Parkland Institute
| Motto | Research and Education for the Common Good |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1996 |
| Type | Public policy think tank |
| Location | |
| Website | www.parklandinstitute.ca |
The Parkland Institute is an Alberta-wide, non-partisan research institute (or think tank) situated within the Faculty of Arts at the University of Alberta. The Institute studies economic, social, cultural, and political issues using the intellectual approach of Canadian political economy.
The Institute was founded in the fall of 1996 and first came to public attention in February 1997 when it co-published with the University of Alberta Press the book Shredding the Public Interest: Ralph Klein and 25 Years of One-Party Government by researcher Kevin Taft. Then-Alberta premier Ralph Klein accused Taft of promoting "communism" and the book quickly became a best-seller.
In addition to publishing and disseminating the findings of research, the Parkland Institute has since 1997 hosted an annual conference each November at the University of Alberta.
The Parkland Institute was founded in 1996 by Gordon Laxer, a political economist in the University of Alberta's sociology department, who became the Institute's first director.
The Institute's first publication, Shredding the Public Interest: Ralph Klein and 25 Years of One-Party Government by researcher Kevin Taft became a best-seller after then-premier Ralph Klein criticized the report and accused Taft of being a communist.
In November 1997 the Institute held its first annual conference, "Globalization, Corporatism & Democracy: Alberta and Canada," which featured a keynote presentation by John Ralston Saul.
In March 1999 Ralph Klein again attacked the Institute, sending a letter of complaint about a conference presentation by economist Armine Yalnizyan to then University of Alberta President Rod Fraser, in which he accused the Institute of being "factually challenged" and "one-sided and ideologically biased."
Bill Moore-Kilgannon was the Institute's Executive Director for the first four years, and was replaced by current Executive Director Ricardo Acuña in May 2002.
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