'Not in the interests of the people at all': cross-country protests target LNG development The first of five major demonstrations across the country was staged in Ottawa on Tuesday, where environmental and Indigenous-rights activists called for public funding to be redirected from LNG to cl...

'Not in the interests of the people at all': cross-country protests target LNG development www.nationalobserver.com/2026/04/17/n...

Avi Lewis emerges as NDP leadership front-runner based on fundraising edge As the NDP prepares to announce its new leader this Sunday, the fundraising data shows a clear front-runner in former journalist Avi Lewis.

Avi Lewis emerges as NDP leadership front-runner based on fundraising edge www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/27/n...

Ontario's privacy and information access watchdog is fact checking Ford The Information and Privacy Commission sent out an update that “provides factual information in response to the various reasons that have since been offered for the proposed change" of FOI laws in Ont...

Ontario's privacy and information access watchdog is fact checking Ford www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/25/n...

Ottawa's 'one-stop shop' for companies seeking clean-tech support is no more The Clean Growth Hub, which helped cleantech businesses grow, is winding down this spring, despite attempts by some federal departments to find funding for it, briefing notes reveal.

Ottawa's 'one-stop shop' for companies seeking clean-tech support is no more www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/26/n...

Three quarters of data centre sites planned in Alberta are in high water stress areas Canada’s National Observer analyzed the locations of 38 data centre campuses proposed in the province, and found that three quarters of them are in regions where water use is already in shorter supply...

Three quarters of data centre sites planned in Alberta are in high water stress areas www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/23/i...

To mitigate disaster risk, we must bolster Canada's struggling media Building climate-resilient communities requires more investment in Canada’s local news outlets while facing the reality that social media platforms are more unpredictable than ever.

To mitigate disaster risk, we must bolster Canada's struggling media www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/19/o...

'So much bull': Experts dismiss Ford's excuses for freedom of information overhaul On Friday, Ontario announced that the province plans to exempt the premier, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants and their offices from requests filed under the Freedom of Information and Prote...

'So much bull': Experts dismiss Ford's excuses for freedom of information overhaul www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/17/n...

Ford targets Ontario law that exposed his government's worst scandals The Greenbelt scandal, the Skills Development controversy and more were all revealed through freedom of information requests.

Ford targets Ontario law that exposed his government's worst scandals www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/13/n...

Federal parties exempt themselves from privacy laws — despite Senate warnings Every national party except the Greens chose on Thursday to grant themselves an indefinite exemption from laws protecting the privacy of Canadians, rejecting Senate concerns about Bill C-4.

Every political party except the Greens chose on Thursday to grant themselves an indefinite exemption from laws protecting the privacy of Canadians, rejecting Senate concerns about Bill C-4. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/13/n...

Civic Searchlight is now free to use You can sign up right now to access our ever-growing database covering hundreds of Canadian municipalities, no subscription required. Search 59,000 hours and counting of transcribed public meetings, a...

Civic Searchlight is now free to use www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/09/n...

Pierre Poilievre’s great reset The leader of the Conservative Party of Canada is rolling out a kinder and gentler version of himself. But can he stick to the script, or will he revert to his political instincts?

Pierre Poilievre’s great reset www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/05/o...

The Iran war is also a climate war At a time when civilization is hurtling toward irreversible climate breakdown, to overlook the climate consequences of three of the deadliest militaries on Earth going to war would be journalistic mal...

The Iran war is also a climate war www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/05/o...

Public health emergency responses must reckon with climate change The Public Health Agency of Canada has a broad mandate from emergency response to research, and increasingly climate change is threatening its operations.

Public health emergency responses must reckon with climate change www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/27/n...

One data centre or one million homes? Mapping Ontario's proposed hyperscaler boom Canada’s National Observer found and drew from multiple sources to put together a map of planned data centres in Ontario, and found at least 15 projects with a combined capacity of 2,202 MW currently ...

We put together a map of proposed data centres in Ontario + found at least 14 projects with a combined capacity of 2,227MW, the same electricity used by 2.2M homes. We also went to Milton, where the largest centre in the province is proposed: 720MW. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/03/02/n...

Canadian politicians are being sold AI-powered civilian patrols A new app gets around bot bans by recruiting real people to post political messages generated by AI.

With municipal elections coming up in six Canadian provinces in 2026, experts warn that “cyborg propaganda” tools could reduce campaigns to battles between humans ventriloquised by chatbots. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/24/i...

Juno News scraps plan to run residential school denial film after investigation by CNO The decision comes after Canada's National Observer determined a producer listed on the film's trailer credits — Simon Hergott — has published several videos and comments on his public YouTube channel...

Juno News scraps plan to run residential school denial film after investigation by CNO www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/23/n...

Defence department warns of increasing climate risks to bases and infrastructure Climate hazards like flooding, storms, permafrost melt and coastal erosion are increasingly threatening nation defence infrastructure and operations, while complicating the management of its contamina...

Sixty-four per cent of the Department of National Defence's assets are exposed to a “high” level of climate risk, according to a recent climate-risk assessment submitted to Finance Canada. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/09/n...

Trumpism's war on the truth is coming to Canada. We need to be ready The Trump administration has made it clear that it will use almost everything at its disposal in its broader war on the truth. If we're not careful here in Canada, we'll become one of its casualties.

Donald Trump probably won't order the military invasion of Canada. But continued attacks on our informational ecosystem — and the cultural and political institutions that support it — is a virtual certainty. It's time for us to shore up those defence www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/04/o...

Horns locked over dismal state of access to info Privy Council Office and info commissioner increasingly at odds

open.substack.com/pub/deanbeeb...

Mark Carney just shook up the world His speech in Davos might be the most important one ever delivered by a Canadian prime minister. Its consequences will determine his place in history — and ours.

Mark Carney just shook up the world www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/20/o...

Trump will use the Greenland argument to grab Canada's Northwest Passage A 1988 agreement between Canada and the United States about the sea lane left its legal status largely undecided, allowing both countries to assert their respective positions. But now, thanks to US Pr...

Trump will use the Greenland argument to grab Canada's Northwest Passage www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/20/o...

Canada’s fifth columnists are showing their hand Donald Trump is threatening to invade Greenland, and Canada might be next. It's time to look around and figure out who would fight back — and who would surrender.

It's time to think the unthinkable: what would you do if the United States threatened to invade Canada? We already know this much: many Conservatives would rather fold than fight. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/20/o...

The world as it is Canada’s “new relationship” with China marks the return of realpolitik.

Canada’s “new relationship” with China marks the return of realpolitik
www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/16/a...

The triumph of clean energy is inevitable The ever-improving economics of technologies like wind, solar, EVs, and battery storage have become insurmountable — and, for countries in the developing world, irresistible.

Sorry, Donald: clean energy is going to win, whether you and the rest of the fossil fuel boosters like it or not. The only questions left are how fast it will happen — and how far behind countries like America will fall. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/15/o...

FBI executes search warrant at Washington Post reporter’s home The reporter, Hannah Natanson, covers the federal workforce and has been part of The Post’s most sensitive coverage of the first year of the second Trump administration.

A clear and appalling sign that this administration will set no limits on its acts of aggression against an independent press. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Twitter is a litmus test for Canada With Twitter, the medium really is the message — one that should be clearly unacceptable for our elected officials and political leaders.

Elon Musk's "everything" has morphed into a digital equivalent of Times Square in the late 1970s: seedy, unsupervised and inherently unsafe. It's time for Canada's elected officials to leave it behind — and embrace a new technological future. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/12/o...

Hodgson’s briefing binder reveals provincial asks for new fossil fuels, critical minerals and electricity In 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government began building the architecture to develop major projects, but 2026 is when the rubber meets the road. Here’s what the provinces and territories want t...

Tim Hodgson's briefing materials reveal points of leverage and opportunities for collaboration, offering an unprecedented view into the complex terrain of major project negotiations. Here are what the provinces and territories want most. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/12/n...

A cold-blooded murder Friends,

A cold-blooded murder
open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

Ontario First Nation says Ottawa still slow to act after 18 years of water issues A remote Cree community on the shores of James Bay has declared a state of emergency after its water treatment plant failed this week — a crisis residents say the federal government is responding to f...

Ontario First Nation says Ottawa still slow to act after 18 years of water issues www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/08/n...

The same firm ran a campaign to save CBC — and Canada Proud's push to defund it “It's like the Trump administration promoting Biden in an ad campaign,” said Ahmed Al-Rawi, Director of the Disinformation Project at Simon Fraser University. “This is unreal, like science fiction.”

The same firm ran a campaign to save CBC — and Canada Proud's push to defund it www.nationalobserver.com/2026/01/08/i...