Special Editions

Special Edition N^o 4 - The Future of Quebec

The past few years have witnessed massive global changes due to the pandemic, economic uncertainty and conflict - cultural, ideolgocial and kinetic. Within Canada, some of these issues will play out in democratic processes where electors will assess governance outcomes during this time of change and who will have the ability to choose new politic directions. This Special Issue of the Cavalier Bleu assembles texts on various aspects of Quebec's future in anticipation of the autumn 2022 election. These five texts provide a rich basis from which to understand Quebec politics at this time - incorporating elements of Quebec's past, present and future. It will undoubtedly lead to healthy debate and productive reflection. Happy reading!

Special Edition N^o 3 - Technology

Technology is a defining feature of our contemporary world and is responsible for incredible advances of human development and which continues to accelerate at an unprecedented pace. This Special Issue of the Blue Knight examines how technology is affecting human society on multiple fronts. The main focus of this Special Edition is on security writ large with themes on the utilities and dangers of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the pressing need to secure public spaces, planetary food security and the implications of safeguarding democracy in a digital future. Other themes include the skills necessary to make sense of and navigate our tumultuous information spaces, including the institutional implications of developing a cyber-capacity and being aware of media bias within information war. These diverse contributions seek to provide concise wisdom about specific issues which hopefully can be of use to academics and practitioners alike. However, it is understood these articles are snapshots in time and it is hoped that these reflections contribute to iterative conversations about the role of technology and how it should be productively harnessed for our collective future.

Special Edition N^o 2 - Systems Thinking and Design

This Special Edition of the Blue Knight is an outgrowth project of the April 2017 Systems Thinking and Design Symposium, “Breaking Down Silos and Uniting Stakeholders”, held at Royal Military College Saint-Jean and co-hosted with the Center for National Security Studies. In being co-hosted by two Canadian military entities, the subjects were approached from a military perspective, however, effort was made to include international military, Other Government Departments (OGD) and private sector participation. Overall, it attempted to unite members of the Canadian government and partners who share a common appreciation or usage of some aspect of Systems Thinking and/or Design. This Special Edition contains this same objective, as well as to capture learning from the Workshop in a permanent and transportable manner and to capitalize on the momentum of the event to foster discussion and research.

Special Edition N^o 1 - The Profession of Arms

This special edition presents a broad range of perspectives on the profession of arms. It is a unique opportunity to showcase written contributions of non-commissioned members. Central to this section is the paper of Canadian Forces Chief Warrant Officer Kevin West on the importance of fostering an educational culture at the Chief Warrant Officer Robert Osside Profession of Arms Institute. This position paper intends to further the debate on the importance of a dynamic learning culture for NCMs as members of the Profession of Arms. This section also presents three papers written by students of the Senior Appointment Program on the challenges of being a senior appointee Chief Warrant Officer in the CAF. Finally, a paper by a Royal Canadian Air Force senior NCM discusses the position and rank of Chief Warrant Officer in the CAF. Hopefully, this section will spark a debate on these issues but also encourage other NCMs to put pen to paper and publish their valuable thoughts.