The Blueprint for More and Better Housing, released in early 2024, provided a plan for Canada to build 5.8 million affordable, resilient and low-carbon homes. Although many of the recommendations have proven popular with policymakers and the public, getting buy-in for the overall vision can be difficult. Too often, those policymakers and the public see […]

Over the past six years, from Canada Day 2018 to Canada Day 2024, Canada’s population has grown by over 4.2 million people, requiring a substantial increase in Canada’s housing supply. This rapid naturally leads to the question, Which communities are getting it done when it comes to homebuilding? In this memo, Ontario Communities Falling Behind […]

There is a broad consensus that Canada is in the midst of a housing affordability crisis. The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation has estimated that 5.8 million homes, nationally, need to be built by 2030 in order to address the housing affordability crisis. In Ontario, the provincial target is 1.5 million homes. As part of […]

International students are an invaluable part of the prospective Canadian workforce that can help address the critical skilled labour shortages facing many Canadian industries, including construction, manufacturing, and agriculture. However, Canada’s current policies are at odds with the objective of having international students stay and work in Canada. If this is unaddressed, Canada will fail […]

Canada’s forestry sector is facing a labour shortage due to a wave of baby boomer retirements and little interest from younger generations to pursue a career in forestry. Despite the need for more workers, women still comprise only 17% of the sector in Canada. One study also found that women in forestry are rarely in […]

To keep up with an aging and growing population, it is projected that Ontario will need to build 1.5 million homes in the next ten years. Yet, Ontario has never built more than 850,000 homes in a ten-year period. Who is responsible for making this 1.5 million homes goal a reality, while making it happen […]

Rents have been increasing rapidly in many parts of the country, primarily caused by a lack of accessible, climate-friendly, affordable, and market-rate purpose-built rental units to house a growing population. Increasing rents inflict the most significant harm on the lowest-income Canadians, including seniors, people on fixed incomes, single-parent led households, students, newcomers to Canada, and […]

As Canada advances clean growth and climate action, tens (or even hundreds) of thousands of roles could be created in regions across the country. However, sectors are sounding the alarm about a challenge this growth could create: it may very well worsen labour shortages. This concern is valid. Without finding more skilled workers, increases in […]

Clean growth and climate action in Canada could create thousands of jobs in the next seven years. With a potential 300,000 jobs created, communities across the country have the opportunity to thrive while moving Canada towards meeting its climate targets. Yet, two challenges exist to realize this vision.   Workers must have the required skills to […]

Canada is experiencing a crisis in the skilled trades. Amid record-high job vacancies in sectors like manufacturing, alongside the number of Canadians nearing retirement outnumbering young people entering the working world, the demand for a new generation of skilled trades workers is soaring. Additionally, Canada has one of the most ambitious climate goals in the world. Over […]

5.8 Million. That’s the number of new homes Canada needs to build by 2030 to ensure there’s affordable housing for everyone, as estimated by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. There are many challenges that need to be addressed to resolve the housing crisis. At PLACE, there are two that are top of mind as we […]

Economists thinking about the workforce impacts of clean technologies should adopt a “value-chain” approach.

Increased automation, labour shortages, and a changing climate. These, and other trends, will impact workers in the decades to come. And when it comes to new, disruptive green technologies, all these trends come together to create complex challenges that policymakers must navigate. Policymakers concerned about the green economic future are being tasked with creating training […]

This is a great opportunity for workers in Southwestern Ontario, but new skills training and education programs are needed.

Budget 2023 fails to address Canada’s housing shortage crisis. The federal government needs more than a housing target, it needs a plan...now.

Policymakers need to ensure Canada’s new industrial policy help communities, instead of giving them additional challenges. Place-based thinking can help.

Ontario’s 2023 Budget contains some bad news: we’re further away from meeting the provincial government’s 1.5 million housing target than we thought

An even greater need for affordable housing is found as recent data released by Statistics Canada shows Canada's population continues to grow.

Read our submission to the Federal Consultation on Labour Conditions for Clean Tech and Clean Hydrogen Investment Tax Credits

In the last 3 months alone, Canada’s population grew by over 360,000 persons. What does this mean for creating a prosperous zero-emissions economic future for communities across Canada?

New Report on how clean growth and climate action in Canadian communities will be shaped by global economic trends

Plant-based protein is becoming common - where do they come from, how they are made, and how they can help with not only Canada's net zero climate goals, but Canada's economy.

Places in Canada with housing shortages also have high housing costs and rents. Nowhere is this more true than in the Peel and York regions of Toronto.

A different, and better, future is possible for communities across Canada.