The OLIP interns enjoyed meeting with our programme partner, Burson, and speaking with Shanice Scott, Senior Account Director; Mik Opolski, Senior Consultant; Hailey Budgell, Consultant; and Stefanie Di Cosmo, Consulting Intern. Established in 2024 and formerly known as Burson Cohn and Wolfe (BCW), Burson is a global public relations and communications firm based in New York City, with an international presence spanning North and Latin America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East

The OLIP interns greatly appreciated the opportunity to meet with the Canadian Beverage Association (CBA), our esteemed partner, and engage in a fascinating discussion with President Krista Scaldwell and Erich Schmidt, Senior Director of Communications and Public Affairs. Prefacing our discussion, we explored the CBA’s role in leading Canada’s sustainable and collaborative non-alcoholic beverage sector. For example, the beverages represented by the CBA range from soft drinks

We were honoured to visit the offices of Ontario Power Generation, the crown corporation responsible for over half of Ontario’s electricity generation. It was a pleasure to speak with Timothy Gopaul, Senior Manager Provincial Government Relations, and two of our energy expert alumni: Jake Sikora, Senior Manager Stakeholder and Government Relations and David Donavan, VP Corporate Business Development and Strategy. It was wonderful to continue our journeys exploring Ontario ene

It was a pleasure to meet with and learn about the Ontario Nurses Association this past week. The OLIP interns had the opportunity to chat with Imreet Kaur, Government and External Relations Specialist; Andre Fast, Government and External Relations Specialist; and Leanne Cooke, Senior Advisor at the Office of the President and Board of Directors. Starting as a nurses’ union, ONA now represents thousands of healthcare professionals across the province, ranging from an amalgam

It was wonderful to chat with the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance this week and learn more about contemporary issues facing students in universities across the province. We had the opportunity to speak with Omar Sayyed, VP Finance of the Steering Committee, and Octave Andrade-Dixon, Executive Director. Representing both the student-led and the executive leadership sides of the organization (something unique to an organization like OUSA), Omar and Octave had a wealth of

This past week, the interns had the pleasure of speaking with the Honourable Bob Rae, the 21st Premier of Ontario. It’s not every day you meet one of the subjects of a portrait in the Legislative Building in real life, so it was truly an honour to welcome Mr. Rae to our space! Mr. Rae has been a stronghold in Canadian politics for decades, serving as leader of the provincial NDP, Premier of Ontario, leader of the Liberal Party of Canada as an MP, and most recently, Canada’

The interns “geared up” for a meeting with the Ontario Society of Professional Engineering (OSPE), Ontario's advocacy body for engineering and one of the only provincial advocacy bodies for engineers in Canada. It was wonderful to speak with Paola Cetares, Director of Public Affairs, and Lydia Batty, Public Relations Coordinator, about their experiences before joining OSPE and the work they do translating technical engineering information to digestible non-partisan content

The OLIP interns greatly appreciated meeting with Alain Brandon, Vice President of Government and Industry Relations, with Loblaw Companies Ltd. Founded in 1919, Loblaw now serves as the parent company operating some of Canada’s most well-known retailers, including Loblaws, NoFrills, Shopper’s DrugMart, and their associated independent brands. Over the course of our conversation, we had the opportunity to discuss the history and evolution of Loblaw over the years, as well as

This past week, the interns had the opportunity to meet with Ryan Clarke, Executive Director of Noviscend Inc. Noviscend is an organization established on the mandate of accelerating access to leading-edge Diagnostics and Medical Devices in the Canadian market. To achieve its mission, Noviscend delivers innovative forms of healthcare through advocacy, marketing, and education. Over the course of our conversation, it was fascinating to hear about Noviscend’s efforts in the he