Indoor activities to help get you through the fall and winter

 by Christina Charles The rest of 2020 will see us moving back indoors due to Covid-19 so it's important to start planning early for a gentle, gratifying winter season. Think like a northerner. Remember that we can learn from the communities above the arctic circle who live happily in the

Canadian winter sports may be delayed or cancelled by Covid-19 again

 Winter Sports Iced in Canada during Covid-19 Pandemic The National Hockey League is playing games in empty stadiums. The world figure skating championships scheduled to be in Canada in March were canceled. Even the women’s world hockey championships were canceled. It has been a tough year for Canadian winter sports,

To whom it may concern — An open letter to the restless ones

 Above: I'm asking Ottawans to stay home in order to keep everyone safe. To whom it may concern: Hello, my name is Ryan Lythall, and I’m a person with a physical disability. Being physically disabled, I’m susceptible to getting COVID, more so than most because a large part of my disability

Playing it safe, how to keep your family safe during COVID 19

 As we are trying to return to work, school and our everyday lives, it is important to protect everyone in the family, from the youngest generation to the oldest. The best way to keep your family safe is to teach and reinforce everyday preventive actions. Here are a few of

Caregivers of young children need a different kind of mask

 By Nicole Letourneau and Mandakini Jain Everywhere you look, responsible adults are wearing masks in public. This is great news and sure to help contain the deadly contagion COVID-19 from spreading and keep more of our friends, neighbours and community members safe. Evidence is mounting on the effectiveness of masks

Funding Scientific Research: Sometimes targeted research is the best approach, but not always

 The huge concentration of scientific effort to create, verify and supply a vaccine to protect against Covid-19 and towards improved therapeutics for those who fall ill are perfect examples of appropriate targeted research.  Fans of novels or films about crime know that the iconic enablers of a crime are means,

Learn from successful summer camps

 By Jack Moncado Here’s how to keep school kids safe from COVID-19 outbreaks Across the country, children are returning to school in the fall -- and that is excellent news. The pandemic has forced most children to remain home since March and has prevented many of them from seeing their

Plus Guardian introduces an alternative to cloth face masks

 Plus Guardian is an up-and-coming company dedicated to the manufacturing and selling of face masks and coverings. A go-to for many organizations and government bodies such as the City of Ottawa who have purchased over 20,000 reusable no-valve masks for their employees, Plus Guardian is approved and supported by Canadians.

COVID 19: Is food delivery safe?

 Cooking night after night can turn into a chore rather than something fun and novel. While this explains the rise in ordering takeout or delivery, is ordering outside food wise with COVID-19 around? The short answer is "Yes." Both the Food and Drink Administration of the United States and the

Science and politics: always a stormy marriage

 The global Covid-19 pandemic seems an all-consuming issue these days, but it is by no means the first of a burgeoning new class of public policy issues. In trying to make sense out of the important issues public policy issues today, one must accommodate two important new facts of life.

Being a fashion face and giving back never looked so gorgeous

 A week after Ottawa went into lockdown, entrepreneur Julie Beun, one of Ottawa’s favourite marketing, communications and media personalities was at it again. AboutFace Masks came to life as a kitchen table enterprise from her home in Carp, Ontario. Like the rest of the world, Julie Beun was staying safe

Many Canadians with disabilities shut out of pandemic funding

 By Jennifer Zwicker The federal government recently announced a one-time, federal tax-free payment for Disability Tax Credit (DTC) recipients intended to reduce financial barriers for persons with disabilities during the pandemic. This proposed bill failed to secure unanimous consent in the House of Commons for debate. In part, persons with

China-Africa Summit calls for COVID cooperation

 ABOVE: China's medical supplies for 18 African countries arrive at Kotoka International Airport in Accra, Ghana, April 6, 2020. (Photo: Xinhuanet.com) Chinese and African leaders hosted the ‘Extraordinary China-Africa Summit on Solidarity against COVID-19’ on Wednesday June 17. The video link event included China, South Africa and Senegal and highlighted China-Africa cooperation

The short game and the long game of COVID-19

 By Simon Sutcliffe The COVID-19 pandemic has captured the attention of Canadians with an urgency and a level of grudging acceptance unlike any other medical or natural disaster in our lifetime. We have complied with imposed restrictions and privations that would have been thought impossible and unacceptable under normal circumstances

Covid19: Telling half-truths never ends well

 Canada’s handling of the first phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, up to late May, has been moderately good compared to other developed nations. I would rate it at perhaps just at the lower edge of the top 20 per cent in that comparison, if taking into consideration testing, public health

Chinese Foreign Minister on China, COVID-19, Trump and more

 Above: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi Yesterday, in a wide-ranging interview at the National People’s Congress of China and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi laid out China’s views on major global issues from Covid19 to US-Chinese relations, the future of globalization and multilateralism, China’s

China’s President Xi commits 2 billion to WHO’s COVID-19 fight

 World Health Organization (WHO) member states have agreed to set up an independent inquiry into the global response to the coronavirus pandemic. The unanimous resolution was approved by the WHO’s 194-member annual assembly meeting virtually in Geneva and calls for an “impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation” of the international response

A digital vaccination scar for the 21st Century

 By Kumanan Wilson In the 1800s, smallpox ravaged the world. Fortunately, a vaccine had been developed that could protect individuals. This vaccine left a scar at the site of injection and identified the individuals as “immune.” As we look towards the future of the COVID-19 pandemic, unless the virus burns out or

Pandemic used as a cover for increased persecution of women

 By Rachel Vincent Canada must live up to promise of feminist foreign policy by putting women at centre of its global COVID-19 responses Reem Al-Ksiri is a Syrian-born lawyer who now lives in Vienna, Austria. Like millions of other Syrians, she was forced from her home by war and the

PureBites donates $500,000 of pet treats during COVID-19

 The bond between people and pets has grown stronger than ever. Having your pet by your side is not only great companionship but supports mental health too. It’s important to ensure that pets are cared for and nourished with healthy treats and food. PureBites®, a leading Canadian natural pet food company, has

Coronavirus: Two nations, two systems, one pattern

 To no-one’s very great surprise the United States of America handled the first few stages of the Covid-19 pandemic badly. After a period of dithering, denial, and poor attention to expertise, the various levels of government began to act, but unevenly, with poor messaging, fulminating partisanship, and the disadvantage of

What the West can learn from post-pandemic China

 China is gradually returning to normal life following several months of quarantine measures to halt the spread of the novel coronavirus. From mid to late March, Beijing recorded a significant decrease of COVID-19 related cases in hospitals across the country. By April 8, 2020, the lockdown restrictions eased in Wuhan,

Let’s revamp EI instead of pining for a Basic Income

 By Diane Bellemare The federal government has responded to critical economic need during the pandemic by adopting the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), providing $2,000 per month for people experiencing significant income loss due to COVID-19. The measure responds to an unprecedented crisis, but it also reflects major shortcomings with

8 myths and rumors about the COVID-19 epidemic and China

 Editor’s note: As countries the world over grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been much misinformation surrounding public discourse about the origin and transmission of the COVID-19 virus. Conspiracy theories have been widely circulating on social media and in some established media to support a discredited conspiracy theory that an

China calls for cooperation while Trump plays the blame game

 As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to cut a swath of sickness and death around the world and stifle global economies, most leaders are focused on containing it while others seem more focused on the blame game. American President Donald Trump continues to publicly attack the World Health Organization (WHO) alleging