Front Burner

Monkeypox was first detected in humans in 1970, but it has rarely spread beyond Central and West Africa, until now. As of Tuesday, 17 countries where the virus is not endemic have reported at least one case, including Canada.

Given that COVID-19 is still a part of our day-to-day lives, the threat of another infectious disease spreading at a rapid rate feels unsettling at best. While there are many reasons to be aware of monkeypox, its symptoms and how it spreads, there are also plenty of reasons not to panic.

Today on Front Burner, Dr. Boghuma Titanji, an infectious diseases doctor and scientist from Cameroon who is currently based at Emory University in Atlanta, delivers a primer on what you need to know about monkeypox. She also dispels some rumours about how it spreads and explains where we go from here.

A new investigation from the Guardian’s climate journalists shows that oil and gas investment continues globally on 195 projects that would each release more than one gigaton of carbon if the reserves were fully exploited.

This, despite the fact that scientists say 60 per cent of oil and gas reserves will need to stay in the ground if we want to avoid heating the Earth by 1.5 C.

If you add up all of the carbon that could be released from these oil and gas “carbon bombs,” Canada is in sixth place as one of the worst potential polluters. We’re home to nine sites that could release more than 27 gigatons of carbon. Canada is also home to three coal carbon bombs.

Damian Carrington is the environment editor of the Guardian. He says the ongoing investment in these projects reveal an oil and gas industry that does not believe the world will achieve its climate goals.

Kuper Island is an 8-part series that tells the stories of four students: three who survived and one who didn’t. They attended one of Canada’s most notorious residential schools – where unsolved deaths, abuse, and lies haunt the community and the survivors to this day. Hosted by Duncan McCue. More episodes are available at hyperurl.co/kuperisland

On Wednesday, the United States Soccer Federation reached a landmark agreement that ensures the U.S. women’s and men’s national soccer teams are paid equally.

The first of its kind, the deal puts an exclamation point on a wildly successful run for the U.S. women’s team, including four FIFA World Cup titles that date back to 1991 — and Olympic gold medals in 2008 and 2012. But it only came about after a hard-fought battle led by the team’s star players.

Today on Front Burner, staff writer at The Athletic Stephanie Yang is here to break down how that battle played out and what the result means for women’s sport around the world.

He won a majority of his party’s support in the United Conservative Party leadership review, but it wasn’t enough for Jason Kenney to remain leader of the party he co-founded.

Kenney stepped down last night after the results were announced, despite winning 51.4 percent of the vote, saying "it clearly is not adequate support to continue on as leader."

Today, CBC Calgary Opinion producer and analyst Jason Markusoff walks us through Kenney’s spectacular fall from power and what this shocking result means for his party and the province of Alberta.

On Saturday, a white gunman drove to the only supermarket in a predominantly Black area on the east side of Buffalo, N.Y. He shot 13 people — 11 Black, two white. Ten people died. Law enforcement officials have labelled the massacre a racially motivated hate crime.

Many of those killed were pillars of a tight-knit community shaped by decades of segregation.

Today on Front Burner, we talk to former Erie County legislator and former Buffalo city councillor, Betty Jean Grant, about how community members are trying to support one another through their grief and horror.

This year is the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, which marks her 70 years on the throne and as our head of state. But as Elizabeth ages, she’s been stepping back and paving the way for her son, Charles, to become King.

This week, Charles and his wife, Camilla, are coming to Canada — visiting St. John's, Ottawa and Yellowknife — on a trip they say will focus on Indigenous reconciliation and climate change.

Today we’re exploring whether we should follow in the footsteps of other Commonwealth nations that have recently abolished the monarchy — notably, Barbados and Jamaica.

According to a recent Angus Reid poll, 51 per cent of respondents said Canada should not remain a monarchy in coming generations. But abolishing the monarchy is a lot more complex than you might think. We’re talking about why that is with David Schneiderman, a law and political science professor at the University of Toronto, and Jordan Gray, a policy analyst with Indigenous Affairs Canada.

Right now, undercover inspectors from France’s prestigious Michelin Guide are visiting Canada for the first time, to decide if any of Toronto’s restaurants are worthy of a coveted Michelin Star.

Getting that designation from the de facto gastronomical authority can propel a chef and their restaurant to stardom. But the Michelin Guide has also been plagued with allegations of bias, elitism, putting dangerous levels of strain on chefs, and ignoring how the workers making the food are treated.

Today, food writers Nancy Matsumoto and Corey Mintz join us to hash out what the guide’s arrival in Canada could mean for a beleaguered industry — and whether it even matters.

Chinese fashion retailer Shein isn't just fast — it's ultrafast. The $100 billion company has captivated young shoppers by using social media to market its dirt-cheap clothing.

However, despite all the success, not much is known about Shein's sales, supply chains or algorithms. Critics are now sounding the alarm over the environmental and social impact of Shein, and what its rise means for the future of fashion.

Today, Vauhini Vara, a journalist who has written for the New Yorker, Wired and the Wall Street Journal, explains the alluring world of Shein, and what ultrafast fashion means for the planet.

Last night, six Conservative leadership hopefuls squared off in the first official debate of the race. Conservative MPs Pierre Poilievre, Leslyn Lewis and Scott Aitchison; former Quebec premier Jean Charest; Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown; and Ontario MPP Roman Baber shared the stage – and while they’re all supposed to be playing for the same team, things still got a bit scrappy. Power and Politics host Vassy Kapelos was in Edmonton for the event and she joins Jayme Poisson to recap the night.