This joint IRPP–Future Skills Centre research project looks outward to international experiences with net-zero transitions that could be applicable to Canada.
Across the world, a changing global economy is reshaping local job markets and raising key policy questions: How can workers, sectors and regions adapt? And how can workers build skills for long-term employment while staying in, or close to, their communities?
Economic, technological and demographic shifts affect each community differently. Some communities will feel the impacts sooner and more sharply — especially smaller, rural or remote areas with high employment in susceptible sectors and less diverse economies.
This joint IRPP–Future Skills Centre research project looks outward to international experiences with net-zero transitions that could be applicable to Canada. It reviews initiatives from Australia, Denmark, France, New Zealand, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States that use place‑based approaches to skills training and workforce development. These approaches help people gain future-ready skills and access quality jobs without leaving their communities.
Viewed together, these case studies can inform Canadian approaches to building workforce and community resilience in a rapidly shifting landscape. The cases highlight design choices and strategies that can be adapted to Canadian institutions and labour markets.
Global and Canadian efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and shift away from fossil fuels have created a central policy question: How can workers, sectors and regions adapt and develop the skills needed for a low-carbon future? Some communities will feel the impacts sooner and more severely, particularly smaller, rural or remote areas with high […]
by Shaimaa Yassin, Abigail Jackson, Noel Baldwin - December 8, 2025
by Shaimaa Yassin, Abigail Jackson, Noel Baldwin - December 8, 2025
Webinar
December 9, 2025
Director, Centre for Future Work
Visiting Scholar; Associate professor of political management, Carleton University
Policy analyst at Employment and Social Development Canada
PhD candidate in sociology at the University of British Columbia
PhD candidate in political science at the Université de Montréal
Senior Research Director
Shaimaa Yassin is a senior research director at the Institute for Research on Public Policy. She leads the Toward a More Equitable Canada research program, which has published studies on affordability, including housing and other basic needs that intersect with climate and energy policy, food insecurity and income supports for lower income Canadians, and proposed dental care and pharmacare programs. She leads the IRPP’s role as a research and knowledge mobilization partner of the Affordability Action Council and also serves as a member. She also supports the IRPP’s Community Transformation Project. Shaimaa manages the IRPP’s postdoctoral fellowship program in support of Indigenous, Black and other racialized scholars.
She is a policy-oriented economist with over 15 years of experience in translating challenging academic research into strategic advice for a broad audience. A labour economist by training, her work focuses on identifying ways that governments can help lower costs of living, improve access to basic needs, enhance economic participation, increase income, and address barriers people face in capturing opportunities—particularly where labour market dynamics and skills intersect with issues of equity.
Previously, Shaimaa served as senior director at the Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation (CEDEC) in Montreal. Shaimaa has consulted for several governments and organizations such as the World Bank, Chaire “Sécurisation des Parcours Professionnels” in France, and the Economic Research Forum in Egypt. She was a research fellow in the economics department of several academic institutions, namely McGill University (Swiss National Science Foundation Fellow), the University of Lausanne and the University of Neuchâtel. She has an extensive record of publications, including peer-reviewed journal articles, the Les Accidents de Carrière book (Presses de Sciences Po, 2017) and chapters in edited volumes on labour markets in the Middle East and North Africa (Oxford University Press, 2014 and 2015). Shaimaa holds a PhD in economics from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and a MSc in empirical and theoretical economics from the Paris School of Economics.
Recent Publications and Projects by Shaimaa:
Senior Research Associate
Abigail Jackson has worked on a number of IRPP initiatives, including the Toward a More Equitable Canada research program and the Supporting Workers and Communities through Low-Carbon Transformation project. Abigail served on the secretariat of the Affordability Action Council and contributed to the research and writing of five policy briefs related to housing, transportation and food in the context of climate and affordability challenges. In 2023, she received the Jack Layton Prize for a Better Canada. Previously, Abigail worked at Habitat for Humanity, administering programs related to energy efficiency, affordable housing and community development. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in business and international political economy from the University of Puget Sound and a Master of Public Policy from McGill University.
Director, Centre for Future Work
Jim Stanford is economist and director of the Centre for Future Work, where he divides his time between Vancouver and Sydney, Australia. Jim is one of Canada’s best-known economists, serving for more than 20 years as economist and director of policy with Unifor, Canada’s largest private-sector trade union. He is also the Harold Innis Industry Professor in Economics at McMaster University and an honorary professor in the Department of Political Economy at the University of Sydney. Jim received his PhD in economics from the New School for Social Research in New York. He also holds an MPhil in economics from Cambridge University, and a BA (Honours) in economics from the University of Calgary. Jim is the author of Economics for Everyone: A Short Guide to the Economics of Capitalism, which has been published in six languages. He has written, edited and co-edited six other books and dozens of articles and reports in peer-reviewed and popular outlets.
Visiting Scholar; Associate professor of political management, Carleton University
Jennifer Robson is an associate professor of political management at Carleton University, where she teaches courses on public policy and research methods. She holds a PhD in public policy and degrees in political science and psychology. Her research addresses social and tax policy, poverty in Canada and public administration. Prior to joining Carleton, she held several policy and research roles in the nonprofit and public sectors. She was director of policy for the nonprofit SEDI (now Prosper Canada) and worked in the federal public service. Jennifer has also served as a member of the Advisory Panel on Tax Expenditures to the Minister of Finance and was a member of the National Research Committee on Financial Literacy for the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada.
Policy analyst at Employment and Social Development Canada
Julia Bruno is a policy analyst at Employment and Social Development Canada, where she develops program policy to strengthen Canada’s social innovation and social finance ecosystem. She is a recent graduate from the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University. During this time, she completed a policy research project focused on increasing youth civic engagement and understanding its connection to trust in democratic institutions. Julia holds an undergraduate degree from Carleton University in philosophy and political science.
PhD candidate in sociology at the University of British Columbia
Jiaxin Gu is a PhD candidate in sociology at the University of British Columbia. She was a research intern at the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP) from February to July 2025, where she contributed to the IRPP-Future Skills Centre project. Her research explores themes of immigration, labour market integration, social epidemiology and adolescent substance use in North America. She holds a BA (Honours) and an MA in sociology from the University of British Columbia.
PhD candidate in political science at the Université de Montréal
Valentin Pautonnier is a PhD candidate in political science at the Université de Montréal and a fellow at McGill University’s Consortium on Analytics for Data-Driven Decision-Making. He was a research intern at the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP) from February to July 2025, where he contributed to the IRPP-Future Skills Centre project. His research focuses on electoral geography, rural-urban political divides and the impact of economic conditions on voting behaviour. He holds a BA in economics from Sciences Po Grenoble. He also holds master’s degrees from Sciences Po Grenoble and Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, where he specialized in survey methods and political behaviour.
Hannah Male recently completed a Master of Public Policy at McGill University, where her research focused on strengthening Canada’s defence industrial base, advancing net-zero transition frameworks and supporting the UN Agenda on the Protection of Civilians. Originally from Vancouver, she holds a bachelor of arts in political science from Simon Fraser University. Hannah has held positions across several Government of Canada departments. She most recently served as a Senior International Development Officer with Global Affairs Canada’s Haiti Bilateral Program, advancing security, stability, democracy and sustainable development.
