Brendan Boyd

Dr. Brendan Boyd investigates why, how and with what effect governments learn from each other when developing solutions to critical policy issues. In particular, he has studied the role of learning and other cross-jurisdictional influences among Canadian provinces responding to climate change. He is interested in whether Canada's provincial and territorial governments act as policy laboratories, allowing for policy experimentation and innovations that can spread and inform the policy development in their counterparts across the country, as well as at the federal level. His research primarily relies on elite interviews with decision makers and policy analysts to understand the role of cross-jurisdictional learning and influences on their work.