Trevor Harrison
Trevor W. Harrison is a professor of sociology at the University of Lethbridge and director of Parkland Institute, an Alberta-wide research organization, of which he was a founding member and first research director. Dr. Harrison is best known for his studies in political sociology, political economy and public policy. He is the author, co-author or co-editor of nine books, numerous journal articles, chapters, and reports, and a frequent contributor to public media, including radio and television.
States have interests, not friends
media | Feb 02, 2017Canada, writes Parkland Institute Director Trevor Harrison, is about to relearn the truth in the old maxim, "States do not have friends; they have interests."
Is the NDP making things worse?
media | Aug 30, 2016Parkland Institute Director Trevor Harrison responds to an August 25, 2016 editorial in the Calgary Herald which accused the Alberta government of "blithely following a path of reckless borrowing."
Antiquated neoliberalism and Alberta
media | Apr 22, 2016"There is no easy way out of Alberta’s fiscal mess," writes Parkland Institute Director Trevor Harrison. "Alberta must find new revenue streams and must break free of oil dependency. The transition will be hard."
What exactly is the national interest?
media | Mar 14, 2016"We should all be skeptical when the national interest is too easily invoked," writes Trevor Harrison. "Appeals to national interest too often cloak what is, in fact, self-interest."
No alternative to a sales tax: Tax measure would help Alberta get back onto a solid financial footing
media | Feb 11, 2016Alberta must bring in a harmonized sales tax. This is the conclusion reached by myself and 18 economists, political scientists, sociologists and other public policy experts in an article that recently ran in two major Alberta newspapers. Why did we say this?
Put simply, there is no realistic alternative if the province hopes to return to a balanced budget and pay for necessary services.
Is it time for an Alberta tax commission?
media | Nov 13, 2015A recent poll reports that 43 per cent of Albertans disapprove of the NDP government’s budget announcing a $6.1 billion deficit for 2015-16. At the same time, 55 per cent do not want cuts to capital spending and 49 per cent approve of the government’s plan to increase capital spending.
Harper's dance may be out of step
media | Sep 24, 2015I interviewed Stephen Harper in the fall of 1991 as part of my doctoral research into the Reform party. Of all the things he said at that time, the comment that has stuck most with me was that it was undesirable for a governing party to garner more than optimum electoral support; beyond that meant it owed too much to too many voters.
Neoliberalism and the Non-Profit Social Services Sector in Alberta
research | Jun 18, 2015Successive PC governments in Alberta experimented with neoliberal approaches to the non-profit social services sector, with negative consequences for the sector and the people it serves.
A Monochrome Political Culture?: Examining the Range of Albertans' Values and Beliefs
research | Apr 09, 2015This survey-based study examines the diversity of Albertans' values and beliefs on four dimensions: economic conservatism, traditional values, libertarianism, and political alienation.
The meaning of Alberta conservatism
media | Jan 05, 2015The recent capitulation of Danielle Smith and eight of her Wildrose party colleagues to the governing Progressive Conservatives can only be understood by decoding the meaning of conservatism in Alberta and the political purposes that construction serves.