Achieving the very ambitious climate action goals of cities with net zero GHG emissions targets will require unprecedented levels of political support and behavioural engagement from residents. Climate engagement methods adopted by most cities typically consist of public education about climate change and public input on emissions reductions strategies. However, there is little evidence to suggest that such campaigns will achieve the level of support and engagement required to meet net zero targets. This article outlines an alternative approach that combines the Connected Community Approach and participatory backcasting to articulate a desired neighbourhood future rooted in local activities, and pathways to such a future. Only then does it make connections to the City of Toronto's climate goals and targets. Our hypothesis is that this approach-focusing on local sustainability-will lay the essential groundwork for fostering higher levels of public support and behavioural engagement on urban climate action than conventional engagement methods. Pour atteindre les objectifs tr & egrave;s ambitieux en mati & egrave;re d'action climatique des villes visant la neutralit & eacute; carbone, il faudra un soutien politique et un engagement comportemental sans pr & eacute;c & eacute;dent de la part des habitants. Les m & eacute;thodes d'engagement climatique adopt & eacute;es par la plupart des villes consistent g & eacute;n & eacute;ralement en une sensibilisation du public au changement climatique et en une consultation publique sur les strat & eacute;gies de r & eacute;duction des & eacute;missions. Cependant, peu d'& eacute;l & eacute;ments indiquent que de telles campagnes permettront d'obtenir le niveau de soutien et de participation n & eacute;cessaire pour atteindre les objectifs de neutralit & eacute; carbone. Le pr & eacute;sent article pr & eacute;sente une approche alternative qui combine les d & eacute;marches de la & laquo; communaut & eacute; connect & eacute;e & raquo; et le backcasting participatif afin de d & eacute;finir un avenir souhait & eacute; pour le quartier, ancr & eacute; dans les activit & eacute;s locales, ainsi que les voies menant & agrave; cet avenir. Ce n'est qu'ensuite que des liens sont & eacute;tablis avec les objectifs climatiques de la Ville de Toronto. Notre hypoth & egrave;se est que cette approche - ax & eacute;e sur la durabilit & eacute; locale - jettera les bases essentielles pour susciter des niveaux plus & eacute;lev & eacute;s de soutien public et d'engagement comportemental en mati & egrave;re d'action climatique urbaine que les m & eacute;thodes de mobilisation conventionnelles.
The COVID-19 pandemic was the most significant governance stress test in recent Canadian history, revealing both the capacities and constraints of Canadian public administration under acute uncertainty. This article examines Canada's pandemic response as a diagnostic case for understanding governance capacity relevant to long-duration challenges such as climate change. Drawing on interviews with senior public health and climate-health leaders, and triangulating these insights with federal evaluations, the analysis focuses on coordination, trust, political will, and institutional learning across pandemic phases. Findings show that coordination and political will were episodic rather than durably embedded, trust was a fragile governance resource, and post-crisis learning was only weakly institutionalized. Rather than treating COVID-19 as a model for climate governance, the article argues that its value lies in diagnosis: making visible the limits of emergency-oriented governance and clarifying the capacities required for more anticipatory, durable responses. La pand & eacute;mie de COVID-19 a constitu & eacute; le test de r & eacute;sistance le plus important en mati & egrave;re de gouvernance de l'histoire r & eacute;cente du Canada, mettant en lumi & egrave;re & agrave; la fois les capacit & eacute;s et les limites de l'administration publique canadienne dans un contexte d'incertitude aigu & euml;. Le pr & eacute;sent article examine la r & eacute;ponse du Canada & agrave; la pand & eacute;mie comme un cas d'& eacute;tude permettant de comprendre la capacit & eacute; de gouvernance face & agrave; des d & eacute;fis de longue haleine tels que les changements climatiques. S'appuyant sur des entrevues men & eacute;es aupr & egrave;s de hauts responsables de la sant & eacute; publique et de la sant & eacute; climatique, et en recoupant ces observations avec des & eacute;valuations f & eacute;d & eacute;rales, l'analyse porte sur la coordination, la confiance, la volont & eacute; politique et l'apprentissage institutionnel tout au long des diff & eacute;rentes phases de la pand & eacute;mie. Les r & eacute;sultats montrent que la coordination et la volont & eacute; politique ont & eacute;t & eacute; & eacute;pisodiques plut & ocirc;t que durablement ancr & eacute;es, que la confiance constituait une ressource de gouvernance fragile et que l'apprentissage post-crise n'a & eacute;t & eacute; que faiblement institutionnalis & eacute;. Plut & ocirc;t que de consid & eacute;rer la COVID-19 comme un mod & egrave;le de gouvernance climatique, l'article soutient que sa valeur r & eacute;side dans le diagnostic: mettre en & eacute;vidence les limites d'une gouvernance ax & eacute;e sur les situations d'urgence et clarifier les capacit & eacute;s requises pour des r & eacute;ponses plus anticipatives et durables.
This case study examines regional cooperation between the Town of Eastend and the Rural Municipalities of White Valley and Arlington in southwest Saskatchewan. It explores how these municipalities overcome institutional inertia to deliver essential services and sustain community viability. Drawing on five interviews with local elected officials and administrators, alongside a targeted literature review, the study analyzes collaborative initiatives including shared fire protection, recreation funding, water infrastructure upgrades, and the development of a regional ambulance service. Using a framework grounded in historical institutionalism, status quo bias, and veto player theory, the study finds that cooperation emerges incrementally through project-specific agreements rather than full municipal mergers. These arrangements rely on trust, fiscal practicality, and strategies that preserve local identity while reducing risk aversion. The findings highlight best practices for coalition-based governance and offer recommendations to support service sharing while maintaining municipal autonomy and long-term rural sustainability.
Infrastructure development is central to Canada's nation-building process. This article argues that the federal government has recalibrated its nation-building mandate from unilateral state command to relational orchestration. Through thematic analysis of thirty-eight policy documents related to three federal infrastructure plans (2007-2016), we show that "nation-building infrastructure" has evolved from large-scale projects to an umbrella term encompassing community-focused initiatives and both hard and soft infrastructure. The federal government now channels investment through partnerships with provinces, municipalities, territories, private capital, and Indigenous rights holders. This shift represents not federal withdrawal but a strategic repositioning of federal power through coordinated, multi-actor arrangements. Le d & eacute;veloppement des infrastructures est au c oe ur du processus d'& eacute;dification nationale du Canada. Cet article soutient que le gouvernement f & eacute;d & eacute;ral a recalibr & eacute; son mandat d'& eacute;dification nationale, passant d'un commandement & eacute;tatique unilat & eacute;ral & agrave; une orchestration relationnelle. & Agrave; partir d'une analyse th & eacute;matique de documents li & eacute;s & agrave; trois plans f & eacute;d & eacute;raux d'infrastructure (2007-2016), nous montrons que les infrastructures d'& eacute;dification nationale sont pass & eacute;es de projets de grande envergure & agrave; un terme g & eacute;n & eacute;rique englobant des initiatives communautaires et des infrastructures mat & eacute;rielles et immat & eacute;rielles. Le gouvernement f & eacute;d & eacute;ral achemine d & eacute;sormais ses investissements par des partenariats avec les provinces, les municipalit & eacute;s, les territoires, le capital priv & eacute; et les titulaires de droits autochtones. Ce changement repr & eacute;sente non pas un retrait f & eacute;d & eacute;ral, mais un repositionnement strat & eacute;gique du pouvoir f & eacute;d & eacute;ral par des arrangements coordonn & eacute;s et multi-acteurs.
Despite notable progress, the OECD recently noted that conflict of interest regulation still suffers from poor implementation and how to ensure effective enforcement of ethics rules remains an important challenge. One popular but under-examined approach is to rely on an ethics watchdog: an independent agency with few powers that can nevertheless investigate and publicly blame violators as a form of sanction and deterrence. To better ascertain the effectiveness of this model of ethics enforcement, we examine how Canada's Ethics Commissioner used investigations to enforce ethics rules over a fifteen-year period, the media coverage that they have received, and the career consequences that adverse findings have had for the officials blamed by the Commissioner. We find that, while used to scrutinize even the most powerful officials, ethics investigations had little impact, casting doubt on the potential effectiveness of relying on publicity, shaming and reputational costs as tools of ethics enforcement. Au cours des vingt derni & egrave;res ann & eacute;es, les pr & eacute;occupations concernant l'int & eacute;grit & eacute; publique ont amen & eacute; de nombreux gouvernements & agrave; renforcer les r & egrave;gles et institutions destin & eacute;es & agrave; pr & eacute;venir les conflits d'int & eacute;r & ecirc;ts impliquant les titulaires de charges publiques. Malgr & eacute; ces progr & egrave;s, l'OCDE a not & eacute; que la r & eacute;glementation des conflits d'int & eacute;r & ecirc;ts souffre toujours d'un manque de mise en oe uvre et les conditions n & eacute;cessaires pour assurer le respect des r & egrave;gles d'& eacute;thique font toujours l'objet de d & eacute;bats. Un mod & egrave;le populaire mais encore peu & eacute;tudi & eacute; pour assurer le respect des r & egrave;gles en mati & egrave;re de conflits d'int & eacute;r & ecirc;ts est celui d'un organisme de surveillance ind & eacute;pendant qui poss & egrave;de peu de pouvoirs l & eacute;gaux pour forcer le respect des r & egrave;gles mais qui utilise des pouvoirs d'enqu & ecirc;te et la publicisation des violations & eacute;thiques av & eacute;r & eacute;es comme forme de sanction et de dissuasion. Pour mieux & eacute;valuer l'efficacit & eacute; de cette approche, cette & eacute;tude a examin & eacute; comment le Commissaire aux conflits d'int & eacute;r & ecirc;ts et & agrave; l'& eacute;thique au niveau f & eacute;d & eacute;ral au Canada a utilis & eacute; ses pouvoirs d'enqu & ecirc;te au cours de ses quinze premi & egrave;res ann & eacute;es d'activit & eacute;, la couverture m & eacute;diatique re & ccedil;ue par ses rapports d'enqu & ecirc;te, et les cons & eacute;quences que les bl & acirc;mes du commissaire semblent avoir eu pour les personnes concern & eacute;es. Dans l'ensemble, nous constatons que, bien que des enqu & ecirc;tes ont lieu r & eacute;guli & egrave;rement, m & ecirc;me & agrave; l'& eacute;gard de personnes les plus puissantes, elles sont g & eacute;n & eacute;ralement peu publicis & eacute;es et ont peu d'impact. Cette conclusion jette le doute sur l'efficacit & eacute; potentielle d'une strat & eacute;gie visant & agrave; forcer le respect des r & egrave;gles d'& eacute;thique en s'appuyant principalement sur la publicit & eacute; des violations et les co & ucirc;ts r & eacute;putationnels engendr & eacute;s par un bl & acirc;me officiel d'un agent impartial.
