On March 31, an underwater pipeline carrying oil to a refinery in Balikpapan, Indonesia, broke, spreading crude over 20,000 hectares of Balikpapan Bay.

Canada’s constitution grants them many rights, and it is far from certain that these rights have been respected in the pipeline approval processes. Currently, 18 cases are before the courts in this matter. Regardless of the rulings in these cases, the parties will certainly appeal, perhaps all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, which could take years.

Politics and economics have moved the struggle West, but it remains our struggle, says this open letter.

Our political leaders appear to be incapable of envisaging alternatives to the current path of dependence on carbon extraction and exports for revenue and employment, writes political scientist Laurie Adkin.