Made possible through a generous donation from the Hunter Family Foundation

The Hunter Prize for Public Policy aims to shake up Canadian policymaking by marshalling fresh ideas, energy and voices to take on a clearly-defined “wicked problem” and improve the economic and social wellbeing of Canadians.


Entry deadline is

April 30th, 2023.

The Prize

The Hunter Prize will include $50,000 in prizes to be awarded.

The winner will receive a cash prize of $25,000 to translate their idea into public policy. The runner-up will receive a $5,000 prize. Those placing 3 through 10 will receive prizes of $2,500.

The Prize

The Hunter Prize will include $50,000 in prizes to be awarded.

The winner will receive a cash prize of $25,000 to translate their idea into public policy. The runner-up will receive a $5,000 prize. Those placing 3 through 10 will receive prizes of $2,500.


Meet the Judges 

Meet the Judges 


Key Dates

March 1 – April 30, 2023 Launch and entry period


May 1 – June 30, 2023 Internal adjudication of submissions and 10 finalists selected


July 1 – August 15, 2023 Finalists announced and their policy proposals further developed/refined


August 16 – September 15, 2023 Proposals published


September 16, 2023 Winners announced

Key Dates

March 1 – April 30, 2023 Launch and entry period


May 1 – June 30, 2023 Internal adjudication of submissions and 10 finalists selected


July 1 – August 15, 2023 Finalists announced and their policy proposals further developed/refined


August 16 – September 15, 2023 Proposals published and public voting


September 16, 2023 Winners announced

How does this work?

Entrants are asked to consider our inaugural topic and challenge below, then provide a short synopsis of their policy proposal. All entries will be adjudicated by an esteemed panel of judges, including Robert Asselin, Dr. Adam Kassam, Amanda Lang, Karen Restoule and Trevor Tombe. The judges will select 10 finalists to further refine and develop their ideas before vying for $50,000 in cash prizes and the chance to translate their idea into actionable public policy. The Hunter Prize is open to those 40 years of age or younger as of December 31, 2023.

Inaugural Topic: Health-Care Wait Times

A “wicked problem” is an issue or challenge that is difficult to solve for three reasons: (1) it involves interconnected economic, cultural and social factors, (2) it tends to be long term in nature, and (3) its possible solutions can be contentious due to entrenched thinking and interests.

The ongoing crisis in Canada’s health-care systems is a wicked problem. For the last three years, our health-care systems have been overwhelmed, struggling to manage growing demands, first with COVID-19 and now new respiratory viruses, in addition to an ongoing backlog of postponed surgeries and diagnostics procedures. And that does not even account for the growing demographic pressures that they inexorably face in the coming decades.

The health-care crisis manifests itself in various forms. The most pronounced is in prolonged wait times for medically necessary services. A recent Fraser Institute survey of specialist physicians found that the median wait time between referral from a general practitioner to receiving treatment was 27.4 weeks, a 195% increase since 1993.

The resulting wait times put us among the lowest-performing jurisdictions among our peers. The Commonwealth Fund, for instance, in its latest comparison of health-care system performance in 11 high-income countries, ranked Canada last on timeliness in the delivery of care, and overall, Canada ranked second last on system performance, only ahead of the United States.

The Hunter Prize aims to tackle wicked problems like Canada’s health-care crisis. It recognizes that Canada can and must do better.

The Challenge

That is why we are challenging the next generation of Canadian policy thinkers, scholars, and practitioners to answer the question:

What is a high-impact, low-cost, politically feasible policy reform to reduce health-care wait times?

The goal is not necessarily to recommend a complete overhaul of provincial health-care systems or the principle of universality but rather to develop one innovative yet practical idea that can begin to address Canada’s wait time crisis in a cost-effective, politically salient way that’s ultimately rooted in ideas and evidence.


Entry deadline is

April 30th, 2023.


Have questions? Contact us at [email protected]