Over the summer of 2025, BHER in partnership with RBC Thought Leadership and Higher Education Strategy Associates, convened a national series of roundtables in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, Halifax, Waterloo, Montreal, and online. Each session brought together senior leaders from post-secondary institutions, business, government, and civil society to tackle one central question: what must Canada’s education and skills systems look like to ensure a thriving, globally competitive economy by 2035?
These conversations surfaced both shared priorities and regional nuances. Across the country, participants emphasized the need for post-secondary institutions to evolve from traditional education providers into engines of lifelong learning, innovation, and civic engagement. They also identified systemic barriers—rigid governance, misaligned funding, public trust erosion, and fragmented industry partnerships—that must be addressed if Canada is to compete on talent, innovation, and productivity.
The roundtables were not intended to generate consensus, but to capture a diversity of perspectives on the pressures, incentives, and bold ideas required for change. What follows is a summary of those discussions.
To be clear, this document is an interim synthesis of our roundtable series. It is intended as a high-level summary of what we heard across the sessions, not a comprehensive analysis or a final piece. The themes and insights captured here are a starting point to inform next steps, including deeper dives, detailed reports, and future convening activities, which are in development.
We’re building a coalition of the willing for this initiative. If you’re keen to stay involved, please don’t hesitate to reach out and let us know.
