Wonk
WONK is a show about big ideas in unprecedented times. Hosted by Amanda Lang, we unpack some of the most pressing issues and challenges facing Canada, and talk to some leading thinkers and policymakers about how to tackle them. New episodes drop on Thursdays.
This feed also hosts the archive for Public Policy Forum's podcast, Policy Speaking.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 40 minutes
- Episodes
- 149
- Years Active
- 2020 - 2025
Howard Marks: How to make sense of today’s reality-defying markets
One thing most people assume about stock markets is that they're an accurate reflection of what's happening in the economy. Yet nothing about markets or politics feels typical right now. Despite glob…
00:30:37 |
Fri 05 Sep 2025
Encore: Jean Chrétien on the ongoing fight for national unity
Jean Chretien, Canada’s oldest living prime minister, isn't taking Western separatism lying down. Having seen Canada through the threat of Quebec separation, his Clarity Act of 2000 could find new cu…
00:28:46 |
Thu 28 Aug 2025
Encore: Sally Armstrong on the ongoing fight for women's rights
In her incredible career as a journalist and author, Sally Armstrong told stories no one else would about the atrocities of war and became a towering figure for women's rights. She speaks with host A…
00:27:18 |
Thu 21 Aug 2025
Encore: Measles returns. How did it come to this?
Once eradicated in Canada, measles is making a comeback in Canada. Is it part of a bigger, post-pandemic trend we're seeing of vaccinations declining? What will it take to get public health back on t…
00:36:08 |
Thu 14 Aug 2025
Andrew Coyne: Is Canada’s democracy falling apart?
Canadians are feeling patriotic these days and acutely aware of what we think makes Canada great. But like a lot of good things, our successes should not be taken for granted. In fact, it's been sugg…
00:41:26 |
Thu 07 Aug 2025
How Canadian housing got so unaffordable
The housing market dominates conversation for many Canadians, especially when it comes to the lack of affordable homes. Absent a trade war, it is the subject that ranks most important to many of us. …
00:34:48 |
Thu 31 Jul 2025
Why Canada can’t break free from America
The risks the world faces today feel not just numerous, but in some cases existential. Ian Bremmer is one of the top political scientists and risk experts in the United States. He’s the head of Euras…
00:29:55 |
Thu 24 Jul 2025
How to build Arctic sovereignty — and Canada’s economy
The One Canadian Economy Act is supposed to streamline new projects in Canada, including big resource projects. Can the government pursue these nation-building efforts while also answering other aims…
00:39:36 |
Thu 17 Jul 2025
Inside the fight of Google’s life
AI is both a massive opportunity and a big threat. And that is especially true for Google, a tech innovator whose bread and butter business (search) faces an uncertain future in the age of artificial…
00:35:29 |
Thu 10 Jul 2025
Encore Episode: Tim Snyder on America’s descent toward ‘modern tyranny’
Tim Snyder is one of America’s most important scholars. While his work has focused on Eastern Europe, Russia and on the Holocaust, more recently he's written hugely popular books about the nature of …
00:39:23 |
Thu 03 Jul 2025
Why we’re not ready for the new AI
Within five years, ‘agentic AI’ could make 40 percent of today’s skills irrelevant. Valérie Pisano is the president and CEO of MILA — Quebec AI Institute, founded by one of the godfathers of AI, Josh…
00:40:05 |
Thu 26 Jun 2025
Can Canada build big things?
Canada needs to get moving on some big nation-building projects that will boost our economy and enhance our sovereignty. It’s a key part of the government’s ‘one Canadian economy’ legislation now bei…
00:37:51 |
Thu 19 Jun 2025
Jean Chrétien on the ongoing fight for national unity
Jean Chrétien, Canada’s oldest living prime minister, isn't taking Western separatism lying down. Having seen Canada through the threat of Quebec separation, his Clarity Act of 2000 could find new cu…
00:30:14 |
Thu 12 Jun 2025
Trevor Tombe on how to make ‘one Canadian economy’
One of the biggest challenges facing the Canadian economy is improving what we already do: Better efficiency, more open trade. It's what Ottawa is calling ‘one Canadian economy.’ Trevor Tombe is one …
00:36:38 |
Fri 06 Jun 2025
Dominic LeBlanc on getting to 'zero' tariffs
Job number one of Canada's new Liberal government is salvaging our trade relationship with the United States. Next is the job of uniting the country — doing away with internal trade barriers and gett…
00:35:41 |
Thu 29 May 2025
How Canada’s biggest energy storage project got built
One of the biggest clean energy storage facilities in the world — the Oneida Energy Storage Project in Ontario — connected to the grid this month. It's a big clean energy win, but it's also a model f…
00:29:57 |
Thu 22 May 2025
Measles has returned. How did we get here?
Once eradicated in Canada, measles is making a comeback in Canada. Is it part of a bigger, post-pandemic trend we're seeing of vaccinations declining? What will it take to get public health back on t…
00:37:48 |
Thu 15 May 2025
Paul Wells: Is Canadian politics actually getting nicer?
Paul Wells is the de facto dean of political journalism in Canada — a longtime observer and interpreter of what happens in Ottawa. He talks to host Amanda Lang about some surprising shifts in the wak…
00:34:14 |
Thu 08 May 2025
Sally Armstrong on the ongoing fight for women's rights
In her incredible career as a journalist and author, Sally Armstrong told stories no one else would about the atrocities of war and became a towering figure for women's rights. She speaks with host A…
00:28:50 |
Thu 01 May 2025
America’s descent toward ‘modern tyranny’
Tim Snyder is one of America’s most important scholars. While his work has focused on Eastern Europe, Russia and on the Holocaust, more recently he's written hugely popular books about the nature of …
00:39:23 |
Thu 24 Apr 2025
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