Conversations That Matter

Ep 494 - Canada and China: What Happened? Guest - Dr Paul Evans

Ep 494 - Canada and China: What Happened?

Guest - Dr Paul Evans

 

By Stuart McNish

 

In 1970, Canada led the Western world by recognizing China. According to Paul Evans in his book, “Engaging China,” the Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Trudeau “believed that many of the world’s major issues ‘will not be resolved completely or in any lasting way unless and until an accommodation has been reached with the Chinese nation.’”

 

Over the course of the next 50 years, the Chinese economy and its clout grew from 1.7 percent of global GDP to more than 17.3%. China went from one of the poorest countries on earth to one of the most powerful economies. Through that growth, China invested heavily in Canadian energy and technology companies.

 

Then at the start of this century, the relationship between Canada and China started shifting. China started to flex its muscles and Canada failed to realize it was no longer the dominant member of this relationship. China grew tired of being told what and how to manage its affairs.

 

Enter Xi Jinping, who had no patience for moralizing and virtue signalling. Canada woke up to China’s influence and the influencing tactics at home and abroad. Over the past five years, the relationship has soured.

 

We invited Paul Evans, Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia, to join us for a Conversation That Matters on what happened between Canada and China and what is happening between us and India.

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 493 - A Call to Purpose Guest - Mike Rowlands

Ep 493 - A Call to Purpose

Guest - Mike Rowlands

 

“Redefining success for the purpose economy,” Mike Rowlands says, “is to become a part of the rapidly growing movement toward social purpose in business. The social purpose focus creates healthier communities, restoration of our shared environment and better outcomes for companies’ staff, customers and other stakeholders.”

 

Rowlands says the path to developing this framework  “emerged from our work with the nonprofit sector – a sector that required new brand strategies that enriched and enhanced their organizations' messaging.” The next step on the path to a social purpose framework was the development of “Theory of Change,” which is a methodology to set out intended social change outcomes.”

 

We invited Mike Rowlands, the CEO and President at Junxion, to join us for a Conversation That Matters about social purpose and how it focuses businesses to accept responsibility for outputs, outcomes and building a better world by being in business.

 

By Stuart McNish

 

Researchers at Simon Fraser University and BC Cancer have pinpointed specific physiological traits that they say “can 

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 492 - The Fountain of Youth Guest - Angela Brooks-Wilson

Ep 492 - The Fountain of Youth

Guest - Angela Brooks-Wilson

 

By Stuart McNish

 

Researchers at Simon Fraser University and BC Cancer have pinpointed specific physiological traits that they say “can help people live longer, healthier lives.” According to a recent study published in GeroScience, the healthiest, older adults live in a “sweet spot,” where more than 100 different physiological traits interact, and that dynamic interaction makes them healthier than their counterparts.

 

Key to living in the “sweet spot” is homeostasis, which is a collection of mechanisms that your body uses to maintain constancy in blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and body temperature. The more consistent your body is, the healthier you are. Deviations from optimal ranges of vitamin D, calcium, glucose and other mechanisms lead to a higher risk of mortality.

 

We invited Angela Brooks-Wilson, a co-author of the report, to join us for a Conversation That Matters about what we now know about the “sweet spot” of health and how this knowledge may equip you to live longer and healthier.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 491 - The Claims of Life Guest - Diana Chapman Walsh

Ep 491 - The Claims of Life

Guest - Diana Chapman Walsh

 

By Stuart McNish

 

The Claims of Life, a new book by Diana Chapman Walsh, traces the emergence of a young woman who set out believing she wasn’t particularly smart but went on to meet multiple tests of leadership in the American academy – a place where everyone wants to be heard and no one wants a boss.

 

The Claims of Life offers readers an unusually intimate view of a trustworthy leadership that begins and ends in self-knowledge. During a transformative fourteen-year Wellesley College presidency, Walsh advanced women’s authority, compassionate governance, and self-reinvention. 

 

After Wellesley, Walsh’s interests took her to the boards of five national nonprofits, galvanizing change. She kept counsel with Nobel laureates, feminist icons, and the Dalai Lama, seeking solutions to the world’s biggest challenge: preserving our planet.

 

We invited Diana Chapman Walsh to join us for a Conversation That Matters about a life of openness and endless possibilities.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 49o - Addressing the Infrastructure Deficit Guest - Mark Liedemann

Ep 49o - Addressing the Infrastructure Deficit

Guest - Mark Liedemann

 

By Stuart McNish

 

The backbone of any complex society is its infrastructure. It is the glue that binds communities, provinces and countries together. The concept of infrastructure was central to Rome’s dominance for 500 years. Cody Gregory writes, “One of the key  aspects of Roman society and development was its unprecedented utilization of roads, sewers and aqueducts.”

 

Here in British Columbia, it was the railway that brought us into Confederation and it was the development of hydroelectric power that catapulted the province forward economically. Mark Liedemann, the President and CEO of Infrastructure BC says, “We’re building on those legacy projects to ensure the province has the essential structures needed to thrive.”

 

In her letter to the Board of Infrastructure BC, Finance Minister Katrine Conroy says, “Government and public sector organizations must continue to advance results that people can see and feel in these key areas – strengthened health care, safer communities, attainable and secure housing, and a clean and fair economy that delivers affordability and prosperity.”

 

We invited Mark Liedemann to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the never ending work of planning and building the infrastructure the province requires.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 489 - The Path to Urban Net Zero Guest - Jeanette Jackson

Ep 489 - The Path to Urban Net Zero

Guest - Jeanette Jackson

 

In June of 2021, Canada – along with the other G7 countries – committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. It is an audacious goal, one that affords Canada with an opportunity to play a leadership role and become the first of the G7 to reach net-zero emissions.

 

It’s a long way from where we are at the moment. Currently, says Jeanette Jackson of Foresight, “we’re in last place, which accelerates our need to step up the pace and position Canada as a force of nature on the path to net zero.” Over the past decade, Foresight has worked relentlessly toward making net-zero a reality.

 

Foresight has a 10-point approach to accelerate research and development in clean tech, build regional clusters and host events. Jackson says, “We’re creating the ecosystem that fosters investment in world leading companies that are serving a social purpose, that being achieving net zero by virtue of the products and services they produce and provide.” 

 

On February 6, Foresight is hosting “CityAge Vancouver: The Urban Zero Challenge.” We invited Jeanette Jackson to join us for Conversation That Matters about the opportunities and challenges ahead for us on our path to greenhouse gas reduction.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

Ep 488 - A Ministry of Entrepreneurialism Guest: Naseem Javed

Ep 488 - A Ministry of Entrepreneurialism

Guest: Naseem Javed

 

“The world, and in particular Canada, needs to embrace entrepreneurialism as a new frontier to resuscitate our gasping economy,” says Naseen Javed, the CEO and founder of Expothon. “We need a new Ministry of Entrepreneurialism that can ignite an economic revolution.”

 

Javed says, “This new Ministry will only work if it is managed by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. Bureaucrats, academics, and economists live in a world where their theories don’t survive contact with the real world. When you put them in charge of entrepreneurship, they pour sand in the gears of innovation, business agility, and the magic small and medium business create in solving the world’s challenges.”

 

The potential is enormous. Canada has an opportunity to embrace this concept, says Javed. “We are a knowledge-based country. If we seize the moment and create a legislative and tax environment that fosters rather than hinders entrepreneurs, we can turn around Canada’s sagging per capita GDP and boost the economy.”

 

We invited Naseem Javed to join us for a Conversation That Matters about unleashing the power of entrepreneurship in an effort to turn around Canada’s sinking economy.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

 

Join us Feb 6  for Conversations Live - Lethal Exports

Ep 487 - The Greatest Gift of All Guest: Paul Sitnam

Ep 487 - The Greatest Gift of All

Guest: Paul Sitnam

 

By Stuart McNish

 

“Impact investing is an investment strategy that aims to generate specific beneficial social or environmental effects in addition to financial gains,” according to Investopedia. It is upheld as a societal good, but it does not include devoting your life to helping others. 

“The greatest gift of giving possible is your life’s work,” says Paul Sitnam. He is a living example having done just that for the past 40 years. Sitnam dedicated his life to international humanitarian work in Africa, the South Pacific and the Middle East. His service to others, he says, has “allowed me to work with people in need of a hand up, rather than a handout. I worked with people to help them recover from disasters that shook their confidence.”

Sitnam says, “I quickly dispelled myself of the notion that I was going to save the world.  I just tried to do the best I could with the situation I found myself in and the resources available.” He goes on to speak to the power of empathy over sympathy. “Humanitarian work,” he says, “must facilitate victims of a disaster in a manner that allows them to regain their dignity. They need to be treated as much as possible as partners rather than as vulnerable people or  beneficiaries. No one likes to be thought of – and treated – as a beggar.”

We invited Paul Sitnam to join us for a Conversation That Matters about making a difference by being where assistance is needed.

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

 

Join us Feb 6  for Conversations Live - Lethal Exports

Ep 486 - Can First Nations Save Canada’s Economy? Guest: Chris Sankey

Ep 486 - Can First Nations Save Canada’s Economy?

Guest: Chris Sankey

 

By Stuart McNish

 

“Canada’s per capita growth has been negative three out of the last four quarters,” says Perrin Beatty, the President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. He adds, “Canada needs to do more to attract investment” – a sentiment that was recently shared by a panel of experts for “Conversations Live” about economic reconciliation. Haisla Chief Counselor Crystal Smith said, “First Nations hold the key to the country’s economic future.”

 

It is a belief held by Indigenous businessman Chris Sankey, who says that “we can’t afford to obstruct BC’s energy sector any longer.” In an op-ed for the Vancouver Sun, Sankey said, “The chilling effect on the investment landscape of our region and of Canada in general has been terrible.”

 

Moving forward, Sankey is looking to LNG to generate jobs and economic growth. He says, “More than a billion dollars in indigenous procurement spending and benefits have already been negotiated with Coastal GasLink, Kitimat LNG and Woodfibre LNG. And should the Haisla make a final investment decision on Cedar LNG, the opportunities will continue to grow for everyone – not just First Nations. Everyone.”

 

We invited Chris Sankey to join us for a Conversation That Matters about economic reconciliation and how it can reverse Canada’s sinking attractiveness to investors.

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

 

Join us Feb 6  for Conversations Live - Lethal Exports

Ep 485 - The interconnectedness of all things Guest: Wade Davis

Ep 485 - The interconnectedness of all things

Guest: Wade Davis

By Stuart McNish

 

The Roman emperor Markus Aurelius posited in his book “Meditations” that “all things are implicated with one another and the bond is holy.” At the time of his writing, it was a philosophical concept. Today it has been proven by science – genomics in particular.

 

Wade Davis, the great Canadian thinker and anthropologist, in his talk at the Dr. Rix Distinguished Keynote address “The Wayfinders of Genomic Wisdom,” said that “studies of the human genome have left no doubt about the interconnectedness of all things.”

 

Davis went on to say, “Genomic science unveils the profound truth that we are all connected by the same genetic cloth.” He argues that “indigenous perspectives combined with genome insights can revolutionize conservation, restore ecological balance, mend cultural divisions and provide the antidote to heal an ailing world.”

 

We invited Wade Davis to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the interconnectedness of life.

 

You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/

 

Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca

 

Join us Jan 23 for Conversations Live - Infrastructure Deficit