Perspectives: A Canadian Journal of Political Economy and Social Democracy
The Perspectives Journal Podcast complements the journal and opinions content of Perspectives: A Canadian Journal of Political Economy and Social Democracy, to bring out left-wing ideas and strategy in a new and ever-evolving format. The podcast features interviews with policy experts, to dig deeper into the progressive angles of the issues affecting working-class, ordinary Canadians.
Hosted by editor-in-chief, Clement Nocos, the Perspectives Journal Podcast aims to bring forward timely analysis on issues from the multiple crises of the economy, cost-of-living and the environment, to the labour movement, as well as the state of Canadian democracy. The wide reaching breadth of this show aims to help inform policymakers and the public about approaches to today’s pressing problems that are rooted in Ed Broadbent’s Principles for Canadian Social Democracy.
Perspectives Journal also produces and features shows hosted by the Broadbent Institute’s friends and affiliates, providing a progressive platform for limited and irregular conversations that are still necessary to enliven Canada’s political discourse. The Perspectives Journal Podcast is a proud members of the Harbinger Media Network, Canada’s progressive podcast community.
Activists Make History
Activists Make History with Peggy Nash is a new podcast series from Perspectives Journal that finds the political underdogs and asks how they got started, against the odds, to fight for progressive change. Policymakers, activists and experts from underrepresented communities and backgrounds, that are typically pushed to the margins of Canadian political life, are front and centre in conversation with Peggy Nash, who has been a union activist, a feminist advocate, and a Member of Parliament in Canada’s House of Commons for nearly a decade.
Reflecting on these experiences as a political outsider, and in conversation with other like-minded outsiders that take our struggles into the halls of power, Activists Make History aims to show how we can win a better world through elected office. Activists Make History is only made possible by the generous contribution of Unifor.
Perspectives: A Canadian Journal of Political Economy and Social Democracy
Why Canadians are Stuck Waiting for the Bus with Nate Wallace
In a joint statement by Environmental Defence Canada released on October 28th at the Transit for Tomorrow Summit in Ottawa, a number of mayors and municipal representatives from cities across Canada, public transit activist groups and transit agencies like the STM in Montreal, declared:
“Transit is the most powerful method of tackling traffic congestion. It is the lifeblood of economic growth in our biggest cities. It is a solution to the rising cost of living. It helps us reduce carbon emissions. But public transit systems across the country are in a financial crisis.”
Have you ever tried riding a train or bus lately?
In Canada, If you are so lucky to have a train or bus near where you are, to get you where you’re going, service has not been great, and many have noticed that it’s getting worse.
While the news media focuses on traffic jams involving cars and trucks on highways, less attention is paid to the fact that transit ridership across the country has not recovered to pre-pandemic levels in most cities.
This can’t all be attributed to more people working from home when we’re all still stuck in traffic.
Investment in public transit has weakened, ridership has stalled as commuters are forced to drive, and the economy loses billions in lost productivity because of how much we all lose in time.
So we ask an expert, “where’s my bus?”
Nate Wallace, Program Manager for Clean Transportation at Environmental Defence Canada, and organizer of the Transit for Tomorrow Summit joins us for this conversation on the Perspectives Journal Podcast.
Notes:
- Putting Wheels on the Bus: Unlocking the Potential of Public Transit to Cut Carbon Emissions in Canada, by Environmental Defence Canada & Équiterre, February 2024.
- Joint Statement: Public transit in Canada’s largest cities requires sustainable, long term funding, starting with acceleration of the “Canada Public Transit Fund,” October 28, 2024.
- "Cities issue united call for 'new deal' on public transit funding," By Elyse Skura, CBC News, October 29, 2024.
