SDG 16 - Strategic Initiatives
Advice to Government
Western University provides expert advice to local, national, and regional governments through policy guidance, committees, and partnerships.
The Government Relations Department at Western University demonstrates our commitment to collaborating with the municipal government in the City of London, the provincial government in Ontario, and the federal government of Canada. Under the leadership of Alex Irving, Executive Director of Government Relations, we strive to enhance relationships and develop comprehensive approaches to policy issues.
Board of Governors and Partnerships
- Western’s Board of Governors membership includes the Mayor of London, the County of Middlesex Councillor, and two additional seats appointed by the City of London.
- The London & Middlesex Local Immigration Partnership Council membership allots one community partner seat to Western University.
Collaborations and Research
The Network for Economic and Social Trends (NEST) partners with community organizations to generate evidence-based policy and research; examples include:
- A 2023 collaboration with five Local Immigration Partnerships in London, Niagara, Oxford, Sarnia-Lambton, and St. Thomas-Elgin provided policy insights into Racism and Discrimination in Southwestern Ontario.
- The Centre for Urban Policy and Local Governance facilitates interdisciplinary collaborations and dialogue between academics, policy practitioners, and the broader public. Initiatives like Power and Purpose: Canadian Municipal Law in Transition bring together city leaders, government officials, academia, civil society, and the private sector to address major urban challenges in Canada.
- The Local Democracy Project conducts a national examination of election processes across Canadian provinces to support data-driven policy improvements.
Conferences and Educational Programs
- Western hosted a Local Government Conference: Municipal Government, featuring speakers from academia and government.
- Additionally, the Local Government Program, in partnership with the City of London, offers specialized education in local administration and policy analysis.
Policy and Management Centres
- The Ivey Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management provides a forum for business and government to discuss and debate policy issues. A brief on Blockchains, Cryptocurrencies, & NFTs in the Gaming Industry, and a conference on Comparative Perspectives on Broadband Regulation and Access help shape public policy in a changing technological landscape.
- The Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre provides policy guidance to the government through evidence-based research, forums, workshops, educational initiatives, and advisory roles. As an example, feedback was submitted to the Electrification and Energy Transition Panel as part of its mandate to shape energy policy through informed evidence-based analysis.
Safe Space
Western provides a neutral platform and safe space for different political stakeholders to discuss challenges openly. We affirm the principle of academic freedom to ensure that ideas can be expressed without fear of interference or repression from university administrators, politicians, or others. Our Freedom of Expression policy states: All members of the University community, including guests and visitors, have the right to freedom of expression, which includes the right to examine, represent, question, advocate for and comment on any issue without reference to prescribed doctrine. It also includes the right to criticize the University and society at large.
Students can engage in political discourse and debate through the Western Model United Nations and the UWO Debate Society.
The Centre for Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Reconstruction brings together interdisciplinary experts to tackle issues of development, democracy, the environment, the economy, human rights, politics, and peace agreements. It hosts events to facilitate neutral discussions of these politically sensitive issues.
Western’s Ivey Business School also hosted a five-day workshop, Reconciling Business Schools, to create a safe space to discuss the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.
In addition, the Department of Political Science hosts events, lectures, and panel discussions on key political issues and theories.
Western University is committed to diversity and inclusion, creating spaces for open dialogue on various social and political issues to ensure all voices are heard and respected.
Elected Representation
Western University has a bicameral governance structure, consisting of two main governing bodies. Both have elections procedures, which include the democratic election of undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and administrative staff.
- Board of Governors: The Board is responsible for the administrative and financial management of the university. It oversees the institution’s business affairs, including approving budgets, appointing senior administrators, and ensuring the university’s overall strategic direction. See our current membership.
- Senate: The Senate is responsible for academic matters. It has authority over educational policies, academic standards, curriculum development, and research priorities. The Senate ensures that the university maintains high academic standards and addresses the needs of students and faculty. See our current membership.
Student Unions
Western University recognizes two independent student unions, USC and SOGS. They both elect their leadership and allow students to vote.
University Student Council: USC is a student-led organization that exists to advocate for and represent undergraduate students at Western University. Operating since 1965, they have grown into one of the largest student governments in Canada and one of the largest non-profits in London. The USC is incorporated under the Ontario Non-profit Corporations Act. The USC Charter upholds democratic elections. USC is currently looking to join the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations.
Society of Graduate Students: SOGS is a democratic student government that entrusts elected Executive Officers and Council members with running the Society’s day-to-day and long-term affairs. SOGS Council represents all faculties and departments at Western University. SOGS joined the Canadian Federation of Students, Canada’s largest student union and advocacy organization, as Local 47 in the 1980s.
The unions provide input to Western’s governance, provide supports for students, and organize undergraduate social events and graduate social events.
Local Stakeholder Engagement and Participation
Western has policies to include participation of local stakeholders, including residents, local government, and civil society representatives, in the governance and decision making of the university.
- The University of Western Ontario Act: The Act requires the following:
- Board of Governors must include as members the mayor of the City of London (or designate), the warden of the County of Middlesex (or designate), and two persons appointed by the council of the City of London.
- Senate must include as members five persons from the general community, one of whom shall be active in or associated with the field of secondary school education.
- Government Relations Department: This department strives to foster strong connections with all three levels of government and our strategic community partners. It acts as the main connection between the university and various levels of government. The office proudly works with government officials and strategic partners to further Western’s positive impact on the local community and country.
- Community & Stakeholder Engagement and Partnership: Schulich commits to creating a structured and purposeful partnership with our communities and health care structures—an environment that is collaborative, interdependent, and reciprocal. By embedding collaborative models of care, we actively engage with, learn from, and contribute to our regional communities to address priority health care and social needs in these communities.
- People, Community, and Culture: Western’s strategic plan, Towards Western at 150, commits to unite our community through a sense of belonging for all students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Western also commits to craft pathways with local and regional school boards and other community organizations to increase our opportunities to recruit students from equity-deserving groups.
Academic Freedom
Western has two policies supporting and protecting academic freedom for research and teaching. The policies apply regardless of role, status, age, or any other personal or professional characteristics.
- Policy 1.38 Rights and Responsibilities of Academic Freedom:
- Research: Academics frequently express ideas that are at odds with other views within the university, and sometimes with the views of society or government. Academic freedom ensures that such ideas can be expressed without fear of interference or repression from university administrators, politicians, or others. Members of the academic community have responsibilities as well as rights, and they are individually accountable, in both the moral and social sense, for their findings and statements.
- Teaching: Academic checks and balances also apply to teaching. As in research, so in the classroom, there are freedoms and responsibilities. Faculty members have the responsibility to make a balanced presentation of controversial issues. They have the further responsibility to teach their students to evaluate what is presented to them in a critical way.
- Policy 1.54 Freedom of Expression: Freedom of expression is essential to the pursuit of truth, the advancement of learning and the dissemination of knowledge. All members of the university community, including guests and visitors, have the right to freedom of expression, which includes the right to examine, represent, question, advocate for, and comment on any issue without reference to prescribed doctrine. It also includes the right to criticize the university and society at large.
Public Financial Reporting
Western University publishes university financial data publicly.
- Corporate Financial Reporting: Encompasses financial statements, reports, and information returns prepared for various end users and governing bodies. These include, but are not limited to, the combined financial statements; Council of Ontario Finance Officers (COFO) reporting; Canadian Association of University Business Officers (CAUBO) reporting; and the Canadian information return for the Canada Revenue Agency.
- Office of Institutional Planning & Budgeting: Is responsible for and publishes operating budget documents, ancillary budgets, capital budget documents, audited financial statements, and tuition fee history.
Knowledge Sharing with Policy-Makers
Western provides outreach, general education, upskilling, and capacity building to policy- and lawmakers on relevant topics.
- Local Government Program: Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2024, Western’s LGP is Canada’s only graduate public administration program specializing in local government.
- Master of Public Administration: This program is designed for both mid-career local government officials aiming to broaden their perspective and advance their skills and future professionals seeking careers in municipal government.
- Graduate Diploma in Public Administration: Targeted at working local government professionals, GDPA provides specialized education in local administration and policy analysis.
- City of London Graduate Diploma in Public Administration: The City of London partners with Western to offer the GDPA program to their employees.
- Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management: There is a substantial gap in the understanding between what business leaders know about public policy issues and what government decision makers know about business imperatives and competitive advantage. This independent public policy centre bridges the gap between business and government.
- Senior Public Sector Leader Program: This is a comprehensive, results-driven leadership development initiative designed to cultivate and enhance the skills of senior leaders in Canada’s public sector. This program equips you with the necessary tools, knowledge, and competencies to navigate the complex public administration environment, enabling you to lead more effective teams and inspire successful outcomes in any context.
- Innovation and Telecommunications Policy—Shaping Tech, Markets & Networks: This workshop will focus on developing policies and strategies that support digital infrastructures, innovation, and economic progress, which are crucial for Canada and other countries, in the wake of globalization, disruption, and geopolitical challenges.
- New Frontiers for Broadband and Resilience in Telecommunications: This workshop focused on the critical role of non-terrestrial networks, including various applications of satellite and direct-to-device integration, enhancing network resilience and security, providing new business models, raising new regulatory challenges, and bridging the digital divide.
- Enhancing Canada’s AI Advantage in a Competitive and Uncertain World: How can industry action and government policy enhance the scaling of AI innovations, and do so responsibly, thereby enabling Canada to sustain its early advantage in AI amidst fierce global competition? This question and more were the topic of the symposium, convening leading policy experts, business executives, and thought leaders.
- Centre for Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Reconstruction (TJC): Seeks to address the complex challenge of rebuilding democratic institutions, in post-conflict societies. TJC explores development, democracy, policy, law, the environment, the economy, human rights, politics, peace agreements, and justice before, at the time of, and post-transition.
- Speaker Series: TJC invites guest speakers to address these issues. The events are shared on YouTube for all to view.
- Panel Discussions, Workshops, and Seminars: Address the impact of war, the legal landscape, and human rights and accountability.
- Undergraduate Minor or Collaborative Graduate Specialization in Transitional Justice and Post-Conflict Reconstruction: Familiarizes students with the emerging debates surrounding transitional justice and post-conflict reconstruction, and to allow for real-world application of theoretical constructs and explanations relating to development, democracy, the environment, the economy, human rights, politics, displacement and diasporas, peace agreements, and justice before, at the time of, and post-transition.
- Network for Economic and Social Trends: NEST uses advanced data creation, management, and analytic techniques to conduct theoretically driven and evidenced-based research that will inform social and economic policy and practices in Canada and North America more broadly.
- Speaker Series: Events are open to the public, addressing a wide range of issues such as ‘Protection of Privilege – The Segregation of Public Schools through Land Use Regulations’, ‘Understanding Immigrant Outcomes in a [Very] Unequal World – Methodological and Substantive Research on Immigrant Selection’.
- Master in Research for Policy and Evaluation: MRPE develops quantitative and qualitative research skills for practical applications in policy and program development.
Policy-Focused Research
Western undertakes policy-focused research in collaboration with government.
- Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre: This centre provides a transparent and reliable forum for industry, government, academia, and interested stakeholders, to discuss and exchange ideas on energy sector development and policy.
- Policy Briefs: Provide in-depth analyses and recommendations pertinent to stakeholders in the energy sector, policymakers, and academics interested in the governance, economic impact, and environmental considerations of energy infrastructure in Canada.
- Academic Papers: These papers contribute to energy policy-making through the production and dissemination of evidence-based research and analysis on major policy issues affecting the electricity, gas, oil, and pipeline sectors in Canada.
- Centre for Urban Policy and Local Governance: This centre brings together academic researchers and students from across Western and beyond, to facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations to address pressing issues and emerging challenges faced by local governments and urban policy-makers.
- Local Government and the Changing Urban-Rural Interplay (LoGov-RISE Project): This project studies the responsibilities of different levels of government, financial arrangements, and public participation in relation to the growing gap between urban and rural settlements, identifying innovative practices to respond to these challenges.
- Power and Purpose – Canadian Municipal Law in Transition: This project brings city leaders together with other levels of government, academia, civil society, and the private sector to identify actionable and scalable solutions to the biggest challenges facing Canada’s cities.
- Canadian Urban Politics Workshops: These provide faculty and student researchers with an opportunity to receive high-quality, extended feedback on research papers related to urban politics, while also enabling faculty and students to keep in touch with upcoming research in urban political science.
- Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management: There is a substantial gap in the understanding between what business leaders know about public policy issues and what government decision makers know about business imperatives and competitive advantage. This independent public policy centre bridges the gap between business and government.
- Research: This section includes policy briefs on broadband access, debt cycles, workplace gender diversity, cryptocurrencies, and more.
- Canada-U.S. Trade Relations: Active research involves Trump’s Tariffs – Making Sense of the Senseless, and research-backed discussions about the best policy responses.
Principles on Corruption and Bribery
Western University is committed to openness and transparency in all our operations. Messages from the president and the board chair emphasize the importance of public accountability.
As part of this commitment, Western firmly opposes corruption and bribery. The Safe Disclosure Policy and associated procedures protect disclosures related to bribery, fraud, embezzlement, forgery, and other corrupt practices. The policies on Gift Acceptance and Conflicts of Interest ensure that all actions and decisions are made in the best interest of the university, free from undue influence or bias.
The Supplier Code of Conduct extends this expectation of ethical business practices to our suppliers:
Anti-Corruption Business Practices and Bribery
- The supplier shall not, directly or indirectly, pay, give, offer, or promise anything of value to any local or foreign government official (or to any person for the benefit of a government official) for the purpose of corruptly causing the government official to improperly act or use his or her influence in obtaining or retaining any business.
- The supplier shall not, directly or indirectly, pay, give, offer, or promise anything of value to the University to secure any improper advantage for the University or the supplier.
Western’s Ivey Business School is proud to be the first Canadian business school to become an academic stakeholder in the UN Global Compact. Principle 10 of the Compact focuses on anti-corruption: Businesses should work against all forms of corruption, including extortion and bribery.
Ethical Compliance
Western has several offices with oversight on ethical matters across the institution. Each office has a designated official with oversight on specific ethical matters.
- University Secretariat: The mission of this office is to manage and support the university’s bicameral governance system in accordance with legal requirements and obligations. The team ensures that Senate, the Board of Governors, and their committees are properly constituted and have the information needed to make good decisions. The Secretariat is responsible for the maintenance of university policies and procedures.
- Human Rights Office: Western’s HRO helps student, staff, and faculty with discrimination, harassment, and other human rights-related issues. They are dedicated to making the community a safe, respectful, and supportive environment for all members.
- Office of the Ombudsperson: Provides a safe, confidential environment in which students can discuss a university-related problem or concern. The office is independent of the university and the students’ unions, providing impartial guidance to students.
- Western Special Constable Service: A team of dedicated professionals that provide a safe and secure environment to community members and guests. Patrol officers and their supervisors are sworn in as Special Constables and have authority on campus similar to that of London Police.
- Oversight & Compliance: This office oversees the approval and monitoring process for research conducted by faculty, staff, and students, ensuring that it complies with ethical standards and regulations. Areas covered include:
