Marco Clemens, a PhD student and member of the economics team at IAAEU, visited the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) from September 1 to October 30, 2023. During his visit, Mr. Clemens participated in a variety of research seminars and workshops on topics such as the size of the labor market, unemployment insurance, and perspectives on relocation from China. Apart from acquiring new insights in those areas, the research stay allowed him to interact with the uOttawa economic team and collaborate on a new project examining the impact of windfall gains on employment and labor market transitions.

The collaboration was defined by frequent meetings and extensive discussions. Mr. Clemens greatly benefited from the economic team’s extensive knowledge and creative thoughts on the subject. Furthermore, he was able to gather significant input on his work during his stay, which aided in the submission of one of his papers to a journal, where it is now under review. Besides the academic activities, Mr. Clemens explored Ottawa, the capital of Canada, and other areas of the country.

He consistently noted the friendly, communicative, and welcoming nature of Canada and its people throughout the course of his visit, making it an ideal host country. Overall, according to Mr. Clemens, his research stay was one of the most valuable, memorable, and productive experiences he has had in his early career.