StatCan’s Consumer Price Index tells us a lot about the economy… if you know what to look for.  Guy Gellatly, Chief Economic Advisor at StatCan, joins us at the mic to break down the CPI and answer our questions about the economy. What’s the ideal inflation rate? Is no inflation the best kind of inflation? And what is a deflationary spiral?  

Canada is facing both a climate crisis and a housing crisis, and they are interconnected. Choices we make about our homes impact the environment: their location and how much we need to use a car to get around, the heat source that they use, the materials used in their construction. At the same time, the climate impacts our homes: when severe weather strikes and causes damage to our homes, we have no choice but to rebuild, and even if we escape unscathed, we still have to decide how much to change our lifestyles to adapt to a changing climate. Andrew DeFazio, Climate Change Advisor at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) joins us to explore how we can climate-proof our housing strategy and home-proof our climate strategy.  

It used to be that Statistics Canada didn’t measure poverty. Not exactly. Poverty is complex, and there wasn't a single definition that everyone agreed on. So while StatCan did measure low income and other income inequality indicators, it didn't measure poverty per se. That is, until 2018, when the government chose to use the Market Basket Measure, or MBM, as Canada's Official Poverty Line. That means that the government now uses the MBM to track its poverty reduction targets.   But something strange happened during the pandemic: in 2020 the poverty rate fell. And it fell quite a bit. In fact, the poverty rate dropped in one year almost as much as it had in the four preceding years. But why? What happened? Will the poverty rate continue to fall? And what happens if it hits zero? How would health outcomes change? Education outcomes? People's general happiness and well-being?  Has there ever been a time and place in Canada where the poverty rate was zero? The closest may be the Mincome Experiment of the 1970s in Manitoba.   Many Canadians have never heard of this guaranteed income experiment, but it offers a glimpse at what eliminating poverty might look like.  To learn more, we spoke with Burton Gustajtis an economist from Statistics Canada, Evelyn Forget, a Professor of Economics and Community Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba and Kevin Milligan, a Professor of Economics in the Vancouver School of Economics at the University of British Columbia.

If this is the first time you’re hearing about Sylvia Ostry, buckle up. Sylvia was appointed Canada’s first and only female Chief Statistician in 1972, but she didn’t get there by playing by the rules. She was ambitious but grew up in a world where many thought that it was shameful to be female and have a career.  Sylvia was a Jewish woman in economics, and even after she earned a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, she was denied a job with the United Nations because of her gender. Nevertheless, she had a storied career, becoming the Chairman of the Economic Council of Canada then the Chief Economist  at the OECD. But we're not focusing on her career highlights. We're going behind the scenes to look at how she challenged herself to succeed, becoming both a respected economist and mother, and how she handled setbacks, and discrimination, all while staying true to herself and demonstrating the integrity for which she's remembered today.We’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sylvia Ostry’s appointment as Chief Statistician. In this episode of Eh Sayers, featuring interviews with her sons, Adam Ostry and Jonathan Ostry, we are pleased to introduce you to this remarkable woman and to share with you eight pieces of advice inspired by her life. 

As the effects of the pandemic continue into its second year, we have all had to make adjustments with the way we go about our daily lives.  We have seen plenty of service disruptions, closures of services and delays due to semiconductor scarcities, inclement weather or shifts in supply and demand. But what is the real cause of these disruptions and what is the supply chain that everyone is talking about it? Our guest, Andrew Barclay, an economist at Statistics Canada discusses the supply chain, what it is and why it’s important to Canadians. He also discusses the ripple effect it has on our consumer goods and services.