A recent GlobeScan poll examining attitudes towards countries' positive influence? Canada tied for second.
As we celebrate Canada's 146th birthday, Canada has been idealized, top-ranked in many disciplines, respected, trusted, and looked up to, both by Canadians and those in other countries throughout history. As Canadians, we have so much to be proud of, to be thankful for, and to celebrate.
However, not all is well in the True North Strong and Free.
2013 budget cuts saw cuts to public services and the foreign aid budget.
With the new Navigation Protection Act of 2012, not all lakes and rivers in Canada are protected, as they were previously under the original Navigable Waters Protection Act.
In March, Canada quietly pulled out of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, which they had signed in 1994 and were a strong supporter of. Now, Canada is the only UN nation in the world to not be part of the agreement which seeks to combat drought.
Also in March, the same day that hundreds of Aboriginal youth walked from their James Bay community to Parliament Hill to bring attention to indigenous issues, Stephen Harper was in Toronto to welcome two giant pandas from China onto Canadian soil.
At the Copenhagen Climate Change talks, Canada was declared by NGOs as the country most significantly blocking progress, receiving the "Fossil of the Year Award" for the fifth year in a row. Furthermore, in 2011, Canada withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol, which they were active in drafting back in 1997.
And the list goes on.
This goes to show that there are always issues within our own country that need tackling as well, and we can't focus all our development efforts outwards. We need to be able to take responsibility for our own issues in order to set an example and to gain respect from others we are trying to assist.
As much as some of us might like to point fingers, possibly at the government, this will not get to the root of the problems. It is not only the government that can make concrete changes. What can you do?
Or what can we do as international development students, as global citizens, and as citizens of Canada, in order for Canada to rightfully earn its place as the most reputable and respected country?