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David Campbell – A blog about economic development in Atlantic Canada

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Will Shawn Graham’s 2026 population target actually be reached?

Posted on March 7, 2021 by David Campbell

One of the things I (and many others) complain about is government ‘targets’.   I am concerned about economic and demographic targets but this applies to any target set by government (e.g. we will reduce surgery wait times by x).  I…

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A tip of the hat to entrepreneurship: Where is the next Wes Armour?

Posted on February 21, 2021 by David Campbell

I used to say there are two kinds of entrepreneurs: a) someone with an idea who becomes an entrepreneur or b) an entrepreneur who goes out and finds a good idea. My former boss at ShiftCentral, Mario Theriault, was the…

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Today’s New Brunswick youth: Few, footloose and fancy free (and Campbell’s 1.5 Principle)

Posted on February 15, 2021 by David Campbell

The former head of Opportunities New Brunswick, Stephen Lund, wasn’t particularly interested in demographics when he first took the job at ONB.  At our first meeting after I joined the Jobs Board he told me it wasn’t his business.  His…

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The importance of NB airports will rise post-pandemic

Posted on February 6, 2021 by David Campbell

A few years ago I was asked to a meet with a client in downtown Toronto.  The meeting took place at 9 am.  I left on the 5:30 am flight from Moncton, arrived at the airport in Mississauga at 6:30…

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Population growth: The one time I’m glad Statistics Canada got it wrong

Posted on February 3, 2021 by David Campbell

I spend a lot of time roaming around Statistics Canada’s website and data.  In fact, it is critical to my consulting practice (thanks guys!).  However, occasionally they do make mistakes.  I have found instances where the data seemed a little…

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Instead of snarky tweets, why not do something good with your time?

Posted on January 31, 2021 by David Campbell

I don’t usually follow threads on social media but someone I appreciate posted something that I would describe as moderately controversial a few days ago and they got over 10,000 tweeted responses. So, bracing myself, I started to read the…

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Should we be striving for inclusive and sustainable economic growth?

Posted on January 30, 2021 by David Campbell

Of the (limited) negative comments I get to my writing on this blog, probably the top theme is a condemnation of my obsession with economic growth.  Even when I was Chief Economist in government, I would have colleagues questioning why…

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NBers spending more on pets, booze, cigs and health care. And less on charity. Here’s to us.

Posted on January 26, 2021 by David Campbell

New Brunswickers are spending a lot more more on pets, booze, cigs, RVs, personal care services, home repairs, garden supplies, trucks, financial services and health insurance.   We are spending a lot less on child care, cars, mortgage payments, education, charitable…

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Sorry, Halifax is not Canada’s 2nd fastest growing municipality. It’s not even 2nd fastest in NS.

Posted on January 23, 2021 by David Campbell

According to a recent Global News headline “Halifax rated Canada’s second fastest growing municipality”. Nope.  Halifax is not even Nova Scotia’s second fastest growing municipality.   Setting aside what the word ‘rated’ means, Halifax actually ranks sixth among Nova Scotia municipalities for…

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After 2040 in New Brunswick: There be dragons

Posted on January 21, 2021 by David Campbell

In the last few months I have been thinking more about the longer term in New Brunswick.  By the longer term I am talking about after 2040.  This actually doesn’t seem that ‘long term’ given that many of us were…

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