Canada West Foundation

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.

04/30/2026

The digital economy is shifting fast, and Saskatchewan is right in the middle of that momentum.

At Session 1 of the Data Centre & AI Infrastructure Summit in Regina, we partnered with the Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan to bring together leaders from tech, infrastructure, investment and government for a focused roundtable discussion.

The question on the table: How can Saskatchewan build a competitive data centre economy?

The roundtable featured a wide-ranging discussion that unpacked:

▪️ Public acceptance of data centres and best practices for working with communities
▪️ Power requirements and innovation
▪️ Data sovereignty
▪️ Fibre supply
▪️ The economic benefits of hosting data centres
▪️ Concerns and potential benefits of AI

For Saskatchewan, data centres represent an opportunity to strengthen competitiveness and shape long‑term economic growth.

Today’s session was an important first step in exploring how the province can make the most of that momentum.

A sincere thank you 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.

And thank you to Kent Campbell, president and CEO of the Crown Investment Corporation of Saskatchewan, and The Honourable Jeremy Harrison, minister of Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan, for participating in the conversation, and Aaron Manz, CFA for guiding the discussion as session moderator.

04/30/2026

Prediction markets have become a constant presence in news, entertainment and sports, and all just in the past year.

Prediction markets are platforms that let people trade products, called event contracts, based on the probability of whether specific events will happen.

💰 The industry has grown quickly. Annual revenue in late 2025 was around US$2 billion and analysts at Citizens Financial Group predicted that it could surpass US$10 billion by 2030.

📰 In the first issue of the Tech and Innovation brief, Margi Pandya and Stephany Laverty explore how prediction markets work and how they’re being regulated in Canada.

📈 Prediction market progress has moved a bit slower in Canada, but a recent announcement could change that.

Finance aficionados are abuzz due to recent regulatory approval that could help Wealthsimple enter the prediction market space.

🔗 Read more: https://cwf.ca/research/publications/prediction-markets-canada-regulation/