Welcome to the June edition of the Broadbent Bulletin.
After coming together in Ottawa for our 2025 Progress Summit in April, the Broadbent Institute continued its work bringing forward thought-provoking analysis in a new issue of Perspectives Journal, a vision for democratic society in the Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture, and critical coverage of the Canadian Labour movement’s struggle for justice and equality.
Earlier in May, Director of Policy and Engagement Clement Nocos co-authored a powerful op-ed for The Toronto Star, reflecting on the tragic attack at Vancouver’s Lapu-Lapu Day festival and its impact on the Filipino Canadian community. Challenging the narrative of resilience, Nocos calls for meaningful justice, systemic change, and solidarity to address the deep-rooted inequities that have long been overlooked.
New Research from the Broadbent Institute
Ahead of this year’s Progress Summit, we published two new original reports:
Bridging the Transition: Labour Mobility and Workforce Adaptation in Canada’s Just Transition
Made in collaboration with the University of Ottawa Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, Bridging the Transition shows the challenges faced by workers in high-emission sectors like coal, oil, and gas as Canada moves toward its 2050 net-zero emissions goal. The report highlights the limitations of current transition policies and offers policy recommendations to support workers through this structural shift.
Watch a recent research presentation and read the key findings.
Shifting Borders: Canadian Attitudes Towards Immigration
Our latest polling project with Viewpoints Research and the Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung reveals new research on attitudes towards Canada’s immigration policy, and the economic pressures associated with those views. The findings are essential reading for anyone who cares about economic progress for Canada.
Watch the research presentation and read the key findings.
Grace Blakeley: Lecture on Genuine Democracy in an Age of Hyper-Individualism
On Tuesday, May 20, Grace Blakeley delivered the 2025 Ellen Meiksins Wood Lecture at Toronto Metropolitan University, sharing her compelling vision for the Canadian left in a time of overlapping crises. Reflecting on her latest book, Vulture Capitalism: Corporate Crimes, Backdoor Bailouts, and the Death of Freedom, Blakeley spoke about how organizing and solidarity can challenge neoliberal capitalism and reclaim democratic power for the working-class.
Grounded in rigorous research and radical hope, Blakeley’s message resonates with those working to build a more just and democratic economy. This event couldn’t have been made possible without our hosts, Toronto Metropolitan University’s Faculty of Arts. See photos from the event, and watch, listen and read the full lecture here.
Trump’s Trade War
This month, we shared two new episodes of the Progressive Political Economy video series, showing the intersections of trade, industrial policy and social justice in responding to Trump’s trade war. In A Green New Deal to Fight Trump’s Trade War, Todd Tucker of the Roosevelt Institute explains how Canada can counteract U.S. policies by adopting a high-road industrial strategy that emphasizes clean energy, strong communities, and empowered workers. And in A New Deal for Progressive Trade, Beth Baltzan critiques the current international trade regime, showing how it facilitates tariff conflicts and undermines workers’ rights.
New in Perspectives Journal
New Podcast Episodes:
Class & Climate: Moving Canada for Climate Action
In the latest episode of Class & Climate, Équiterre’s Blandine Sebileau joins the Green Economy Network’s Nick Pearce to discuss how investing in public transit can address both climate change and the affordability crisis. Sebileau explains how clean, accessible transportation reduces emissions, lowers costs for working people, and fosters healthier communities. Listen here.
Public Education at the Tipping Point
Recorded live at the 2025 Progress Summit, this episode features frontline educators Heidi Yetman, Haldis Holst, Carol Sarich, and Ken Montgomery, discussing the current crisis in public education. They show how underfunding, privatization, and political attacks on educators are threatening democratic values, and offer solutions to defend and strengthen public education in Canada. Listen here.
New Online Articles:
- Reclaiming the NDP’s Working-Class Roots Through Public Power by Edgardo Sepulveda
- The Stories We Tell: How Media Coverage of Sexual Violence Can Perpetuate Harm by Alexandra Ages
- How Mis/Disinformation is Driving Alberta to the Right, Part 2: the 2023 Provincial Election by Parul Kanwar
Catch up on all this and more at Perspectives Journal.
PressProgress followed up on loose strands from the 2025 Federal Election and welcomed their new labour reporter Emma Arkell in May. You can read more about Arkell’s award-winning track record of labour reporting here.
Here’s the latest PressProgress original reporting from the last month:
- Podcast – Making Work Safer for Racialized Immigrant Women
- In Trying to Compete with Amazon, Canada Post is in a ‘Race to the Bottom’
- Canadian Conservative YouTubers Claim They Were Offered Russian Money to Fund Their Videos. Their Strange Story Raises Serious Questions.
- Ottawa Police Deny Inviting Convoy Figure to Help Them With Anti-LGBTQ+ Protest at Elementary School
- Danielle Smith’s Separatist Mess
- Podcast – Alberta’s Separatist Stampede
- Advocates Accuse Ford Government of Targeting the Homeless with New Bill
- Public Service Unions Question Carney Government’s Plans for ‘AI’ and Hiring Caps on Federal Workforce
- Podcast – What Canadians Need to Know About Germany’s AfD and the Far-Right’s Threat to Democracy
- Alberta Wants to Loosen Restrictions on Corporate Financing of Elections
- Pierre Poilievre No Longer Entitled to Live at Public Mansion: Privy Council Office
- Journalist in Poilievre’s Viral ‘Apple’ Video Says Election Results Bring Him ‘Satisfaction’
That’s all for this June edition Broadbent Bulletin. Thank you for following our work to advance a just and equitable world, and stay tuned for other updates and announcements from the Broadbent Institute. Consider supporting the Broadbent Institute, sharing this Bulletin with your friends and family, and subscribing if you haven’t done so already.