Pullback

As climate impacts intensify and governments continue to delay action, more people are turning to protest, disruption, and civil disobedience to demand change. But when laws uphold injustice, is breaking them not only justified — but necessary? Today’s guest is Dr. Kimberley Brownlee, Canada Research Chair in Ethics and Political and Social Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. ...

Our global economic system is premised on the idea that gross domestic product needs to constantly grow. But on a finite planet, is green growth possible? And is prosperity possible in a world without growth? Today’s guest is Dr. Tim Jackson, Professor of Sustainable Development at the University of Surrey and Director of the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity. Tim is a l...

Is tax justice also climate justice? What role does the tax system have in our fight against climate change? We spoke with Franziska Mager, Senior Researcher and Advocacy Lead for Climate and Inequalities at the Tax Justice Network; she leads the Tax Justice Network's work on integrating tax and climate justice approaches in service of reducing inequalities. Franziska explains why taxes are important for climate justice and reprogr...

The energy inefficiency in our homes is one of the biggest barriers to meeting our climate targets. Heating and electricity make up a huge portion of our greenhouse gas emissions, and those emissions are rising. At the same time, millions of people live in housing that’s drafty, expensive to heat, unhealthy, or even unsafe. Could retrofitting homes at scale be a climate solution that also improves ...

Public transit in Canada is facing a crisis. Between chronic underfunding, dwindling ridership, and outdated infrastructure, it's becoming increasingly difficult for urban residents to rely on transit, while rural areas often have no options at all. Could making public transit free be a climate solution that also addresses social inequities?

Guests Rubens and Christian are organizers with Climate Justice Montreal, a group pursuing ...

Our social safety nets were designed to protect people from “social risks” like illness and unemployment, and to alleviate poverty. But in the era of climate change, do we need to re-boot the social protection system so that it’s adaptive and responsive to climate risks?

On today’s episode we spoke with Dr. Meghan Bailey, the Head of Social Protection and H...

We know that climate change disproportionately affects those of us who are already struggling. But can climate mitigation and adaptation policy be designed in a way that promotes environmental justice? And if so, how? We speak with Anna Shipp, Principal Policy Associate, and Joseph Schilling, Senior Research Associate, from the Urban Institute’s Research to Action Lab about Justice40 — a Biden-era ...

The transition off of fossil fuels is important and needs to happen, but it will affect the livelihoods of oil and gas workers and those in fossil fuel dependent communities. How can we make sure the transition is just and people-centred?

We spoke with Hadrian Mertins-Kirkwood, a senior researcher at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Hadrian’s work focus...

Dr. Samantha Montano, an assistant professor of emergency management at Massachusetts Maritime Academy and author of Disasterology: Dispatches From the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis, explains the counterintuitive reality that the people who most need support during a disaster tend to get less government assistance. Listen for her suggestions on how emergency management can be reformed to support...

Welcome to Season 4 of Pullback, where we’ll be focusing entirely on climate justice — what it means, why it matters, and the policies we can implement today to address the crisis and build a fairer world. In this first episode, hosts Kristen and Kyla explore how climate change is already impacting people around the world, including the ways it’s deepening existing inequalities — especially for com...

Kristen and Kyla host their annual end of year quiz featuring friends of the pod Stefan Hostetter, the Director of Programs and Community with the Centre for Social Innovation and co-host of Green Majority Radio, Gordon Katic, host of the award winning Cited podcast series featuring stories about the politics of science and expertise, and Ryan MacRae, an advocate for migrant worker rights featured ...

These days, humans are interacting with chatbots powered by artificial intelligence more and more, including for companionship. Can these new tools help a society experiencing a loneliness epidemic, or do they risk deepening isolation? And do they give tech companies even more power? This episode we’re joined by Dr. (Jennifer) Jill Fellows, a faculty mem...

Rates of anxiety, depression, and chronic illnesses like heart disease are on the rise, and more doctors are looking beyond the medicine cabinet for solutions. Could our healthcare system be missing a simple remedy that’s been right outside our door? In this episode we talk to Dr. Stacy Beller Stryer, a paediatrician and Associate Medical Director for Park...

Universities have faced steep and sustained public funding cutbacks and have adapted by changing the way that they operate. What are the consequences of the de facto privatization of universities for students, researchers, and society? In this episode, we talk to Randy Robinson, Ontario Director for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and co-author of Back from the Brink, a report that expl...

With Loblaws facing criticism for soaring grocery prices and record-high profits during a cost-of-living crisis, can a boycott drive real change? We talk to Emily Johnson, the lead organizer for the Loblaws boycott, and Eric Wickham, a Toronto-based journalist and host of Big Shiny Takes. Emily is a mental health and addictions worker and single mother of two living in the suburbs west of Toronto, ...

You’ve heard of speculative investors pushing up the price of housing, but did you know it’s happening on farms too? With fewer collective protections for farmers, and pressures to sell land and consolidate farms, is the family farm becoming a thing of the past? And is a new form of feudal tenant farming the future? On today’s episode we talk to the Parkland Institute’s Katherine Aske, author of Fi...

With home ownership out of reach for millions of Canadians and no relief in sight, could co-ops be the key to providing affordable, community-driven housing solutions? On today’s episode we talk to Diana Yoon, the Program Manager of Government Relations and Policy at the Co-op Housing Federation of Canada, which represents 2200 co-ops nationwide. In this conversation, Diana explains how housing co-ops work, their history in Canada,...

With climate action stalled by political gridlock, could citizens' assemblies be the bold democratic solution we need to break through barriers and finally make progress? When it comes to climate change, most of us want to see action but feel that we don’t have power and politicians aren’t listening. Deliberative democracy and citizen empowerment have been proposed as solutions to that widespread s...

You’ve heard about land back, but what about cash back? Resource and land wealth linked to dispossession has enriched Canada and corporations, so does reconciliation require financial restitution too? And what do Indigenous economies look like? This week’s guest is Shady Hafez, Policy and Research Manager to the National Association of Friendship Centres. Shady is an Algonquin Anishinabe and Syrian...