Launch of the 2025-2026 Annual Theme: a panel rich in discussions at CIRANO

On September 17, CIRANO officially launched its 2025-2026 Annual Theme Education and Workforce: For a More Productive and Equitable Society, with approximately 80 participants in attendance.

On this occasion, a panel moderated by Geneviève Dufour, project director at CIRANO and coordinator of the 2025-2026 Annual Theme brought together the lead researchers of two major CIRANO themes: Benoit Dostie (HEC Montréal) and Fabian Lange (McGill University) for the Skills theme, as well as Raquel Fonseca (ESG UQAM) and Markus Poschke (McGill University) for the Inequality and Poverty theme.

The discussions addressed key issues such as school dropout, the links between education, workplace training, innovation and productivity, the alignment of labor supply and demand, as well as the potential effects of artificial intelligence on social inequalities.

Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin, President and CEO of CIRANO
“More than ever, science plays an essential role in guiding collective choices. By mobilizing our researchers, we want to support decision-makers with evidence-based data and concrete solutions on education and the labor market in order to reconcile productivity and equity.”

Geneviève Dufour, Senior Director of Major Collaborative Projects and Coordinator of the 2025-2026 Thematic Year
“The thematic year clearly illustrates the unique role of CIRANO: we build the bridge between researchers, public decision-makers and private organizations, in order to transform knowledge into concrete levers for action for our partners and for society.”

Many thanks to all participants for contributing to this stimulating exchange, which sets the tone for a year rich in research and collaboration!

Press release

Geneviève Dufour, Benoit Dostie, Fabian Lange, Raquel Fonseca et Markus Poschke.