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Environment

May-June 2017

Canada’s environmental assessments suck—and they’re devastating our land

How our country plans to reform them

Andrew Reeves

Ken Boon lives on a “little piece of heaven,” lost to the world in British Columbia’s Peace River bottomlands. His wife, Arlene, grew up in Fort St. John on a homestead her grandfather purchased in the 1940s. The property, where the pair farm grains and run an 18-acre market garden, overlooks Cache Creek, a tributary of […] More »
March-April 2017

Canadians should care about nuclear contamination in the Great Lakes

What you should know about its ecological and health effects

Andrew Reeves@reevesreport

Here’s the question at the heart of it: Should we be worried about radioactive waste leaching into the Great Lakes? Absolutely we should, notes a coalition of 110 Canadian and American environmental groups. For a year they’ve been calling on both governments to reduce what they believe are the harmful ramifications of radioactive isotopes in […] More »
March-April 2017

This new initiative out of Newfoundland could make navigating frozen waters safer for Canadians

SmartIce, a project between the Inuit community, the Nunatsiavut government, and Memorial University, uses high-tech sensors to monitor and track changes in sea ice

Sohini Bhattacharya

The Inuit of Pond Inlet, Nunavut, have been navigating the sea ice for centuries, relying on their experience and wisdom from their elders to inform when and when not to travel across the frozen mass. But as global warming intensifies, the ice is becoming increasingly unpredictable and unsafe. Now, a project out of Memorial University […] More »

Inside the Toronto rally for Standing Rock

Hundreds showed up in the city to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline

Mick Sweetman@MickSweetman

As more than 200 people rallied against the Dakota Access Pipeline in Toronto’s financial district Saturday night it began to snow. The significance of the snow wasn’t lost on the attendees: their slogan, after all, is “water is life,” and they welcomed it joining them on the cold night. The Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) is a […] More »
January-February 2017

Inside an Ontario town’s fight to protect its local waters

Wellington residents are pushing against Nestlé Waters Canada as the company pursues regional well sites

Lindsay Kneteman@lindsayjaykay

If you think Canadians live with a massive excess of water, think again. Mike Nagy, the chair of the Wellington Water Watchers (WWW), a non-profit dedicated to protecting the local waters in Ontario’s Guelph-Wellington region, says many are disillusioned by this idea that’s patently untrue. But thanks to the spotlight the WWW has shined on Nestlé […] More »
November-December 2016

Why Maritimers are rallying against chemical forest sprays

The chemical, glyphosate, is controversial for its propensity to cause cancer

Larkin Schmiedl@LarkinSchmiedl

Protests erupted across Nova Scotia this fall when forestry company Northern Pulp was approved for its latest round of aerial herbicide sprays. The controversial chemical, glyphosate, is banned in parts of Europe and for forestry in Quebec due to questions around its propensity to cause cancer. In the Maritimes, glyphosate’s recent history is troubling. Rod […] More »
September-October 2016

Businesses can put “dead money” to use fighting climate change

Canadian businesses held almost $500 billion in dead money at the start of 2016.

Ellen Russell

For our special 50th anniversary issue, Canada’s brightest, boldest, and most rebellious thinkers, doers, and creators share their best big ideas. Through ideas macro and micro, radical and everyday, we present 50 essays, think pieces, and calls to action. Picture: plans for sustainable food systems, radical legislation, revolutionary health care, a greener planet, Indigenous self-government, […] More »
September-October 2016

How can Canada face climate change head-on?

Environmental challenges are part of a complex web of natural, economic, and social forces. Untangling them is daunting

Andrew Reeves@reevesreport

For our special 50th anniversary issue, Canada’s brightest, boldest, and most rebellious thinkers, doers, and creators share their best big ideas. Through ideas macro and micro, radical and everyday, we present 50 essays, think pieces, and calls to action. Picture: plans for sustainable food systems, radical legislation, revolutionary health care, a greener planet, Indigenous self-government, […] More »
September-October 2016

Canada needs Wi-Fi-free preserves

How to fight light pollution and more in our country

Andrew Potter@jandrewpotter

For our special 50th anniversary issue, Canada’s brightest, boldest, and most rebellious thinkers, doers, and creators share their best big ideas. Through ideas macro and micro, radical and everyday, we present 50 essays, think pieces, and calls to action. Picture: plans for sustainable food systems, radical legislation, revolutionary health care, a greener planet, Indigenous self-government, […] More »
September-October 2016

It’s time to tackle climate change in Canada

Naomi Klein on how climate changes everything

Naomi Klein@NaomiAKlein

For our special 50th anniversary issue, Canada’s brightest, boldest, and most rebellious thinkers, doers, and creators share their best big ideas. Through ideas macro and micro, radical and everyday, we present 50 essays, think pieces, and calls to action. Picture: plans for sustainable food systems, radical legislation, revolutionary health care, a greener planet, Indigenous self-government, […] More »
September-October 2016

Canadians can save the songbirds

Human-made environments have made it tricky for the birds to survive

Moira Farr@moirafarr

For our special 50th anniversary issue, Canada’s brightest, boldest, and most rebellious thinkers, doers, and creators share their best big ideas. Through ideas macro and micro, radical and everyday, we present 50 essays, think pieces, and calls to action. Picture: plans for sustainable food systems, radical legislation, revolutionary health care, a greener planet, Indigenous self-government, […] More »