GLOBAL TRENDS REPORT
The Graduate Fellows program with GAC is designed to provide students an opportunity to gain mentorship and guidance from senior scholars as they advance their own policy research and writing skills.
Under the program, clusters of three to four students are selected to participate in projects led by BSIA faculty that engage them in both independent and collective research and policy analysis. The program is divided into three phases. The first is the research phase, during which students develop a high degree of substantive expertise on the subject matter of the project. The second phase is the policy brief stage, when students co-author a briefing note that draws on their collective research from the first phase. The third phase is the presentation phase where students are given an opportunity to present their briefing notes and the findings of their research to, and receive critical feedback from, policy experts with global experience. Following the presentation, students are invited to revise their briefing notes based on the feedback they received prior to submitting the notes for publication.
2026 Individual Policy Briefs
Emerging and Systemic Challenges
Commercial Sovereignty: Enhancing Canada’s Economic Security amid Global Tensions
Fabrice Blais-Savoie, Daniela Mendoza Ramirez and Jacob Tuckey
Mentor: Roy Norton
Safeguarding Canadian Democracy: Confronting Foreign Interference and Disinformation
Acouamela Amandé and Kiara Yllescas
Mentors: Wesley Wark and Justin Dell
Modernizing Canada’s Trade Approach: Recommendations for Strategic Trade Policy
Daniel Manyoki and Andrew Olson
Mentors: Horatiu Rus and Ahmad Khan
Canada’s Critical Minerals Capacity
Evan Smith and Joshua Wright
Mentor: Stephen Evans
Canadian Data Protection and Cybersecurity in an Era of Diminishing North American Cooperation
Muna Mohamed and Ananya Vohra
Mentors: Debora Van Nijnatten and Ann Fitz-Gerald
Securing Canada’s Future: Cybersecurity, Prosperity and Sovereignty
Thomas Gries, Sarah Hamm and Sierra Van Tent
Mentor: Ann Fitz-Gerald
Food Security, Climate and International Assistance
Remittances for Climate Resilience: Building Resilient Communities against Climate Change-related Disasters
Ainsley Cunningham, Holly Davis and John McMurry
Mentors: Jonathan Crush, Sujata Ramachandran, Eunice Annan-Aggrey, Naomi Sunu and Halima Ahmed
Food Security and Health Outcomes: Supporting Climate Change Adaptation in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nathalie Gatti and Lilla Eperjesi
Mentors: Susan Elliott and Helena Shilomboleni
Creating Conduits: Tackling Climate-Driven Food Insecurity in Jamaica
Sameer Gupta and Callan Woolnough
Mentors: Lucy Hinton and Stephanie Rose Cortinovis
Canadian Assistance to Ghana for Regional Medicinal Manufacturing
Kianna Low-A-Chee and Frances Northeast
Mentor: Alan Whiteside
Rethinking Canada’s Role in International Development Assistance Beyond 2030
Hannah Barbero and Emma Sonnemann
Mentor: Rohit Ramchandani
Human Rights and the Indo-Pacific
Strengthening Canada’s Role in the Future of International Criminal Justice
Leonardo Lombardi and Arfa Rana
Mentors: Saad Hammadi and Sophie Greco
Global Debt Challenges: Canada’s Role in a Complex Landscape
Jennifer Amuah, Maha Saymeh and Fabian Wiek
Mentors: Warren Parker and Harry Deng
Canada’s Role in Empowering Host Nations: A Responsibility-sharing Model for Forced Migration
Daniela Agostinho, Ishmael Philip Carrey and Grace Kargobai
Mentors: Andrew Thompson and Manel Miaadi
Centring Indigeneity in Canada’s Indo-Pacific Engagement
Larissa Möckel and Finnegan Hunter O’Connor
Mentors: Kimie Hara and Alexander Waworuntu