Student Public Policy Papers
Please note that you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view these publications.
Year 5 Publication includes the winning submissions by:
Kama Soles (graduate paper)
Ms. Soles examines the development and nature of current disability policy and its effect on the quality of life of people with disabilities. In particular, she explores the affect of disability policy on equal opportunity, individual rights as citizens, and employment.
Charis Kamphuis (undergraduate paper)
In her paper, Ms. Kamphuis analyzes the concept of pay equity - equal pay for work of equal value - and the lack of pay equity legislation in Saskatchewan, focusing on the inequities experienced by community based organizations.
Download Paper
December 2007
Year 4 Publication includes the winning submissions by:
Rene Boudreau (graduate paper)
In his paper, Rehabilitating the Voluntary Sector Initiative: Rethinking Accountability and Creating Capacity, Mr. Boudreau analyzes the evolving relationship between governments in Canada and non-governmental agencies (NGO) and the role of NGOs in policy development. In particular he explores the Voluntary Sector Initiative and its role in creating an environment in which innovative and transformative policy dialogue between the two parties can be strengthened and maintained.
Brayden Gulka-Tiechko (undergraduate paper)
In his paper, The Effects of Religion on Subjective Well-being: An International Comparison, Mr. Gulka-Tiechko studies the effects of religion on the self-perceived level of well-being through an economic framework. The study considers the effects of different religions and religious diversity on happiness across a sample size of 54 countries.
Download Paper
November 2006
Year 3 Publication includes the winning submissions by:
Raman Visvanathan (graduate paper)
In his paper, Health and Health System Performance Measures and Indicators: Are They Reliable for Evidence-Based Decision-Making?, Mr. Visvanathan describes the current state of the development of health and health system performance indicators in Canada and assesses the extent to which health care planners and policy makers can reliably use performance indicators and measures of population health status and health care system performance for evidence-based decision-making.
Ramona Furkert (undergraduate paper)
In her paper, The Right to Food and Food Security: Should Food Banks be Abolished in Order to Hold Government Responsible?, Ms. Furkert explores the reasons why so many people have increasingly become dependent on food banks to supplement their income and examines how the Government of Canada has failed to ensure the right to food and food security for Canadian citizens by turning these rights into a charitable cause and shifting responsibility to the community level.
Download Paper
October 2005
Year 2 Publication includes the winning submissions by:
Daniel J. Hickey (graduate paper)
In his paper, The Evolution of Public Drug Benefits in Saskatchewan: 1945 - 2002, Mr. Hickey suggests that public drug coverage remains a policy riddle. While the issues have been studied at length, the enormous demands on the public coffers has contributed to keeping this policy issue in a state of flux.
Sharon M. Desjarlais (undergraduate paper)
In her paper, The Future of Restorative Justice in Canada, Ms. Desjarlais asserts that there are many positive outcomes from restorative justice programs, in particular, as a means to resolving conflict and healing communities. While many current programs still require adjustments, this approach can lead to positive change.
Download Paper
October 2004
Year 1 Publication is the winning submission by:
Maximilian D. Schmeiser
An Econometric Analysis of the Decline in Welfare Cases in Ontario: 1984 - 2002
Download Paper
October 2003
SIPP would like to make special mention of the following two students:
2nd Place - Ms. Heather George, The Formation of Public Policy in Canada: The Role of the Federal Government in Establishing Nation Standards
3rd Place - Ms. Tanna Wright, Where do Delinquents Come From?
Public Policy Papers, Student Editions
Saskatchewan's Oil and Gas Royalties: A Critical Appraisal
by: Erin Weir
Download Paper
January 2003
Tables I, II, III, IV, V
Section XI Appendices
Section XII References
*Erin's paper was not part of the Student Public Policy Essay Contest.


