This Is Why

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This Is Why episodes

August 27, 2021The 'G-word'
The definition of genocide goes back decades, but the debate rages on whether it applies to what the Canadian government and sponsored actors have done to Indigenous communities.
On this episode of This Is Why, we look at the definition of the word, how it has applied to events in other countries and how it applies to Canada's history.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @dmcivor770 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
David Webster, history professor at Bishop's University
28 min
July 09, 2021Canada's reckoning with Residential Schools
Following the news that 215 unmarked graves in Kelowna and then 751 unmarked graves on Cowessess First Nation near sites of Indian Residential Schools, more Canadians have had to reckon with the country's history of residential schools, including calls for schools named for architects of the system to be renamed.
On this episode of This Is Why, we look at the process the country is going through to reckon with that history.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @dmcivor770 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Sean Carleton, assistant professor in the Department of History and Indigenous Studies at the University of Manitoba
28 min
July 01, 2021Reopening Stress
On July 1, 2021, Alberta will become the first province to fully reopen following the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination effort.
On this episode of This Is Why, we look back at why some are feeling stress surround what has been termed a "return to normal."
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Keith Dobson, professor of clinical psychology at the University of Calgary
Lauren Florko, talent management consultant
Episode Resources:
"More than half of Canadians anxious about return to ‘normal’ after COVID-19: survey" on GlobalNews.ca
"The Stress of Returning to Work" by Lauren Florko on Psychology Today
21 min
June 14, 2021AIDS at 40
On June 5, 1981, the US Centers for Disease Control published a report about a rare type of pneumonia affecting gay men in Los Angeles, CA. It would be the first reports of HIV and AIDS in North America.
On this episode of This Is Why, we look back at 40 years of science around HIV/AIDS and where treatment and policy has progressed for that pandemic.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Gary Lacasse, executive director of the Canadian AIDS Society
Episode Resources:
"40 years of HIV/AIDS: a painful anniversary" in The Lancet
"Forty years on and new UNAIDS report gives evidence that we can end AIDS" from UNAIDS
21 min
June 12, 2021Forests, Fire and Carbon
With wildfire season underway, perennial concerns about forest fires have returned. And as the effects of climate change worsen, research is underway to understand the relationship between forests, forest fires and carbon in the atmosphere.
On this episode of This Is Why, we dig into how a century of forest practices has made the problem worse, and a possible way forward for forests, the atmosphere and humanity.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Dr Carly Phillips, researcher in residence at the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions at University of Victoria
Episode Resources:
"How wildfires affect climate change — and vice versa" on The Conversation
"The Language of Climate Change" from TEDxBearCreekPark
20 min
June 11, 2021The possibility of endemic COVID
We've all become familiar with the term 'pandemic,' and may know what an 'epidemic' is, but the term 'endemic' is maybe less widely known. But it's certainly widely-experienced.
On this episode of This Is Why, we look at the factors at play that could turn COVID-19 from a pandemic into an endemic disease.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Cynthia Carr, epidemiologist and founder of EPI Research Inc.
Episode Resources:
"Canada to face COVID-19 like yearly endemic flu due to variants, expert says" on GlobalNews.ca
"‘When will it end?’: New data suggests COVID-19 could become endemic" on GlobalNews.ca
"The coronavirus is here to stay — here’s what that means" from Nature
21 min
June 11, 2021 Vaccine Miscommunication
With more jabs going into arms and the potential of some Canadians choosing between the AstraZeneca-manufactured viral vector COVID-19 vaccine and an mRNA-based shot from companies like Pfizer or Moderna, the advice from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) that seems to favour one or the other seems to fly in the face of the overall vaccination effort.
On this episode of This Is Why, we explore what happened with the NACI recommendations and why clear communication about vaccines is vital to fighting any disease.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guest:
Timothy Caulfield, Canada Research Chair in Health Law and Policy
20 min
May 14, 2021Another Roaring 20s?
As the world begins to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic with shots going in arms, a growing sense of jollity is coming over more and more vaccinated people. There's an interesting parallel between the end of this pandemic and what could follow with the end of the 1918 influenza pandemic and the 1920s.
On this episode of This Is Why, we discover the similarities and differences between the two eras, and why the 2020s might not be a repeat of a century earlier.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Agnes Arnold-Forster, health care and medicine historian
Episode Resources:
"Will the end of the COVID-19 pandemic usher in a second Roaring ’20s?" on The Conversation
24 min
May 03, 2021Canada's carbon budget threat
There's only so much carbon humans can put into the atmosphere before the earth's average temperature will rise by 1.5 degrees Celsius, a point at which major climate change will happen -- that's the opinion of the panel of scientists at the IPCC. Broken out into a worldwide carbon budget, Canada's share of emissions is easy to determine.
On this episode of This Is Why, we find out why Canada's oil and gas sector is threatening not just Canada's but the international carbon budget and why policy is falling short.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Truzaar Dordi, a PhD candidate currently studying at the University of Waterloo, and author of "Correcting Canada's 'one eye shut' climate policy"
Episode Resources:
"Correcting Canada’s “one eye shut” climate policy" - Cascade Institute (PDF)
23 min
May 02, 2021A new mental health plan for cities
Calgary, like other cities across the country are seeing spikes in mental health calls, with the problem only being exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. But the City of Calgary has formulated a plan, and it's sharing that plan with other Canadian cities.
On this episode of This Is Why, we find out how Calgary's mental health and addictions plan came together and why it could make a difference.
Contact:
Adam Toy - @Adam_Toy on Twitter
Dave McIvor - @d_mac1519 on Twitter
This is Why - @ThisIsWhy on Twitter
Email us - [email protected]
Guests:
Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi
Karen Gosbee
Episode Resources:
Calgary’s Mental Health and Addiction Strategy
Obituary of George Gosbee
Mental health supports across Canada
23 min

About This Is Why

From the publisher's feed

We live in a confusing world… so if you’ve ever stopped and asked yourself WHY something matters, we’re here to help. Every week Adam Toy and Dave McIvor will ask one big question and uncover the answer to help you truly understand what’s going on around you.