A year of chronic, unpredictable stress caused by the ongoing pandemic is leaving many people feeling unmotivated, unable to focus and lethargic. Here’s why.More than half of Canadians report increased stress during the pandemic — and it’s the kind of chronic and unpredictable stress that tends to leave people unfocussed and unproductive. (Shutterstock)Back in the…
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The COVID-19 crisis has prompted Canadian cities to set up temporary bike lanes so more people can cycle, instead of being crammed into buses and subways in close contact with others. Cycling advocates want Canada to follow the lead of European cities and make these changes permanent.The coronavirus pandemic prompted Canadian cities, such as Toronto,…
- Politics
How the pandemic put excuses in perspective and pushed these people to make positive life changes
by Sue JonesThe pandemic has been tough, but some have used it to explore new ventures, businesses and personal experiences.Some Saskatchewan people were inspired to make positive life changes when the global pandemic hit. (Submitted by (clockwise from top left) Jess Gibson, Leah Knibbs, Life Outdoors and Maddie Ouellette)It’s been one year since the global COVID-19 pandemic started…
Chrystia Freeland seemed only too happy on Wednesday to mention some recent grumbling about the Liberal government’s pandemic spending over last year.Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland gets a fist bump from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after delivering the 2020 fiscal update in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, Nov. 30, 2020. (Sean…
A new report suggests the economic impact of the pandemic led to a massive increase in federal aid to Canada’s oil patch.A flare stack lights the sky from the Imperial Oil refinery in Edmonton in 2018. Findings suggest the economic impact of the pandemic led to a massive increase in federal aid to Canada’s oil…
The doldrums and devastation of pandemic life will end eventually, experts say. However, some of them also think the virus behind COVID-19 will remain as a presence in our lives along some spectrum ranging from occasional flare-ups to a seasonal illness, or something in between.It’s a scene from pandemic life: a masked man in Vancouver…
- Politics
When the next pandemic hits, scientists aim to have a vaccine already. Here’s how
by Sue JonesWhen the next coronavirus pandemic hits, scientists plan to already have a vaccine against it, no matter what it is. But how is that possible? Here’s what they’re doing now to develop vaccines against emerging viruses and future variants of COVID-19.Many researchers are already working on developing vaccines for the next pandemic, even though they…
- Politics
Pandemic tests limits of religious freedom as churches set to fight B.C.’s COVID-19 rules in court
by Sue JonesInterpretations of the Bible and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms can cut both ways when it comes to the pandemic measures ordered by B.C.’s provincial health officer. The coming months will see the B.C. courts probe the legality of the rules while churchgoers try to divine God’s will.A group of B.C. churches is…
- Politics
Letter from 1918 pandemic connects Thunder Bay woman to distant relatives, online community amid COVID-19
by Sue JonesIn 2019, Lindsay Doran-Bonk received a scanned copy of an 100-year-old letter, penned by her great-grandmother, Marion Elizabeth “Bessie” Forester. At the time, Doran-Bonk, a Thunder Bay Ont. resident, saw the letter as an interesting glimpse into the past, not realizing the significance it would hold for herself and for an online community in a…
- Politics
Long pandemic could add to extremism, decline in democracy: Defence Department report
by Sue JonesA new research report by the Department of National Defence suggests the longer the COVID-19 pandemic rages, the stronger right-wing extremism and other threats in Canada and around the world are likely to become.A new Department of National Defence report warns that right-wing extremism could rise the longer the COVID-19 pandemic lingers. (Lars Hagberg/The Canadian…