Conflicts and agreements: Canada’s foundations and their consequences

P. Whitney Lackenbauer will moderate a discussion between fellow historians Patrice Dutil, Daniel Heidt, Marcel Martel, Robert Wardhaugh and political scientist Jacqueline Krikorian, around the major political agreements, battles and conflicting visions that surrounded each province’s entry into Confederation between 1865 and 1949.

Along the way, they will discuss the success and failure of these many visions, describe how they shaped present-day politics, and evaluate whether - and how - we should celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary.

The evening will also feature a display of University of Waterloo Library materials used by The Confederation Debates project. Learn more about the Library's role in this project.

Refreshments and displays will be available starting at 6:15pm. Visitor parking is available at the University.

Panel member biographies

Facilitator

P. Whitney Lackenbauer (St. Jerome's University) is one of Canada's foremost Arctic historians and an established scholar of Aboriginal-military relations. In addition to dozens of articles and book chapters, he is the author of The Canadian Rangers: A living history, co-author of the Donner-winning book Arctic front: Defending Canada in the far north, and editor of Blockades or breakthroughs? Aboriginal peoples confront the Canadian state. He has a longstanding interest in political history and has co-edited books on William Lyon Mackenzie King and Pierre Trudeau.

Panelists

Patrice Dutil (Ryerson University) is a Professor of Politics and Public Administration. He is the editor of Canadian Government Executive, contributor to a wide variety of academic journals, and has published numerous books on Canadian political history and public administration. His most recent publication, Prime ministerial power: Its origins under Macdonald, Laurier and Borden, will be released in April 2017.

Daniel Heidt (Centre on Foreign Policy and Federalism/St. Jerome's University) is a Canadian political historian specializing in Ontario and Arctic history. He is the visionary behind, and project manager for, The Confederation Debates. In addition to publishing several articles, he is preparing his doctoral research on Ontario for publication with a university press.

Jacqueline Krikorian (York University) is a member of the Ontario Bar Association and an Associate Professor of Political Science. She specializes in the field of law & politics. She held the Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in US-Canada Relations at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and wrote the book International Trade Law and Domestic Public Policy: Canada, the United States and the WTO.

Marcel Martel (York University) is a professor and Avie Bennett Historica Chair in Canadian History. He has published works on public policy, language rights and nationalism, including Le Canada français et la Confédération: fondements et bilan critique. He is currently working on two collections of essays on confederation: Canada and the world in 1867, and The best publications on confederation.

Robert Wardhaugh (Western University) is a professor of history, specializing in Canadian political history with an emphasis on federalism and the Prairie West. He is author of Mackenzie King and the Prairie West and Behind the scenes: The life and work of William Clifford Clark.