THE EIGHTH ANNUAL DONNER PRIZE CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

TORONTO, November 8, 2005 -

Allan Gotlieb, Chairman of the Donner Canadian Foundation, today announced the official Call for Submissions for the eighth annual Donner Prize, and welcomed three new jury members - George Connell, Denis Stairs and David Strangway. "Over the past seven years, we have been proud to award the Donner Prize to an exceptional group of titles that have shone a bright and penetrating light into topics of great importance to all Canadians - from Canada's health care system and diversity in our schools, to globalization and Canadian monetary policy," said Mr. Gotlieb, "Each succeeding year the bar has been raised in terms of quality and substance of submissions, and along with our distinguished jury, I'm looking forward to seeing what this year's entries will bring."

The Donner Canadian Foundation, one of Canada's largest foundations, created the prize to encourage increased research into public policy in Canada and to promote the discussion of policy issues in the public arena. The winner of the Donner Prize, the award for best book on Canadian public policy, will receive $35,000, with $5,000 being awarded to the other shortlisted titles (to a maximum of five titles). In giving this annual award, the Foundation seeks to not only broaden policy debate, but also to increase general awareness of the importance of policy discourse.

Books submitted for the prize should focus on Canadian public policy issues, for example: regulatory and legal reform, public finance, the environment, urban affairs, health care, education reform and social policy. Submissions must be written by Canadian citizens, but they may be published by non-Canadian publishing houses, so long as the books have implications for Canada. For the 2005 prize, books that are written by Canadians in either English or French, between January 1, and December 31, 2005, are eligible (see www.donnerbookprize.com for complete rules regarding eligibility and submission procedures).

The $35,000 Donner Prize for 2004 was awarded to TWO PERCENT TARGET: Canadian Monetary Policy Since 1991 by David E.W. Laidler and William B.P. Robson (C.D. Howe Institute). The $5,000 shortlisted titles were BLOCKBUSTERS AND TRADE WARS: Popular Culture in a Globalized World by Peter S. Grant and Chris Wood (Douglas & McIntyre); SMOKE & MIRRORS: Globalized Terrorism and the Illusion of Multilateral Security by Frank P. Harvey (University of Toronto Press); FEMINIST ACTIVISM IN THE SUPREME COURT: Legal Mobilization and the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (UBC Press) and THE HATEFUL AND THE OBSCENE: Studies in the Limits of Free Expression by L.W. Sumner (University of Toronto Press).

The jury for the 2005 Donner Prize is a distinguished group of academics and business people from across Canada. The jury will again be chaired by Grant Reuber, Senior Advisor and Director, Sussex Circle; Senior Fellow, C.D. Howe Institute; former Chairman, Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation; former President and Chief Operating Officer and later Deputy Chairman, Bank of Montreal; former Deputy Minister of Finance for Canada; former provost and Vice-President (Academic) of the University of Western Ontario; Officer of the Order of Canada. Also returning as a member of the jury this year is Claude E. Forget, former Minister of Health for the Quebec government; former Chairman of the Commission of Enquiry on Unemployment Insurance; Officer of the Order of Canada. Joining the jury this year are George Connell, Denis Stairs and David Strangway.

George Connell is a scientist with extensive experience in public policy. He served as president of the University of Western Ontario from 1977-1984 and the University of Toronto from 1984-1990. He served on the Medical Research Council of Canada and on the Ontario Council of Health. He was a senior advisor to the Krever Inquiry on the blood system and the O'Connor Inquiry on the Walkerton water system and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Denis Stairs is Professor Emeritus in Political Science at Dalhousie University. A past-President of the Canadian Political Science Association and founding Director of the Centre for Foreign Policy Studies, he was Dalhousie's Vice President (Academic and Research) from 1988 to 1993 and he is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Research on Public Policy and the Chair of its Research Committee.

David W. Strangway is the Chair & CEO and Founding Director of Quest University Canada, following a 12-year tenure as President of the University of British Columbia. From 1973-1985 Dr. Strangway held a number of positions with the University of Toronto including Acting President and Vice-President. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and in 1998 was appointed President & CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

The deadline for submissions for this year's prize is November 30. A shortlist will be announced late March 2006, and the winner will be proclaimed at a gala dinner in Toronto in April 2006.

For further information please contact:
Sherry Naylor
Meisner Publicity (Toronto)
Phone: (416) 368-8253
Fax: (416) 363-1448
E-mail: sherry (at) meisnerpublicity (dot) com
Web: www.donnerbookprize.com

$35,000 DONNER PRIZE WINNER ANNOUNCED
MASTERFUL ANALYSIS OF THE EVOLUTION OF CANADIAN MONETARY POLICY SHOULD BE REQUIRED READING FOR CANADIAN FINANCE MINISTERS, SAYS JURY

TORONTO, Thursday, April 28, 2005 -
The winner of the prestigious Donner Prize, the award for best book on Canadian public policy, was announced this evening by Allan Gotlieb, Chairman of the Donner Canadian Foundation, at an awards dinner at the Carlu. This is the seventh year for this acclaimed prize, which is awarded annually.

The $35,000 Donner Prize was awarded to David E.W. Laidler and William B.P. Robson for their book TWO PERCENT TARGET: Canadian Monetary Policy Since 1991, published by the C.D. Howe Institute. Described by the Donner jury as “a masterful analysis of the evolution of Canadian monetary policy,” TWO PERCENT TARGET provides an informative and accessible explanation of the economics of monetary policy and a lucid account of its operation in Canada through the 1990s from two of the country's foremost commentators on the subject.

“TWO PERCENT TARGET is a remarkable achievement and arguably the best book on macro-economic policy written within the past twenty years,” said jury Chairman Grant Reuber. He went on to say, “In a clear and enticing manner, Laidler and Robson provide an excellent analysis of a critical piece of our public policy framework.”

A compelling read, TWO PERCENT TARGET offers insights into the way Bank of Canada policy affects the economy and the means by which Canadians and their elected representatives hold the makers of monetary policy accountable for their performance. It is essential reading for all Canadians interested in economic policy.

David E.W. Laidler is Bank of Montreal Professor and Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Western Ontario and Fellow-in-Residence at the C.D. Howe Institute. William B.P. Robson is Senior Vice-President and Director of Research at the C.D. Howe Institute.

The other nominated titles, which received $5,000 each, were: BLOCKBUSTERS AND TRADE WARS: Popular Culture in a Globalized World by Peter S. Grant and Chris Wood (Douglas & McIntyre); SMOKE & MIRRORS: Globalized Terrorism and the Illusion of Multilateral Security by Frank P. Harvey (University of Toronto Press); FEMINIST ACTIVISM IN THE SUPREME COURT: Legal Mobilization and the Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (UBC Press) and THE HATEFUL AND THE OBSCENE: Studies in the Limits of Free Expression by L.W. Sumner (University of Toronto Press).

The winner was chosen from 65 submissions and a shortlist of five, by a five-member jury: Grant Reuber (Chairman), Jim Dinning, Claude E. Forget, Donald S. Macdonald and Elizabeth Parr-Johnston.

Last year's winner of the $35,000 Donner Prize was Michael Adams for his thought-provoking book FIRE AND ICE: The United States, Canada and the Myth of Converging Values, published by Penguin Canada.

Jury Chairman Grant Reuber also gave a special acknowledgement to The Canadian Democratic Audit, a groundbreaking series published by UBC Press, with a special presentation to series editor, William Cross. The series examines the status of Canadian Democracy at the outset of the 21st century and is the result of a milestone research project of the Centre for Canadian Studies at Mount Allison University. Cross explained, “the Canadian Democratic Audit has been a true partnership between 17 academics from 12 different Canadian universities. The project reflects the state of our knowledge about Canadian democracy and makes an important contribution to the current debate about democratic reform. The Centre for Canadian Studies at Mount Allison University and UBC Press have worked together for the past five years in defining the project and bringing the series of ten books to publication. We are delighted to have this project recognized by the Donner Canadian Foundation.”

The call for submissions for the 2005/2006 prize will go out in September 2005.

For further information please contact:
Sherry Naylor
Meisner Publicity (Toronto)
Phone: (416) 368-8253
Fax: (416) 363-1448