Economist Thomas Courchene wins $50K Donner Prize for best policy book

TORONTO – Economist Thomas Courchene has won the $50,000 Donner Prize for best Canadian public policy book for a second time.

Courchene took home the honour Wednesday night at a gala in Toronto for “Indigenous Nationals, Canadian Citizens: From First Contact to Canada 150 and Beyond” (McGill-Queen’s University Press).

Jurors hailed the book as “a masterful work on one of the most important themes of our country’s public policy history.”

Courchene, a professor emeritus at Queen’s University, also won the inaugural Donner Prize in 1998.

The other nominated titles, which each received $7,500, were:

– “Population Bombed! Exploding the Link Between Overpopulation and Climate Change” by Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak (Global Warming Policy Foundation)

– “Basic Income for Canadians: The Key to a Healthier, Happier and More Secure Life for All” by Evelyn L. Forget (James Lorimer & Company Ltd.)

– “Excessive Force: Toronto’s Fight to Reform City Policing” by Alok Mukherjee with Tim Harper (Douglas & McIntyre)

– “University Commons Divided: Exploring Debate and Dissent on Campus” by Peter MacKinnon (University of Toronto Press)