WONK

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WONK episodes

October 22 Candace Laing on the Canada’s trade war plan: ‘We got this’
It would not be an understatement to say that the Canada-U.S. relationship is undergoing a challenging time. The U.S. president describes Canada as a terrible trade partner and the 51st state. Both countries have applied tariffs and counter tariffs on goods that not long ago crossed the border tariff-free. On this episode, host Michael Serapio talks to Candace Laing, the President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, about the impact of the relationship breakdown on jobs, investments and businesses in this country.

This episode is sponsored by the Forest Products Association of Canada.

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33 min
October 15 Lisa Raitt and Anne McLellan: Canadian democracy is working
The largest survey on Canadian views on foreign policy in over 50 years suggests that Canadians are united on a whole host of issues, from trade diversification to global health. It also shows a surprising confidence that democracy in Canada is working well, despite the challenges and unity questions facing the country. Host Michael Serapio talks to Anne McLellan, a former deputy prime minister in Paul Martin's government and Lisa Raitt, a former minister in the government at Stephen Harper, who were involved in the report, called Foreign Policy by Canadians 2026.

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Learn more about PPF Academy’s learning program, Managing Canada’s interests under Trump 2.0
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32 min
October 08 Can the auto industry survive Trump?
When it comes to Canada's auto industry, the U.S. President is very clear: Donald Trump does not see the need for it and he is doing everything he can to force car makers to bring their operations to America. The rupture would undermine an industrial relationship that goes back decades, and lead to the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs. Host Michael Serapio talks to Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association, about the state of the highly integrated industry and what Donald Trump gets wrong about it.

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Learn more about PPF Academy’s learning program, Managing Canada’s interests under Trump 2.0: https://ppforum.ca/academy/canada-united-states-policy-program/
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35 min
October 01 Premier RJ Simpson on northern investment the need for better Arctic defence
Canada’s Arctic is getting a level of attention it hasn't seen in decades. The federal government is promising to put some $35 billion towards asserting Canada's Arctic sovereignty, creating economic opportunities and, it is hoped, long-term prosperity for Northern communities. But how will these investments do that? When will we see shovels in the ground? Host Michael Serapio is joined by the Premier of the Northwest Territories, RJ Simpson to talk about Arctic resources, building roads and why Canada needs to up its Arctic defence.

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28 min
September 24 Canada’s search for $1 trillion — and new friends
Canada's push to diversify its economy has taken some big steps: An international investment summit in Toronto; a trip by PM Mark Carney to the European Parliament to explore becoming an associate member of the EU; and a meeting in Saint-Pierre with French President Emmanuel Macron. What do these developments tell us about Canada's efforts? How interested is the world in what Canada has to offer? And what will it take to turn that interest into growth? Host Michael Serapio is joined by Gitane De Silva, Executive Director of the Peter Lougheed School of Politics & Democracy at the University of Alberta and Brett House, an economist and professor at Columbia Business School.

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Learn more about PPF Academy’s learning program, Managing Canada’s interests under Trump 2.0: https://ppforum.ca/academy/canada-united-states-policy-program/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
34 min
September 17 Canada’s former top trade negotiator Steve Verheul: Moving beyond the U.S.
Ever since Donald Trump was reelected in 2024 and started talking about Canada as a 51st state, cross border trade has been a sore point. But in recent weeks, there has been great urgency as the United States slapped tariffs on many goods and the fate of CUSMA hangs in the balance. PM Mark Carney has said “America is trying to break us so that they can own us.” So what can Canada really do to diversify its trade and thrive next to a suddenly unfriendly neighbour? Host Michael Serapio talks to Canada’s former chief trade negotiator and PPF Fellow Steve Verheul about his new report From Reliance to Resilience and what could happen next.

Read Verheul’s report for PPF: https://ppforum.ca/publications/from-reliance-to-resilience/

Subscribe to PPF’s Canada-U.S. newsletter: https://ppforum.ca/newsletters/

Learn more about PPF Academy’s learning program, Managing Canada’s interests under Trump 2.0: https://ppforum.ca/academy/canada-united-states-policy-program/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
25 min
June 25 Gov. Josh Shapiro on Canada-U.S. relations
Josh Shapiro is the governor of Pennsylvania. He talks to host Amanda Lang about fixing CUSMA, the importance of the U.S. midterms and the trade instability caused by President Donald Trump. This is the final episode of season 4 of WONK. We’ll be back this fall with a brand new season.
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32 min
June 18 How to make a nation of supertraders
The need to pivot away from our dependence on the U.S. as a trading partner has definitely been driven home to Canadian businesses. But actually doing that is a different story. If there's a base camp for that climb, it's Export Development Canada (EDC), the Crown Corporation whose mission is to help Canadians develop new markets. Alison Nankivell, EDC's CEO, joins host Amanda Lang.
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34 min
June 11 Evan Solomon on the promise and perils of AI
Few innovations have held the amount of promise and — let's face it — peril as artificial intelligence. Will it be mankind's greatest leap forward or its absolute demise? Into this uncertainty comes Canada's new AI strategy, one which tries to walk the line between promise and peril. Host Amanda Lang talks to Evan Solomon, Canada's first Minister of AI and Digital Innovation.
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33 min
June 04 Building an economy that helps people flourish
More than 25 years ago, management consultant Joseph Pine introduced a revolutionary concept he called the experience economy. It helped shape how companies would reframe their businesses, but also their approaches to customers. Pine described the economy as being divided into progressions of economic value, from the lowest, commodities, to goods or manufacturing, to services, and finally, experiences. Now he's introducing a fifth level of value, which he calls transformation. His new book is called The Transformation Economy. He joins host Amanda Lang.
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33 min

About WONK

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WONK is a show about big ideas in unprecedented times. Hosted by Michael Serapio, we unpack some of the most pressing issues and challenges facing Canada, and talk to some leading thinkers and…