Small but mighty: Acadia students take second place on national economics stage
“It felt like a true underdog story,” Thomas Bezanson (BSc, Economics & Math) says, as he recounts Acadia’s showing at the Bank of Canada Governor’s Challenge this January.
Everyone loves an underdog, and as a small university, Acadia has lots of opportunities to prove that our students punch way above their weight class.
After the first round of the competition in November 2025, Acadia was selected as one of five finalist teams from 27 Canadian universities to compete in the Governor’s Challenge.
In January, students from the five finalist schools gathered in Ottawa to step into a simulation of the role of advisor to the Bank of Canada’s Governing Council. Each team analyzed and forecasted economic developments and made recommendations to keep inflation low and stable.
In the end, Acadia’s students snagged second place, beating out heavy weights like University of Toronto and University of Ottawa, coming second only to University of British Columbia.
Liam Ellingwood (BBA, Accounting) says that it was intimidating at first to compete on a national stage with teams from across the country, but once they got going, “it felt like all the preparation paid off.”
As well prepared as they were, the pressure felt real. Thomas recalls that “the environment alone made it feel like a big deal. Flying out and practicing on the plane, walking around parliament, practicing in the hotel. It felt like the national stage.”
Luckily, the team had each other's backs, even through the intimidating parts of the experience. Taran Kanabar (BSc, Math) says that the team really bonded on the trip, which included a game of Catan in the hotel the night before their big day. Out of the entire experience, he’s most proud of how well the team worked together. “We weren’t afraid to be critical and challenge each others’ opinions. I think that’s what made us successful.”
“We all trusted each other to show up when it mattered, and everyone did,” adds Thomas.
A meeting of minds and disciplines
While the Governor’s Challenge is an economics competition, Acadia sent an interdisciplinary team of students, with team members studying Economics, Accounting, Environmental and Sustainability Studies, and Math.
Paige Walsh (BA, Economics & Environmental and Sustainability Studies) says the fact that her teammates came from different academic backgrounds is what made them “such a strong team.”
For Liam, the interdisciplinary aspect of the team was “one of the most valuable parts of the experience.”
“I was pushed to think beyond the numbers and really consider the broader macroeconomic story behind them. My teammates brought different ways of approaching problems, especially when it came to policy analysis, assumptions, and big-picture impacts, which challenged how I normally frame issues.”
As a math major, Taran was “happy but surprised” to find himself immersed in the world of economics. As a result of participating in the competition, both he and Paige are now looking into applying for research assistant positions at the Bank of Canada.
“This has been a fascinating insight into the role of central banks,” says Taran. “It could be a great fit for me!”
Acadia's team was led by faculty advisor, Dr. Andrew Davis (Economics), and included Nimarjeet Bajwa, Thomas Bezanson, Liam Ellingwood, Taran Kanabar, and Paige Walsh.