Category: The Conversation – Canada

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Emilda Thavaratnam, PhD student, Leadership and Higher Education, University of Toronto

Over the past decade, international students have navigated a complex and challenging landscape shaped by neoliberal policies.

Neoliberal economic and political ideology upholds entrepreneurship, individualism, free trade, open markets, minimal government intervention and reduced public services for citizens.

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Read more:
What exactly is neoliberalism?

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Neoliberal governance has transformed higher education into a mechanism for economic growth, shifting the burden of funding onto students.

As my doctoral research examines, international students in Ontario’s colleges of applied arts and technology face barriers related to neoliberal restructuring. Drawing on interviews with students and front-line staff, my study examines experiences across five key themes: pre-arrival, housing insecurity, pandemic survival, precarious labour and future aspirations.

Through these challenges, the resilience and drive of international students to build community reveal powerful forms of everyday resistance.

This has been seen through their front-line work during the pandemic, their persistent pursuit of education and their collective efforts to challenge marginalization. Their stories are vital in shaping Canada’s social, economic and educational fabric.

Shifts towards neoliberal education

Since the late 1970s, higher education in Ontario and elsewhere has experienced significant changes. In the province, public funding per student has steadily declined, shifting the cost onto students, with higher educational institutions adopting models of privatization and corporatization to survive.

Though higher education continues to serve the public good, these changes reflect a broader adaptation to the new economic realities driven by market principles.

As David Harvey, a scholar of urban and political economy, explains, neoliberal approaches hold that economic growth and prosperity occur when markets are allowed to operate with minimal government regulation. Over time, these approaches have shaped policies and practices globally across various sectors, including education, media, corporations and international institutions such as the International Monetary Fund.

Neoliberal policies are presented as naturally occurring or unavoidable; however, this framing prioritizes market principles over social protections and often masks the deeper political and social dynamics.

Education as a product serving the job market

Neoliberal values have reshaped the purpose and practice of higher education. The problem with this market-driven approach is it often prioritizes individual gain and profit over social equity and the public good. This shift aligns learning with market-oriented approaches.

Scholars concerned with the adverse effects of neoliberal education policy highlight how education is often treated as a product designed to serve economic interests, with measurable outcomes and links to the job market becoming the primary focus.

This shift is evident when policymakers and institutions prioritize competition, performance, metrics and individual achievement — often at the expense of collaboration, critical thinking and shared goals.

COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the effects of neoliberal ideology in higher education, revealing both the precarity of post-secondary finance and living conditions for many international students.

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Read more:
The pandemic exposed the vulnerability of international students in Canada

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When colleges and universities faced pandemic closures and uncertain enrolment, international students came under scrutiny as learners who pay high fees. They contribute more than $21 billion annually to the Canadian economy and pay an average of five times more than domestic students.

It also became clear that international students make significant contributions to Canada by working on the front lines in sectors such as health care, long-term care and food supply chains.

At the same time, this situation revealed broader tendencies rooted in the neoliberal market logic.

During the pandemic, the federal government acknowledged how it has positioned international students as a flexible, commodified labour resource integral to the Canadian economy and essential services. For example, in April 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada announced it would “temporarily lift the 20 hour per week work restriction on study permit holders working off-campus during their academic session, provided they are working in an essential service or function.”

While international student contributions are vital, this framing begs deeper questions around the protection of international students’ labour rights, student well-being and potential exploitation.

Housing, food insecurity, high tuition

Before the pandemic, many international students struggled with housing, food insecurity and tuition payments due to work restrictions and financial constraints.

With the current cap in place as of 2024, it’s ironic that international students have been treated as both “essential” and “disposable” simultaneously.

Despite facing housing insecurity, food shortages and inaccessible health care, international students have continued to demonstrate their resilience and resistance. Their efforts extend beyond individual acts of survival.

Post-pandemic protest

International students have also organized petitions, protests and advocacy campaigns to challenge unjust policies.

For example, in November 2022, hundreds of students (domestic and international) rallied at the Ontario legislature in Toronto under the banner “Need or Greed.” A coalition of student associations representing 120,000 students united to protest.

The protests were partly a response to unfair and unpredictable jumps in already high tuition fees for international students: the average undergraduate international tuition fees in Ontario rose from about $35,000 to just under $50,000 between 2018 and 2025. The coalition urged the provincial government and Colleges Ontario to freeze tuition for international students.

Following these efforts, nationwide protests erupted in August 2024 when 70,000 international student graduates faced possible deportation due to tightened immigration rules. Students set up encampments outside the Prince Edward Island legislative assembly for three months to protest the 25 per cent cut in permanent resident nominations, which left many students in limbo.

A notable aspect of this activism was the solidarity shown from labour organizations and people across the country. Laura Walton, president of the Ontario Federation of Labour, joined the protests in solidarity, stating: “Your right is our fight.”

The Naujawaan Support Network, an advocacy group for youth and international students based in Brampton, Ont., issued a statement declaring:“International students are not the cause of the crisis, but we are being made into scapegoats.”

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Read more:
International students cap falsely blames them for Canada’s housing and health-care woes

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Power of collective organizing

Collective organizing and calls for action are powerful acts of resistance that transcend the neoliberal ideology of individualism. Through petitions and protests, international students demonstrate a profound commitment to their education and aspirations.

As Canada continues to welcome international students, and post-secondary institutions, governments and public sector organizations navigate turbulent economic times, it’s essential to uphold the rights of international students.

It’s also essential to provide the support necessary for them to succeed and affirm their value as vital members of the community.

International students’ resilience offers a valuable lesson about the human capacity to reframe challenges and persist. Students and citizens across the country have a role in celebrating their contributions and building bridges to foster more resilient communities.

Emilda Thavaratnam does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. International students’ stories are vital in shaping Canada’s future – https://theconversation.com/international-students-stories-are-vital-in-shaping-canadas-future-258271

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Dilara Baysal, Research Fellow in Sociology, Concordia University

As companies face pressure to increase productivity, many are calling workers back to the office — even though there is limited evidence that return-to-office policies actually improve innovation or performance.

In cities like Toronto and Vancouver, where many major companies are headquartered, this is putting pressure on people to live near expensive downtown areas.

As of April 2025, average one-bedroom rents were $2,317 in Toronto and $2,536 in Vancouver, with North Vancouver even higher at $2,680. If return-to-office policies continue, more workers may be forced into these pricey city centres, adding pressure to already overheated housing markets.

Since early 2025, return-to-office policies have added to Canada’s housing stress. The Royal Bank of Canada, for instance, now requires staff in the office four days a week, and Amazon ended remote work in January. While rents haven’t jumped yet, similar policies in the U.S. have already pushed up demand, and may be a sign of what’s to come.

In Washington, D.C., rents rose 3.3 per cent after federal employees were called back to offices. Cities like New York and San Francisco also saw rent increases linked to companies like JPMorgan Chase, Meta and Salesforce reversed remote work policies.

The myth of office productivity

According to the Bank of Canada, Canada’s economy is being negatively affected by low productivity. Low productivity slows Canada’s economic growth and keeps wages low. It also makes inflation worse because supply can’t keep up with demand. A productive economy meets demand more easily, keeping prices stable.

In response, many companies are pushing return-to-office as the answer. RBC CEO Dave McKay endorsed a return to the office back in 2023, saying that “the absence of working together” has hurt innovation and productivity.

At Google, under mounting pressure to compete in artificial intelligence, co-founder Sergey Brin also pushed for full-time office work, calling a 60-hour week the “sweet spot” for productivity.

But recent research shows the story isn’t so simple. A University of Chicago working paper found that strict return-to-office rules can cause senior staff to leave, which hurts innovation.

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Read more:
Working one day a week in person might be the key to happier, more productive employees

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Another study of 48,000 knowledge workers in India found that hybrid setups — where some people are in the office and others work from home — can make it harder to share ideas and work together.

Meanwhile, a Stanford-led study found that working in the office just two days a week kept productivity strong and cut employee turnover by 33 per cent.

Where people live matters more

Return-to-office mandates also aren’t a guaranteed way to boost productivity. A 2023 study supported by housing organizations across Canada found that affordable, well-located housing helps people find better jobs and specialize in their work.

But when housing costs are high and commutes are long, productivity drops, especially for lower-income workers. Long commutes and high living costs create stress, limit mobility and cause people to miss out on job opportunities.

Studies show that investing in technology and training workers matters much more. Research from the Canadian Research Data Centre Network finds that workplace training improves productivity in most sectors.

A recent report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation also shows that high housing costs make it harder for many people to live in big cities, which ultimately reduces diversity in the workforce and weakens the economy.

Affordable housing could boost productivity

Housing in Canada is often viewed in two ways. One treats it as a commodity, where prices follow supply and demand. In this view, policies focus on increasing supply and offering market incentives. The other sees housing as a public need and a basic right, and calls for government action to ensure affordability and stability.

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Read more:
Housing is both a human right and a profitable asset, and that’s the problem

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In practice, market forces can undermine policies designed to meet housing needs and ensure affordability. In Toronto, for example, developers resisted inclusionary zoning rules that require or encourage developers to include a certain percentage of affordable housing units within new residential developments. Instead, they delayed projects or chose to build high-end condos in different zones.

This tension between housing as a commodity and housing as a public good is central to Canada’s current housing strategy. Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government has pledged to build 500,000 new homes annually by 2035 using tools like public lands, modular housing and tax incentives.

While this supply-focused strategy targets long-term housing needs, it must also account for today’s complex economic realities such as inflation, increasing unemployment and economic stagnation due to lagging productiviy.

Without tackling affordability and access directly, building more homes alone won’t be enough.

The real foundation of a productive economy

Return-to-office policies often focus too much on one thing: how much each worker produces. But that narrow view of productivity ignores what really supports good work: access to affordable housing, time for training and flexibility to relocate for better job opportunities.

To address productivity challenges, companies should invest in job-specific training, digital skills and ongoing learning to help employees adapt to new tools and processes, and the should offer more flexibility. What workers need most are affordable homes, shorter commutes and real opportunities to grow — not added stress and rising costs.

Dilara Baysal does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Returning to the office isn’t the answer to Canada’s productivity problem — and it will add pressure to urban housing – https://theconversation.com/returning-to-the-office-isnt-the-answer-to-canadas-productivity-problem-and-it-will-add-pressure-to-urban-housing-260395

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Reza Hasmath, Professor in Political Science, University of Alberta

China has emerged as a global front-runner in the fight against climate change, with sweeping policies aimed at curbing environmental degradation and building a more sustainable future.

Yet behind these green ambitions lies a more complicated human story. Ethnic minority communities — who make up roughly nine per cent of China’s total population and often inhabit ecologically sensitive regions like Tibet, Xinjiang, Yunnan and Inner Mongolia — are experiencing the transition in ways that involve significant trade-offs.

Where they live, how they work and the cultural practices they depend on have all been shaped by state environmental policies, often without meaningful input or representation.

My ongoing research examines the lesser seen consequences of China’s environmental agenda, focusing on how it affects the lives of ethnic minority communities across four critical dimensions: traditional livelihoods, internal migration, economic well-being and cultural identity.

Disruptions to traditional livelihoods

For centuries, many ethnic minorities in China have built their livelihoods around the land. Tibetan nomadic herders, Uyghur and Kazakh farmers and communities like the Yi, Qiang or Tu have long depended on agriculture, grazing and forest products not just for economic survival, but as a way of life deeply tied to ancestral customs and ecological knowledge.

That fabric is now fraying. Climate change, rising temperatures and desertification have degraded pasturelands in Tibet and farmland in Xinjiang, undermining herding and agriculture.

At the same time, state policies like the Grain for Green program, which converts farmland into forest to reduce erosion, have displaced upland farmers and restricted access to traditional lands.

These disruptions are compounded by restrictions on small-scale logging and non-timber forest product collection. These practices have long sustained communities such as the Hani, Dai and Yi.

Although these initiatives aim for environmental conservation, they often lack provisions for alternative livelihood options, rendering affected ethnic minority communities vulnerable to economic hardship.

Internal migration

As China’s environmental and development policies reshape rural regions, ethnic minority communities are increasingly affected by internal migration. Some ethnic minority families move voluntarily for work, while others are displaced by large-scale infrastructure or conservation projects.

In Tibet, expanded rail and road networks have boosted trade, but contributed to the migration of herding communities. In Yunnan, dam construction has displaced villages inhabited by ethnic groups such as the Nu, Lisu, Hani and Bai, often with minimal consultation.

Relocation into urban areas introduces new pressures: overcrowded infrastructure, limited services and increased competition for employment. These conditions can exacerbate the marginalization of ethnic minorities and heighten social tensions.

The effects are especially stark in Xinjiang. Uyghur communities have been relocated to new urban zones where efforts framed as economic development often fracture social structures and push assimilation.

Coupled with securitization measures, such transitions risk eroding cultural identity and deepening socio-economic disparities, particularly among ethnic minority women.

Ultimately, internal migration fragments extended family networks, an essential characteristic for many ethnic minority cultures. Without inclusive planning, these relocations can entrench the very inequities that sustainability efforts seek to address.

A double-edged economy

Green transition policies promise new livelihoods through eco-tourism, conservation work and renewable energy sectors. For some communities, these transitions have created new pathways.

Pilot programs in ecologically sensitive zones such as Qinghai have involved Tibetan herders as conservation workers, combining ecological protection with livelihood maintenance.

These examples remain exceptions. Most affected communities lack training and access to green jobs. The Grain for Green program offers short-term land conversion subsidies, but little in the way of long-term retraining. As a result, some households plunge deeper into poverty after losing access to their farmland or pasture.

Ironically, relocated families sometimes end up in low-paid construction jobs tied to the very projects that displaced them. This circular dependency — displaced by green projects, then employed in their construction — offers no route to upward mobility and deepens socio-economic marginalization.

Cultural displacement

Perhaps the most intangible impact of China’s green transition is cultural. In many ethnic minority communities, livelihoods are intertwined with the environment; rituals follow the seasons and sacred sites mark the land.

Conservation bans and resettlement disrupt ancestral customs and erase mobility patterns, as seen with the sedentarization of Tibetan nomads.

Eco-tourism campaigns and “heritage villages” try to preserve culture. However, they often turn it into a spectacle. Traditions become performances curated for tourists, while the deeper practices — language, inter-generational teaching and land-based rituals — fade.

Well-meaning efforts to promote ethnic minority festivals in the name of boosting tourism have also sometimes led to the standardization of diverse traditions into single narratives, minimizing internal variation in customs and flattening community voices.

A more inclusive green transition?

There is no doubt that China’s climate ambition is transforming its economy and the daily lives of millions. From the Tibetan Plateau to the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang and across the vast grasslands of Inner Mongolia, environmental protection is impacting the people whose lives are rooted in these fragile ecosystems.

Making this transition equitable means ensuring ethnic minorities shape, not merely receive, state policy. That includes integrating local ecological knowledge into conservation planning, providing long-term training for displaced populations and ensuring that relocation compensation reflects economic losses, as well as social and cultural costs.

China frames its environmental vision through the concept of “ecological civilization,” a philosophy rooted in Confucian ideals and socialist principles that seeks to harmonize human development with nature. At its best, this model aspires to align economic growth with ecological balance.

For ecological civilization to fulfil its promise, it must be inclusive and prioritize cultural rights alongside environmental goals. Environmental policymakers must recognize that sustainability is about both reducing emissions and preserving the dignity, heritage and agency of all communities.

China’s green transition has the potential to be a global model. To lead by example, however, it must confront not only the climate crisis, but also the deeper challenge of inclusion.

Reza Hasmath does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How China’s green transition is reshaping ethnic minority communities – https://theconversation.com/how-chinas-green-transition-is-reshaping-ethnic-minority-communities-259793

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Kawser Ahmed, Adjunct Professor at the Political Science department, University of Winnipeg

This week, the RCMP arrested four men in Québec, alleging they were attempting to create an anti-government militia.

The RCMP used the umbrella term “Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremism” to categorize the suspects. Essentially, this means the RCMP alleges they share violent right-wing ideologies. Their arrests raise questions about whether Canada’s problem with right-wing extremism is getting worse.

The group is accused of storing explosive devices, dozens of firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The RCMP seized all of it, and the four suspects are due to appear in Québec City court next week. Three are charged with facilitating a terrorist activity, along with weapon-possession offences.

The suspects include active members of the Canadian Armed Forces, according to the RCMP. Given the allegations that they were planning terrorist attacks for an extremist militia, the inclusion of army personnel might not be surprising.

But it could represent a stark manifestation of a deeply troubling and accelerating trend: the rise of violent right-wing extremism and anti-government or anti-authority radicalization within western democracies. This is a shift dramatically exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic as many seized the opportunity to spread anti-government ideas based on restricted freedoms.

Canada not immune to violent movements

Canada often thinks it’s safe from violent movements, but it’s becoming more vulnerable. This is especially evident in places like Québec, where there has been ideological conflict in the past, including the massacre at a Québec mosque in January 2017.

However, the threat is also clear on a national level.

According to a Canadian intelligence report, far-right extremist groups actively recruit past and present members of the military and police.

There’s also a long-running pattern of militia activity in North America. Activities in the United States show how dangerous it is when violent ideologies spread.

This includes the nihilistic doctrine of accelerationism, which is a white-supremacist belief that the current state of society cannot be fixed and that the only way to repair it is to destroy and collapse the “system”.

There are versions of accelerationism on both the right and left.

The rise in right-wing extremism globally

The charges in Québec shine a spotlight on the global trend of rising right-wing extremism that has been worsening since 2016.

In the past decade, white supremacist, anti-government and militia groups have gained traction. That’s due in part to online echo chambers, growing political and social divisions and the rise and rapid spread of conspiracy theories.

The U.S. is the best and most immediate example. Groups like the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys are well-known, playing a significant role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. These groups are keen to recruit current and former military and law enforcement officers because they know how to handle weapons and use explosives.

In 2023, the FBI repeatedly said domestic violent extremism continues to pose a threat, especially racially or ethnically motivated extremists and anti-government groups.

Accelerationism is behind a lot of this violence. It underpins efforts to speed up the disintegration of society through targeted violence and technology, with the goal of starting a racial war or civil war to bring down liberal democratic institutions.

The Base is an example of this trend. It’s a multinational, trans-border white supremacist network that supports violence to create chaos.

But this is not just a North American problem. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, far-right members of the Ukrainian Azov Regiment reportedly drew western extremists to their cause, many of whom were looking for paramilitary training, possibly to use against their own governments.

Canada: The Base, the ‘freedom convoy’

This global tide doesn’t leave Canada out. The arrests in Québec are the most recent and concerning example.

Patrik Mathews, a former Canadian Army reservist from Winnipeg, was involved in a well-known Canadian case that involved recruiting for The Base, as well as a plot to harm a journalist, Canadian investigative journalist Ryan Thorpe. His reports in the Winnipeg Free Press exposed Mathew’s membership in the The Base.

Mathew fled to the U.S. in 2019. The FBI subsequently arrested him and charged him with gun-related crimes and taking part in a riot at a Virginia protest. Mathew is now serving a long prison sentence for his part in what the FBI called a “neo-Nazi plot to instigate a race war in the United States.”

These examples clearly show how extremists work within national military systems to learn tactical capabilities.

The so-called “freedom convoy” occupation of Ottawa in 2022 also showed troubling connections between radicalism and some parts of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Investigations found numerous active and former Army members were either actively involved with the convoy or donated a lot of money. Some were found to have posted extreme anti-government views online. Some Army members are also vulnerable to the right-wing ideologies of a “white-ethnostate” fuelled by political rhetoric and hate.

All of this paints a bleak picture: extremist ideas are slowly taking hold in Canada as adherents aim to leverage military training to spread cynicism in democratic institutions. Previous studies back this up.

Countering the threat

To deal with this complicated and changing threat, we need a whole society, integrated approach that includes reliable top-down enforcement and monitoring and proactive, bottom-up societal resilience.

To quickly disrupt and deter extremist groups, top-down actions are very important. To properly monitor, penetrate and break up violent extremist networks, law enforcement and security services like CSIS and the RCMP need more resources, updated laws and better co-ordination.

It’s also important for the Canadian Armed Forces and other security-sensitive organizations to have better screening processes to find and purge those with extremist ideas.

But law enforcement isn’t enough. For one, it could be seen as biased, which could lead to more radicalization. Bottom-up methods are just as important for long-term prevention.

We need programs that provide teachers, social workers, community leaders and families with the tools they need to spot early signs of radicalization and do something about it in a positive way.

---

Read more:
How not to counter the radical right

---

Dialogue, education

It’s important to teach people how to think critically, read the news to fight false information and learn about civic duties that stress democratic principles and diversity. This is especially critical to fight against rising hate-motivated crimes.

I am involved in a one such project. It’s called Extremism and Radicalization to Violence Prevention in Manitoba (ERIM). We strive to build resilient communities by creating awareness and early detection of radicalism.

Dialogue and education are paramount.

Canada can’t afford to wait for a disaster to happen before acting. It can’t let its soldiers — those tasked with protecting Canadians and Canada’s security — get caught up in right-wing extremism. They are a source of national pride and should remain so.

Kawser Ahmed has led a Public Safety project called Extremism and Radicalization to Violence Prevention in Manitoba (ERIM)

– ref. Charges against Canadian Army members in anti-government terror plot raise alarms about right-wing extremism – https://theconversation.com/charges-against-canadian-army-members-in-anti-government-terror-plot-raise-alarms-about-right-wing-extremism-260778

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Kawser Ahmed, Adjunct Professor at the Political Science department, University of Winnipeg

This week, the RCMP arrested four men in Québec, alleging they were attempting to create an anti-government militia.

The RCMP used the umbrella term “Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremism” to categorize the suspects. Essentially, this means the RCMP alleges they share violent right-wing ideologies. Their arrests raise questions about whether Canada’s problem with right-wing extremism is getting worse.

The group is accused of storing explosive devices, dozens of firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The RCMP seized all of it, and the four suspects are due to appear in Québec City court next week. Three are charged with facilitating a terrorist activity, along with weapon-possession offences.

The suspects include active members of the Canadian Armed Forces, according to the RCMP. Given the allegations that they were planning terrorist attacks for an extremist militia, the inclusion of army personnel might not be surprising.

But it could represent a stark manifestation of a deeply troubling and accelerating trend: the rise of violent right-wing extremism and anti-government or anti-authority radicalization within western democracies. This is a shift dramatically exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic as many seized the opportunity to spread anti-government ideas based on restricted freedoms.

Canada not immune to violent movements

Canada often thinks it’s safe from violent movements, but it’s becoming more vulnerable. This is especially evident in places like Québec, where there has been ideological conflict in the past, including the massacre at a Québec mosque in January 2017.

However, the threat is also clear on a national level.

According to a Canadian intelligence report, far-right extremist groups actively recruit past and present members of the military and police.

There’s also a long-running pattern of militia activity in North America. Activities in the United States show how dangerous it is when violent ideologies spread.

This includes the nihilistic doctrine of accelerationism, which is a white-supremacist belief that the current state of society cannot be fixed and that the only way to repair it is to destroy and collapse the “system”.

There are versions of accelerationism on both the right and left.

The rise in right-wing extremism globally

The charges in Québec shine a spotlight on the global trend of rising right-wing extremism that has been worsening since 2016.

In the past decade, white supremacist, anti-government and militia groups have gained traction. That’s due in part to online echo chambers, growing political and social divisions and the rise and rapid spread of conspiracy theories.

The U.S. is the best and most immediate example. Groups like the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys are well-known, playing a significant role in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. These groups are keen to recruit current and former military and law enforcement officers because they know how to handle weapons and use explosives.

In 2023, the FBI repeatedly said domestic violent extremism continues to pose a threat, especially racially or ethnically motivated extremists and anti-government groups.

Accelerationism is behind a lot of this violence. It underpins efforts to speed up the disintegration of society through targeted violence and technology, with the goal of starting a racial war or civil war to bring down liberal democratic institutions.

The Base is an example of this trend. It’s a multinational, trans-border white supremacist network that supports violence to create chaos.

But this is not just a North American problem. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, far-right members of the Ukrainian Azov Regiment reportedly drew western extremists to their cause, many of whom were looking for paramilitary training, possibly to use against their own governments.

Canada: The Base, the ‘freedom convoy’

This global tide doesn’t leave Canada out. The arrests in Québec are the most recent and concerning example.

Patrik Mathews, a former Canadian Army reservist from Winnipeg, was involved in a well-known Canadian case that involved recruiting for The Base, as well as a plot to harm a journalist, Canadian investigative journalist Ryan Thorpe. His reports in the Winnipeg Free Press exposed Mathew’s membership in the The Base.

Mathew fled to the U.S. in 2019. The FBI subsequently arrested him and charged him with gun-related crimes and taking part in a riot at a Virginia protest. Mathew is now serving a long prison sentence for his part in what the FBI called a “neo-Nazi plot to instigate a race war in the United States.”

These examples clearly show how extremists work within national military systems to learn tactical capabilities.

The so-called “freedom convoy” occupation of Ottawa in 2022 also showed troubling connections between radicalism and some parts of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Investigations found numerous active and former Army members were either actively involved with the convoy or donated a lot of money. Some were found to have posted extreme anti-government views online. Some Army members are also vulnerable to the right-wing ideologies of a “white-ethnostate” fuelled by political rhetoric and hate.

All of this paints a bleak picture: extremist ideas are slowly taking hold in Canada as adherents aim to leverage military training to spread cynicism in democratic institutions. Previous studies back this up.

Countering the threat

To deal with this complicated and changing threat, we need a whole society, integrated approach that includes reliable top-down enforcement and monitoring and proactive, bottom-up societal resilience.

To quickly disrupt and deter extremist groups, top-down actions are very important. To properly monitor, penetrate and break up violent extremist networks, law enforcement and security services like CSIS and the RCMP need more resources, updated laws and better co-ordination.

It’s also important for the Canadian Armed Forces and other security-sensitive organizations to have better screening processes to find and purge those with extremist ideas.

But law enforcement isn’t enough. For one, it could be seen as biased, which could lead to more radicalization. Bottom-up methods are just as important for long-term prevention.

We need programs that provide teachers, social workers, community leaders and families with the tools they need to spot early signs of radicalization and do something about it in a positive way.

---

Read more:
How not to counter the radical right

---

Dialogue, education

It’s important to teach people how to think critically, read the news to fight false information and learn about civic duties that stress democratic principles and diversity. This is especially critical to fight against rising hate-motivated crimes.

I am involved in a one such project. It’s called Extremism and Radicalization to Violence Prevention in Manitoba (ERIM). We strive to build resilient communities by creating awareness and early detection of radicalism.

Dialogue and education are paramount.

Canada can’t afford to wait for a disaster to happen before acting. It can’t let its soldiers — those tasked with protecting Canadians and Canada’s security — get caught up in right-wing extremism. They are a source of national pride and should remain so.

Kawser Ahmed has led a Public Safety project called Extremism and Radicalization to Violence Prevention in Manitoba (ERIM)

– ref. Charges against Canadian Army members in anti-government terror plot raises alarms about right-wing extremism – https://theconversation.com/charges-against-canadian-army-members-in-anti-government-terror-plot-raises-alarms-about-right-wing-extremism-260778

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Kim Honey, CEO|Editor-in-Chief, The Conversation Canada

The Conversation Canada is seeking a dynamic and thoughtful Culture & Society Editor with a background in critical race scholarship to join our editorial team. This remote, full-time, 10-month contract position is ideal for an experienced editor who is passionate about shaping public discourse through rigorous, accessible journalism.

As the Culture & Society Editor, you will work closely with academics from across Canada, and sometimes globally, to commission, edit and publish articles that explore the intersections of culture, identity, race, media, politics and society. You will play a key role in ensuring our coverage reflects a diversity of voices and perspectives, particularly those grounded in critical race theory, decolonial thought, Indigenous studies and other transformative frameworks that challenge dominant narratives.

Your responsibilities will include identifying timely and relevant story ideas, working collaboratively with academics to develop their ideas into clear, compelling content and upholding The Conversation Canada’s editorial standards of evidence-based, non-partisan journalism. You will also help expand our network of contributors from equity-deserving communities and ensure inclusive representation in our content, and will work closely and collaboratively with team members to publish stories in a timely fashion.

This role offers the opportunity to influence national conversations by bringing scholarly expertise into the public sphere, especially on matters of racial justice, cultural expression and societal transformation.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: August 5, 2025

The ideal candidate will have:

• A degree in the humanities, social sciences or journalism
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About The Conversation Canada

The Conversation Canada is a successful news startup in its eighth year of operation, which has a French-language sister site, La Conversation, in Quebec. It is a unique collaboration between academics and professional journalists, and we belong to a global network with eight other editions covering Africa, Australia, Brazil, France, Indonesia, New Zealand, the U.K. and the U.S. The Conversation Canada has editors in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Victoria, and we offer a friendly working environment with a passionate and mission-driven team.

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– ref. We’re hiring: Culture & Society Editor – https://theconversation.com/were-hiring-culture-and-society-editor-260789

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Jiaying Zhao, Associate Professor, Psychology, University of British Columbia

Imagine you’re standing at a bottle depot with an empty pop can. You can get a dime back, or you can take a chance at winning $1,000. Which would you choose?

Every year, the world produces two trillion beverage containers but only 34 per cent of glass bottles, 40 per cent of plastic bottles and 70 per cent of aluminium cans are recycled.

To increase recycling rates, many countries have adopted deposit refund systems, where you pay a small deposit, say 10 cents, when you buy an eligible beverage container and get this deposit back when you return it to a local depot.

Through this system, approximately 80 per cent of containers in British Columbia and almost 85 per cent of containers in Alberta are recovered. Still, that leaves millions of containers as litter, in landfills or incinerated every year, contributing to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

With Canada’s goal of zero plastic waste by 2030 drawing near, a new approach to recycling beverage containers could make a difference.

We recently conducted a research experiment to find out if more people would recycle more often if they had a chance to win a prize.

A lottery-style refund to boost recycling

Psychology research shows that people tend to prefer a small chance to win a large reward over a guaranteed small reward. For example, people would more often prefer a small chance to win $5,000 over receiving a $5 reward.

Applying this insight to recycling, we turned the small guaranteed refund of $0.10 in B.C. and Alberta into a 0.01 per cent chance of getting $1,000. We set up recycling tables at food courts in Vancouver and at a RibFest event in Spruce Grove, Alta.

When people brought their beverage containers to us to recycle, we presented them with five options for a refund. They could get their guaranteed 10 cents, or a chance to win a larger amount of money, the highest option being $1,000.

We found that people preferred the chance to win $1,000 over the other options, and they felt the happiest after making this choice.

To see if the lottery option actually increased recycling, we conducted an experiment where we told people ahead of time that they would get their guaranteed 10-cent refund or that they had a chance to win $1,000 for each bottle they brought to our study.

We found that people brought 47 per cent more beverage containers when we offered them a chance to win $1,000 than when we offered them the guaranteed refund.

Overall, our findings suggest that offering a chance to win a larger amount of money can meaningfully boost beverage container recycling. The excitement of a potential big win can motivate people who may not be enticed by the typical small, guaranteed refund.

Choice matters

A one-size-fits-all approach won’t work. People recycle for different reasons. They also have different risk tolerances, and some may rely on the guaranteed refund for additional income. To capture diverse preferences and needs, it’s vital that the lottery-style refund is offered in addition to the guaranteed refund, not instead of it.

It would also be beneficial to include smaller, more frequent prizes alongside the grand prize, so people win relatively frequently to keep motivations high.

This is Norway’s approach to their recycling lottery, with 39 per cent of people choosing the lottery option when they recycle. In 2023, Norway’s recycling lottery achieved a 92.3 per cent container return rate.

Importantly, our research does not capture people who collect large bags of containers to return to the depot. It’s possible that this demographic may have different preferences for the refund, and future research should examine this group in particular.

Green lottery for good

The lottery-style refund has the same expected payout as the 10-cent refund per bottle. This means that, on average, people will take home the same amount of money as with the guaranteed option, without incurring additional losses or gains. This benevolent factor distinguishes the lottery-style refund from other types of lotteries or gambling that often profit off the players.

Since the only way to enter this lottery-style refund is to recycle beverage containers, it’s impossible to directly re-enter any winnings into the lottery. There are also no near-misses, losses disguised as wins, exciting lights and sounds or other sensory stimulation often associated with gambling.

Some might be apprehensive about potential gambling dangers of creating a lottery system. However, there has not been a single case linking the recycling lottery to gambling addiction. There is also no evidence that purchases of beverage containers would increase as a result of the lottery-style refund.

Our study’s transparent design, with clear odds, ensures fairness, unlike casino games built to take players’ cash. For this approach to be successful, deposit refund systems must maintain this transparency in lottery-style program operations and payouts.

If done right, offering a chance to win a higher amount of money for recycling can meaningfully increase recycling rates, contribute to a circular economy and allow people to choose the refund option that works best for them.

Jiaying Zhao receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Jade Radke receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Fellowship and the University of British Columbia Indigenous Graduate Fellowship.

– ref. How a lottery-style refund system could boost recycling – https://theconversation.com/how-a-lottery-style-refund-system-could-boost-recycling-259896

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Chris Houser, Professor in Department of Earth and Environmental Science, and Dean of Science, University of Waterloo

Between 2010 and 2017, there were approximately 50 drowning fatalities each year associated with rough surf and strong currents in the Great Lakes.

In addition to the personal loss experienced by family and friends, these drownings create an annual economic burden on the regional economy of around US$105 million, and that doesn’t include the direct costs of search and rescue.

Types of rip currents

Rip currents — commonly referred to as rips or colloquially as rip tides — are driven by the breaking of waves. These currents extend away from the shoreline and can flow at speeds easily capable of carrying swimmers far from the beach.

Structural rips are common throughout the Great Lakes (Grand Haven on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, for example) and develop when groynes, jetties and rock structures deflect the alongshore current offshore, beyond the breaking waves. Depending on the waves and the structure, a shadow rip can also develop on the other side of the groyne or jetty.

Rips can also develop anywhere that variations in the bathymetry (the topography of the sand underwater) — such as nearshore bars — causes wave-breaking to vary along the beach, which makes the water thrown landward by the breaking waves return offshore as a concentrated flow at the water’s surface. These are known as channel or bathymetric rips and are they can form along sand beaches in the Great Lakes.

While it can be difficult to spot a channel rip, they can be identified by an area of relatively calm water between breaking waves, a patch of darker water or the offshore flow of water, sediment and debris.

A person caught in a rip is transported away from shore into deeper water, but they are not pulled under the water. If they are a weak swimmer or try to fight the current, they may panic and fail to find a way out of the rip and back to shore before submerging.

Rip current hazards

Most rip fatalities occur on unsupervised beaches or on supervised beaches when and where lifeguards are not present. While many popular beaches near large urban centres have lifeguards, many beaches don’t. Along just the east coast of Lake Huron, there are more than 40 public beaches, including Goderich, Bayfield, Southampton and Sauble Beach, but only two have lifeguard programs (Sarnia and Grand Bend).

Simple warning signs are used on many beaches, but visitors either don’t pay attention or don’t know how to interpret the warning.

Non-local visitors are a high-risk group for drownings. They are less likely to make safe swimming choices than residents or regular beach-goers, because visitors are generally unfamiliar with the beach and its safety measures, have poor knowledge of beach hazards like rip currents and breaking waves and are overconfident in their swimming ability.

Recent findings from a popular beach on Lake Huron suggest that those with less experience at the beach tend to make decisions of convenience rather than based on beach safety. Residents with greater knowledge of the local hazards tend to avoid swimming near where the rip can develop.

But even when people are aware of rip currents and other beach hazards, they may not make the right decisions. Despite the presence of warnings, people’s actions are greatly influenced by the behaviour of others, peer pressure and group-think. The social cost of not entering the water with the group may appear to outweigh the risk posed by entering the water.

The behaviour of beach users is affected by confirmation bias, a cognitive shortcut where a person selectively pays attention to evidence confirming their pre-existing beliefs and ignores evidence to the contrary. When someone enters the water and does not encounter strong waves or currents, they’re more likely to engage in risky behaviour on their next visit to that beach or a similar beach.

Vacationers and day visitors can stay safe only if they are aware that there is the potential for rip currents and rough surf at beaches in the Great Lakes. Just because a beach is accessible and has numerous attractions does not mean it is safe.

Advocating for beach safety

In the United States, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration runs programs designed to educate beach users about surf and rip hazards. But Canada hasn’t implemented a national beach safety strategy.

Education about rips and dangerous surf falls on the shoulders of advocates, many of whom have been impacted by a drowning in the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project has been tracking and educating school and community groups about rip currents and rough surf in the Great Lakes since 2010.

Several new advocacy groups have started in recent years, including Kincardine Beach Safety on Lake Huron and the Rip Current Information Project on Lake Erie. Given that there is limited public interest in surf-related drownings and limited media coverage, these advocacy groups are helping to increase awareness of rip currents and rough surf across the Great Lakes.

To ensure a safe trip to the beach, beachgoers should seek out more information about rip currents and other surf hazards in the Great Lakes.

Chris Houser receives funding from NSERC.

– ref. The Great Lakes are powerful. Learning about ‘rip currents’ can help prevent drowning – https://theconversation.com/the-great-lakes-are-powerful-learning-about-rip-currents-can-help-prevent-drowning-260060

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Jeffrey S. Rosenthal, Professor of Statistics, University of Toronto

As a mild-mannered statistics professor, it’s not often that I get
contacted directly by the CEO of a multi-million-dollar company, much less regarding allegations of cheating and malfeasance among world champions.

But that’s precisely what happened last summer. Erik Allebest, CEO of the world’s largest online chess site, Chess.com, asked me to investigate former world chess champion Vladimir Kramnik’s concerns about the long winning streaks of top player Hikaru Nakamura.

Kramnik argued that these streaks had very low probability and were therefore very suspicious and “interesting.” He didn’t quite accuse Hikaru of cheating, but the implication was clear. Feelings were running high, with Kramnik’s supporters posting angry comments (often in Russian) about cheating as many Chess.com players and Hikaru partisans dismissed the accusations.

Who was right? Who was wrong? Who could say?

Allebest asked me to conduct an independent, unbiased statistical analysis to see just how unlikely those chess winning streaks actually were.

Now, I am no stranger to public statistical disputes, having published a
best-selling book about everyday probabilities and conducted the statistical analysis for the high-profile lottery retailer scandal. But could statistical analysis really help to clarify this simmering controversy on the world’s biggest chess stage?

Calculating probabilities

To sort this out, I first had to calculate the probability of each player winning or tying each game. Different players can have very different abilities, and more advanced players have a greater chance of defeating less experienced opponents. But just how great?

Chess.com assigns a chess rating to each player after each game, and these ratings were shared with me. My analysis suggested that a certain logistic — or s-shaped — curve function provided an accurate estimate of each game’s probabilities.

Furthermore, deviations from this probability in successive game results were approximately independent, so the influence of one game on the next could be safely ignored. This gave me a clear probability of each player winning each game.

I could then analyze those winning streaks that had provoked so much ire. It turned out that Hikaru, unlike most other top players, had played lots of games against much weaker players. This gave him a very high probability of winning each game. But even so, should he have such long winning streaks, sometimes more than 100 games in a row?

Testing randomness

To check this, I conducted some Monte Carlo simulations, which repeat a test with random variations.

I wrote computer programs to randomly assign wins and losses and draws to each of Hikaru’s games, according to the probabilities from my model. I had the computer measure the most surprising winning streaks each time. This allowed me to measure how Hikaru’s actual streaks stacked up against what we should expect.

I found that in many of the Monte Carlo simulations, the
simulated results included streaks just as unlikely as the actual ones.
This demonstrated that Hikaru’s chess results were just about what might
be expected. He had such a high probability of winning each game, and had played so many games on Chess.com, that such long winning streaks were likely to emerge according to the rules of probability alone.

Responses to findings

I wrote up a brief report of my findings, and sent it to Chess.com.
It ran a news item on its site, which elicited many comments, mostly supportive.

Hikaru then posted his own video commentary, also supporting my analysis. But meanwhile, Kramnik posted a 29-minute video criticizing my research.

Kramnik did include some substantive points, so I wrote an addendum to my report to address his concerns and show that they would not effect the conclusion. I also converted my report into a formal paper, which I submitted to a research journal.

I then got busy with my teaching duties and put the chess controversies
out of my mind until I received a response in December. It consisted of three referee reports and editor comments, with detailed comments totalling six single-spaced pages.

I also then discovered that Kramnik had posted a second 59-minute video critiquing my addendum and raising additional points, too.

I addressed Kramnik’s and the referees’ additional points while revising my article for publication. My paper was finally published in the Harvard Data Science Review.

I was glad to have my findings published in a prestigious statistics journal, thus giving them a formal stamp of approval. And perhaps, at long last, to settle this particular champion-level chess controversy.

Jeffrey S. Rosenthal receives research funding from NSERC of Canada, but received no compensation from Chess.com or anyone else for this work.

– ref. I’m a statistics professor who became embroiled in the world of online chess drama – https://theconversation.com/im-a-statistics-professor-who-became-embroiled-in-the-world-of-online-chess-drama-256294

Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Michael J. Armstrong, Associate Professor, Operations Research, Brock University

Before Canada legalized recreational cannabis in October 2018, it was unclear how the change might affect beverage alcohol consumption. Would consumers drink less or more after cannabis became legal?

Drinking might decrease, for example, if people used cannabis in place of alcohol. That switch potentially could reduce alcohol-related harms. But economically, it would mean any gains in the cannabis industry would likely come at the expense of alcohol producers.

Conversely, drinking might increase if people used alcohol along with cannabis. That could boost alcohol industry profits and government tax revenues, but at the cost of increased health risks of both substances.

In response to this uncertainty, some businesses diversified. One alcohol producer bought a cannabis grower, while a cannabis firm took took over several beer brewers.

Research from the United States into the relationship between alcohol and cannabis use is inconclusive. Some studies report that alcohol use decreased in states that allowed cannabis, while others said usage increased or didn’t significantly change. Those conflicting conclusions might reflect the complex legal situation in the United States, where cannabis remains illegal under federal law, even in states that allow its use.

In Canada, some studies indicate alcohol consumption declined slightly as medical cannabis use became more common. Did similar decreases follow recreational legalization?

To investigate this question, I first collaborated with health science researchers Daniel Myran, Robert Talarico, Jennifer Xiao and Rachael MacDonald-Spracklin to study Canada’s overall alcohol sales.

Total sales looked stable

We started our research by examining annual alcohol sales from 2004 to 2022. During that period, beer sales gradually fell, while the sale of coolers and other drinks steadily rose. That left total sales basically unchanged.

So consumers were apparently switching from beer to other beverages. But there were no obvious effects from 2018’s cannabis legalization.

We also compared monthly sales during the 12 months before legalization versus the 12 after. This included national average sales by liquor retailers and beer producers. In both cases, sales trends showed no significant changes in October 2018.

However, this research on Canada-wide sales was mainly designed to detect large changes. To find subtler ones, I focused on the province of Nova Scotia.

Some liquor stores sold cannabis

When Canada legalized cannabis, most provinces banned liquor stores from selling it to avoid tempting alcohol drinkers into trying cannabis.

Nova Scotia did the opposite. Its government-owned liquor corporation became the main cannabis retailer. After legalization in October 2018, most provincial liquor stores kept selling only alcohol, but some began selling cannabis as well.

This unique situation prompted me to study the province’s sales. I focused on the 17 months before and 17 months after legalization.

The corporation’s total alcohol sales initially fell in October 2018, then slowly regrew. As a result, monthly sales after legalization averaged about $500,000 below their earlier levels.

More interestingly, the changes differed between the cannabis-selling stores and the alcohol-only ones. At the alcohol-only stores, sales immediately fell. They averaged $800,000 below previous levels.

But at cannabis-sellers, alcohol sales began growing. Total monthly sales from October 2018 to February 2020 averaged $300,000 above earlier levels.

The divergence in sales was larger for beers than for spirits or wines.

Interestingly, alcohol-only stores located near cannabis-selling stores had changes similar to those located farther away, suggesting that cannabis-seller proximity didn’t matter.

Switching substances or stores?

My data can’t say why the sales split occurred, but I can speculate.

Consider the immediate sales drop at alcohol-only stores — this could suggest some consumers switched from alcohol to cannabis right after legalization.

Meanwhile, the lack of a drop at cannabis sellers might mean some consumers simply changed where they shopped. Instead of visiting their local alcohol-only retailer, they went to cannabis sellers to shop for alcohol and cannabis together.

The cannabis sellers’ ongoing growth might reflect people increasingly buying cannabis from licensed stores instead of illegal dealers. They went to those stores to buy weed, but picked up some extra booze while they were there.

Looking ahead

My research so far has focused on the initial post-legalization period, from October 2018 to February 2020.

I plan to study later periods next, when cannabis retailing was more widespread and perhaps more influential.

That will be more challenging, however, because COVID-19 arrived in March 2020. The pandemic disrupted sales of alcohol, though not of cannabis. It will be tricky to separate cannabis effects from pandemic ones, or from Canadian consumers’ evolving drinking habits in general.

My guess is that cannabis legalization had little short-term impact on existing drinkers overall. Most Canadians didn’t suddenly consume cannabis with their cabernet or replace vodka with vapes.

Instead, we might see gradual long-term shifts. Young Canadians now reach legal age in a context where cannabis and alcohol are both allowed. Some folks who previously would have started drinking alcohol might now choose cannabis instead, or in addition.

For now, alcohol drinking is still three times more common than cannabis use. Whether that continues, only time will tell.

Michael J. Armstrong does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Alcohol sales changed subtly after Canada legalized cannabis – https://theconversation.com/alcohol-sales-changed-subtly-after-canada-legalized-cannabis-260375