Want a life on the Hill?

Liberal MP Dennis Mills is attempting to narrow the gap between citizens and the government with Ingenuity Canada, a Web site where the public can make suggestions to improve Canadian governance and public policy.

“It’s a place for constructive, well thought out policy,” said the site’s content manager, Michael Jantzen. “It’s open to ideas that can better Canada.”

So where do students fit into the picture? To promote the site, Ingenuity Canada is awarding two parliamentary internships worth $10,000 each to the students who send in what they deem to be the most constructive ideas to improve the Canadian government.

“Students, as well as other Canadians, have opinions that need to be heard,” Jantzen said.

The Web site, set up early this year, is a vehicle to bring these ideas to people who have the power to implement them. Proposals can be sent over the Internet and are reviewed in the Library of Parliament and if deemed viable, are delivered to the appropriate cabinet ministers who are obliged to respond to them.

He stressed that the site is not a complaint board; often people send in their thoughts about what is wrong with government policy instead of recommending ways to improve it.

Students must be aged between 18-26 to be eligible for the internships. To check out Ingenuity Canada, go to www.ingenuitycanada.com.

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