Here is your August 2026 update from the Broadbent Institute:
Democracy, AI & Digital Sovereignty
On July 9 at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, legislators and experts from across North, Central and South America gathered, for the seminar “Democratic AI & Digital Sovereignty,” the third preparatory meeting on the road to the 2026 Panamerican Congress, taking place in Montevideo, Uruguay, August 21-23.
The roundtable convened perspectives from Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, and the United States and stressed the urgency of advancing a digital sovereignty agenda that transcends national initiatives and projects itself as a shared hemispheric strategy.
The discussion addressed the challenges posed by the concentration of technological power in a handful of corporations: dependence on foreign digital infrastructure, the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs and public services, platform regulation, and the protection of democratic processes. Participants stressed that the fragmentation of digital policies weakens the region’s countries in the face of actors that already operate in a coordinated, global manner.
The day culminated with a public event with the Leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party, Avi Lewis; Chile’s former Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation, Aisén Etcheverry; the President & CEO of the Centre for International Policy (the US), Nancy Okail; and Frente Amplio Deputy for Alajuela (Costa Rica), Sigrid Segura, at Toronto Metropolitan University.
JUST PUBLISHED: Perspectives Journal No. 6
The Summer 2026 edition of Perspectives Journal contains analysis of the economic weaknesses of Canadian capitalism and looks to an alternative, progressive vision for ‘nation-building.’ The latter half reflects the historical episodes of left-wing Canadian ideas, their institutions, and their organizers, and culminates with the publication of the 2026 Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture by Jacobin Magazine founder Bhaskar Sunkara, entitled, ‘Market Socialism Against Capitalism.’
In this issue:
- Why Does Canada Develop Megaprojects Instead of Innovation Systems? by Brendan Haley
- False Promises and Economic Reconciliation by Anna Stanley
- Do Neoliberals Dream of AI Growth? by Madison Lee
- The Ground Game is Not Enough, the NDP Needs Courage by Rachel Loewen Walker
- Requiem for the Waffle? by David Coaker
- League for Social Reconstruction: Intellectual Foundations of the Canadian Left by James Adair
More from Perspectives Journal
No Nation Can Defend Digital Sovereignty Alone
By Jen Hassum & Pedro Pablo Glatz
Currently, each country is confronting – inefficiently – the dynamics of AI and Big Tech in isolation. This initiative reflects an urgent correction of course.
PODCAST: How a Progressive Government Builds Digital Sovereignty
Perspectives Journal editor Clement Nocos interviewed Aisén Etcheverry, Chile’s former Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation. She explains how her progressive government, led by former President Gabriel Boric, built capacity for digital sovereignty in anticipation of the age of AI.
SUBSCRIBE to the Perspectives Journal Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Amazon Music, and all other major podcast platforms.
Fellows and Emerging Leaders Update
Broadbent Research Fellow Dr. Danyaal Raza criticizes the public procurement rules around the rise of “AI scribes” in Ontario, in a new article for Healthy Debate.
2026 Emerging Leader Dr. Angela Dong analyzes ‘How Ontario’s health-care system can win on CUSMA uncertainty,’ for TVO Today.
Broadbent Leadership Fellow Erin Morrison joined a CityNews panel on Premiers’ reactions to Trump’s tariff threats.
PressProgress remains at the centre of what could be one of the biggest, longest and most expensive media trials in Canadian history over its factual reporting on a former political candidate.
Learn more about what they’re up against and support their ongoing work by visiting journalismdefence.ca
Here’s NEW PressProgress reporting from July 2026:
- US Ambassador Pete Hoekstra Hosts Far-Right Activists and Right-Wing Media Personalities at ‘Fourth of July’ Party in Ottawa – by Luke LeBrun, July 6
- ‘I’m Not Optimistic’: First Canadian Nursing Strike in Nearly Three Decades Under Way in BC – by Brishti Basu, July 8
- Options for Overnight Heat Relief Lacking for Nearly A Million Households Without AC Amid Ontario Heatwave – by Eric Wickham, July 14
- City of Vancouver Allegedly Misusing Provincial Housing Incentive to Favour Hotel Developers: Supreme Court petition – by Rumneek Johal, July 14
- Workers Who Clean Public Transit in BC and Ontario Say Their Employer is Undermining Their Rights – by Emma Arkell, July 15
- Over 20 Women Seeking Legal Support After Allegations of Voyeurism at BC FedEx Location – by Rumneek Johal, July 16
- Alberta Tories Join Growing Calls For Anti-SLAPP Law to Protect Free Speech and Democracy in Alberta – by Luke LeBrun, July 22
- Federal Government Steps in to Stop Controversial Billy Bishop Expansion After Overwhelming Opposition from Toronto Residents – by Eric Wickham, July 29
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Thank you for reading the monthly Broadbent Bulletin, and stay tuned for more news and updates from the Broadbent Institute.
In solidarity,
Clement Nocos
Director of Policy & Engagement, Broadbent Institute