University of Toronto receives generous gift to strengthen its leadership in global affairs and public policy

Nov 27, 2025

A new donation from the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation is adding to their legacy of support for the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. This $17.5-million benefaction has enabled the university to recruit globally recognized economist Mark Duggan to lead the Munk School as its director and establish two new funds for research and special initiatives. The foundation’s generosity is strengthening U of T’s ability to meet fraught geopolitical moments head on, driving the Munk School – a globally acclaimed hub of learning, research and dialogue – to a new level of excellence and impact.

“This incredibly generous new gift from the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation builds on their brilliant record of philanthropy, in support of the University of Toronto’s leadership in global affairs and public policy,” said Melanie A. Woodin, president of U of T. “In this time of profound change – economic, social and geopolitical – they are enabling us to meet the moment, as a beacon of knowledge, reason and insight for Canada and for the world.”

The ability to address global challenges

This gift builds on the foundation’s longstanding support for the University of Toronto and brings their total giving to the Munk School to over $66 million. Their momentous $35-million donation in 2010 made it possible for U of T to expand the Munk School into an academic powerhouse focused on leading timely research, training future leaders and sparking spirited conversation among high-profile thinkers, scholars and political and policy leaders – conversation that has helped steer policy and current affairs in Canada and beyond.

The importance of these efforts has now become particularly acute. The world is experiencing an unparalleled period of geopolitical upheaval, with authoritarianism rising, long-standing alliances in question and political polarization deepening – trends that are threatening the prospects for democracy and civil society around the globe. For years, the Munk School, which is located in the Faculty of Arts & Science at U of T, has been at the forefront of addressing these challenges. The Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation’s new donation will ensure the school remains a critical player in helping Canada – and the world – navigate this moment.

In this time of profound change – economic, social and geopolitical – they are enabling us to meet the moment, as a beacon of knowledge, reason and insight for Canada and for the world.

“We are so pleased to be able to support the leadership of the Munk School as it takes on increasingly complex geopolitical challenges and helps meet the urgent need for informed, forward-thinking public policy,” said Melanie Munk, who established the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation with her late husband Peter Munk.

In this time of profound change – economic, social and geopolitical – they are enabling us to meet the moment, as a beacon of knowledge, reason and insight for Canada and for the world.

World-class expertise at the Munk School

The gift from the foundation will be matched by $7.5 million from U of T, strengthening the Munk School’s leadership for years to come. In addition to the endowed directorship, the gift makes possible two critical funds. The Munk Director’s Special Initiatives Fund will give the director the agility and resources needed to nimbly seize new opportunities and get behind emerging initiatives that advance the Munk School’s excellence and reach. The Munk Director’s Research Fund, meanwhile, will support the director’s research.

“The Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation’s visionary generosity will ensure that this bustling hub of learning, research and civil discourse can continue to rise to the major challenges of our time,” said Stephen Wright, interim dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science. “Professor Duggan will bring great leadership and expertise to the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy.”

I’m grateful to the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation for its generosity, which will help us make headway on some of the world’s most vexing geopolitical and policy challenges.

When Duggan starts next September as the Munk Director, with a cross appointment to the Department of Economics, he will sharpen the Munk School’s already considerable impact. Duggan – who is the Wayne and Jodi Cooperman Professor of Economics at Stanford University and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research – studies the health-care sector and the effects of large-scale government programs such as social security and disability insurance. The recipient of numerous awards and accolades, he has served as the senior economist for health care policy at the White House Council of Economic Advisers and testified about his academic research before the U.S. House Ways and Means and U.S. Senate Budget Committees.

I’m grateful to the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation for its generosity, which will help us make headway on some of the world’s most vexing geopolitical and policy challenges.

“It’s an enormous honour to take on the leadership of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy,” said Mark Duggan. “I’m grateful to the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation for its generosity, which will help us make headway on some of the world’s most vexing geopolitical and policy challenges.”

A legacy of translating passion into impact

The Munk School’s new director comes to U of T alongside several newly arriving academics from universities in the United States. These appointments follow other recent and notable additions to the school, including Timothy Snyder, Marci Shore and Jason Stanley. All of these academic stars have bolstered the Munk School’s deep bench of world-class expertise.

In addition to its support for U of T, the Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation has had a powerful impact on higher education elsewhere as well as on health care and public policy research and discussion, including galvanizing gifts to University Health Network and the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre at Toronto General Hospital. The foundation’s new benefaction to the Munk School embodies the spirit of Defy Gravity: The Campaign for the University of Toronto by harnessing U of T’s strengths to tackle some of the world’s most urgent dilemmas.

“The Peter and Melanie Munk Charitable Foundation has a legacy of translating passion into impact,” said David Palmer, vice-president of advancement at U of T. “This generous gift, which builds on the foundation’s existing support for the Munk School, will usher in a new era of Munk School leadership. It’s also a potent example of the pivotal role philanthropy can play in advancing institutional leadership and capitalizing on opportunities, even at a time of great uncertainty and turbulence.”