Exploring the natural world in the Belledune region

For the last number of months, the RAVEN project has been working with and supporting a talented young writer, Brandon Corcoran who lives in a rural area near Belledune in Northern New Brunswick. Brandon writes about the natural world surrounding him, and his talent is bringing small stories to life. Many of his stories are illustrated with his beautiful photographs.

To access Brandon’s articles, click HERE. This link will bring you to a page with three stories published in September. Scroll down for the links to more stories published since March. Thank you Brandon for bringing these stories to life!

Fredericton residents want community gardens

RAVEN students Faith Timipere Allison and Christine Jean write about community gardens in their new article in the NB Media Co-op.

“Recently moving to Fredericton, Christine arrived in 2017 from Ontario, while Faith came from Nigeria as an international student in 2021. We are both curious about the somewhat hidden world of community gardens in Fredericton.

Read the article HERE.

Local foragers hope to restore New Brunswick’s harmed forests, starting with mycorrhiza

“Over time, the region’s forests have been repeatedly clearcut, decimating New Brunswick’s Acadian forest and affecting biodiversity and freshwater ecosystems. According to a study published by researchers at Oregon State University, since 1985, over three million hectares of forests have been clearcut in Eastern Canada, resulting in vast reductions in tree species diversity and the loss of between 33 and 104 million birds.”

Read about one forest regeneration effort in New Brunswick, HERE. The author is Harrison Dressler, a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN.

Elder leads medicine walk for young minds

Kirsten Leclaire-Mazerolle, from Natoaganeg First Nation, is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN. Today she published “Elder leads medicine walk for young minds,” in the NB Media Co-op, about students learning about Mi’gmaq culture, traditional healing plants on cultural teaching hike.

Read Kirsten’s article HERE.

NB’s English-language newspapers regularly favour industry, pro-nuclear perspectives on small modular reactors

Followers of the RAVEN project are aware of our many concerns related to SMRs – so called small modular nuclear reactors. Part of the larger problem with their introduction in this province is the lack of reliable coverage in the media about SMRs. A new article analyzing this coverage is HERE.

The analysis and article were prepared by Harrison Dressler, a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN

Commentary: New Brunswick’s unchecked timber industries have left our forests in ruin and our people without land

Harrison Dressler’s latest article in the NB Media Co-op tells the story of Babalu Eye Anu Shabazz and his father and their struggle to foster ecological diversity in rural New Brunswick. Here’s a quote:

“Before 2001, you could mill all your own wood and build your own house,” Baba Shabazz explained. “Now, all of a sudden, in New Brunswick, people can’t afford to stay on their own land – which is a continuation of the legacy of Canada. You see this theme being repeated. People try to steward their own land. They’re used to create resources, and later they’re pushed off so that someone else can eat off of that.”

Read the full story HERE. Harrison is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN.

Fate of internationally educated nurses in post-pandemic New Brunswick uncertain

“Nurses were the arrowheads in the fight against COVID-19 in New Brunswick. They were (and are) the province’s first and most important line of defense. They were (and are) victims of the virus. The virus has taken a toll. By April 2022, nearly 700 nurses, many needing medical care, had been out of work at some point because of being infected with COVID-19.”

Read the full article HERE, in the NB Media Co-op, written by Faith Timipere Allison. Faith is a doctoral student at the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of New Brunswick working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN.

New Brunswick’s media coverage of small modular nuclear reactors silences Indigenous perspectives

In stories about SMRs, corporate media–reporters, journalists, and editors in New Brunswick’s mainstream English-language press–have almost totally ignored Indigenous perspectives.

Read the full article HERE in the NB Media Co-op.

Harrison Dressler is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN.

Bird habitats are being destroyed. It’s time for a change

“At its best, the Acadian forest, with its mix of softwood and hardwoods, makes a home for diverse plant and wildlife communities, including lynx, moose, deer, flying squirrels, and many, many species of birds, even though only a tiny fraction of the original Acadian forest remains. As our forests have been degraded, so have the habitats for the birds that find a home there.”

Read the full article HERE by Christine Jean, working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN.

Time to rethink the common burdock, a ‘nuisance’ plant that’s actually a viable food option

As food prices rise, we may need to assess the way we look at our food. This includes looking into alternative, viable food options. Burdock, normally seen as a nuisance by the common gardener or landscaper, is a surprisingly versatile plant. It’s astonishing to most that it is a completely edible plant.

By understanding the growing cycle of the plant and what parts are most choice and when, burdock can easily find its way on to your dinner table.

Read the article HERE by Dallas Tomah in the NB Media Co-op. Dallas is currently working out of the Human Environments Workshop funded by RAVEN.

UNB has a land acknowledgement contradiction

Harrison Dressler is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN. His latest article for the NB Media Co-op is about UNB’s award of an honorary degree to a real estate magnate whose company has made headlines in Ontario for substandard housing and the alleged harassment of tenants. Read Harrison’s article HERE.

Peskotomuhkati Chief denounces Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s public hearing process as a ‘feel good exercise’

Peskotomuhkati Chief Hugh Akagi believes the recent CNSC hearing in Saint John was a PR exercise. Read the article HERE.

Writer Harrison Dressler is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN. He attended the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission hearing to review NB Power’s application to renew its licence to operate the Point Lepreau nuclear reactor.

Indigenous groups challenge New Brunswick’s costly radioactive waste legacy

“The recent re-licencing hearing for New Brunswick’s Point Lepreau nuclear reactor highlighted the difficulty and cost of managing the province’s long-lived legacy of radioactive waste.

“Most of the radioactive materials generated by the Lepreau nuclear facility were never found in nature before the discovery of nuclear fission 83 years ago.

“The Point Lepreau facility, however, has produced – and will continue to produce – thousands of tons of these toxic radioactive materials in the form of high, intermediate and low-level radioactive waste which must be kept isolated from all living things for a period of time that dwarfs the span of recorded human history.”

Read the full article HERE, published by the NB Media Co-op, by RAVEN’s Kim Reeder and Susan O’Donnell.

Public hearing calls attention to the threat of nuclear energy in New Brunswick. Passamaquoddy Nation responds

Harrison Dressler is a researcher and writer working out of the Human Environments Workshop (HEW) funded by RAVEN. He attended the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission hearing to review NB Power’s application to renew its licence to operate the Point Lepreau nuclear reactor.

Harrison published an article about the Passamaquoddy Nation intervention at the hearing. Read it HERE.

New Brunswick’s environmental champions recognized on Earth Day

RAVEN is an associate. member of the New Brunswick Environmental Network (NBEN). On Earth day (April 22), the NBEN celebrated key environmental champions with its annual NBEN awards. The award winners were chosen from nominations submitted by the more than 110 NBEN member and associate groups. RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell wrote the story for the NB Media Co-op. You can read it HERE.

Engaging the media to advance the rights of people with disabilities: webinar

On April 12 @5:30pm Atlantic, Kaitlyn Layden, with the New Brunswick Coalition of Persons with Disabilties, will speak about engaging the media to advance the rights of people with disabilities. Register here:  https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJErdOCpqDoqH9CYmTb7IyqXUBUK2mV7HubY

This is the final event in the Human Rights & the Media Lecture Series organized by Tracy Glynn, with partners the Atlantic Human Rights Centre, St. Thomas University’s Department of Human Rights and Department of Journalism and Communications, the NB Media Co-op and RAVEN.

Land ‘buy back’ at Whaelghinbran Farm is protecting the Acadian forest

In New Brunswick, we don’t just need access to land for today, we need access to land for future generations, writes Amy Floyd, in one of her last articles for RAVEN published in the NB Media Co-op.

The owners of Whaelghinbran Farm near Penobsquis) found a creative solution to this challenge through an arrangement with the New Brunswick Community Land Trust. Read Amy’s article HERE.

Green thumbs share harvest at urban communal garden in Moncton

Since 2020, a communal garden has been set-up in a well-established residential neighbourhood, very close to downtown in the City of Moncton. The site is easy to reach by bike or foot for folks in the area, writes Amy Floyd. Read her article HERE published by the NB Media Co-op.

Webinar: More nuclear reactors for New Brunswick?

RAVEN lead investigator Susan O’Donnell has updated her award-winning presentation: More nuclear reactors for New Brunswick? and will be presenting it as part of the Tantramar Climate Change Week. Everyone welcome!

Tuesday, Feb. 8 @ 7pm. Register here for the zoom event:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMtceGvqD0qHt3Et2eEGjCSQPba3lMI0EkL

There are many more free events that week. Click HERE for the full schedule and links to sign up for each event.

Point Lepreau and more nuclear reactors in the news… again

For the past two years, the RAVEN project has been tracking the nuclear developments at Point Lepreau on the Bay of Fundy, in a rural area of the province. We have two new stories on the topic:

RAVEN’s Kim Reeder writes in the NB Media Co-op about the ongoing hearings by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, following the application by NB Power to renew its licence for the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station for another 25 years, plus the hearings by the provincial legislature’s Climate Change and Environmental Stewardship Committee. Article HERE.

RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell teamed up with nuclear expert Dr. Gordon Edwards to analyze the current situation of the so-called small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) for New Brunswick. Their article: “New nuclear plants (SMRs) in New Brunswick: Wild card or sure bet?” was published by the NB Media Co-op, HERE.

Constitutional right to food… in New Brunswick?

RAVEN’s Amy Floyd wrote another informative article, published by our partner the NB Media Co-op: “Maine is the first U.S state to gain a constitutional right to food – Where is New Brunswick on this issue?” You can access the article HERE.

In November, voters in Maine approved a constitutional amendment establishing Mainers’ Right to Food. In her article, Amy analyzes the situation.

Uranium and nuclear energy in New Brunswick and beyond

This post includes files related to the zoom panel event held on Dec. 10, 2021 with speakers Gordon Edwards, Lorraine Rekmans, Tracy Glynn.

The story about the event, published by the NB Media Co-op, is HERE.

Direct link to the video archive of the event on YouTube is HERE.

The original panel description is HERE

Lorraine Rekmans kindly permitted us to photocopy her co-edited book (out of print), This Is My Homeland: Stories of the effects of the nuclear industries by people of the Serpent River First Nation and the north shore of Lake Huron. You can download it HERE.

Tracy’s slides HERE.

Gordon’s slides HERE.

Gordon also supplied: an edited text based on the transcript of the presentation given on December 10, 2021. In particular, an additional paragraph has been interpolated to explain the origin of the Port Radium mine in the NWT.
Uranium the Shape Shifter, by Gordon Edwards 
www.ccnr.org/shape_shifter_2021.pdf

Questions answered in writing at the event HERE.

Eleven questions submitted by viewers were left unanswered at the end of the Uranium panel event. HERE are those questions, and Gordon Edwards’s answers, including his links to further documentation.

The file of the event chat is HERE.

More materials:

Gordon strongly recommends that everyone consult a 2014 Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR) submission regarding a permanent moratorium on uranium exploration and mining in Quebec, HERE.

On the CCNR website, a list of links to Indigenous declarations on nuclear issues is HERE.

Lorraine found the link to the 1989 report published by the AECB, Childhood Leukaemia Around Canadian Nuclear Facilities Phase I, HERE.

All stories published by the NB Media Co-op tagged “nuclear” are HERE. This link includes all the stories about the new nuclear reactors proposed for New Brunswick.

Mining Watch Canada has an excellent set of resources coming from its 2019 conference: Turning down the heat: Can we mine our way out of the climate crisis? HERE.

RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell featured in CHCO-TV program

RAVEN’s lead investigator, Dr. Susan O’Donnell, was featured in the CHCO-TV program Southwest Magazine. Susan did the interview at the studio in St. Andrews before participating in the book launch for Letters from the future New Brunswick. The interview discusses the book, the RAVEN project, and problems related to the media here, and related issues. Watch the interview HERE.

Wolastoqey Nations claim title to land owned by JD Irving and other companies due to “reckless resource extraction”

RAVEN lead investigator Susan O’Donnell published an article today about the title claim by Wolastoqey Nations for land owned by NB Power and the largest forestry companies in New Brunswick. Read the article here in the NB Media Co-op.

Video critical of new nuclear reactors for New Brunswick wins environmental journalism award

RAVEN lead investigator Susan O’Donnell won the annual Beth McLaughlin Environmental Journalism award for her video “More nuclear reactors (SMRs) for New Brunswick?” – read the article published by the NB Media Co-op, HERE.

You can also read the briefing paper Susan wrote with four other academic researchers that was discussed with the provincial Minister of Natural Resources and Energy Development, HERE.

RAVEN book featured on CBC radio

Letters from the Future: How New Brunswickers Confronted Climate Change and Redefined Progress was featured on the CBC radio program Shift this week. The clip includes an interview with RAVEN co-investigator and book editor Daniel Tubb. Listen HERE.

Does the world need more electric vehicles? More Canada?

RAVEN collaborator Tracy Glynn published a thought-provoking article today in the NB Media Co-op. She begins by challenging a commentary in the Fredericton Daily Gleaner that advocates intensifying mining in Canada to meet the demand for the minerals required for electric vehicle batteries.

Tracy’s analysis continues with descriptions of the impacts of mining on communities in Canada and globally. Definitely worth a read, HERE.

Environmental groups call for action toward a sustainable New Brunswick

RAVEN and other environmental groups across New Brunswick issued a call for action today. The climate emergency requires radical improvements in our treaty relationship and our relationship with nature and the environment, the way we produce and consume energy and food, and our approach to education and health services and management of our forests, waters and coastlines.

RAVEN is a member of the New Brunswick Environmental Network that published Greenprint 2021 today. RAVEN supported the publication development and we’re pleased to promote it.

HERE is the link to Greenprint 2021: Towards a Sustainable New Brunswick.

Read the article published by the NB Media Co-op, HERE.

RAVEN’s book launched in St. Andrews

Letters from the Future, How New Brunswickers Confronted Climate Change and Redefined Progress, was launched online on November 1, and in person on November 20. Editors Daniel Tubb, Abram Lutes and Susan O’Donnell were in St. Andrews for the successful in-person launch at the beautiful Sunbury Shores Arts & Nature Centre. The room was packed (COVID-distancing packed), and the authors speaking included the three author/editors plus Naomi Gullison, and Cynthia Howland and Art McKay from the Skutik Collective, followed by a lively discussion about the challenges for making change in happen New Brunswick. Thanks to RAVEN’s Kim Reeder for organizing and for being a member of the Skutik Collective.

Letters from the Future New Brunswick

Our new book is published! Letters from the Future: How New Brunswickers Confronted Climate Change and Redefined Progress features 37 authors from different backgrounds with many different ideas.

There’s info in the NB Media Co-op story about the book and where to buy or order it. Help us get the word out by sharing this info with your networks, including on your social media. The awesome book launch video link is also below.

Launch story, Letters from the Future New Brunswick: https://nbmediacoop.org/2021/11/01/29241/

Launch video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSTcn_IQHes&t=3s

The book is in bookstores now. We are also having an in-person book launch and discussion with the editors and local authors at the Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre in St. Andrews on Saturday, Nov. 20 from 3 to 5pm. Everyone is welcome to join us there!

New Brunswick Forestry in Historical Perspective

Tertulia – Winning the Race to the Bottom: New Brunswick Forestry in Historical Perspective

RAVEN is a partner on this event, organized by Tertulias.

With New Brunswick’s Standing Committee on Climate Change and Environmental Stewardship set to discuss glyphosate spraying of the forest, record breaking timber prices and a government unwilling to increase Crown timber royalty rates, environmental historians and Bill Parenteau and Mark McLaughlin will share insights of political economy and historical context to discuss how our forest came to be managed the way it has.

Wednesday, June 9 at 7:30pm (Atlantic time) on Zoom.

Bill Parenteau is a recently retired Professor of History at the University of New Brunswick. His published research is, broadly, on the political economy and environmental history of Atlantic Canada. Additionally, he is a frequent public commentator on forest industry issues and a participant in Indigenous treaty and land rights cases.
Mark McLaughlin is an Assistant Professor of History and Canadian Studies at the University of Maine. Dr. McLaughlin’s research has focused on forestry and natural resource management, particularly the notions of forests as contested spaces and the state as mediator between various user groups competing for access to public resources.

This talk is co-presented by Tertulias Fredericton, the Conservation Council of New Brunswick, RAVEN and the NB Media Co-op.

Watch on Zoom here.
Watch on Facebook live here.Stay updated/spread the word on the Facebook event page.

What is a tertulia? A tertulia can be described as a kind of philosophy café where participants talk about big thinkers, artists and ideas. This winter and spring, Tertulias Fredericton has put together a series on activists and social movements that have shaped our lives and allowed us to imagine a better future.

Tertulias Fredericton is supported by the NB Media Co-op, publisher of videos of the Tertulia talks.

For more information, visit Tertulias Fredericton on Facebook or contact: fredericton.tertulia@gmail.com.

Folk schools – Nimble solutions for grassroots education

RAVEN’s Amy Flood works on food security, community development and rural issues. In her latest article published by the NB Media Co-op, Amy discusses folk schools that are adapted to the local culture to create learning that fits lots of ages and backgrounds. You can read the article here.

Videos: Bay of Fundy – natural wonder or nuclear industry test site?

The RAVEN project and seven co-hosts organized two webinar panels, with presenters from Canada and the United States, on the theme: The Bay of Fundy: Natural Wonder or Nuclear Industry Test Site?

Access the videos published by the NB Media Co-op, here.

RAVEN is engaged in this issue because the nuclear projects planned for New Brunswick are delaying genuine climate action. They do nothing to address the climate crisis and divert resources and attention to the need to rapidly increase our reliance on renewable energy.

‘Not in service’ – Province of New Brunswick’s response to many residents of unincorporated areas

RAVEN’s Kim Reeder is currently working on rural governance issues. Kim’s latest article published by the NB Media Co-op highlights a challenge faced by rural residents when attempting to find information about Local Service District governance.

Kim writes: “In many areas of the Province, when LSD residents aimed to answer the call to participate in LSD Advisory Committee elections or to have questions answered, they found that the emails, and in some cases even the phone numbers provided for contact were not in service.

“Whether by design or not, conditions such as these highlight the inequity of the rural condition and do not instill confidence that the Province can reliably host LSD elections. Unfortunately, that concern is compounded by the reality of unreliable internet service throughout many rural regions in the Province.

You can read the full article here.

New Brunswick’s local governance system is not inclusive

RAVEN’s Kim Reeder continues her analysis of rural governance in New Brunswick. In her latest article, Kim reports how some Local Service Districts (LSDs) are considered by the province to be “defunct” and how this label is preventing citizen engagement in LSDs. You can read the article here.

Bill to ban glyphosate tabled by New Brunswick MP

This week MP Jenica Atwin (Fredericton) tabled a private members’ bill to ban the use of glyphosate in Canada.

In the video of her intervention, made from her Fredericton North constituency office, Atwin stated: “The widespread use of glyphosate over New Brunswick forests and across Canada is a menace to human health, and plant and wildlife diversity.”

Atwin’s bill builds on a growing global consensus against the use of the poisonous herbicide, following the International Agency for Research on Cancer finding that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen.

“Rather than allowing toxic chemicals to be sprayed in Canada until they are proven harmful, we should be exercising greater precaution: banning products until they can be deemed safe,” said the MP. “Canadians have the right to breathe clean air, drink safe water, and harvest healthy foods from the land.”

Read the full story in the NB Media Co-op, written by RAVEN lead investigator Susan O’Donnell.

Caroline Ennis on the 1979 Tobique Women’s March [video]

Caroline Ennis, organizer of the 1979 Tobique Women’s March to Ottawa, delivered a talk on how she and other Wolastoqiyik women of Tobique First Nation organized to stop gender discrimination in the Indian Act on March 31. RAVEN co-hosted the talk, organized by Tertulias Fredericton. The video of the talk was published by RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op, here.

Rural governance needs local coordination and action now

RAVEN’s Kim Reeder published an article today about the need for a coordinated and strategic approach to rural governance. Kim notes that “The effort toward local governance reform has had a long, and mostly unsatisfying, history in the province.”

Her article focuses on the government’s current local government reform process and the new organization – the Union of Unincorporated Areas of New Brunswick (UUANB) – to give collective voice to Local Service Districts in the reform process underway.

You can read the article here, in the NB Media Co-op.

$20 million for proposed nuclear reactor in NB

RAVEN lead investigator continues her interest in the proposed nuclear reactors for New Brunswick with another article published this month in RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op: New Brunswick gives a $20 million gift to our American nuclear company. Read Susan’s article here.

RAVEN is engaged in this issue because the nuclear projects planned for New Brunswick are delaying genuine climate action. They do nothing to address the climate crisis and divert resources and attention to the need to rapidly increase our reliance on renewable energy.

Student-led fossil fuel divestment campaigns continue

The students leading the fossil fuel divestment campaigns at UNB (Rose He) and STU (Kelly Green) published an article in RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op. Their article discussed the campaigns at all four major universities in the province.

You can read their article: Student-led fossil fuel divestment campaigns continue in New Brunswick through the pandemic, at this link.

David Bedford on the Marshall Decision Two Decades Later: Emancipation as Oppression [video]

RAVEN partnered with the NB Media Co-op and Tertulias for this webinar event about the Marshall Decision, a milestone in the legal history of Indigenous peoples and the state. In this video, former UNB prof David Bedford looks at the implications for First Nations in New Brunswick. The NB Media Co-op published the video here.

David Bush and Valerie Lannon on the Green New Deal and the socialist case against the carbon tax [video]

RAVEN continues its partnership with St. Thomas University’s Environmental Praxis course and the NB Media Co-op to bring you another interesting lecture. The video was published today by the NB Media Co-op. You can view it here.

David Bush is a Ph.D. student at York University, a labour organizer active with the Fight for $15, contributor to the Spring Magazine, and editor at Rankandfile.ca.

Valerie Lannon is one of the co-founders of the Spring Socialist Network. She supports climate justice and indigenous rights and is the co-author of Indigenous Sovereignty & Socialism.

Daniel Tubb on his book, Shifting Livelihoods: Gold Mining and Subsistence in the Chocó, Colombia [video]

RAVEN co-investigator Daniel Tubb recently published a book based on his research with subsistence gold miners in rural Columbia. In his webinar presentation, Daniel talks about his process of ethnographic research. RAVEN teamed up with the NB Media Co-op and Tertulias for this event. The video was published by the NB Media Co-op, here.

Bob Bancroft: Where have all the good forests gone? [video]

RAVEN, the NB Media Co-op and St. Thomas University’s Environmental Praxis Lecture Series continues its partnership. In this presentation, Bob Bancroft, a wildlife biologist and the president of Nature Nova Scotia, delivered the talk, “Where have all the good forests gone?”

RAVEN partner the NB Media Co-op published the video of his talk, here.

Sabine LeBel on Queer Environmental Futures [video]

RAVEN co-investigator Sabine LeBel presented this engaging talk on queer environmental futures, captured on video and published here by the NB Media Co-op. Sabine is an Assistant Professor in the Culture and Media Studies Department at the University of New Brunswick Fredericton. 

The talk was part of St. Thomas University’s Environmental Praxis Lecture Series.

Canada’s support for nuclear reactors and opposition in New Brunswick

RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell represents the project in the Coalition for Responsible Energy Development in New Brunswick (CRED-NB). For the NB Media Co-op, Susan wrote an analysis of the federal throne speech and government support for new nuclear reactors. You can read her article here.

RAVEN is engaged in this issue because the nuclear projects planned for New Brunswick are delaying genuine climate action. They do nothing to address the climate crisis and divert resources and attention to the need to rapidly increase our reliance on renewable energy.

Fredericton climate action rally has renewable energy, anti-nuclear message

Extinction Rebellion New Brunswick a rally in Fredericton on Sept. 25, the Global Day of Climate Action, outside the office of Premier Blaine Higgs. Protesters called on the government to transition rapidly to renewable energy and stop their plans to develop new nuclear reactors in the province. RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell wrote this story about the rally for the NB Media Co-op.

Mark McLaughlin on the rise of eco-comics and how the Maritime governments helped shaped environmental education [video]

RAVEN partnered with the NB Media Co-op and the Environmental Praxis lecture series at St. Thomas University on this talk by Dr. Mark McLaughlin. Mark discussed the history of using comics for environmental education and how comics were used in particular by Maritime governments in the 1970s to shape environmental education. The video of his talk was published by the NB Media Co-op. You can view it here.

“Coal is not progress, it is death”: Indigenous Wayuu woman

Indigenous Wayuu and Afro-Colombian communities have long been vocal against the forced displacement, environmental degradation, human rights abuses and increasing death toll caused by the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia. NB Power sources coal from this mine.

RAVEN’s Environmental Action reporter Cortney MacDonnell prepared a video and wrote a story about it for the NB Media Co-op. You can read Cortney’s story here.

Two new nuclear reactors for New Brunswick with no adequate policy on radioactive waste in place

RAVEN’s Susan O’Donnell teamed up with Gordon Edwards of the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility to write this article in the Ottawa publication, the Hill Times. In their article, they discuss how the federal government is planning to fund new nuclear reactors for New Brunswick while the radioactive waste policy is inadequate. You can read their article here.

RAVEN is engaged in the nuclear issue because the nuclear projects planned for New Brunswick are delaying genuine climate action. They do nothing to address the climate crisis and divert resources and attention to the need to rapidly increase our reliance on renewable energy.

A just energy transition for the communities where “blood coal” is extracted and burned

Environmental action reporter Cortney MacDonnell spoke with people in both northern New Brunswick region and Colombia, where NB Power has been sourcing coal since 1993 when the Belledune plant opened. Read her article here, published by RAVEN partner the NB Media Co-op.

Building community: new market in Hampton

“The sweet smell of baked goods, fresh food and wildflowers now floods the pavilion on Friday nights in the town of Hampton. The Lupine Market was started by Gillian Cormier and Elizabeth Malatestinic, when they recognized that more could be done to help support local farmers and businesses in their hometown.”

Read Hannah Moore’s latest story for the NB Media Co-op here.

The garden is coming in! Now what?

“This morning I laid in bed wondering if I should make salsa this weekend or try to wait until there were more tomatoes. The cabbage moth made a strike on my cabbages while I was on vacation and now, I have to either meticulously clean each leaf or I can pick it now and make sauerkraut. My zucchinis and cucumbers are also getting big and need to be processed as soon as possible.”

RAVEN’s Amy Floyd writes about what to do with the produce from your garden this week. Read Amy’s story here.

Hope Blooms: youth-driven food security movement flourishes in Halifax

RAVEN’s reporter Hannah Moore writes this week from Nova Scotia:

“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” This is the motto that drives Hope Blooms, a community project based in the North End of Halifax. It is a space that provides people in the community with opportunities to learn, share, connect and grow.”

Read Hannah’s story here.

Planting urban food gardens in New Brunswick

This week, RAVEN’s food security reporter Hannah Moore writes about urban food gardens:

“With crowded neighbours, limited space and bustling roads, urban dwellers may feel discouraged from growing food on their property. For those with greenspace surrounding their homes in the city, the status quo is to maintain a nice green lawn, maybe with some perennials or annual flowers. But lawns in the city have the potential to offer much more than a pretty face.” Read Hannah’s article here.

Are you living in a food desert in New Brunswick?

RAVEN’s summer reporter Hannah Moore writes this week about food deserts:

“A food desert is an area where access to affordable, healthy food is restricted because residents do not have a grocery store within a convenient travelling distance. In a city, neighbourhoods 5km or farther from a supermarket, grocery store, garden or market may be considered food deserts. In rural settings, the radius can be much greater.” Read Hannah’s story here.

NB Power’s renewable energy claims disputed

Cortney MacDonnell writes this week for the NB Media Co-op about claims made by NB Power and their renewable energy use:

“NB Power claims to be supplying New Brunswick with over 40 percent renewable energy but a local solar firm says that is not the case. Megan McCann and Mark McCann are co-owners of MJM Solar Solutions. They have been advocating the use of renewable energy for over a decade. According to their analysis, NB Power is generating closer to 20 percent renewable energy in the province.” Read Cortney’s story here.

Writing for the NB Media Co-op

RAVEN’s research partner is the NB Media Co-op. RAVEN staff member Amy Floyd writes this week:

“When The Brief first began to circulate, I was just finishing university and living near my family in Sussex, NB. What a breath of fresh air it was to find that little broadsheet at Winter Wood Natural Foods. Other people really did care about the things that I had been studying and it was other New Brunswickers!” Read Amy’s article here.

Eel River Bar First Nation’s adaptation to sea level rise

RAVEN’s Cortney MacDonnell writes for the NB Media Co-op about a project at Eel River Bar First Nation:

“In Ugpi’ganjig, also known as Eel River Bar First Nation, Blueberry Point is predicted to be underwater due to sea level rise by the year 2100. To address future sea level rise, the Gespe’gewaq Mi’gmaq Resource Council is sharing a vision for aquatic resources management that combines Mi’kmaq ecological knowledge as well as scientific research.” Read the full article here.

Permaculture in Bayside, NB

RAVEN’s Amy Floyd writes about a permaculture workshop at Mike Humble’s FoodsGood Farm in Bayside, NB. You can read her story here. Humble explained the basic concepts of permaculture: looking to nature to learn design patterns for our daily life, managing water on land, feeding microbes to build healthy soil, learning from Indigenous earth care methods,  inviting predatory insects to control pests in the garden, working in ergonomic patterns, and using clever hand tools in the gardening.

Restoring Acadian forest on private land

RAVEN’s Cortney MacDonnell’s story this week published in the NB Media Co-op, “New partnership forms for restoring Acadian forest on private land in the Maritimes,” features UNB prof Tom Beckley, a RAVEN friend we have worked with on several activities. You can read Cortney’s story here.

Combating environmental racism in Nova Scotia

RAVEN’s Environmental Action Reporter Cortney MacDonnell published her second story for the NB Media Co-op today: “There’s something in the water: meet four women combating environmental racism in Nova Scotia.” Cortney’s story profiles the women who participated in an online panel earlier this month to discuss their work organizing against environmental racism on the spirits, minds, and bodies of Indigenous and African Nova Scotian people. You can read Cortney’s story here.

New Brunswick’s tree species and climate change

RAVEN’s new Environmental Action reporter Cortney McDonnell published her first article today with our partner, the NB Media Co-op. Cortney has a background and keen interest in forestry management and for this article she interviewed scientists about the impact of climate change on our acadian forest. You can read Cortney’s article here.

Maritime Spaces promo video launched!

RAVEN project partner Project Aulnes released a video today promoting the Maritime Spaces project. As we reported earlier, several of the RAVEN project team travelled to Pointe Verte in February to participate in an exciting community development and broadcast project to discuss the re-vitalization of the Belledune region.

In the video, the creators of Espace Maritime mark a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic and offer a reflection on the future of the next generations of northeastern New Brunswick and elsewhere.

“Espace Maritime, Belledune edition was filmed on February 29, a few days before the World Health Organization (WHO) announced at a press conference on March 11, 2020 that we are now facing a global COVID-19 pandemic. Hhow will we build the economy after a crisis of this magnitude?” Watch the video below…

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The televised version of Espace Maritime’s stage interviews is available on Rogers TV’s YouTube channel: Special Presentation: Maritime Spaces
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=adbk3K9DKxc&feature=youtu.be

A poem by El Jones for Earth Day

Today is Earth Day, the 50th anniversary of a day to celebrate our beautiful planet. El Jones, a spoken word poet based in Halifax, collaborated with RAVEN during our Voices for the Environment Week last year. While she was visiting us in Fredericton, El recorded this poem in the UNB Media Lab. Today our partner, the NB Media Co-op, is publishing a video of El’s dynamic performance. You can watch it here.

More nuclear energy is not a feasible energy solution in NB

The fossil-fuel divestment campaign at UNB is led by Rachel Bensler, a student at Renaissance College. Rachel has written several articles about fossil fuel divestment for our partner, the NB Media Co-op. Now she is looking at nuclear energy as an alternative. Read Rachel’s article here about why she believes it is not a feasible solution.

Nuclear energy not a ‘crutch’ in energy transition

RAVEN’s Hannah Moore is leading the fossil fuel divestment campaign at St. Thomas University. Hannah wrote this article about another energy source that presents a different kind of challenge: nuclear energy. You can read Hannah’s article here, published by RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op.

Farmers require urgent support to ensure food security in New Brunswick

RAVEN’s food security analyst Amy Floyd published a story today in the NB Media Co-op. Her story discusses a recent proposal to support farmers in the province to ensure our food supply this year. Amy also highlighted the work of the Food for All food security network which acted quickly after the COVID-19 outbreak to bring groups together to work strategically on the problem. You can read Amy’s story here.

“This place is paradise”

RAVEN’s Amy Floyd wrote an interesting and informative story published today by RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op. Amy is leading RAVEN’s initiative, Growing a Better Future that focuses on food security. Her new story describes the new group she formed to support small growers and includes an interview with one of the group members. You can read Amy’s story here.

Woodstock wood producer supports Wolastoqey loggers earning a livelihood

RAVEN’s Tracy Glynn wrote a story published today by RAVEN partner, the NB Media Co-op. Her story includes an interview with a wood producer who supports Wolastoqey loggers. Last month, Tracy wrote a story about the court case brought by Wolastoqey First Nations against the province of New Brunswick for violating treaty right to harvest timber for a moderate livelihood. You can read Tracy’s new story here.

Green shifting education: Letter from NB’s future #20

Raissa Marks re-starts the Letter from New Brunswick’s future series. The series is a collaboration between RAVEN and the NB Media Co-op. You can read Raissa’s letter here. She imagines what could happen to our education system if learning was re-focused on nature and the outdoors. Her letter, from March 2051, explains how we got there, and the work has already started now!