AI is on the world's mind. Is the UN the place to figure out what to do about it?

Sun, September 24, 2023



UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Just a few years ago, artificial intelligence got barely a mention at the U.N. General Assembly's convocation of world leaders.

But after the release of ChatGPT last fall turbocharged both excitement and anxieties about AI, it's been a sizzling topic this year at diplomacy's biggest yearly gathering.

Presidents, premiers, monarchs and cabinet ministers convened as governments at various levels are mulling or have already passed AI regulation. Industry heavy-hitters acknowledge guardrails are needed but want to protect the technology's envisioned benefits. Outsiders and even some insiders warn that there also are potentially catastrophic risks, and everyone says there's no time to lose.

And many eyes are on the United Nations as perhaps the only place to tackle the issue at scale.

The world body has some unique attributes to offer, including unmatched breadth and a track record of brokering pacts on global issues, and it's set to launch an AI advisory board this fall.

“Having a convergence, a common understanding of the risks, that would be a very important outcome,” U.N. tech policy chief Amandeep Gill said in an interview. He added that it would be very valuable to reach a common understanding on what kind of governance works, or might, to minimize risks and maximize opportunities for good.

A CONVERSATION THAT IS GAINING MOMENTUM

As recently as 2017, only three speakers brought up AI at the assembly meeting’s equivalent of a main stage, the “ General Debate.” This year, more than 20 speakers did so, representing countries from Namibia to North Macedonia, Argentina to East Timor.

Secretary-General António Guterres teased plans to appoint members this month to the advisory board, with preliminary recommendations due by year's end — warp speed, by U.N. standards.

Lesotho’s premier, Sam Matekane, worried about threats to privacy and safety, Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal about potential misuse of AI, and Icelandic Foreign Minister Thórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir about the technology “becoming a tool of destruction.” Britain hyped its upcoming “AI Safety Summit,” while Spain pitched itself as an eager host for a potential international agency for AI and Israel touted its technological chops as a prospective developer of helpful AI.

Days after U.S. senators discussed AI behind closed doors with tech bigwigs and skeptics, President Joe Biden said Washington is working “to make sure we govern this technology — not the other way around, having it govern us.”

And with the General Assembly as a center of gravity, there were so many AI-policy panel discussions and get-togethers around New York last week that attendees sometimes raced from one to another.

“The most important meetings that we are having are the meetings at the U.N. — because it is the only body that is inclusive, that brings all of us here,” Omar Al-Olama, the United Arab Emirates' minister for artificial intelligence, said at a U.N.-sponsored event featuring four high-ranking officials from various countries. It drew such interest that a half-dozen of their counterparts offered comments from the audience.

Tech industry players have made sure they're in the mix during the U.N.'s big week, too.

“What’s really encouraging is that there’s so much global interest in how to get this right — and the U.N. is in a position to help harmonize all the conversations” and work to ensure all voices get heard, says James Manyika, a senior vice president at Google. The tech giant helped develop a new, artificial intelligence-enabled U.N. site for searching data and tracking progress on the world body's key goals.

LOTS OF PEOPLE TALKING, BUT PERHAPS A SLOW PROCESS

But if the United Nations has advantages, it also has the challenges of a big-tent, consensus-seeking ethos that often moves slowly. Plus its members are governments, while AI is being driven by an array of private companies.

Still, a global issue needs a global forum, and "the U.N. is absolutely a place to have these conversations,” says Ian Bremmer, president of the Eurasia Group, a political risk advisory firm.

Even if governments aren't developers, Gill notes that they can “influence the direction that AI takes.”

“It’s not only about regulating against misuse and harm, making sure that democracy is not undermined, the rule of law is not undermined, but it’s also about promoting a diverse and inclusive innovation ecosystem" and fostering public investments in research and workforce training where there aren't a lot of deep-pocketed tech companies doing so, he said.

The United Nations will have to navigate territory that some national governments and blocs, including the European Union and the Group of 20 industrialized nations, already are staking out with summits, declarations and in some cases regulations of their own.

Ideas differ about what a potential global AI body should be: perhaps an expert assessment and fact-establishing panel, akin to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or a watchdog like the International Atomic Energy Agency? A standard-setting entity similar to the U.N.'s maritime and civil aviation agencies? Or something else?

There's also the question of how to engender innovation and hoped-for breakthroughs — in medicine, disaster prediction, energy efficiency and more — without exacerbating inequities and misinformation or, worse, enabling runaway-robot calamity. That sci-fi scenario started sounding a lot less far-fetched when hundreds of tech leaders and scientists, including the CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, issued a warning in May about “the risk of extinction from AI.”

An OpenAI exec-turned-competitor then told the U.N. Security Council in July that artificial intelligence poses “potential threats to international peace, security and global stability” because of its unpredictability and possible misuse.

Yet there are distinctly divergent vantage points on where the risks and opportunities lie.

“For countries like Nigeria and the Global South, the biggest issue is: What are we going to do with this amazing technology? Are we going to get the opportunity to use it to uplift our people and our economies equally and on the same pace as the West?” Nigeria's communications minister, Olatunbosun Tijani, asked at an AI discussion hosted by the New York Public Library. He suggested that “even the conversation on governance has been led from the West.”

Chilean Science Minister Aisén Etcheverry believes AI could allow for a digital do-over, a chance to narrow gaps that earlier tech opened in access, inclusion and wealth.

AN INTRICATE PATH FORWARD, BUT WITH CLEAR UPSIDES

But it will take more than improving telecommunications infrastructure. Countries that got left behind before need to have “the language, culture, the different histories that we come from, represented in the development of artificial intelligence,” Etcheverry said at the U.N.-sponsored side event.

Gill, who's from India, shares those concerns. Dialogue about AI needs to expand beyond a “promise and peril” dichotomy to “a more nuanced understanding where access to opportunity, the empowerment dimension of it ... is also front and center,” he said.

Even before the U.N. advisory board sets a detailed agenda, plenty of suggestions were volunteered amid the curated conversations around the General Assembly. Work on global minimum standards for AI. Align the various regulatory and enforcement endeavors around the globe. Look at setting up AI registries, validation and certification. Focus on regulating uses rather than the technology itself. Craft a “rapid-response mechanism” in case dreaded possibilities come to pass.

From Dr. Rose Nakasi's vantage point, though, there was a clear view of the upsides of AI.

The Ugandan computer scientist and her colleagues at Makerere University's AI Lab are using the technology to streamline microscopic analysis of blood samples, the gold-standard method for diagnosing malaria.

Their work is aimed at countries without enough pathologists, especially in rural areas. A magnifying eyepiece, produced by 3D printing, fits cellphone cameras and takes photos of microscope slides; AI image analysis then picks out and identifies pathogens. Google's charitable arm recently gave the lab $1.5 million.

AI is “an enabler” of human activity, Nakasi said between attending General Assembly-related events.

“We can’t be able to just leave it to do each and every thing on its own," she said. "But once it is well regulated, where we have it as a support tool, I believe it can do a lot.”

Jennifer Peltz, The Associated Press

Analysis-EU's bid to save bees stings sugar beet farmers

SUGAR BEETS TAKE LOTS OF IRRIGATION & LAND

Sun, September 24, 2023 



By Maytaal Angel and Gus Trompiz

LONDON/PARIS (Reuters) - Europe's sugar beet growers are turning away from the crop in a move that could drive soaring prices even higher, as the EU's environmental rules clash with its bid to stem food inflation and secure supplies.

Farmers are switching crops after the European Union's top court ruled in January they can no longer be granted exemptions to a ban on so-called neonics - insecticides which protect against diseases like virus yellows in sugar beet but are toxic to bees and other pollinators vital to food production.

The ruling, which the bloc and environmental groups say is critical for safeguarding pollinators, some of which are currently threatened with extinction, has led to a cut in acreage devoted to sugar beet as crop yields suffer, farmers and industry experts told Reuters.

"In our region, we lost 15% of the (sugar beet) area (this year)," said Alexandre Pele, who has a 240 hectare farm in central France.

"I have struggled to meet volume commitments with the sugar factory because my yields have declined notably due to the ban on neonicotinoids," said Pele.

The EU is the third largest sugar producer in the world so a reduction in output could impact soaring global prices and frustrate efforts to bring food inflation down.

"We’ve entered a new paradigm in sugar, low prices are a thing of the past," said an analyst at one of the world's largest sugar traders. "Global stocks are low, demand is growing and supply is vulnerable all over the world due to climate change, due to the difficulty expanding production anywhere, not least Europe."

EU sugar prices are at their highest ever levels, roughly double prices seen two years ago, driven partly by an increased reliance on costly imports as the local sugar sector shrinks.

The European Commission expects sugar imports to have risen about 60% in the current season. The bloc relies on imported sugar, mostly subject to duties, for about 15% of its needs.Neonicotinoids were banned in Europe on non-flowering crops like sugar beet in 2018, but after a 2020 attack of virus yellows crushed output in France and Britain, EU member states granted temporary exemptions.

Since January's court ruling banning exemptions, the area devoted to growing sugar beet in France, the EU's largest sugar grower, has hit a 14 year low.

The European Commission said it expects the entire EU beet area to fall some 3% below a five-year average this year due to the ruling. The EU beet acreage has already fallen 17% percent since the 2018 neonics ruling, EU data shows.

The acreage fall led the world's second largest sugar producer Tereos to close a factory in northern France this year, losing 123 jobs. Tereos said at the time it was expecting to receive 10% less beet from farmers.

French grower Pele said he hasn't yet reduced his sugar beet crop because of the investment he's already made, but the yield from one of his plots is down by 45% this year.

One in 10 bee and butterfly species, critical for safeguarding biodiversity, are currently threatened with extinction, and environmental groups along with the EU pin much of the blame on neonics.

"The harm of neonics to pollinators is undeniable. They are the most studied pesticide in human history, and we know very well how they work," said Noa Simon Delso, scientific director at Beelife, a Brussels-based non-profit organisation.

Several seed makers, including Germany's KWS Saat are working on new sugar beet varieties that would be naturally resistant to virus yellows, but farmers say they may not be available until 2027.

By this time, those who have left the sector and sold costly equipment might be loathe to return.

"Consumers will have to appreciate if more constraints are put on farming, for good reason or not, the costs of production will increase until we find other methods to cultivate this food," said Andrew Blenkiron, who runs a 7,000 acre farm in the east of England, which thanks to Brexit, can use neonics this year.

He said he would move away from beet if he can't protect his crop.

"It's a dilemma - producing food at a cost effective price while ensuring we have good environmental protection," he added.

A shrinking sugar beet sector could hit other staple crops because farmers need to plant alternates like sugar beet or oilseeds on their wheat, barley and corn fields every other year in order to maintain soil health.

Oilseeds were one of the first crops targeted by the ban in late 2013, and rapeseed production has since fallen 12%.

"If I lose a crop like sugar beet, that's an agronomy (crop rotation) issue but also, because weather threats are multiple these days, having a number of crops allows me to better manage risk," said Pele. "If I no longer have sugar beet it would be a real loss."

(Reporting by Maytaal Angel;Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)

Sugar Beet vs. Sugar Cane: Why It Really Makes a Difference - Utopia

Sugar Beets’ Environmental Toll Isn’t That Sweet (bloomberglaw.com)

Link.springer.com

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12355-019-00734-9

Sustainability of the Sugar Beet Crop | SpringerLink 

Jul 6, 2019 ... The sustainability of modern sugar beet growing has been proved considerably high. Its improvement has been gradual, streamlined with ...

Sidneymintz.net

https://sidneymintz.net/sugar.php

Sugar - Sidney Mintz 

Download PDF; 2009 “Notes toward a cultural construction of modern foods,” Social Anthropology 17 (23): 209-16. 2009 “Afterword,” Ethnology 47 (2): 129-35 ...ABOUT SUGAR CANE IN THE CARRIBEAN AND NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICAS

THE DARK TRUTH ABOUT SUGAR BEET

6th Dec 19

by Jessica Sinclair Taylor, Head of Policy and Communications

We all know sugar is bad for our health. But were you aware just how bad it is for our soil?

We all know sugar is bad for our health. But were you aware just how bad it is for our soil? Today, Feedback publishes a report uncovering the hidden damage growing sugar beet is doing to our soil.

In the UK we use over 100,000 hectares of prime agriculture land to grow a product we really need to eat less of: sugar. British Sugar, the monopoly company controlling the UK sugar beet industry refines around 7.6 million tonnes of sugar beet grown on English soils every year, turning it into over a million tonnes of refined sugar. And they have plans to expand, with a goal to increase production by 50%.

That much sugar sounds like pretty bad news from a health perspective, especially when you take into account that in the UK most adults consume double their recommended daily allowance. But it turns out there’s another casualty of all that sweet stuff: our soil.

Sugar beet is a hard-wearing crop on our soil. Harvesting it, especially late in the year when soil is wet, leads to large quantities of soil being lifted from the fields, stuck to the crop and to farm machinery. We’ve calculated that the sugar beet harvest caused an average soil loss of around 489,000 tonnes a year in the period 2014-2018. To put that in context, the UK’s total soil loss per year, excluding soil loss from harvesting, is estimated at 2.9 million tonnes – so the sugar beet harvest could be adding as much as 20% to our annual soil loss per year.

Consider the fact that it takes between 200 and 400 years to form 1cm of topsoil, and that soil is a resource at the very heart of our agricultural production. Surely, we should be doing everything we can to care for it?

It gets worse. Sugar beet is largely grown in East Anglia and the Midlands, in areas Natural England describes as having some of the best and most versatile land in the country. If we shrunk the area of land used to grow sugar beet by 40%, around the decrease needed to produce just enough sugar to meet our recommended daily allowance, we calculated that we could be growing 150,000 tonnes of peas, 3.1 million tonnes of carrots or 1.8 million tonnes of potatoes.

Once harvested, beet is delivered to one of four sugar beet refineries all owned by a single company, British Sugar. British Sugar is a monopoly: nearly 40 years after the state sold its stake in the company, the company remains the only buyer for the UK’s sugar beet growers, negotiating a fixed yearly price with NFU Sugar, the body representing UK beet growers. We asked British Sugar to comment on our estimate on sugar beet’s contribution to soil loss, but they did not respond to our request.


“We Welcome This Report, And Urge The Approach Outlined In It To Be Applied Across Our Entire Food System So That The Public Health And Environmental Impact Of The Crops We Grow Can Be Considered Alongside One Another – And Informed, Ambitious And Holistic Choices Made As A Result.” Ellen Fay, Director, Sustainable Soils Alliance

On the one side, two vital and finite resources: our land and our soils. On the other, our health, and the costs to the NHS of treating ill-health related to excessive sugar consumption. Spending on treating Type 2 diabetes alone comes to £8.8 billion per year. With the government adopting policies to incentivise lower sugar consumption, like the ‘Sugar Tax’, it seems nonsensical to continue to use significant area of land to grow sugar.

Sugar is bad for us, and it is bad for the land it is grown on. Yet amidst these challenges, British Sugar plans to grow production by 50% annually – potentially with grave potential effects for our health, land use and soils.

Today, the UK shareholders of Associated British Foods Plc (ABF), the parent company that owns British Sugar, meet for the companies Annual General Meeting. ABF is forecasting strong earnings growth next year, including in its sugar divison.

We hope our new report will open a new front in the fight to tackle our addiction to the sweet stuff. Between 2008 and 2018 (so, excluding the potential impact of the Sugar Tax, which kicked in April 2018), the average decline in sugar consumption has been just 0.2% annually – at this rate, it would take the UK 386 years to reach the WHO recommended daily sugar intake. Policy to address high sugar consumption through demand alone are failing. It is time to explore the potential to constrain supply of UK-grown sugar.

Such a move poses the opportunity to staunch the rapid erosion of UK soils, to incentivise production of healthy vegetables improving food security, and to orient agricultural policy around the twin goals of public health and planetary health. As well as reconsidering the sugar in our tea, it is time to reassess the role of sugar beet in our fields.

Read our full report.

TELL THE SUGAR INDUSTRY TO 'BEET IT'

Front Microbiol. 2023; 14: 1151052.

Published online 2023 Apr 17. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1151052

PMCID: PMC10149816

PMID: 37138624

Understanding the sugar beet holobiont for sustainable agriculture

Adrian Wolfgang, 1 Nora Temme, 2 Ralf Tilcher, 2 and Gabriele Berg 1 , 3 , 4 , *

Author information Article notes Copyright and License information PMC Disclaimer

Abstract

The importance of crop-associated microbiomes for the health and field performance of plants has been demonstrated in the last decades. Sugar beet is the most important source of sucrose in temperate climates, and—as a root crop—yield heavily depends on genetics as well as on the soil and rhizosphere microbiomes. Bacteria, fungi, and archaea are found in all organs and life stages of the plant, and research on sugar beet microbiomes contributed to our understanding of the plant microbiome in general, especially of microbiome-based control strategies against phytopathogens. Attempts to make sugar beet cultivation more sustainable are increasing, raising the interest in biocontrol of plant pathogens and pests, biofertilization and –stimulation as well as microbiome-assisted breeding. This review first summarizes already achieved results on sugar beet-associated microbiomes and their unique traits, correlating to their physical, chemical, and biological peculiarities. Temporal and spatial microbiome dynamics during sugar beet ontogenesis are discussed, emphasizing the rhizosphere formation and highlighting knowledge gaps. Secondly, potential or already tested biocontrol agents and application strategies are discussed, providing an overview of how microbiome-based sugar beet farming could be performed in the future. Thus, this review is intended as a reference and baseline for further sugar beet-microbiome research, aiming to promote investigations in rhizosphere modulation-based biocontrol options.

Keywords: biofertilization, Beta vulgaris, Rhizoctonia, phylosymbiosis, microbiome, biocontrol, soil-borne pathogens

1. Introduction

The holobiont concept (Zilber-Rosenberg and Rosenberg, 2008) changed the view on microbes in many scientific disciplines. It states that practically all multicellular lifeforms are inhabited, depending on—or at least are affected by—the interplay with microbial life. The collective genome of plant-associated microbiota exceeds the host genome in both size and number of functions by far and is thus referred to as its second genome (Berendsen et al., 2012; de la Fuente Cant et al., 2020). Given the importance of plant-associated microbes for the health, vigor, and resilience of their host, the microbiome of plants and its modulation is a potential key factor for crop management and crop development in the future (Berg et al., 2015, 2021; Mendes and Raaijmakers, 2015).

Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris, L.) is the most important regional source of sucrose in moderate climates of the northern hemisphere. Its biomass production is ranked eighth amongst the most produced field crops worldwide (FAOSTAT, 2022). Sugar beets are biennial, meaning that flowers and seeds are produced in the second year. Since flowering detracts sucrose from taproots, sugar beets are harvested annually. The wild ancestor of all beet crops is the sea beet (Beta maritima L.), a native plant still frequently found on European coastlines. Sugar beet thrives on most soil types, as long as pH is near neutral, easing its geographically widespread cultivation (Draycott, 2003). In contrast to many other crops, the breeding of sugar beet out of the Silesian Beet happened in times when the basics of genetics were understood. Therefore, its development and breeding trends over the decades are comparably well documented (Panella and Lewellen, 2007). Early sugar beet cultivars were bred in Northern Europe, a region with a non-humid, temperate climate and low pest and disease pressure. When these cultivars were planted in other regions, the yield was severely decimated by pests and pathogens (Panella and Lewellen, 2007). Sugar beet was intensively studied regarding physiology, anatomy, chemical, biochemical constitution, genomic traits, nutrient requirements, and convenient agricultural practices to optimize yield in the last 150 years, and was first genome sequenced in 2014 (Dohm et al., 2014). Still, leaf pathogens, root and storage rots, and microbes interfering with sucrose extractions illustrate the importance of sugar beet-associated microbial communities for both plant health and yield. All these mentioned facts make sugar beet an interesting model plant for microbiome research.

Despite the widespread cultivation of sugar beet, our knowledge in sugar beet microbiomes and microbiome-based strategies in future agricultural systems have not reached their full potential thus far. To fully exploit this potential for crop protection and plant growth promotion (PGP), a deep and holistic understanding of both the plant itself and the environment-plant interactions is crucial. Since the rhizosphere is the primary soil-plant interface, we have to especially emphasize the establishment, formation, and dynamics of its microbiome in this context. We hereby try to connect current knowledge about sugar beet-associated microbial communities to their physical, chemical, and biological context, namely the specific traits of the host plant. We aim to describe the sugar beet holobiont as defined by Berg et al. (2020), as the entirety of the microbial community members and its “theater of activity”. In the first section of this review, we will provide an overview of the current knowledge on sugar beet microbiome to be considered in experimental setups of future studies, highlight knowledge gaps, and discuss the sugar beet holobiont following its ontology from seed to postharvest roots. The second section summarizes potential or already tested biocontrol agents and their natural occurrence in the plant host and presents the current application strategies for microbiome-based agricultural practices.

Figure 1

Simplified temporal (Left) and spatial (Right) holobiont model of sugar beet taproot. The arrow width indicates the relative importance of vertically and horizontally assembled endophytes (Top Left). A: Root exudation and/or endophyte release leads to an increase in measured diversity in taproot-associated rhizosphere communities (Zachow et al., 2014; Cardinale et al., 2020; Wolfgang et al., 2020). CFU number in the peel can exceed the CFU number in the rhizosphere (Okazaki et al., 2014). B: Relative sugar content increases toward the center, higher in proximity to vascular bundles. Sucrose further decreases with increasing distance to the secondary cambia (Milford, 2006; Hoffmann and Kenter, 2018). C: Diversity decreases toward the center, while the relative abundance of copiotrophic bacteria increases (Lilley et al., 1996; Okazaki et al., 2014). D: Microbial abundance is highest in the root elongation zone near the root tip, with a high relative abundance of exudate responders, e.g., Variovorax and Pseudomonas (Jacobs et al., 1985; Lübeck et al., 2000; Shi et al., 2009a). E: The sugar content of beet tissue is highest in lower taproot (Milford, 2006).

2.2. Microbial assembly and dynamics in the sugar beet rhizosphere

Ultra-processed foods are not only bad for our bodies, their production damages our environments


Laila Benkrima, Agronomy Consultant, B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation, Simon Fraser University
Sun, September 24, 2023 

THE CONVERSATION

Our grocery stores are increasingly filled with ultra-processed foods, which have little to no nutritional value and a huge environmental impact. (Nathalia Rosa)

Ultra-processed foods (UPF) have become increasingly popular and range from chips to microwave meals and even bread. Even just a casual glance at supermarket shelves in Canada also reveals a plethora of UPF offerings in all their elaborate and enticing packaging.

Besides their affordability, UPF not only offer time-saving convenience but also momentary satisfaction drenched in saturated fat, sugar, salt and additives. After all, who can resist enjoying a tasty snack when indulging in a football game or an electrifying new TV series?

Although much is discussed about the direct negative impact of these products on our health, including obesity, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, little has been said about the impacts of UPF on the environment.
What are ultra-processed foods?

UPF can be defined as “formulations of ingredients, mostly of exclusive industrial use, that result from a series of industrial processes” and contain little or no whole foods.

They are made using industrial processing methods that may include moulding, chemical modification and hydrogenation (which can turn liquid unsaturated fat into a more solid form).

The consumption of ultra-processed foods is not new. In Europe, processed products on an industrial scale have been widely consumed since the late 18th and 19th centuries. A 2020 Canadian study shows that the percentage of total purchased calories attributed to UPF in Canada increased from 24 per cent in 1938 to 55 per cent in 2001 and, in 2013, Canadians purchased an astonishing average of 230 kg of UPF per person.

Even more alarmingly, 99 per cent of Canadian adults consume UPF at least once a week. In comparison, 57 per cent of people in the United Kingdom consume some kind of UPF on a weekly basis.

The consumption of UPF in Canada is largely associated with men, youth, those struggling with low income and those with obesity.

Read more: The rise of ultra-processed foods and why they're really bad for our health

Unfortunately, UPF tend to be more affordable than fresh, whole foods. They have a longer shelf life, require no preparation and can be enticing due to high sugar content that trigger feel-good dopamine responses.

However, consuming UPF comes at a high cost not just to our health but to our environment as well.

Cutting costs, raising emissions

UPFs rely on energy-intensive manufacturing processes and long supply chains, leading to substantial greenhouse gas emissions.

The most substantial environmental impacts of UPF-rich diets predominantly stem from the post-farm stages, specifically the final product creation and packaging processes.

One specific additive that has the most environmental impact is palm oil. Palm oil is responsible for deforestation of some of the world’s most biodiverse forests. It is the world’s most consumed vegetable oil that can be found in half of our food.

Another villain is high-fructose corn syrup, which not only leaves a long carbon footprint but is also linked to obesity, high blood pressure and Type 2 diabetes.

Read more: Two surprising reasons behind the obesity epidemic: Too much salt, not enough water

The massive waste generated by over-packaged UPF is another factor to consider. Their plastic packaging doesn’t degrade in landfills or in nature, and has a dramatic impact on soil health and marine life.

One recent study published in Nature Sustainability demonstrates that UPF processing and packaging stages have the greatest environmental impacts of the whole system, and are a major source of environmental waste worldwide.

The path to sustainability

There is no simple answer to the problem, but there are alternatives that can help reduce the pressure on the natural resources available on the planet. Embracing sustainable agricultural practices that prioritize regenerative farming, waste reduction and local sourcing of ingredients can effectively lower the carbon impact of UPF.

In addition, companies should adopt water-efficient technologies and support initiatives that restore natural habitats, as these are essential steps towards water conservation and biodiversity preservation. Public and health agencies need to put pressure on governments to adopt new policies and implement measures that will protect public health and the environment.

Advancements in agricultural technology could play a pivotal role in mitigating the environmental impact of food additives. Precision farming techniques, data-driven decision-making, and AI-driven supply chain optimizations can enhance resource efficiency and reduce waste.

Small and medium-sized agri-food enterprises and small family farms often prioritize sustainable and locally-sourced ingredients, contributing to a more sustainable food system and enhancing biodiversity. Supporting local businesses not only encourages a healthier food ecosystem but also bolsters community resilience and regional economic development.

Indigenous communities as well possess a profound knowledge of sustainable agroforestry practices, and collaborating with these communities can provide essential teachings into more sustainable food production and responsible land and water management.

Read more:  Australia's agriculture sector sorely needs more insights from First Nations people. Here's how we get there

The environmental impact of ultra-processed foods cannot be ignored any longer. As we become more and more conscious about what we buy and how it is produced, we hold the responsibility to advocate for change.

High rates of UPF consumption indicates an essential failure of our food system to provide universal access to affordable, wholesome food. Whether such a goal is even possible may be up for debate, but what cannot be denied is that our current industry-driven proliferation of UPF is inflicting harm on both our planet and our health.

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

It was written by: Laila Benkrima, Simon Fraser University.

Read more:

Why taxing ‘junk food’ to tackle obesity isn’t as simple as it seems

Colonists upended Aboriginal farming, growing grain and running sheep on rich yamfields, and cattle on arid grainlands

GOOD NEWS

Incidence of long COVID 'strikingly low' in children, Alberta researchers find

CBC
Sun, September 24, 2023 


New research from the University of Alberta has found a "strikingly low" incidence of long COVID among children ages eight to 13 who contracted COVID-19.

"It's reassuring that in our study we found that most kids resolve symptoms within two weeks," said Lyndsey Hahn, a postdoctoral fellow in the pediatrics department of the University of Alberta's faculty of medicine and dentistry.

Hahn is lead author of the study, Post-COVID-19 Condition in Children, which was published this month in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

Only one child in a study group of 271 developed long COVID after a COVID-19 infection, the study found.

"The incidence of [long COVID] in this study was strikingly low," the authors say in a research letter.

Hahn, however, cautioned in an interview that the study is only "a tip of the iceberg" and that more research is needed to better understand long COVID in children.

Between August 2020 and March 2021, researchers from the U of A and the Women and Children's Health Research Institute in Edmonton recruited a study group of 1,026 children ages eight to 13.

Parents provided consent and tracked their children's symptoms. The children were followed for 76 weeks.

At the time they were recruited for the study, none of the children had been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19.

University of Alberta researcher Lyndsey Hahn is the study's lead author.
 (Submitted by Lyndsey Hahn)

Of the 1,026 children, 572 did not test positive for COVID-19 during the study period while 454 did.

The researchers focused on a group of 271 children who tested positive for COVID and for whom there was sufficient data to determine the presence of long COVID.

Of that group of kids, only one — or 0.4 per cent — met the World Health Organization's definition of the condition.

That child's symptoms resolved near the end of a 14-week post-infection followup period, the study authors noted.

Common symptoms of long COVID include fatigue, shortness of breath and cognitive dysfunction, although the WHO says more than 200 different symptoms have been reported.

The WHO definition of long COVID says it involves "continuation or development of new symptoms three months after the initial SARS-CoV-2 infection, with symptoms lasting for at least two months with no other explanation."

Because the participants signed up for a study before they got COVID, scientists were able to see if they had any symptoms of an infection before they got COVID itself.

Sometimes a child had the dual misfortune of getting one respiratory infection first, such as common flu, and becoming ill with COVID immediately afterwards.

In such cases, it took longer for children to recover from their symptoms completely, Hahn said.

That finding is a cause for concern, said Dr. Candace McNaughton, a research scientist and an emergency physician at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. McNaughton was not involved in the study.

"Having a child who is sick with a fever or headache for four weeks or more is a big deal, even if it does not qualify as post-COVID condition," she said.

"My take-home from the study is that a large proportion of children have symptoms that could impact their schooling or work for parents for a month, which is a big burden for parents and families to bear," she added.

McNaughton said the Alberta study is "another piece in the very large puzzle that we have right now with regards to the long term effects that COVID may have on children."

These long-term effects, McNaughton said, may include having difficulty speaking or remembering things, high heart rate that lasts for several months after getting the infection, and Type 1 diabetes.

"There's enough evidence for me as a mother, and a physician, and as a researcher to say, this is a virus I'd like to avoid," McNaughton said.

Dr. Tehseen Ladha, an assistant professor in the pediatrics department at the U of A, praised her colleagues for conducting the study. Ladha was not involved in the research.

"I think long COVID is an area that we know so little about, and to see researchers and academics really focusing on it from my home university is really uplifting," Ladha said.

In her work as a clinician, Ladha has observed that children between eight and 13 do not appear to be developing long COVID often.

"I did notice that the ones that have long COVID were generally over the age of 13," she said.

"I can see evidence of what they've shown in this article in my own practice."

Ontario legislature resumes after Greenbelt about-face, minister resignations


The Canadian Press
Sun, September 24, 2023 

TORONTO — Ontario's legislature resumes sitting Monday on the heels of two cabinet ministers' resignations, a cabinet shuffle, and a major policy reversal – and that was just in the past week.

Politicians will return to the business of the legislature after its 15-week summer break that saw the release of two damning reports from the auditor general and integrity commissioner about the process to remove lands from the Greenbelt for housing development.

The return of the legislature will see Premier Doug Ford set about backtracking on that decision, as announced last week, following nearly a year of public outcry.

But don't expect Ford's abrupt admission that "it was a mistake" to open the Greenbelt to equally abruptly quell the controversy. Opposition politicians say there are still many unanswered questions.

"I can assure you we are going to be using this opportunity to get more answers, because Ford and his Conservative government have a lot to answer for," NDP Leader Marit Stiles said Friday.

"We have every intention of continuing to hold them to account."

She said there are still questions surrounding what developers knew in advance of the official announcement that the Greenbelt was to be opened up, what the premier knew, what his staff knew, why his director of housing policy resigned last week, and what emails had been deleted, as referenced by the auditor general in the course of her investigation.

"There's endless questions and I think why it's really important is that this casts a long, dark shadow over this government in everything they do," she said.

"We have the privatization of health care, we have the selling off of the 95-year lease for Ontario Place that people are really opposed to. I think it's fair that we need to shine light in every corner."

Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said "the heat is not going to get turned down any time soon," but it may take some time to get proper answers on outstanding Greenbelt questions, and the Liberals will also be advancing other priorities at the same time.

"It is really important for us to focus on the things that are important to Ontarians like housing, like health care, like education, like the environment," he said. "We have to keep doing that. I think we'll be able to walk and chew gum. So we will find different ways to dig deeper."

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said he doesn't want to lose sight of the fact there is still a housing affordability crisis, and will be pushing for solutions that don't involve prime farmland or enriching developers to the tune of $8.3 billion.

The auditor general found that's how much the landowners whose property was removed from the Greenbelt stood to see their land values rise. It's unclear if any of them will pursue any type of recourse over the government's policy reversal.

Both the auditor general and integrity commissioner found that the process to select lands was rushed and favoured certain developers.

More than 90 per cent of the land removed was in five sites passed on to then-housing minister Steve Clark's chief of staff, Ryan Amato, by two developers Amato met at an industry event, the auditor said. Both Clark and Amato have since resigned.

A second cabinet minister, Kaleed Rasheed, resigned this week after news reports raised questions about his connections to developer Shakir Rehmatullah and a trip to Las Vegas.

On Friday, a third cabinet minister resigned, though he said it was unconnected to the Greenbelt. Monte McNaughton resigned as labour minister to take a job in the private sector.

Stiles said it is indicative nonetheless of the turmoil Ford's government is facing.

"I'm beginning to wonder whether, in fact, we're going to have anybody left to question on Monday at this rate," she said.

The departures prompted a mini cabinet shuffle Friday, with Ford naming David Piccini, who has been environment minister for the past two years, as the new labour minister. Andrea Khanjin, who represents the riding of Barrie-Innisfil, is promoted to cabinet to serve as the new environment minister.

Todd McCarthy is the new minister of public and business service delivery, after having been named associate transportation minister less than three weeks ago in another mini cabinet shuffle that was prompted by Clark's resignation.

Vijay Thanigasalam, who represents Scarborough-Rouge Park, has been named the new associate transportation minister.

Opposition politicians won't be the only ones at the legislature Monday armed with criticisms of the government. The Ontario Health Coalition has said it will be busing in "thousands" of protesters to pressure Ford to drop his plan to expand the private delivery of public health care.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2023.

Allison Jones, The Canadian Press

One of Canada's first feature films was mostly made in Nova Scotia, but you'll likely never see it


CBC
Sun, September 24, 2023 

This scene from Evangeline was filmed in Halifax at the garden of the Billman residence, which would be located on present-day Herring Cove Road near the Armdale roundabout. 

(James Billman Collection, Nova Scotia Archives 1981-295 no. 1. - image credit)

After travelling to about 30 states and a half-dozen provinces looking for a copy of Evangeline, one of Canada's first feature films, Bashar Shbib came up empty handed.

Shot in 1913 in Nova Scotia and Quebec, Evangeline is based on American Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem, Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie. It tells the story of Evangeline and Gabriel, two star-crossed lovers from Grand Pré, N.S., torn apart by the Expulsion of the Acadians beginning in 1775.

There are no known copies of Evangeline. The proof of its existence lies in clues from a few surviving images, journalism of the day and a description of the film housed with the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington.

"The idea that the film has disappeared is definitely sad," said Shbib, a Montreal-based filmmaker who made a documentary about his efforts to find a copy of Evangeline. Fittingly, the 2013 documentary is titled The Search For Evangeline.

Evangeline is considered Canada's first feature film because it was made by a Canadian company, the Canadian Bioscope Company, which was headquartered in Halifax.

This ad for Evangeline appeared in the Feb. 7, 1914, edition of The Moving Picture World magazine. 

(Canadian Bioscope Company, Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

However, it wasn't necessarily the first feature film shot in Canada.

Shot for $30,000, Evangeline used American actors for its leading roles. In Nova Scotia, shooting locations included Halifax and the Annapolis Valley, duly noted in an ad for the film declaring it was "Made in Annapolis Valley amongst the Actual Scenes Described in the Poem."

Annapolis Royal mayor was 'moved to tears' by film

The film description housed at the Library of Congress echoes this as well and includes a signed reference letter, of sorts.

"I can certify having witnessed the churchyard scenes, played and filmed in the old graves yard there, being moved to tears by the realistic acting of women and children," notes a letter signed by three people, including the mayor of Annapolis Royal, Geo. J. Hawkesworth.

The document also describes what happens during each of the 75-minute film's five reels.

Another scene from Evangeline shot at the Billman residence in Halifax. Fewer than 10 photos showing scenes from the film are known to exist. 

(James Billman Collection, Nova Scotia Archives 1981-295 no. 2)

While Evangeline was made by a Canadian company, it was distributed out of New York and released in 1914.

Film trade publication The Moving Picture World predicted Evangeline would be a "a strong favourite everywhere as the subject is well known to ... school children in the country, the study of Longfellow's classic poem being a part of the regular school work in nearly every city of the United States."

A 'soul-stirring love story'

Rival publication Motion Picture News echoed that.

"There are few Americans who do not know the pathetic and soul-stirring love story which Longfellow so plaintively poured into the poem Evangeline. Consequently, the picture should attract unusual and wide-spread attention," it said.

In a separate issue, Motion Picture News noted that a matinee was arranged in Buffalo, N.Y., for pupils of School No. 26 to see Evangeline.

"The pupils are studying this literary classic in their English courses and all were enthusiastic about the matinee," it said.

Where Evangeline screened

The film was screened in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston, Montreal, Toronto and Halifax, and received glowing reviews.

Shbib's search for Evangeline saw him track down descendents of people who worked on the film in the hopes they had a copy. He even went to the Library of Congress.

Bashar Shbib's efforts to locate Evangeline took him to cities across North America, including Washington, D.C. (Oneira Pictures)

"In those days, you copyright the film by taking the image of the first of every shot [in the film]," said Shbib.

The film's description notes it had 200 scenes.

But to Shbib's dismay, he said he was told they had recently thrown the images out.

Why copies weren't kept of old films

George Melnyk, the author of One Hundred Years of Canadian Cinema, said it's not surprising no known copies of Evangeline exist because that's common for most films of the time.

"Nobody thought of them as having longevity or archival value or meaning for the cultural history of a particular country," he said. "Companies, you know, disappeared. The films went in the trash or whatever happened to them, things like that, because they simply weren't seen as valuable cultural documents."

The Canadian Bioscope Company, which made Evangeline, was headquartered in Halifax on what is now present-day Barrington Street near Inglis Street. (Mark Crosby/CBC)

The Canadian Bioscope Company went out of business when the First World War broke out, says the Nova Scotia Archives' website.

While Nova Scotia now has a booming film and television industry, Evangeline is a reminder of its early days.

"There should be more research and more studies into what's missing," said Shbib. "What are the films that we're not talking about and what are the stories ... that have been overlooked?"

'Not just a magazine store': How Atlantic News is still surviving after 50 years

CBC
Sun, September 24, 2023 

Michele and Stephen Gerrard have been the owners of Atlantic News, first opened by Pat Doherty in 1973, since 1998. (Andrew Sampson/CBC - image credit)

When Pat Doherty first opened Atlantic News in Halifax in 1973, print was still king.

On busy downtown street corners, pedestrians could easily grab a copy of the latest edition of The Chronicle Herald or The Globe and Mail from one of the city's news vending machines. At convenience stores, magazines lined the shelves alongside other necessities like shaving cream, condoms and toothbrushes.

But inside Doherty's newsstand, there was something for everyone — magazines from all over the world like Time and Saturday Night, scandalous rags like Playboy and others dedicated to almost every conceivable interest, no matter how niche.

Back then, Halifax was still a city modest in its ambitions. A place where, as Doherty suggested in an interview for Don Connelly's Halifax — a 1985 CBC Nova Scotia special — life seemed to glide along.

"Simply put, there's not too much of anything here," Doherty quipped.

"Because of that you don't get tired of it. There are no excesses. If you were living in the middle of the prairies, there'd be too much land. If you're living in Sable Island, there'd be too much sea. Our economy is mixed. Everything is very mixed."

Pat Doherty, seen here in this file photo from 1985, was the owner of Atlantic News until his death in 1991. (CBC Archives)

In the years since Doherty died in 1991, after a short battle with illness, the city has changed dramatically, with both the population and the cost of living on a steady incline.

But while few things have remained the same, his legacy at Atlantic News lives on at the corner of Morris and Queen streets, with the current staff and owners celebrating the store's 50th anniversary this weekend.

"When we took over in the 90s … I had a two-week-old baby and we had our two-year-old daughter, and we had to live up to this massive legacy of Pat Doherty," said Michele Gerrard, who assumed ownership of the shop with her husband Stephen in 1998.

Blowers Street Paperchase, seen here in two file photos from 1993, closed in 2015. 

(CBC Archives)

By her count, there were 11 major newstands in Halifax when they took over, including two other independents: Paperchase on Blowers Street and The Daily Grind on Spring Garden Road.

The 90s were perhaps the last golden age for magazines, marked by iconic issues like Kurt Cobain and Nirvana on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, tabloid headlines about the O.J. Simpson trial and Princess Diana's face on what seemed to be every magazine in the world in the months after her death.

"The idea [was] that this would just continue and continue. Everyone was reading. And then, of course, along came the internet," said Gerrard.

In Halifax today, only Atlantic News remains.

Michele (far right) and Stephen Gerrard celebrate the 25th anniversary of Atlantic News in 1998, the year they bought the store. (Submitted by Michele Gerard)

"It is strange to be in a landscape where we are the only ones," said Gerrard. "To have outlasted the competition, it's a sign of ... a business that's well-run, well-loved, but also that the product is still of value to people."

Reports of print's demise, said Gerrard, have been greatly exaggerated, but the store has had to evolve to reflect a changing climate.

As some newspapers became harder to ship to Halifax, Atlantic News got onboard with PressReader in the early 2000s, a service that allows them to print on-demand copies of thousands of newspapers around the world at the push of a button.

Likewise, when The Globe and Mail print edition stopped being distributed in Nova Scotia, the company pivoted and made a deal to fly copies in for 400 eager customers each Saturday.

The store now also carries books, sold next to magazines with similar subject matter, and has increased the amount of work sold by local artists, like holiday cards, games and puzzles.

Atlantic News has been located at the corner of Morris and Queen St. since 1973.
On Sunday, Atlantic News celebrated its 50th year in business. (Jeorge Sadi/CBC)

According to Gerrard, the store's inventory is down from a high of around 5,700 titles to a current roster of about half that amount, driven by a changing marketplace and the ubiquity of smartphones and social media.

When they first started out, the main threat to the business was leisure time, she said. The more people worked, the less time they had to read.

The bigger challenge now is capturing attention, something that has been decimated by the devices we keep in our pockets. The time many once spent leisurely flipping through a magazine is now monopolized by a sea of distractions, always just a swipe away.

But Gerrard said demand from many of her clients has remained strong, and an increasing number of people with screen fatigue are turning back toward print.

"I think we do see a desire to not be on our cell phones all day," she said.

Atlantic News still carries thousands of magazines, says owner Michele Gerrard, but has evolved to carry some books as well. (Andrew Sampson/CBC)

More recently, the store has survived the touch-and-go era of COVID-19 lockdowns.

As proprietors of a newstand for so long, the Gerrards have witnessed history unfold, quite literally, in the pages of the magazines on their newsstand.

They've seen the decline of Playboy, which no longer sells a print edition, and have watched events like 9/11 and, more recently, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, play out right in front of them.

"The impact of [Diana's] death was huge in the store," said Gerrard. "I can't even describe the sorrow, the panic, the frenzy, the needing to understand, and the voraciousness of our customers who were trying to find anything and everything [about] what's happened."

Michael Doherty says his brother would be thrilled the store he founded is still around 50 years later. (Andrew Sampson/CBC)

On Sunday, staff at the store were taking the time to celebrate, hosting a day of events to commemorate the store's eclectic history.

In the crowd were longtime customers, family, and friends.

One of them was Michael Doherty, the kid brother of Pat Doherty, who started it all back in 1973.

He can still picture his brother next to the cash register, writing out letters to send to publishers whose magazines he was interested in carrying, and chatting with his customers, many of whom grew to be close friends.

"He would have loved what they've done here and just the fact that they've survived," he said.

"When you think of all the things that came in, technology, books on the internet, and all of that competition, they were very creative. It's wonderful."

This framed portrait of Pat Doherty hangs near the same counter where he once stood. (Andrew Sampson/CBC)

The next 50 years at Atlantic News look to be just as eventful as the last, but whatever happens, the store's current owners won't be the ones to see it through.

After 25 years, they're planning to move closer to family in Australia, and looking to sell the shop to someone willing to carry its legacy forward.

"What we're hoping new owners will choose is that they want to continue the ethos of this," she said. "We're not just a magazine store."

Trekking hundreds of kilometres in the footsteps of Alice the moose

CBC
Sun, September 24, 2023 

After 36 days on the trail, Jamie Findlay, left, completed the A2A Challenge Walk last Saturday. 

(www.a2acollaborative.org - image credit)

Two decades ago, a moose named Alice migrated from the Adirondack Park in New York state to Algonquin Park.

The 640-kilometre voyage, tracked by a team of researchers, saw her crossing busy highways and swimming the St. Lawrence River en route to the Ontario provincial park.

Nature Canada's storyteller and grant writer Jamie Findlay admitted he doesn't know exactly what motivated Alice to travel all that way, but he was inspired by her transnational trip.

"The journey of Alice the moose just kind of captured, symbolized this need on the part of wildlife to move and travel," Findlay said.

"And I thought it would be really neat to just follow in the footsteps of Alice the moose and do that route,"

Last week, Findlay completed the Adirondacks to Algonquin (A2A) trail, which follows a winding network of hiking paths, highways and back roads in honour of Alice's journey.

The route was conceived by The A2A Collaborative, a nonprofit that aims to connect and preserve the ecological corridor between the two parks.

From left to right, Bill Brown, Bill Barkley and Jamie Findlay plan the first leg of the trek. (www.a2acollaborative.org)

'Nature is flow'

Findlay didn't cross Highway 401 or swim the St. Lawrence but said he's gained an appreciation for Alice's lengthy migration.

"We create parks and protected areas for wildlife and we think that they stay in these places and that they're happy there," he said, adding that many animals, especially large mammals, move across human-made barriers, like roads, railways and agricultural development, often to their demise.

Findlay described being on the trail as 'life raised to the second power,' adding that every emotion he experienced, from boredom to excitement, was amplified. (www.a2acollaborative.org)

"Nature is flow — living things have to move and circulate and intermingle and it's hard for a lot of the animals to do that in the sort of environment they live in."

A 'patchwork quilt' of terrain, stories

Over 36 days, Findlay walked, cycled and paddled his way along the "patchwork quilt" of terrain, often bringing friends along for days or weeks at a time. He and a friend even hitched a ride on a horse and buggy on a section of country road in upper New York state.

"We figured that was a legitimate means of travel because it wasn't mechanized," Findlay said.

Findlay and Barkley got a ride in a horse and buggy in upper New York state. (www.a2acollaborative.org)

Findlay and his companions stopped at parks and schools between legs of the trek to share stories from the trail.

"Without exception, people were interested in what we were doing and they wanted to know more," he said.

Shortly after crossing the border, Findlay and Barkley held a talk at Thousand Islands National Park. (www.a2acollaborative.org)

"I hope to get people interested in this region," he said. "I'm hoping that people will be inspired to explore it and protect it."

The route Findlay followed. (CBC News Graphics)

Manitoba could make history by electing first First Nations premier to lead province

The Canadian Press
Sat, September 23, 2023 


WINNIPEG — A First Nations premier would head a province for the first time in Canadian history if the New Democrats win the Oct. 3 Manitoba election, and the significance is not lost on party leader Wab Kinew.

"My dad was not allowed to vote when he was a young man, and I have a shot at potentially leading the province," he said in an interview with The Canadian Press last month.

"That's a big change that speaks to progress in our country and in our province within one generation."

Kinew was born in Ontario and lived on the Onigaming First Nation as a young boy. His late father was a residential school survivor who endured horrific abuse and passed on to Kinew the importance of Anishinaabe culture and language.

The former CBC host was elected in the Winnipeg riding of Fort Rouge in 2016. The following year, he launched a successful bid for NDP leader, putting him on the path to potentially becoming the province's first First Nations premier and second Indigenous premier.

John Norquay was the first Indigenous person to serve as Manitoba's premier. Norquay, who was Métis, was the province's fifth premier until 1887.

And, while other Métis citizens have served at the highest level of politics in the province, Manitoba's history with First Nations leaders in provincial politics only goes back a few decades.

It wasn't until the '50s and '60s that First Nations people were allowed to vote without conditions in provincial and federal elections.

Former New Democrat Elijah Harper was one of the first First Nations people to become a member of Manitoba's legislative assembly in 1981. Since then, there have been more than a dozen Métis and First Nations people who have been elected to serve with the provincial New Democrats, Liberals and Progressive Conservatives.

But there are still disproportionately few Indigenous people entering provincial politics. There has been greater representation in the territories, with a history of Indigenous premiers in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

"There are historic barriers that are still being overcome. Some of them are things that have an impact on a personal level, like intergenerational trauma, other things are systemic barriers," said Kinew.

Réal Carrière, an assistant professor in the department of political studies at the University of Manitoba, researches Indigenous representation in Canadian politics.

He said if Kinew becomes premier, it would be a significant moment because it shows an Indigenous person excelling in a space that hasn't always been welcoming for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people.

"There are still dominant stereotypes that view Indigenous Peoples negatively," said Carrière.

"And the real significance here is challenging those stereotypes and then allowing other Indigenous Peoples to see that it's possible to succeed at the highest level."

Kevin Chief knows the power representation can have on youth.

The former NDP member of the legislative assembly and cabinet minister often relays a story from his childhood growing up in Winnipeg's North End, where he boarded a transit bus to find an Indigenous man at the steering wheel.

That moment left a lasting impact on Chief. While he didn't become a bus driver, Chief said that man became a role model for him by opening his mind to possibilities.

"You can't tell young people things are possible, you really have to show them," said Chief.

If Kinew becomes premier, it symbolizes a larger reconciliation movement seen countrywide in Canadian politics and other sectors, said Chief.

"The only way you can become the first First Nations premier of a province is with the support of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous voters."

Indigenous politicians often have to walk in two worlds and balance the expectations within their own community and as an elected official representing a constituency.

Eva Aariak is well versed in this. The current commissioner of Nunavut was the territory's second premier and the first woman to serve in the role in the territory.

The Inuk woman has spent most of her career working in politics either at a local or territorial level.

"Indigenous leaders have an added level of understanding because they have to fully understand both worlds. In many cases, they become more effective that way," Aariak said.

She added that Canada still has a ways to go when it comes to seeing Indigenous people, especially Indigenous women, in leadership roles. But there has been progress, including the appointment of Mary Simon, who is Inuk, as Canada's first Indigenous governor general.

For Kinew, he has said he doesn't just want to be the best First Nations premier, he wants to be the province's best premier. Whether he succeeds in this year's election, he believes Manitoba is moving forward as a province.

"If we have increased participation from all corners of society, I think that strengthens our democracy."

— With files from Steve Lambert

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2023.

Brittany Hobson, The Canadian Press