Seth Klein is a CCPA-BC research associate and the former CCPA-BC Director. His research deals primarily with welfare policy, poverty, inequality and economic security. A social activist for over 30 years and a former teacher, Seth holds a BA in international relations, a BEd from the University of Toronto and an MA in political science from Simon Fraser University.
Seth is an adjunct professor with Simon Fraser University’s Urban Studies program and the former BC director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. His book A Good War: Mobilizing Canada for the Climate Emergency is now available.
Seth is also a past co-chair of the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition, an advisory board member for the Columbia Institute’s Centre for Civic Governance, and an advisor and instructor for Next Up, a leadership program for young people committed to social and environmental justice. Follow Seth on Twitter
Today, after many months of delay (on a Friday afternoon in summer), the BC government finally released an updated “Climate Leadership Plan.” Except it isn’t one. It’s not a plan, it’s not leadership, and it doesn’t get us nearly where we need to go on climate action. I see no notable shift from what I wrote… View Article
Presentation to the federal Ministerial Panel holding consultations on the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Proposal Presented in Burnaby, August 10, 2016 Thank you for this opportunity. My name is Seth Klein, and I am the BC Director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Our office has spent the last eight years hosting the… View Article
At both the Paris climate negotiations last November and the recent federal-provincial climate meetings, Premier Christy Clark was keen to position British Columbia as a climate leader. There may indeed have been a short window during the 2008-2010 period when BC could legitimately (albeit arguably) make such a claim; when the province introduced the carbon… View Article
I was very pleased to see that MP Don Davies introduced a private member’s bill this past week calling for the voting age to be lowered to age 16. I know private member’s bills usually never make it, but this one is well worth other MPs’ backing. I’ve long been of the view that youth… View Article
New federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau has invited Canadians to submit their ideas and priorities for the next Federal Budget. People are welcome to share their suggestions via email, a survey and social media on a site the government has created here. The finance minister says, “I am embarking on an intensive cross-Canada conversation with… View Article
Since the signing of the new climate treaty in Paris earlier this month, there’s been plenty of debate as to whether the new global agreement is a turning point or merely more hollow promises. The answer, as the CCPA’s Marc Lee has written, will be revealed in how governments and markets react. In particular, the… View Article
“So far as it is possible, Canada’s effort in this war must be a planned and concerted national effort… In order to have the tremendous quantities of supplies available at the right time, and in the right place, it is imperative that the economic life of Canada be reorganized, but not disorganized. The economic forces… View Article
Monday’s election results brought a palpable sense of relief to Canadians who had tired of the divisive and nasty politics of the Harper Conservatives, and they point to important lessons for progressives (which we outlined in this previous post). But a majority government is certainly a lost opportunity. A minority outcome would have been far… View Article
By Seth Klein and Shannon Daub It’s only been a few days since Canadians turfed the Harper Conservatives from office. But it feels like a month’s worth of catharsis, in the form of profound relief that after almost ten years of policies harmful to the environment, public services, social cohesion and democracy, the mean man… View Article
Only “Radical” Next to Parties’ Modest Climate Plans The Leap Manifesto: A Call for Canada Based on Caring for the Earth and One Another was launched by a group of prominent Canadians on September 15. So far, over 25,000 Canadians have added their names to the declaration. In the face of the ho-hum party platforms… View Article
