TORONTO, Monday March 18, 2019 – Skills training, pharmacare, and housing affordability are all expected to play a large role in tomorrow’s federal budget. York University experts are available to answer questions about how the 2019 budget will impact the economy, address issues surrounding housing affordability, poverty and the labour market.
Giuseppina D’Agostino is a professor at Osgoode Hall Law School who co-chairs York University’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Society Task Force. D’Agostino is the founder and director of IP Osgoode. She can comment on the importance of skills training with the evolving nature of the labour market due to the effects of AI, the importance of startups and scaleups in the Canadian economy, regulatory hurdles confronting big data collection, and intellectual Property (IP) and commercialization.
Mary E. Wiktorowicz is a professor in the Faculty of Health in Health Policy and Management and director and special advisor to the dean for Global Health, Community Partnerships and Strategic Projects. Wiktorowicz can speak about a national pharmacare program, healthcare equity for low-income segments of the population, and negotiating the price of pharmaceuticals.
Thomas Klassen is a professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies in the School of Public Policy and Administration. Klassen’s research focuses on Canadian labour market policy and income security (including pensions and employment insurance). He can comment on affordable housing and mortgage policies, job training, labour market shortages in the skilled trades, and retirement and pensions in Canada.
Mark Winfield is a professor in the Faculty of Environmental Studies and co-chair of the Sustainable Energy Initiative. Winfield can comment on climate change policy, carbon pricing, low-carbon transition and clean technology subsidies, as well as environmental policy.
Dr. James Orbinski, is a professor and the director of the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research. Orbinski is a medical doctor and advocate for global health. He is the former international president of Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders. He can comment on the health benefits of a national pharmacare program and how poverty reduction can help improve health outcomes.
NOTE: York University’s media studio is available for double-ended broadcast interviews.
York University champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, York is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni.
York U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.
Media contact: Yanni Dagonas, York University Media Relations
647-468-7850 | yannidag@yorku.ca
