University of British Columbia students writing exams in April 1970

It's the most wonderful time of the year.... (credit: City of Vancouver Archives AM1667-: CVA 134-092)

The @cndhistassoc.bsky.social has written to Minister @JulieDabrusin to take issue with this attack on knowledge. You should too! cha-shc.ca/advocacy/cha... #cdnhist #envhist

La fermeture en douce d’un centre d’archives de Parcs Canada choque les historiens Environ 200 000 documents ne seront plus disponibles pour consultation en raison de la fermeture du Centre d’archives de Parcs Canada.

More on the closure of the Parks Canada Library @juliedabrusin.bsky.social #cdnhist #envhist www.journaldemontreal.com/2026/04/18/l...

Retracing the Steps of Mary Schäffer Warren American explorer Mary Schäffer Warren studied Rockies wildflowers, explored Maligne Lake, later inspiring filmmakers to recreate and reinterpret her legacy.

This interview with the makers of Wildflowers for @nichecanada.bsky.social was fun! The film is about Mary Schäffer Warren, who surveyed Maligne Lake in Jasper Nat'l Park in the early 1900s for the Geological Survey of Can. (an extraordinary feat for a woman then!) niche-canada.org/2026/04/14/r...

This second edition is essential reading - for everyone. If there’s one book I’d recommend in environmental history, it might be this.

With an introduction by @brdemuth.bsky.social! #EnvHist

America’s hiking culture is built on ego From peak-bagging to thru-hiking, Americans have turned traversing land into personal milestones. This wilderness ranger and Indigenous writer has witnessed it firsthand

Powerful essay here.

“For years, conservationists have promoted tourism as a ‘sustainable’ alternative to mining or logging. But tourism can be just as extractive and harmful…

“There’s no citable evidence it benefits the ecology or anything else beyond non-profit coffers and the outdoor industry.”

Opinion | Why Is No Kings So Old?

I know, I know. More anti-social media, anti-AI commentary. But there's some interesting research cited in this piece. It's worth a read (gift link): www.nytimes.com/2026/04/14/o...

By rights, the footnote vs endnote debate was ended by this episode of merciless hilarity in a mid-80s Hebrew Studies journal.

#FootnotesForever

targuman.org/2012/01/04/n...

If you are upset about the federal budget and the funding cuts to cultural heritage, please send a letter (no postage required) or email your MP, Minister of Canadian Heritage Marc Miller, and Prime Minister Carney. Find addresses here:

www.ourcommons.ca/Members/en/s...

The federal government’s Access to Information and Privacy program, administered by LAC, is being cut by $13.6 million. LAC has already eliminated 53 positions from this program.

Library and Archives Canada will eliminate 152 employee positions and 9 executive positions. 70 indeterminate positions were eliminated in 2025 prior to the announcement of the most recent budget cuts.

I'm looking for someone in Vancouver to do a very simple freelance radio/podcast assignment for The Sprawl this week. It involves going to a certain site and recording ambient sound with a Zoom (or something similar). Paid gig obvs. Any ideas? @jmcelroy.bsky.social

Tenure-track position in Canadian history at Lakehead!

Dr Loo gave excellent content, starting at 4:40 minutes in. The significance of the 1970s pipeline story!

For historians who want to be irritated, the setup in the first 4 minutes will definitely provide: it's about how some people think history is "boring" and "irrelevant" but -gasp! - it's not!

© CBC/Radio-Canada 2026. All rights reserved.

Apparently I was on this today. Listen anyway. #envhist
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...

Wikipedia went from a questionable source to the only reliable source on the internet in just a few years. This is excellent news.

How RCMP spies infiltrated the 1970s Indigenous rights movement | CBC News A CBC Indigenous investigation has found the Cold War-era RCMP Security Service had a widespread and intrusive surveillance operation targeting at least 30 legitimate Indigenous political organization...

“The files comprise hundreds of surveillance reports contained in more than two dozen manila file folders marked "racial intelligence." #cdnhist
www.cbc.ca/news/indigen...

Reposting this about the closure of the #ParksCanada library. Alan is right: the closure erodes the Agency's ability to fulfill its mandate to protect cultural+ecological heritage. Its own researchers can't speak out so let's help them by expressing our concern! #envhist #cdnhist #cdnpoli

Pourquoi Parcs Canada ferme-t-elle sa bibliothèque spécialisée? L’agence fédérale la juge «non prioritaire», malgré son faible coût et l’importance de ses archives.

Pleased to see @ledevoir.com picking up this story on the closure of #ParksCanada library - part of larger pattern of shutting down govt libraries+devaluing govt researchers' work. Write @juliedabrusin.bsky.social to express your concern! #envhist #cdnpoli #cdhist www.ledevoir.com/culture/9660...

This is me talking about early findings from my project on post-1945 publicly-funded irrigation on the Canadian prairies. Big thanks to @chrrumanitoba.bsky.social @adeleperry.bsky.social and others for welcoming me and engaging with my work.

Indian Act 150: Call for Submissions NiCHE has partnered with Active History to provide some environmental focused histories of the Indian Act and its widespread implications to their Indian Act 150 series.

We are teaming up with @activehist.bsky.social to highlight the environmental dimensions of the the Indian Act at 150.

You have until March 30th to get your proposals in to @drheathergreen.bsky.social!

niche-canada.org/2026/03/11/i...

#envhist #cdnhist #indigenoushistory

‘Really bleak situation’: proposed access-to-information changes include removing emails, letting departments put requests on hold The mandated review of the Access to Information Act, includes proposals from the government that are 'super regressive,' says veteran journalist Dean Beeby. 'It’s just bureaucrats running the show, a...

More dismal news about Canada's ATIP regime. #cdnhist #cdnpoli www.hilltimes.com/story/2026/0...

Histories of Native American Treaties and Anti-Chinese Violence Win Bancroft Prize

Both these books sound terrific and of interest to #cdnhist (and the one on treaty finances will be of special interest to @stillots1.bsky.social!) Gift link. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/12/a...

On the blog ... Another open letter about NS's cuts to its museum program, this one by John Reid (Prof. Emeritus SMU) and M. Brook Taylor (Prof. Emeritus MSVU): acadiensis.wordpress...

On the blog ... Claire Campbell discusses the recently shuttered Prescott House museum site, along with the cultivation of things not apple!

acadiensis.wordpress...

Even if you don't care about Parks Canada library services or its collection, you should care about what appears to be a lack of transparency and/or poor decision-making. Write to Minister @juliedabrusin.bsky.social and express your views! 4/fin

I asked - and got a 35-page PDF from ATIP that provided no information on the rationale for the decision, who was consulted, and what would happen to the collection. There was no record of decision included either. 3/

How does a tiny budget line item ($300K) in an Agency that spends $1.3B a year end up in the federal budget as a cost-cutting measure? Why are library services deemed "lower priority" and the collection targetted for "decommissioning"? 2/

I know there are lots of things to be concerned about these days but I'm reposting this for #envhist and #cdnhist. It's an ATIP story as much as it is a story about the loss of a service and the devaluing of knowledge - and the work that Parks Canada researchers did and do. 1/

Hey #envhist! Parks Canada is ending its library services+ “decommissioning” its collection. We stand to lose a valuable set of materials that reveal if and how the Agency fulfilled its mandate (or didn’t). Read more here+write the Minister @juliedabrusin.bsky.social niche-canada.org/2026/03/10/c...