Thread by @shimjelly

FUN FACT 050626

Alberta Independence in the Crosshairs.

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The report on Alberta separatism was backed by five think tanks, but news coverage only names two explicitly: DisinfoWatch and the Global Centre for Democratic Resilience. The others aren’t listed publicly yet.
From the report itself, it was produced with CIPHER AI, CASi Labs, and in partnership with the Canadian Digital Media Research Network for the survey work. That’s where the “multiple think tanks” reference comes from — it’s a collaborative effort, not just one group.
Marcus Kolga is the lead author on it.

Marcus Kolga, born 1973 in Toronto to Estonian refugees, studied political science at the University of Illinois from 1991 to 1994. He’s a journalist, documentary filmmaker, and human rights activist who’s tracked Russian disinformation since around 2007. He founded DisinfoWatch in September 2020 through the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. That platform’s development was funded by the US State Department’s Global Engagement Center and the US Embassy in Ottawa starting in 2020. He’s a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, sanctioned by both Russia and China.
Jennie Phillips holds a PhD from the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. She specializes in online human behavior during crises, digital threats, and disinformation. Her background includes work with the Citizen Lab, Dahdaleh Institute, and Media Ecosystem Observatory. She’s an adjunct professor at Dalhousie and runs a consulting firm on digital resilience.
Both co-direct the Global Centre for Democratic Resilience, which they launched recently — their major report on foreign interference in the Alberta separatist debate just dropped this week, backed by multiple think tanks including DisinfoWatch. The Centre itself has no publicly detailed founding month yet, but it’s a very new initiative tied to their ongoing collaboration.

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Jennie Phillips clients span private, public, academic and non-profit sectors to include the Privy Council Office/Prime Minister’s Office of Canada, Global Affairs Canada, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Dalhousie University.

The Canadian Digital Media Research Network, or CDMRN, is a government-funded research network focused on studying Canada’s information ecosystem, disinformation, and building public resilience.
It was created with a $5.5 million grant from the Canadian government, announced on June 7, 2023. The money came from Heritage Canada’s Digital Citizen Initiative — $1.5 million in 2022-23 and $2 million each for the next two years.
It’s coordinated by the Media Ecosystem Observatory, a collaboration between McGill University and the University of Toronto. Jennie Phillips actually works with them as Incident Commander for some of their reports.

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The Macdonald-Laurier Institute, or MLI, is a conservative think tank located right in Ottawa at 323 Chapel Street, Suite 300.
It was founded in 2010 by Brian Lee Crowley, who’s still the managing director. They get their money from private donations, corporate sponsors, and foundations — they’re a registered charity, but they don’t publish a full donor list anymore. Past backers have included resource companies, banks like RBC and BMO, and foundations such as Donner Canadian Foundation and Aurea Foundation. They’re also tied to the Atlas Network, a big international conservative-libertarian group.
Here’s their official logo.
That’s the spot where Marcus Kolga’s DisinfoWatch operates out of.

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DisinfoWatch is a Canadian platform that tracks and debunks foreign disinformation, especially from Russia, China, and Iran. Marcus Kolga founded and directs it — he launched the project on September 24, 2020, through the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.
It started with a focus on the COVID “infodemic” and now monitors narratives that try to divide Canadians. Early development was funded by the US State Department’s Global Engagement Center and the US Embassy in Ottawa, with support from Journalists for Human Rights.
Later on, it got Canadian government grants too, like through the Digital Citizen Contribution Program.

5/

And now for the real crossover tie.

Jennie Phillips provided consulting services to the Canadian federal government during the Stephen Harper administration through her company, ellips design + consulting. From September 2008 to November 2009, she worked as an Emergency Management Training Analyst in Security Operations at the Privy Council Office. She then served as Curriculum Specialist for the Privy Council Office, the Office of the Prime Minister, and Global Affairs Canada, where she developed and delivered national and international Emergency Management and Business Continuity Planning training and awareness programs.
This work included industry research, needs assessments with senior federal decision-makers, curriculum design, implementation, and evaluation. She also acted as a Course Developer and Instructor for Security Operations at the Privy Council Office from January to March 2011, and as a Training Specialist in Emergency Management at Global Affairs Canada until June 2011. During this period, she acquired top-secret security clearance.
These contracts ran roughly from late 2008 through mid-2011 — entirely under Prime Minister Stephen Harper.