Episodes
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Ep 484 - How to Stop Stereotyping Seniors Guest: Rudy Buttignol
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Ep 484 - How to Stop Stereotyping Seniors
Guest: Rudy Buttignol
By Stuart McNish
More than 7 million people in Canada are older than 64 – that’s just shy of 20 percent of us. I’m one of those people. The issues that all seniors face include, but are not limited to, financial security, health care, and an end to ageism. Rudy Buttignol, the President of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP), represents associations across the country advocating with all levels of government on behalf of 330,000 members.
According to Buttignol, “The greatest obstacle to achieving better societal outcomes for senior citizens is ageism.” There is a generally held belief that as you age, your body and mind will fall apart and you’ll be grumpy and lonely and you're going to be ill. Buttignol says, “That’s simply not true. They are, however, the basis of bias directed at seniors.”
Those attitudes towards seniors impact so many other aspects of their lives. Buttignol says, “It’s why families worry that seniors can’t remain in their homes. It affects the way health care providers treat senior patients. It’s discrimination.”
Since 1983, CARP has been working to combat stereotypes about seniors. The organization also advocates for tax policy changes that will support homecare, reframing the concept of retirement residences from “institutions” to “homes.”
We invited Rudy Buttignol to join us for a Conversation That Matters about aging well and why we need to respect our elders.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Join us Jan 23 for Conversations Live - Infrastructure Deficit
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Ep 483 - Youthful Cities: Attracting and retaining a young population
Guest: Robert Barnard
By Stuart McNish
How a city attracts young adults to live and work matters. Robert Barnard, the founder of Youthful Cities, says, “Young adults are vital today and into the future. Attracting young people is important. Equally [as] important is retention – that is, keeping their residents in the city.” On that account, Vancouver is good at attracting but not so good at retaining.
This is a problem, says Barnard. “The vitality of a city is embodied in the young people it attracts to live and work. The key to attracting young people is ensuring cities meet their needs and today, those needs include housing costs, transportation and a commitment to values such as the environment. Essential to keeping those same people are liveable salaries and affordable housing.”
According to Barnard, “COVID-19 dramatically impacted young adults' ability to secure jobs and job skills.” That, in turn, will compound the already decreasing ratio of working-age young people to seniors. Barnard goes on to say, “The impact of the pandemic also means young people have higher levels of debt and housing insecurity.” Youthful Cities has developed a research program called DEVlab, which examines the workforce and skill development gaps of 15- to 29-year-olds impacted by COVID and how to meet those needs.
We invited Robert Barnard of Youthful Cities to join us for a Conversation That Matters about how we engage young people in the building of better cities.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Join us Jan 23 for Conversations Live - Infrastructure Deficit
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Ep 482 - Save Our Streets Guest: Jess Ketchum
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Ep 482 - Save Our Streets
Guest: Jess Ketchum
By Stuart McNish
At a press conference at the Woodwards development, the new Save Our Streets (SOS) public safety coalition said, “The growing crime, violence, vandalism and theft crisis is impacting local communities and businesses.” The costs associated with addressing security and safety, according to SOS spokesperson Jess Ketchum, are “jeopardizing the financial viability of many businesses and threatening their survival.”
The compounding effects of the rising lawlessness, according to Ketchum, include but are not limited to “concerns for the safety of shoppers, concerns for the wellbeing of staff, and challenges to attract staff.” As a result, business leaders and concerned citizens formed the coalition to call for a “province-wide, non-partisan movement to raise awareness of the issues and the costs that are passed onto families.”
The coalition has developed a 10-point plan, demanding actions from the government to fulfill its responsibility to address a suite of issues related to the current levels of crime, violence, and fear.
I invited Jess Ketchum of SOS to join me for a Conversation That Matters about ways to combat crime and lawlessness.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Join us Jan 23 for Conversations Live - Infrastructure Deficit
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 481 - CleanBC’s $28.1-Billion Price Tag Guest: Ken Peacock
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 481 - CleanBC’s $28.1-Billion Price Tag
Guest: Ken Peacock
By Stuart McNish
The government of British Columbia is aiming to lower CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030. It’s a bold ambition – one that will reduce the BC economy by $28.1 billion, according to a model created by the CleanBC Roadmap. Ken Peacock, the Business Council of British Columbia (BCBC)’s Chief Economist, examined the model and discovered the stunning numbers.
Peacock says, “A $28.1-billion setback is significant.” After adding in emissions caps and a scheduled doubling of the carbon tax over the next seven years, Peacock points out, it “will dampen investment and cap exports.”
Peacock says, “We’re concerned about serious job losses and serious impact to income over the next six years.” Canada is already the poorest performing country in the OECD in per-capita GDP growth. According to BCBC’s analysis, provincial average annual economic growth will slow to 0.4 per cent in the second half of this decade.
I invited Ken Peacock to join me for a Conversation That Matters about setting realistic goals and timelines.
You can see the interview on https://vancouversun.com/tag/conversations-that-matter/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 480 - The Impact of Energy Poverty Guest: Jock Finlayson
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 480 - The Impact of Energy Poverty
Guest: Jock Finlayson
By Stuart McNish
Energy poverty, according to the Canadian Urban Sustainability Practitioners, refers to “the experience of households or communities that struggle to heat their homes and power their lights and appliances” – a reality that is playing itself out in the Maritime provinces of Canada, and it has forced the hand of the Prime Minister to offer financial relief.
In his blog, “The Honest Broker,” Roger Pielke Jr. wrote of the “Iron Law of Climate Policy,” a law that demonstrates that when push comes to shove, governments will wilt under pressure from voter’s wallets. “It is,” Pielke says, “a boundary condition.”
The theory of “using higher-priced energy as a tool to accelerate decarbonization makes perfect sense – in bloodless computer models.” Noted economist Jock Finlayson agrees and adds, “In the real world, it is a theory that does not survive contact with the harsh financial realities it imposes on most people.”
We invited Jock Finlayson to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the cost of implementing policies that fail to meet their objectives and the hardship they incur.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 479- Social Purpose: The New Business Mantra Guest: Drew Collier
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 479- Social Purpose: The New Business Mantra
Guest: Drew Collier
By Stuart McNish
Social purpose is emerging as an important and necessary part of business. “What is social purpose?” you ask. Drew Collier, the President and CEO of LGM Financial Services says, “Social purpose is the reason to be in business. It is not just a nice-to-have policy. It is the company’s reason for being – its social ambition – and it is the path to profitability.” It is, in the words of Simon Sinek, “the ‘why we do what we do,’ versus the ‘what we do.’”
In 2022, Larry Fink, the CEO of BlackRock (the largest investment firm in the world), in his letter to CEOs, said, “Your company’s purpose is its north star. Putting your company’s purpose at the foundation of your relationships with stakeholders is critical to long-term success. Employees need to understand and connect with your purpose and when they do, they can be your staunchest advocates.”
The focus on purpose is a move beyond corporate social responsibility, which is a focus on doing good things because they were good. “Social purpose,” Collier says, “is a guidepost that informs products, services, a company’s goals and strategies.”
We invited Drew Collier to join us for a Conversation That Matters about a new way of doing business and doing it with an objective of contributing to a better world.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 478- What is Keto Diet? Guest: Dr. David Harper
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 478- What is Keto Diet?
Guest: Dr. David Harper
By Stuart McNish
“For 30 years, I taught the wrong stuff to generations of students. I taught them that a low-fat high-carb diet was the way to eat to prevent chronic disease and I got it wrong,” says Dr. David Harper, the co-author of the “BioDiet: The Scientifically Proven, Ketogenic Way to Lose Weight and Improve Health.” Harper goes on to say, “We now have 20 years of scientific evidence that a well-formulated ketogenic diet reduces chronic disease.”
Harper is focused on cancer and he stresses that “a ketogenic diet is not a cure for cancer; rather, it is an effective adjunct therapy along with a standard of care.” Until recently, Harper was a visiting scientist at the BC Cancer Research Centre’s Terry Fox Laboratory. His research indicates that a ketogenic diet has multiple health benefits in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and weight reduction.
“The Axis of Illness,” according to Harper are “insulin resistance, obesity and inflammation – all of which are fueled by carbohydrates leading to chronic disease.” A keto diet, coupled with exercise, is an effective way to diminish weight, inflammation and reduce insulin resistance.
We invited Dr David Harper to join us for a Conversation That Matters about food as medicine.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 477 - Canada: The World is a Hard Place Guest: John Rapley
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 477 - Canada: The World is a Hard Place
Guest: John Rapley
By Stuart McNish
In the diplomatic spat between India and Canada, a rising India shows Canada that money is power, says John Rapley, a political economist at the University of Cambridge. He goes on to say that Canada is finding the world a hard place, and points out that it comes as a shock to Canada, namely because of its sense of itself.
Canada has historically been dominant – one of the world's biggest economies, a founding member of the world's most powerful military alliance, and a rich country whose aid programs gave it considerable leverage over developing countries. But as Ottawa squares off with New Delhi over the recent alleged assassination of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil, Rapley says, “It is being left largely to fight its own battle.”
In other words, Canada has stranded itself diplomatically at a time when the U.S. and U.K. have been building the so-called “quad” with Australia, India and Japan, as a safeguard to rising tensions with China. It gets worse, Rapley says. “Not only does Canada now occupy a less significant geopolitical space, but the country is a notorious shirk, or as an ally, with a recently leaked Pentagon paper revealing that Canada's NATO partners no longer consider us as a serious member of the alliance.”
We invited John Rapley to join us for a Conversation That Matters about Canada's shrinking reputation internationally.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 476 - Eat More - That’s the Message Guest: Dr Marion Nestle
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 476 - Eat More - That’s the Message
Guest: Dr Marion Nestle
By Stuart McNish
“We live in a food environment that encourages people to eat as much as possible,” says Dr. Marion Nestle. “Fighting those overwhelming messages and mustering up resistance is next to impossible!” The history of the “consume more” movement, says Nestle, “came about as a remedy to diseases of deficiency.” The message was so successful that Healthline now estimates that “42 percent of Americans are obese and two-thirds are overweight.”
In her book, “Food Politics,” Dr. Nestle demonstrates the impact of the 900-billion-dollar-plus food industry and its ability to influence our health. Dr. Nestle says, “Our over-efficient food industry must do everything possible to persuade people to eat more – more food, more often, and in larger portions – no matter what it does to waistlines or wellbeing.”
We invited Dr. Marion Nestle, whom Forbes magazine listed as the number-two most powerful foodie in the world, to join us for a Conversation That Matters about food.
You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 475 - Rent Control: A Blunt Tool Guest: David Hutniak
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Ep 475 - Rent Control: A Blunt Tool
Guest: David Hutniak
By Stuart McNish
Housing affordability is a North American-wide issue. In the U.S., only seven states and Washington, D.C. have imposed rent controls as a measure to address housing affordability. Only seven states – largely because it is believed they don't work. In a poll conducted by the American Economic Association, 93% of its members agreed that a ceiling on rent controls reduces the quality and quantity of housing.
David Hutniak, the CEO of Landlord B.C., in a recent letter to Premier Eby, said, “Rent control is a flagship political tool and a promise that is far more complex than it first appears. It is not the comprehensive form of tenant protection it is billed to be. It is commonly accepted that rent controls benefit current tenants. It does so at the expense of future ones.”
Hutniak further pointed out that rent control is a blunt tool that continually delivers negative blows to the British Columbian rental housing market. Tenants and landlords both want a balanced rental market. Hutniak adds, “When the provincial government continues to penalize landlords for a problem created by all three levels of government, landlords and developers are less inclined to grow their businesses [and] less likely to build new rental housing.” The result is a reduction in the supply of housing.
We invited David Hutniak of Landlord B.C. to join us for a Conversation That Matters about effective ways to create affordable rental housing. You can see the interview here https://www.conversationsthatmatter.ca/
Learn More about our guests career at careersthatmatter.ca