Did you know that half of the photosynthesis that happens in the world occurs in oceans and lakes? You’d think it happens on land where there are trees and plants, but no! There are zillions of microscopic plants called phytoplankton that consume carbon dioxide and sunlight to get their own energy—and these microscopic beings are […]
Caora McKenna
Caora was City Editor at The Coast, where she wrote about everything from city hall to police and housing issues. She started with The Coast in 2017, when she was the publication’s Copy Editor.
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax Public Libraries eliminates library fees forever
Halifax’s bastion of good is at it again, levelling up the municipality’s most equitable and accessible service once more: Effective immediately, all outstanding overdue fines with Halifax Public Libraries have been wiped from the system, and any future fines won’t happen at all. For those who saw their overdue fines as a donation to the library, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The public inquiry announcement is only a first step
W hat if, dear Nova Scotians, we’ve been played? Bamboozled. That the whole review-not-an-inquiry announcement was a hot ploy? The government knew that no matter what it said about its plan to investigate the largest mass shooting in Canada’s history, folks would criticize and demand more. Families of murder victims bring an unquenchable moral outrage to […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax Transit fares coming back August 1, but by 2021 you should be able to pay with your phone
This week Halifax Regional Council voted in favour of a phased approach to electrifying payment on Halifax Transit’s busses. The news, which councillor Lorelei Nicoll said she’s been waiting for since 2008, will bring Halifax into the new century of transit tech 20 years after it started. Fares, which have been suspended since the COVID state […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax says bye bye for good to Cornwallis statue and street name
UPDATE October 2021: Halifax Regional Municipality initiated Phase One of the two-phase project to rename Cornwallis Street—a survey to collect new street name suggestions for the street. The survey is “open to all property owners, residents and businesses on Cornwallis Street, First Nation and African Nova Scotian communities and all other residents of the municipality” […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Defunding the police is still a problem for Board of Police Commissioners
Earlier this month, Halifax’s Board of Police Commissioners held a chaotic and tech-troubled virtual meeting—slated to discuss defunding the police, it was mired by a bad definition and hot tempers and only got through one item on the agenda. At the last meeting, a motion from staff outlined a suggested definition for what defunding the police […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax’s Board of Police Commissioners dips a pinky toe into the defund the police discussion
Halifax’s Board of Police Commissioners got as far as discussing that it wasn’t quite ready to discuss the idea of defunding the police at its first meeting since the death of George Floyd sparked criticism of the way police operate in our communities worldwide. Technical difficulties preceded the meeting that barely made it through the […]
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A beginners guide to biking to the beach in Halifax
What if we told you that you can bike from downtown Halifax to the beach? Really. Even if you haven’t biked in years and don’t remember the hand signals. It’ll be a bit sweaty and a bit stressful and you’ll curse at the lack of signage but you can do it—and it’ll be worth it. […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax Regional Council learns about the legacy of anti-Black racism in Nova Scotia
The Coast’s live-gramming of Halifax Regional Council continues with a presentation from Wanda Thomas Bernard and more. The best way to learn about what happened at council this week is to head over to The Coast’s Instagram and watch the 07/07 Council highlight on our profile. That way you can interact with the story as […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax approves ambitious and unprecedented climate plan
Halifax Regional Council approved a landmark planning document on climate change this week. The opus, HalifACT 2050: Acting on Climate Together is Halifax’s long-term climate action plan that outlines 46 actionable items that HRM can do to get to net zero emissions by 2050. Net zero emissions means for every bad-for-the-environment molecule HRM puts out […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
It’s time for white people in Halifax to get down to work on racism
Game Changers 902 wants to make sure all the newsfeed posts and Instagram stories about the Black Lives Matter movement amount to more than a look at a moment in time. As the name of this new group says, they want to change the rules of the game in order to give young African Nova […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax settles on a budget, lets go of its Big Truck Energy
Yesterday Halifax Regional Municipality’s budget committee signed off on the recast budget for 2020/21 after a lengthy COVID-induced rejigging. In total, the municipality has budgeted $1.1 billion needed for this fiscal year, which will run until March 31, 2021. Thanks to COVID that budget is smaller than it would have been, but, thanks to councillors […]