The Conversation Piece

It’s been three years since we launched The Conversation Piece. 90 episodes measured over pandemic years, launched because for a while there, we couldn’t convene the way we love to - at The Walrus Talks. Through three seasons, we’ve done our best to showcase some of the most compelling talkers who have wheeled, walked, and web-cammed onto a stage for The Walrus Talks. Health reporter and author An...

Trigger Warning: this episode contains subject matter which includes sexual assault and domestic violence.  The stories told by sexual assault survivors are best told through their voice when they are ready, but that can mean secondary pain in the form of judgement, disbelief, and shame. It’s why so many survivors don’t speak their truths. Because words like “allegedly” take the power of thei...

Women, Two Spirit, trans and non binary people across the spectrum have been at the forefront of what it means to be a caregiver. Whether society defines it as nurture or instinct, one thing’s for certain, over half of the women in our economy work in the 5 C’s: caring, catering, clerical work, cashiering and cleaning. Andrea Gunraj is the Vice President of Public Engagement at the Canadian Women’...

Information about global warming is everywhere. And although the delivery of this message brings up awareness, the overload of information can lead to ecological grief and anxiety. According to Geographer Ashlee Cunsolo, says that despite the discomfort these emotions may bring, acknowledging these feelings can better help us understand the severity of the climate situation. Cunsolo is the fo...

Generation Y inherited the truth of the 60s scoop, residential schools, and treaties, they did not create it, but Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians have the responsibility of facing that truth. Many generations of Indigenous Canadians have been living in a sort of horizontal survival mode - because their vertical lineage leads straight back to those truths. Chief Cadmus Delorme is&...

Activism is changing the strategies of how many media organizations tell their stories: from the Black Lives Matter movement to Asian Heritage Month to #MeToo. But it hasn’t been a perfect trajectory - reporting on the changing social and political landscape takes skill, and sometimes learning from mistakes in real-time. Camille Dundas is the Editor-in-Chief of Canada's largest Black online m...

The climate crisis is a global issue and requires a coordinated effort from everyone. But the people who will be most impacted by this crisis are often excluded from conversations on climate change: our youth.  Naila Moloo believes that youth need to be involved in climate change discussions and in developing solutions. Moloo is an Innovator at The Knowledge Society and she spoke at The...

Indigenous peoples face some of the highest levels of poverty in Canada. According to many people, including Candice Shaw , these inequalities are the intended result of colonial systems. Shaw believes that in order to address inequality at its core, we need to decolonize systems of power while continuing to engage Indigenous communities in discussions on reconciliation. Shaw is the Executive Dire...

Our society has taken steps to improve awareness and understanding on the stigmas of mental health. But conversations about mental health are often limited to certain conditions and are divorced from conversations about underlying factors like inequity and discrimination. Fae Johnstone believes that in order to effectively combat the stigmas of mental health, we need policy and awareness that addr...

“Man up,” “be a man,” and “don’t be a girl” are phrases that boys often hear while growing up. They send the message that men should always project toughness, stoicism, and independence. Jake Stika believes that we need to teach boys to express vulnerability, ask for help, and show compassion and that doing so will benefit everyone in our society. Stika is the Executive Director of Next Gen Men an...

Humans have an innate desire to explore. It’s what drove our early ancestors to migrate out of Africa and why modern humans dream of one day landing on Mars. But according to Kate Harris , we don’t need to travel to another planet to satisfy our collective need for exploration. We just need to find a deeper sense of belonging to the one we live on. Harris is the author of Lands of Lost Borders and...

The Canadian economy has suffered since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. But not all Canadians have been impacted equally. While many low income workers have lost their jobs or worked fewer hours, Canada’s richest CEOs have made even more money. According to David Macdonald , the source of the inequality is that CEO pay is based on power rather than merit. Macdonald is a senior economist for th...

The late Menaka Thakkar was an accomplished dancer and instructor, but in her 2017 talk, she was full of words about the impact of dancing. And it goes so much further than her artistry - into the power of culture and the beauty of seeing yourself in the art on stage. Thakkar spoke at The Walrus Talks We Desire a Better Country in 2017. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Even in the midst of a pandemic, healthcare needs to be covered, roads need to be fixed, which means taxes need to be paid, and ‘tis the season. According to Claire Trottier, there are 59 billionaires currently in Canada and over the course of their pandemic, their wealth increased by 87 billion. And she’s one of them. Trottier is a philanthropist and tax justice advocate and she spoke at The Walr...

This will be our second Olympic Games held during the pandemic, and it promises to be a very interesting, and isolating experience for our athletes. As focused as Olympic athletes are this may be an opportunity to widen their gazes - like former Olympian Karina LeBlanc has. LeBlanc is an Olympian, and former professional soccer goalkeeper and current GM of the Portland Thorns FC, and she spoke at...

It is surprising the kind of people who confess to suffering from imposter syndrome. Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, singer David Bowie, pro-athlete Serena Williams, and actress Tina Fey have all at one time or another, expressed this kind of doubt about themselves in public. But what if feeling like you’re faking it (and worrying that someone is going to figure it out) is not an individual problem, b...

As Canadian children and their parents are once again confronted with the uncertainty of lockdowns and school closures, the mental health of our youngest community members is of concern. How will this affect them in the short-term? In the long-term? And will this contribute to a new intergenerational trauma? These questions become even more fraught when you add the lens of diversity and Black yout...

According to Statistics Canada, being a person of faith, or at least admitting to being a person of faith is becoming less popular. That might just be about the ebb and flow of our culture, and history may cycle again to make religion popular again, but in the meantime, the places that were built at the height of “worship culture” sit in disrepair and worse. And according to Natalie Bull, that is...

Immersing yourself in your subject is not a new concept. Actors do it. Engineers do it. Writers do it. But why is it important? According to wildlife photographer Kerri Martin , sometimes in pursuit of accurate representation, you can discover a deeper meaning in why you do what you do. And doing it in a conscious way has all kinds of benefits. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more infor...

There are days when it may seem like we have solved the diversity issue in the arts here in Canada. When you look around and you finally see Indigenous books winning the biggest awards, and Black poets sharing the stage with their literary peers it starts to feel like hope. But according to Devyani Saltzman, who has led programming at the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Banff Centre, while we are g...

Many of us have experienced isolation over the past 18 months, which has taken a toll on our collective mental health. During these restless times, it’s natural to fight the feelings of loneliness, grief, and sadness. But as mental health advocate Mark Henick has learned, these feelings can be an excellent teacher if we’re willing to just … sit with them. Henick is an author and mental health advo...

When you think of the natural world, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? To some, it might be National Park forests, the Great Lakes, or the Rocky Mountains. Carly Ziter spoke about the ecosphere that often receives less attention: the one living within our cities. Carly Ziter is an assistant professor in the Department of Biology at Concordia University and member of the Smart, Sustainable...

Canada has a lot of work to do to improve relationships with Indigenous communities. But how will we get there as a country? According to Roberta Jamieson, the solution goes beyond charity. It requires philanthropy based on Indigenous reciprocity. Roberta Jamieson is a Mohawk woman from Six Nations of the Grand River, Ontario. She is the former president and CEO of Indspire and is on the board of...

In the midst of a pandemic, cancer remains one of the leading causes of death in Canada, so it makes sense that we have large laboratories for conducting cancer research. But according to Steve Shih, when it comes to building research facilities, bigger is not always better. This might be a moment (strategically) to think small. Shih is an Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering...

Caring for a sick loved one is one of the hardest things a person can go through. But as Damian Rogers found out, it can also be an opportunity to learn how to live a more meaningful life. Damian Rogers is a poet, author, and teacher. She spoke at The Walrus Talks: Living Better in 2019. A transcript of this episode is available on our website . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more info...