“A degree will help you get ahead” – so many young Canadians have been told. But with crippling debt and high tuition costs, the cost of getting post-secondary education can become higher than the benefits.

And, as Roseann O’Reilly Runte points out in a recent Globe and Mail piece, these disincentives for attending post-secondary education actually end up hurting society as a whole. President of Carleton University, Dr. Runte argues that without access to education, our world would be “a hotbed of strife.” Education, on the other hand, promotes civic engagement and connections to the community, leading to richer experiences and better wellbeing for students and community members alike.

While Canada has excellent education available, Dr. Runte calls for continued support in providing access to education. In turn, she argues, this will lead to innovation, economic development and civic engagement. After all, she states,

A truly powerful society is one where ideas reign and where an educated population is understood as the greatest possible resource.

Read Dr. Runte’s full op-ed here.