"The Adaptable Country" Book Launch

Join MISC and McGill-Queen’s University Press for the launch of Alasdair Roberts' new book, The Adaptable Country: How Canada Can Survive the Twenty-First Century, on Monday, November 4th, 2024, 4 p.m. at the Faculty Club, 3450 McTavish St.

Abstract:

Shifting geopolitics, regional conflicts, climate change, and technology shocks: these are just some of the factors that will make the twenty-first century dangerous for Canada. Adaptability, the capacity to anticipate and manage dangers, is essential for the country to survive and thrive. But Canada is not as adaptable as it once was.

In The Adaptable Country Alasdair Roberts explains what this vital ability means and why we are currently falling short. Politicians, he argues, are overloaded and fixated on the next election. Governments no longer launch big projects to think about the future. Leaders have stopped meeting regularly to discuss national priorities. Technological changes have undermined journalism and the ability of citizens to talk civilly about public affairs. The public service has become less agile because of a decades-long buildup of controls and watchdogs. While in many ways Canada is a better country than it was a generation ago, it is also more complex and harder to govern.

The Adaptable Country outlines straightforward reforms to improve adaptability and reminds us about the bigger picture: in a turbulent world, authoritarian rule is a tempting path to security. Canada’s challenge is to show how political systems built to respect diversity and human rights can also respond nimbly to existential threats.

The talk will be followed by a Q&A and reception. McGill-Queens University Press will be selling copies of the book during the event.

To learn more about the book, visit the . For more information about MISC and our events, please visit the .

Alasdair Roberts is a professor of public policy at University of Massachusetts Amherst. He writes extensively on problems of governance and public policy. He received his BA from Queen's University, his JD from the University of Toronto, and his MPP and PhD from Harvard University. He has also held faculty appointments at Queen's University, Syracuse University, Suffolk University Law School, and the University of Missouri. In 2007, he became the first non-US citizen to be elected as a Fellow of the US National Academy of Public Administration. In 2022, he received the ASPA Riggs Award for Lifetime Achievement in International and Comparative Public Administration. In 2022-23, he was the Jocelyne Bourgon Visiting Scholar at the Canada School of Public Service. Learn more or contact Alasdair through his website.

Host or Publisher McGill Institute for the Study of Canada