Viewpoints

Quebec’s expanding religious symbol ban sparks discussions about secularism. To Nova Scotia, where a Bookmobile delivers books, but also, a “sense of community” along Liverpool’s South Shore. In New Brunswick, a local historian publishes 1000 page-long book on the Canadian First World War cap badges! In Cobourg, Ontario, the Nightstop program is looking for volunteers willing to share their homes...

We’ll make our first stop in Montreal, Québec, as a record rent increase could soon become a reality. This as Quebec’s Tenancy Board permits record rent hikes. Tenants prepare for the worst. Then to Haliburton County, Ontario, where Intimate Partner Violence is considered to be an Epidemic. Out east in Nova Scotia: He left Burma in 1967 and retired four times. Dr. Mohan Virick, now 89 years old, l...

We’ll spend most of our time strolling down the streets of Montreal’s Little Burgundy Borough, in the company of British photographer Andrew Jackson. And to the other end of the country: American flags are still flying high in the streets of Smithers BC leaving some residents feeling uneasy. They could soon come down.  A big thank you to both our journalists this week, Jules Bugiel and Pamela Haas...

We remember the work and contributions of Montreal Standard Time’s journalist and Canadian author, Mavis Gallant. Therapists can come in all shapes or forms. A four-legged horse at Minden’s Walkabout Farm changes lives in the community. Sixteen zero-emission buses have been purchased as part of Winnipeg’s Transition Fleet Project. Last October’s atmospheric river poured on to BC, but had a positiv...

Six Nations and First Nations from across Ontario have approved a $8.5 billion Ontario Child and Family Services Reform Agreement. Sackville resident Emilie McBride has been fighting for the right to build a small rectangular shaped home. And she won her case! Third Annual Cape Breton Music Industry Hall of Fame inductees announced. And a rare railway horn was stolen from the Prince George Railway...

Hoping to help Canadians shop locally, a Montreal student launches the Buy Beaver app. Another one in Ontario does kind of the same! And launches a browser extension that helps online shoppers… buy Canadian… eh ? Municipalities are also pitching in : we go to Kingston Ontario to find out what they’re doing to support Canada and “buying local”. Then, to the Nova Scotia library and its Banned Books...

In British Columbia, the Comox Valley’s 10th annual Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser hopes to collect $225,000. Also in BC, an exhibition highlights the work of the Haida master carver, Christian White, which will be on display until 2026! And to the province of Quebec, which is facing one of its worst flu seasons in years. Some 4,500 cases were revealed in lab tests last week alone—a peak not...

We’ll make our first stop in Montreal, Québec, as a record rent increase could soon become a reality. This as Quebec’s Tenancy Board permits record rent hikes. Tenants prepare for the worst. Then to Haliburton County, Ontario, where Intimate Partner Violence is considered to be an Epidemic. Out east in Nova Scotia: He left Burma in 1967 and retired four times. Dr. Mohan Virick, now 89 years old, l...

The province of Nova Scotia invests over $1M in a Cape Breton biotech plant… Nova Scotia. That’s where the Kat’s Lobster Shack snatched the title of best lobster roll for the third time. A new store has set up shop in Winnipeg to help support war-displaced Ukrainian artisans. The Cobourg Council rescinded its decision to declare December as Christian Heritage Month . In Ontario, the Elora House or...

Cannabis-impaired driving is on the rise in Winnipeg. This is also where Muslim and Indigenous communities joined forces to inspire systemic change. Canadian composer Erik Lankin launches his first classical music project, The Icarus Album . Seniors are meeting up in Waterloo to talk about travel at the Friday Flicks Travel Show! The cities of Saint John and Moncton bid to co-host the 2029 Canada...

Black History Month is coming up this February. Under the theme “all that we carry.” Paintings of New Brunswick-born Edward Mitchell Bannister come to Sackville, courtesy of the Smithsonian Museum. The exhibit is called Hidden Blackness . The Town of Cobourg, in Ontario, is rethinking its position on issuing religious declarations, this after being asked to designate a day in March as Atheist Awar...

Some Montrealers are taking matters into their own hands to find innovative, cost-effective solutions to affordable housing. Mount Allison University is investing close to 100 million dollars in its library and a new multi-sport complex. A school in Ontario has revamped its app, partly to turn away from X! Women’s hockey hits Vancouver, and veteran goalie Meghann Moore, reflects on the impact of t...

We start the new year with feel-good stories, as we should. And with Canadians that make a difference, locally and at the national level. Was volunteering locally on your New Year’s resolution list? We’ll meet up with some people for whom it was. To Montréal, Québec, where a senior’s centre provides support for youth caregivers. There are 1.25 million of them across Canada! The Dimensions Retreat...

This episode is a rerun  Mike McCulloch will again fill in for me this week as he did last week, with a documentary produced in Abbotsford, British Columbia. We’ll be meeting musician Shamir Virgo, a singer-songwriter from Surrey, B.C. who’s enjoying some success. His song, Roses , has more than 1.7 million listens on Spotify and Soundcloud. Mike McCulloch, who will spend this half hour with Virgo...

This episode is a rerun.  On today’s show, I will be out and journalist Mike McCulloch will be in, with a documentary produced in Abbotsford, British Columbia. It has been more than eight years since public health officials in British Columbia sounded the alarm… that users of illicit drugs were dying at greater rates than historically observed. Today, more than 15,000 people have died in the provi...

This episode is a rerun. Journalist Pamela Haasen will take over this episode of Viewpoints, with a documentary produced in Smithers, British Columbia. And we’ll stay outdoors with her and her guests, contemplating the great scenery of BC’s Witset Canyon. That is where Abigail Joseph, goes fishing for salmon. This documentary discusses salmon returns and climate change through the eyes of one youn...

The Shipyards Christmas Market is going strong and hopes to inspire more BC Christmas markets across the Lower Mainland. A seasonal question for you: Is it green to get lit? What’s the environmental impact of lighting up large Christmas trees? The Region of Kitchener-Waterloo wonders … The Astor Theatre Society in Liverpool will have a new chairman. Eric Goulden will take on the job. To New Brunsw...

Tenants in Québec voice frustrations over Quebec’s housing tribunal, saying that it’s nothing more than “an eviction machine.” Ian Sutherland is Mount Allison’s 16th president. His new strategic plan will address challenges in funding and reduced student visa quotas. At the other end of the country, Climate Change researcher Tristan Pearce has been reappointed as Tier 2 Canada Research Chair. Newf...

More funding is desperately needed, as Winnipeg’s women’s shelters are exceeding their capacity. A UNBC professor receives a $50,000 grant to create a women’s cyber self-defense toolkit. The New Westminster crisis response project wants to tackle homelessness, mental health and substance abuse head on. Queens County fishermen head out early on Dumping Day, the first day of the Lobster Season! And...

In New Brunswick, Green Party MLA Megan Mitton says she’ll keep an eye on Susan Holt’s newly elected liberal government. To Montréal, where a Mohawk group says McGill University is to blame for the removal of a white pine peace tree, planted on their grounds just a few days ago. High-speed internet will soon bridge the gap between Manitoba’s rural communities and larger markets. Nanaimo’s new poet...

In Ontario, the Loyalist Township is asking the province to reverse its decision to allow alcohol sales in more locations. To Winnipeg, Manitoba, where the Canadian Blood Services are hoping to attract 1,500 donors this November. Quebecers on social assistance want reforms with real investments. A Saint John designer wins a national fashion show in Toronto for her dress made out of toilet paper. A...

Susan Holt was sworn in as New Brunswick’s first woman premier. “Words will have consequences,” says Cecil Clarke, Cape Breton’s Regional Municipality, newly elected mayor. He vows to tackle racism and homophobia in the province. The Tšilhqot’in National government and Museum of Vancouver partner up to repatriate long-lost ancestral belongings. We’ll go green and talk about microforests planting i...

A Sackville resident is challenging the allowable size of homes in the New Brunswick Tantramar region to make it possible, to have more tiny homes built. The Elora Adventure Film Festival returns with a new crop of feature films, highlighting thrill seekers from around the globe. Senior Women Living Together, a new not-for-profit organization, matches women seeking housemates to counter solitude a...

Mike McCulloch will again fill in for me this week as he did last week, with a documentary produced in Abbotsford, British Columbia. We’ll be meeting musician Shamir Virgo, a singer-songwriter from Surrey, B.C. who’s enjoying some success. His song, Roses , has more than 1.7 million listens on Spotify and Soundcloud. Mike McCulloch, who will spend this half hour with Virgo, as well as with some of...

On today’s show, I will be out and journalist Mike McCulloch will be in, with a documentary produced in Abbotsford, British Columbia. It has been more than eight years since public health officials in British Columbia sounded the alarm… that users of illicit drugs were dying at greater rates than historically observed. Today, more than 15,000 people have died in the province since B.C. declared th...