After his Liberal Party’s surprise victory in the 2015 federal Canadian election, Justin Trudeau declared that "Canada was back" on the world stage. This comprehensive volume highlights issues in the relationship between articulated visions of Canada as a global actor, nation branding and domestic politics, noting the dangers of the politicization of the branding of Canada. It also provides the political context for thinking about ‘Brand Canada’ in the Trudeau era. The authors explore the Trudeau government’s embrace of political branding and how it plays out in key areas central to the brand, including: Canada’s relations with Indigenous peoples; social media and digital diplomacy; and the importance of the Arctic region for Canada’s brand, even though it is often ignored by politicians and policymakers. The book asks whether the Trudeau government has lived up to its claim that Canada is back, and highlights the challenges that emerge when governments provide optimistic visions for meaningful transformation, but then do not end up leading meaningful change. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of political science, particularly those with a focus on Canada. It was originally published as a special issue of Canadian Foreign Policy Journal.

Nation Branding: Concepts, Issues, Practice provides a theoretical framework, alongside insightful examples from the practice of nation banding, in which the principles of brand strategy and management are applied to countries globally. This new edition has been comprehensively updated and its influential original framework modified to reflect the very latest changes in the field. It remains an accessible blend of theory and practice rich with international examples and contributions. Updates to this edition: New Academic Perspectives and Practitioner Insights in each chapter Updated and new cases from a broad range of nations and cultures Fresh coverage of online branding and social media New material covering the critical and ethical issues of nation branding, including the limitations Updated references and sources Updated online resources, including PowerPoint slides and Instructor Manual with end-of-chapter discussion points and suggested answers This is an essential introduction to nation branding for students of Marketing, Brand Management, Communications, and Public and International Relations, as well as policy makers looking for a rigorous yet applied approach.

Publicity pervades our political and public culture, but little has been written that critically examines the basis of the modern Canadian “publicity state.” This collection is the first to focus on the central themes in the state’s relationship with publicity practices and the “permanent campaign,” the constant search by politicians and their strategists for popular consent. Central to this political popularity contest are publicity tools borrowed from private enterprise, turning political parties into sound bites and party members into consumers. Publicity and the Canadian State is the first sustained study of the contemporary practices of political communication, focusing holistically on the tools of the publicity state and their ideological underpinnings: advertising, public opinion research, marketing, branding, image consulting, and media and information management, as well as related topics such as election law and finance, privacy, think-tank lobbying, and non-election communication campaigns. Bringing together contemporary Canadian analysis by scholars in a number of fields, this collection will be a welcome new resource for academics, public relations and policy professionals, and government communicators at all levels.

In the last two years, Canadian society has been marked by political and ideological turmoil. How does an increasingly divided country engage a world that is itself divided and tumultuous? Political instability has been reinforced by international uncertainty: the COVID-19 pandemic, populism, Black Lives Matter, and the chaotic final year of the Trump presidency that increased tensions between the West, China and Russia. Even with a Biden presidency, these issues will continue to influence Canada’s domestic situation and its ability to engage as an effective global actor. Contributors explore issues that cause or reflect these tensions, such as Canada’s willingness to address pressing crises through multilateralism, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Can Canada forge its own path in a turbulent world?

What happens to the nation when it is reconceived as a brand? How does nation branding change the terms of politics and culture in a globalized world? Branding the Nation offers a unique critical perspective on the power of brands to affect how we think about space, value and identity.

Migration and the impact that immigrants have on Canada is and always has been central to a robust understanding of Canadian identity. However, despite claims that “the world needs more Canada,” Canadians, their governments, and scholars pay much less attention to the estimated 3 million Canadian expatriates who live elsewhere. The Construction of Canadian Identity from Abroad features Canadian scholars who live and work outside Canada (or have recently returned to Canada) and who write and think deeply about identity construction. What happens when that Canadian is a scholar whose teaching, research and scholarship, professional development, and/or community engagement focuses directly on Canada? How does being abroad affect how we interpret Canada? In short, in what ways does “externality” affect how Canadian expat scholars intellectually approach, construct, and identify with Canada? This engaging volume is ideal for university students, scholars, government officials, and the general public.

Canadian Foreign Policy, as an academic discipline, is in crisis. Despite its value, CFP is often considered a “stale and pale” subfield of political science with an unfashionably state-centred focus. Canadian Foreign Policy asks why. Practising scholars investigate how they were taught to think about Canada and how they teach the subject themselves. Their inquiry shines a light on issues such as the casualization of academic labour and the relationship between study and policymaking. This nuanced collection offers not only a much-needed assessment of the boundaries, goals, and values of the discipline but also a guide to its revitalization.