James is a political economist who studies how the institutions that govern money and power shape the conditions for human and planetary well-being. His research focuses on the nexus between debt and energy use, with particular attention to how evolving ideologies such as post-growth thinking shape business and policy—in ways that can be both promising and perilous.

His teaching spans business, economics, and political studies. James holds an MPhil in Economics from the University of Cambridge, where he studied the institutional dynamics of the debt-based monetary system. He is now expanding on this work in his PhD at McGill University.

He brings extensive practical experience to his academic work, having served as a board director for Assiniboine Credit Union—one of Canada’s largest independent financial institutions—and held roles in financial counselling, public policy, and as an editor and translator in Asia.

As a social entrepreneur, he has co-founded or led a range of community-focused ventures, including The Fireweed Food Co-op, Fools + Horses Coffee, Compost Winnipeg, Prairie Rivers CoLiving, Proximus 5, and CMU’s Centre for Resilience. He now directs his entrepreneurial energy toward health-focused ventures and serves on the board of the Oak Grove Retreat Centre.

Areas of Teaching

economics, governance, energy, finance, public policy, entrepreneruship, communications

Education

PhD candidate in Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University; MPhil Economics, Cambridge University; Double BA (Hons.) in Political Studies, Theatre, and Rhetoric & Communications, University of Winnipeg

Work in Detail

Teaching

• Democracy & Dissent: An Introduction to Politics
• Global Politics
• Social & Political Philosophy
• Ecological Economics ("Economics of Social Change') 
• The Culture Wars
• Politics, Society, & the Mass Media 
• Political Ecology (formerly "Citizenship, Land, Economy")
• Social Entrepreneurship
• Social Welfare
• Business & Organizational Communication 
• Business Ethics
• Organizational Behaviour
• Organizational Leadership
• Social Innovation Lab 

Research

(selected)

Book Chapters

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2025). God and the machine: Learning in the metamodern revolution. In P. G. Doerksen (Ed.), A time of reckoning: Telling the Canadian Mennonite University story. CMU Press.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2016). What is the steady state economy? In H. Washington & P. Twomey (Eds.), A future beyond growth: Towards a steady state economy. Routledge.

Research Papers

Magnus-Johnston, J. (in press). Mapping debt's biophysical claim: A comparative analysis of the debt–throughput nexus in Canada and Argentina after Bretton Woods. Ecological Economics.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (in press). Debt's matter–energy multiplier: Toward a biohistorical theory of dysregulated economic metabolism. Ecological Economics.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2025). The economic metabolism of debt: A biohistorical account of debt's consequences in two economies (Doctoral dissertation, McGill University).

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2009). Interrogating debt as a driver of growth: links between financial and ecological indebtedness in rich-world economies. (MPhil dissertation, Cambridge University).

Researched Policy Papers (selected)

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2017). Carbon pricing and competitiveness: Policy options for Manitoba businesses. Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce.

Fernandez, L. (Ed.), Magnus-Johnston, J., & Hudson, M. (2016). Energy East: Taking Manitoba in the wrong direction. Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (Ed.), with the Transition Winnipeg Initiating Committee. (2014). Winnipeg's great transition: Ideas and actions for a low-carbon, climate-resilient city. Transition Winnipeg.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (Ed.), with H. Stevens & the Green Economy Working Group. (2012). Response to the Government of Manitoba's Green Plan. Manitoba Eco-Network.

Editorials (selected)

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2024, January). Requiem for Canada? Regional tensions, changing demographics fuel Trump's annexation hopes. The Conversation.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2024, January). Beyond the echo chamber. Steady State Herald.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2015, July). What about innovating beyond the growth trap? Resilience.org.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2014, December). Peace, love, and the gift. Resilience.org.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2014, November). Hedonism, survivalism, and the burden of knowledge. Resilience.org.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2011, July). Art valuable regardless of price. Winnipeg Free Press.

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2010, October). Making sense of the protests through a post-growth lens. Resilience.org.

More here.

Performance

While unrelated to his scholarly interests,  James is a professional tenor who has sung with Proximus 5, Polycoro, the Winnipeg Singers, Dead of Winter (Camerata Nova),  and Antiphony.  Some favourites: 

• I Wish (Proximus, Nov 2023)
• In the Bleak Midwinter (Dec 2020) 

Applied

James has initiated or participated in a range of local organisations and business endeavours including: 

• Revive Health Optimization 
• Fools + Horses (Co-founder)
• Light of the Prairies Retreat Centre (Board Director)
• Prairie Rivers CoLiving Co-op (Co-founder)
• Fireweed Food Co-op (Co-founder)
• Assiniboine Credit Union (Board Director) 
• Manoverboard Design (Strategic Advisor) 
• Creative Applications for Sustainable Technologies (Strategic Advisor)  
• Transition Winnipeg (Co-chair)
• Green Action Centre (Board Director)

Community

James worked as a cantor with Holy Trinity Anglican Church, where he served for over 10 years. He participates from time to time with emeritus faculty Dietrich Bartel at All Saints Anglican and at Westminster United Church. 

• Faculty
• Staff