The Decibel

Albertans will head to the polls in just over a month, on Oct. 19, to vote in a referendum. There are 10 questions, but the one that’s garnering the most attention is the question about separation: do they want to remain in Canada, or hold another referendum on whether to separate? Polling suggests 70 to 75 per cent of Albertans want to stay in Canada, but the federalists are having trouble raising enough money to get the message out.

We’re talking to Marieke Walsh, a senior political reporter for The Globe, and Matthew Scace, a Globe reporter based in Calgary. They’ll break down why the ‘Remain’ side, which has an overwhelming amount of public support, is struggling to translate that into campaign contributions, and what a disorganized campaign could mean for the outcome of the referendum.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Headlines about vacant office buildings and deserted downtowns is old news. The return to office, in downtown Toronto especially, is back on. Vacancy rates have plummeted, commute-fuelled traffic is up and businesses are scrambling to find more space for their workers.

Globe reporter Jason Kirby takes us behind the numbers, the return-to-office mandates and what this post-pandemic shift tells us about the future of work.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Starting today, 300 big-money investors are descending upon Toronto to take part in the inaugural Canada Investment Summit. Prime Minister Mark Carney will try to convince them to fund development projects in the country, such as oil and gas pipelines, critical mineral mines and data centres. Getting their buy-in is a crucial plank in the prime minister’s plan to diversify and fortify the country.

James Bradshaw is The Globe’s institutional investment reporter. He’ll be covering the event. He’s on the show to explain what projects are being offered and what this means for Canada’s economy while we’re engaged in a trade war with the U.S.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Personal connections have always mattered when it comes to political lobbying, but as the trade war ramps up, and global interests try to influence U.S. policy as set by U.S. President Donald Trump, industry sources told The Globe that those connections at the executive level matter now more than ever.

Today, Irene Galea is on the show. She’s a business reporter for The Globe, and she was in Washington, D.C. in the lead up to Canada’s countertariffs coming into effect. She’s here to talk about how the dynamics of lobbying have changed and what that tells us about power and influence in the trade war.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Scary bond market headlines – warnings of an impending financial crisis – have been in the news for weeks now thanks to a rise in U.S. Treasury yields. This market is the bedrock for much of the global financial system and changes in it can ripple across governments and companies and right into people’s bank accounts.

Scott Barlow is a columnist for Globe Investor. He explains the worry about the current rising bond yields, what’s behind the increase and what kind of impact it may have on your life.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With Canada’s countertariffs coming into effect on roughly $28-billion worth of U.S. goods on Tuesday, the trade war between Canada and the U.S. is heating up. With neither side indicating whether they plan to return to the negotiating table anytime soon, we wanted to look at how Carney’s goal to drum up foreign investment is going.

Tim Shufelt is the Globe’s investment reporter. He’s here to talk about whether Carney’s bet on foreign investment is working, which sectors are seeing an increase in investments, and what this says about the resilience of Canada’s economy.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A growing and worrying trend is happening in Canadian schools – student violence against teachers is on the rise. Data from school boards across Canada supports this finding, with one study finding that the modern-day classroom is a hazardous workplace. But the reasons why violence is more common are complex, and educators, school boards and unions aren’t always in agreement on how to fix it.

Dave McGinn, The Globe’s education reporter, joins the show to recount the experiences of teachers who’ve faced assault, the reasons why violence is surging and what ideas are being considered to address a nationwide problem in the education system.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A big issue hangs over university students and professors, and that’s artificial intelligence. There are some rules and guidelines, but professors are largely left on their own to determine how much they want to adopt AI or not – and that’s created a wide range of opinions.

Today, we hear from five Canadian university professors about how they’re thinking about education and students in the world of AI. We speak with Amanda Perry, professor of literature at Champlain College-Saint Lambert and Concordia University; Matt Dinan, associate professor and director of the Great Books program at St Thomas University in New Brunswick; Sarah Elaine Eaton, professor in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary; Adegboyega Ojo, professor and Canada Research Chair in AI Governance at Carleton University; and Mike Welland, professor of Engineering Physics at McMaster University.

This episode originally aired May 4, 2026.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The popularity of e-scooters on Canadian roads has exploded in recent years. But new data from health officials and the Canadian Paediatric Society shows that the risks of e-scooters can lead to hospitalization and death. Has policy and regulation kept up with how readily available the transportation has become?

Dr. Daniel Rosenfield, pediatric emergency physician at SickKids Hospital in Toronto and chair of the Injury Prevention Committee for the Canadian Paediatric Society, joins The Decibel to talk about the trauma cases he’s seen first-hand, why e-scooters can be deadly and how to balance regulation with medical safety.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s been a turbulent time for the official opposition of the British Columbia provincial legislature, the B.C. Conservative party. After seeing a surge in popularity leading up to the 2024 provincial election, they’ve now lost a third of their sitting members. Seven MLAs have left since mid-August alone.

Today, Globe national affairs columnist Gary Mason is on the show. He’ll explain the party’s surprising implosion, how they lost their surge in popularity and what lessons there are for politics in the province and beyond.

Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [email protected]

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.