On average, urban Aboriginals are as “happy” as other Canadians. The fact that the results are similar for Aboriginals and for all Canadians will be surprising to anyone whose image of urban Aboriginals is limited to those living in the poorest neighbourhoods of Canada’s cities. Although...

This Commentarysummarizes new evidence on Aboriginal education from the National Household Survey (NHS) that accompanied the 2011 census. There is some good news: young adults aged 20-24 at the time of the census who identified as North American Indian/First Nation and were living off-reserve,...

The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) could improve its development aid impact by focusing on basic education. In the report, the author documents the importance of universal literacy in enabling countries to escape from extreme levels of poverty and identifies specific types of...

There exist very large gaps between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal student performance in most B.C. schools. However, Aboriginal students in some school districts perform remarkably well. What are these districts doing right? The authors draw lessons that may well apply across Canada.

Anti-poverty initiatives over the last decade have lifted many people out of poverty, mainly through improved employment rates. To make further progress in tackling poverty, targeted interventions are in order that draw on past policy successes.

The high dropout rate among francophone Quebec students, particularly boys, has recently received considerable attention in that province. Media coverage has been extensive, indicating widespread public concern. However, the high-school dropout-rate problem is not restricted to Quebec. Based on...

Quebec’s Aboriginal poverty is severe, and the large gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal education levels is the most important factor in explaining it. In the report, the author examines the relationship between education levels and employment for Quebec Aboriginals. Comparing outcomes...

Poor education outcomes for Aboriginals in Canada have long been a source of concern for Aboriginal leaders and the provincial and federal governments. Notably, sixty percent of young Aboriginal adults living on reserves in Canada lack high-school certification. As a result, they face severely...

In the 2013/14 budget, the Minister of Finance made a surprise announcement: the decision to merge CIDA with the (renamed) Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development. A sensible move? If the intent is to link CIDA projects to Canadian resource developments overseas, probably no. If the...

From 1996 to 2007, the poverty rate among the two million Canadians living in lone-parent families fell by more than half – from nearly 50 percent to just over 20 percent – as measured by the low-income cutoff (LICO) rate. The proximate cause is a dramatic increase in employment and hence...