CMU Faculty

James is an economist who is curious about how the institutions of money and power shape the conditions for human flourishing. His research examines debt and its physical signature—the kinds of materials it demands and the waste it leaves behind—and downstream political grievance.

His teaching spans business, economics, communications, and political studies. James holds an MPhil in Economics ("Land Economy") from the University of Cambridge, where he studied the institutional and biophysical implications of the debt-based monetary system. He has since expanded upon that work in his PhD at McGill.

He also 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 Korea.

As an entrepreneur, James has experimented with community-focused and social business models. He has co-founded or led a range of ventures, including The Fireweed Food Co-op, Fools + Horses Coffee, Compost Winnipeg, Prairie Rivers CoLiving, Proximus 5, and CMU's own Centre for Resilience. He now directs his entrepreneurial energy toward health-focused ventures and serves on the board of the Light of the Prairies Retreat Centre.

Areas of Teaching

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

Education

PhD, McGill University; MPhil, Cambridge University; Double BA (Hons.), University of Winnipeg

Work in Detail

Teaching

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

Research

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. (under review). Mapping debt's biophysical signature: A comparative analysis of debt–throughput coupling and political grievance in Canada and Argentina. Ecological Economics.

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

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2025-26). Mapping debt's biophysical signature: Material flows and political sentiment in Canada and Argentina (Doctoral thesis, McGill University).

Magnus-Johnston, J. (2009). Interrogating debt as a driver of growth: links between financial and ecological debt 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 organizations and business endeavours including: 

• Selfscape Functional Intelligence
• 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)