News
So long, and thanks for everything
May 9, 2025
A Statement from our Founding Executive Director, Karim Bardeesy, as he departs the Dais, and sets out on a new chapter as an elected Member of Parliament in Canada.
Dear friends of the Dais,
My heart is full as I reflect on all those who have helped make the Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University possible.
Thank you Mohamed Lachemi for investing in this idea of a new leadership institute at what was then Ryerson University, and for connecting me to Shoaib Ahmed, who together with Sam Andrey helped launch and grow the Leadership Lab. In 2023, with the support of Glenn Craney, the Dais was formed out of the merger of the Leadership Lab and the Brookfield Institute, which was founded by Sean Mullin.
President Lachemi has been a steadfast supporter in my eight years at TMU, and his leadership makes our work possible. Thanks to Provost Roberta Iannacito-Provenzano, Assistant Vice-President John MacRitchie, and their teams for their ongoing support of the Dais.
To our project partners, collaborators in government, civil society, the private sector, unions and academia: thank you for working with us to develop the people and ideas we need to make policy impact.
To the champions of the Dais on our advisory board, and to colleagues around Toronto Metropolitan University who opened doors, shared your insight, and helped embed our work within the university: thank you for believing in the promise of the Dais.
To my students: I grew so much from meeting you, learning from you, and being inspired by you – much more than anything I might have “taught” you.
And to all the Daisies past and present, as well as colleagues from our predecessors the Leadership Lab and the Brookfield Institute: thank you for contributing to, and building the best policy think tank team that I know. Your passion, your creativity, and your commitment have built a better Canada.
The Dais has just turned two years old. And the Dais is in strong hands. Interim Executive Director André Côté is an experienced and committed leader who understands intimately both our mission and how to achieve it. He and the rest of the Daisies (including the Dais directors currently on year-long leaves, as they pursue other professional and personal opportunities) are an incredible team. They bring policy depth and sharp analysis; an ability to partner; a hunger to develop new talent; connection to policy makers, academia and community; design and communications brilliance; operational excellence; and a fervent desire to connect people to the power that shapes our country.
Finally, the Dais is needed more than ever. Our mission is to help create a Canada of more shared prosperity, and a greater sense of shared citizenship. Technological change can make this future state more possible, or more out of reach. More than ever, we need evidence-based policy and research; inclusive leadership development programs; and welcoming convening activities. And more than ever, we need bold ideas and better leaders in the domains of economic, education and democracy policy to realize that Canada.
It’s been a privilege leading the founding and growth of the Dais. I know its work, and the work of all the Daisies, will mark Canada for decades to come.
Yours truly,
Karim Bardeesy