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"Canada : terre de liberté et d'aventures" by Michaëlle Jean Michaëlle Jean became Canada’s 27th Governor General at a ceremony that took place in the Senate on September 27th. Large portions of the speech she gave on the occasion of her installation are reproduced here. "Foundations funding research: what defines success?" by Hilary Pearson Foundations donate tens of millions of dollars every year, much of it to research projects at Canada’s universities. Hilary Pearson, president of Philanthropic Foundations Canada, asks whether this is a useful orientation for foundations, and whether they know they're making a difference. “The answers to these questions,” she writes, “depend largely on two factors: the mission or goals of the foundation, and the engagement of the donors.” She provides timely insights into the culture of giving in this country, and asks what defines success. "Germany: from an electoral stalemate to a 'grand coalition' of the CDU and SDP" by Marie Bernard-Meunier Angela Merkel began the German election campaign with a seemingly insurmountable 20-point lead in the polls, only to cross the finish line running on empty, defeating outgoing Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder by the narrowest of margins, 35 to 34 percent in the popular vote, and by only four seats in the Bundestag. “Angela Merkel did not do well in the election campaign, she is not a charismatic leader,” writes Marie-Bernard Meunier from Berlin. As a result, Merkel’s Christian Democrats were forced into a “grand coalition” with the Social Democrats, since no combination with the smaller parties on the right would have led to a tenable majority. In the new centre-right centre-left coalition, the SDP obtained eight out of fourteen ministerial portfolios, including most of the economic portfolios, effectively isolating Merkel within her own government, and making it even more difficult for her to do the things that must be done for Germany to reclaim its dominant economic position in Europe. Nevertheless, as Canada’s former ambassador to Berlin writes, Merkel is the first woman chancellor and the first from the former East Germany. "The Canadian interest" by Paul D. Frazer [summary not available] "From mutual respect to mutual wariness" by Derek H. Burney The impasse over softwood lumber is only the latest instance of Canada and the United States distancing themselves from one another. “Differences between us on the global stage are profound — from Iraq to Kyoto to the World Court, among others,“ writes Derek Burney, former Canadian ambassador to the US. “Canadians now worry about US unilateralism, and not just the military variety. Americans wonder about Canada’s reliability and about our relevance on the matters of greatest concern to them.” The mood is not healthy, and is marked by Washington’s “casual indifference to sensitive treaty obligations.” "The cul-de-sac of softwood lumber" by Michael Hart and Bill Dymond The Bush administration's decision to ignore a ruling on softwood lumber from a NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee “was both egregious and offensive,” write Michael Hart and Bill Dymond, members of the Canadian team that negotiated the Free Trade Agreement in 1987. That being said, while the venting of the Canadian spleen may have been therapeutic, “a sense of proportion” is needed to find a way out of this political dead-end. A sense of history wouldn't hurt, either, in understanding the origins of a dispute that has dragged on for decades. It starts with Crown lands in Canada, and whether low stumpage fees constitute a subsidy of the industry. "When good politics makes bad policy: self-righteousness sells but doesn't solve the softwood lumber case" by William Watson Canada has been talking tough to the United States on softwood lumber, and has even played “the China card.” Our natural resources minister was dispatched to China, writes our former editor, “to make clear to Washington we were just as happy selling our oil and gas to undemocratic and unpredictable former enemies as to our neighbours and traditional friends.” Denouncing George W. Bush is “easy, fun and popular” in Canada, but it doesn’t resolve the dispute. Nor do exports to China and India promise to replace those to the US anytime soon. “Cost to market is not an irrelevant consideration in trade,” William Watson writes. “President Bush or no President Bush, in most parts of this country the United States is and will remain just down the road.” Meanwhile, the NAFTA dispute settlement panels, softwood aside, are working well. "Lessons learned from the softwood lumber saga" by James McIlroy The United States persists in imposing significant antidumping and countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber exports, which claim about one-third of the US market. NAFTA dispute resolution panels have rejected American claims that low stumpage fees on Canadian Crown lands should be subject to these American duties, but the World Trade Organization has found that such fees may constitute an actionable subsidy. “As a result,” writes noted trade policy authority James McIlroy, “both sides are claiming victory.” But Canada’s position is constrained by the fact “that stumpage fees and forestry policies fall under provincial jurisdiction,” with the result that “different Canadian regional interests have often conflicted during the last two decades of the softwood saga.” It’s no secret that Americans have played on these differences with divide and conquer tactics. McIlroy writes that Canada is ill-placed to accuse Washington of protectionism, when it continues to pursue protectionist policies of its own in other sectors such as dairy and poultry. Finally, by “putting NAFTA in play and linking softwood to energy, the prime minister has entered uncharted waters.” "La crème est-elle en train de surir ? Les relations canado-américaines dans le secteur agroalimentaire" by Jean-Philippe Gervais and Bruno Larue Since the signing of the Free Trade Agreement with the US, the mean annual value of our exports in the agricultural sector has skyrocketed from US$ 4.05 billion in 1991-93 to $US 10.17 billion in 2001-03, an increase of 151 percent. But if our markets are now closely interconnected, write Jean-Philippe Gervais and Bruno Larue, old problems remain and new irritants have emerged. They review the main sources of conflicts in the agro-business, notably grants to producers, the "mad cow" crisis and supply-side management. Given the size of Canada-US trade in this sector, they argue, a return to the pre-1987 state would be very harmful. Yet to continue benefiting from these exchanges, we will need to consider alternatives to programs and policies that are now under fire. "Getting noticed in Washington: the hard part of Canada's job" by Colin Robertson Washington is a town where, as Tip O’Neill famously observed, “all politics is local.” Getting noticed on Capitol Hill, as well as at the White House, means making Canada’s case to the 435 members of Congress and 100 senators. The best way onto the Washington radar screen, writes Colin Robertson, minister of advocacy at our embassy there, is to “make it local — the best way to fight a special interest in the US is to find a US ally.” Thus, on softwood lumber, the Canadian case is supported by US homebuilders and homebuyers, as well as by hardware giant Home Depot. The US border was ordered re-opened to Canadian live cattle in a court case where Canada’s position was supported by US cattlemen and the American Meat Institute. Washington, he writes, is a town where “legislators have interests, not friends,” and where millions of American jobs depend, congressional district by district, on trade with Canada. "Le vent dans les voiles : Les PME et le commerce international" by Pierre Emmanuel Paradis Few people associate small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international trade. And yet, writes Pierre Emmanuel Paradis, Senior Economist with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, more than half of these companies trade directly or indirectly with foreign countries either as importers or exporters, or in partnership with large corporations that do business on world markets. In addition to describing the global activities of Canadian SMEs and the challenges they face in the international arena, the article suggests some approaches aimed at facilitating and supporting their development in foreign markets. "Canada's dairy industry: can supply management survive an open trade environment?" by Mike Gifford The Doha Round of global trade talks comes to an important juncture in December as trade and agriculture ministers meet in Hong Kong. Agricultural subsidies have long been a sore point between the United States and Europe, while for Canada the most politically sensitive issue is supply management in dairy and poultry. Canada's dairy and poultry farmers want supply management maintained at current levels, which subsidize production while slapping prohibitive tariffs on imports. But it is not a very realisitic position for Canada and other countries at the negotiating table. “While the general incidence of agricultural export subsidies has declined significantly since the end of the Uruguay Round, trade in dairy products remains heavily distorted by export subsidies,” writes Mike Gifford, who was Canada's lead agricultural negotiator during the entire Uruguay Round. He concludes: “It is clear that the dairy sector will not be excluded from the Doha Round results. It is equally clear that Canada will have to open its market to the same extent as other developed countries.” "Les temps sont-ils venus ?" by Alain Noël [summary not available] Book Excerpt: I Is for Infidel: From Holy War to Holy Terror by Kathy Gannon It’s a long way from the mining town of Timmins, Ontario, where Kathy Gannon grew up, to the wilds of Afghanistan, where she covered conflicts from 1986 to 2004 as the Pakistan-based correspondent for the Associated Press. In this excerpt from I is for Infidel, her gripping memoir of life in Afghanistan under dictatorships and warlords, she tells of the last days of the Taliban in Kabul, beginning with the events of September 11, 2001, in a place called New York. Book Review: Lisa Van Dusen reviews I Is for Infidel: From Holy War to Holy Terror by Kathy Gannon [summary not available] Book Review: Gilles Paquet reviews two assessments of Jean Charest's first 500 days [summary not available] "Religious correctness" by Joseph Heath [summary not available] |
