Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
My name is John Beebe, and I am the founder of the Democratic Engagement Exchange at Toronto Metropolitan University. We are a non-partisan organization with a clear mission to build a vibrant and healthy democracy in Canada.
Today, I want to offer a simple idea: It is time to build a public health system for Canada's democracy. We can have the best vaccines, the leading research and the most sophisticated tools to fight disinformation, but without trusted frontline staff to deliver them, we cannot stop the foreign interference threatening our sovereignty or address the algorithmic polarization undermining our social cohesion.
The good news is that we are building on the basis of strength. As a proud new Canadian who cut his political teeth in the United States, I am grateful for what we get right. Voting is easy; elections aren't swamped by dark money, and we don't gerrymander. All of these things are critical elements of a healthy democracy that we must continue to protect.
However, democracy depends on more than procedures. It depends on people. Around the world, we see healthy democracies eroding, and Canada is not immune from this.
Voting is the lifeblood of any democracy, yet participation in provincial and municipal elections has reached historic lows. It was as low as 16% for youth in the most recent Nova Scotia election.
At the same time, our social fabric is fraying. We are experiencing an epidemic of loneliness and social isolation, particularly among young people. A recent YMCA study found that nearly 70% of young Canadians now report a lack of belonging in their communities. We are no longer looking at a mid-life crisis in Canada. We are looking at a youth crisis, whereby those under 30 are the loneliest and least happy members of our society. This matters, because when people feel disconnected from one another, they become vulnerable to the polarization and manipulation that authoritarian actors exploit. These actors don't need to destroy our institutions; they need only weaken the trust holding us together. Yes, we can blame anti-social media platforms, but the regulation of the platforms, while important, is not enough. We must offer young people, new Canadians and all community members an alternative.
This is where civil society acts as our democratic immune system. The exchange partners with thousands of community organizations, which are the trusted messengers and the glue of our communities. We provide them with free training and tools like our vote pop-up, which demystifies the voting process for first-time voters. We've trained thousands of librarians, settlement workers and student leaders to facilitate conversations and teach people how to vote. They do this off the side of their desk because they are passionate, but we can no longer rely on the goodwill of these unsung heroes. Right now, our democratic front line is underfunded and overstretched.
When we support this work, it creates a virtuous cycle. In every province and territory, we hear the same thing. People crave safe spaces to belong and be heard. When they find their community, they engage. When they engage, they vote, and their confidence in our institutions goes up.
At a moment when toxic online discourse is rampant, and students, friends and neighbours are avoiding conversations on the issues they care about because they're too political, creating these opportunities is essential. I'd like to share one story that illustrates this experience.
I was invited to join a workshop run by frontline staff we had recently trained. Noor ran a cook and learn program for new Canadians, who were mostly older women from South Asia. As part of the workshop, they had an opportunity to learn about the three levels of government, discuss issues they care about and make a representation of their ideal democracy out of playdough. At the end of the workshop, I asked the participants if they enjoyed it and found it valuable—after all, they were there to learn about cooking and have a chance to socialize, not talk about Canada's democracy. They had one simple answer: Yes, because this was a safe space to talk about the issues that matter to them and engage in our democracy, which was something they desperately wanted to do.
These conversations strengthen the health of our communities and our democracy, and this is why I am here to express our strong support for the Canadian democracy fund, with a $20-million annual investment. This model would be at arm's length and non-partisan, similar to how we fund the arts, sciences or Elections Canada itself.
This investment is modest compared with the costs of treating the disease of democratic collapse after it has already taken hold, and its impact will be significant. It will help unlock the potential of community organizations and local leaders in communities across Canada, and it will provide a foundation for deeper commitment from private philanthropy. This critical investment in our communities is what we need at this moment. Ultimately, the strength of our democracy isn't measured by who wins. It's measured by who participates.
Thank you. I look forward to your questions.