Sudbury Pride rebranding for more inclusivity
Fierté Sudbury Pride is rebranding with a new logo and marketing plan to better represent the diverse 2SLGBTQ+ community, including Indigenous, Black, brown, and other underrepresented groups, in time for Pride Week.
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Globe and Mail
12 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Letters to the editor, June 7: ‘The AI revolution needs thoughtful regulation'
Re 'In its bid to rescue Afghans, Ottawa is fracturing their families' (Opinion, May 31): I can only imagine the relentlessly pounding and debilitating terror one must feel while anxiously awaiting safe passage out of Pakistan. I cannot understand why the Canadian immigration system is unable or, I shudder to think, unwilling to fix its flaw and expedite family unification on Canadian soil, given that many of these Afghans were indispensable allies for Canadians stationed in Afghanistan during the war. Perhaps a few terse pointers from Mark Carney could do the trick. Elsewhere, nearly 60 Afghan women's rights defenders have also been hiding in Pakistan ('Afghan women activists in Pakistan fear deportation as country cracks down on refugees' – April 22). Surely the Canadian government can do something to help these courageous women escape the awaiting brutality of both the Pakistani police and the Taliban. L.H. MacKenzie Vancouver Re 'A real reform mandate for the first federal AI minister' (Editorial, May 31): The artificial intelligence revolution needs thoughtful regulation. Another important AI-specific element of Evan Solomon's mandate letter should be policies to promote deployment of digital technologies by Canadian business to reskill and upskill our workforce, and to develop new products and services. Canada lags many countries, especially the United States, with the digital economy previously estimated by the Bank of Canada to account for as little as 5.5 per cent of GDP. Moreover, research shows that Canada faces serious digital skill shortages that are impacting labour supply, business efficiencies and growth. In the Industrial Revolution, it was the deployment of the steam engine that spurred economic growth through innovations worldwide. We should keep in mind that in the past, shared prosperity emerged only when technological advances were made to work for everyone. Which brings us back to the importance of sound regulation. Paul Jenkins Ottawa Re 'How to win a trade war: Canada, Trump and a delicate dance in asymmetric warfare' (Report on Business, May 31): 'Play defence: Reform our corporate tax regime.' One thing I am almost certain of in life is that corporate tax experts will never say such taxes are too low; they are always too high. The result is a race to the bottom, where less and less government revenue comes from corporate taxes. Where that process ends is obvious to me. How about approaching the issue from a different perspective: Who benefits from government spending? Canada has a track record of providing a safe, law-abiding environment within which corporations and their shareholders can have confidence that business can prosper. Should not the beneficiaries of programs requiring government expenditures to create that environment (defence spending being an example) pay their fair share of the costs? If for no other reason than to reverse income disparities between the very rich and the very poor, corporate taxes should not be cut any further. Peter Love Toronto Re 'How a Montreal family, a Baghdad embassy and the French government became entwined in a legal drama' (May 30): I would like to add another piece to your fascinating story on the Lawee family home being used as the French embassy in Baghdad. In the summer of 1981, I led a 10-person team in Baghdad for the initial research phase of Canadian architect Arthur Erickson's master plan for a 3.5-kilometre stretch of the Tigris riverfront and adjacent inland areas. Our team members were responsible for the detailed inventory and assessment of all 1,400 buildings within the Abu Nuwas Conservation/Development Project. They recalled one morning sitting in the office of our client, the chief architect of Baghdad, when it somehow came out that the French embassy was slated for demolition that day. When they hastily pointed out that the building had been earmarked in our report as heritage to be saved, our client picked up the phone, then and there, and the destruction was halted. Alan Bell Vancouver Re 'The perils of keeping identity hidden from kids conceived by sperm donors' (Opinion, May 31): Contributor Aviva Coopersmith details her bumpy conception story and the excruciatingly slow pace that donor-conceived persons in Canada and the greater world endure to maybe, possibly, someday gain greater access to their genetic past so they can fully own their present and future. My heart goes out to Ms. Coopersmith. I am the dad of a perfect two-year-old donor-conceived girl. I often lie awake at night worrying that my daughter will grow up with similar worries and wonderings. This is why I joined the board of Donor Conception Canada, a non-profit that helps people grappling with donor conception, be they prospective parents, active parents, donors or donor-conceived persons. We are all in this together. Joshua Levy Montreal Re 'Cattle have roamed Cambridge's city centre for hundreds of years. GPS is keeping the tradition going' (June 4): Very charming tradition. However, one minor – major? – problem has not been mentioned. I am talking about the rather copious amounts of 'pasture pastry' from each of the lovely beasts. How does the city deal with it: Cow diapers? Udder underwear? Just asking. Baily Seshagiri Ottawa Re 'I no longer knew how to find God, so nature became my church' (First Person, June 5): In a COVID-19 world, some have not returned to church. However, as rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote, 'faith is faithfulness.' Authentic worship is a discipline, an exercise. It is not only about what we receive, it is about what we give. As the essay-writer acknowledges, there is no similar community in communing with nature. I used to say that the church would always be there when people choose to return to it. Not any more. Many congregations struggle to survive. When people do not attend their local church, they often do not support it. If she chooses to go back to church one day, I hope it is there for her. Keith McKee Reverend London, Ont. I appreciate the essay-writer's awakening to the world around her in nature. I call nature God's first scripture. The parallels between outdoor sanctuary and wooden pews and stained glass are true: They are spaces to inspire, to inhale the spirit. I don't go to church to meet God; God is everywhere. I go to meet others along the way, and am determined to create a space where we are awakened, comforted, tear-soaked and then sent outdoors to nature ready to bring love to feed the lost and lonely creatures of the world. For me, there is a call to engage and transform the world, one goldfinch or silver-haired human at a time. John Pentland Reverend Hillhurst United Church; Calgary .................................................................................................................................. Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Keep letters to 150 words or fewer. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@
CBC
30 minutes ago
- CBC
Homeless people with most acute needs overlooked for Ottawa supportive housing, audit finds
Homeless people with the most complex needs are being overlooked on wait lists for the city's supportive housing, according to a new report by the office of Ottawa's auditor general. The report presented to the audit committee on Friday looked into the city's supportive housing program. This program aims to reduce homelessness by providing housing with additional services and support, which experts say is essential as homelessness often overlaps with complex mental health and addiction issues. The city administers funding from all levels of government to fund supportive housing providers, but the audit found that resources are stretched thin. While the city receives capital funding from the federal and provincial governments, these levels of government do not provide additional funding for ongoing operational costs. "The city is then left in a constant state of reactivity to try to find the operating funds to support this critical type of housing," the audit found. "The current level of operating funding is not sufficient to address the needs of individuals with higher acuity levels or more complex needs," it continued. The audit found the city allocated $10.7 million in capital funding and $15.3 million in operating funding to supportive housing last year. In 2023, it allocated $24.8 million for capital funding and $11.3 million for operating funding. Service providers told the auditors that they do not always receive funds for required repairs to buildings. Demand for accommodation in supportive housing exceeds supply, resulting in a wait list. But the wait list is not prioritized based on need or how long people have been waiting. Due to resource constraints, service providers may not choose applicants with the most complex needs. "Individuals who have been in the system the longest and potentially require intensive or specialized supports may never get housed because their needs are considered too high for the available supports," audit principal Rhea Khanna told the audit committee. People who live near supportive housing complexes have raised safety concerns. Community housing in Wateridge Village is an example of how capital investment has not been matched by needed support funding, according to Roxanne Field, president of the Wateridge Village Community Association. On land that was formerly part of Canadian Forces Base Rockcliffe, the city built three zero-carbon, eco-friendly buildings providing 271 affordable housing units, including 57 fully accessible units. But Field said there is insufficient support on site, resulting in regular emergency services calls to the buildings. "These people are terrified, angry and stressed out; they do not feel safe in their own home, and this is not OK," she told the committee on Friday. "This is out of control," she said, adding that people with serious mental health and addiction issues are "just not getting the care they need." Coun. Rawlson King, whose Ward 13 Rideau-Rockcliffe includes Wateridge, said the report highlighted the need for greater funding for wraparound services. "What we really need is the federal and provincial governments to step up to recognize that their capital investments are meaningless without corresponding operating and health funding," he said. "We simply can't continue expecting municipalities to absorb these costs while simultaneously demanding we balance budgets and maintain service levels."
CBC
30 minutes ago
- CBC
Indigenous business leaders support push to build major projects — but want 'terms that work for us'
Social Sharing Indigenous business leaders gathered outside Calgary this week for an energy industry conference say they're not opposed to building major projects quickly — in fact, they're all for it. But as Ontario and B.C. pass bills criticized by First Nations in those provinces for trampling on their rights in the service of fast-tracking infrastructure, they warn that Canada risks backsliding into a more contentious relationship with Indigenous communities that will ultimately delay projects further. "Broadly speaking, are First Nations or Indigenous communities opposed to development? Absolutely not. Are we opposed to resource projects? Absolutely not. Energy generation? Absolutely not. We want to participate on terms that work for us," said John Rowinski, CEO of the Zhooniya Makak Limited Partnership with Hiawatha First Nation, who is from the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte near Belleville, Ont. "Frankly, they would likely find much less opposition to these projects if they showed a willingness to talk in advance as opposed to after the fact," he said in an interview. WATCH | Why Ontario's Bill 5 has sparked opposition: Ontario passes Bill 5 despite opposition from First Nations, environmental groups 2 days ago Duration 2:39 Doug Ford's government has passed the controversial Bill 5 that aims to speed up mining projects and other developments in areas deemed to have economic importance. As CBC's Lorenda Reddekopp reports, the move has sparked outrage among First Nations and environmental groups. Amid an increasingly tumultuous trade relationship with the U.S., politicians at both the federal and provincial levels have been scrambling to show they can get major projects built quickly and boost the country's economy. But recent bills passed in Ontario and B.C. aimed at speeding up major projects have already been subject to significant criticism from First Nations. In both provinces, the legislation includes an aim to fast-track projects that could include critical mineral mines and has been met with concern from First Nations that it could trample over their rights. In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford has said he will consult with First Nations over the coming months, while in B.C., Infrastructure Minister Bowinn Ma said she will "work to come back together" and heal any rifts that have been created. The federal Liberal government also tabled a bill Friday that pledges to advance national interest projects, in part by speeding up approvals from five years to two. The Assembly of First Nations, which met with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday, has previously said that while it supports efforts to protect Canada from geopolitical uncertainty, it had concerns that draft legislation could " violate many collective rights of First Nations." In a statement, a spokesperson for the federal government said the proposed act recognizes that Indigenous consultation and partnership are key to building projects in the national interest. "To that end, Section 35 rights are constitutionally protected. There is no possibility of any government overriding those rights. This legislation acknowledges that and considers Indigenous consultation and partnership as integral," said Gabriel Brunet, a spokesperson for Dominic LeBlanc, who is the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade and intergovernmental affairs. Pro-development, to a point Business leaders gathered in Alberta this week say they agree with the urgency of getting projects built and diversifying trade away from the U.S. "I see Canada as one of the richest countries in the world with our resources, we just need to get it to market," said Karen Ogen, CEO of the First Nations Natural Gas Alliance and former elected chief of the Wet'suwet'en First Nation in B.C., speaking on the sidelines of the Indigenous Cleaner Energy Forum on Tsuut'ina Nation, just west of Calgary. Until this point, Ogen said Canada had been making progress in how capital projects are built in partnership with First Nations, with more and more communities participating through an equity stake. She pointed to the in-development Cedar LNG project off the coast of B.C., a collaboration between Calgary-based Pembina Pipeline Corp. and the Haisla First Nation. "That's a showcase for the rest of Canada, for the rest of B.C., that this is how projects get built." WATCH | First Indigenous-owned natural gas export facility in the world approved in B.C.: B.C. approves first Indigenous-owned LNG project in Canada 2 years ago Duration 1:57 Another positive step, Ogen said, is the Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program, which facilitates access to capital for Indigenous communities and was recently doubled from $5 billion to $10 billion. But Ogen said the bills out of Ontario and B.C. are a move in the wrong direction, and that First Nations won't be afraid to push back. "If there's going to be opposition and blockades, so be it, the government has to listen," said Ogen, who noted the federal bill does seem to include Indigenous people, but that she hopes this inclusion is meaningful. Steven Vaivada, CEO of Scout Engineering and a member of the Kainai First Nation in southern Alberta, agrees. He said that while Canada certainly needs more development, governments could end up undermining their own plans if they try to rush projects forward without including First Nations. "Indigenous opposition occurs when rights and title and the duty to consult and free, prior and informed consent are not incorporated into these discussions and legislation that's put forward," he said in an interview. In the long run, Glenn Hudson, former Chief of Peguis First Nation in Manitoba, said collaboration with First Nations will also help ensure projects are built with sufficient environmental protection. "That in itself will also protect the settlers of this country in terms of their sustainability going forward," Hudson, who is also CEO of Sovereign Energy Projects, told CBC News. As global demand for electricity ramps up, Rowinski, with the Zhooniya Makak Limited Partnership, said there's plenty of opportunity for Canada — but dialogue between different levels of government and First Nations is critical. "We're very fractured as a nation right now," he said. "We've got a history that we can learn from, so it's time to sit down, roll up our sleeves and work together to build on from that history so the future is that much better."
