Policy

Public Policy

Government policies, programs, legislation, regulations and incentives and how these are created and implemented affect us all. Collectively. this public policy shapes the context for sustainability, agriculture and environment.

All public policy needs evaluation to ensure the policy is effective, efficient and does not have perverse effects. Stakeholder engagement and collaboration in policy development and evaluation is critical for success.

Examples provided below show analysis of a variety of aspects of public policy development and evaluation for particular topic areas.


The Power of Soils: An Agenda for Change to Benefit Canada’s Farmers and Climate Resilience. Presentation to the Soil and Water Conservation Society, July 2021.


New Horizons or Déjà Vu? Evolution of Soil Policy and Ontario’s Draft Soil Strategy. Presentation at Latornell Conservation Symposium, 2017. An analysis of the evolution of soil policy and programs in Ontario.


Ontario’s Environmental Farm Plans: Measuring Performance, Improving Effectiveness and Increasing Participation, Presentation at Rural Studies conference Ryerson University, 2016. An analysis of EFP implementation and methods to increase participation and implementation, and measure program performance.


Government Policy Decision-making, How Initiatives are Started, Developed and Implemented, guest lecture at the University of Guelph, 2009. An explanation of government legislation, regulations policies, government approval processes and financial instruments with examples from public policy for agriculture and the environment.


Towards the Protection of Great Lakes Natural Heritage Areas, report from Heritage Resources Centre, University of Waterloo, 1988. An analysis of federal, provincial and local legislation, policy and tools for Great Lakes natural heritage protection and an inventory of sites and areas.


What is a good environmental impact statement? Reviewing screening reports from Canada’s National Parks, peer-reviewed paper in Journal of Environmental Management, 1988. An analysis of the state of environmental assessment in Canada’s national parks and recommendations for change.


Wetlands on the Edge: Great Lakes Wetlands and Coastal Management, paper in Proceedings of Wetlands Conference, 1988. A review of federal, provincial and local Great Lakes coastal management policy and natural area protection.


Environmentally Significant Areas, Conservation and Land Use Management in the Northwest Territories, report from Heritage Resources Centre, University of Waterloo, 1986. A review of legislation, policy and planning for protected areas in the NWT, criteria for evaluating ESAs and how to match areas with policy approaches.


Institutional Arrangements for a System of Environmentally Significant Areas: The Case of the East Beaufort Sea Area, Canada, peer reviewed paper in Environmental Conservation, 1987. A review of federal and territorial protected areas policy and a method for matching characteristics of environmentally significant areas with the best policy approach.

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