During  Rossland's  Miners Hall renovation, I was disappointed to see that the new roof is a dark chocolate brown instead of a  more reflective, pale colour that would help to cool not only the building, but also our city.   The more of a building's  sky-facing surfaces that can reflect the sun's energy, rather than absorbing...

Scenario: the year is 2007 (or 1997). A political science class is presented with a hypothetical election outcome where parties A and B have each received 40% of the vote and party C the remaining 20%. The class is asked to write an essay: This is the Government the People have Elected. Many agree that, while possible in...

The muggle problem Anyone familiar with the Harry Potter universe knows what a muggle is: a human being without magical ability. The word communicates a depth of low valuation, a dismissive judgement of people who cannot do what Harry and his ilk can do [though the better sort of magic-endowed feel responsible for protecting...

Governments change — along with laws, regulations and priorities. It’s the nature of democracies. In Canada, we’ve seen environmental laws implemented, then weakened or overturned, then strengthened and re-instated. But the basic necessities of health, well-being and life shouldn’t be subject to the shifting agendas of political...

This weekend, Graeme Lee Rowlands reached the end of an impressive six-week journey across the Columbia Basin. Calling himself “the anadromous cyclist”(in reference to the Columbia River’s spawning fish), the 22-year-old university student has spent the past month cycling up the river – from its mouth...

For the past month, we have seen a series of wildfires race through the British Columbia interior, destroying homes, disrupting lives and damaging businesses.  The BC government has already spent over $150 million fighting the fires and has provided over $100 million in relief to those who have been forced from their homes....

An acquaintance recently said to me, "I guess you're smiling because the NDP are forming the government now."  Actually, I was smiling about something completely non-political.  Besides, I tend to be a bit agnostic about party politics; are political parties really necessary?  She went on to say that in her recollection, "when...

Of all the plastic products we use and take for granted, plastic drinking straws are among the most unnecessary. Designed to be used once and discarded, their only real purpose is to keep your mouth from touching a glass or ice. It made more sense in the days when contaminated vessels were more of an issue. Now, there’s a...

Houston, we have a consensus. Well, almost. All three parties in the B.C. legislature now support a ban on corporate and union donations, as well as setting a cap on personal contributions. It's that last one that gets tricky. What's the right cap? Perhaps B.C.'s new government should rip a page out of Alberta's NDP playbook....

Interior Health teams across IH West are working closely with emergency officials from several agencies to respond to the wildfire activity around the communities we serve. Together, we are carefully considering the best options for our patients and staff who are located where significant wildfire activity is ongoing.   Since...