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Toronto Star
27 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Prime Minister Mark Carney scheduled to visit Kelowna, B.C., Tuesday
KELOWNA - Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to be in Kelowna, B.C., for an announcement at a lumber facility on Tuesday after attending the Vancouver Pride parade on the weekend before he toured a Canadian Forces facility on Vancouver Island on Monday. Carney toured the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges facility near Nanoose Bay outside Nanaimo with officials from the Canadian Navy.
CBC
28 minutes ago
- CBC
Young people more prone to believe in conspiracies, research shows
Hillary Clinton had Jeffrey Epstein killed. Barack Obama was not born in the United States. The pharmaceutical industry was responsible for the spread of COVID-19. These are all conspiracies with no basis in fact, says University of Ottawa professor Daniel Stockemer — but his research shows that theories like them are gaining traction among young people. In fact, people younger than 35 are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories than other age groups, according to a recent study by Stockemer and co-author Jean-Nicolas Bordeleau that surveyed more than 380,000 people internationally. The research was recently published in the journal Political Psychology. "Conspiracy theories are now for everyone," Stockemer told CBC Radio's All In A Day, noting that between 20 and 25 per cent of the population believes in one. "But the young are slightly more likely to believe in them." If the problem isn't addressed, Stockemer said he expects the "democratic backsliding" he's seen all over the world to continue. "If we don't have a young population that stands up for the values of democracy ... who else will?" Why do young adults believe conspiracies? There are many reasons why young people are particularly susceptible, Stockemer said — including the fact the political world has become more divided and chaotic. "Right now, we're in a world of polarization," he said. "There is no compromise, no middle ground." Compounding that effect, Stockemer said, is that young people are being "alienated" from politics as mainstream politicians largely ignore their concerns — including during the last federal election. "The leaders didn't even come to the [University of Ottawa] to have a talk or anything," he said. "And then we wonder why young people have a higher tendency to go the populist or conspiracies route." Then there's technological leaps like the internet, smart phones and social media, Stockemer said, which allow conspiracy and misinformation to spread, especially among young people. The internet also potentially exposes them to every unfortunate incident that happens in the world, said Carmen Celestini, who teaches at the University of Waterloo and studies disinformation, extremists and conspiracy theorists. "That fear and that perpetual sense of disaster can lead people to believe in conspiracy theories," said Celestini, noting she wasn't surprised "even a little bit" by Stockemer and Bordeleau's findings. Influencers who tote extremist views and conspiracies also give their viewers someone or something to blame, she added. No 'quick fix' Widespread conspiracies and the problems inherent to the internet will require a "global response," said Celestini, one that will involve talking about the fears and emotions that led people to these conclusions. "It really is [about] having that transparent talk with your child about what it is that they're feeling, why they might believe some of these ideas and where the emotions behind it come from," she said. Stockemer said there's no "quick fix," but improving civic education and better regulating misinformation online would help. "To bring [young people] back, we need to also include them within the democratic politics much more than now," he said. And there could be immense consequences, he added, if we continue to neglect the susceptibility of young people to conspiracy theories. "Over the past 10 years, the number of democracies has declined [and] long-standing democracies like the United States [and] India are in serious danger of falling," he said. "If we continue the path we are continuing, I don't know how long some established democracies will survive. … And I think that's one of the far-reaching lessons from my research."
CBC
28 minutes ago
- CBC
As Beer Stores shut their doors, who will take your empties?
Social Sharing With more and more Beer Stores closing across Ontario, charities and non-profits that rely on bottle collection are hoping to cash in on your empties. The Beer Store currently processes about 1.6 billion empty alcohol containers per year. But it has closed dozens of locations across the province since the arrival of beer in convenience stores, and plans to shutter still more this September. At least five of the actual or planned closures are in Ottawa, including one in the Glebe, where Operation Come Home runs a bottle drive as part of its BottleWorks social enterprise. Executive director John Heckbert hasn't noticed any impact yet — but he's hoping more residents will call on BottleWorks to collect their empties. "We would be very happy to help people if they find that they're accumulating bottles or that they would like somebody to come pick them up," he said. "It's definitely bad news for the people that are affected by the closures," he added. "But it is a positive for our program in the sense that we can provide more employment opportunities and more activity for our youth." Operation Come Home provides housing, employment and eduction programs for homeless youth, who staff the BottleWorks program. They ride around in the truck and collect from practically anywhere in Ottawa, though suburban areas have higher minimums for collection. Residents can fill out a form on the BottleWorks website and schedule a collection date. They can get a tax receipt in return. "We are going to be adding two new trucks to the road in the coming year," Heckbert said. "We're going to expand the capacity of the program and this timing will help us make sure that the trucks are always full." Animal rescues also hopeful BottleWorks isn't the only group that will pick up empties. Fundraisers for animal rescues also collect bottles and cans to pay for food and vet bills. Darlene Charman of Empties for Paws Orleans said empties play a major role in their fundraising. She saw a major uptick in collections during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it was tougher for people to get out for returns. She wonders whether the Beer Store closures might trigger a similar trend. "It could bring a little bit more of an influx of the empties to the animal rescues, because the people won't be bothered to drive further out," she said. Melody Lachance collects empties for several animal rescues through her fundraising group, Barrhaven & Area Empties. She too is hoping for a boost. "They may just contact us and say, 'Do you want my empties, because I'm not going to drive to wherever to cash them in,'" she said. Lachance is already looking to nearby Manotick, where a store is set to close later this month. But further closures could also be a hindrance, since both Lachance and Charman rely on the Beer Store for returns. Waste reduction advocate worried Duncan Bury of Waste Watch Ottawa agreed that charities can pick up some of the slack left as Beer Stores closed, but not enough to compensate for the overall decline of a collection system he already sees as severely lacking. Where other provinces like B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan collect about 80 per cent of their empties, Ontario brings in only about half. "That 50 per cent number will surely fall," Bury said. "The whole system, which is not very good to start with, is just going to get worse." Buty noted that most other provinces accept non-alcoholic containers and offer far more locations for residents to return their empties. Quebec has 1,200, while B.C. has 600. Currently, the Beer Store is required to keep at least 300 locations open as part of a contract with the provincial government. But that will end as of Jan. 1. Bury fears that could mean more closures and even fewer options for returns. "The options to recover those containers are frankly disappearing," said Bury. On that same date, the province will require grocery stores that sell alcohol to accept empties for collection. Bury said that could work. It's a major component of British Columbia's successful system. "If they can do it in British Columbia, there's absolutely no reason they shouldn't be able to do it in Ontario," he said. But he's concerned it won't happen. The province already requires about 70 grocery stores in areas without Beer Stores to accept empties. But a report in May found that few were actually complying. Bury said the province needs to be tough with the grocers, but it should also do more. He said Ontario should open stand-alone depots for bottle returns, like Quebec and British Columbia. Heckbert said BottleWorks could help businesses that sell alcohol by taking the empties off their hands. "I could imagine that for a grocery store, space and inventory will be an issue. It's the same thing that our bars and restaurants encounter," he said.
