Business scholars from the University of British Columbia and Simon
Fraser University are joining forces to study the relationship between
public policy and business.
The SFU-UBC Centre for the Study of Government and Business will
examine the role of provincial and federal governments in the Canadian
economy and the relationship between government and business in
Canada.
The centre, the first of its kind in Western Canada, promises to
become the western voice for academic public policy research, according
to co-directors Prof. Thomas Ross of UBC’s Faculty of Commerce and
Business Administration, and Prof. Aidan Vining of SFU’s Faculty
of Business Administration.
“Both provincially and federally,” Ross said, “there’s a real need
for better, academically oriented, public policy research on questions
like privatization, competition policy, the role of the government
in the modern developed economy, and measuring the effectiveness
of government in managing the economy.”
Vining said there is an urgent need for more policy research at
the provincial level and closer ties between academia and government.
“The interaction between academia and the provincial government
is much closer in other provinces,” he said.
The centre is also remarkable as the first partnership between
the two faculties.
“SFU and UBC together have some of the strongest people in the
business, government and public policy area — not only in Canada
but in North America. For instance, with regard to competition policy,
I think between us we have many of the experts in Canada,” Vining
said.
Faculty members from the areas of political science, economics,
agricultural sciences, and resource and environmental science will
also be involved in the centre’s activities.
Funding is currently being sought for research projects such as
measuring the performance of privatized crown corporations and measuring
the efficiency of public enterprises.
Ross said he expects the centre to provide educators who teach
government and business with valuable new material for courses and
seminars. The centre will also oversee ongoing projects such as
UBC’s Election Stock Market, which successfully predicted the outcomes
of the last two federal elections.
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