Saint Lucia is known for its natural beauty, but the most iconic part of the island is along its southwest shore. Twin volcanic peaks – called the Pitons – rise up out of the ocean. The UNESCO World Heritage site is featured on postcards, literature, and even the Saint Lucian flag.They are also the site of a controversy involving a Dollarama executive who is trying to expand his luxury home on the mountainside. Investigative reporter Tavia Grant explains how this Canada-based businessman’s development exposed a lack of protections for this iconic site.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

The federal government has been facing intense pressure to reduce the cost of food, as food inflation remains much higher than overall inflation. Some measures have been brought in, but many experts question whether they’ll actually be effective.Michael Von Massow, a food economist and professor at the University of Guelph, joins us to talk about why food prices are still so high, what role the government has, and why this is such a difficult problem to solve.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

A recent report from Canada’s federal housing agency, CMHC says we need 3.45 million new homes built by 2030 in order to reduce skyrocketing housing costs. Supply has long been an issue especially in the expensive markets of Toronto and Vancouver. But, is it possible for Canada to ramp up construction so drastically and what happens if we don’t?The Globe’s Real Estate Reporter, Rachelle Younglai, is on the show today for a reality check on what can fix Canada’s housing crisis.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Canada’s judicial system is a bit of a mess right now. Cases are piling up. Staff aren’t showing up to work. And there aren’t enough judges. Even the Supreme Court of Canada has an unfilled vacancy currently.Sean Fine is The Globe’s justice writer and he explains what factors are contributing to the various delays in courts and how if they aren’t dealt with soon, some people may never face justice.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Follow In Her Defence wherever you get your podcasts. The first two episodes drop Tuesday, October 10th.Everyone knew bad things were happening on the Naslund farm. Then, in the fall of 2017, Miles Naslund’s body was found welded into a box at the bottom of a pond near his family’s property in Alberta, Canada. His wife and son were charged with first-degree murder.The Globe and Mail’s newest podcast In Her Defence brings you Helen Naslund’s story in her own words for the first time. Through a series of jailhouse interviews with reporter Jana G. Pruden, Helen speaks about the domestic violence she suffered, and what led to that fateful night on the farm. Meanwhile, Helen’s friends come to terms with the abuse they suspected had been going on for decades, and the reality that Helen could spend the rest of her life in prison.Tens of thousands of Canadians joined the outcry over Helen’s harsh sentence, asking what is fair punishment when a victim becomes the accused. Now they’ll hear firsthand about Helen’s life, her long fight for freedom, and the way the justice and legal systems deal with women who kill their abusers.

Canada’s relationship with India has been rocky for years, but it’s at a particular low point right now after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused agents of the Indian government this week of killing Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in B.C.Today, the Globe’s Asia correspondent James Griffiths joins us from New Delhi, India to discuss how this news is playing out there, why the relationship with Canada – and Trudeau in particular – has struggled, and the power India has in this moment.Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Ever since Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he would open up parcels of land in the environmentally protected Greenbelt, there’s been drama. From revelations of developers having ties to the Ford government, to probes from Ontario’s auditor-general and integrity commissioner, to resignations including one from Ford’s cabinet.With all the twists and turns of this story, we wanted to answer questions listeners have about what’s going on with this land. Today on the show, The Globe’s Ontario provincial politics reporter, Jeff Gray joins us to answer your burning Greenbelt questions.Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

The murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar left Canada’s Sikh community with a lot of questions. On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave them a possible answer: he alleged that the Indian government was involved in Mr. Nijjar’s death. India was quick to deny any involvement.Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife discovered this information before the official announcement on Monday. And he is on the show to explain the allegations and how they fit into Canada’s complex relations with India.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

There have been nine coups in seven African countries over the past three years – some analysts have called it a coup contagion, the Secretary-General of the UN called it a coup epidemic. Each country has its own circumstances, but there are common factors linking them.Geoff York, The Globe’s Africa Bureau Chief, joins us to explain why so many countries are facing coups, what it means for the people of those countries, and what role other countries like Russia, China and the US have in what’s going on.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Parliament is back for the fall session and it returns with a surprising shift in the political dynamic. Conservative Leader, Pierre Poilievre is riding high in several polls. And the Liberals are busy making housing announcements to show they are working on the affordability crisis facing so many Canadians today. Meanwhile, the NDP will be looking to push their agenda forward on dental care pharmacare this fall.The Globe’s Deputy Ottawa Bureau Chief Bill Curry joins us on the show. He’ll tell us what’s ahead for the leaders and their parties and three things to pay attention to during the coming session.Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Hundreds of people are sick and dozens are in the hospital in Calgary, after one of Canada’s worst outbreaks of E.Coli in kids ever. Some cases have left children hospitalized, leaving parents scared, frustrated and angry.Dave McGinn has been following the outbreak for The Globe. Today, he’ll tell us what warning signs might have been missed from the kitchen suspected to be at the centre of the outbreak, and how this fits into concerns around childcare in Canada more broadly.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Enbridge Inc. has become North America’s largest natural gas utility after acquiring three U.S. utilities for US$9.4-billiondollars. It’s a big bet on the role that natural gas is going to play in the future as governments try to transition the economy off of fossil fuels.Emma Graney is The Globe and Mail’s energy reporter. She has been covering the deal and explains how this fits into the wider picture of the energy industry in Canada, as well as our emission reduction targets.Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

The COVID-19 fall surge is upon us. But this year it’s different. Cases are rising again in Canada, reversing a trend from when cases were decreasing for most of 2023. And once again, there are new variants circulating.The Globe’s National Health Reporter Kelly Grant explains why we’re seeing a rise, what the Canadian government and public health experts say we should do about it, including when new boosters are available this fall.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Most people in Canada haven’t been able to view or post news content on Facebook or Instagram for over a month now. That’s because Meta – the company that owns both platforms – is protesting a new law that aims to get big tech companies to pay for news content appearing on its feeds.But this move isn’t without precedent. In 2021, Meta also blocked news in Australia because of similar legislation. The Australian government came to an agreement with the company – but not without some big concessions.James Meese is a senior lecturer at Melbourne’s RMIT University who researches media law and policy. He’s on the show to tell us what happened in Australia, how the legislation is working two years later and what Canada can learn from Australia’s experience.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Tamara Lich and Chris Barber were at the forefront of the convoy protest that rolled into Ottawa on Jan. 29, 2022. As leaders, they encouraged supporters blocking the downtown to both ‘hold the line’ and protest peacefully. On Feb. 17, 2022, they were arrested. Now they are standing trial for their actions.Kristy Kirkup is a parliamentary reporter for the Globe and she went to the first week of their trial. She explains why this trial is expected to uncover new details about the convoy protest and catches us up on what happened in the opening days.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

In 2012, nine out of 10 students at Kitchener’s Conestoga College were domestic. Today, they have more international students than any institution across the country … almost as many as the University of Toronto and the University of British Columbia combined. This year, Canada is on track to bring in 900,000 international students.Globe postsecondary reporter Joe Friesen joins us to discuss how Canada’s international student population has grown so quickly, and why institutions have grown to depend on them – especially in Ontario.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

This year’s wildfire season has broken all kinds of records – including on emissions. Canada’s wildfires have doubled previous records for greenhouse gas emissions – and they’ve caused more emissions than all of Canada’s industries combined.Dr. Werner Kurz, a senior research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service, explains how these wildfires are changing Canada’s forests, what it means for Canada’s emissions and how we can lessen the damage from wildfire seasons in the future.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

It’s back-to-school week for young people across the country. And despite bringing back full in-class learning three years since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, students continue to experience and report mental-health issues.Dr. Deinera Exner-Cortens is an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Calgary. She is going to talk to us about how we can be better at a policy level and in schools to help kids needing more mental-health support.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Small business owners are, on average, older than the Canadian population. That means that in the next ten years 75% of them are retiring, according to estimates from the federal government.So what happens to their businesses? Chris Hannay covers small business for the Globe and he joins us to discuss how these retirements could lead to a wave of consolidation of enterprise in Canada.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com

Collagen supplements are marketed as a holy grail anti-aging product. Bovine collagen is made from cattle hides, and a new investigation from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism traced the supply chain of some collagen companies all the way to deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.Elisângela Mendonça is a London-based Brazilian journalist with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism. Her reporting pulls back the curtain on the dark side of the booming collagen industry.This episode originally aired on March 27, 2023.Questions? Comments? Ideas? E-mail us at thedecibel@globeandmail.com