The Current

Some grieving Canadians are using artificial intelligence to create digital versions of the dead, in the hopes of re-connecting with people they’ve loved and lost. What will technology like this mean for how we grieve?

Thousands across Canada rallied against how schools teach about sexuality and gender identity on Wednesday. They were met by thousands of counter-protesters, who said they were defending LGBTQ students and families, and the schools that support them. Matt Galloway speaks with people on both sides of the protest.

Surfboards are an important part of life in Hawaii — a way for people to connect to the waves and their culture. After many boards burned up in last month’s wildfires, surfboard shaper Jud Lau has been making and donating replacements to help survivors find healing.

Two new studies show a significant pandemic increase in ER visits and hospitalizations for teenagers due to self-harm or suicidal ideation. Experts say better mental health supports are needed — and a model for cancer care could be the path to providing them.

Many questions remain after the bombshell accusation that India had a role in the killing of a Canadian. Matt Galloway asks Minister Harjit Sajjan whether the evidence behind the allegation will be made public, and discusses the fallout for Indo-Canadian relations.

Jonathan Menjivar’s podcast Classy brings tricky conversations about class out into the open. He talks to Matt Galloway about feeling uncomfortable in fancy restaurants, dealing with “classholes,” and the hidden barriers that can hold people back.

Guillaume Vermette has entertained traumatized children across the globe as Yahoo the humanitarian clown. But his recent trip to Ukraine was his first work in an active war zone.

The Tablelands is a patch of barren landscape — largely devoid of life — in Newfoundland’s Gros Morne National Park. But scientists have discovered a type of bacteria there that could teach us about the possibility of life in another inhospitable environment: Mars.

Thousands of migrants crossed the Mediterranean to reach the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa last week, doubling the island’s population. Megan Williams went there to find out how the locals — and the newcomers — are coping.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has accused India’s government of involvement in the killing of Canadian Sikh community leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot in B.C. in June. Matt Galloway talks to NDP leader Jagmeet Singh about the reaction in his community; and former CSIS director Richard Fadden about what happens next.

The death of Mahsa Amini in police custody sparked waves of protests in Iran. One year on, activist Masih Alinejad looks at the push for change and what, if anything, is different now.

Dismayed by the state of today’s food systems, Montreal author Taras Grescoe travelled the world to dig into the agricultural practices of the past. He tells us what he found — and about his new book, The Lost Supper: Searching for the Future of Food in the Flavours of the Past.

The Conservatives are surging in the polls and there's discontent in the Liberal ranks. Our national affairs panel breaks down what to expect as parliament returns for the fall session.

A strike deadline is looming for Canadian autoworkers, whose U.S. counterparts are already on the picket line. We look at what a strike would mean for a sector still recovering from the pandemic and facing upheaval in the transition to electric vehicles.

Starting on Fridays this September, you’ll notice something different about our podcast feed. We’re bringing you one drop you can’t miss. Our best stuff that day. Chosen by us for you. All in about 30 minutes.

Steve Jobs and Serena Williams are titans in spite of their perfectionism, not because of it, says Thomas Curran. The author of The Perfection Trap says socially prescribed perfectionism is an epidemic, and our fantasies about it are hurting rather than helping us. “It’s like a bottomless pit, or chasing the horizon.” Instead, the self-described recovering perfectionist says it's time we all embrace being good enough.

Health officials across the country are grappling with how to talk to the public about things like masks and COVID-19 booster vaccines, even as case numbers rise heading into the fall and winter. After three-and-a-half pandemic years, are people willing to listen?

A new documentary explores the life and career of Ernie Coombs, better known to generations of Canadians as Mr. Dressup. Matt Galloway talks to director Rob McCallum; and Judith Lawrence, the creator, voice and puppeteer behind the beloved Casey and Finnegan.

A proposed wind-hydrogen megaproject has divided people on the Port au Port Peninsula in western Newfoundland. Matt Galloway went there to hear from those concerned about the impact of building 164 enormous turbines — and those who think their communities can’t survive without this kind of economic opportunity.

Alyssa Ages explores strongman and strongwoman culture in her new book, Secrets of Giants: A Journey to Uncover the True Meaning of Strength.