The beginning of Anthony Boland’s OLIP journey began with a poster about OLIP on his family’s fridge! His mother put up an OLIP recruitment poster on the fridge when he was a student. By the time he graduated university and it was time to apply, the poster had aged and discoloured!
Anthony’s was an intern in 2012-2013, which was a year filled with invaluable experiences; one of the highlights was witnessing the transition from the McGuinty government to the Wynne government. During this time, he had the opportunity to work on both the opposition with MPP Rosario Marchese from Trinity-Spadina and the government with MPP Dipika Damerla from Mississauga East-Cooksville.
OLIP also offered exciting study tours that year, taking the interns to places like Yellowknife, Victoria, Ohio, and the UK. These trips provided a comprehensive view of how Ontario's parliamentary system compares to its national and international counterparts.
The OLIP experience laid the foundation for what would become an interesting career for Anthony! After OLIP, he became significantly interested in public policy, and he completed the MPA program at Queens University. After graduating he began working for the Ministry of Infrastructure, where he worked on improving the long-term financial sustainability of municipal infrastructure. He then went on to work for Metrolinx to develop their Presto Strategy. The vision of this strategy was to allow public transportation agencies to accept several different types of payment (which has recently happened!). Anthony is now Director of Development for Metrolinx, where he is promoting the increased use of public transit by facilitating commercial transactions with landowners who are interested in building near Metrolinx stations.
According to Anthony, much of OLIP's value lies in what you make of it. Meetings with partners, the study tours, and the writing of the research paper all offer opportunities to shape your path. The research paper can serve as a valuable resource for future endeavors, whether pursuing further education or job applications. It provides a tangible output of the knowledge gained during the internship and can open doors to various career opportunities.
Anthony advised that another aspect that stands out is the strength of the OLIP alumni network. He emphasized the importance of leveraging this network, as it's filled with individuals who share a common experience who are eager to connect and offer guidance. The alumni network isn't limited to a specific career path; OLIP graduates can be found in politics, government, the private sector, and academia. This diversity allows for a wide range of mentorship and networking opportunities.
Anthony’s book/podcast recommendation is the CBC's "The Cost of Living." This podcast takes complex economic concepts and applies them to everyday issues, making it an accessible and informative resource for anyone interested in economics and public policy.
