It has been a challenging but good year at AIMS. While the bar was set on our research productivity in 2015, our soon to be published Annual Report will show a lean and efficient organization committed to building upon another successful year.

We have an exciting set of research projects, op-eds and commentaries coming up in the New Year that will energize debate about issues in Atlantic Canada.With new fellows and researchers joining in the Institute in 2016, we expect to serve as the bastion of market-oriented principles in Atlantic Canada, making us once again the region`s most trusted source for independent economic and social commentary.

On behalf of AIMS` Board of Directors and staff, I wish everybody a wonderful and restful Christmas and look forward to serving you again in the New Year.

Marco Navarro-Genie, PhD
President and CEO 

2016 Policy Wish List

AIMS in the News

Legislated wage patterns a step in the right direction: AIMS

On December 22, AIMS president and CEO, Marco Navarro-Genie, spoke on the Rick Howe Show about Nova Scotia Bill 148, calling attention to the long-established constitutional principle that a legislature has the authority to determine its own spending.  The key principle governing modern liberal democracies goes back eight centuries to the 1215 Magna Carta. To listen, click here.

Commentary: Electoral reform is a paradox for Atlantic Canada
Dated: 18 Dec 2015
Morgan Beatty and Marco Navarro-Genie

With the opening of the 42nd Parliament, Atlantic Canadians can be sure that they are well represented in the federal governing party. If the Liberal government delivers on their promise to transform our current electoral arrangement known as the first-past-the-post system, there is reason to believe that the region may never be as well represented in the governing party as it is now.

There are four prominent Atlantic Canadians, one per province, occupying key posts in the new Liberal Cabinet. Lawrence MacAulay (PEI) is Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Scott Brison (NS) is President of the Treasury Board, Judy Foote (NL) is Minister of Public Works and Procurement, and Dominic Leblanc (NB) is Government Leader in the House of Commons. The share of Cabinet positions Atlantic Canada holds is roughly double its share of Canada’s total population. Having elected an unprecedented 32 Liberal MPs, the region’s share of the Liberal caucus is also roughly three times its share of the national population.

To read the full commentary in the Telegraph Journal and Chronicle Herald, please click here.

Are we fighting climate change or capitalism?
Dated: 4 Dec 2015
Robert Roach

AIMS Senior Fellow Robert Roach examines the paradoxical implications of environmentalists who seek the destruction of the market economy, believing that “capitalism is the root cause of environmental problems and social injustices.”

Ontario to lose equalization payments as Alberta’s economic fortunes fall
Globe and Mail
Dated: 17 Dec 2015
Ontario will shed its status as a poor cousin of Confederation in the coming years, not because its economic fortunes are rebounding, but because resource-rich Alberta is falling on hard times.

Free Market Capitalism Gives us the Freedom, the Enterprise and the Wealth to Tackle Environmental Problems in Serious Ways
Dated: 21 Dec 2015
Robert Roach

AIMS Senior Fellow Rob Roach argues that free market capitalism gives us the freedom, the enterprise and the wealth to tackle environmental problems in serious ways.


Recent AIMS Radio Project Spots

Change Liquor Laws
AIMS argues that barriers to interprovincial liquor laws are hurting competition and keeping prices too high.

Intern Introduction

AIMS is always proud to host interns in partnership with the Mannkal Economic Education Foundation of Australia. This November we welcomed Jordan Armstrong, a 20-year-old student from Perth, Western Australia. He just finished a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Western Australia with a double major in economics. When he returns to Australia, he will begin his honours year in economics, which involves writing a 15,000 word dissertation on a research topic. His policy interests include immigration, national defence, welfare and climate change. While he is unsure right now about what he wants to do with his career, he would be open to working at the treasury, the bureau of statistics or the defence force.

We are grateful to Mannkal for this fruitful partnership and the exciting opportunity to make new friends.

Contribute to AIMS

AIMS is a distinctive Atlantic Canadian voice on public policy regionally, nationally and internationally. We set the benchmark on public policy by drawing together the freshest most forward looking thinking available from some of the world’s foremost experts and applying that thinking to the challenges we face. Our work aims at making sure we all have sound retirement prospects, good quality education for our kids, and access to high quality and sustainable health care.  We help people to understand what governments do well and what they do badly, how to make taxes fair and comprehensible, and how to build our economy so that opportunities are maximized for everyone.

Your contribution now will help us build a stronger legacy and make a difference in the lives of Atlantic Canadians. To contribute please visit us at www.aims.ca.