Youth exchanges take on partisan taint in funding battle

Justin Trudeau, seen here visiting Katimavik volunteers in London, Ont. in 2007, was a champion of the volunteer organization even before his election as a Liberal MP. (Dave Chidley/Canadian Press)

Governor General David Johnston was caught musing by The Canadian Press earlier this week about his idea for a new program that could see the government offer funding for young people who are interested in academic or work exchanges abroad, or in other parts of Canada.

On the surface, it seems like a sort of motherhood idea anyone could or should get behind: relatively non-controversial, potentially low-cost, and heck, who could be against a governor general focused on an education agenda who's out to help young people better themselves?

But the current political climate is such that funding for youth exchange programs, and one program in particular, has become extremely political.

The March 29 federal budget cut the youth volunteer organization Katimavik off from government funding. Justin Trudeau, a champion for Katimavik even before his career in politics, called this cut "ideological " -- and it's true that the Trudeau (senior)-era initiative is associated with the red team's legacy, while the blue team is now in charge.

Few budget cuts of the (relatively small) size of Katimavik's could expect to garner the social and mainstream media attention this cutback has generated. Some of it could be attributed to the media magnet that is the Trudeau name, but some of it could also be more grassroots: thousands of Katimavik alumni and beneficiary organizations in communities across Canada were disappointed to see its demise. Some spoke movingly of their agencies' future work being in peril without the manpower of Katimavik volunteers.

One supposes that Heritage Minister James Moore may have seen this coming. Indeed, one could conclude that, looking at the communications strategy evident in how the minister has spent his time since the budget was announced: speaking of the government's continued funding for other youth programs not just once, but twice.

First, on April 2 at Ottawa's Terry Fox Youth Centre, when Moore announced the government's renewed support for the Ottawa-based Encounters with Canada program, which brings teenagers to Ottawa to learn more about their country's institutions and cultural communities.

The minister was out to tout youth programs again Tuesday, when he visited the TIFF Kids International Film Festival in Toronto to spotlight close to $27 million in new funding for eight specific projects across three of his department's programs: Exchanges Canada, Youth Take Charge and the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund.

A scan of recent press releases and itineraries suggests no other budget changes in Moore's portfolio have seen this much of the minister's post-budget face time.

"We are proud to invest in successful, affordable youth programs that give our young people the chance to learn about what makes us Canadian and will contribute to the strength of our country," said Moore in his press release, closely echoing Johnston's sentiments after the Vimy Ridge commemorations earlier this week.

But let's return to that idea Johnston shared with CP about a new program to help Canadian youth who want to enrich themselves through travel.

In fact, the government already has a program under the purview of Canadian Heritage to support cross-Canada cultural exchanges for young people. It also already funds international exchanges such as those sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency through Canada World Youth. (And who's the patron for Canada World Youth? Why it's Governor General David Johnston.) Foreign Affairs also has an International Experience Canada program to help young people interested in travelling and seeking out employment experience in other countries.   

So what makes a successful youth program? What kinds of exchanges for young people are worth funding, and which aren't? When is a new program needed, and when should an old one be cut?

The federal budget said the Harper government is "committed to giving our young people the opportunities they deserve" and would "achieve that by funding programs that benefit large numbers of young people at a reasonable cost rather than concentrating available funding on a very small number of participants at an excessive per-person cost."

It went on to mention that the total value of the government's support for such initiatives exceeds $105 million, allowing "almost 100,000 young people to learn about their country."

Trudeau last week cited figures intended to show that in fact Katimavik's per-person costs were not excessive, as the government alleged.

Moore disagreed, and citing other figures, called ending funding for Katimavik "one of the easiest decisions" he'd ever made.

Perhaps the debate would benefit from the release of more cost-benefit analyses for all the youth programs funded by the federal government. Then it might be easier to say whether Johnston's plans make sense. Or whether all these programs' benefits depend, at least in part, on the political stripes of the beholder.