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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.

@laurieadkin.bsky.social
2.3K followers 528 following 969 posts

Professor Emerita, University of Alberta, Comparative Politics, Political Economy, Ecology and Democracy, climate policy in Canada and Alberta, populist far right, political ecology of higher education

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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Caterina Froio @caterinafr.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Thanks #AriadneNetwork for the invite. Join for the webinar : Responding to authoritarian populism and the mainstreaming of anti-rights ideas, what philantropy needs to know. 13 October, 3-4pm CET. Info and registration below: tinyurl.com/2kt2pwp3
tinyurl.com
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Responding to authoritarian populism and the mainstreaming of anti-rights ideas: What philanthropy needs to know . After registering, you will receive a… | ...
Do join us on 13th October for this timely conversation!
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Caterina Froio @caterinafr.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
What does far-right protest do to democracy? Join us online October 8, 12:15–13:15 CET as I present ongoing research with @xromerovidal.bsky.social, @pietrocastellig.bsky.social & A. Klassens. Thanks to @anketresch.bsky.social, GRIEC & Uni Lausanne. Info & registration 👇 www.unil.ch/events/fr/17...
unil.ch
Contesting Democracy: Far-Right Protest and Public Satisfaction with Democratic Institutions
Caterina Froio de Sciences Po Paris présentera ses récentes recherches.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Canadian govts are doing no better. They are offering young people a dystopian future: more global warming, diversion of resources to rearmament, freefall into AI, worsening social insecurity, and limited political means to remake this future. #cdnpoli www.advance.hr/en/articles/...
advance.hr
Rebellion of French Students and a Futureless School System | advance.hr
While we build armies and intelligent machines, we expect the youth not to notice that the future we are handing to them more closely resembles a threat than a promise.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
thepointer.com/article/2026...
thepointer.com
‘Building Canada Wrong’: Carney picks oil pipeline as first national interest project days after tabling ‘draconian’ Bill C-39
‘Building Canada Wrong’: Carney picks oil pipeline as first national interest project days after tabling ‘draconian’ Bill C-39
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Liberals: Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose. This 2018 commentary on the Trudeau government's discourse of "national interest" could be reproduced today with the mere substitution of "Carney" for "Trudeau" (and "Nenshi" for "Notley"). www.nationalobserver.com/2018/04/16/o...
nationalobserver.com
There are parts of Canada's national interest that Trudeau didn't talk about
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...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
no brain, only alison @alisonborealis.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
HOLY SHIT As an alumna, this reeks.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This study focuses on USA universities, but we have seen the same developments in Canada. It is not only corporate actors that are influencing universities, but governments that direct their funding agencies to support these corporate interests. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Rage Against the Miocene @organiccarbon.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
The slow erosion of the purpose and values of higher education. This is hidden everywhere from the governance to the impact agenda to the pernicious creeping view that University is job training. Universities are for society. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Decades of fossil fuel influence paved way for Trump’s assault on university research, study says
Fossil fuel firms have spent years trying to regulate climate research by donating to US universities, study authors argue
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The priorities of @ualberta.bsky.social leadership are pretty clear: turn the university into an R&D provider for any corporate interest backed by government funding--never mind any ethical considerations or obligation to consult the professoriate about partnership decisions. 1/
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
www.counterpunch.org/2026/09/18/w...
counterpunch.org
When Monsters Walk Among Us
More than four decades ago, the Greek composer and public intellectual Manos Hadjidakis issued a warning that now reads less like a reflection on fascism than a prophecy of our own time. The greatest ...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
A macho culture of performative selfishness might start on the roads, through racing, rolling coal, ever bigger SUVs ... But it doesn't end there. If we want to live in a decent country which values human life, we need to change this culture. My column. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Driving that’s too fast, too dangerous and utterly lawless: why do we tolerate this petro-masculinity? | George Monbiot
In towns and in the countryside, I see 4x4s and pick up trucks driven without care or consicence. It’s a Magafication of transport, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
artssquared.wordpress.com/2026/07/01/u...
artssquared.wordpress.com
UAlberta leadership motto: Quidquid pecuniam affert?(Whatever brings in the money). Guest post by Laurie Adkin
We used to call persons in university positions like president, vice-president, provost, associate provost, dean, etc., “administrators.” Now I call them “executive management,&#8…
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The priorities of @ualberta.bsky.social leadership are pretty clear: turn the university into an R&D provider for any corporate interest backed by government funding--never mind any ethical considerations or obligation to consult the professoriate about partnership decisions. 1/
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
cbc.ca
U of A cuts funding to campus daycare centres
Budget cuts at the University of Alberta have left six non-profit daycare centres on campus without any guaranteed support from the institution. Undergrad student Olivia Hart is the president of the g...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
artssquared.wordpress.com/2026/07/01/u...
artssquared.wordpress.com
UAlberta leadership motto: Quidquid pecuniam affert?(Whatever brings in the money). Guest post by Laurie Adkin
We used to call persons in university positions like president, vice-president, provost, associate provost, dean, etc., “administrators.” Now I call them “executive management,&#8…
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Abigail Swann, PhD @ecoclimatelab.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
We have a new paper on the response of land carbon to zero, declining, and negative emissions of CO2 across Earth System Models! w/ @ckoven.bsky.social @cristiproist.bsky.social @rosieafisher.bsky.social @benmsanderson.bsky.social & more (1/6) esd.copernicus.org/articles/17/...
esd.copernicus.org
Land carbon response to positive, zero, and negative CO2 emissions across Earth system models
Abstract. Land carbon sinks are responsible for removing about a quarter of anthropogenic CO2 emissions, and make up approximately half of total global carbon sinks. Uncertainty in the response of lan...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Andrea Thompson @andreatweather.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
🧪
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
The Tyee @thetyee.ca · 09/09/2026
The provincial government has decided that British Columbians are not entitled to know how much fossil fuel companies pay in royalties for the publicly owned oil and gas they extract from the ground. Why? thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
BC Changed a Law to Keep Gas Royalties Secret | The Tyee
‘Improved confidentiality’ for oil companies leaves the public without previously available payment data.
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 05/09/2026
More than 1,200 food packaging chemicals can pose serious health risks
motherjones.com
More than 1,200 food packaging chemicals can pose serious health risks
And makers won't release data that could help assess the dangers, a new study shows.
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Trump and Musk will sole source the campaign war chest for GOP candidates this fall. www.ft.com/content/d8fa...
ft.com
Trump and Musk Super Pacs boost spending on midterm elections
Maga Inc and America Pac drop millions on US House and Senate candidates to keep Republicans in control of Congress
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Geoffrey P Johnston😎🇨🇦🇺🇦 @geoffypjohnston.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
“According to the TRC, 4,000 children never made it home from those schools located across the country.”
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Wim Carton @wimcarton.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
"Nepal is demanding climate compensation from the world's biggest emitters of greenhouse gases after deadly floods in the country killed more than 1100 people." Interesting, and entirely justified. We can expect this to become a lot more common.
bloomberg.com
Nepal Seeks Climate Compensation From China, US and India
Nepal is demanding climate compensation from the world’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gases after deadly floods in the country killed more than a thousand people and left even more missing.
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Phillip Meintzer @phillipmeintzer.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
"The report echoes landowner advocates’ concerns that the Alberta government’s plan for cleaning up thousands of inactive oil and gas wells, the province’s so-called Mature Asset Strategy, violates the polluter pay principle... " www.nationalobserver.com/2026/09/01/n... #ABLeg @readtheorchard.org
nationalobserver.com
Report calls for escalating fees for Alberta's inactive oil wells
According to the Pembina Institute, it's cheaper under the current system for a company to let a well sit inactive for years or even decades until the company goes bankrupt or the well can be transfer...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Petrostate: theijf.org/article/sout...
theijf.org
The company behind the Keystone XL pipeline Trump wants to revive spent $400K lobbying in the U.S.
South Bow has lobbied for months in advance of Trump touting its defunct Keystone XL project
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
The Guardian @theguardian.com · 27/08/2026
Ghent professors challenged expertise of Jason Arday’s plagiarism accuser
theguardian.com
Ghent professors challenged expertise of Jason Arday’s plagiarism accuser
Allegations Nathan Cofnas was unqualified for Ghent role and would cause ‘negative impact’ made to senior leaders months ago Nathan Cofnas, the academic who accused Jason Arday of plagiarism, has been accused of having “very limited expertise” for his academic role by professors also working at Ghent University, who say he has a “far-right agenda”. Cofnas secured a postdoctoral research role “on the future of liberalism” at Belgium’s Ghent University in March. Weeks later, Ghent’s department of philosophy and moral sciences handed a 19-page statement to university officials, setting out why it believed it was “improbable” that Cofnas was the best candidate. Continue reading...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
evidencefordemocracy.ca/beyond-the-a...
evidencefordemocracy.ca
Beyond the AI Race: Strategy, Accountability, and AI Governance in Canada and the United States - Evidence For Democracy
Event Background Canada and the United States are heavily investing in AI, framing it as central to economic growth, national […]
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Michael E. Mann @michaelemann.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
You don't say... www.ms.now/news/frame-u...
ms.now
Whistleblower says probes into antisemitism at colleges were ploys to harass and strip millions
A former Justice Department lawyer says the Trump investigations squeezed Ivy League universities for millions before they were even concluded. A top Democrat is demanding answers.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
"Seven of Alberta’s 10 highest-paid executives were oil and gas industry leaders, including top earner Toby McKenna, CEO of Rockpoint Gas Storage, who earned nearly $44 million, mostly from expected long-term incentive payouts." calgaryherald.com/business/exe...
calgaryherald.com
Energy sector's strength produces healthy executive bonus, incentive payouts
Despite economic upheaval and global political instability, many of Alberta's top companies and their leaders had a strong year in 2025.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Lorne Fitch has written a searing indictment of the corrupt and incompetent UCP government of Alberta. thetyee.ca/Opinion/2024...
thetyee.ca
The Crisis Facing Alberta Wildlife | The Tyee
Expert biologists are being elbowed aside by politicians and special interests.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
This is so Alberta. "The company behind a massive data centre project previously rejected by Alberta’s utilities regulator [the one in Olds] has hired lobbyists with ties to the United Conservative Party government to help get its proposal greenlit" . . . theijf.org/brief/olds-d...
theijf.org
Company behind Olds data centre lobbying Alberta government for project approval
Synapse hires two well connected Crestview consultants to lobby in Alberta
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Wildfires. Floods. Droughts. This is not the new normal - it's the beginning of what will get worse. We need to invest now to protect people from future years of even more extreme weather. www.standard.co.uk/news/politic...
standard.co.uk
Invest in climate defence rather than heed Trump on military spend – Polanski
The Green Party leader was appearing at the Edinburgh Fringe.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Berman sets out the history of concessions to the fossil fuel industry and their failure to bear any political fruit for national unity (or, one might add, the Liberal Party of Canada). But why is she mystified by Carney's continuation of this pattern? 1/ www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
theglobeandmail.com
Opinion: With a new oil pipeline, Canadians are being asked to make a bet on the past
With $40-billion, we could fund heat pumps and solar panels, build hospitals, tackle clean water on reserves or build the economy of the future
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
The combined 1.3 million barrels of new pipeline capacity that Carney and Smith are pushing for will translate into 185 Mt MORE per year of CO2 when combusted. Canada is pouring gasoline on the planet's fires. www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
policyalternatives.ca
Fuel for the fires: Western Canada as an “energy superpower” | CCPA
The federal government is walking back climate action and fast-tracking fossil fuels in the West. It’s a strategy that won’t age well.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
yvesengler.com/2026/07/27/w...
yvesengler.com
What do whales think about Canada’s $100 billion subs? - Yves Engler
“Canada’s only operational submarine just sank a U.S. warship”, noted the National Post. A more apt headline would have been: “Canadian submarine part of needless war game treats ocean as garbage dump...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Caroline Lucas @carolinelucas.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Is “pragmatic” the new, “grown up” word? Andy, there’s nothing “pragmatic” about drilling for more oil & gas - to even consider it with the planet literally on fire is total madness. How many times must we say it will do nothing for energy bills or security? It would be an act of utter recklessness
theguardian.com
Burnham promises ‘pragmatic’ approach to North Sea oil and gas
PM tells reporters the government cannot ignore the energy resource ‘when people are struggling’
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Dr Jeremy Walker @jeremywalker.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
#Auspol #Auspol #Auspol Let‘s DO THIS!
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
We'll get no ecological or feminist economic policy directions from the Carney government. canadiandimension.com/articles/vie...
canadiandimension.com
The new rules of Carney’s carve-out economy
It has been one year since Mark Carney introduced the Building Canada Act in Parliament. Since then, a succession of new laws has hollowed out legal protections for the environment, Indigenous rights,...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
breachmedia.ca/canadian-uni...
breachmedia.ca
Canadian universities set up a secret network to crack down on student Palestine demonstrators ⋆ The Breach
Universities in Canada coordinated to spy on and violently clear student encampments. Then, they deleted the evidence
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
capitalismcantbefixed.ca/take-action/
capitalismcantbefixed.ca
Take Action - Capitalism Can't Be Fixed
Sign the Open Letter: Please join David Suzuki, Yann Martel, Roger Waters, Ellen Gabriel, Cory Doctorow, Judy Rebick, El Jones, Sid Ryan and more than 700 hundred other artists, academics, Indigenous ...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
One cannot understand political power today without understanding who manufactures public opinion and how. We are in a new media world, largely unregulated by any democratic authority. www.dropsitenews.com/p/israel-bra...
dropsitenews.com
Israel Is Paying Millions to Train AI Chatbots How to Talk About Gaza. It's Working.
Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale is overseeing an operation posting hundreds of blog posts on behalf of Israel, with the goal of infiltrating artificial intelligence.
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Patrick Reinsborough ❌👑 @giantwhispers.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
RESOURCE: This Thursday July 30 @fossilfreeca.org. @oilgasaction.bsky.social and other groups are offering a webinar on how to understand and fight back against the fossil fuel and tech industry's roles in promoting fascism. Sign up below 👇 #ClimateSky
bit.ly
Defending Democracy against Fossil Fuel and Tech Fascism
Learn about how the fossil fuel and tech industries are driving the rise of fascism in the US and globally and join us as we build a movement to defend our democracy and protect our communities.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
app.wedonthavetime.org/posts/c374dd...
app.wedonthavetime.org
⚠️ The Fossil Lobby Is Winning: 45 Climate Policy Reversals in One Year
Last week I wrote on LinkedIn: I have been following climate politics for a long time. I do not think I have ever felt this upset. As the climate crisis accelerates, our leaders are not accelerating c...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
220,000 people have been evacuated from the Bordeaux region of France because of uncontrollable fires. France has 12 Canadair water bombers. But hey, it has 988 military jets, transport planes, and helicopters. The Carney government has precisely the same priorities. x.com/le20hfrancet...
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...
policyalternatives.ca
Think twice: A citizen’s guide to artificial intelligence in Canada | CCPA
Canadians need to think twice about the promise and inevitability of artificial intelligence and be prepared to push back on the AI industry
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Chris McClure 🇨🇦 @chrisjmcclure.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
We were talking about CCS in my MBA studies. 13+ years ago. Still no proof it can capture at scale. It is green-washing at industrial scale. #cdnpoli #abpoli
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
thetyee.ca/News/2026/07...
thetyee.ca
‘What Are We Breathing?’ Kitimat Residents Ask | The Tyee
A Tyee investigation has uncovered major gaps in the monitoring of dangerous, potentially carcinogenic pollutants.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Six months after Carney's Davos speech, I wonder if Liberal voters--tactical or longstanding--continue to judge his government by its rhetoric rather than by its actions. canadiandimension.com/articles/vie...
canadiandimension.com
Empire, ecology, and Canada’s foreign policy ‘reset’
We may hold out hope for this government to take new directions, but we cannot rely on hope—and certainly not on faith that does not stem from a sober reading of the historical record. We must be rele...
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Reposted by Laurie Adkin, Ph.D.
Beng @bengtang.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
ICE recruits far right extremists. www.cbc.ca/news/ice-rec...
cbc.ca
ICE nodding to far-right extremists in recruitment posts, experts say | CBC News
In its efforts to rapidly boost its ranks, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been making appeals on social media in language familiar to right-wing extremists.
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Laurie Adkin, Ph.D. @laurieadkin.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
"Canada’s climate progress in the electricity sector has been the result of reducing emissions from coal power. But half of these emission reductions have already been erased by rising emissions from gas power." 1/ www.nationalobserver.com/2026/07/13/a...
nationalobserver.com
Surging gas power emissions and policy rollbacks are erasing Canada’s biggest climate win
As key clean electricity policies get rolled back, emissions from cheap and dirty gas power are becoming unstoppable. Here’s a chart-filled deep dive into Canada’s surging gas power emissions and the ...
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