Canadian science pioneers' role in the Human Genome Project shows why it’s crucial to fund research

Story by John Bergeron, Emeritus Robert Reford Professor and Professor of Medicine, McGill University • TODAY -The Conversation


On April 25, the world will celebrate DNA Day, marking two events: the 70th anniversary of the discovery of the double helix and the 20th anniversary of the Human Genome Project, which sequenced humans’ genetic blueprint for the first time.


The research and vision of Canadian scientists were key foundations of the Human Genome Project. Today, lack of funding threatens discovery research in Canada.

© (Pixabay)

For the Human Genome Project, Canadians were at the forefront.

The distinguished Canadian medical geneticist Charles Scriver of McGill University, who recently passed away, convinced the Howard Hughes Medical Institute in the United States in 1986 to bring together the parties who could fund and execute the Human Genome project. This objective has been acknowledged as prescient.

The meeting was attended by Nobel Prize winners Walter Gilbert and James Watson, and is described as a major catalyst for the Human Genome Project in The Book of Man: The Human Genome Project and the Quest to Discover Our Genetic Heritage.
From inspiration to sequencing the genome

Scriver was well aware of the significance sequencing the human genome would have on clinical genetics and the impact it would have on the health of patients, including identifying genetic causes of diseases.

To move forward from Scriver’s inspiration, a proof of principle project was needed. This was provided by the discovery of the gene for cystic fibrosis (CF) by Lap-Chee Tsui and Jack Riordan, who were then at the University of Toronto, and Francis Collins, then at the University of Michigan. In 1990 they indicated:

“More broadly, the cloning of the CF gene provides a fast start in the international effort to clone and map the entire human genome”

These pioneers performed the very challenging task of identifying the gene mutation in unaffected people (those with a single mutated gene). CF is a recessive genetic condition, meaning a person must inherit two mutated genes — one from each parent — to develop the disease. Today as a result of Canadian discovery science, patients with cystic fibrosis have a median age of survival of 57 years, compared to 35.9 years in 2001.



One of these pioneers went on to lead the even more challenging Human Genome Project. Collins received Canada’s Gairdner International Award in 2002 for “his outstanding leadership in the Human Genome Project and particularly for the international effort to map and sequence human and other genomes.”

This was a rare occurrence of a scientist winning a second Gairdner International Award, with Collins receiving his first Gairdner for the CF gene discovery, along with Tsui and Riordan, in 1990.

Read more: Solving the puzzle of cystic fibrosis and its treatments is a Nobel Prize-worthy breakthrough

Another Gairdner International award winner recognized for leadership in the Human Genome Project is Watson. This year’s International DNA Day will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the double helix, for which Watson was later recognized with a Nobel prize in 1962.

It was belatedly recognized that the experimental data for the double helix was actually an X-ray of a crystal of DNA by the late Rosalind Franklin.

Read more: Closing the gender gap in the life sciences is an uphill struggle

The consequences of the discovery of DNA and the sequencing of the Human Genome have been monumental for health research globally. As summarized in 2021 by Collins, the genes for over 5,000 rare diseases were discovered as well as insight into Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, heart disease and cancer.



Astonishingly, it is through DNA that all of us can follow the trajectory of our families through genetic genealogy. Remarkably, the Nobel Prize in 2022 was awarded to Svante Pääbo of the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig, Germany for the new field of paleogenomics. His discoveries involving the intricate sequencing of genomic DNA from our extinct human ancestors led to the discovery of a new branch of human ancestors now known as the Denisovans.

Today, the genetic genealogy of modern and ancient humans has been extended through the analysis of the DNA of over 7,000 different genomes. This new study has defined the geographic location of the trajectory of our ancestors extending to over 800,000 years ago! DNA Day is a worthy celebration.

Can DNA Day be of significance in Canada?

The dedication of our accomplished discovery researchers Tsui, Riordan and Scriver inspired and led to the Human Genome Project. However, the project did not involve Canada. The major reason for this was funding.

The Human Genome Project was largely funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health to the labs of Robert Waterston at Washington University and Eric Lander at MIT. In addition, John Sulston was funded in the United Kingdom as part of the trio who actually sequenced the human genome.

Journalist and political commentator Paul Wells recently lamented the decades of deteriorating funding for Canadian discovery research. In 2019, Canada was ranked 18th globally in researchers per 1,000 population down from its 8th rank in 2011.

Without funding improvements, Canada will continue to lose the talent it was once proud to have. This loss is unsustainable for meeting the challenges of future pandemics, climate change and the continuing ravages of disease.

Scriver, Tsui and Riordan should inspire pride for the value of discovery research in Canada that globally saves human lives. Canada should remember their legacy on DNA day.

John Bergeron gratefully acknowledges Kathleen Dickson as co-author.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.

Read more:
Why can’t Canada win another Nobel Prize in medicine?

Solving the puzzle of cystic fibrosis and its treatments is a Nobel Prize-worthy breakthrough

St. Louis gender clinic accusations ‘unsubstantiated,’ internal investigation finds


Story by Jo Yurcaba • TODAY

Washington University in St. Louis said a former employee’s allegations that its pediatric and adolescent transgender clinic did not appropriately assess minors before providing them with care are unsubstantiated, according to the findings of an internal investigation released Friday.

St. Louis gender clinic accusations ‘unsubstantiated,’ internal investigation finds© Provided by NBC News

In February, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey launched an investigation into the Transgender Center at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital after Jamie Reed, who was a case worker at the center from 2018 to November 2022, alleged in a 23-page affidavit that children were being routinely prescribed puberty blockers or hormone therapy without “appropriate or accurate” mental health assessments. Bailey’s investigation is ongoing.

Reed also alleged that the center’s providers “regularly refer minors for gender transition surgery,” even though providers have testified at the state Legislature that surgeries are not an option for anyone under 18.

On the same day the attorney general’s office announced its investigation, Reed went public with her allegations in an op-ed published in The Free Press, a news website started by Bari Weiss, a former op-ed writer and editor at The New York Times. Reed, who has a master’s degree in clinical research management, concluded her op-ed by calling for a “moratorium on the hormonal and surgical treatment of young people with gender dysphoria.”

Washington University in St. Louis, the parent institution of the Children’s Hospital, said in a statement that it was “alarmed by the allegations” and would look into Reed’s claims.

After an eight-week internal investigation, the university said in a summary of its findings that her allegations are unsubstantiated but that it would be changing some of its practices.

“Washington University physicians and staff at the Center follow appropriate policies and procedures and treat patients according to the currently accepted standard of care, as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and other nationally recognized organizations,” the university said in the summary.

Reed’s attorney did not immediately return a request for comment.

In her affidavit, Reed alleged patients were routinely provided medication “without informed parental consent.” She also alleged that the center did not obtain custody agreements from divorced parents to ensure all parties consented to treatment.

Though the university does not mention these allegations in the investigation summary, it said that, going forward, the Transgender Center will require written consent from parents prior to prescribing gender-affirming medications, such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy. Previously, providers obtained verbal parental consent for treatment and documented it in the patient’s medical record, according to the summary.

The center will also require a family to provide custody agreements before an initial visit at the center if the patient is a minor, the summary said. Previously, providers would ask for custody agreements “before medical intervention in cases where decision-making authority was in question.”

Regarding Reed’s allegations about surgery referrals, the university said the center hasn’t provided such referrals for patients under 18 since late 2018, when it adopted a policy prohibiting them.

“Upon request, some families were provided with the names of surgeons (including Washington University physicians) who provided such surgeries, and the Center’s providers have provided summaries of care for patients desiring surgical interventions,” the university said in the investigation summary.

The university said that physicians will no longer perform gender-affirming surgeries on minors. Washington University declined to say when it adopted this policy.

The university said a total of six surgeries were performed on minors by university physicians since 2018, and that all six were chest surgeries for adolescents transitioning to male. The referrals were all from other medical providers outside of the center or were patient-initiated self-referrals, the university said.

It noted that chest masculinization surgery for minors is within the standard of care recommended by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, or WPATH, a nonprofit association dedicated to transgender medical care. WPATH’s standards, which were recently updated last year, recommend minors meet a list of criteria before they can be eligible for surgery.

Two former employees of the center said it follows the standard of care recommended by WPATH.

Jess Jones, who uses they/them pronouns and was an education liaison at the center from 2018 to 2020, shared a variety of documents regarding the center’s protocols, including documents that they said were provided to every family at their first visit, an endocrine “roadmap” that outlined steps patients had to complete to start gender-affirming treatment, and internal documents with hypothetical patient cases that the center used for teaching.

Christine Hyman, whose son has been a patient at the center since 2018, shared emails she received from Reed following her son’s appointments. The email includes one of the same documents Jones shared about masculinizing hormones. It details when a patient should freeze their eggs if they are interested in doing so and a chart on the various effects of testosterone and whether they are reversible, partially reversible or irreversible.

“They’re just a wealth of information,” Hyman said of the clinic’s doctors. “They’ve been fabulous the whole way through, especially with a parent who walked in, and I was like, ‘Help.’”

Jones said the center would sometimes “gatekeep” access to care, “which is why Jamie’s account was so appalling.”

“She made it sound like we were just handing out hormones left and right to kids,” Jones said, when in reality Jones said minors had to meet a number of criteria before they could access care.

The center declined to comment.

Cate Hensley, who uses “they” and “she” pronouns and worked at the center from August 2020 to May 2021 as part of getting their master’s in social work at Washington University, said they reported directly to Reed. They said Reed “frequently interpreted kids’ experiences as being exaggerated or not being truthful,” which was troubling to Hensley, who said that was “antithetical” to their clinical mental health training.

They said what stood out to them the most in Reed’s affidavit and op-ed was how she violated the trust of patients who did not consent to having their private health information publicly shared. They said they could identify some of the cases Reed described in her affidavit, but that Reed misunderstood or misinterpreted them.

For example, Hensley said they remember the medical team discussing a situation Reed describes in her affidavit in which a patient experienced vaginal lacerations after having sex while on testosterone, which can cause thinning of the vaginal tissue, but Hensley didn’t want to discuss it in detail because it is private patient information. They said Reed also described a child who said they identify as an “attack helicopter,” which Hensley said was a joke and is a reference to an internet meme and sci-fi story.

Hensley said the legislative landscape in Missouri, where the Republican-led House passed a bill last week that would ban gender-affirming care for minors, makes Reed’s allegations “more insidious.”

“It’s more important than ever that the center is able to continue running and provide ethical client-centered care, and what Jamie has done is not grounded in any evidence, is absolutely fueling transphobia and hate here in the state, and will directly harm kids,” Hensley said.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

Conservationist seeks billionaire to buy world's biggest rhino farm

Story by CBSNews • Yesterday

Johannesburg — He spent his vast fortune on a 30-year quest to save the rhinoceros. Today, at 81, his money is all but gone, and South African conservationist John Hume is throwing in the towel.

Later this week, Hume will auction off his rhino farm — the world's largest — to the highest bidder.

"I'm left with nothing except 2,000 rhinos and 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres) of land," Hume quipped in an interview with AFP ahead of the sale.


John Hume poses for a photograph on his ranch and rhino farm outside Johannesburg, South Africa, in a Dec. 4, 2015 file photo. / Credit: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg/Getty© Provided by CBS News

South Africa is home to nearly 80% of the world's rhinos, making it a hotspot for poaching driven by demand from Asia, where horns are used in traditional medicine for their supposed therapeutic effect.

How Prince William helped bust a major wildlife smuggling network

The government said 448 of the rare animals were killed across the country last year, only three fewer than in 2021 despite increased protection at national parks such as the renowned Kruger.

Poachers have increasingly targeted privately-owned reserves in their hunt for horns, which consist mainly of hard keratin, the same substance found in human nails.

They are highly sought after on black markets, where the price per weight rivals that of gold and cocaine at an estimated $60,000 per kilogram.

Hume said that, through the years, he had lavished around $150 million on his massive philanthropic project to save the world's second largest land mammal.

"From a rhino point of view, it was definitely worth it," the bespectacled octogenarian, wearing a chequered shirt, said in a Zoom interview. "There are many more rhinos on Earth than when I started the project."



A blindfolded white rhino fights the effects of a tranquilizer dart before having it's horn trimmed, at the ranch of rhino breeder John Hume, October 16, 2017 in the North West Province of South Africa. 

/ Credit: Leon Neal/Getty© Provided by CBS News

A former businessman who made his fortune developing tourist resorts, Hume said he fell in love with the animals somewhat by accident having bought the first specimen after retiring with dreams of running a farm.

"I've used all my life savings spending on that population of rhinos for 30 years. And I finally ran out of money," he said.

His heavily guarded farm, at an undisclosed location in North West province, has around 2,000 southern white rhinos — a species that was hunted to near extinction in the late 19th century but gradually recovered thanks to decades of protection and breeding efforts.

Today, the Red List compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) categorizes white rhinos as "near threatened", with around 18,000 left following a decline in the last decade.

Miles of fences, cameras, heat detectors and an army of rangers patrol the site, which employs about 100 people.

The tight security is meant to dissuade would-be poachers sending the message that "they don't stand a chance," said the farm's head of security, Brandon Jones.



Two armed guards stand for a photo at the ranch of rhino breeder John Hume on October 16, 2017, in the North West Province of South Africa.

 / Credit: Leon Neal/Getty© Provided by CBS News

Speaking from the control room however Jones said the exercise is only partially successful, as poachers will merely go and kill rhinos somewhere else.

"We are simply diverting them from our reserve. We know that they will target areas where it is easier to penetrate and where the risk-reward ratio is to their advantage," he said.

The full extent of the security measures taken and the number of armed rangers on guard are kept secret.

Yet Hume said surveillance is the farm's biggest cost — and potential buyers will need deep pockets.

"I'm hoping that there is a billionaire that would rather save the population of rhinos from extinction than own a superyacht," Hume, a gruff outspoken man, said.

"Maybe somebody for whom five million dollars a year is small change."

Bids start at $10 million.

The online auction opens on Wednesday and on offer is the farm with its animals, land and machinery.

Adding its 11-ton stock of rhino horns to the lot is negotiable, said Hume.


Water is sprayed onto the area as a rhino has it's horn trimmed, at the ranch of rhino breeder John Hume, October 16, 2017, in the North West Province of South Africa.

 / Credit: Leon Neal/Getty© Provided by CBS News

The horns were preventively cut off as a way to dissuade poachers from killing the animals — and would be worth more than $500 million on the black market.

Hume believes they should be sold to fund conservation projects, creating a legal market for them, as he explained to "60 Minutes" four years ago when his stockpile of horn was about half what it is today.

"I have the solution. But the rest of the world and the NGOs don't agree. And we are losing the war," lamented Hume angrily. "Unfortunately, on the black market, a rhino horn from a dead rhino is still worth more than a live rhino."

Hume has argued for years that legal sales would flood the market and drive down the price, forcing poachers out of business. Speaking to "60 Minutes," he compared the situation to America before prohibition was repealed.

"All you did was build up a black market and the criminals of the world, the Al Capones of the world, were very, very active when you tried to ban alcohol in America. Now we've done the same thing with rhino horn. It's created criminals. It's pushed the price through the roof. Bans have never worked."

Cities must take immediate action against 'renovictions' to address housing crisis

Story by Brian Doucet, Canada Research Chair in Urban Change and Social Inclusion, University of Waterloo 

Laura Pin, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Arts, Wilfrid Laurier University 

THE CONVERSATION • Thursday 4/20/2023

Amid all the discussions about constructing new housing, existing affordable housing is being overlooked. A recent study found that 322,000 affordable homes were lost across Canada between 2011 and 2016 compared to the construction of only 60,000 new houses for those in greatest need of housing.


The federal government isn’t doing enough to protect tenants or preserve existing affordable housing.© (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

In cities like Hamilton, Ont., the situation is even more dire: for every new unit of affordable housing built, 29 are lost. While most of these homes still exist, they are now much more expensive. And that’s largely because of renovictions.

Renovictions occur when landlords evict tenants, renovate the vacated units, then lease the units at much higher rents. The lack of rent control on vacant units creates a financial incentive for landlords to evict long-term tenants, many of whom pay below market rates.

To be clear, when we speak about landlords in this context, we are primarily referring to large financialized landlords that own hundreds of buildings and thousands of units and whose business model is based on profit by dispossession — not just “mom and pop” landlords.

In Ontario, provincial rules around renovictions are weak. Doug Ford’s government recently introduced Bill 97, the Helping Homeowners, Protecting Tenants Act. Despite its name, the bill does not constitute a significant improvement for renters. The onus still falls on tenants to exercise their legal right to return to the residence and find temporary accommodation in the meantime.

Despite spending billions on housing, the federal government also isn’t making significant inroads to protect tenants or preserve existing affordable housing. The National Housing Strategy has produced little affordable housing for people in need.

This means it’s up to cities to use whatever powers they have to make a difference.

Anti-renoviction bylaws


Renovictions occur when landlords evict sitting tenants to renovate their units and lease them at much higher rents.© (Shutterstock)

On April 20, Hamilton’s Emergency and Community Services Committee will debate whether to pursue new bylaws to crack down on renovictions.

As housing researchers, we believe tough anti-renoviction bylaws are one of the best single measures a city can implement to make a dramatic and immediate impact on housing affordability.

There is precedent for this. New Westminster, B.C., passed an anti-renoviction bylaw in 2019 that heavily fined landlords who did not allow tenants to return after renovations were completed.

The result: New Westminster virtually eliminated renovictions.

The bylaw withstood two court challenges. It was only repealed after the British Columbia government enacted similar legislation province-wide, albeit a more watered-down version of New Westminster’s bylaw.

Related video: Toronto Housing Prices Start to Make a Comeback (Bloomberg)

Duration 2:52  View on Watch

Hamilton has the opportunity to be a national leader in housing affordability by ending an unjust practice that destroys the lives of tenants and erodes the city’s affordable housing stock.

The census doesn’t track renovictions; for some planners, politicians and policymakers, this lack of official data means there isn’t a problem.

At the April 20 committee meeting, councillors were poised to hear many first-hand accounts of renovictions from tenants. Their lived experiences are the data. But our research shows that this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Hamilton consultant report

City staff have been looking into whether Hamilton can legally enact a New Westminster-style bylaw. Their consultant’s report concluded it was not within the city’s powers. However, the report missed two key components.

First, the consultant’s report states that, in light of the provincial protections from renovictions in Ontario, a New Westminster-style bylaw would be irrelevant. This is not accurate. There are significant differences between the New Westminster bylaw and current B.C. legislation and the Ontario guidelines under the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA).

While the RTA has some protections against renovictions, they are inadequate; very few tenants who leave their units due to renovations return, and even fewer return at the same rent.


Banners are seen on the balconies of an apartment building where residents received notices stating they must move out for at least seven months due to renovations in Montréal in April 2021.© THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

What is different about New Westminster’s bylaw? Unlike Ontario, in New Westminster, the onus was shifted to the landlord to demonstrate that tenant occupancy could not continue during renovations, and, importantly, to provide alternate accommodations while the renovation work was taking place.

Second, Hamilton’s report argues that B.C. municipalities have more authority as a result of their community charters to enact this type of bylaw. This is contrary to the legal opinion of ACORN Hamilton, a tenant advocacy and organizing group, which suggests such a bylaw would be in the purview of an Ontario municipality.

Moreover, prior to the court challenges in B.C., which upheld the New Westminster bylaw, it was not clear that B.C. municipalities had this authority either.

Walking the talk

Hamilton’s city council understands the urgency of the housing crisis. The city’s own data demonstrates a dramatic increase in N13 applications (notice to end tenancy because a landlord wants to demolish, repair or convert a rental unit) and subsequent renovictions.

Earlier this month, Hamilton declared a state of emergency over homelessness.

Our question to Hamilton’s civic leaders is this: with more than 15,000 units rented at less than $750 a month lost over the past decade, where do you think many people who are renovicted end up?

Creating a tough anti-renoviction bylaw would be a big step to turn nice words into bold action.

Cities can’t just talk. They need to take immediate action. Neither the province nor the federal government have any meaningful legislation to help renters. Evidence from elsewhere suggests tough anti-renoviction bylaws have a dramatic impact on affordability. City councils must do everything they can to protect tenants and affordable housing.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.

Read more:
Renters have stepped up efforts to address the housing crisis ⁠— it’s time for property managers to do the same

Canadian young adults who live alone are more likely to struggle with unaffordable housing, study finds

Brian Doucet receives funding from SSHRC, the Canada Research Chairs program and the Hamilton Community Foundation. Some of his research is conducted in partnership with the Social Development Centre Waterloo Region. He has co-written reports on housing and mobility for local governments in Ontario. He will join ACORN and others delegating in favour of an anti-renoviction bylaw at the City of Hamilton's Emergency and Community Services Committee on 20 April.

Laura Pin receives funding from SSHRC and in the past has received funding from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. She has worked on community-engaged research projects with Services and Housing in the Province, the Social Development Centre Waterloo Region, the Guelph-Wellington Taskforce for Poverty Elimination, Tamitik Status of Women, A Better Tent City, and the Canadian Rent Bank Coalition. She submitted written comments to the City of Hamilton in favour of an anti-renoviction bylaw at the April 20th, 2023 Emergency and Community Services Committee meeting.

Some medical procedures cost more in private clinics, Quebec study finds

A study has found the cost of surgeries and other procedures performed in the private sector in Quebec far exceeds their public-sector equivalents, sometimes by as much as 150 per cent.

The study was based on data obtained by the Institut de recherche et d'informations socioéconomiques (IRIS) through an access to information request. IRIS looked at a pilot project initiated in 2016 by former Health and Social Services Minister Gaétan Barrette, which aimed to compare the costs of five types of surgeries and procedures between the public network and three private clinics.

Anne Plourde, a researcher at IRIS, reports, among other things, that in 2019-2020, the cost of a carpal tunnel surgery averaged $908 in the private sector compared to $495 in the public sector; a short colonoscopy cost $739 in the private sector compared to $290 in a public institution.

Between 2018-2019 and 2019-2020, in the public sector, the cost decreased by 11 per cent for cataract surgeries, 38 per cent for long colonoscopies, and 13 per cent for short colonoscopies, while it increased by three per cent, four per cent, and 81 per cent respectively in private medical centers.

Plourde added that the conditions negotiated by the Quebec government with private clinics as part of the pilot project are incentives to increase costs.

Ten days ago, a coalition of dozens of organizations criticized the Health Plan unveiled by Health Minister Christian Dubé, calling it an attack on the pillars of the public system, which include universality and accessibility.

The coalition expressed concern that the privatization of the health care system is accelerating, claiming that the private sector is not there to provide free health care, but to make a profit.

-- This report was first published by The Canadian Press in French on Monday, April 24, 2023.

VIDEO

Private surgeries cost twice as much as public, Quebec data shows (yahoo.com)

Former top fencer calls for ‘public inquiry into Canadian sport culture’

• 12 hours ago
• News
• Duration4:11  CBC

While speaking before a parliamentary committee focusing on safe sport in Canada, Emily Mason, founder of Fencing for Change Canada, discusses the ‘culture of toxicity, bullying and abuse pervasive in Canadian fencing.’

 

Federal public-service worker strike enters sixth day

Story by The Canadian Press • 

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what's on the radar of our editors for the morning of April 24 ...

© Provided by The Canadian Press

What we are watching in Canada ...

One of Canada's largest labour disruptions has entered a sixth day as the union representing thousands of striking public-service workers looks to hamper access to ports.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada says more than 100,000 of its staff remain on strike, some of whom will move their picket lines today to strategic locations more likely to have an impact on the federal government.

National President Chris Aylward says Ottawa presented an offer Saturday afternoon, which the union countered with its own proposal that same day.

Yet the office of Treasury Board President Mona Fortier says it made a second proposal Saturday that the union had not responded to by late Sunday.

Earlier this weekend, the two sides accused each other of poor communication as bargaining teams sort out how much to increase wages to account for inflation and whether civil servants have a right to work remotely.

The two parties have been at odds since negotiations began in June 2021, and the union insists it can find other financing if it depletes the strike fund it's been using to pay those on the picket line since Wednesday.

Who sets remote work rules? That's a key issue in the PSAC strike

Story by CBC/Radio-Canada • Yesterday

The president of the Treasury Board, the federal department negotiating with striking Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) workers, made her case Monday for why the government believes remote work rules are best made by department management rather than laid out in a new contract.

Many sectors predominantly worked virtually during the first COVID-19 shutdown more than three years ago and the federal government once suggested that arrangement could become permanent for some workers.

As the pandemic evolved — and contracts with now-striking PSAC groups expired — the approach to where people should work swung to the other end of the pendulum.

Through stops, starts and studies, the government announced in December 2022 its workers generally had to return to the office two to three days a week in the first months of 2023.

Union leaders, including those with PSAC, pushed back before and after that announcement. PSAC said its members are just as effective working remotely as they are in the office, and protecting remote work in a new deal is a main reason why it's striking.

"We want to make sure everyone knows what the game rules are and that our members have recourse if this is not being applied fairly and consistently," PSAC national president Chris Aylward told CBC Sunday.

He mentioned the 2022 federal budget saying remote work could save billions of dollars a year if it meant the government could sell off some buildings.



Christine Griffin holds a sign supporting remote work at a PSAC picket at the Tunney's Pasture government complex in Ottawa last week.© Joseph Tunney/CBC

Treasury Board President Mona Fortier told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning on Monday she believes rules should be set at the managerial level within each department as they continue to evaluate how to best deliver services.

Host Hallie Cotnam asked Fortier about why this should not be part of a collective agreement.

Related video: PSAC accuses the government of incompetence, no deal reached yet (cbc.ca)  Duration 8:34   View on Watch

cbc.caGovernment workers threaten to escalate strike action

2:00

Global NewsPSAC strike: Workers increasing pressure on feds for deal

1:58

Global NewsTreasury board president says PSAC must be ready to compromise: 'We cannot write a blank cheque'

2:11

"It's operations, it's … the fact it [could be the subject of a grievance], for example. I think this management right needs to be sustained as a management right and I truly believe remote work or telework is something that will continue to transform," she said.

"We were in a situation during COVID where we needed to work, by necessity, from home and then we started doing hybrid [work] by design and have been moving."

Speaking later in the day on CBC's Power and Politics, Fortier repeated the government's stance that decisions around telework are the right of management.

"It is a red line," she said. "It's so important that we have the flexibility for managers to see how we are going to best deliver services."

Strike enters 2nd workweek

The national strike for more than 155,000 federal public servants under PSAC began on April 19 at 12:01 a.m. and has entered its second workweek.

Two groups covered by the union remain on strike: one includes approximately 120,000 employees who fall under the Treasury Board, making up several government departments and agencies, and the other is a smaller tax group of more than 35,000 workers at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).


In this drone photo, striking PSAC members and supporters are to the left on the picket line at Tunney's Pasture.© Michel Aspirot/CBC

About 110,000 to 120,000 PSAC members are eligible to walk off the job once you factor out staff performing work designated as essential, such as employment insurance or pensions.

Picket lines have gone up across the country while some government services — including taxes, passports and immigration — are disrupted.

Contracts for both groups expired in 2021. Negotiations between the federal government and PSAC's two groups began that year, but the union declared an impasse last year and called strike votes this past winter.

PSAC had previously asked for a 4.5 per cent raise each year for 2021, 2022 and 2023.

The most recent public offer from the government to each group was a nine per cent raise over three years, a total that matched recommendations of the third-party Public Interest Commission.

CANADA IS WILDERNESS

A rare lynx sighting reported east of Toronto in Prince Edward County
Story by Jane Stevenson • Yesterday

Toronto Sun

A lynx has been spotted Prince Edward County, a rarity in the area which is about a 2 1/2-hour drive east of Toronto. This image was taken from PC MPP Todd Smith's Twitter page.

A lynx has been spotted Prince Edward County, a rarity in the area, which is about a 2 1/2-hour drive east of Toronto.

The elusive creature was spotted in the tiny hamlet of Cressy, not far from Picton, by resident Paul Wallace.

“My neighbours saw the lynx sitting on their front lawn, then it strolled off to the Cressy Church and sat there before proceeding west to our property,” Wallace told countylive.ca.

“In the past few weeks, it has been seen around the Glenora Ferry area and Lake on the Mountain.”

Lynx, which have prominent ear tuffs and large furry feet, are seldom seen as they are wary of people and are found in places with cold, snowy winters and lots of their prey, the snowshoe hare.

According to countylive.ca, an Ontario Parks post from biologist Christine Terwissen says lynx, generally live north of Algonquin Park.

Terwissen said their tracks have a round shape with three lobes on the pad and rarely have claw marks.

Biodiversity loss is threatening Canada’s wetlands; here’s why it matters

Story by Cottage Life • 8h ago

© Photo by Elena Berd/Shutterstock


The swamps of the Minesing Wetlands, a 15,000-acre area about 15 kilometres west of Barrie, Ont., are not the most immediately welcoming of places. Convincing someone to spend a day exploring the thick, forested marshes—with clouds of mosquitoes in the air and bloodsucking leeches in the water—isn’t easy. I should know. I’ve been trying to convince friends to join me on a trip there for years. Again and again, my attempts are met with two questions: why would I visit, and why should I care?

Answering the first question is easy. Despite seeming unappealing, the Minesing Wetlands (sometimes called the “Everglades of the North”), are one of our country’s most significant wetland systems. As a conservation biologist helping to map out some of Canada’s most important places for nature, I’m excited to see some of the dozens of rare and endangered species that still call the Minesing Wetlands home. One species here has piqued my interest above all others—a jewel in this swampy rough. It’s called Hine’s emerald, a large dragonfly with a metallic green body and brilliant emerald eyes.

It’s an incredibly rare species; it requires a very specific type of wetland environment, and—unlike most dragonflies, which go from egg to adult in less than a year—the aquatic larvae of this species take three to five years to grow into adulthood, relying on crawfish burrows for shelter during winter and through any dry spells in summer. The Minesing Wetlands are the only place in Canada where this dragonfly is found, so as a nature lover, the slimmest chance to see this beautiful and unique piece of Canadian biodiversity is more than enough reason to visit.

Answering the second question—why should I care—takes longer to answer. I get asked similar things quite often: why care about this one rare species, no matter how beautiful it is? Why should I care about these wetlands or any other seemingly random place? Ultimately, it comes down to understanding why conservation and nature are important at all. Sure, nature is a nice-to-have, but is it really a must-have?

Why does biodiversity matter?

Most people are aware that across Canada and the world, we’re losing more and more wild biodiversity every year. From looking at around 25,000 Canadian species that scientists have some basic understanding of (a fraction of the estimated 80,000 species in Canada), we know that about one in five species in Canada are imperilled to some degree.

These bits of Canadian biodiversity are significant internationally too. More than 300 species in Canada are found nowhere else in the world. From the adorable Vancouver Island marmot to Algonquin Provincial Park’s Eastern wolf, the planetary survival of these species depends entirely on our conservation decisions here in Canada. When it’s gone here, it’s gone everywhere.

But, sometimes when I talk to landowners and land-users—farmers, cottagers, hunters, and ATV-ers—who hear me say we need to protect species or habitat, they get on the defensive. They don’t want to be told how to use their land, or be limited in what they do on it because of some obscure plant or insect. They want to know what purpose these species serve, and if their function really outweighs the inconvenience, annoyance, or danger that these animals pose to us. They want to know, if it’s gone, does it really matter?

The answer is, yes. Many of the natural processes that humans rely on depend on biodiverse ecosystems. Consider pollination, where a huge variety of wild bees, flies, and other insects—including mosquitoes—play a crucial role in ensuring the growth and yields of the fruits, veggies, and nuts that our diets rely on. Or consider decomposition, where species of ants, termites, mushrooms, worms, and more work together to break down and recycle dead plant and animal matter, clearing the way for new life. Gardeners will be familiar with these decomposers and detritivores as some of the main players in creating compost, but without them in the wild, we would quickly be buried under piles of dead plant and animal material.

Species including rattlesnakes and black widow spiders and plants such as American ginseng might hold the cure to helping treat different diseases and conditions. Even those “annoying” species are fundamental pieces of biodiversity. Throughout their life cycle, mosquitoes help to move nutrients between aquatic and terrestrial systems. They also form a key link between phytoplankton and micro-organisms—favoured prey of filter-feeding aquatic mosquito larvae—and larger animals, from bats to frogs, fish to birds. Mosquitoes are a central component of the food web in wetlands. Losing these pesky critters could compromise the function of the wetland, an ecosystem that helps us by filtering water, acting as a buffer to hold water and prevent destructive flooding during storms and winter thaws, and fighting climate change by removing carbon from the atmosphere. These are ecosystem services that would be massively expensive to replace.

Having a variety of species participating in these functions matters as well. For example, pollination is more effective when done not just by a single species (such as honeybees), but instead by a diverse set of wild pollinators. And more biodiverse ecosystems may also be more resilient to change.

While many species might seem similar on the surface, we still lack so much understanding about the basic biology of most species and the complex interactions that they participate in within ecosystems. It’s rarely clear what effect losing a species might have. To paraphrase biologists Paul and Anne Ehrlich, early pioneers in the fields of conservation biology and environmental advocacy, losing species in an ecosystem is like blindly popping rivets off a plane while it’s flying. Some rivets might be redundant, and the plane can probably keep flying for a short while even with some structurally important rivets removed. But it’s silly to risk popping off any rivets when you don’t need to.

What can we do to help biodiversity?

We have a big (but not impossible) task ahead of us to make sure that we keep all of our rivets on the metaphorical plane (or threads in the tapestry of life, if you prefer a less utilitarian analogy). Preventing further loss and recovering biodiversity to what it was—think of it as restoring rivets that have been damaged on a plane—goes together with addressing the climate crisis. The good news is that nations are taking steps towards this.

Just this past December, 188 countries from across the world agreed to a new global framework for addressing biodiversity loss. While not perfect, the agreement contains some ambitious goals, including protecting 30 per cent of lands and waters by 2030, restoring and stopping the loss of areas important to biodiversity and of high ecological integrity, and addressing key drivers of biodiversity loss. Importantly, this agreement highlights the need for conservation to be led by (or at least happen in collaboration with) Indigenous peoples and local communities—something that is especially important here in Canada.

And it’s not just at the Minesing Wetland. Wherever you are—at the side of a lake, on the banks of a river, on the edge of a field, or deep in the woods—there are many things that you can do to help biodiversity around you. It can start as simple as creating a pollinator garden of native wildflowers (or encouraging the wildflowers that are already growing), setting aside parts of lawn or lands to stay “wild” (such as by leaving leaf litter or wetlands alone for the year), or building and properly maintaining nest boxes for species such as bats or bees.

Or you can participate in community science through apps such as iNaturalist or eBird. Local land trusts, conservation authorities, and nature groups can give you advice on the best actions to protect and steward lands you own and connect you to like-minded networks of people. Conservation doesn’t need to be hard, and doesn’t always need to be opposed to other ways of enjoying lands. By engaging with the conservation network and community around you, you can find new creative ways to take care of the land and appreciate nature.

Ultimately, stopping biodiversity loss requires action at both the local level and globally. As important as it is to protect and steward biodiversity near you, it’s also important to vote for leaders who will take conservation seriously and work to meet global commitments.

I’m looking forward to my trip to the Minesing Wetlands in search of the Hine’s emerald. I’ll keep asking people to risk the marshes and mosquitoes to join me, and along the way, start down the path of appreciating biodiversity in all its forms. Like the gears in a watch, every bit of biodiversity—whether it’s an emerald-eyed dragonfly, or a bloodsucking leech—plays some sort of role in the bigger picture and has intrinsic value of its very own. With hope and hard work—and an appreciation for the importance of all the pieces of our planet—I’m optimistic that creatures like Hine’s emerald and other rare species will be a little less rare by the time I get a chance to see them.

Peter Soroye is the Key Biodiversity Areas assessment and outreach coordinator with Wildlife Conservation Society Canada. As you read this, he’s likely on a hike that’s taking 200 per cent longer than necessary as he stops to photograph every bug, bird, and flower he sees along the way.

Related video: Nature nuts loving this 'amazing example of biodiversity' so close to Edmonton (cbc.ca)

Just Stop Oil cause major disruption across London’s West End

Story by Miriam Burrell • Yesterday
Evening Standard

JustStopOil_London1_24042023.jpg© Just Stop Oil

A Just Stop Oil demonstration involving more than 160 protesters has caused major traffic disruption across London’s West End.

Protesters blocked traffic at seven locations across the West End, Westminster and South London on Monday morning.

Some formed a line, holding banners as they slowly walked down Haymarket, a major thoroughfare which runs between Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square and plays host to a number of theatres, hotels and restaurants.

Just stop oil take to the streets for a slow match protest in Waterloo, London at 8am

View on Watch

DailymotionJust Stop Oil begin ‘slow march’ campaign through central London

0:45

Traffic was also backed up along the Strand, Kennington Lane and Waterloo Bridge.

“Officers are on scene and we’ll aim to get traffic moving again freely as soon as it is safe to do so,” Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

Buses, lorries and commuters have been forced into a gridlock snaking behind the protesters as they chant, hold placards and walk slowly in a line.

The rally is “in solidarity with the UK’s political prisoners”, including those “wrongly imprisoned for resisting the Government’s genocidal plans to licence over 100 new oil and gas projects by 2025”, Just Stop Oil said in a statement.

The group warned: “At 1pm today, hundreds more will set off from Parliament Square, marching to the Shell building with supporters of Extinction Rebellion and other groups to demand an end to the fossil fuel era.”

Just Stop Oil said marches have been planned for “every Saturday” at Parliament Square from 12pm.

The protest comes just days after two Just Stop Oil protesters who scaled Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at Dartford Crossing were sentenced.

Morgan Trowland, 40, and Marcus Decker, 34, were sentenced at Southend Crown Court to three years in prison, and two years and seven months in prison respectively, for causing a public nuisance.

The pair used ropes and other climbing equipment to shuffle up the cables of the bridge in October last year, causing major traffic disruption.

They ascended to a point close to 200ft above the road and unfurled a giant Just Stop Oil banner and “rigged up hammocks and stayed there”, prosecutors said during their trial.

The Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links the M25 in Essex and Kent, was closed from 4am on October 17 to 9pm the following day.

In response to their sentencing Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “These selfish protesters caused families to miss funerals, cost businesses money, disrupted emergency services and brought chaos to the law-abiding public.

“I welcome the court’s verdict. Others considering similar stunts should take note.”

Just Stop Oil claimed that Trowland and Decker were “given draconian custodial sentences”.

“The Just Stop Oil supporters were demanding that the Government halt licensing and consents for the development of any new fossil-fuel projects in the UK,” the group said last week.

Speaking outside the courtroom spokesperson Stephanie Golder said:“What Morgan and Marcus did was extraordinary, risky and extremely disruptive.”

Register now for one of the Evening Standard’s newsletters. From a daily news briefing to Homes & Property insights, plus lifestyle, going out, offers and more. For the best stories in your inbox, click here.