Browse Our Research 

In this 2022 talk, IMFG Graduate Fellow Shervin Ghaem-Maghami examined how selected municipalities in the GTA are engaging immigrants in planning decisions, and how such public participation activities can be improved to most meaningfully draw upon the strengths and adapt to the needs of newcomer communities.
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The four papers in this report identify the ideal role of municipalities in housing policy, where municipalities currently face constraints, how other orders of government can support municipalities, and where intergovernmental cooperation is needed.
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As part of Ontario 360’s Transition Briefings, IMFG Manager of Programs and Research Tomas Hachard and IMFG Director Enid Slack write about how an incoming provincial government can tailor municipal governance and provincial-municipal relations to address major policy challenges that require significant intergovernmental cooperation.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on global cities in particular. Many of the assets of global cities – connectivity, proximity, agglomeration – almost overnight proved also to be vulnerabilities. As cities emerge from the pandemic into the economic recovery phase, their underlying strengths are re-emerging. But cities will need to adapt and adjust to address some of the changes that have resulted from the pandemic, particularly regarding urban inequalities. In this presentation, Professor Mark Kleinman of King’s College London discussed these issues with a particular focus on London UK, but drawing also on comparative evidence.
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In this talk, Professor Mark Kleinman of King’s College London discusses how cities have been changed by the pandemic, and how they will need to adapt, with a particular focus on London, UK.
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On March 1, 2022. a panel of academics and practitioners examined the growing threat of cyberattack to local governments in Canada and other parts of the world. How do municipalities need to adjust process and existing practices? What is the risk? What are the costs of action/inaction? Where do municipalities start to ensure they are protected?
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On February 16, 2022, a panel of academics and practitioners examined the growing smart city industry and the advancement of data-intensive public infrastructure in Canada. The panel featured Merlin Chatwin, Executive Director of Open North, Cyrus Tehrani, City of Hamilton's Chief Digital Officer, Natasha Tusikov, Assistant Professor at York University, and moderator Zachary Spicer of York University.
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On February 1, 2022, a panel of academics and practitioners looked at the future of the relationship between municipalities and the platform economy. Looking at examples from across the country the panel examined questions including: What trends around the platform economy are lasting, which are short term? What new regulation is needed? Are new taxation models or user fee frameworks needed? The panel included Betsy Donald of Queen's University, Jason Reynar, Chief Administrative Officer for the City of Windsor, David Wachsmuth of McGill University and moderator Zachary Spicer of York University.
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