Universities are typically organized into silos – engineering, business, medicine – but sustainability requires collaboration across these fields. “For example, solar energy involves policy, engineering, business,” says Juan Camilo Serpa, an Associate Professor at McGill Desautels.” To foster cross-disciplinary collaboration among sustainability researchers, Serpa created the Sustainability Action Network—or SUSAN for short.
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Published on: 1 Apr 2025
When OpenAI released ChatGPT in late 2022, the hype around AI began building to a fever pitch. Big money poured in to big tech, sending the stock of companies like Microsoft and Nvidia soaring. But a December 2024 AI chatbot release from a much smaller Chinese tech firm is showing that generative AI can be built a much more modest budget. “Deepseek shows that smaller companies with more limited resources can compete with tech giants,” Prof. Ruslan Goyenko told Benefits Canada.
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Published on: 1 Apr 2025
The federal election campaign is well underway, and the leaders of the Liberal and Conservative parties are both proposing tax cuts for the lowest income tax bracket. Income up to $57,375 is currently taxed at a rate of 15%, and Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has proposed a 2.25% reduction to this rate. For his part, Liberal leader Mark Carney is proposing a 1% reduction. In either case, the tax savings do not just benefit the lowest income earners. Anyone who earns more the personal deduction amount -- $15,705 in 2024-- would save money on their taxes.
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Published on: 1 Apr 2025
Canada’s big pension funds are the envy of fund managers in other countries. They’re something that the UK’s defined contribution plance could aspire to, writes Padraig Floyd in Pensions Expert. “They’re all public, but they’re run like private sector corporations,” said Prof. Sebastien Betermier. "They have a governance system and delegation framework which is such that they're able to pay market salaries, so they can attract the best people.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
US tariffs are a concern for all Canadians—and companies on both sides of the border stand to lose out. But investors shouldn’t necessarily head for the exits, according to Benjamin Croitoru, an associate professor of finance at McGill Desautels. “Emotion is a bad financial advisor,” Croitoru told Radio-Canada. “It’s a time of great uncertainty, but also a good time to think about how internationally diversified your portfolio is. You don’t want to have all your eggs in one basket.”
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
Even as the venerable Hudson’s Bay Company liquidates its iconic department stores, some Canadian retailers are experiencing a renaissance. Quebec department store has been expanding, even as others struggle to stay in the black. But Trump’s tariffs are clouding the future for Canadian retailers.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
Since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January, frequent tariff threats have disrupted the economy. It is difficult to keep track of which products will be tariffed, when they will be tariffed, and how much they will be tariffed by. But Provigo stores in Quebec are taking steps that will help shoppers understand the factors that affect the price of their groceries. They are developing signage that will mark tariffed items with a “T” to explain price hikes.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
The Trump administration’s tariffs have catalyzed a cross-country movement to buy Canadian products. But will that movement affect the how Canada’s big pension funds manage their portfolios? The eight largest pension plans in Canada hold more than $2 trillion in assets, but only about a quarter of those assets are Canadian. Some Canadian politicians and business leaders have called for our pension plans to invest more of their money at home, but government involvement in pension fund management can get in the way of these funds primary objective—to deliver returns for pension plan members.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was among the least controversial cabinet appointments made by President Donald Trump. During this turbulent time in geopolitics, the stature of the former Florida senator is rising, according to Newsweek. It’s a high-stakes role, and for countries like Canada, Rubio has become a kind of interlocutor that helps interpret information coming out of the White House.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
Nearly two-thirds of employees feel they’ve been ‘thrown under the bus’ by their colleagues—but an even higher number say they’ve never engaged in blame-shifting themselves. “The axe forgets, but the tree remembers,” says Jean-Nicolas Reyt, an Associate Professor of Organizational Management at McGill Desautels. “When we hurt someone, we are quick to forget about it, but when people hurt us, we remember it forever. But there’s more to it than that, Reyt told HR Reporter.
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Published on: 27 Mar 2025
As calls to bolster Canada’s economy intensify, the debate over pension fund strategies has gained national attention. In a Financial Post article, Professor Betermier highlights concerns over political interference in pension management and the potential long-term impact on investment strategies. He underscores the importance of maintaining pension funds’ independence to ensure strong, sustainable returns for retirees.
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Published on: 26 Mar 2025
With increasing market volatility, Professor Sebastien Betermier shares his advice on how Quebec investors can weather economic uncertainty. In an interview with the Motnreal Gazette, he emphasizes the importance of staying disciplined, avoiding panic and hasty decisions, and consulting a financial planner before making changes. Betermier highlights the risk of overreacting to short-term fluctuations in the market and advises to focus on long-term investment goals.
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Published on: 26 Mar 2025
McGill University hosted its annual Bravo Gala on Thursday, March 27, celebrating research excellence and recognizing faculty members and researchers who have received awards, memberships, and prizes over the past year.
McGill Desautels is proud to celebrate three distinguished faculty members among this year’s honourees:
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Published on: 25 Mar 2025
CIUSSS West-Central Montreal is testing AI Scribe, an AI-powered tool designed to help physicians efficiently document patient consultations. Under the guidance of Professor Maxime Cohen, a leading AI expert and Scale AI Chair Professor at McGill, the initiative aims to reduce administrative burdens and enhance patient care.
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Published on: 21 Mar 2025
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