CIRANO’s mission is to contribute to the strategic decision-making of its government, quasi-public, and private partners by producing and disseminating high-value-added academic knowledge. In an environment marked by international trade and geopolitical tensions, inflationary pressures, and increased budgetary constraints, this mission takes on particular importance.
In 2026–2027, CIRANO is placing economic and fiscal policy, public finance, the global economy, macroeconomic issues, and financial markets at the heart of its research agenda. This annual theme will guide the work of our research community on issues that illustrate the complexity of the challenges facing public policymakers.
- With regard to public finances, research will address issues such as modeling budget provisions based on tax revenues, the impact of credit agency ratings on government borrowing costs, and, more broadly, ways to better equip governments to design more resilient and robust fiscal policies in a context of low potential growth, an aging population, high debt, and major macroeconomic shocks.
- In the area of fiscal policy and public financing, we will focus in particular on the financing of municipal infrastructure to adapt to climate change, the value-creation potential of various investment options aimed at increasing public funding for preventive health care, and issues related to compliance with tax regulations.
- In terms of macroeconomic issues, our researchers are examining regional inflation dynamics, the determinants of business productivity, macroeconomic modeling of the links between real estate markets and demographic and migration trends, and modeling the impacts of air pollution on gross domestic product.
- In the area of financial markets and regulation, issues related to public contracts will be addressed from the perspective of economic offenses linked to public procurement.
This theme also encompasses research on international trade and competitiveness issues in a context of tariff turbulence, including the activities of the Data Science and Knowledge Transfer Hub for Trade and Intermodal Transportation in the St. Lawrence/Great Lakes Corridor (GVCdtLaB), led by principal investigator Thierry Warin (HEC Montréal).
As part of this 2026–2027 thematic year, CIRANO will benefit from the leadership of three researchers serving as principal investigators: Julien Martin (ESG UQAM), Kevin Moran (Laval University), and Dalibor Stevanovic (ESG UQAM).
The year will feature events that will create opportunities for dialogue between the research community, public policymakers, and CIRANO’s partners. These meetings will provide a forum to compare research findings with real-world realities and address concrete issues.
![[CANCELLED] Second meeting of the 2020 Cohort of Avant-Garde@CIRANO](/files/uploads/events/sm/936.webp)
![[CANCELLED] Fourth meeting of the 2020 Cohort of Avant-Garde@CIRANO](/files/uploads/events/sm/938.webp)
![[CANCELLED] Seminar: Economic Analysis of the Government of Quebec's Information Policies](/files/uploads/events/sm/946.webp)
