Today is International Women’s Day and Prime Minister Trudeau took the opportunity to announce that a woman (other than the Queen) would appear on a Canadian bank note.

An Advisory Committee will recommend to the Governor of the Bank of Canada a suitable nominee. They will make that decision only after deliberating on choices made by Canadians.

The Bank of Canada has also created an Expert Panel to help design and implement a  public engagement strategy to make that happen. That panel is comprised of  Prof. Barbara Crow, Dean of Graduate Studies at York University and me.  Our role will be to help develop the public engagement strategy and help the Advisory Council make its recommendations to the Governor of the Bank of Canada.

I’m particularly impressed that the Bank of Canada, which is leading the process, wants to consult widely and hear from Canadians about who should be on the bank note. It’s the first time that a national Bank anywhere has used public engagement to solicit advice on whom should be the face of its money and is a great opportunity to have a national discussion about significant women in history.

I will have more to say about the process in the coming weeks.

In the mean time, feel free to nominate someone via the Bank’s webpage and also through social media using the #BankNotable.