2016 was a disappointing year for the Left, as we saw the Democratic Party’s attack on Bernie Sanders, the election of Donald Trump, right-wing motivations for Brexit in the United Kingdom, and the intensification of anti-immigrant rhetoric at home and abroad. But with a new year comes new hopes, opportunities and challenges. Here are five predictions for how the Canadian Left can find success going forward.

But what must always be at the forefront for Canadian socialists is the balance of vision and action; of philosophy and practicality. We can make some taxes that seem regressive on the outset less so with mechanisms to dull their effects, and we can still explore grander schemes to change how we collect revenue and strive towards a society of equality of opportunity and condition.

Now more than ever, we have the material wealth to virtually end poverty, unemployment and social injustice, and yet consistently choose to intensify inequality within and between generations. Ultimately, the branding of millennials as lazy and entitled is essential to justify the intensified destruction of the postwar social contract.

In recent years, the popularity of a basic Income (BI), has grown. Fittingly, the topic has garnered thoughtful debate and analysis from across the Canadian left, including in the Summer 2016 issue of Canadian Dimension, where the concept was explored both as potential policy, but also as part of a broader philosophical and ideological discussion.

The Liberals need to be clear with Canadians where their long term outlook lies. Is it with the election 2015 idea that we can offer a decent life for young workers, or is it with the idea that job security is a luxury we can no longer afford? After a year of observation, my suspicion is that the latter is their genuine belief, while the former was a tactical choice to win votes.

Much has been made about the experience of millennials in the contemporary economy. And this isn’t without reason: wages are low, education is expensive, housing is inaccessible and finding secure employment is increasingly difficult. There does need to be a discussion in our society about intergenerational inequality, including within labour unions and left movements.

While not a topic without coverage, the question of socialism within the New Democratic Party — and Canada more generally — tends to come in waves. One recent example has come from Toronto Star columnist Rick Salutin’s assertion that the NDP must re-embrace socialism, if only to offer strategic differentiation vis-à-vis the Trudeau Liberals.

Canadians don’t need to rely on capitalists to provide social necessities, or accept a system of economic organization that provides basic services only when they are profitable. Ultimately, postal banking has practical value in its own right. In the longer term, its greatest value might be how it represents a change in how Canadians view their economy.

The American people don’t deserve Trump, the world doesn’t deserve Trump, and even the average Democratic voter doesn’t deserve Trump. But liberal elites across the developed world do. It was their cuts to social programs, their imbalanced trade deals, and their attacks on the organized working class that set into motion such a potential catastrophe.