Canada West Foundation

06/18/2026

What will it take for Canada’s workforce to adapt as AI reshapes how work is done?

The latest Future of Work and Learning brief examines how adoption is advancing across Western Canada and where gaps remain.

📶 Canada ranks 44th of 47 countries in AI literacy and has fallen out of the top 15 in the Global Innovation Index

📶 Firms adopting robotics grew their workforce by nearly 20 per cent on average

📶 One in 10 workers faces a high likelihood of automation-related job transformation

AI is improving productivity and job outcomes in some sectors, but access to upskilling and further training is needed.

Read the full brief, written by Shravya Verma and Stephany Laverty, for the complete analysis:

Although there are benefits to automation, further support and skill development are needed to help people work alongside physical AI.

06/09/2026

Rising national interest in Canada’s Arctic is bringing renewed focus to sovereignty, infrastructure and long‑term economic potential.

To discuss the future of the North, the Canada West Foundation convened a roundtable with Northwest Territories Premier R.J. Simpson and a cross-section of leaders from government, Indigenous organizations, industry and capital markets to consider how this interest translates into practical progress.

🎯 Some key takeaways:

💠 The time for action in the North is now. Defence priorities, Indigenous communities and investors can all benefit, but Canada must keep the momentum going toward tangible development.

💠 Basic infrastructure development is needed to connect the North and unlock further investment. Major projects are key to nation building, but the territories need new roads and transportation infrastructure to open up even more development opportunities.

💠 Northern challenges require northern solutions. The development of investment and infrastructure in the territories must include Indigenous engagement, equity and involvement. Cookie-cutter policy from southern Canada won't work.

Thank you to our featured speakers for contributing their insights:

The Honourable R.J. Simpson, Premier of the Northwest Territories; and

The Honourable Doug Black, Chair of the Board, Canada West Foundation

And to Dr. Ken S. Coates, President, Coates Holroyd Consulting, for moderating the session.

We also gratefully acknowledge the support of our sponsors: Hatch, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP and WSP.

05/28/2026

AI is creating a technological revolution that businesses and governments must address or risk falling behind.

Our latest Explainer by Shravya Verma takes a closer look at what AI is, how it works, practical applications in Canadian businesses and potential governance implications.

▪️ Generative AI produces digital output in the form of text, videos, and other media, whereas physical AI interacts with the real-world through autonomous systems.

▪️ AI systems can continuously, and independently, learn and improve.

▪️ Physical AI systems can help fill resource gaps in high-risk and labour-intensive fields.

The ever evolving and rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way workplaces operate and how nations build economies and shape policies. Although AI systems offer significant opportunities for advancement, they also raise questions about security and regulation.

What do you think about the future of AI and governance surrounding its use and development?

Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to algorithms that can learn patterns from training data and make accurate predictions about new data.

05/26/2026

From driverless hauling trucks at mining sites to autonomous rail inspection systems, automated tools have moved from experimentation to daily use in Western Canada.

The latest edition of the Tech and Innovation brief, written by Shravya Verma and Stephany Laverty, looks at how advancements in robotics, machine learning and computer vision are changing the way autonomous systems operate in real-world conditions.

🤖 Modern robots can now be trained in virtual environments and improve through experience, allowing them to function in dynamic and unpredictable settings.

🤖 Automation is already delivering measurable productivity gains. A multi-country study linked robot adoption to sustained increases in labour productivity over time.

🤖 Western Canadian industries such as agriculture, mining and transportation are using autonomous systems to address labour shortages while improving safety.

Physical AI represents an opportunity to strengthen productivity and resilience across Western Canada’s core industries, provided policy and regulatory approaches evolve alongside the technology.

Western Canada is part of a global transition toward physical AI, a transition moving faster than regulators.

05/21/2026

Canada’s construction workforce is getting younger as demand grows and older workers retire.

That shift has implications for workplace safety, given higher injury rates among less experienced workers.

A new report published by the Canada West Foundation, Increasing Safety Performance in the Construction Industry Through Active Competency Management: Policy Implications, examines how active competency management can improve safety performance in construction.

Drawing on applied research and Alberta case studies, the analysis finds a clear relationship between objectively assessed worker competency and stronger safety outcomes.

The report also highlights gaps in current OH&S frameworks, including limited guidance on how competency is defined, assessed and maintained.

Read the full report:

A systematic approach to active competency management can improve construction safety while simultaneously improving productivity, quality and worker satisfaction.

05/14/2026

Canada needs an estimated 3.5 million additional homes by 2030 to restore affordability.

One factor shaping that challenge is how building codes are designed and applied across the country.

The latest issue of Building for Tomorrow, Harmony Where it Matters: Aligning Canada’s building codes, written by Margi Pandya, explores this issue.

Three key takeaways:

🔶 Differing code requirements across jurisdictions increase costs and slow construction, particularly for builders and manufacturers operating nationally.

🔶 While climate and geography justify some differences, many inconsistencies are unrelated to safety or environmental needs.

🔶 More harmonized codes could support modular and prefabricated construction, reduce duplicate approvals and help accelerate housing delivery.

Building codes quietly shape every structure Canadians use. As housing pressures persist, how those rules align across jurisdictions is an important part of the broader policy discussion.

Building codes are essential to construction safety, but to get more homes built quickly, the rules need to be more co-ordinated across Canada.

05/08/2026

Canada’s North sits at a critical intersection of global demand, geopolitical pressure and infrastructure needs.

On Day Two of the Winnipeg Arctic Summit, the Canada West Foundation was proud to host the James A. Richardson Roundtable, a focused, closed-door dialogue on practical pathways for northern development.

The roundtable brought together leaders to explore how to turn a moment for the North into long-term, community-driven prosperity.

The question at the core of the discussion:

🎯 How can Arctic development deliver lasting, self-sustaining prosperity for northern communities?

Participants discussed:

💠 Rethinking a northern-first development model
💠 Building resilient energy systems and grid solutions
💠 Investing in dual-use infrastructure (transportation, ports, connectivity)
💠 Advancing Indigenous partnership and equity
💠 Unlocking capital for Arctic projects
💠 Defining what thriving northern communities look like in 10–20 years

Special thanks to:

The Honourable Rebecca Chartrand, Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs and CanNor; Dr. Angie Bruce, Vice-President (Indigenous), University of Manitoba; and Chief Gord BlueSky, Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, for providing opening remarks, and Dr. Ron Wallace, Fellow, Canadian Global Affairs Institute, for helping moderate this critical conversation;

And to Manitoba’s Minister of Natural Resources and Indigenous Futures, Hon. Ian Bushie, for addressing the summit on Day One.

Thank you to our sponsors:

University of Manitoba, Arctic Gateway Group, Government of Manitoba, Hatch, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, PCL Construction, Tulane Energy Law & Policy Center and Thompson Regional Airport Authority.

05/07/2026

Shifts in global geopolitics are placing renewed attention on Canada’s Arctic and the policy choices that shape its future.

💠 This morning marked the opening of the Winnipeg Arctic Summit, convened by the Canada West Foundation, under the theme The Arctic Nexus: Sovereignty, Security and Resource Equity.

💠 The opening session featured remarks from Canada West Foundation Board Director Don Leitch and Manitoba’s Minister of Business, Mining, Trade and Job Creation, the Honourable Jamie Moses.

💠 The first panel, The Arctic as a New Global Front, explored how the region is emerging as a focal point for geopolitical competition, evolving alliances and growing pressure on sovereignty and governance.

Participants on Panel 1 included Frederic Sourgens, James McCulloch Chair in Energy Law, Tulane Center for Energy Law; Dr. B. Mario Pinto, Vice President, University of Manitoba; Doug Matthews, President & CEO, Matthews Energy Consulting; Harvie Buitelaar, Associate & VP Infrastructure, Hatch; and Col. Normand Gagné, RCAF Liaison (ex officio).

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of this important dialogue: University of Manitoba, Arctic Gateway Group, Government of Manitoba, Hatch, Osler, PCL Construction, Tulane Energy Law and Policy Center and Thompson Airport Authority.

The summit continues today with a full schedule of panels examining Canada’s North from multiple perspectives, including economic development, infrastructure, governance and security.

These conversations represent an opportunity to better understand the choices and trade-offs shaping the Arctic’s future and their implications for Manitoba, Western Canada and the country as a whole.

05/06/2026

Dual-use infrastructure has been making headlines in Canada as the federal government looks to strategically build up development in the Arctic.

In policy terms, dual-use infrastructure usually seeks to address the needs of military stakeholders as well as the needs of citizens and/or industry.

The concept of dual-use infrastructure rose to greater prominence in 2026 for two main reasons:

💵 Canada substantially increased its military spending, meeting its two per cent NATO obligations for the first time in over three decades.

❄️ Arctic defence and Arctic development have become a national priority.

Because of the scale of the Arctic, it’s not feasible to build infrastructure that services the entire region in the same way that more densely populated regions are serviced.

This is why so much emphasis has been placed recently on dual-use Arctic infrastructure, such as the federal government’s $1 billion Arctic Infrastructure Fund to support dual-use transportation projects.

Read more to learn about the different uses of dual-use infrastructure and the challenges that make development difficult.

Dual-use infrastructure usually seeks to address the needs of military stakeholders as well as the needs of citizens and/or industry.

05/01/2026

As demand for AI and computing power accelerates, questions of data sovereignty are moving to the centre of Canada’s digital policy agenda.

At Session 2 of the Data Centre & AI Infrastructure Summit in Regina, leaders from technology, infrastructure, investment and government examined how Canada can govern data and digital infrastructure while remaining competitive globally.

Today’s discussion underscored that data sovereignty is no longer just a technical issue; it carries major economic, security and governance implications.

As AI and digital infrastructure evolve, the challenge is balancing control, resilience and openness while ensuring outcomes that deliver real value for people and the economy.

A special thank you to The Honourable Evan Solomon, minister of artificial intelligence and digital innovation, for joining us as a featured guest, and to Dr. Jack Mintz for moderating the session.

Appreciation as well to our roundtable sponsors:

Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan, Bell, Finning, ESTI Consulting Services, Fortinet, GenSystems Power Solutions, MAX Power Mining Corp and Steel Reef.