ADVISING

This big-data study provides one the first comprehensive investigations into the state of competition in Canada's labour markets. Using data from Lightcast, the study calculates the concentration of regional labour markets across the country, identifying job types and regions where there are competition concerns. 

Collaborating with Ron Memmel, Robin uses strategic foresight techniques together with data analysis and insights from stakeholder convenings to develop a suite of public policies toward a more inclusive economy. 

In 2020, Robin was engaged by the Ontario Living Wage Network (OLWN) to develop an updated system for calculating the living wage. This system contains a custom model of the personal income tax system, programed in the R language, to calculate the before-tax income needed to provide a target living standard after families file their taxes. This model has enabled the OLWN to publish wages for every community in Ontario, which was not possible previously. 

This comprehensive, data-driven study quantifies the the digital divide for mobile service using the Canadian Internet Use Survey from Statistics Canada. Technology reluctance and lack of adoption from seniors were a key findings drawn from the analysis, guiding policy makers on how to close the mobile divide. 

Robin tests whether Canada's Competition Act is "fit for purpose" for the digital economy. Using a series of scenarios based on case studies, the team examines how the Competition Act applies to digital business strategies and whether it can effectively curb strategies that undermine competition, innovation, and entrepreneurship. This study was an important input to major reforms to the Competition Act in 2023 and 2024.  

To support this study, Robin and the Vivic Research team developed a custom model of the Canada Workers Benefit using the programming language R. Using this model they created a series of scenarios assuming various changes to the program, estimating the impact and efficiency of the program under each scenario.  

As part of its transformation plan, Fort Calgary engaged Robin and the Vivic Research team to design a KPI dashboard to measure progress towards the  strategic objectives of the Fort and City of Calgary. To create these KPIs, Robin and the team developed a logic model, an visitor experience survey, and a roadmap for collecting and synthesizing administrative data. 

To investigate whether the province should implement a basic income, the BC government struck the British Columbia Expert Panel on Basic Income. As a contributor to the Panel's study, Robin developed a model that simulated the cost, impact, and efficiency of over 1,640 versions of a basic income. These results were instrumental in guiding decisions by leaders in the BC government, and policy development across Canada with respect to a basic income.​

This study presents a series of policy options for recycling carbon pricing revenues for Ontario under several scenarios, using Statistics Canada's Social Policy Simulation Database/Model. For each scenario and policy solution, Robin produced the fiscal impacts for households of different income levels.