Jon Cornish is a sports legend and community hero in Calgary. They played nine seasons for the Stampeders, won two Grey Cups, the Lou Marsh Trophy and is a member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. And after their CFL career, they decided to stay in Calgary. They founded the city's premiere Black leadership organization — the Calgary Black Chambers. And since 2022 they have served as Chancellor of the University of Calgary. We talk to Jon Cornish about the city they love, and the future of Calgary they hope to see.

We talk to the Premier of Alberta, Danielle Smith, about the separatist movement to take Alberta out of Canada, and the major push for a nation-building pipeline, happening at the same time. 

Downtown Calgary is undergoing a massive transformation. There's been a huge influx of funding for new arts and culture, including what's soon to be the biggest performing arts campus in Canada. So, we go there to hear from the locals! 

Naheed Nenshi is the former mayor of Calgary and the leader of the Alberta NDP. He joins us to talk about his province’s future, being the leader of the opposition against Premier of Alberta Danielle Smith, and NDP Alberta’s relationship with the federal New Democratic Party after Avi Lewis becomes the new leader.

The Current live from Calgary

Matt Galloway hosts a special live taping from Calgary — a city at a crossroads. This episode was recorded before a live audience at the Bella Concert Hall. 

Guests: 

Politics panel: Pollster Janet Brown and Kathleen Petty, host of Alberta @ Noon and the West of Centre Podcast 

Mariel Buckley, 2026 Juno winner for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year

Faris Hytiaa, rising comedy star

Mark Tewksbury, three-time Olympic medalist turned Red Seal Chef

Danielle L. Jensen, bestselling romantasy author 

Marty Wildman, rodeo legend and co-founder of Stunt Nations 

Business panel: Alex Pourbaix, Cenovus board chair and Deborah Yedlin, CEO of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce 

Iran and the U.S. have agreed to a two week ceasefire and Iran has agreed to open up the Strait of Hormuz. After posting “a whole civilization will die tonight,” Donald Trump gave Iran a deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and then a last minute agreement was reached. Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent for The Economist, joins us from Qatar to talk about the conditions of the ceasefire. And Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Professor of Political Science at Missouri University of Science and Technology, talks about reaction in the Iranian diaspora and the political fallout of the war in the United States.

 We’re replaying our conversation with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen from October. He is one of the four astronauts on the Artemis II mission, currently on a 10-day trip around the moon and back. It’s the first crewed lunar mission in more than 50 years, testing what it really takes for humans and their spacecraft to survive deep space, and setting the stage for the next big leap.

The Liberals are potentially on the verge of gaining a majority in the House of Commons that could change how the country is run — and it’s coming down to three by-elections that are happening on April 13. Our Emma Godmere visited one of those ridings, Terrebonne, ahead of Monday's byelection to speak to politicians and voters about what's at stake.

After nearly a year of protests, court fights, and a sprawling online campaign, in November, more than 300 ostriches in the tiny community of Edgewood, B.C. were culled to stop the spread of avian flu. In a new investigation The Fifth Estate looks into the battle between science and conspiracy — and what this saga reveals about the larger political and cultural moment we're in. The Fifth Estate’s co-host Mark Kelley brings us the story of “The Ostrich Con.”

The idea of public grocery stores is having a moment. Toronto is looking at opening four stores that would sell food at lower prices than the private chains. We’ll talk about how it could work, and why some experts say it’s not the way to solve the cost-of-living crisis.