Public Policy Reports

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/1807/80309

This curated collection assembles policy-related research reports produced by University of Toronto units. It is a collection of grey literature which aims to improve discoverability of U of T contributions in a diversity of areas including local, provincial, national, and global public policy matters that are important for the understanding of developing issues. Authors and/or co-authors are faculty members, fellows, students or staff who were at U of T at the time of publication. The collection excludes externally commissioned reports and studies published in scholarly journals or books.

This is a living collection and we encourage members of the U of T community who have authored or are aware of relevant reports to consider having them included in this collection. No special authorization beyond a UTORid is required to upload your report(s). Please see the Policy Reports Collection Upload Instructions for Authors for collection specific instructions. The Policy Reports Collection FAQs contains more information about the Collection.

In addition to being able to use the open search function (above), you can browse the collection according to “Date”, “Author”, “Title”, and “Subject” (see below) or by scope: Local, Provincial, National, or Global.

We thank the following U of T and affiliated units for their contributions:

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 425
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    Canadian Exceptionalism: Are we good, or are we lucky?
    (2017-02-09) Donnelly, Michael
    Given the relative lack of conflict over immigration that the Canadian political system has experienced, Canadian attitudes are often assumed to be unusually pro-immigration. However, levels of support for immigration and evaluations of the impact of immigration on society are unexceptional when compared to a large sample countries (including the US and many European countries). Whatever is driving Canada's exceptionally positive history of immigration and integration over the last half century, it does not appear to be an exceptionally tolerant public.
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    Creating a lasting impact on mental health by supporting children’s social-emotional development
    (2024-11) Speidel, Ruth; Tsang, Chanel; Day, Sian; Chang, Shu-Yi; Mackinnon, Megan; Awad, Maya; Mehna, Gideon; Malti, Tina
    Social-emotional capacities, such as emotion regulation and empathy, develop early in childhood and are foundational for lifelong mental health, relationships, and success. Children and youth with strong social-emotional capacities experience better mental health, academic achievement, and relationship quality. This policy brief highlights the importance of integrating early social-emotional development content into educator and caregiver training initiatives to promote healthier developmental and mental health outcomes in children from an early age. Additionally, community-based initiatives that apply social-emotional and mental health research through participatory approaches are emphasized as an essential strategy to address the unique needs of Canada’s diverse populations.
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    Accessing Home: Effectively Integrating Refugee Youth in Ontario
    (2024-06-20) Kailani, Rasoul; Schwalb, Jessica; Bahri, Bay; Abssy, Miles
    The more than 100,000 youth refugees settled in Ontario face challenges at the intersections of their age and status as refugees, including inadequate housing, hidden homelessness, inability to access mental health and academic support, and a lack of culturally-sensitive health services. These problems impact youths’ health and wellbeing, often compounding the difficulties they already face moving to a new country. Examining solutions from peer countries and provinces, we find that solutions tailored to these young peoples’ specific needs in key areas including education, housing, and healthcare can help refugee youth thrive. We present seven recommendations for the Ontario government: increase funding for school support staff, encourage language-friendly pedagogy, fund settlement coordinators who can help youth navigate the post-secondary process, build public transitional housing specifically for refugee youth, adopt a universal standard for delivering virtual care, mandate that all healthcare institutions offer language interpreters for virtual care, and supply internet subsidies.
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    Culture Is Healing: Promising Practices and Impacts from an Urban Indigenous Youth-Led Health and Wellness Program
    (2023-12) Ansloos, Jeffrey; Peltier, Shanna; Marchand, Nona
    This article explores the integration of cultural continuity in health programs for Indigenous youth, leveraging insights from Indigenous Youth Wellness Facilitators, in the Culture Is Healing program. It identifies four practices and their impacts, strengthening community and identity among Indigenous youth. The findings provide valuable recommendations for practitioners and policymakers. Cet article explore l’intégration de la continuité culturelle dans les programmes de santé pour les jeunes autochtones, en s’appuyant sur les idées des travailleurs de la santé des jeunes autochtones, au sein du programme « Culture Is Healing ». Il identifie quatre pratiques et leurs impacts quant au renforcement de la communauté et de l’identité chez les jeunes autochtones. Les résultats fournissent des recommandations précieuses aux praticiens et aux décideurs.
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    Best Practices to Support Youth Climate Action in Toronto
    (2023-05-15) Tozer, Laura; Chen, Shalen; Craig, John Pierre
    This report provides an overview of potential pathways for civic youth engagement in climate action drawing on examples from existing programs in North America.
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    Beyond Utility Bills: Advancing energy retrofit programs for low-income dwellings in Canada
    (2023-10) Baggio, Guilherme; Tozer, Laura; Kantamneni, Abhilash; MacRae, Hannah
    This report provides information on design opportunities for energy retrofit programs to advance public policy targeting energy poverty and create equitable energy retrofit programs for low-income households in Canada.
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    For Their Eyes Only: The Commercialization of Digital Spying
    (2013-05-01) Marquis-Boire, Morgan; Marczak, Bill; Guarnieri, Claudio; Scott-Railton, John
    This is a collation of 5 previously published reports from Citizen Lab. It addresses the concerns posed by Western commercial companies whose digital spying products have been found to have been used in countries with deplorable human rights records and against civic advocacy groups.
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    Feedback on the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s Exploratory Consultation on Privacy and Age Assurance
    (2024-09-10) McNair, Riley; Grimes, Sara M.
    These comments were prepared in response to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada’s exploratory consultation on privacy and age assurance. Our response analyzes potential privacy risks arising from the implementation of age assurance systems online and their implications for children’s rights in the digital environment. Our comments highlight the importance of consulting children directly about issues related to online privacy and age assurance and advocate for the development of child-inclusive policy and guidance that is evidence-based and reflects the real needs and concerns of young Canadians.
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    Flooding: Toward a Municipal Contribution to Economic Risk Sharing
    (Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, 9/12/2024) Deschamps, Bernard; Gachon, Philippe; Leclerc, Michel; Boudreault, Mathieu
    In Québec, flood damage costs have risen sharply over the past 40 years, partly due to population and property growth in flood-prone areas. This phenomenon is exacerbated by extreme weather events, such as torrential rains, some of which are on the rise in southern Québec in spring. Today, these costs are primarily covered by provincial and federal financial assistance programs and, to a lesser extent, by private insurance. These cost-sharing mechanisms give rise to moral hazard because they do not encourage municipalities or disaster victims to reduce risk. Municipalities need to be included in cost sharing because of their crucial role in land use planning and risk management. Similarly, disaster victims need to be included because they also have a role to play in reducing risk. This paper proposes and analyzes an economic contribution mechanism for municipalities that distributes the cost of damage to residential buildings more equitably. (Equity refers to a fair and just distribution of the financial burden based on the relative level of exposure to risk and the ability to reduce the risk for all parties involved.) The contribution is calculated for three medium-sized municipalities in Québec based on the sum of the average annual damage to each of the residential buildings located in their jurisdictions, and on property values. Three observations are drawn from this analysis: 1) a municipality's level of exposure is not correlated with its property value; 2) the low damage rate of a majority of buildings located in flood-prone areas justifies maintaining these buildings in these zones, provided that mitigation measures are implemented; and 3) relocating a minimum number of buildings would considerably reduce the municipality's economic contribution to damage costs. Implementing an economic contribution mechanism for municipalities and exposed citizens is intended to reduce the moral hazard and inequity generated by the current approach and encourage municipalities to implement mitigation and risk reduction measures. All stakeholders could equitably finance these measures.
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    Levelling Up Innovation in Local Government: An Evaluation of International Smart City Competitions
    (Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, 8/28/2024) Zwick, Austin; Spicer, Zachary; Eben, Aaron
    The rising popularity of smart city technology and digital government has prompted many national governments to attempt to spur municipal governments to adopt new tools aimed at digitalization, modernization, and innovation in a movement collectively known as “smart cities.” With few tools available to mandate that municipalities pursue a smart city approach, several national governments have turned to incentive-based competitions, launching state-led contests for their cities to upgrade their capabilities and offering millions of dollars in funding and organizational resources to incentivize communities to participate. Even for cities that do not win, these contests have created opportunities to critically assess their smart city aspirations and revisit long-term planning. Despite the intertwined histories of the smart city concept and urban competitions, limited research exists on the impact and influence of smart city competitions on city processes, plans, and operations. We ask the question “Is the competition model a good method to advance technological adoption in cities?” This paper addresses this gap by exploring in depth four different government-led smart city challenges – one each in the United Kingdom, the United States, the European Union, and Canada. By examining the program goals, competition mechanics, and publicized outcomes of each, then evaluating and comparing them through an urban change framework, this paper identifies the challenges inherent in a nationally driven, centralized approach to competition funding of municipal programs. It finds that these competitions were very effective at realizing the desired learning outcomes at the individual, organizational, and city levels: they helped generate new ways of thinking about technological solutions, and they supported the building of new relationships to address urban challenges for winners and non-winners alike. However, in terms of institutional and system change outcomes, the results of these competitions were much more limited. They were often most impactful for the city winners who were able to realize projects, and for national governments piloting a novel funding-by-competition model. We conclude by making policy recommendations on how to improve the implementation of this new model for the future.
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    Changing Patterns of Governance in Metropolitan Regions: Australian and Canadian Perspectives
    (Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, 2024-07) Sansom, Graham; Taylor, Zack; Baker, Janice
    In May 2023, the Ontario government announced that it planned to dissolve the Region of Peel and replace it with three single-tier cities. Meanwhile in Australia, the Greater Sydney Commission had launched a plan that split Greater Western Sydney in two. With this context, IMFG convened a public panel entitled “Changing Patterns of Governance in Metropolitan Regions: Australian and Canadian Perspectives” in the fall of 2023. Although the Province of Ontario reversed course and the New South Wales government abolished the Commission to centralize control, the discussion highlighted emerging trends in regional governance in Australia and Canada more generally, and Peel Region and Greater Western Sydney in particular. Zack Taylor provided an overview of the increasing need for effective regional governance to manage the many societal pressures facing Canada and explored contemporary models across the country and suggested future directions. Graham Sansom reflected on how similar issues are playing out in Australia, where state governments, notably in New South Wales, were bringing about significant changes to metropolitan planning and governance. Janice Baker highlighted the sheer complexity of untangling the Peel Region’s operations, combined with the lack of both a clear definition of the problem dissolution was intended to address and of the due diligence in making the decision to go ahead. The discussion made clear that in both countries, the balance of responsibility for sound metropolitan governance rests with provincial or state governments. The paper concludes that current approaches to metropolitan governance in both Canada and Australia are falling short and puts forward key themes drawn from the panelists’ insights.
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    More Housing, Less Carbon: Policy Principles to Reduce Embodied Carbon in Canada’s Housing Sector
    (2024-05) Eidelman, Gabriel; Saxe, Shoshanna
    How can Canada build millions of new homes over the next decade to address the housing crisis, while reducing embodied carbon in housing construction to address the climate crisis? The short answer: housing must be built differently. Current climate plans overwhelmingly focus on reducing operational energy use in buildings (heating, cooling, and lighting) or retrofitting existing housing stock rather than on carbon emissions generated by new construction, ignoring the environmental impact of different construction methods and materials. Technical solutions are readily available; the challenge is how to translate these solutions into public policy. This report proposes four policy principles to reduce embodied carbon in Canada’s housing sector, based on the latest academic research and lessons from leading jurisdictions in Canada, Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
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    The Municipal Role in Immigration
    (Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, 2024-06) Preston, Valerie; Shields, John; Preugger, Valerie; Paquet, Mireille; Thayaalan, Sivakamy; Eidelman, Gabriel; Neufeld, Spencer; Forman, Kass
    The ninth report in the Who Does What series from the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance (IMFG) and the Urban Policy Lab examines the role that municipalities play in immigration and their ability to fund, manage, and deliver services and implement policies to respond to new arrivals. Valerie Preston and John Shields show how non-governmental organizations and municipalities support international migrants, the complex links between them and the other orders of government, and the tensions and challenges in these relationships, using examples from Ontario. Valerie Pruegger explores the journey to get a municipal immigration policy approved by Calgary City Council, how it was subsequently implemented, and the various barriers encountered along the way. She identifies the strategies that were successful in overcoming these challenges. Mireille Paquet and Sivakamy Thayaalan examine what is needed to help municipalities handle the situation of residents who live with precarious immigration status or without any immigration status. They argue that municipalities need to have a role in the governance of immigration in Canada.
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    Care for Caregivers: Understanding the experiences & opportunities for enhanced support for caregivers with the Arctic Children and Youth Foundation
    (2024-06-18) Ansloos, Jeffrey; Samuel, Cara; Makkik, Romani; Rowe, Shannen; Musani, Iman; Hey, Brandon; Clark, Sarah; Tootoo, Taya; Kunuk, Christa; Akalukjuk-Hackett, Emma; Crowley, Alashua; Williams, Blair; Afram, Daniel
    Families across Inuit Nunangat have profound strength and determination to over- come a wide range of challenges presented by the impacts of settler colonialism. Families have a deep history of cultural integrity and resourcefulness that continues to shape their responses to adversity. But it is not without struggle. The colonial im- pacts on cultural continuity, kinship relationships, gender roles, trauma, and re-trau- matization experiences, have significant implications for families. These profound social transformations, and ensuing sources of trauma (childhood sexual abuse in particular) contribute to enduring physical and mental health challenges, complex co-morbidities, and suicidality risk. These issues are no more acutely felt than within the context of disclosures/investigations of child abuse (as Indigenous families are investigated for child maltreatment 3.6 times more than other populations), and the child welfare system. Alarmingly, child welfare systems disproportionately impact Indigenous children at a rate of 53.8%, even though they represent just 7.7% of all children in Canada (i.e., those under 14 years of age) (Statistics Canada, 2023). Despite this high rate, family service approaches often continue to import harmful ways of working with Inuit children and their caregivers. Government negligence is also apparent, considering reports of systematic underfunding of supports needed to keep Indigenous families together. The situation is especially stark in Nunavut, as rates of abuse are 10 times higher than the national average. Within the territory, several reports have found evidence of fractured trust, ongoing negligence (including a lack of follow-up and/or knowledge about the number of Inuit children in care) and unnecessary apprehension and criminalization of (predominantly Inuit) families in need. These issues are additionally hindered by ongoing inequities in housing afford- ability, overcrowding, and treatment infrastructure and recurring lack of culturally safe, and trauma and violence-informed workforce (i.e., emphasizing principles like safety, collaboration, choice, but also understanding and action on systemic discrim- ination, intergenerational and historic trauma, etc.). Without significant changes, the system represents an ongoing threat to Inuit’s inherent rights to comprehensive self-determination and healing. In addressing the pressing concerns of Inuit Nunavummiut, it is crucial to foreground the lived experiences and insights of Inuit caregivers within research. With a mandate to support holistic family healing, and to better ascertain the needs of caregivers fol- lowing disclosures of child maltreatment and abuse, the Umingmak Centre partnered with the Critical Health and Social Action lab at the University of Toronto. The purpose of this research was not to critique existing family services but to deepen our under- standing of the caregivers served by the Umingmak Centre, to listen to their stories to inform how to better support them, especially following disclosures of child maltreat- ment and abuse. 3 As a research collaboration, the goal was to be an empathetic inquiry, grounded in the principles of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, cultural safety, and collaborative Indigenous research, and to remain open to learning from whatever those who participated in the research offered from their experiences. Through the research, we aimed to to identify contextual and cultural factors relevant to fostering enhanced caregiver support within Umingmak’s unique service context. From these lived experiences and deeply personal stories emerged key messages for services, both specific to Uming- mak, but also broadly across family services and other systems. While beyond our original queries, these insights which emerge from caregivers and service providers, are a foundation upon which Umingmak aspires to build, in collaboration and good relationship with other services and service providers across Inuit Nunangat. The research helps chart a course for a strengthened approach to care that resonates with the needs and hopes of Inuit and other caregivers and families. In doing so, the research not only acknowledges the distinctive roles of Umingmak services and family services, but also offer suggestions that point to their ongoing and enhanced collabo- ration. Between October 2022 and July 2023, thirty semi-structured interviews (n=30) were conducted with Inuit and Settler (i.e., non-Inuit) caregivers who have interacted with the Umingmak Centre in Iqaluit, and Inuit and Settler service providers. Adopting Hallet’s (2015) collaborative story-telling methodology, holistic analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data. Findings were subsequently organized and discussed in relation to (a) key messages for the child welfare system, (b) key messages for Uming- mak, (c) caregiver needs, (d) intersectional concerns, (e) ideas for change raised by the data, and (f) ideas for change implied by the data. Key messages about the child welfare system reiterated a lack of cultural safety, a lack of information sharing, improper resourcing, caregiver exploitation, and insti- tutional harm. Key messages for Umingmak underscored emotional safety, lack of information sharing, and experiences of gratitude. Intersectional concerns highlighted differential experiences of reactive, unhelpful helping systems (individualized and my- opic versus collective and multigenerational), differential experiences of emotionally laden, embodied grief and loss, systems navigation ability/successes, trust of systems, and orientation to children under their care. Though all service providers agreed on systemic issues impacting care, settler service providers appeared more concerned with their own experiences of and solutions to compassion fatigue and burnout in the workplace; they were also more likely to minimize accusations of racism in the workplace. Of consequence, several ideas for change were mentioned, including a) promising directions in education, awareness, and training, b) cultural safety and awareness training, c) rethinking treatment, d) trauma- and violence-informed crisis response, e) case management and outreach, and e) structural investments, f) policy changes, and g) self-determination and shared decision-making. Based on the findings, implications for child welfare, the Umingmak centre, and service improvement are discussed.
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    Recognizing Signs of Migrant Caregiver Abuse and Exploitation
    (2018) Lin, Kennes; Lima, Sarah; Bhuyan, Rupaleem
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    Promoting Migrant Resiliance Through Collective Action
    (2020-11) Bhuyan, Rupaleem; Chime, Tenzin
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    Unprotected, Unrecognized: Canadian Immigration Policy and Violence Against Women, 2008-2013
    (2014) Bhuyan, Rupaleem; Osborne, Bethany; Zahraei, Sajedeh; Tarshis, Sarah