Munk School International Institute on Social Policy
Social Policy in Unsettled Times
October 24 – 25, 2024
On October 24-25, 2024, the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto will host the 27th annual International Institute on Social Policy: Social Policy in Unsettled Times. We are proud to be the new home of the Institute, and to continue the long and proud tradition of Canada’s premier social policy conference as established by our colleagues at Queen’s University.
We live in a swirling confluence of social, economic, cultural and ecological forces. Inflation has led to sharp increases in the cost of key fundamentals of life – housing, food, energy. Technological change, epitomised by rapid advances in artificial intelligence, disrupts established communities and ways of living. People are also alert to other disruptions – climate impacts, migration pressures, and geopolitical threats — all of which can contribute to a sense of unease and insecurity in their own lives. While none of these trends is new, what seems different is the speed with which they are occurring. The Munk School is bringing together leading international and Canadian experts to ask: What is the role of social policy in this context? In each session we will consider how Canada compares to other countries, and what can be learned from international experience.
- October 24-25, 2024 in-person: This year's International Institute on Social Policy theme is Social Policy in Unsettled Times.
- Register to attend (registration fees apply)
- Download the 2024 Social Policy Conference Program
Conference speakers and moderators
Catherine Adam
Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Employment and Social Development Canada, Government of Canada
Michael Donnelly
Associate Professor, Political Science and Munk School, and Director, Professional Master's Programs, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Kelly Foley
Associate Professor, Economics, University of Saskatchewan
Carol Graham
Senior Fellow, Economics, Brookings Institution and College Park Professor, University of Maryland
Josh Hjartarson
Global Leader for the Human and Social Services, Deloitte Inc., and National Leader for the Human and Social Services, Deloitte Canada
Alan M. Jacobs
Head of Department and Professor, Political Science, University of British Columbia
Arif Jehta
Associate Scientific Director and Scientist, Institute for Work & Health and Associate Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Andrew Parkin
Executive Director, Environics Institute
Ito Peng
Director, Centre for Global Social Policy and Professor, Department of Sociology and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Michael Moffatt
Senior Director of Policy and Innovation, Smart Prosperity Institute and Assistant Professor, Ivey Business School, Western University
Karen Myers
President and CEO, Blueprint
Jennifer Robson
Associate Professor, Political Management, Carleton University
Stefano Scarpetta
Director, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD
Luke Shaefer
Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy and Professor of Public Policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan
Arjumand Siddiqi
Canada Research Chair in Population Health Equity and Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Anita Stellinga
Vice President, Corporate Communications & Public Policy and Corporate Secretary, United Way Greater Toronto
Michael Stepner
Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, University of Toronto and Research Principal at Opportunity Insights, Harvard University
Paul Thompson
Deputy Minister, Employment and Social Development Canada, Government of Canada
Carolyn Hughes Tuohy
Professor Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow, Department of Political Science and Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto
Christopher T. Wimer
Senior Research Scientist, Columbia Population Research Center, and a co-Director, Center on Poverty and Social Policy, School of Social Work, Columbia University
Nathan Wilmers
Sarofim Family Career Development Associate Professor and Associate Professor of Work and Organization Studies, MIT Sloan School of Management
Daniyal Zuberi
Professor, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Welcome Reception and Opening Keynote
Thursday, October 24, 2024
Campbell Conference Facility, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy
1 Devonshire Place, Toronto, ON
Welcome Reception and Opening Keynote (7:00pm)
Hope, Despair, and Divided Futures in America and Beyond:
Can Wellbeing Science Save us from Despair?
Much attention has been paid to the despair that has been wrought by the disruptive social and economic changes of the past few decades. But less attention has been paid to its inverse: the essential role of hope in engendering resilience in both individuals and communities. Carol Graham brings the tools of economics together with a close exploration of reported experience to addressing the “power of hope” and the role of social policy in providing the resources to support and sustain confidence that a belief that “one can make one’s life better."
Carol Graham, Senior Fellow, Economics, Brookings Institution and College Park Professor at the University of Maryland
Moderator: Dan Zuberi, Professor of Social Policy, Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
followed by a reception
Conference Agenda:
Friday, October 25, 2024
Campbell Conference Facility, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy
1 Devonshire Place, Toronto, ON
Download the Full Conference Program
Continental Breakfast (8:00am - 8:30am)
Breakfast
Session 1: Overview Unsettled times: what role for social policy? Tracking well-being across nations and time (8:30am - 10:00am)
Well-being and Social Protection in Times of Change
- Stefano Scarpetta, Director, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs, OECD
Inequality in Canada Across (Multiple) Unsettled Times
- Kelly Foley, Associate Professor, Economics, University of Saskatchewan
The Public Outlook in “Unsettled Times”
- Andrew Parkin, Executive Director, Environics Institute
Moderator: Paul Thompson, Deputy Minister, Employment and Social Development Canada
Session 2: Supporting the home (10:00am - 11:15am)
No Country for Young Children
- Mike Moffatt, Senior Director of Policy and Innovation, Smart Prosperity Institute and Assistant Professor, Ivey Business School, Western University
It’s Time to Think More Seriously About the Care Economy
- Ito Peng, Director, Centre for Global Social Policy and Professor, Department of Sociology and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Long-term Trends, Recent Policy Developments, and Poverty Among Families with Children in the United States
- Christopher T. Wimer, Co-Director, Center on Poverty and Social Policy, Columbia University
Moderator: Catherine Adam, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Employment and Social Development Canada
Coffee Break (11:15am - 11:30am)
Coffee break
Session 3: Supporting pathways through the new world of work (11:30am - 12:45pm)
Adjusting to New Labour Market Realities: Global Trends in Workforce Development Strategy and the Lessons for Canada
- Josh Hjartarson, Global Leader for the Human and Social Services, Deloitte
Who Will be Included in the Future of Work? Understanding Labour Market Trends and Emerging Inequities
- Arif Jehta, Associate Scientific Director and Scientist, Institute for Work & Health and Associate Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
After Inequality: Policy Lessons from Recent US Wage Growth
- Nathan Wilmers, Sarofim Family Career Development Associate Professor and Associate Professor of Work and Organization Studies, MIT Sloan School of Management
Moderator: Karen Myers, President and CEO, Blueprint
Lunch (12:45pm - 1:45pm)
Lunch break.
Session 4: Supporting communities (1:45pm - 3:00pm)
Protecting the Health of Children with Child Cash Transfers: Evidence from Around the World and in the United States
- Luke Shaefer, Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professor of Social Justice and Social Policy and Professor of Public Policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan
What does the Social and Spatial Distribution of Disadvantage Tell us About Social Policy? Lessons from Social Epidemiological Research
- Arjumand Siddiqi, Canada Research Chair in Population Health Equity and Associate Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health and Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Where is Our Safety Net? Understanding the Breadth of How Social Policy Shapes Risk and Security
- Michael Stepner, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, University of Toronto and a Research Principal at Opportunity Insights, Harvard University
Moderator: Anita Stellinga, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Public Policy and Corporate Secretary, United Way of Greater Toronto
Coffee Break (3:00pm - 3:15pm)
Coffee Break
Session 5: Making it happen: building social buy-in (3:15pm - 4:45pm)
How Inequality Undermines Collective Provision
- Alan M. Jacobs, Head of Department and Professor, Political Science, University of British Columbia
Imagine if We Really Wanted People to Use These Things: Rethinking Policy Delivery and Administrative Burdens
- Jennifer Robson, Associate Professor, Political Management, Carleton University
Social Policy Preferences in Canada
- Michael Donnelly, Associate Professor, Political Science and Munk School, and Director, Professional Master's Programs, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, University of Toronto
Moderator: Carolyn Tuohy, Professor Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow, Department of Political Science and Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy
Closing Remarks (4:45pm – 5:00pm)
Summary of the day's proceedings.