Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Companies throughout the world use different methods for reporting their financial information to capital market investors and regulators. These different methods have caused financial reporting of statements to become less transparent, has increased adjustment errors and forecasting errors, and has reduced investor confidence. As a result, the International Accounting Standards Board created International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) to establish a global standard. Currently, 140 jurisdictions worldwide have implemented IFRS. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of IFRS on 248 Canadian companies and to analyze whether the 2011 implementation of IFRS affected corporate stock prices, key financial measurements of companies, and industry sectors. Arrow's social choice theory and general equilibrium analysis provided the theoretical framework for this quantitative investigation. Two 1-year time periods, 2009-2010 (the year before IFRS was implemented) and 2011-2012 (the year after IFRS was implemented), were analyzed using secondary data. A multiple regression model was used to examine the impact of IFRS implementation on price-to-earnings ratio, price-to-sales ratio, and price-to-cash flow ratio of the 248 Canadian companies. Findings indicate that IFRS led to an overall improvement in financial reporting by Canadian companies, which suggests IFRS's effectiveness. Mandating IFRS worldwide may facilitate comparisons of corporate financial information, reduce costs, reduce investor fatigue, improve adjustment errors and forecasting errors, and provide capital market participants the confidence to make valued investment decisions, leading to positive social change.

This research tracks the emergence of ‘soft’ workfare in Toronto. This refers to a set of attitudes and practices apparent in the delivery of welfare-to-work programs through the Ontario Works framework, which use compulsion to push people towards employment while simultaneously encouraging limited and specific practices of individual choice. Research findings are derived from eight interviews and relevant policy reports, focusing on the experiences of three non-profit agencies and the City of Toronto, who provide employment assistance and financial assistance through Ontario Works, respectively. These findings indicate that grassroots organizations pioneered employment services for social assistance recipients, and, alongside the municipal government, had been calling for active employment programs. They made use of the distance between policy rules and their own programs to alleviate the most punitive features of OW, but judge compulsion as a means to meet a necessary end. This demonstrates how disciplinary tendencies reside within liberal governmentalities.

Three different green technologies are compared in terms of net energy and carbon savings for a theoretical Toronto rooftop. Embodied energy values are calculated through Life Cycle Analysis and compared to the estimated energies produced and/or saved by each technology. Results show that solar photovoltaics displace the most carbon per m2 of roof space and solar thermal (for hot water) displaces the most energy. An in-depth analysis of an intensive green roof for growing food indicates that the high embodied energy of the materials is not quickly repaid by the sum of six energy savings that were examined (direct and indirect cooling, run-off treatment, transport of food, on-farm energy use, and activities that would otherwise be carried out). However, the energy and carbon benefits are not insignificant, but depend strongly on various assumptions. The methodology used is replicable and therefore useful for other locations.

This thesis aims to expand our understanding of the relationship between gender, sport and development. Specifically, it asks 1) how a sport, gender and development program is conceptualized and deployed by members of a young Somali-Canadian women’s group in Toronto, Canada and 2) if female participation in sport is thought to contribute to new gender norms, roles and relationships within such a diaspora community. Working within a postcolonial/transnational feminist framework, the thesis utilizes focus group interviews and engages with issues of power, representation and knowledge production. The findings shed light on the influences that have both informed and constrained this particular community initiative, as well as the possibilities and limitations of using sport to negotiate new gender norms, roles and relationships within the Somali diaspora. In conclusion, several recommendations are made to researchers and practitioners invested in the burgeoning field of international sport for development.

The purpose of this research is to determine the average energy intensity of multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) in Toronto, and evaluate whether certain building characteristics influence energy intensity. This information is particularly important in the Toronto market. Relative to the city’s population, Toronto has an unusually high proportion of MURBs with more than half of residential dwellings in apartment buildings. Additionally, Toronto MURBs are significant consumers of energy and produce an estimated 1.3M tonnes of CO2e each year. The ultimate goal is to assess the most efficient building retrofit measures. Energy consumption data for Toronto MURBs were collected and weather normalized. Correlations between the energy data and the building characteristics were examined. Window characteristics and heating system type were found to have the most significant influence on energy intensity. Establishing energy consumption characteristics of MURBs is the first step towards improving the energy efficiency of Toronto’s MURBs stock.

Three different green technologies are compared in terms of net energy and carbon savings for a theoretical Toronto rooftop. Embodied energy values are calculated through Life Cycle Analysis and compared to the estimated energies produced and/or saved by each technology. Results show that solar photovoltaics displace the most carbon per m2 of roof space and solar thermal (for hot water) displaces the most energy. An in-depth analysis of an intensive green roof for growing food indicates that the high embodied energy of the materials is not quickly repaid by the sum of six energy savings that were examined (direct and indirect cooling, run-off treatment, transport of food, on-farm energy use, and activities that would otherwise be carried out). However, the energy and carbon benefits are not insignificant, but depend strongly on various assumptions. The methodology used is replicable and therefore useful for other locations.

This thesis aims to expand our understanding of the relationship between gender, sport and development. Specifically, it asks 1) how a sport, gender and development program is conceptualized and deployed by members of a young Somali-Canadian women’s group in Toronto, Canada and 2) if female participation in sport is thought to contribute to new gender norms, roles and relationships within such a diaspora community. Working within a postcolonial/transnational feminist framework, the thesis utilizes focus group interviews and engages with issues of power, representation and knowledge production. The findings shed light on the influences that have both informed and constrained this particular community initiative, as well as the possibilities and limitations of using sport to negotiate new gender norms, roles and relationships within the Somali diaspora. In conclusion, several recommendations are made to researchers and practitioners invested in the burgeoning field of international sport for development.

The purpose of this research is to determine the average energy intensity of multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) in Toronto, and evaluate whether certain building characteristics influence energy intensity. This information is particularly important in the Toronto market. Relative to the city’s population, Toronto has an unusually high proportion of MURBs with more than half of residential dwellings in apartment buildings. Additionally, Toronto MURBs are significant consumers of energy and produce an estimated 1.3M tonnes of CO2e each year. The ultimate goal is to assess the most efficient building retrofit measures. Energy consumption data for Toronto MURBs were collected and weather normalized. Correlations between the energy data and the building characteristics were examined. Window characteristics and heating system type were found to have the most significant influence on energy intensity. Establishing energy consumption characteristics of MURBs is the first step towards improving the energy efficiency of Toronto’s MURBs stock.

The present study examines the relationship of emotional awareness to anticipatory psychophysiological markers and performance on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). The IGT is a computerized card game that simulates real-life decisions through uncertainty of reward or punishment. The participant’s goal is to make advantageous card choices. Anticipatory somatic markers of physiological arousal, like electrodermal activity and heart rate, have been proposed to bias decisions in the IGT. The central hypothesis is that a participant’s emotional awareness is related to their ability to make advantageous decisions through biasing psychophysiological responses. The Toronto Alexithymia Scale was used to assess each participant’s emotional awareness. Less emotional awareness was associated with enhanced performance on the IGT. However, anticipatory physiological arousal (electrodermal activity and heart rate) and emotional awareness yielded no significant relationships. Findings suggest a need for further research on cognitive models, such as the expectancy valence model, in relation to decision-making.