“‘There is a rich man’s tuberculosis and a poor man’s tuberculosis. The rich man recovers and the poor man dies.’ This succinctly expresses the close embrace of economics and pathology.” – Dr. Norman Bethune, 1932
The pandemic is teaching us about what really matters — and has been possible all along
Before anything else I want to acknowledge what is unfolding in Canada and around the globe as a human tragedy. Even as this crisis offers an object lesson and has things to teach us, it is important to never lose sight of the scale of calamity in terms of suffering and loss of life.
The measures taken to stop the pandemic have set a new standard for our collective response to the climate crisis
If a few months ago I suggested that we should shrink the cruise ship industry as a response to the climate emergency, you would probably have rolled your eyes. But now that the cruise industry is on the verge of a shutdown that could bankrupt major operators, does it seem so impossible?
What a week. It has been hard to keep up with the breaking news. We’re all concerned for the wellbeing and safety of our families, friends, and communities. I know it’s a tough time for everyone, so I wanted to write to you today and to share some of what I’ve been seeing.
Last week, as businesses and schools began closing in response to COVID-19, I was thinking a lot about those who are most at risk — seniors, those with chronic illness, health care workers, and people without the time or resources to prepare.
The Trudeau government should not use the oil-price crash and the economic downturn stemming from a public-health crisis as an excuse to back away from environmental commitments in the upcoming federal budget, warned a coalition of civil society leaders.
Speaking on Parliament Hill on Tuesday, representatives from Indigenous, labour, social justice and other organizations said now was not the time for Canada to shy away from tackling the climate emergency.
An ostensibly pro-environment message on a poster showing up on lamp posts in downtown Red Deer, Alberta links back to an extreme white nationalist website that was already on the radar of anti-racism campaigners, reports the Edmonton bureau of the Toronto Star.
In today’s Big Story podcast, in what’s being called an historic precedent, Foodora couriers in Ontario recently won the right to join a union. The food delivery app calls its couriers “independent entrepreneurs”, but the workers disagree with that term, citing low wages, unreliable work hours, and safety issues on the job.
What went into this fight? And what could this win mean for the future of Foodora and other food delivery services?
Canadians can expect more disruptive protests if the federal government pushes forward with the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion against the wishes of some of the Indigenous communities it will pass through, says a British Columbia lawyer and Indigenous negotiator.
In the last month, Indigenous people across the country set up barricades on train tracks, roads and bridges, in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en Nation hereditary chiefs, some of whom object to the construction of a natural-gas pipeline through their traditional territory.
"The fine for evasion is high by comparison to the slap on the wrist motorists receive for a variety of ills ranging from parking tickets to running red lights. On this one, the TTC appears to be at war with its riders.''
The federal government is acting like it doesn't take its own climate emergency declaration seriously
With another federal budget looming, the government still doesn’t seem to be taking its own declaration of a “climate emergency” seriously.
Last month, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada announced that it will audit the $186.7-billion “Investing in Canada” infrastructure program. An opposition motion in the House of Commons asked for the audit, noting an incomplete accounting of changes to the government’s spending plan.
