Equalization Rage
It has been called the superglue of Canada’s Confederation. It is also, ironically, one of the things that keeps driving provinces apart. It is ridiculously complicated, made more so by [...]
Reject, Accept, Embrace
All “new” things (most of which are not actually new) seem to go through a cycle from rejection to gradual acceptance and finally embrace. One might assume I’m about to wax philosophical about [...]
Is a Carbon Tax the Best Way to Reduce GHG Emissions?
Jennifer Winter the assistant professor of economics at the University of Calgary says YES. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—and the corresponding effects on climate—are a global problem. Canada is [...]
Conflict Between Humans and Wildlife
Photography allows me to observe wildlife and spend time in nature, but my real goal is to illustrate the challenges facing animals and inspire viewers to change their behaviour. This can include [...]
The Death of Annie the Water Witcher by Lightning
Audrey J. Whitson’s excellent new novel,The Death of Annie the Water Witcher by Lightning, starts with the act of witching in Alberta, which is to say the story is both a complex tale and a [...]
Inner Ranges: An Anthology of Mountain Thoughts and Mountain People
Mountains are a constant theme in Geoff Powter’s life. The Canmore-based climber has decades of experience ascending hard routes in the Canadian Rockies, Yosemite Valley and the Himalayas. With [...]
The Western Alienation Merit Badge
The Alberta of Nancy Jo Cullen’s The Western Alienation Merit Badge will sound familiar to many readers, “with its newly bankrupt oil barons, out-of-work rig hands, jobless heavy-duty mechanics [...]
The Plans to Strip-Mine Coal in the Mountains
It looks like spectacular wild country, but some see it more as a big money sandwich. The top layer of that sandwich is comprised of alpine grasses, forget-me-nots and stonecrop, glacier lilies [...]
Can Climate Change Be Reversed?
When NASA initiated the Mercury Project that would send the first American into space in 1958, one of the many questions facing scientists was what to do about the carbon dioxide emissions of [...]
Keetsahnak: Our Missing and Murdered Indigenous Sisters
This powerful collection of writing and knowledge-sharing builds upon the good work of the Walking with Our Sisters (WWOS) art installation/commemorative gathering of moccasin tops—called [...]
MOST READ
MOST READ
Misplaced Anger
Should Alberta ditch Canada? This simple yet ominous question—blazoned on two Alberta billboards earlier this year, and asked by many in the recent provincial election campaign—reflects a deep feeling of frustration and resentment throughout the province, much of it directed at Ottawa.
Environics, in their 2019 Survey of Canadians, found 71 ...
The Consequences of How We Pay Doctors
At approximately 9:21 p.m., on May 18, 2015, a couple driving on Edmonton’s Yellowhead Trail called 911 to report a suspected impaired driver. They said he appeared “like someone high on drugs.” At 9:33 p.m., two police officers in an unmarked vehicle pulled up behind the Nissan Maxima, which was now stopped ...
Heritage Trust Fund
A decade ago, when Alberta was debt-free and staring at a $7.4-billion surplus, Premier Ralph Klein decided it was time to spread the wealth. He announced that every person who lived in the province—and, as it turned out, more than a few who didn’t—would receive a cheque for $400 as ...