- Trudeau, the Liberals and next steps: A roundtable with Star politics reporters
Friday, January 10th 2025
It’s been a historic week in Ottawa. On Friday, Jan. 10, members of the Star’s Ottawa bureau sat for a discussion about how we got to the point where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau decided he must step down as leader of the federal Liberal party and PM, and exactly where the Liberals must go from here.
Join the Star's Deputy Ottawa Bureau Chief, Alex Ballingall, Ottawa Bureau Reporter, Ryan Tumilty, and moderator Robert Benzie, Queen's Park Bureau Chief.
- Olivia Chow on 2024 and the year ahead
Thursday, December 19th 2024
Guest: Toronto Mayor Oliva Chow
Host: Edward KeenanIn this episode of This Matters Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow talks about the housing and school nutrition progress she says are her biggest achievements of 2024, reflects on passing the biggest tax increase in post-amalgamation history and fields a question on what Torontonians should expect from the tax increase coming in the 2025 budget. Also, she shares her own response to the shelter crisis report that led the city manager to call the city’s commitment to housing as a human right “aspirational,” and discusses her plans to open libraries on weekends. Host Edward Keenan also asks her about a raft of issues where her critics and supporters seems to agree she’s ducking fights they expect her to take on—and she explains whether they all have her all wrong.
PLUS: Seasonally appropriate conversation about why some of the best things about Toronto, in 2024 and beyond, involve ice.
- The humble heat pump: the easiest way to dramatically cut your emissions
Wednesday, December 18th 2024
This week, This Matters is publishing episodes of the Toronto Star's new podcast Small Things Big Climate.
Of all the climate solutions out there, the heat pump is a no brainer. Not only will it reduce your emissions by 60 per cent or more, it’s cheaper to operate, improves air quality and makes your home more comfortable. Despite these many qualities, many people are getting talked out of getting a heat pump by their HVAC contractor.
Guests: John Gultig, heat pump owner, Michelle Hjort, Energy Advisor at Energy Neighbour and carbontech innovator Phil de Luna.
- Beef is the worst food for the climate. Can it be done better?
Tuesday, December 17th 2024
This week, This Matters is publishing episodes of the Toronto Star's new podcast Small Things Big Climate.
Sometimes it feels like you need a PhD to figure out how to shop for lower carbon groceries. Why isn’t there a simple rule of thumb to follow? Host Marco Chown Oved starts this episode with a simple question: What’s more important for the climate, what you eat or where it comes from? And the answer is: It isn’t even close.
Guests: Jonathan Foley, Executive Director of Project Drawdown, Cory Van Groningen, beef farmer at Hillview Farm, partnered with VG Meats and Rowe Farms, Brent Preston, farmer at The New Farm, President of Farmers for Climate Solutions.
- E-bikes are popular because they're basically small cars
Monday, December 16th 2024
This week, This Matters is publishing episodes of the Toronto Star's new podcast Small Things Big Climate.
We live in a world built for cars. But as we sit in endless traffic, it’s hard not to think they’ve become a victim of their own success. Enter e-bikes. They’re big enough to replace delivery trucks, but small enough to zip past the bumper-to-bumper gridlock. They’re increasingly popular among food delivery people, families with young kids and seniors and soon may be replacing pick up trucks as a rural mode of transportation.
Guests: Jennifer McLaughlin, manager of rider experience at Zygg E-Bikes, Kevin McLaughlin, founder of Zygg, AutoShare and Evergreen and Joanna Kyriazis, director of public affairs at Clean Energy Canada.
