Are we living in a hothouse?

I’m in British Columbia today (visiting Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops), and the thick curtain of smoke that people in Western Canada are dealing with is a shock to your system. Today in The Conversation Canada, Simon Dalby of Wilfrid Laurier University explains the extremely hot summer and surge of wildfires in the Northern Hemisphere coincides with concerns expressed in a new essay called “Hothouse Earth.” It speculates if the earth is heading back to a time millions of years ago when it was so hot that there were no polar icecaps.

The new Ontario government has said cannabis will be sold by private retailers, but local municipalities can also decide to ban pot stores in their communities. Dan Malleck of Brock University says people who think this will restrict use of the drug should check out the history of liquor prohibition in Ontario.

Sylvain Charlebois of Dalhousie University examines the recent decision by Bayer to buy the chemical company Monsanto. While it may be a good business deal, there are headaches that come with the Monsanto brand.

And finally…Canadian kids are getting ready to go return to the classrooms. Nadia Naffi of Concordia University looks at a controversial back-to-school advertising campaign from Gap that shows a young girl wearing a hijab.

Regards,

Scott White

Editor

Today's Featured Articles

Record-shattering heatwaves and exceptional wildfires have occurred throughout the northern hemisphere this summer. U.S. Department of Agriculture

Policies on petroleum and pipelines move us closer to a ‘Hothouse Canada’

Simon Dalby, Wilfrid Laurier University

The Earth is on the edge of being pushed over a planetary threshold that could lead to a "Hothouse Earth." But if we take the risks seriously there is room for a more benign future.

A parade of bar men protest Prohibition along Yonge Street in Toronto in 1916. Library and Archives Canada

Want cannabis stores banned in your town? Read this first

Dan Malleck, Brock University

History has shown that prohibiting popular intoxicants spurs illegal and sometimes excessive use. Ontario municipalities taking up Doug Ford's offer to ban local retail weed sales should take note.

Activists protest against the acquisition of the U.S. agrochemical company Monsanto by the German Bayer company in Bonn, Germany, Friday, May 25, 2018. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

With Monsanto, Bayer will need more Aspirin

Sylvain Charlebois, Dalhousie University

Bayer, the new owner of Monsanto, will need to up its PR efforts, in the wake of last week's legal ruling on glyphosate weedkillers.

Gap released a back-to-school ad campaign a couple weeks ago which included a picture of a young girl wearing a hijab which raised many questions for many people. Gap Inc.

Gap back-to-school ‘hijab ad’ ignites social media

Nadia Naffi, Concordia University

Gap's recent back-to-school ad campaign was praised for its portrayal of the diversity of children. One of the girls in the ads was wearing a hijab: this raised a huge debate on social media.

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