Federalism and the knowledge economy: The shifting contours of higher education policy in Canada and Germany

The present paper addresses the question of the extent to which the emergence of a ‘knowledge economy’ or ‘knowledge society’ may be seen as reshaping the contours of responsibility for higher or post-secondary education in federal systems. It addresses this question through a comparative study of Canada and Germany, framed within an understanding of both the persistence of distinctive federal models and of the emergence of more complex structures of multi-level governance. Empirically, attention is focused on the emergence of comparable federal strategies of dis- and re-engagement with the higher education sector, producing a focus in both cases on ‘research excellence’ initiatives. A picture emerges of a broadly convergent sectoral agenda, but in which distinctive national institutional systems continue to shape distinctive policy responses. The German case is distinguished by both the stronger horizontal dimension of the federal system and its placement within the wider European context (notably the Bologna Process). Conversely, the Canadian case is distinguished by the direct influence which (major research) universities themselves are able to exercise as political actors. The study draws on extensive documentary research and interviews in the two countries, at both national and sub-national level.