Good morning!
The world’s top fossil fuel financier is Canadian. The housing market is still brutal. And environmental advocates are asking Ontario to reverse its decision to build houses in an ecologically sensitive area.
Today’s newsletter is a little shorter than usual, but I’ve rounded up CNO’s biggest stories of the week below. They include a potential boost to Canada’s economy, a win for the fossil fuel divestment movement, and a big announcement from the Catholic Church. Scroll down to catch up on our latest reporting.
But before I go, I have a small request: next Saturday is Earth Day, and we’ve been chatting in the CNO newsroom about how we as individuals can take meaningful action to protect the planet. If you or someone you know is helping your community fight climate change in an interesting way, I’d love to hear about it! Let me know at [email protected], and I may feature your story in next weekend’s newsletter.
In the meantime, have a great weekend and stay safe!
— Dana Filek-Gibson
CNO reads of the week
Racism is driving a pattern of harm in health care — and Canada is not keeping track. An analysis by Canada’s National Observer and the Humber College StoryLab reveals anti-Indigenous racism continues to drive a pattern of neglect, harm and death in hospitals across the country.
“We will not leave.” Students at a Toronto university camped out in one of their school’s buildings for 18 days, urging the board of regents to come up with a timeline for fossil fuel divestment. They spoke to Abdul Matin Sarfraz earlier this week before the school announced it would divest by 2030.
Could the United States’ proposed auto emission rules be a “golden egg” for Canada’s economy? Some think so. Natasha Bulowski reports on the recent announcement from the Biden administration and how it dovetails with Canada’s push to be part of the fast-growing EV market.
“How do they get away with this stuff?” Imperial Oil spilled roughly 600,000 litres of gasoline near a Nova Scotia neighbourhood last year. Residents are still searching for answers, Cloe Logan reports.
Salvaging the sacred. When floods, fires and storms hit, First Nations can lose more than just property. Rochelle Baker details the danger cultural artifacts face in extreme weather — and new funding that will help nations learn how to preserve those items.
The Vatican denounced the Doctrine of Discovery. What happens now? Matteo Cimellaro explains how the doctrine — a series of documents Canadian governments have used to justify colonization for centuries — fits into Canadian law.
Canada’s banks risk becoming “overexposed” in the energy transition. The Big 5 alone — RBC, BMO, TD, Scotiabank and CIBC — have sunk more than $1 trillion into fossil fuel investments since 2016, John Woodside reports.