Michael Van Pelt
Michael Van Pelt, President and CEO of Cardus, is a 30 year veteran of Canadian public life and a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. Since co-founding Cardus in 2000, Michael has helped build the organization into a leading public policy think tank and one of the most profiled and respected faith-based organizations in Canada.
Bio last updated March 27th, 2023.
Articles by Michael Van Pelt
Who Will Govern for the Common Good?
By Michael Van Pelt and Ray Pennings
October 25, 2019
In their analysis of federal election 2019, Cardus President and CEO Michael Van Pelt and Executive Vice-President Ray Pennings raise the red warning flag that the resulting minority Parliament represents a Canada in critical need of a vision of common life to heal its deep divisions.
It will take a new kind of leadership and an expansion of our public debate to address public life conflicts that are as much cultural as they are political or matters of public policy alone Reminding voters that the Bloc will evaluate its support for the Liberal government based on its prioritizing the interests of Quebec rather than that of Canada complicates the central priority to govern for the common good And if Liberal-NDP cooperation won’t work, a nationalist and left-leaning Bloc Québécois with a caucus that has tripled in size could still give a minority Liberal government the votes it needs to pass bills in the House of Commons This survey continues the important work of tracking the place of faith in Canadian public life and tests the strength of our social commitment to true and deep pluralism The fact that the NDP and Bloc Québécois resolutely supported the Liberal government’s original approach to funding for summer student jobs raises at least the possibility that such policies could expand to other funding or to other areas of social or political disagreement Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet, meanwhile, wasted no time in his election night speech reminding Canadians that Quebec has never signed onto the Constitution
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Missing the Point of Prayer
Michael Van Pelt
February 20, 2017
Earlier this month, Cardus President and CEO Michael Van Pelt attended the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington attended by President Trump. Van Pelt witnessed first hand the hardened divisions between Americans of faith and their media. He warns Canadians should brace themselves for a spill over effect.
You'd be very surprised by the number of people who go away from the Prayer Breakfast and in their normal prayer life would pray for their country and for the president - even if some actually disagree with the president Honestly, if you had asked the 4,000 people who were there what the story would...
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Special Edition: Universities Canada and Religious Freedom
Michael Van Pelt
September 14, 2016
Universities Canada (UC) is a civil society institution that acts as a gatekeeper for scholarship funding, certification credibility needed for recruitment and graduates, and membership to key organizations including athletic associations Why, then, is UC short-circuiting that legal process behind c...
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Changing Politics for a Changed Country
Michael Van Pelt
March 7, 2016
The challenge for a renewed conservatism that will have the authenticity and robustness to appeal again to the electorate will have the courage to avoid simplistic talking points and recognize that a healthy society requires a full range of social institutions to play their roles Rethinking charity,...
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How can the Canadian right recharge?
Michael Van Pelt
February 26, 2016
If conservatives hope to regain Conservative government, we observe from our neutral corner, the country’s largest gathering spanning the pragmatic centre-right to the distant galaxies of libertarianism must not spend time scowling at each other or, worse, making goo-goo eyes at the past Conservativ...
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Tribute to Jim Flaherty
Michael Van Pelt
April 11, 2014
My favourite memories still are traveling with Jim in and out of living rooms all over southern Ontario packed full of people wanting to hear Jim's hopeful vision for Ontario ...
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Can We Have Subsidiarity Without the Regulation?
Michael Van Pelt
March 14, 2014
Educational institutions and companies manage a dual training system of the theoretical and the practical ...
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My 2013 Top Ten
Michael Van Pelt
December 26, 2013
Do you know of another outfit that could (a) draw 400 people—on Toronto's snowiest day—to meet a Hong Kong cardinal and a Canadian cabinet minister; (b) bring a priest, professor, and central banker together to discuss economic virtue; and (c) present a British Lord speaking of faith in our common l...
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The great issue of our day
Michael Van Pelt
February 14, 2012
The future of charitable giving, and the vibrancy of the charitable sector, will be influenced much more by social and cultural conditions than by the limited tools available to government Indeed in 2008, based on the Canadian trend of increased population and higher incomes, the federal government ...
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The Conversation
Michael Van Pelt
October 18, 2011
On the cusp of launching a new publication to further the organization's mission of renewing Canada's social architecture, Cardus President Michael Van Pelt sat down with Convivium to explain the objectives for this venture and its overall purpose in the Canadian public policy sphere.
MVP: From a social architecture point of view, the reality is that The Convivium Project is going to infuse religion and belief into a public dialogue that is often missing, sometimes unwanted, but surely is more meaningful now than ever On the cusp of launching a new publication to further the orga...