[Image-1] Really, your Majesty, I thought you were made of bigger tiaras than that! Your people voted out of the European Union with a near-four percent difference—a tiny margin but significant in action. Are you doing so for the right reasons? The sterling silver is taking a beating, which may foreshadow economic slams and employment […]
Voice of the City
Posted inNews + Opinion
Faith in government not enough to protect our environment
[Image-1] We need real climate leadership and now we have a chance to demand it. On June 28th, Halifax is having a climate town hall with MP Andy Fillmore. This is our chance to influence policy to fight the ever-growing crisis of climate change. Last December, at the United Nations climate negotiations in Paris (COP21), […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Carbon pricing offers an answer to climate change
Fusion Halifax believes that our generation deserves a chance to thrive in Nova Scotia. With the impacts of climate change being felt by Nova Scotians and diverse populations worldwide, we urge our provincial government to support our future and join Canadian provinces from coast to coast in adopting a carbon price without delay. Climate change […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Autism services waitlists eliminated, but only for some Nova Scotians
Dear Premier McNeil, In your recent budget you announced increased spending for behavioural intervention services for children with Autism, such as the EIBI program. You mentioned that waitlists which existed for families when your government first came to power, didn’t exist anymore. Did you mean they’d been eliminated for those specific families? If so, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Flextrack is a race to the bottom for temporary employees
[Image-1] The decision not to privatize Nova Scotia government departments, such as the Registry of Motor Vehicles, was greeted with relief by unionized government employees. For the temporary employees in these departments, there is little to celebrate. A new hiring process this year has made their jobs even less secure and lower paying. The provincial […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Let’s get serious about open government
The global movement towards open government is gathering momentum. The Open Government Partnership, an intergovernmental movement which aims to make governments more open, accountable and responsive to citizens, now includes 69 participating countries. Open data websites are cropping up in countries as diverse as Tanzania, the Philippines and Trinidad and Tobago. When India launched its […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax is on the front lines of environmental stewardship
[Image-1] In November 2015, an open letter appeared in this paper addressed to me, the then-newly elected Halifax MP. The subject line: “It’s time to step up on climate change.” Since the open letter was published six months ago, I’ve met with its authors and other environmental groups in Halifax. The message I received was […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Public transit should be free
[Image-1] Just like public health care and public schools, I believe that free transit is a public good because we would live in a better world if everyone was healthy, educated and able to get around. We collectively fund public health care because we see it as an important public good, but we fail to […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Finding the strength to seek help after my sexual assault
[Image-1] Two-and-a-half years ago I was sexually assaulted, and it is by far the hardest thing I’ve ever had to go through. In many aspects of my life, I am changed. There were times when I didn’t think I could ever be happy again. There were times when I doubted myself so much that I […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax as Narnia: The existential fantasy of our seaside city
[Image-1] Several years ago a reenactment was held in Halifax to celebrate the 200th anniversary of a War of 1812 naval battle. Just as one did on the same date in 1813, a sailor—an actor playing a sailor—burst through the doors of St. Paul’s Church to inform the congregation that a British frigate had defeated its American […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax’s campaign finance regulations are limited in scope
[Image-1] The municipality will soon have the power to set rules on how politicians collect and spend money in municipal elections. We need these rules to restore public confidence and make fairer and more competitive elections. While improved regulatory powers are welcome, Bill 154 has one big flaw: it doesn’t explicitly allow HRM to offer […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
I want to be raised in a healthy environment, not a world of hatred
[Image-1] In these past few weeks, all the recent killings have put a hole in my heart. Seeing how many families and mothers had to bury their children, fathers, brothers, often makes me wonder why this world can be so cold. I am writing this for all the young people in our communities who want […]
