UNews - Prentice Institute

Define the Decade report sets the stage for Alberta prosperity over the next 10 years

trevor.kenney — Thu, 16 Jun 2022 16:52:11 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge political scientist Dr. Lars Hallström contributed to report from the Business Council of Alberta

With the province of Alberta currently at a crossroads, the Business Council of Alberta (BCA) released its flagship report Thursday — Define the Decade: Building Alberta’s Future—Together.

Dr. Lars Hallström, director of the Prentice Institute and ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge political scientist, contributed to the report, which examines the state of Alberta and sets out a visionary plan to “create a good life for every Albertan.” The plan is the culmination of a landmark research and public consultation process that engaged thousands of Albertans from all walks of life.

Dr. Lars Hallstrom is the director of the Prentice Institute and a ULethbridge political scientist.

“Albertans were remarkably united in their desired vision for the future. We all want a place of belonging, opportunity and solutions,” says Hallström. “This report outlines a reimagined and inspirational vision for Alberta’s future and a 10-year plan to unleash the province’s potential, and to identify and address some of the challenges we face.”

The report outlines how Alberta is uniquely positioned to take on three goals: prosperity – building a good life for all; economic expansion and diversification; and long-term sustainability. The report then identifies three global-scale missions: Feeding Everyone: Sustainable & Healthy Food, Energy Solutions: Low-Carbon Energy, Materials, & Minerals, and Healthy Lives: Medical & Wellness Advancements.

“We can write the next chapter for Alberta, one that is intentional, purposeful, and based on what Albertans from many geographies, identities, sectors, and walks of life want to see,” says Susannah Pierce, President & Country Chair, Shell Canada, and task force Co-Chair. “Through Define the Decade, we heard from thousands of Albertans about what is working in Alberta, what isn’t, and what they want their future to look like.”

Hallström's participation in the project included sitting as a member of the Advisory Committee since 2021, and providing input and feedback on the analysis, content and communication of the report and plan. As a specialist in public policy, environmental policy and rural development, he also provided content expertise in those areas.

He identified two main catalysts the report recommends would drive the vision of Define the Decade. The first is an Alberta Mission Agency which would coordinate and advance the Prosperity Mission focus for Alberta. The second is the creation of a Heartland Economic Region — a province-wide collaborative network of communities working to play on the same level as similar mega-regional economic development initiatives in North America. Supporting those catalysts are multiple imperatives: being united and collaborative; advancing reconciliation; being competitive; going global; delivering good governance; acting urgently.

"This report’s plan is a major step forward for Alberta on many fronts,” says Hallström. “It brings together a lot of public engagement and many voices, and links industry, the public sector, and communities in many different ways and across policy sectors. It is also very honest about some of the realities this province needs to face, both from the past, and into the future.”

About the Business Council of Alberta

The Business Council of Alberta is a non-partisan, for-purpose organization dedicated to building a better Alberta within a more dynamic Canada. Composed of the chief executives and leading entrepreneurs of the province’s largest enterprises, BCA members are proud to represent the majority of Alberta’s private sector investment, job creation, exports, and research and development. The Council is committed to working with leaders and stakeholders across Alberta and Canada in proposing bold and innovative public policy solutions and initiatives that will make life better for Albertans.

For more on the Business Council of Alberta: businesscouncilab.com/

To view the full report: definethedecade.com/

The changing face of the Canadian family

caroline.zentner — Tue, 27 Mar 2018 15:54:51 +0000

Canadian families are becoming more diverse and they’re pretty stable units overall, as shown in the sixth and latest edition of Close Relations.

Authored by Dr. Susan McDaniel, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge sociology professor and director of the Prentice Institute, along with Dr. Lorne Tepperman from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Toronto and Dr. Sandra Colavecchia from McMaster ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, the latest edition draws statistics from a variety of sources to paint a portrait of Canadian families.

“The overall message in the sixth edition is that families are fine,” says McDaniel, Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Life Course. “They’ve changed and become more diverse. People who wring their hands and think everybody’s doing away with family should know that is not the case. The reality is most people stay married. The divorce rate has been relatively stable and in fact, it’s gone down. So, marriage is quite alive and well, but it’s also true that the alternatives to marriage are alive and well.”

More and more Canadians are living in long-term relationships without being legally married. They may have lived together for many years and have children together. Canada also has more people who are living a single life, whether they live alone and have a significant other in another location, have had a long-term relationship in their past, or are postponing marriage.

“It does mean that living alone is more popular than it ever has been,” says McDaniel. “Part of that is because we can. In the olden days, women in particular, but also men, had to marry someone to survive because they couldn’t afford to live alone.”

Another notable change in the Canadian family is a fast-growing Indigenous population. McDaniel sees huge possibilities for a growing pool of young people who want to be educated and join the labour market. Indigenous people often start having children when they are younger and their families are often larger.

“When they come to university, very often they already have children and that’s a very different kind of student than an 18-year-old straight out of high school,” says McDaniel. “The Indigenous student may have different needs because they have families already. If we could adapt to that and figure out how to handle that better, we could have more remarkable students come out of university.”

The latest edition of Close Relations also contains figures from the Aboriginal Peoples in Canada: First Nations People, Métis and Inuit National Household Survey of 2011, along with data from Statistics Canada.

“The figures show that 60 per cent of children who live on reserves and 41 per cent of Indigenous children who live off-reserve are considered to be living below the poverty line,” says McDaniel. “In the wake of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission there is a kind of awakening to these problems, including intergenerational issues — how people who are beaten back by policy for generations, which is precisely what happened with the residential school situation, can be affected for generations.”

Another change in the fabric of the Canadian family is that more people with disabilities are becoming parents. This trend has the potential to develop into a policy issue, McDaniel says. A child with a disability becomes an adult with a disability and their parents, as they age, may become unable to look after their child, if that child is dependent. Parents worry about what will happen to their dependent adult children when they can no longer care for them or pass away.

“Most family trends are positive; we want people to live as long as they possibly can,” says McDaniel. “However, it creates policy and personal challenges on the family front. That’s something we don’t know a lot about but I think we should know more.”

U of L sociologist Kazemipur wins prestigious book award

caroline.zentner — Wed, 06 May 2015 20:49:14 +0000

Dr. Abdie Kazemipur, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge professor of sociology and the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Scholar research chair in social sciences, has been named by the Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) as this year’s recipient of The John Porter Tradition of Excellence Book Award for his recent book The Muslim Question in Canada: A Story of Segmented Integration (2014, UBC Press).

“I am deeply honoured to be receiving this award,” says Kazemipur. “It is very encouraging and energizing to see that my modest contribution has been recognized at a national level and I am grateful to the award committee of the CSA for it.”

In his book, Kazemipur addresses the question of how a peaceful and harmonious relationship can be forged between the Muslim minorities and mainstream populations in western liberal democracies. This has been one of the most pressing issues of the past couple of decades and has resulted in a large body of research. The bulk of the existing research, however, has been non-Canadian, non-empirical, and non-sociological; Kazemipur’s book transcends this field of research on all three fronts. First, the book addresses the research question against the backdrop of ‘Canadian exceptionalism’ – the popular belief that the integration of immigrants has been much smoother in Canada than elsewhere. Second, it relies on a vast array of both quantitative and qualitative data including nationwide longitudinal surveys, face-to-face interviews and participant observations. Third, it demonstrates the merits of using a sociological approach to overcome the shortcomings of the existing research, the bulk of which have their disciplinary bases in political philosophy, cultural studies, communication, religious studies, and anthropology.

Each year, the Canadian Sociological Association gives the award to a work that makes a distinguished contribution to the understanding of Canadian society. The work must be relevant to an issue Canadian society is facing and include solid theory, meticulous research, and clear language. The award, named after prominent Canadian sociologist John Porter, was created in 1980 to recognize outstanding published scholarly contributions to the advancement of sociological knowledge in Canada.

“The award is the top award in Canada for a sociologist; it is the crème de la crème,” says Dr. Susan McDaniel, director of the Prentice Institute and Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Life Course. “We at the Prentice Institute and in the Sociology department at the U of L are justly proud to have a scholar of Dr. Kazemipur's stature among us.”

He will receive the honour during the award ceremony of the annual meeting of the CSA at the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences 2015 in Ottawa May 30 to June 5. He has also been invited to deliver a keynote speech at the 2016 (CSA) conference to be held in Calgary.

Kazemipur will also be the featured speaker at Thursday’s (May 7) Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs at noon at Country Kitchen Catering, located on the lower level of The Keg restaurant.

McDaniel earns first Tier I CRC for social sciences

trevor.kenney — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:35:12 +0000

Dr. Susan McDaniel, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Sociology Professor and Director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, has been named a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, the first Tier 1 CRC in social sciences at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

The seven-year, renewable appointment comes with more than $1.4 million, which will support the Prentice Institute's ever-increasing research capacity.

The funding helps McDaniel and her research colleagues look beyond numbers, and dig deeper into the complex issues that face people over the course of their lives, such as aging, income inequalities, access to health care, how global issues affect people, and policies that take aging and population shifts into consideration.

"This is an outstanding announcement for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and for Dr. McDaniel and her research teams," says Dr. Dan Weeks, the U of L's vice-president (research). "Susan has done an excellent job of putting the Prentice Institute on a trajectory that will make it a world-recognized centre. She has attracted a significant number of researchers to the Institute as research associates, which in turn has built up our graduate student component. With this new funding, Dr. McDaniel and her colleagues will be able to significantly expand on the Prentice Institute's mandate to look into population issues worldwide."

Dr. Susan McDaniel is the director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy.

There are three areas McDaniel – and her expanding group of researchers – is examining through what she describes as life-course research. These include comparisons between Canadian and other population groups, initially in the United States; the government-supported policy steps countries such as Japan and Korea have taken to manage the challenges of an aging population; and the concept of age itself, and how factors such as economic conditions, lack of healthcare or being a refugee from a war-torn country can have on your life expectancy.

"The life-course research concept has several principles, among them that you need to follow a person through their life to get a solid picture of how they are affected by a variety of influences," says McDaniel. "We are following individuals across time because at each point in your life course, you exist in a context within a society. For example, if a person graduates from high school or university at a time when the economy is not healthy, they might have trouble finding a job. A whole group of people may be disadvantaged over a long period because of that one moment in time."

By comparison, McDaniel says that a person who benefits from a strong economy may land a better job, have better educational opportunities and also have a longer life expectancy.

"We are expanding on research where we looked at Americans aged 45-64 over a 14-year period and a similar group of Canadians over a 16-year period, and found that income inequalities make a huge difference for their prospects in later years, " says McDaniel.

McDaniel is also examining how government policy has changed the way people live in countries where aging and significant population change is normal, such as in Japan and Korea, two countries with very different challenges.

"Japan is the 'oldest' country in the world, while Korea has a relatively young population but it will age very quickly," says McDaniel. "What we are finding is that innovations are unexpected. Both Korea and Japan have instituted publicly funded long-term care insurance. When speaking to the Koreans about why they implemented it at this time, the response was that they could afford it now while the population is young, as opposed to being unable to afford it later."

McDaniel said that what Japan did to respond to its aging population was to encourage more women to enter the workforce, and made it easier by instituting public daycare.

The other issue McDaniel looks to tackle as part of her research, is changing the fundamental notion of age from a number to a concept that takes a whole host of lifestyle experiences into consideration, among them health, education, economic circumstances and other factors.

"You need to look at age differently based on what happens to a person during their life. A person in a risky or blue-collar occupation might age differently than someone in a less dangerous or physically demanding job," she says. "We need to have a flexible definition of what is 'old', because this research, while not yet fully completed, is important in policy development."

Keeping a finger on the pulse of these worldwide indicators is keeping McDaniel and her teams constantly busy. The research projects will ultimately wind up as journal articles or become part of four books currently in process.

This story first appeared in the November issue of the Legend. For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

New Canada Research Chair at Prentice Institute

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 15:08:04 +0000

Dr. Susan McDaniel, a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Sociology professor and director of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, has been named a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, the first Tier 1 CRC in social sciences at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ.

The seven-year, renewable appointment comes with more than $1.4 million, which will support the Prentice Institute's ever-increasing research capacity.

The funding helps McDaniel and her research colleagues look beyond numbers, and dig deeper into the complex issues that face people over the course of their lives, such as aging, income inequalities, access to health care, how global issues affect people and policies that take aging and population shifts into consideration.

"This is an outstanding announcement for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and for Dr. McDaniel and her research teams," says Dr. Dan Weeks, the U of L's Vice-President, Research.

In total, 253 newly awarded or renewed Canada Research Chairs at 56 Canadian degree-granting post-secondary institutions are being awarded $203.9 million to undertake new research.

This federal investment allows Canadian institutions to strengthen their position as global leaders in research and development, bringing greater economic opportunities for Canadians.

"Susan has done an excellent job of putting the Prentice Institute on a trajectory that will make it a world-recognized centre. She has attracted a significant number of researchers to the Institute as research associates, which in turn has built up our graduate student component. With this new funding, Dr. McDaniel and her colleagues will be able to significantly expand on the Prentice Institute's mandate to look into population issues world-wide."

There are three areas McDaniel – and her expanding world-wide group of researchers – is examining through what she describes as 'life-course research': comparisons between Canadian and other population groups, initially in the United States; the government-supported policy steps countries such as Japan and Korea have taken to manage the challenges of an aging population; and the concept of age itself, and how factors such as economic conditions, lack of healthcare or being a refugee from a war-torn country can have on your life expectancy.

"The life course research concept has several principles, among them that you need to follow a person through their life to get a solid picture of how they are affected by a variety of influences," says McDaniel.

"We are following individuals across time because at each point in your life course, you are existing in a context in a society. For example, if a person graduates from high school or university at a time when the economy is not healthy, they might have trouble finding a job. A whole group of people may be disadvantaged over a long period because of that one moment in time."

By comparison, McDaniel says that a person who benefits from a strong economy may land a better job, have better educational opportunities and also have a longer life expectancy.

McDaniel adds that some people may be disadvantaged at the beginning of their lives, and may be continually disadvantaged as they age, compounding the disadvantages they face as they grow older.

"We are expanding on research where we looked at Americans aged 45-64 over a 14-year period, and a similar group of Canadians over a 16-year period, and found that income inequalities make a huge difference for their prospects in their later years, " says McDaniel.

The key difference between Canadians and Americans is that Canadians have lesser inequality, primarily because of social policies such as public health insurance, but also better risk insurance such as employment insurance.

As well, McDaniel is examining how government policy has changed the way people live in countries where aging and significant population change is normal, such as in Japan and Korea, two countries with very different challenges.

"Japan is the 'oldest' country in the world, while Korea has a relatively young population now but it will age very quickly," says McDaniel said. "What we are finding is that innovations are unexpected. Both Korea and Japan have instituted publicly-funded long term care insurance. When speaking to the Koreans about why they implemented it at this time, the response was that they could afford it now while the population is young, as opposed to being unable to afford it later."

The other issue McDaniel hopes to tackle as part of her research is to change the fundamental notion of 'age' from a number to a concept that takes a whole host of lifestyle experiences into consideration, among them health, education, economic circumstances, and other factors.

"You need to look at age differently based on what happens to a person during their life. A person in a risky or blue-collar occupation might age differently than someone in a less dangerous or physically demanding job," she says. "We need to have a flexible definition of what is 'old', because this research, while not yet fully completed, is important in policy development."

Keeping a finger on the pulse of these world-wide indicators is keeping McDaniel and her teams constantly busy. The new and ongoing research projects will ultimately wind up as journal articles or become parts of four books currently in process.

To date, the effort involves researchers from Canada, the United States, Japan, Korea, Italy and Africa, in addition to the regular complement of faculty members currently at the U of L or who are being recruited to join the Prentice Institute as research associates, guest lecturers, or visiting professors.

StatsCan Research Data Centre a valuable resource

trevor.kenney — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 17:35:32 +0000

It's a tiny, plain research space, with four small workstations and no Internet access. It requires, among other things, an RCMP security clearance to access the information located within it, and has steel reinforcement built into the walls – so forget about cell phone use. Card key access is tightly controlled and someone is on-site to monitor attendance and carefully screen all notes and results that leave.

So, with all this fuss to access, why is Abdie Kazemipur (sociology) so happy? He and other approved researchers now have access to the entire Statistics Canada (StatsCan) database system – a new initiative that will help ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researchers gain significant ground as they work on projects that require raw data sets normally not available to the general public.

Dr. Abdie Kazemipur, (l) and graduate student Martin Russenberger (r) are the people to contact if your research project requires extensive Statistics Canada data.

The U of L recently flipped the 'on' switch to launch a StatsCan Research Data Centre (RDC) Branch, one of just two dozen all-access points in Canada – mostly in larger institutions – for people who are working with data provided by StatsCan for approved projects.

U of L administration (VP-Academic, VP-Administration, and VP-Research) and the dean of Arts and Science supported the $70,000 project. It also received significant input and assistance from the library, campus facilities and IT departments as the space was created.

Kazemipur, the academic director of the U of L Research Data Centre and a sociology researcher who uses StatsCan data in his work on immigration, says the chance to access rich individual and household data in Lethbridge saves both time and money, offering an opportunity to significantly increase research productivity.

"I would previously have to go to Calgary, and spend intense days analyzing the data," he says. "There were many limitations on my time, and on what I was able to do during the time I had."

Kazemipur says the new centre should expand research opportunities for many faculty members in social sciences, health sciences and management who, like him, want to go deeper into their research and beyond the data available for public use.

Local access should also be an enticement to other researchers to come to the U of L to work or conduct research, in particular the 22 research affiliates of the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, which is expected to be one of the more frequent users of the facility.

"Researchers in the Prentice Institute – more than 20 faculty, post-docs and students – are delighted to have access to micro-level data in our new Research Data Centre," says
Dr. Susan McDaniel, the institute's director. "Our mission is to examine population change in shifting economic environments. One of the best ways to do this is to follow individuals over time rather than compare different sets of people at two points in time."

McDaniel says that the RDC enables researchers in one of her SSHRC-funded projects to follow Canadians at seven points of time as they move from mid-life into their older years.

"It is really, as famous hockey player Wayne Gretzky was fond of saying, skating to where the puck will be. I am certain that having the RDC here will help us recruit new faculty and junior research chairs to work in the Prentice Institute."

The process to gain access to the data is not as challenging is it might first sound, Kazemipur says. Projects must go through several steps, including an
online application to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), which triggers a request to StatsCan for access to the appropriate dataset – and that's where the security checks come in.

Once approved, a researcher gains access to the data centre with a swipe card, and can sign in and out as needed to complete their work.

Anyone wishing to use the centre, or who has a project they feel could benefit from access to the StatsCan data, can contact Kazemipur for more information on the process.

Contact him at 403-329-5132 or e-mail abdie.kazemipur@uleth.ca. Or, you can contact site supervisor Martin Russenberger, a part-time StatsCan employee and current Geography/Economics graduate student at the U of L (rdc@uleth.ca).

This story first appeared in the Legend. To view the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Investigating global population and economies

trevor.kenney — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 21:11:23 +0000

The extent and implications of population change and the dynamics of economies raise questions that demographers and social scientists alike are working to better understand. Taken together in a global context, the number of questions only increases. Yet both population and economies affect our lives, our choices and our policies.

At the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, global population challenges are explored from different angles and potential solutions are investigated in new ways.

By DANA YATES

Like many people, John Prentice of Calmar, Alta., dreamed of making a difference in the world. But the late agri-business entrepreneur and philanthropist didn't just stop there; he wanted to change the course of history altogether.

It was an ambitious goal – and one that prompted Prentice, along with his wife Connie, to donate more than $8 million to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in 2006. The endowment marked the largest-single gift in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's history and established the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy. The institute, which was officially launched in 2009, studies changes in the world population and their lasting impact on demographics, economies and societies.

Just a short time later, the Prentice Institute has become a leading research centre, one of only a few worldwide that is focused on global population changes and the economy. What's more, the institute has attracted many external research grants and is building graduate programs, along with bringing together 20 research affiliates from across eight departments at the U of L.

From looking at how people move through life stages in different economies with different demographic structures, to questions of food security, ethnic diversity, immigration and international trade, the Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is at the cutting edge of demographic research.

"It's magical when you get that cross-pollination of expertise," says Dr. Trevor Harrison, a U of L sociology professor who served as the Prentice Institute's interim director between 2007 and 2009.

At the Prentice Institute, sociologists, historians, anthropologists and economists work alongside experts in such diverse fields as nursing, public health, political science and women's studies. Those researchers, in turn, create partnerships with experts across Canada and around the world. The result: global population challenges are explored from different angles and potential solutions are investigated in new ways.

"John Prentice was a big thinker," says
Dr. Susan McDaniel, the institute's current director. She also holds the Prentice Research Chair in Global Population and Economy, the first endowed position of its kind at the U of L. "John was a Renaissance man who understood how things were connected."

Indeed, many forces and factors affect – and are connected to – the global population and economy. But the links between the former and latter are not well understood. Prentice Institute researchers are advancing our understanding of this relationship and using data to verify or refute popular beliefs about demographic changes. This "myth-busting" practice can be applied to numerous situations, says McDaniel.

"We often hear, for instance, that providing health care to an aging population will bankrupt the system," she explains. "In reality, there are much wider concerns. Medical treatments are expensive, and there is a deepening problem of poverty and the health issues associated with it."

To that end, Prentice Institute researchers are studying various issues that appear, at first blush, to be unconnected. They include international trade, migration, aging and family size. But while the subjects may seem disparate, McDaniel says cause-and-effect relationships are at work – and they are having a major impact on the world's citizens.

"Growing inequalities, for example, are happening in developed countries, such as Canada and the United States, and in developing countries, too. These inequalities cause health problems and lower everyone's life expectancy," says McDaniel. The process, she explains, is similar to an illness spreading through a classroom. If one unvaccinated child becomes sick, others will inevitably be affected.

That concept of social ramifications is one in which McDaniel is well versed. An internationally recognized sociology researcher and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, her expertise includes demographic aging, generational relationships, family change and the social impacts of technology. Before joining the Prentice Institute and the U of L Department of Sociology two years ago, McDaniel was a professor of family and consumer studies at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Utah and a senior scholar at its Institute of Public and International Affairs.

Having lived in Alberta before, McDaniel's return north of the border has helped attract other researchers to the Prentice Institute. Among them is Dr. Kathrin Komp, a post-doctoral fellow from VU ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Amsterdam. Other researchers, such as Drs. Harrison and Alexander Darku, who were U of L faculty members before the Prentice Institute was created, currently serve as the institute's associate directors. Their collective experience and expertise have made a significant impact on the institute.

For example, Darku, an assistant professor of economics at the U of L, previously taught at McGill and Concordia Universities. He has also served as a consultant to the World Bank at its Washington, D.C., headquarters and has worked as an economist in Ghana. Through his association with the Prentice Institute, Darku has noticed a shift in his research interests.

Whereas he was previously focused strictly on economic policies and international development, he now studies the interplay among international trade, migration and health. Specifically, Darku is currently looking at the growth of multinational companies in developing countries and the resulting impact on populations' eating habits. The situation, Darku has found, contributes to a "nutritional shift" within a population and can increase obesity rates.

"The interdisciplinary nature of the Prentice Institute has brought many new dimensions to my research," says Darku.

Harrison, meanwhile, has shared his research with new audiences; he has spoken at a number of presentations hosted by the institute. Once a visiting professor at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta and Hokkai-Gakuen ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ in Japan, Harrison was the 2010 Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in Canadian Studies at Georgia's Kennesaw State ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ. As a researcher and guest lecturer at the university, he brought a Canadian perspective to the relationship between Canada and the United States since Sept. 11.

Today at the Prentice Institute, Harrison – like Darku – balances his research with administrative responsibilities. And it seems both areas involve big-picture thinking.

"We're developing programs that will keep the institute moving forward. Ultimately, we're creating a research infrastructure that supports creative thinking and incubates good ideas."

One example is a policy concept known as a guaranteed annual income (GAI). While there are many different approaches to a GAI, the initiative would essentially provide each citizen with a base sum of money. Harrison has studied this complex issue since the 1970s, and while the logistics of implementing a GAI system would be considerable, it would also offer a number of advantages. They include administrative efficiencies, the reduction or elimination of poverty and an increasingly mobile workforce that can afford to move around the country.

GAI supplements, however, are just one of many ideas being analysed at the Prentice Institute. And it's all part of an effort to inform public and private policies that will better reflect, and keep up with, a changing Canada and world. To raise awareness of this vital work, Prentice Institute researchers participate in conferences and dialogue sessions, and contribute to articles, journals and books. Finally, there are future plans to build international partnerships with sister institutes.

"There are many challenges that governments, corporations, education systems and individuals have to address," says McDaniel. "But once they have the information they need, they have the potential to act upon it.

"People are hungry for knowledge. And we're training them how to look beyond myths and build a better society. It will lead to better voters, parents, consumers and caregivers."

What can we learn from other countries with regard to population aging and social policy?

Population aging and economic challenges have raised questions about how social policy regimes are, or will be, affected in various types of economies. Some research indicates a downward convergence across countries is inevitable as global economic and demographic pressures work to bring greater homogeneity to social policies. Other studies suggest that demographic and economic pressures can actually have stimulating effects on social policies.

To address these issues, Prentice Institute researchers are investigating Japan, which has experienced population aging and economic challenges simultaneously. Scholars are analysing changing relations among demographics, economics and social policy. They ask what opportunities can be discerned from the experience of Japan for re-creation of social policy regimes elsewhere in the 21st century. Ultimately, researchers will widen the comparative lens to include other Asian and developed countries. The findings from this crucial research will guide policy-makers in various countries facing similar challenges.

Is there a "Canadian exceptionalism" in issues related to immigration and diversity?

The rapid rise in ethnic diversity in immigrant-receiving countries has resulted in a general anti-diversity, anti-multiculturalism sentiment. Some studies indicate that a generalized trust is more difficult to foster in a multicultural society, resulting in a loss of sense of community and togetherness. However, other research suggests that Canada might be immune from these largely European trends.

At the Prentice Institute, researchers are investigating the extent of, and the reasons for, this Canadian exceptionalism. A clearer understanding of the differences among ethno-racial groups in terms of labour-market integration and social capital could make a significant difference in the lives of Canadians and the global community.

To what extent is population, at root, a problem with respect to food security?

Food is a basic resource essential for human survival. It is estimated that at the end of 2009, more than one billion of the world's population did not have adequate food to meet basic nutritional needs. As the most populous country in the world, China is constantly challenged in providing food for its citizens. Given the sheer size and strategic prominence of China, food security there is a global concern.

As leaders of an international team, researchers at the Prentice Institute are examining the stress points related to food security in various regions in China. The set of indicators of food security and rural development they develop will be an important assessment tool in China and around the world.

How can we achieve economic equality in developing countries?

Throughout most of human history, the conditions of human life have varied from difficult to tolerable, from starvation to subsistence. In some parts of the developing world, these conditions have not changed much, while in others, progress has been made. Disparities in the distribution of economic assets and income exist in a wide range of societies and their nature and cause are issues our world must address.

Researchers at the Prentice Institute are studying how international trade can lead to growth and the distribution of income, especially in developing countries. Another crucial line of research focuses on the relationship between business cycles, poverty and income inequalities.

How will social policy address our aging population?

Wayne Gretzky is credited with saying, "You must skate to where the puck will be." In contemplating the future of aging populations, policy often skates instead to where the puck is now. The presumption is that by studying those who are older now, we can understand those who will be older in the future. But... the older of tomorrow will be very different, as will the socio-economic contexts in which they live.

As leaders of a Canada/U.S. multidisciplinary team, Prentice Institute researchers are studying how people in mid-life in Canada and the U.S. are aging in terms of health and overall well-being. How they help (or not) younger and older relatives now and as they age, and how they anticipate their later years relative to their older relatives now and their younger relatives as they reach their later years, are two of the important questions being addressed. These studies will yield a wealth of information that is critical to addressing policy and family needs in the future.

This story first appeared in SAM Magazine. For a look at SAM in a flipbook format, follow this link.

New Mahon on campus

trevor.kenney — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 18:43:07 +0000

Once a week, a young Mike Mahon (pronounced Man) would catch the bus in his hometown of Winnipeg, Man., ride across the city and head to the swimming pool or gymnasium to work with people with intellectual disabilities.

The volunteer experience was part of a community-service expectation mandated by his high school, but Mahon wasn't there simply to earn credit. Having grown up in a household that valued community engagement, the idea of volunteerism was second nature, and he took to it innately.

"Growing up, that was just what I was exposed to, so the whole idea of volunteering just became a part of who we were as a family," says Mahon. "There was this fundamental belief that volunteering was an important part of living in a community."

New ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge President Dr. Mike Mahon.

Mahon had no idea at that time this early community service opportunity would have such an influence over his future career. It would shape his graduate studies, research and now, as the new president of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, it continues to resonate.

Born in Manitoba, Mahon grew up with four siblings in a house that teemed with activity. A self-described sports junkie, he played a little of everything and eventually was a two-sport (football and track) student-athlete at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Manitoba. After completing a bachelor's degree in physical education, he moved on to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Alberta (MSc in Physical Education) and then the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (PhD in Education) for his graduate and doctoral studies respectively.

"When I started thinking about what I would do with my master's degree, I did look back to that first experience," says Mahon. "It had a tremendous amount of influence from a career perspective."

His research, which focuses on adapted physical activity with an emphasis on older individuals and persons with intellectual disabilities, has garnered a number of honours, including: Fellow of the Academy of Leisure Sciences (2001); Award of Distinction from the Canadian Centre on Disability Studies (2000); the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Manitoba Rh Award for Outstanding Contributions to Interdisciplinary Scholarship and Research (1995).

The Presidential couple, Mike and Maureen Mahon.

Mahon has since become a vigorous proponent of physical activity for people of every age and ability. Most recently, he has been working on several projects that bring a research focus to how sports and play can help children in developing countries. In that context he has been involved with Right to Play as well as Play Around the World, groups that supply sports equipment and programming support to children in developing countries.

He says the opportunity to conduct research with these organizations, as well as become involved on a volunteer basis, is particularly rewarding.

"The people I've known who have become volunteers have really, in the end, got more out of the experience themselves than they feel they've given," says Mahon.

His academic career has virtually mirrored the path he took as a student, beginning at Manitoba before transitioning to the U of A where he spent two terms as the dean of the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation prior to his coming to the U of L.

His arrival in Lethbridge appears to be a case of right Mahon, right time. Family, community and developing an atmosphere for growth of the entire person are some of the ideals that Mahon brings to the U of L.

As the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ looks forward, Mahon sees its growth achieved through a learning environment that is dedicated to social responsibility and community engagement; that is dedicated to building a comprehensive university across the broad academy of disciplines; that is dedicated to creating a person-first university environment for staff and faculty; and that is centrally focused on a student-first attitude.

Mahon recognizes he has inherited a confident and forward-thinking institution, and he looks to build off that foundation as he introduces new initiatives. He says, for example, that as much as the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and its students are already agents of influence in southern Alberta, there is opportunity to expand the impact the U of L has on society by formalizing its community outreach initiatives.

"Liberal education is about presenting students with an expansive opportunity of academic experience," he says. "I'd like to think that part of that experience could be about being in the community and taking that liberal education concept that much further."

Mahon looks to the example his parents, who were involved community members, provided as he grew up, and the opportunities he had to explore and understand community engagement. As part of his future plan for the U of L, Mahon proposes introducing a framework whereby students earn academic credit for volunteerism.

"I think this is a tremendous gift that we can give our students," he says. "Having volunteer experience within the context of education is, on one level, a way that institutions can connect with and give back to the community, but on another level, it's a wonderful way to help our students expand their horizons."

Kristi Legge's Dance Group Performers, ranging from Grade 6 to university students, were among the highlights at the Presidential Installation.

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, having prospered under the leadership of former President Dr. Bill Cade, is emerging from its history as a primarily undergraduate university into a comprehensive institution that fully embraces a research culture, and is rapidly expanding its graduate studies opportunities.

"What I see is the continued integration of teaching and research, both at the undergraduate and graduate level. The U of L has always had a unique approach to engaging undergraduates in research, and that's something we will continue to do," says Mahon. "As we move forward, we must use our experience and commitment to excellence in undergraduate education as a springboard for the development of and improved access to graduate-level programming."

The opportunities for expansion, he says, are numerous, with a track record of success already established.

"We have developed internationally recognized strengths in the areas of neuroscience, epigenetics and water research, and we've more recently moved into the study of demographics and population with the creation of the Prentice Institute," says Mahon. "Now we're searching for our next niche research areas that we can build capacity in, and how they will also integrate with our academic programs, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels."

The recent opening of Markin Hall, a building that houses the Faculties of Health Sciences and Management, provides a fertile ground for collaborative research efforts, and is a perfect example of the interdisciplinary focus at the U of L. Simply by putting talented minds together, it creates a conversation from which great synergies can emerge.

"Markin Hall is going to be very much like the Alberta Water and Environmental Science Building (AWESB)," he says. "When you bring people from different, yet related, disciplines together under the same roof, you start to see some interesting areas of research develop."

Mahon recognizes that the U of L can only move forward with a people-first, student-first approach. It begins by creating an atmosphere where a positive work/life balance is celebrated.

"I want to see us build an institution that is committed to people and to creating that balance for our people, and that means students, staff and faculty. If I'm not a role model on that front, it's hard to preach that this is a direction we should go," says Mahon, who is regularly spotted in the 1st Choice Savings Centre gym, beginning the day with a run on the treadmill or a workout in the weight room.

Having been on campus since July, Mahon has gained an understanding of what makes the U of L engine run – its people. He says the liberal arts ideals that founded the institution, coupled with a student-first learning environment, will continue to be central themes as the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ advances.

"Whether it is in academic programs and research, how we recruit and orient our students, our class sizes, our residences, recreation and sport opportunities, health services, or the environment of our campus, we must ensure that we bring to life this concept of student-first," he says.

Part of that is recognizing and celebrating how integral a place the U of L occupies in southern Alberta.

"I've learned that the U of L is a real treasure, and it's because of our people," says Mahon. "We have staff and faculty who are committed to the success of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and to the experiences of our graduate and undergraduate students. Combine that with where we are situated, our beautiful campus, small class sizes and world-class faculty – and this is truly a premier university."

This story originally appeared in the Fall 2010 issue of SAM. For a look at the full issue of SAM in a flipbook format, follow this link.

CAETL session, Women Scholars reception, Shermer lecture on tap

trevor.kenney — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:32:11 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge has a busy Thursday on tap today with a number of events that will pique the interests of students, staff and faculty alike.

The Centre for the Advancement of Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CAETL) is presenting a graduate student workshop on marking and grading from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Prentice Institute Meeting Room (L1102).

Dr. Nola Aitken facilitates the workshop, a hands-on practical session that will introduce graduate students to the assessment process. All graduate students are welcome to attend.

Later this afternoon, the Women Scholars Speaker Series readies to kick off its schedule with the annual Fall Wine and Cheese Reception, from 3 to 5 p.m. in Andy's Place (AH100).

The annual speaker series welcomes some of the finest female scholars to campus to address a variety of issues. This year's lineup will be introduced at the reception.

On Thursday evening, the Owen G. Holmes Lecture series begins with visiting lecturer, Michael Shermer. He'll present, Why People Believe Weird Things, 7 p.m. in PE250.

The founding publisher of Skeptic magazine, executive director of the Skeptics Society and an adjunct professor of economics at Claremont Graduate ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, Shermer penned the book, Why People Believe Weird Things in 1997 and produced a revised and expanded edition in 2002. In it, he explores a variety of so-called weird ideas, such as beliefs in UFOs, Bigfoot and paranormal activities, and how people come to be swayed by these falsehoods.

McDaniel named as Vice Chair

trevor.kenney — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 20:07:52 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's Dr. Susan McDaniel has been approved as Vice Chair of the Council of Canadian Academies' Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC).

McDaniel is a professor of sociology at the U of L and the director of the Prentice Institute and Prentice Research Chair in Global Population & Economy. An internationally known sociologist/social demographer, and the author of many books and research articles, McDaniel is a frequent advisor on social and science policies both in Canada and elsewhere.

She has served as a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee since its inception.

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