Who We Are

Staff

Senior Research Staff

Brett J. Skinner, President; Director, Health Policy and Insurance Policy Research
Brett J. Skinner is the Fraser Institute's President as well as Director of Health Policy and Insurance Policy research. He holds a B.A. from the University of Windsor, an M.A. through joint studies between the University of Windsor and Wayne State University in Detroit (Michigan), and a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario, where he has lectured in both the Faculty of Health Sciences and the Department of Political Science. He has also worked as a research consultant to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (Toronto). Since 2002, Dr. Skinner has authored or co-authored nearly 40 major original pieces of applied economics and public policy research. In 2003 he was a co-winner of the Atlas Economic Research Foundation’s Sir Antony Fisher Memorial Award for innovative projects in public policy. His research has been published through several think-tanks including the Fraser Institute, the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (Halifax) and the Pacific Research Institute (San Francisco). His work has also been published in several academic journals including Economic Affairs, Pharmacoeconomics and Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics. Dr. Skinner appears and is cited frequently as an expert in the Canadian, American, and global media. He has presented his research at conferences and events around the world, including twice testifying before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health in Ottawa, and twice briefing bi-partisan Congressional policy staff at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

Peter Cowley, Senior Vice President Operations and Director, School Performance Studies
Peter Cowley is the Senior Vice President Operations and Director of School Performance Studies at The Fraser Institute. He graduated from the University of British Columbia with a B.Comm. in 1974. Shortly thereafter, he began a long career in marketing and general management in several sectors. During his assignments in general management, process improvement was a special focus and interest. In 1994, Mr Cowley independently wrote and published The Parent’s Guide, a popular handbook for parents of British Columbia’s secondary-school students. The Parent’s Guide web site replaced the handbook in 1995.

In 1998, Mr Cowley was co-author of The Fraser Institute’s A Secondary Schools Report Card for British Columbia, the first of the Institute’s continuing series of annual reports on school performance. This was followed in by The 1999 Report Card on British Columbia’s Secondary Schools, Boys, Girls, and Grades: Academic Gender Balance in British Columbia’s Secondary Schools, and The 1999 Report Card on Alberta’s High Schools. Since then, Mr Cowley has co-authored all of the Institute’s annual Report Cards. Annual editions now include Report Cards on secondary schools in British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec, as well as Report Cards on elementary schools in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario. He continues his research on education and related issues for The Fraser Institute.

Michael Walker, President, Free Market Research Foundation and Senior Fellow
Michael Walker is a Senior Fellow of The Fraser Institute and President of the Institute’s Foundation. He served as Executive Director of The Fraser Institute from its establishment in 1974 until 2005. He received his BA (summa) from St. Francis Xavier University and his Ph.D. in Econometrics at the University of Western Ontario. He writes regularly for daily newspapers and financial periodicals. His articles have appeared in technical journals in Canada, the United States, and Europe, including The American Economic Review, the Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Public Policy, Health Affairs, and the Canadian Tax Journal. He has written or edited 50 books on economic matters.

Gerry Angevine, Senior Economist, Energy Studies
Gerry Angevine is Senior Economist in The Fraser Institute’s Centre for Energy Studies.
Dr. Angevine has been President of AECL, an energy economics consulting firm, since 1999 and was a Managing Consultant with Navigant Consulting Ltd. from 2001 to 2004. He was President, CEO, and a Director of the Canadian Energy Research Institute from 1979 to 1999. Prior to that, he worked as an economist at the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and the Bank of Canada.

Dr. Angevine has undertaken domestic and international studies in the markets for natural gas (including trade, pipelines and storage), oil and oil products (including oil sands, refining and investment), and electricity (including deregulation, water rentals, and renewables). He has advised the Alberta Department of Energy and testified before the National Energy Board as an expert witness. He has A.M. and Ph.D. degrees in Economics from the University of Michigan, a M.A. Economics degree from Dalhousie University and a B.Comm. from Mount Allison University.

Amela Karabegovic, Senior Economist, Fiscal Studies
Amela Karabegović is a Senior Economist in the Fiscal Studies Department at the Fraser Institute. She holds a B.M. (Great Distinction) in General Management from the University of Lethbridge in Alberta and an M.A. in Economics from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. She is a coauthor of the Economic Freedom of North America, Economic Freedom of the Arab World, Myths and Realities of TILMA, Transparency of Labour Relations Boards in Canada and the United States, Measuring Labour Markets in Canada and the United States, Measuring the Flexibility of Labour Relations Laws in Canada and the United States, Tax and Expenditure Limitations: The Next Step in Fiscal Discipline, and the Prosperity Series—Ontario.

Fred McMahon, Vice President Research and Director, Centre for Globalization Studies
Fred McMahon is the Vice President of Research and Director of the Centre for Trade and Globalization Studies at The Fraser Institute. He manages the Economic Freedom of the World Project and examines global issues, such as development, trade, governance, and economic structure. The Centre coordinates the Economic Freedom Network, an international alliance of independent think tanks in nearly 70 nations. As well, the centre publishes The Fraser Institute’s Annual Survey of Mining Companies. McMahon is the author of numerous research articles and several books including, Looking the Gift Horse in the Mouth: The Impact of Federal Transfers on Atlantic Canada, which won the Sir Antony Fisher International Memorial Award for advancing public policy debate, Road to Growth: How Lagging Economies Become Prosperous, and Retreat from Growth: Atlantic Canada and the Negative Sum Economy. He has written for numerous publications including the European Journal of Political Economy, the SAIS Journal (School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University), The Wall Street Journal, Policy Options, National Post, Time (Canada), Globe and Mail, Ottawa Citizen, and most other major Canadian newspapers. Research articles he has recently authored or co-authored include: “Economic Freedom of North America”, “Quebec Prosperity: Taking the Next Step”, “The Unseen Wall: The Fraser Institute's Annual Trade Survey”, and “Economic Freedom of the Arab World”. He has a MA in Economics from McGill University, Montreal.

Jean-François Minardi, Senior Policy Analyst, Québec et la Francophonie
Jean-François has a strong academic background in Political Science, Economics and Project Management. He holds a Master’s Degree in Economics in Economic Expertise and International Projects Management from the Université Paris XII. He has completed his PhD coursework focusing on International Relations at the Université de Montreal where he also holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science. Jean François has work experience with Industry Canada as well as various European firms. He was recently in charge of the implementation, organisation and co-ordination of an 11 million euro Business Upgrading Programme of SMEs in Algeria funded by the European Commission.

Milagros Palacios, Senior Research Economist, Fiscal Studies
Milagros Palacios is a Senior Research Economist in the Fiscal Studies Department at The Fraser Institute. She holds a Bachelors degree in Industrial Engineering from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru and a M.Sc. in Economics from the University of Concepción, Chile. She is co-author of Measuring Labour Markets in Canada and the United States, Fiscal Performance Index, Tax Freedom Day, Canadian Provincial Investment Climate Report, An Empirical Comparison of Labour Relations Laws in Canada and the United States, Union Disclosure in Canada and the United States, Canadian Government Debt, and Transparency of Labour Relations Boards in Canada and the United States. Her recent commentaries have appeared in such newspapers as the National Post and Windsor Star. Since joining the Institute, Ms. Palacios has written regularly for Fraser Forum on a wide range of topics including labour regulation, fiscal issues, taxation, charitable giving, and a host of environmental issues such as air quality, Kyoto, and water transfers.

Mark Rovere, Associate Director, Health Policy Research Centre
Mark Rovere is Associate Director of the Health Policy Research Centre at the Fraser Institute. He holds an Honours Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Windsor. Since joining the Institute, Mr. Rovere has contributed research and co-authored numerous studies on a range of health and pharmaceutical policy issues including Canadian pharmaceutical pricing, access to new medicines, government drug expenditures, Canadian and American prescription drug spending, and the sustainability of public health care in Canada. His recent commentaries have appeared in such newspapers as the Financial Post, Calgary Herald, Halifax Chronicle Herald and Toronto Sun.  Mr. Rovere has also written regularly for the Fraser Forum on a variety of health and pharmaceutical policy related topics. He is currently a Ph.D. student in the Department of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto.  

Niels Veldhuis, Vice President Research and Director of Fiscal Studies
Niels Veldhuis is the Vice President of Research and Director of Fiscal Studies and a Senior Economist at The Fraser Institute. Since joining the Institute in 2002, Niels has authored or co-authored 4 books and 34 comprehensive studies on a wide range of topics including, taxation, productivity, entrepreneurship, labour markets, and government performance. He has written over 125 articles, which have appeared in over 50 newspapers including, The National Post, Globe and Mail and Wall Street Journal. He appears regularly radio and television programs across the country and has appeared before committees of both the House of Commons and the Senate as an expert witness. Niels has a Bachelor degree in Business Administration, with joint majors in business and economics, and a Master Degree in Economics from Simon Fraser University.