15th Annual Donner Prize Shortlist Announced

Books on health care, regional rivalries and international food aid compete for $50,000 prize

TORONTO, April 3, 2013 /CNW/ - The four books vying for the 2012/2013 Donner Prize, the award for best public policy book by a Canadian, were announced today by Allan Gotlieb, Chairman of the Donner Canadian Foundation.

"For our 15^th anniversary, we have four strong finalists, all of which deserve recognition for the meaningful contributions they make to Canadians' understanding of major policy challenges," said Mr. Gotlieb.

"This year's nominated titles are an impressive collection of thought-provoking books," said Jury Chair A. Anne McLellan. She went on to say, "From the tenuous state of the public health care system, to food aid and the politics of hunger, to the history of the constitutional fight for control over Western Canada's natural resources, these titles help to inform the current public policy debate in Canada, while also looking to the past to provide a unique perspective on how we got to where we are today, and where we go from here."

The prestigious Donner Prize, established in 1998, annually rewards excellence and innovation in public policy writing by Canadians. In bestowing this award, the Donner Canadian Foundation seeks to broaden policy debates, increase general awareness of the importance of policy decision making, and make an original and meaningful contribution to policy discourse. The 2012/2013 shortlist titles were chosen from a field of 60 submissions; the winner receives $50,000 while each other nominated title will receive $7,500.

The winner of this year's Donner Prize will be announced at an awards ceremony in Toronto on Thursday, April 25, 2013.  The ceremony will be hosted by Don Newman, Chairman, Canada 2020.

The 2012/2013 Donner Prize finalists are:

• Santé: l'heure des choix by Claude Castonguay (Les Éditions du Boréal)
• Hunger in the Balance: The New Politics of International Food Aid by Jennifer Clapp (Cornell University Press)
• Let the Eastern Bastards Freeze in the Dark: The West Versus the Rest Since Confederation by Mary Janigan (Knopf Canada)
• Chronic Condition: Why Canada's Health-Care System Needs to be Dragged into the 21st Century by Jeffrey Simpson (Allen Lane Canada)

Shortlisted authors are available for comment and interview.

SOURCE: Donner Canadian Foundation

Sherry Naylor, Prize Manager 
Phone: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected] 
www.donnerbookprize.com