Project Officer or General Member. To learn what each of these positions entail and measure which may best suite you, applicants are strongly encouraged to read the job descriptions that have now been posted online. 

Application forms for Project Officers will be uploaded on August 18 while General Membership forms will be made available starting September 1. Approximately two Project Officers will be selected for this year’s Forum in addition to 12 General Members (note: the exact number of applicants selected for each position varies year to year). Those applicants who apply unsuccessfully for Project Officer are highly encouraged to reapply under the General Membership category come September 1. For such applicants, only the General Membership application form and question responses will be required. No new resume need be submitted.

Please address any questions or concerns you may have regarding the 2008-09 application process to: ipf@internationalpolicyforum.com

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The International Policy Forum (IPF) is pleased to announce Arctic Transformation in the 21st Century as its new research subject for the upcoming academic year. This selection comes amid mounting attention and interest in the affairs of the circumpolar world. Indeed, the twenty-four month period of 2007-08 saw a diverse community of governments and researchers unite to launch the third International Polar Year. For Canada in particular, 2009 will be a date of special significance as it marks the 100th anniversary of the Canadian claim to sovereignty over the Arctic Archipelago. Clearly, it is an exciting time to explore circumpolar policy.

“The Arctic is a region that most Canadians know very little about,” commented incoming IPF Director Andrew Vey, “yet given the culmination of global warming and higher energy prices, we are all starting to wake up to the opportunities and challenges that await us in the North.”

Those interested in becoming involved with the IPF during the forthcoming year are strongly urged to visit the Get Involved section of this website on a regular basis. Applications for Project Officers will become available in mid-August, while General Membership will be open in early September. More information regarding the responsibilities and benefits of these positions will be made available shortly before the applications are posted online.

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The International Policy Forum (IPF) is pleased to announce the release of the 2007-08 publication, Consistency in Crisis Management: A Comprehensive Canadian Approach to Humanitarian Intervention. This is the second annual report of the IPF and culminates a year long project that has aimed to improve the concept of humanitarian intervention from a uniquely Canadian perspective.

Consistency in Crisis Management: A Comprehensive Canadian Approach to Humanitarian Intervention
Click here to access the report (.pdf)

In light of renewed attention on humanitarian intervention as a mechanism for crisis resolution in the 21st century, there is a need for Canada to redefine its stance towards international affairs. Today more than ever our global role seems to be in flux. We are no longer the Pearsonian peacekeepers of yesteryear, but neither do Canadians seek to become international policemen. This dichotomy further complicates the creation of decisive policy when faced with multifarious crises such as Rwanda or Darfur.

Humanitarian intervention remains a controversial tool of statecraft. Being predicated on some degree of sovereignty infringement, it should be utilized with the utmost discretion and only as an option of last resort. The IPF believes that in the rare instances that humanitarian intervention is called for, consistency in policy and action is vital. Such an approach encourages transparent decision making, establishes mechanisms to govern when intervention is appropriate and helps to provide greater legitimacy to any resulting action.

The 2007-08 report is structured to detail a standardized strategy for humanitarian intervention during three phases: once conflict has materialized, during the process of foreign incursion and the successive long term reconstruction efforts. Taken together, the IPF recommendations outline an optimistic but attainable vision for Canada’s revitalized role as a leader in international affairs.

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The International Policy Forum is pleased to announce the launch date for the 2007-08 report entitled, Consistency in Crisis Management: A Comprehensive Canadian Approach to Humanitarian Intervention. On Friday, May 16th the document will be freely downloadable from this website.

The report is a culmination of a year of work by the sixteen member forum, a fully student organized think-tank who in its second year of operation chose to address the complex issue of Humanitarian Intervention in Crisis Situations. After meeting with experts during the fall and early winter, the Forum drafted detailed policies to address how Canada and the broader international community might approach the concept of humanitarian intervention with renewed confidence.

“I’m really proud of the work that has been put into this year’s report”, commented Co-Director, Matthew Ronald. ”Such policy recommendations are sure to create thought provoking discussion”.

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Having reached the end of the Fall Semester, the International Policy Forum (IPF) wraps up an exciting four months of interviews, lectures and debates.

As we prepare to enter 2008, many new events are on the calendar.  January and early February will be devoted to wrapping up our current lecture series with some exciting speakers.  These first two months will also see the early stages of policy debate and research as the IPF attempts to set a direction for this year’s report.

The remainder of the Winter Semester will focus entirely on the complex process of policy research, debate and refinement.

All of us at the IPF wish you happy and safe holidays!

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The application period for 2007-08 session of the International Policy Forum has now ended.  We wish to thank all those who took the time to apply to be apart of this year’s Forum.

Applicants can expect to hear the results of the selection process within the upcoming week.  Following this, the Forum will officially kick-off our lecture series with a special guest (to be announced) in order to frame and orientate the general direction of this year’s report.

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The Carleton University United Nations Society is proud to launch the second year of the International Policy Forum (IPF), Canada’s first student-run international policy think tank. Involvement with the IPF gives interested students an opportunity to engage in Canadian foreign policy issues and transfer their academic knowledge into innovative and concrete policy proposals. The IPF was created to provide an avenue for students to become meaningfully involved in contemporary policy discussions, with the belief that the opinions of youth are often overlooked when international policy is developed.

Building on last years success with the release of the report, Partnership Through Capacity Building: A Forward Looking Strategy for Canada-US Relations, the IPF has decided to address in its 2007-08 season the controversial issue of Canadian humanitarian intervention. As with any complex topic, humanitarian intervention has both its advocates and critics. Nevertheless, it is vital for Canadians to consider intervention policy and the subsequent role it will create for our nation in the global community.

To tackle this issue, the IPF will continue to employ a unique structure for student interaction and discussion. In the fall semester, Forum members will convene with a variety of accomplished speakers. These individuals will be given an open license to voice their opinions, answer questions, and participate in frank and stimulating discussion. Each session will tackle one of a number of humanitarian intervention policy facets including: Canada’s history as a peacekeeping nation, current aid missions around the globe and the evolving nature of our armed forces.

During the winter semester, IPF members will brainstorm and develop original policy recommendations based on Forum sessions and outside research. These recommendations will then be published and presented to numerous non-governmental organizations, civil servants, Members of Parliament, federal ministries, and other policy leaders.

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The International Policy Forum (IPF) is pleased to announce the release of the 2007 report entitled: Partnership Through Capacity Building: A Forward Looking Strategy for Canada-US Relations. This inaugural report culminates a year long project that has focused on better understanding the relationship between Canada and the United States.

Click here to access the report (.pdf)

Partnership Through Capacity Building: A Forward Looking Strategy for Canada-US Relations

While trade and security are the two essential pieces of the mutual relationship between Canada and the United States, the IPF believes that the manner in which both areas are currently managed needs to be strengthened within a new institutional framework. Three key subjects of paramount concern remain, building a stronger institutional capacity, engaging in a more robust public diplomacy strategy and strengthening environmental cooperation. By highlighting many of the distinct aspects of the Canada-US partnership and suggesting methods to improve upon established areas of cooperation, the report projects a forward looking approach that is crucial for future success of the relationship.

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Canadian farmers in the prairies want change. This desire was voiced in the barley marketing plebiscite concluded March 2007, whereby 62% of farmers voted to have the grain removed from the single-desk authority of the Canadian Wheat Board (CWB). The Government of Canada has since committed to amending the board’s regulations accordingly by August of this year. Discussions pertaining to the CWB have largely focused on its impact for Canadian farmers and how they conduct their business. However, by its very nature, the board and any reforms thereof have international implications, particularly in the realm of Canada-US relations.

Sanctioned by the Government of Canada, the CWB is defined as a State Trading Enterprise under international law. Although no longer a crown corporation, Parliament is still committed to cover any of the board’s financial losses. As a result, the federal government has spent $1.3 billion since 1943 to cover CWB deficits. In 2003 alone the board suffered a shortfall of $85.4 million.

This subsidy to Canadian grain producers has understandably irked the United States, which accuses Canada of dumping in the market for wheat and barley. Subsequently, the United States has challenged the CWB on unfair trade practices in fourteen separate instances. A majority of these rulings have been favourable to Canada; the WTO ruling in 2004 marking the tenth time that a ruling has backed the CWB.

However, as seen with the recently resolved softwood lumber dispute, a trade irritant remains a trade irritant, regardless of the number of trade rulings to the contrary. The United States proceeded to impose tariffs on Canadian grains, which have since been either reduced or eliminated entirely. Not to be dissuaded, they continue at an international level to push for a change in State Trade Enterprise regulations.

Currently, only barley is being removed from the CWB monopoly. Wheat, of which the board’s trade is primarily composed, will still fall under CWB control. The removal of barley, however, is still significant and is a positive first step in changing the market for grains. Done in the name of market fairness for Canadian farmers, this reform to the CWB cannot help but further lessen trade tensions between the two countries.

This is in no way saying that a bettering of Canada-US relations was the driving impetus for reforming the CWB. It is merely an additional perk.

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Environment Minister John Baird recently remarked that he would like to ban the involvement of Canadian companies in international carbon trading (Globe and Mail, “Baird wants ban…”, March 23, 2007). Instead, he argues, corporations should trade carbon credits within North America. His main argument being that “Canada gets left behind in the green economy if all of our money goes offshore”.

At the same time, in his current visit to the United States “to get a sense of where the administration… is going”, Baird has yet to discuss carbon emissions reduction or a North American carbon trading scheme with Canada’s largest trading partner (Environment Canada, “News Release”, April 13, 2007). When the global political climate (pun intended) is shifting towards a focus on carbon dioxide and Greenhouse Gases (GHGs), Baird, instead of pressing the US administration to consider carbon cuts, took the easy route in discussing a “Particulate Matter Annex” to the Air Quality Agreement.

Furthermore, the talks were falsely publicized by Baird in his press conference as a step “to reduce greenhouse gases and the pollutants that cause climate change”. Although the devastating effects of particulate matter on health (cardiovascular and heart disease) are scientifically established, there is no link between PMs and climate change - dare I say Global Warming.

Neither of the two scientifically established primary GHGs, Carbon Dioxide or Methane, have been tackled through the Air Quality Agreement or any Annex beyond a hasty notification mechanism. In a time of increased global and citizen awareness of the affects of Carbon Dioxide on the planet, Mr Baird would do well to apply some pressure on the US administration to cooperate with Canada on this front.

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NATO Defence ministers from countries with troops in Afghanistan met in Quebec City yesterday to discuss the operation. US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates reportedly pressured other countries to contribute more forces to the region. It should be noted that according to Minister O’Connor he did not ask Canada to contribute more forces. It got me thinking back to debates we had within the IPF about how much capital Canada can get by contributing to overseas US led missions.

I am one to believe that our ability to do so is overstated. This is simply because of the reality of the American political system and what Canada wants to extract from the relationship. If you look at the two major policy issues that have dominated the relationship during the part year or so it has been the now resolved softwood lumber dispute and the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI).

One of the major issues within the softwood lumber dispute was that of the Byrd Amendment. The Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act of 2000 (repealed in 2006) which was spearheaded by Senator Robert Byrd, changed the policy on how US tariffs and duties revenues were allocated. The Act distributed the collected revenue to the companies that had filed the initial complaints. This was problematic as not only had the duties been placed on softwood imports to the US but now created an even greater distorting by subsidizing unfairly Canadian competitors.

The WHTI requires all travelers from Canada and all of the Americas to have a passports or other specified secure documentation to enter the US by 2008. Problematic for Canada since most Americans do not have a passport, nor do many Canadians. Fear is it will have significant economic effects for tourism and trade for both countries. This requirement was put in place by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004.

What is important to realize for both of these cases is that the capital that Canada would need to build up to change these policies, I would argue are almost impossible to gain through gaining favor with the US through committing to US foreign involvements. The reason is simple, for both of the above examples it is Congress that put in place these problematic policies not the executive. Our engagement in Afghanistan is gaining us favor in the White House and not so much on Capital Hill. The famous Tip O’Neill quote “all politics are local” is adapt in describing how Congress, more specifically the House of Representatives act. If it benefits it benefits their congressional district then a representative will vote in our interests, if it does not, they will not.

This is no way to say that we should not involve ourselves in US led military operations. What it is important to understand is that added favors earned in Washington by doing so are overstated.

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The International Policy Forum is glad to announce the launch date for the 2007 Report titled: Partnership Through Capacity Building: A Forward Looking Strategy of Canada-US Relations. On Monday April 16th the report will be launched online with commentary thought the weeks and months ahead by the directors, participants and special guest experts. 

This report is a culmination of a year of work by the twelve member forum, a fully student organized think-tank who in its inaugural year has tacked the complex Canada-US relationship. After meeting with experts during the fall and early winter, the Forum debated and drafted detailed policies to address of the weakness of the relationship. “The report touches on a wide range of issues that need to be addressed to strengthen such an important partnership”, commented founder and Co-Director, Mark Rubenstein.

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We would like to thank all involved for making the International Policy Forum a vast success so far. The first semester has brought an abundance of stimulating and informative opinion and debate in what is a brand new endeavor for all involved on the IPF. We heard from numerous experts in the fields of history, trade, and security, all of who had intimate knowledge of the dynamics of the Canada-US relationship. Next term promises to be just as exciting with at least two more planed discussion sessions, one focusing on the view from the United States, another on the view from Canada, followed by the subsequent step of debating and drafting of the recommendations (the fun part!).

In its inaugural year, Carleton University’s International Policy Forum has already had a very productive fall term and will continue to engage in its policy work this winter. The International Policy Forum is a fully student run international think-tank created by the Carleton United Nations Society. The Forum gives interested upper year students an opportunity to engage in Canadian foreign policy issues and transfer their academic knowledge into actual policy proposals for the Canadian government. This year the Forum has been tackling the issue of Canada-US Relations.

Last semester IPF participants took part in a number or unique discussion forums, debating key issues in the field of United States relations with main experts from a variety of backgrounds presenting their viewpoints and expertise with the Forum. Topics so far have included “History and Context”, “A Trading Relationship”, and “Defense and Security in a Post-9/11 Context”.

“It has been a chance for fellow students to engage the issue and learn in a way they do not get to it in the classroom”, said Mark Rubenstein IPF Founder and Co-Director.

The work of the Forum continues this January with an examination of political mechanisms inherent in the relationship. For a view from the United States participants will meet with U.S. Ambassador David Wilkins to discuss recent and future developments in the U.S.-Canada relationship. For a Canadian perspective we will speak with officials within the Foreign Service and political spheres.

With the conclusion of information sessions the work of the Forum truly gets underway. Participants will debate and collaborate in the creation of a single, concrete policy proposal based on prior Forum sessions and further research. The final proposal, with the work of all Forum participants, is expected to be released in late April. These recommendations will then be published and presented to numerous non-governmental organizations, public servants, Members of Parliament, Federal Ministries and other policy leaders.

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We would like to thank all involved for making the International Policy Forum a vast success so far. The first semester has brought an abundance of stimulating and informative opinion and debate in what is a brand new endeavor for all involved on the IPF. We heard from numerous experts in the fields of history, trade, and security, all of who had intimate knowledge of the dynamics of the Canada-US relationship. Next term promises to be just as exciting with at least two more planed discussion sessions, one focusing on the view from the United States, another on the view from Canada, followed by the subsequent step of debating and drafting of the recommendations (the fun part!).

Special thanks go out to all members who have continued to impress by putting forth total commitment to the project. If the discussions we have had thus far are any indicator, the draft policy will be nothing short of impressive.

We hope that everyone enjoys their winter break and that the New Year brings success and prosperity to all, especially the IPF. See you in January.

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