In Memoriam: Tom Courchene

November 14, 2025 – The C.D. Howe Institute and its staff mourn the passing of influential Canadian economist and professor, Dr. Tom Courchene.

A Senior Fellow with the C.D. Howe Institute from 1980 to 1999, Dr. Courchene was a prolific author, editor and authority on Canadian economic and social policy. He is remembered for his work on monetary and macroeconomic policy, his expertise on Canada’s fiscal federalism, and his thoughtful work on regional and culturally focused institutions as the foundation for Indigenous-state relations in Canada.

Dr. Courchene’s contributions to the Institute include a four-volume series on Canadian monetary policy, begun in 1976, as well as In Praise of Renewed Federalism and Social Policy in the 1990s: Agenda for Reform.

“Unbeknownst to him, Tom helped launch my career,” recalls C.D. Howe Institute Senior Vice-President Daniel Schwanen.

“Early on, I wrote a paper interpreting his early thoughts on monetary policy and Canada's flexible exchange rate,” says Schwanen. “Later, when I co-edited a series of papers on North American integration with him, it was deeply rewarding to work alongside such an erudite and skilled economist, a prolific writer and teacher who was so passionate about the role good public policy can play in improving the life of Canadians.”

“Tom was the foremost expert on Canada’s fiscal federalism,” adds Institute Vice-President and Director of Research Alex Laurin.

Dr. Courchene’s academic career includes serving as a Professor of Economics at the University of Western Ontario, a visiting Professor at École nationale d’administration publique, and the John P. Robarts Chair in Canadian Studies at York University in 1987.

In 1988, he accepted the Directorship of Queen’s University’s School of Policy Studies, and from 1992 until his retirement, he was the Jarislowsky-Deutsch Professorship in Economics and Financial Policy. In addition, he served as Director of the John Deutsch Institute for the Study of Economic Policy and the Institute of Intergovernmental Relations.

Dr. Courchene also made significant contributions to Canadian economic policy as Chair of the Ontario Economic Council, and President of both the Canadian Economics Association and the North American Economics and Finance Association.

An Officer of the Order of Canada and Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, he received the Molson Prize for lifetime achievement in the Social Sciences and Humanities in 1999. He also received honorary doctorates from the University of Western Ontario, the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina.

“Happily for the economic profession, for Canadian public policy, and for the C.D. Howe Institute, Tom’s energy and prolific writing matched the wide range of topics on which he had important things to say,” says C.D. Howe Institute President and CEO William B.P. Robson.  “We join his family, colleagues and friends in mourning his passing, and in celebrating his enormous contributions to his country.”

For more information please contact: Lauren Malyk, Manager, Communications, C.D. Howe Institute, 416-873-6168, lmalyk@cdhowe.org