Real Talk Ryan Jespersen

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to talk@ryanjespersen.com . Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste .

With coal exploration already happening on the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains, Y2Y conservation scientist Dr. Aerin Jacob explains what's at stake, and what it means for Canadians and our water supply. Last week, our Question of the Week asked you about quality in politics. Today's Real Talk Round Table taps into your replies, as we check in with Conservative MP Mike Lake, former Ontario PC...

On the first full day of Joe Biden's Presidency, we discuss Alberta Premier Jason Kenney's suggestion Canada should impose trade sanctions on the USA, based on the cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline. International trade lawyer Mark Warner gives us a sense of what the economic relationship between Canada and the US will look like moving forward, including the pipeline file. Jay Hill, leader o...

It's Inauguration Day south of the border! Former Clinton White House advisor and speechwriter Dr. Ted Widmer joins to discuss the change in tone from the 45th to the 46th President, and similarities between the Inaugurations of Abraham Lincoln and Joe Biden. Energy analyst Mikaela McQuade digs into the cancellation of Keystone XL, and what else Canadians can expect from the Biden Administration....

Coal mining conversations continue in Alberta, as the government announced a pause on eleven recently-granted leases in the Rocky Mountains. We check in with environmental lawyer David Khan and CPAWS conservation director (and biologist) Katie Morrison for details on what that actually means. Craig Snodgrass may be Mayor of a small town (High River), but he brought heavy artillery to our conversat...

Naturalist Kevin Van Tighem, former superintendent of Banff National Park, takes us on a hike he completed over the weekend, surveying coal mining activity in Alberta's Oldman River. Energy economist Andrew Leach and environmental law professor Martin Olszynski chime in on reports President-elect Biden will cancel Keystone XL, and offer insight into the UCP's controversial Allan Inquiry into forei...

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to talk@ryanjespersen.com . Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste .

"As DC falls, Bitcoin rises," a viewer tweeted Ryan on January 6th. Bitcoin Well CEO Adam O'Brien joins for Real Talk on the popular cryptocurrency, including his take on its wild value fluctuations over the past week. This week's Real Talk Round Table takes a look at "The Next 30" movement, featuring co-founder Chad Park, Salimah Kassam, and Carman McNary. After Coal Association of Canada preside...

With more and more Canadians paying attention to open-pit coal mining in the Rocky Mountains, Coal Association of Canada president (and former Alberta Environment Minister) Robin Campbell argues the industry side. Jason Doucette, president of Alberta Fly Fishing and Conservation, explains why he's opposed to Alberta's coal expansion. With 9-1-1 services being consolidated across the province, Albe...

The Alberta government broke a promise that teachers would maintain control of their pension fund, and Alberta Teachers Association president Jason Schilling has something to say about it. Minister Jim Carr is back as the Prime Minister's Special Representative to the Prairies. He takes us into his top priorities, including vaccinations and economic stimulus. Country music star Corb Lund, rancher...

With President Donald Trump banned from virtually every social media platform, and Alberta talk host Danielle Smith leaving AM radio for Locals.com, we check in with content manager Idris Fashan for insight on political commentary across the digital landscape. Strategist Jason Lietaer, former advisor to Prime Minster Stephen Harper, takes us into Prime Minister Trudeau's cabinet shuffle, and the i...

We review results of our Real Talk Question of the Week, after more than 4,300 of you chimed in on how you feel about Alberta's government. (Spoiler: there are major trust issues.) Biostatistician Ryan Imgrund gets into Canada's vaccination numbers, explains what Alberta's doing right, and what Ottawa needs to do better. BloodWatch.org founder Kat Lanteigne explains why she's so troubled about cha...

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to talk@ryanjespersen.com . Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste .

On the one year anniversary of the tragic downing of flight PS752, Javad Soleimani, Daniel Ghods, and Peyman Parseyan share their grief, the details of their journey, and the reason for their continued advocacy for justice. After releasing an open letter to the provincial government, asking for a stop the plan to consolidate Alberta's 9-1-1 dispatch, Alberta mayors Naheed Nenshi, Tara Veer, Chris...

How are we to process what happened in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, January 6th? What do the next two weeks look like for our neighbours to the south? What are the implications for Canadians and the rest of the world? The morning after a monumental day in American history, an attempted coup in the nation's capital, former US Ambassador to Canada Bruce Heyman explains the significance of what hap...

The Mayor and Councillors in Slave Lake, Alberta have called for the resignation of their absentee elected provincial representative, MLA Pat Rehn, who's refused to step down. Mayor Tyler Warman and Deputy Mayor Shawn Gramlich explain what led to their unprecedented (unanimous) demand. Grade Six teacher Alison Palmer and her student Zoe Cogger tell us how they landed the Prime Minister for a priva...

Political science professors Dr. Lisa Young and Dr. Laurie Adkin dig into the story leading national headlines this week - the scandal plaguing Alberta's UCP government, after more than ten MLAs and staffers travelled to the tropics over the holidays. Were yesterday's minor role reassignments and the Cabinet resignation of MLA Tracey Allard enough to satisfy an outraged public? Kristian Basaraba,...

Albertans are furious at the tone-deaf, elite, entitled arrogance displayed by Premier Jason Kenney, at least one of his Ministers multiple MLAs, and political staffers who travelled to exotic holiday destinations in the midst of a pandemic. Ryan channels public opinion in an unprecedented nearly-hour-long opening statement. We hear from former Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk, former PC Minister Ri...

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to talk@ryanjespersen.com . Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste .

Journalist Andrew Nikiforuk lays out civilian concerns around coal strip mining in the Rockies. Conservationist and author Kevin Van Tighem, former superintendent of Banff National Park, helps us understand what's really going on with the UCP and ownership of Alberta's parks. Award-winning journalist Brandi Morin revisits Canada's top Indigenous news stories of 2020. Former Oilers captain and Stan...

Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen describes how the mountain town has weathered COVID-19, and its post-pandemic economic recovery plan. Famed Canadian entrepreneur Arlene Dickinson has a message for small business owners making a game plan for 2021. Harm reduction advocate Guy Felicella shares his survival story, and outlines what meaningful and effective response to Canada's opioid crisis needs to look...

The Archdiocese of Edmonton has pulled a priest from duty after a “credible accusation of sexual assault of a minor” in Los Angeles. Sexual abuse survivor Irene Deschenes takes us into the Catholic church’s long history of protecting predators. Reverend Anna Greenwood-Lee joins us to explain why she takes issue with Alberta’s UCP government quoting scripture on Christmas Day.

Ryan rolls out the best rants of the week, as submitted to talk@ryanjespersen.com . Buckle up for another edition of Trash Talk, presented by Local Waste .

Cara Moffat has two very important jobs. She's a respiratory therapist helping COVID-19 patients at Edmonton's Royal Alexandra Hospital. She's also one of Santa's helpers. She tell us what it's been like in Santa's mailroom this year, and how messages from kids are different in 2020. Mohammad Hussain is celebrating his very first Christmas, after years and years of ignoring the holiday. He takes u...

What were the top food stories in Canada in 2020? What food trends should we be focusing on for 2021? Professor Sylvain Charlebois of Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab. Mayors Cathy Heron, Alanna Hnatiw, and Tara Veer join from St. Albert, Sturgeon County, and Red Deer. We get into the year that was, the impact of COVID-19 on their communities, where the biggest economic opportunities...