Redeye

The vaccine rollout in Canada has given us the sense that there is light at the end of the tunnel. But the pandemic continues to rage, and the picture for poorer countries that aren’t first up for vaccine distribution is much bleaker. Jason Nickerson is humanitarian affairs advisor for Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières in Ottawa. He says equitable access can only be guaranteed through fundamental change to the way that lifesaving medicines and vaccines are developed and distributed. We spoke with Jason Nickerson on Dec 15.

In September, the Canadian government signalled its intention to develop nuclear power as part of its investment in clean technology companies. One aspect of the plan could see small modular reactors placed in remote communities currently powered by diesel. We discuss this new strategy with Susan O’Donnell of the Coalition for Responsible Energy Development in New Brunswick.

A new report by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives takes a look at the economic performance of coal mines located in mountain caribou habitat in northeastern British Columbia, where mining has been identified as a key driver of caribou extirpation. Economist Robyn Allan is co-author of the report, Who Benefits From Caribou Decline?

City councils around the Lower Mainland are wrapping up a busy year, full of unprecedented challenges and crises. Redeye’s City Beat reporter Ian Mass joins us to look back on the six biggest issues municipalities faced in 2020.

As countries are rolling out plans to distribute new vaccines for Covid-19, Canada has to depend on foreign corporations to produce and obtain vaccines. But that has not always been the case - Canada used to have significant capacity to develop and produce important vaccines and drugs. Health policy researcher Colleen Fuller explains how Canada lost that capacity and how it hampers our ability to create a national pharmacare program.

On November 18, the federal Conservatives convinced the NDP, Greens and the Bloc to support a motion declaring that the People’s Republic of China is threatening Canada’s national interest and its values, and Parliament needs to do something decisive about it. To talk about the significance of this resolution, we're joined by John Price, professor emeritus of Transpacific History at the University of Victoria and author of the book Orienting Canada: Race, Empire and the Transpacific.

Medea Benjamin of Code Pink for Peace condemns the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh and says it’s aimed at derailing future efforts at diplomacy with Iran. She points out that, with Iran scheduled to have elections in June, incoming president Joe Biden has just four months to bring the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. We talk with Medea Benjamin from Miami.

A group of dedicated volunteers has just launched a new podcast about the arts and mental health. When the team, led by music producer Earle Peach, got together a year ago to start planning, they had no idea how timely a mental health podcast would be in 2020. The first two episodes are up on their podcast. We speak with the host of the Art Heals Podcast, Elaine Joe. Find Art Heals at https://arthealspodcast.podbean.com/

The BC NDP say that its CleanBC plan will put the province on the path to a cleaner, better future. However, this climate strategy seems at odds with the decision by the NDP government to continue to provide subsidies to oil and gas companies in the form of tax breaks, royalty reductions and investments of public money. We talk with Kai Nagata, energy and democracy director at Dogwood.

Over 16,000 petitions were delivered to Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino’s office in November calling for changes to student work permit rules before Dec 31d. Covid-19 related job losses have meant that hundreds of thousands of former international students may be unable to qualify for permanent resident status. And the deadline for renewal of work permits is fast approaching. We speak with Simran Dhunna of Migrant Students United.

In November, the federal government tabled legislation that makes net-zero emissions by 2050 a legally-binding target. While this is being seen as a positive first step, Canada has missed every single emission-reduction target it has ever set. Anna Johnston of West Coast Environment Law says that changes are needed for the law to show true climate leadership. We spoke with her last month.

Canada Energy Regulator just came out with its latest long-term energy outlook. The analysis in the report shows that with even modest new climate policies, there’s no need to build the Trans Mountain and Keystone XL pipelines, undermining Prime Minister Trudeau’s position that the expansion of oil production is consistent with Canada’s climate policy. We speak with Eugene Kung of West Coast Environmental Law.

At a time when the Vancouver Police department is under pressure from a broad range of activist groups and the City of Vancouver to end street checks, it has formed a new neighbourhood response team in the downtown core that could lead to an expansion of this type of police activity. We talk with Meghan McDermott of the BC Civil Liberties Association about the VPD’s new unit.

Discover Canada is the official study guide for people who are preparing to take the Canadian citizenship test. But its portrayal of Canada is far from accurate, according to five women faculty members at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. We speak with Anne-Emanuelle Birn, Professor of Critical Development Studies and Global Health at the University of Toronto.Read the article: https://theconversation.com/canadian-citizenship-study-guide-should-tell-the-truth-about-racism-144629

Vancouver City Council just spent two weeks discussing the climate emergency plan they asked staff to develop last year. They heard from 75 speakers both for and against the actions recommended in the plan – and ended up passing all 37 recommendations. Ian Mass joins us on our City Beat feature with more details about the climate plan and several other motions coming before council tomorrow.

A long tradition of the amateur detective exists in the mystery genre. The latest sleuth is Annick Boudreau, a clinical psychologist created by a Vancouver comedian, playwright, and novelist who based the character of Annick Boudreau, in part, on his own therapist. We speak with Charles Demers about the book, Primary Obsessions.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is reported to be the largest private foundation in the world holding almost $47 billion in assets. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the Foundation has risen to a position of even greater prominence. However as a private institution, the Gates Foundation’s interests and investments remain largely hidden from public view. Tim Schwab raises questions about the accountability and transparency of the institution’s investments in his recent article, “When the Poor Get Sick, Bill Gates Gets Richer”, which appeared in the October edition of The Nation.

Justin Trudeau once claimed that Canada had no colonial past. A new book just out from Fernwood Press would disagree. Canada In the World looks closely at Canadian foreign policy and finds a consistent pattern of colonial conquest and capital accumulation. We speak with the book’s author, Tyler Shipley, professor of society, culture, and commerce at Humber College.

The Canadian government has announced that the final provisions of the Secure Air Travel Regulations are now in force. These new regulations modify Canada’s No Fly List regime but, according to the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group, they do not address the basic problems that plague the system and continue to result in the undermining of individuals’ rights as they travel. We talk with Tim McSorley, national coordinator of the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group.

More than 150 residents of long-term care and assisted living homes have lost their lives to Covid-19. However, tens of thousands more have been deeply impacted by the loss of connection to family and loved ones. Seniors Advocate Isobel MacKenzie says there have been more calls, letters and emails on the issue of visit restrictions than any other single issue in the history of the Office. She joins us to speak about the findings of a recent survey by the Office of the Seniors Advocate that garnered more than 15,000 responses.