1998  The Inaugural Donner Prize

$25,000 WINNER

FROM HEARTLAND TO NORTH AMERICAN REGION STATE: THE SOCIAL, FISCAL AND FEDERAL EVOLUTION OF ONTARIO
by Thomas Courchene with Colin Telmer (Centre for Management, University of Toronto)

THIS IS A HIGHLY READABLE AND SIGNIFICANT interpretative essay on the social, fiscal and federal evolution of Ontario during the past half century. Its analysis provides refreshing new insight into the role of Ontario in the development of the Canadian federation, and not only asks the question "Is Ontario still Canada's heartland?" but "Should it be?"

Thomas Courchene is the Jarislowsky-Deutsch Professor of Economic and Financial Policy at Queen's University, the Director of Queen's John Deutsch Institute for the Study of Economic Policy and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Colin Telmer holds a Ph.D. from Queen's University where he teaches in the Department of Economics.

RUNNERS-UP
$5,000 EACH

THE REFORMATION OF CANADA'S SCHOOLS: BREAKING THE BARRIERS TO PARENTAL CARE
by Mark Holmes (McGill-Queen's University Press)

A HIGHLY INSTRUCTIVE STUDY, INFUSED WITH THE PERSONAL insight gained from Holmes' years of experience as an educator, The Reformation of Canada's Schools provides a much-needed look at the problems plaguing the educational system in Canada. Challenging the one-size-fits-all approach to educational policy, Holmes argues that we need a broad range of schools to accommodate the wishes of parents and the goals of a pluralist society.

Mark Holmes is Professor Emeritus of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto; he has been a teacher and principal and has worked with many parent groups to promote reform.

GLOBALIZATION AND THE MEANING OF CANADIAN LIFE
by William Watson (University of Toronto Press)

THIS ENGAGING BOOK MAKES AN IMPORTANT, timely and valuable contribution to a question that confronts all Canadians: How do we remain Canadian in a world where borders are rapidly disappearing and governments are increasingly constrained in their ability to pursue independent policies? The answer, according to Watson, lies in Canadians remaining free to choose what is best for us and not simply "what those south of us are not choosing."

William Watson Associate Professor of Economics at McGill University, is also Editorial-Pages Editor for the Ottawa Citizen and Editor of Policy Options.

OTHER 1998 SHORT-LISTED BOOKS

WHITE MAN'S LAW: NATIVE PEOPLE IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY CANADIAN JURISPRUDENCE
by Sidney L. Harring (The Osgoode Society / University
of Toronto Press)

THIS BOOK, A MASTERPIECE OF HISTORICAL ANALYSIS, is representative of a new way of thinking about Native history - one that declares that the history is in the details of how Canada's Native people were treated. The relevance of its topic is reflected in daily headlines, for many of today's unresolved land claims issues are rooted in the legal system's failures to address Native concerns in the last century.

Sidney L. Harring, Professor of Law at Queen's College, City University of New York, is a lawyer and sociologist who has been active in the area of the rights of indigenous peoples for more than 15 years.

LAMENT FOR AN OCEAN: THE COLLAPSE OF THE ATLANTIC COD FISHERY: A TRUE CRIME STORY
by Michael Harris (McClelland & Stewart)

THE WORLD-WIDE DISTRIBUTION OF PROTEIN RESOURCES is a pressing policy issue - even the Navy is now being designed for the protection of ocean resources. This account of the demise of the Atlantic cod fishery over the last two decades takes an objective position in a highly politicized area and opens the policy debate surrounding it to a wide audience.

Michael Harris is national affairs columnist for the Sun newspapers and host of "The Great Canadian Debate" on CTV's "Sunday Edition."

THE PRACTICE OF LANGUAGE RIGHTS IN CANADA
by C. Michael MacMillan (University of Toronto Press)

THIS IS A WELL-BALANCED DISCUSSION OF THE EVOLUTION of language legislation in Canada, and an incisive look at where we should go from here. Grounded in legal considerations and aware of the social realities surrounding such a contentious issue, this book concludes that the status quo, although not entirely satisfactory to anyone, is currently the only feasible option likely to support national unity.

C. Michael MacMillan is Associate Professor of political studies at Mt. St. Vincent University, Nova Scotia.

THE THREE QUESTIONS: PROSPERITY AND THE PUBLIC GOOD
by Bob Rae (Penguin Books Canada)

STRUCTURING HIS THOUGHTS ON RABBI HILLEL'S famous questions, Rae discusses the need for policy to combine self-interest, generosity, and action in coping with change. A unique political testament, it explores with clarity and exceptional insight the roles of government, business, communities and individuals in the new economic and political reality of Canada.

Bob Rae former premier of Ontario, is a partner at Goodman, Phillips & Vineberg, and teaches at the University of Toronto.

TALK AND LOG: WILDERNESS POLITICS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
by Jeremy Wilson (UBC Press)

TALK AND LOG ILLUMINATES THE FORCES behind the controversies that have divided British Columbians and attracted the attention of Canadians for more than three decades. This comprehensive account of the interplay of forces that have shaped BC's forest policy is more widely applicable because it reveals how increasing knowledge influences the formulation of policy over time.

Jeremy Wilson is an Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science, University of Victoria; he has written extensively on forest and environmental politics.