The world is increasingly defined by dynamic regions, but no region is as important to the United States and as poorly understood as the one that it inhabits — North America. Since 1994, trade and investment among Canada, Mexico, and the United States have tripled, and immigration has soared. Yet, the three governments have not kept pace with the changes, and there is a lack of awareness that new approaches are needed to build a new North America. The Center for North American Studies was established to educate a new generation of students, to promote policy debate among the governments and the public, and to undertake research on ideas for a continental future.

Senior Fellow

James W. Dean is Emeritus Professor of Economics at Simon Fraser University, and Fulbright Professor of North American Studies at American University Jan - May 2010. He holds a BSc degree in mathematics and physics from Carleton University, and MA and PhD degrees from Harvard University. He has published 6 books and monographs and about 100 scholarly articles, mostly on international macroeconomics and finance. His most recent book is The Dollarizaton Debate (Oxford University Press, 2003). He is now writing about global currency systems, India and China, income distribution and happiness, and paradoxes surrounding globalization. He lectures and advises extensively across the globe, and has held 26 visiting positions at universities and research institutes world-wide. In real life he plays jazz tenor saxophone with the James Dean Trio.