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Working toward a socially and economically just British Columbia
Established in 1997, the CCPA’s BC Office investigates key challenges facing our province through independent research, analysis and expertise. We propose real, workable solutions, and share our findings as widely as possible to advance social, economic and environmental justice – and to challenge the message that there is no alternative.
Our publications are available to all at no cost. Please support the CCPA and help make important research and ideas available to everyone. Make a donation today.
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Tailings dam spills at Mount Polley and Mariana
Chronicles of disasters foretold Download 7.07 MB64 pages This paper explores the many parallels between the tailings dam spills at the Mount Polley mine in…
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Image: What do the two largest mining disasters in Canada’s and Brazil’s histories have in common?
The Mount Polley disaster took place in August 2014, when the dam holding toxic waste from the copper and gold mine collapsed, creating the largest…
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Three ways BC can make it easier for precarious workers to unionize
The BC Labour Relations Code is being reviewed for the first time in over 15 years. Since the last comprehensive review, which took place in…
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mohamed_hassan / Pixabay” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_case-electoral-reform.jpg 900w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_case-electoral-reform-300×133.jpg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_case-electoral-reform-768×341.jpg 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px” />The case for electoral reform
Debunking the claims of proportional representation naysayers This is the fourth post in a series explaining the benefits of proportional representation and debunking myths from…
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Bailey the golden retriever doesn't know what she's doing either.” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_Aug2018_math-hard-fraserinst.jpg 900w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_Aug2018_math-hard-fraserinst-300×133.jpg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_Aug2018_math-hard-fraserinst-768×341.jpg 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px” />
Math is hard: The Fraser Institute’s “Consumer Tax Index” is a mess
As surely as the seasons pass, each year the Fraser Institute reissues its paint-by-numbers “Consumer Tax Index.” As usual, the latest release tries to create…
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How BC is short-changing schools and how we can fix it
Students using 30-year-old textbooks, teachers buying basic supplies, schools permanently on edge of closing—this is the all too common face of public education in British…
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Brendan DeBrincat / Flickr” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_CommunityBenefit.jpg 900w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_CommunityBenefit-300×133.jpg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_CommunityBenefit-768×341.jpg 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px” />
Community Benefits Agreements add value to public infrastructure projects
The BC government recently announced that major new public infrastructure projects, such as the Pattullo Bridge, will be subject to a “Community Benefits Agreement.” The…
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The Petro State Lackey: How BC’s zest for natural gas fuels Alberta’s oil sands
In the past year, an energy dispute for the ages has played out in Canada, culminating in the federal government announcing that it will buy…
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Takver / Flickr” style=”border-radius:0px;–objectFit:cover;–imagePosX:50%;–imagePosY:50%” decoding=”async” srcset=”https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_ProblemWithBCs.jpeg 900w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_ProblemWithBCs-300×133.jpeg 300w, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pn_aug2018_ProblemWithBCs-768×341.jpeg 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px” />
The problem with BC’s “clean growth” climate rhetoric
The BC government recently released three “intentions papers” on climate policy—transportation, buildings and industry—all wrapped in the term “clean growth.” In fact, the term “clean”…
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Submission to BC government and Climate Solutions and Clean Growth Advisory Council
Download 320.15 KB11 pages In its first year in power, the new BC government has increased the BC carbon tax and improved the carbon credit,…
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How electoral reform enhances local representation
Debunking the claims of proportional representation naysayers This is the third post in a series explaining the benefits of proportional representation and debunking myths from…
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Electoral reform will not enable the far right: Debunking a red herring
Debunking the claims of proportional representation naysayers This is the second post of a series explaining the benefits of proportional representation and debunking myths from…
mohamed_hassan
Bailey the golden retriever
Brendan DeBrincat
Takver
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