Insights with Don Mills and David Campbell- An Acadia Broadcasting Podcast

Lisa Lalande Helps Us Imagine Canada With A Population Of 100 Million

The Century Initiative is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that is advocating an audacious long-term population strategy for Canada to achieve a goal of 100 million Canadians by the end of this century. In conversation with co-host Don Mill, CEO Lisa Lalande outlines the reasoning behind this ambitious goal and what it would mean for Atlantic Canada.

The Atlantic Investment Bubble

On this week’s podcast, entrepreneur Blair Hyslop, Kathryn Lockhart, CEO of Propel and Jeff Larsen, head of the Creative Destruction Lab in Atlantic Canada, discuss a new proposal for a new regional equity tax credit to help grow investments in the region's companies. Under the proposal, qualified businesses could receive angel investment from across Atlantic Canada and the investors would receive a tax credit no matter where the company is located within the four provinces.  The ...

Francis McGuire Taking ACOA In A New Direction

Francis McGuire has a very interesting background, having been both a Deputy Minister during the Frank McKenna era and the CEO that built Moncton-based Major Drilling into the second biggest company in its sector in the world. In this edition of the Huddle "Insights" podcast, McGuire talks with co-hosts David Campbell and Don Mills about the strategies he used to grow Major Drilling and the current ones he is employing to take Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) in a new di...

Gerry Pond: Code Father

This week's Huddle "Insights" podcast features a conversation with arguably the most influential IT leader in Atlantic Canada: Gerry Pond. Pond chats with co-host David Campbell about his career starting out in the mid-1960s at NBTel dealing with "party line" complaints in rural New Brunswick rising to CEO of Aliant and then nearly two decades of founding and investing in IT startups across Atlantic Canada, including Radian6 and Q1 Labs. He weighs in on everything from the pipelin...

Steve Murphy On The Most Significant Atlantic Canadian Premiers Of The Last 40 Years

In part two of their conversation with longtime CTV Atlantic broadcaster Steve Murphy, Don and David chat with Steve about his favourite interview in 45 years of broadcasting. Steve also shares his thoughts on the most significant Atlantic Canadian premiers in the last four decades.

CTV's Steve Murphy On 45 Years Of Covering Atlantic Canadian News And Business

In the first of a two-part interview, longtime CTV broadcaster Steve Murphy relinquishes his role as an interviewer and becomes the interviewee, as co-hosts Don Mills and David Campbell quiz him about his 45-year career, including the most significant events he has covered, his assessment of the most consequential premiers, most interesting interviews and how Atlantic Canada has changed over his the course of four decades in the business.

BioVectra Is An Emerging Force In Pharmaceutical Manufacturing In Canada

BioVectra plans to build a facility on Prince Edward Island that will eventually manufacture enough doses of mRNA vaccines to supply all of Canada, which is big news for Canadians as well as Atlantic Canadians. The recent announcement shines a light on a 50-year old company that employs more than 550 people in P.E.I. and Nova Scotia. "There are 35 million-plus Canadians. We could probably within a year single-handedly make sure the demand for Canada has been taken care of if we wer...

BioVectra Is An Emerging Force in Pharmaceutical Manufacturing In Canada

BioVectra plans to build a facility on Prince Edward Island that will eventually manufacture enough doses of mRNA vaccines to supply all of Canada, which is big news for Canadians as well as Atlantic Canadians. The recent announcement shines a light on a 50-year old company that employs more than 550 people in P.E.I. and Nova Scotia. "There are 35 million-plus Canadians. We could probably within a year single-handedly make sure the demand for Canada has been taken care of if we wer...

New Saint John Economic Development Agency Has Aggressive Plans

Envision, the new economic development agency for the Great Saint John Region, has just released its five strategic plan that calls for growing the population by 25,000 and the regional economy by 30-35 percent over the next 10 years.  On this week's podcast, Don Mills talks with Envision CEO Paulette Hicks about the organization's aggressive growth plans and the development of a new brand for the region that will be introduced early in 2022. 

Donald Savoie On John Bragg - Blueberry Baron And 'Pac-Man' Of The Maritime Cable Industry

John Bragg got his entrepreneurial start as a teenager in the blueberry business. He quit law school because he decided he was meant to be a businessman, not a lawyer, and started off down a path that led to the creation of Oxford Frozen Foods and the telecommunications company Eastlink, both headquartered in Nova Scotia. Bragg is one of the Maritimes business titans that have inspired books by Donald Savoie, who joins David Campbell and Don Mills on the "Insights" podcast this wee...

How James Mullinger Makes Us Laugh And Be Proud Atlantic Canadians Too

If you haven’t heard of James Mullinger, it’s time to get acquainted. An immigrant from the UK who recently became a Canadian citizen, he is now a central figure in Atlantic Canadian cultural and media circles.  James is a comedian, magazine editor, author, podcaster and, most of all, entrepreneur. He joins Don Mills and David Campbell to talk about his journey and how he became an accidental champion for Atlantic Canada.  

35 Episodes Of Insights From Atlantic Canada's Business Leaders

35 podcasts. That's roughly 35 hours of conversations with business and thoughts leaders about Atlantic Canada's economic success stories and the challenges and opportunities ahead for the region. On this episode of the "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell chat with Huddle editor Mark Leger about the people they've spoken to (a group that includes former Newfoundland finance minister Cathy Bennett, JDI co-CEO Jim Irving and Frank McKenna) and the issues they've discusse...

Major Drilling Executives Say More Local Companies Should Consider Going Public

There are relatively few publicly held companies based in Atlantic Canada. In recent years, the region’s high-flying technology companies have typically grown to a point and then sold to a national or international firm. The region is also known for its intergenerational family-owned businesses. Should more firms look at listing on the public stock markets such as the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX)? On the week's episode of the "Insights" podcast, Denis Larocque, President and CEO of...

Lee Bragg On The Challenges Of High-Speed Internet In Rural Atlantic Canada

This episode takes a close look at the challenges of fulfilling the promise of delivering high-speed internet to 100 percent of households in Atlantic Canada. News flash, it is not likely going to happen, at least using fibre lines to deliver the service. Our conversation with Lee Bragg of Halifax-based Eastlink provides a much clearer understanding of the challenges for companies that must remain competitive and governments that have promised affordable high-speed internet no matte...

How To Improve The $4.3-Billion Atlantic Canadian Public Education System

In the latest episode of the "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell discuss the quality of the education system in Atlantic Canada with Paul Bennett, one of Canada's leading experts on public education.

How To Keep Growing A $14-Billion Energy Industry In A Net Zero Economy

Addressing climate change is among the most important challenges facing the world today.  However, many questions remain about how it can be accomplished. How long will it take? Who will pay for the transition? What other energy sources will replace fossil fuels? What about nuclear, hydrogen and tidal energy? Neil Jacobsen from the Atlantica Centre for Energy is on the podcast this week to answer these questions.   He will also talk about the economic impact of the energy sector in...

Why Oil And Gas Is Still An Important Sector In A Net-Zero Economy

Charlene Johnson of the Newfoundland and Labrador Oil & Gas Industries Association (Noia) says don't give up on the oil and gas sector just yet. On the podcast this week, the Noia CEO explains why it's a critical part of global efforts to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and an important economic driver in Atlantic Canada going forward.

Melanie Nadeau On The Rise of the Blue Economy

The ocean sector in Canada is large and growing, currently representing $30-billion in GDP and employing more than 300,000 Canadians. This week, we look at this increasingly important sector of our economy, especially for Atlantic Canada, by looking at the work of COVE (the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship). In conversation with COVE CEO Melanie Nadeau, we discuss the services and facilities provided by COVE to test new technologies, their incubation work with startups...

Melanie Nadeau On The Rise Of The Blue Economy

The ocean sector in Canada is large and growing, currently representing $30-billion in GDP and employing more than 300,000 Canadians. This week, we look at this increasingly important sector of our economy, especially for Atlantic Canada, by looking at the work of COVE (the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship). In conversation with COVE CEO Melanie Nadeau, we discuss the services and facilities provided by COVE to test new technologies, their incubation work with startups...

Tyson Johnson On How N.B. Can Secure Its Share Of 3.5 Million Worldwide Cybersecurity Jobs

Rory Francis Talks About How Bioscience Will Become A Billion-Dollar Sector In P.E.I.

What started 15 years ago as an idea to build a new industry around a few key assets has grown into an impressive biosciences cluster with 60 firms, 2,200 employees, and more than $300 million worth of exports in 2020. The PEI BioAlliance has been at the centre of the cluster’s development and its CEO Rory Francis talks about its successes and future potential. He also provides insight into how the model might be replicated with other nascent cluster development efforts across Atlan...

Brian Lee Crowley On Economic Growth Potential And The 'Covid Misery Index'

Brian Lee Crowley has little patience for governments that try to spend their way to economic prosperity. He also has no time for the view that Atlantic Canada is less prosperous because it has been mistreated by central Canada since Confederation. Crowley is the managing director and founder of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. He's also the founder and former president of the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, now part of the Fraser Institute. He joins Don and David to talk ab...

David Dingwall on universities as engines of growth in Atlantic Canada

On this week's Huddle "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell chat with David Dingwall, President and Vice-Chancellor of Cape Breton University, about the role of post-secondary education institutions as engines of economic development across Atlantic Canada. They discuss the direct economic impact of this sector and its increasingly important role as conduits for immigration, incubators of new entrepreneurs and catalysts for research and development.

David Dingwall On Universities As Engines Of Growth In Atlantic Canada

On this week's Huddle "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell chat with David Dingwall, President and Vice-Chancellor of Cape Breton University, about the role of post-secondary education institutions as engines of economic development across Atlantic Canada. They discuss the direct economic impact of this sector and its increasingly important role as conduits for immigration, incubators of new entrepreneurs and catalysts for research and development.

Why many small Atlantic Canadian businesses are still struggling to survive

Louis-Philippe Gauthier, Senior Director, Legislative Affairs, Atlantic for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) joins hosts Don Mill and David Campbell on the Insights podcast to discuss the state of small business in Atlantic Canada and what they are looking for in the upcoming federal election.  Armed with the latest CFIB survey data, Gauthier weighs in on the need for continued government assistance for industries hit the hardest by Covid-19 and the challenges ...

Why Many Small Atlantic Canadian Businesses Are Still Struggling To survive

Louis-Philippe Gauthier, Senior Director, Legislative Affairs, Atlantic for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) joins hosts Don Mill and David Campbell on the Insights podcast to discuss the state of small business in Atlantic Canada and what they are looking for in the upcoming federal election.  Armed with the latest CFIB survey data, Gauthier weighs in on the need for continued government assistance for industries hit the hardest by Covid-19 and the challenges ...

Niels Veldhuis On Making Atlantic Canada The Country's Most Prosperous Region

Atlantic Canada is a "have not" region but Niels Veldhuis of the Fraser Institute says it doesn't have to be that way. The president of the public policy research institute - or "think tank" as organizations like this are commonly known - tells Don Mills that the Atlantic provinces could follow the example of small provinces like Saskatchewan and create better investment climates that could encourage investment and keep its young people from moving to faster-growing, more economical...

Is ‘Shocking’ N.S. Election Result A Warning Sign For The Liberals In Ottawa?

In this episode of the Insights Podcast, we have a lively panel discussion about the current federal election and the opportunities that it holds for economic development for Atlantic Canada. The stunning victory of the PCs in Nova Scotia raise some warning signs for the Liberal Government regarding the mood of Canadians at this stage of the pandemic. We discuss the outcome of the Nova Scotian election and its likely impacts on the province as well as look at the region's needs from...

Is ‘shocking’ N.S. election result a warning sign for the Liberals in Ottawa?

In this episode of the Insights Podcast, we have a lively panel discussion about the current federal election and the opportunities that it holds for economic development for Atlantic Canada. The stunning victory of the PCs in Nova Scotia raise some warning signs for the Liberal Government regarding the mood of Canadians at this stage of the pandemic. We discuss the outcome of the Nova Scotian election and its likely impacts on the province as well as look at the region's needs from...

David Chaundy On Atlantic Canada's Looming Challenges & Risks Post-Covid

David Chaundy, President and CEO of the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council joins us this week on the Insights podcast to talk about the challenges and opportunities for the regional economy coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic. Chaundy has convinced our ageing population and its impact on the workforce is a top risk to our economic prosperity in the years ahead. They also discuss recent reports published by APEC on a range of topics including demographics, migration, urban/rural dyn...

Do We Have A Culture Of Dependence In Atlantic Canada?

In the fall, Alberta will hold a referendum on Canada’s Equalization system. The Alberta government wants leverage to force the federal government to negotiate a new formula that could significantly reduce the amount provided to Atlantic Canada each year.     Do provincial governments in Atlantic Canada rely too much on tax revenues generated elsewhere in the country? Do we suffer from a culture of dependency? Huddle editor Mark Leger hosts a conversation with Don and David about th...

Why Frank McKenna Wishes He Were Governing Today

Frank McKenna, Deputy Chair of TD Bank, joins Don and David on Insights this week to discuss economic development today compared to 25-30 years ago when he was Premier of New Brunswick. He weighs in on the importance of attracting industry as well as supporting homegrown firms. McKenna doesn’t pull any punches when talking about natural resources development, immigration and provincial fiscal sustainability.  He also provides good ideas on how to engage with the public in the social...

Moncton's "Secret Sauce" For Success

On this week's episode of the Insights podcast, David Campbell chats with City of Moncton Mayor Dawn Arnold and City Manager Marc Landry. This is the third in their series of discussions with municipal leaders in Atlantic Canada about how we can build prosperous cities.   There is no doubt about the City of Moncton’s status as a successful city. It has been one of the fastest-growing larger cities in Canada over the past five years and the metropolitan region (including the City of...

Why Overlooked Charlottetown Is A Model Of Success For The Rest Of Atlantic Canada

Charlottetown is the fastest growing city in Atlantic Canada, having grown by nearly 10% since the last census. This growth has not been an accident and is based on good planning and strategy as well as close collaboration with the various public agencies involved in economic development including the Port Authority, the Greater Charlottetown Development Corporation and the Downtown Business Inc. Our conversation with former four-term Mayor Clifford Lee offers many insights for othe...

Mayor Mike Savage On Halifax's Economic Success Story

Cranes in the air and growth in the GDP and population. This week, Don and David begin a series of conversations with the leaders of successful Maritimes communities. First up, the mayor of the region's largest urban centre.

Podcast: Darrell Bricker On The 'Empty Planet' And What It Means For Atlantic Canada

The conventional wisdom around the global population, backed by the United Nations' own projections, is that it will continue to grow in the coming decades. Economies around the world are banking on that outcome, tying their growth plans to having more and more people generate new economic activity. Darrell Bricker, Global CEO of Public Affairs for Ipsos and co-author of ‘Empty Planet’, says the global population is actually going to shrink instead and policymakers around the world...

Brian Gallant On Immigration, Northern N.B. And True Reconciliation

In his first in-depth interview since leaving the premier's office in 2018, Brian Gallant chats with David Campbell about how to grow an economy that has been pretty flat for the past 15 years. They talk through strategies to grow the population, focus on development in the northern region that continues to fall behind the urban regions in the south, and achieve true reconciliation with Indigenous communities. Now the CEO of the Canadian Centre for the Purpose of the Corporation, G...

Scott Brison On How Nova Scotia Can Grow its Economy Outside of Halifax

Don Mills and David Campbell look at the economic challenges and opportunities in Nova Scotia in the third of a four-part series on provincial economies in Atlantic Canada. This episode features an in-depth interview with Scott Brison, the Chair of the Economic Growth Council, who provides his insights on how best to grow the economy within Nova Scotia. Scott provides some interesting examples of emerging opportunities in the province, some addressing a key challenge for Nova Scoti...

Life After Covid

With the recent release of the re-opening plans by each of the four Atlantic Provinces, David and Don, in conversation with Huddle editor Mark Leger, look at the opportunities to jump-start the economic recovery. In this podcast, the lack of a coordinated re-opening strategy for the whole of Atlantic Canada is specifically questioned. Don and David look at several impacts and potential strategies to advance the re-opening of the region without undue risk to the population and challe...

Province in Crisis: The Fiscal Challenges Facing Newfoundland and Labrador

The recently released Greene Report underscores the financial difficulties faced by Newfoundland and Labrador. A province with a debt load of $47-billion, an aging and declining population, and an over-reliance on the oil and gas industry. The province has a structural deficit as a result of spending during premier Danny Williams' time in government and has had 61 deficits in the 71 years since joining Confederation. The question is whether or not the province is ready to face its p...

Why P.E.I. is the economic star in Atlantic Canada

In this episode of the Huddle "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell start a four-part series on each of the provincial economies in the region. Prince Edward Island has led the way in both population growth and GDP growth in the region for the last decade and this episode explores the reasons for the Island's success. This week's featured interview is with Wade McLauchlan in his first in-depth interview since leaving the Premier's office in 2019.

These 3 Maritime Cities Are Getting It Right On Economic Development

In the third of a three-part series on economic development, David and Don are joined by Mark Leger for a round table discussion on the key elements associated with successful urban economic development drawing on the success of three Atlantic Canadian cities as role models for other urban communities in the region that are themselves economic hubs.

Malcolm Bricklin On EV Sports Cars, Elon Musk And Henry Kissinger

On a special edition of the podcast, David Campbell chats with Malcolm Bricklin, the entrepreneur behind the Bricklin SV-1 that was manufactured in New Brunswick in the 1970s. David and Malcolm talk about auto manufacturing in the province back then, the role of Premier Hatfield and what went wrong. Bricklin shares anecdotes about his interactions with Elon Musk, Henry Kissinger and Slobodan Milošević, among others.  In his 80s and showing no signs of slowing down, the CEO of Visio...

A Rare Interview With Atlantic Canada Business Legend John Bragg

In this episode of the Huddle "Insights" podcast, Don Mills and David Campbell have a look at the challenges of rural economic development and speak to one of the region's biggest proponents of rural development, John Bragg, CEO of the Bragg Group of Companies that includes Oxford Frozen Foods and Eastlink. With more than 600 employees in Oxford, Nova Scotia, and more than 6,000 across the entire group of companies, John discusses the impact of the growth of his businesses on the s...

Stephen Lund On Improving Atlantic Canada's Economic Development Performance

The economy in Atlantic Canada has underperformed the rest of the country despite all the federal, provincial and municipal economic development efforts. Key economic metrics like GDP growth and job creation have lagged behind the rest of the country in the region with the exception of PEI. At least a billion dollars per year is spent on economic development activities in the region. It is fair to ask whether or not we are receiving a fair return on that investment or if that spend...

Jennifer Watts On Nova Scotia’s One-Stop For Immigrant Settlement

On the Insights podcast for the past couple of weeks, Don Mills and David Campbell have been talking about the importance of growing the population of Atlantic Canada.  In this episode, Don chats with Jennifer Watts, CEO of the Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS) about how to improve immigrant retention in the region. Historically, the four Atlantic Provinces only retain about half of the newcomers over the longer term. Retention rates have been getting a little b...

Jim Irving On Why We Need Immigration To Grow The Economy

J.D. Irving, Ltd. is among the largest employers across Atlantic Canada and in recent years has been struggling to recruit staff particularly into specific occupations such as truckers and forestry workers. They have started to recruit immigrants as part of their overall human resources development plan. In this week's episode, David Campbell and Don Mills sit down with Co-CEO Jim Irving to talk about the company’s immigration attraction activities and to get his insight into how ...

The Case For Population Growth In Atlantic Canada

In this episode, Don Mills and David Campbell make the case for population growth across Atlantic Canada.   There are over 300,000 people expected to retire in the next decade and not nearly enough young people to take their place in the workforce.  If we can’t significantly boost the working-age population it will force many industries to downsize or leave the region. Less economic activity will lead to less tax revenue for governments imperilling the sustainability of our public ...

Nurturing The 'Green Shoots' Of The Atlantic Canadian Economy

David Campbell was in his 20s helping Frank McKenna pitch companies on setting up in New Brunswick. Don Mills was an MBA student in Halifax already incubating the market research company he would run for 40 years. In episode one of "Insights", the show hosts talk about the early days of their careers - David the economist, Don the social scientist - and how their work in the decades since informs the way they see the challenges and opportunities facing Atlantic Canada. They also cha...

Introducing: Insights with Don Mills and David Campbell

A Nova Scotia social scientist and a New Brunswick economist are teaming up to host a podcast that explores the challenges and opportunities facing Atlantic Canada. Mills and Campbell, two of the region’s leading researchers and analysts, join Huddle editor and “Home Office” podcast host Mark Leger to talk about what listeners can expect from the new show launching on April 8 on the Huddle podcast network.