The Current

The emergence of the omicron coronavirus variant is sparking fresh calls for vaccine equity, including calls to temporarily waive patents around vaccine production.

The downpour in B.C. continues, forcing some residents from their homes for the second time this month. Flooding has also devastated farmland that is the livelihood of many migrant workers who have come to Canada. We speak to some of those affected, and talk to Abbotsford mayor Henry Braun about bracing for further rainfall.

After devastating floods in British Columbia, we explore the idea of a “managed retreat” — moving homes, or even entire towns, away from flood plains. Matt Galloway talks to Thomas Little, who grappled with that question after floods at his home in Gatineau, Que.; and Jason Thistlethwaite, a professor at the University of Waterloo's School of Environment, Enterprise and Development.

Cases of the omicron coronavirus variant have been confirmed in Canada. We talk to Alexandra Phelan, an assistant professor at the Georgetown University School of Medicine, about the global response and what governments should be doing to handle new variants in the future.

A world away from Afghanistan, a Canadian military adviser has been reunited with her Afghan interpreter in his new home: St. John's, Newfoundland. We hear their story of friendship — and his escape to a new life following a handwritten threat from the Taliban.

The CBC's Shelley Joyce and Doug Herbert recall some of the people they've met, and stories they've heard while covering the floods, including volunteers who set up a play centre for evacuated children staying in a hotel.

The extensive damage to roads and highways has cut off emergency supplies and expertise needed in the recovery effort. We talk to Pat Reynolds, who runs an excavating company working on Highway 1; and Ian Pilkington, B.C.'s chief highway engineer.

As the devastating floods in B.C. recede, we hear from First Nations who say they were abandoned even as officials knew a disaster was incoming, and are struggling to find help now. Matt Galloway talks to Chief Marcel Shackley of the Nooaitch Indian Band; and Chief Terry Teegee, regional chief for the B.C. Assembly of First Nations.

The disaster in B.C. has displaced thousands, but what about those who were already displaced, or homeless? We talk to Kevin McArthur, from the Lookout Housing and Health Society in Abbotsford; and Elijah Mack, a young Indigenous business owner who has been trying to help those in need.

Matt Galloway travels to Merritt, B.C., where 7,000 people were told to evacuate during the recent extensive flooding. They're now slowly returning to find out what's happened to their homes and livelihoods.

After recent flooding in British Columbia, John Anderson wants to see more emphasis on adaptation to climate change, rather than relying on more concrete, sandbags and pump stations to hold it at bay. He shows us around his Kane Lake Ranch west of Merritt, where he is building to bend with nature rather than fight against it.

Some in British Columbia. say changes to flood mitigation and prevention could help not just communities, but wildlife like the salmon population. We hear from Murray Ned, a councillor at Sumas First Nation; and Lina Azeez, the connected waters campaign manager at Watershed Watch Salmon Society.

Thousands of animals have perished in the B.C. floods, but some have been rescued in dramatic ways — including Winter the horse. We talk to Kelly Kennedy at Sageview Rescue Centre, who saved several horses and a pregnant cow by airlifting them to safety with a helicopter.

The floods in B.C. are hard to watch for some residents in High River, Alta. — they experienced a similar trauma in 2013. But could their experience offer a blueprint for recovery in B.C.? We talk to long-time High River resident Connie Balerud; Rev. Susan Lukey, a minister at the High River United Church; and Mayor Craig Snodgrass.

In Tuesday's throne speech, the Liberal government promised to bring an end to the pandemic, pursue reconciliation and fight climate change. Robyn Bresnahan discusses those promises and the session ahead with three political veterans: former Conservative MP Lisa Raitt; former NDP MP Libby Davies; and former Liberal MP Wayne Easter.

In the aftermath of the Toronto van attack in 2018, the perpetrator was revealed to be connected to incel groups online. A new CBC podcast, Boys Like Me, explores the underbelly of the incel subculture — and what can drive some young men to subscribe to misogyny and violence.

Twenty-nine people including journalists were arrested last week as the RCMP enforced an injunction against protesters trying to stop the Coastal Gas-Link pipeline in B.C. Robyn Bresnahan discusses the growing dispute with Amanda Follett Hosgood, northern B.C. reporter for the online news magazine The Tyee; Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs; Jeffrey Monaghan, associate professor at the Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Carleton University.

The musical art of whistling is getting a boost from Adele's new album, which features a track with a whole whistling chorus. We hear how it rates with world champion whistler Carole Anne Kaufman, known as the Whistling Diva.

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai recently disappeared from public view after accusing a former government official of sexual assault. But the International Olympic Committee says it spoke with Peng on a video call Sunday, and that she appeared to be safe and well. We discuss lingering concerns with Rob Koehler, director-general of Global Athlete, an international athlete-led, activist group; and Yaqiu Wang, senior researcher on China at Human Rights Watch.

Teenagers in Iqaluit marched to the Nunavut Legislature last week, calling on their new government to take the suicide crisis more seriously. We talk to Deion Pearce and Amy Ullikatar, who took part in the protest, and Nunavut's new Premier P.J. Akeeagok.

Amid the chaos of flooding and mudslides in British Columbia, communities are stepping up to help each other. We hear the stories of some of these helpers, from those who helped a mother with a premature baby, to people feeding stranded truckers and migrant workers.

The first COVID-19 vaccines for children have arrived in Canada. Robyn Bresnahan puts listener questions about kids and the vaccine to Dr. Supriya Sharma, Heath Canada's chief medical adviser; and Dr. Zainab Abdurrahman, clinical immunologist at McMaster Children's Hospital and a member of the Black Scientists Task Force on Vaccine Equity.

Bruce McIvor is one of Canada's most prominent Indigenous lawyers; he's spent decades defending the legal rights of his First Nations clients. He joins us to discuss his new book Standoff: Why Reconciliation Fails Indigenous People and How to Fix It.

Doctors on the frontlines have been hailed as heroes during the pandemic. But for those who speak out for public health measures such as vaccines and masks, the responses they've received are much less welcome. Canadian Medical Association President Dr. Katharine Smart, physician Dr. Naheed Dosani and family physician Dr. Nili Kaplan-Myrth discuss the threats doctors have received — and what governments and police must do to address them.

As British Columbia continues to recover from the floods that wreaked havoc on parts of the province, farmers are desperately trying to save their animals and farms. The Current producer Ben Jamieson was in Abbotsford, B.C., and reports on some of the efforts he saw. We also hear from dairy farmer Karl Meier.

The militarization of space took another leap forward when a Russian missile launch into one of its own satellites generated orbital debris that could've endangered the International Space Station. We discuss the threat of military engagement in space with Tara Copp, the senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense One; and Brian Weeden, the director of Program Planning for the Secure World Foundation. Retired Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield also gives us an inside look at what ISS astronauts do when the space station gets hit by space debris.

Historic floods and mudslides stranded thousands of drivers in Hope, B.C., this past week, including truckers carrying important goods. Smaller vehicle drivers were offered a way out yesterday after the highway from Hope to Metro Vancouver reopened, but truckers were forced to stay put as their vehicles were too big to make it safely across. We speak to trucker Peter Sandhu about his experience waiting for assistance; and Barry Prentice, professor of supply chain management at the University of Manitoba, about the effect B.C.'s infrastructure collapse could have on Canada's supply chain.

The CBC's The Fifth Estate recently launched an investigation into WE Charity's funding of schools in Kenya, and if the number of schools funded matched the number of schools WE Charity actually built. Host Mark Kelley travelled to Kenya to do a count on the ground and tells us how their investigation went.

shortly after the Taliban took back power in Afghanistan, we spoke to a woman hiding out in a Kabul safe house named Zahra, which is a fake name to protect her identity. She was desperately looking for a way out of the country at the time, and she finally made it out.

The rain has stopped in British Columbia, but the situation is still dire on the ground — and the extent of the damage is still being calculated. In Princeton, B.C., half the community is underwater, the town is in a state of emergency, and hundreds of homes are being evacuated. We speak with the town's mayor, Spencer Coyne. We also talk with Darren Swanson, the director of Novel Futures Corporation. He discusses how communities can better prepare for climate change by improving infrastructure.

The Mohawk Institute Residential School was one of the longest-running residential schools in Canada -- it operated for more than 130 years. Last week, a search using ground-penetrating radar began on the site to look for unmarked graves. We speak to two survivors, sisters Dawn and Roberta Hill, about how their voices are at the heart of this investigation. We also hear from CBC journalist and host Duncan McCue about the relationship between police and the community. And Jim Edgar, another survivor of the Mohawk Institute, reads his poem Grandmother's Voice.

In 1971, a young Canadian scientist waded into the rainforests of Borneo, Indonesia for the first time. Her mission? To study orangutans. 50 years later, Biruté Galdikas is the world's foremost expert on orangutans. She discusses her journey, her research, and the effects of climate change on the orangutans' homes.

COP26 is over, and Canada has a lot to do to get the country down to net-zero emissions. Matt Galloway spoke with Steven Guilbeault, a former Greenpeace activist and the current federal environment minister, about the climate summit, what Canada has accomplished and what's left for the country to do.

Torrential rain has caused devastating floods and landslides in British Columbia's interior. It has washed out highways, forced an entire city to evacuate, and stranded hundreds of drivers for hours. We speak to two residents affected by the flood: John Korsrud, who had to be rescued by a helicopter after being trapped on the highway, and Karl Meier, a dairy farmer in Abbotsford's Sumas Prairie. We also hear from CBC reporter Yvette Brend who brings us the latest details from the ground; and Simon Fraser University professor Brent Ward about the big picture.

Corey Mintz has spent much of his life in restaurants: as a cook, as a food critic and as a diner. Now, he's taking a critical look at them as an author. In his new book The Next Supper: The End of Restaurants as We Knew Them, and What Comes After, Mintz looks at why restaurants as we know them are broken — and what can be done to fix them.

Some European countries are feeling the weight of COVID-19's hand through record-breaking case counts and new restrictions. Gerald Gartlehner, a professor in evidence-based medicine and clinical epidemiology, and Kai Kupferschmidt, a contributing correspondent for Science magazine, give us the rundown in Austria and Germany. We also ask University of Toronto epidemiologist David Fisman if Canadians should be worried about rising numbers in some of our provinces.

COP26 wrapped up in Glasgow last week, but big questions remain on how committed everyone is to reducing coal emissions. For some perspective on what was achieved at the climate summit, we speak to Christiana Figueres. She's the former executive secretary of the United Nations Climate Convention, and she oversaw the creation of the Paris Agreement in 2015.

Poet, author and activist Lee Maracle has died at the age of 71. She was a member of the Stó:lō Nation, and wrote books such as Ravensong, I Am Woman, My Conversations with Canadians and Celia's Song. We hear her reading her poem Blind Justice, as well as clips from her previous interviews with the CBC.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is back in Canada following his trip to Glasgow for COP26. Now, he'll have to face Canadian Premiers and opposition parties to deliver on the promises he made in Scotland. Charelle Evelyn, the managing editor of The Hill Times; Kelly Cryderman, a Globe and Mail reporter and columnist; and Daniel Thibeault, the host of Radio Canada's Les Coulisses De Pouvoir, make up our national affairs panel. They discuss the stage for the 44th Parliament of Canada by touching on climate politics and the upcoming Three Amigos summit, among other topics.

If the world is going to meet the targets to manage the effects of climate change, electric cars could be a big part of the solution. Our producer Samira Mohyeddin travelled to Dundee, Scotland to look at the journey of the electric car in the city. We also speak to Alexandre Milovanoff, a researcher at the University of Toronto, about the road ahead for electric vehicles in Canada.

Temperatures are warming in parts of the north, and moose are becoming more and more common as a result. This has led to a growing demand for moosehide tanning in those parts. We hear from Melaw Nakehk'o, a Dene artist, film maker and moosehide tanner, who's taught moosehide tanning to Inuit people in northern Labrador; and Liz Pijogge, a northern contaminants researcher at Nunatsiavut Government, and one of Nakehk'o's students.

When he was eight years old, Russell Moses had to leave his home on the Six Nations reserve and live at a residential school. It was 1942, and he and other children there were put to work as part of the civilian war effort. He eventually served in the Canadian military and saw active duty in the Korean War. Today, his son, Canadian Armed Forces veteran John Moses, would like more recognition for his father and other Indigenous people who were part of the war effort. He reflects on his father's legacy.

We speak to Billy Archie in Aklavik, Northwest Territories. He's an Inuvialuit Elder-in-training who hunts and fishes. He highlights how climate change is affecting hunting and fishing in his community.

We travel along the MacKenzie River to talk to northern community members whose lives have been affected by climate change; like Frank T'Seleie, a traditional leader and former chief in Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories. who has been fighting to protect the land and water of the region for decades. We also talk with Gladys Norwegian, the former Grand Chief of the Dehcho, whose life was forever changed by severe spring floodwaters in the communities of Jean Marie River, N.W.T., and Fort Simpson, N.W.T.

Tensions have been rising along the Poland-Belarus border, with thousands of migrants caught in the middle, with nowhere to go. We talk to Crystal van Leeuwen, the global co-ordinator of emergency response with Médecins Sans Frontières, about what she saw at the border recently; and discuss the politics behind the crisis with Yauheni Andreichyk, chief editor with Voices from Belarus; and Felix Krawatzek, a senior researcher at the Centre for East European and International Studies in Berlin.

France recently returned 26 artifacts stolen from Benin's Kingdom of Dahomey — nearly 130 years after they were taken. Chika Okeke-Agulu, a Nigerian art historian and African art professor at Princeton University, explains how stealing such objects strips people of their history, and why returning them is so important.