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VA hasn't budged on reduced veteran home health rates in New Mexico, rural Texas
The next steps in reversing the rate cuts will be legislation and, if necessary, litigation, advocates said.
As influencers rise in politics, some call for tighter regulations on payments
Some campaign finance advocates are concerned that voters could increasingly be influenced by social media posts that they don’t know are sponsored.
Bond breakout? Big effects of bad data. Immigration and thermostatic politics & dad-chat is coming for dad-books.
Thank you for opening your Chartbook email. Anna Airy, A Shell Forge at a National Projectile Factory, Hackney Marshes, London, 1918 Bond breakout - John Authers Across the developed markets, bond markets are staging a slow-motion car wreck. Looking at the drastic moves in the US, Japan, the UK and France, Barclays’ Ajay Rajadhyaksha commented: “Last week, long bonds broke. Not in one country. In all of them. Simultaneously. Four countries. Four different political systems. Four different central banks. But the same trade — “get me out of duration!”” Each country has its own contributing political problems, but the uniformity of the shift out of long-term bonds with high duration makes clear that something broader is afoot. For Rajadhyaksha, it is “simple and uncomfortable.” The developed world “has too much debt, too little fiscal discipline, and no political appetite for fixing either.” If there’s a trigger, it has been the Iran war and the resulting shock to oil supply. Source: Bloomberg G7 countries are now borrowing at rates that were enjoyed by EM in the early 2020s For contributing subscribers only. Subscribe Trade between China and Russia has grown in recent years For contributing subscribers only. Subscribe Big effects of bad data A decade ago nearly nine in ten Americans, when approached, agreed to fill out the Current Population Survey, which is administered to about 60,000 households each month and asks about, among other things, employment. Fewer than seven in ten do so now (see chart 1). For the Consumer Expenditure Survey, which tries to capture 3,700 households monthly, the response rate is down from 68% to 40%. … When the information becomes less reliable, investment decisions get more difficult to make. Some may be delayed, creating a potential drag on the economy. A new working paper by Nicholas Bloom of Stanford University, Erica Groshen, former head of the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS) now at Cornell University, and Duncan Hobbs and Michael Strain of the American Enterprise Institute, a think-tank, hazards an estimate. Preserving trust in “the integrity and quality of official statistics”, the authors claim, generates economic benefits of about $25 for every $1 spent on the BLS, the agency with an annual budget of $700m that is responsible for many of these data. To arrive at their conclusion the quartet analysed an ignoble episode in the BLS’s recent history. On August 1st 2025 Donald Trump sacked Erika McEntarfer, appointed as the agency’s commissioner by his predecessor, Joe Biden. The president alleged, without evidence, that the BLS’s steep downward revision to recent jobs numbers had been “RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad”. In fact, it was the wanton dismissal that looked bad in the eyes of many observers. In the following seven days there was a 50% leap, relative to the week before, in the average value of the index of Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU), which tracks the number of articles mentioning such uncertainty that are published daily in American newspapers. This was a discernible jump even when compared to the chaos caused by Mr Trump’s trade war in April 2025 and his real one in Iran in the past two months (see chart 2). Based on Mr Bloom’s earlier study with other colleagues of the EPU’s impact on business investment, industrial production and employment, the authors estimate that the jump reduced American GDP by over $100bn (0.3%) and non-farm payrolls by 168,000 (0.1%). Source: The Economist Immigration and thermostatic politics (Sarah O’Connor in the FT) A strange thing happened a year and a half ago. No sooner had Americans elected Donald Trump as president on an explicitly anti-immigration platform than US public opinion began to swing much more favourably towards immigration. … to political scientists who study “thermostatic” politics, this development is no surprise at all. Public opinion often moves against the prevailing party, especially if they are perceived to have gone “too far” in one direction. The phenomenon was first explored in the 1990s with reference to fiscal policy, but in recent years it has been particularly evident in the realm of immigration policy. While these swings in opinion polls can make it seem as if people don’t know their own minds, they can be a useful democratic check on governments by sending bright flashing warning lights when policies stray too far from the public’s comfort zone. The problem comes when politicians misinterpret those signals. When people tell pollsters they want less immigration, or think it is bad for the country overall (or the converse), they are often expressing an opinion about how things appear to be going in that moment relative to their preferences, rather than a deep shift in their underlying views. According to Alexander Kustov, a political scientist, most Americans’ views are quite stable and moderate: they support immigration that is controlled and in the national interest, and oppose flows that are disorderly or under-enforced. In the US, he argues the Trump administration over-interpreted dissatisfaction with high immigration under Joe Biden, and implemented policies that went too far for many voters. “People don’t necessarily change their idea about their ideal immigration policy, but they can react to what the government is currently doing,” he told me. “A lot of people are not happy with what the Trump administration are doing — right now we’re not talking about border enforcement, we’re talking about people not just getting harassed, but killed.” But similarly, he added, pro-immigration advocates would be making a mistake to interpret the recent, more favourable swing towards immigration as a deep-seated ideological shift in attitudes. The recent history of UK immigration policy offers another cautionary tale. After the 2016 Brexit referendum, public concern about immigration fell. This was partly because net migration statistics declined, but also because people felt a sense of catharsis and control, says Sunder Katwala, director of British Future, a think-tank. By 2019, the public ranked immigration as only the ninth biggest issue of concern, according to Ipsos polling. But when the Conservative government liberalised visa routes for students and care workers between 2019 and 2022, that helped net migration to surge. And so, too, did public concern. Today’s Labour government has implemented another sharply restrictive turn in immigration policy. As Kustov and researcher Caitlyn Yates argue, thermostatic public opinion should be a useful check on politicians. Instead it seems to have helped to magnify the pendulum swing in the UK. The government over-interprets and overreacts to a change in public opinion, which reacts in turn, prompting a sudden swing the other way. Source: Financial Times HEY READERS, THANK YOU for opening the Chartbook email. I hope it brightens your day. I enjoy putting out the newsletter, but tbh, what keeps this flow going is the generosity of those readers who clicked the subscription button. If you are persuaded to click, please consider the annual subscription of $50. It is both better value for you and a much better deal for me, as it involves only one credit card charge. Why feed the payments companies if we don’t have to. Subscribe Anna Airy, Shop for Machining 15-Inch Shells: Singer Manufacturing Company, Clydebank, Glasgow, 1918 Racing for a vaccine … we have been here before! The deadly Ebola outbreak in two African countries driven by a virus species with no vaccine has triggered an urgent search for a potential jab, in a test of troubled global efforts to avert threats posed by emerging diseases. A World Health Organization advisory group is due to would meet on Tuesday to recommend candidate jabs to prioritise for clinical trials, the global health body said. It will assess data including an analysis by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi), which was set up after failures in the international response to a previous Ebola crisis. The latest Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has infected hundreds of people and killed more than 80, health authorities say. Cepi’s reaction will be a crucial indicator of its progress towards its wider goal of producing vaccines for pandemic threats in just 100 days, despite steep cuts to international health funding. “If there was ever a time that we could show the world why Cepi is needed and show the world why the 100-day mission is needed, it’s now,” Nicole Lurie, the organisation’s executive director for preparedness and response, told the FT. “We’re happy to accept that responsibility, but obviously we need help from partners — particularly financial help in the long run.” DR Congo and Uganda would make the final decision on whether to press ahead with any vaccine candidates endorsed for clinical trials by the WHO experts, the global health body said. “Other ethical and community acceptability issues will be considered,” said the WHO, which declared the latest outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday. “This will be important to make sure that the trial, if it happens, will be adequately communicated to the population.” Lurie said Cepi had provided information from a survey of research teams and companies working on drugs that might be effective against the Bundibugyo virus behind the outbreak. The organisation hoped soon to announce partners in the quest for a jab, she added, although she declined to give a timescale for when one might be developed. Cepi’s Nicole Laurie said global health bodies were ‘getting some live-fire drills’ with hantavirus and the latest Ebola outbreak. The hunt for a vaccine should be helped by scientific advances including the use of artificial intelligence to find drugs active against viruses, Lurie said. Existing jabs against the Zaire Ebola virus responsible for many previous outbreaks might provide a basis for tackling the Bundibugyo species, she added. “We’ll see how far and how fast we can get,” Lurie said, adding that Cepi had done preliminary work recently on a possible jab for the rat-borne hantavirus responsible for a recent fatal outbreak on a cruise ship. “Both with hantavirus and now with Ebola, [we] are getting some live-fire drills.” Source: Michael Peel in the Financial Times Dad-chat is coming for dad-books. (By Pamela Paul and Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg in the WSJ) They were the go-to gifts for Father’s Day: a book about some little-known chapter of World War II, the sweeping narrative of a shipwreck, perhaps the latest presidential biography. These days, dad books are a dying breed. Nonfiction book sales have been in decline for the past four years, and are now the most challenged segment of the print book market. Publishers say certain types of books still fare well—including celebrity memoirs and religious titles. But in recent years, print sales in such categories as biography, current affairs and business and economics—what publishers refer to as “serious nonfiction” and which tend to resonate especially with men—have fallen considerably. Sales of nonfiction print titles were down nearly 8% through May 9 this year, and sales of books about politics and current affairs were down 19%, according to book tracker Circana BookScan. Publishing has long been subject to cyclical changes, with trends in format and genre taking over bookshelves in grand sweeps. (Remember the adult coloring-book craze? Or the stratospheric rise of romantasy?) But many in publishing believe the decline in serious nonfiction is more existential. “The trend couldn’t be clearer,” said Jonathan Karp, the former chief executive of Simon & Schuster and publisher of the new Simon Six imprint. “This is a sea change and people should wake up and realize we’re living in a new world.” One culprit for the shift: a new media diet for fans of more serious nonfiction. … Sixty-two percent of men and 54% of women consumed a podcast in the prior month, according to a recent survey by Edison Research at SSRS, up from 46% and 39%, respectively, in 2023. “When we have internal meetings to talk about this problem, it always comes around to podcasts,” said Jonathan Burnham, president and publisher of the Harper Group at HarperCollins Publishers. “The man who wants to read American history is now tuning into one of the many good podcasts about history that lends the quiet attention to a serious subject he’s looking for. It makes the idea of sitting down with a 700-page Ron Chernow book less appealing. You’ve scratched that itch.” Source: Wall Street Journal Remarkable report by Novara from the nationalist rally in London in mid May. Anna Airy, Leopard Moth and Plums, 1915 If you’ve scrolled this far, you know you want to click: Subscribe
Lawyers, policy experts react to Trump's green card crackdown
Trump's immigration policy limits green card status adjustments, causing confusion and debate among lawyers, advocates, and policy experts.
Advocacy group sues Trump administration over access to abortion for veterans
The rule removed limited abortion access under VA benefits that had been granted in 2022 by then-President Joe Biden's administration
Advocacy group sues Trump administration over access to abortion for veterans
The rule removed limited abortion access under VA benefits that had been granted in 2022 by then-President Joe Biden's administration
100+ Advocates Bring A Midterm Mandate On Women's Health To Capitol Hill
Osteoporotic fractures cost more than heart attacks combined. A 30% reimbursement gap. 100 advocates. One appropriations deadline. Here's the ask.
Colorado Charts Its Own Course on Vaccines Amid Federal Pullback
Doctors, lawmakers, and other advocates are joining forces to promote recommended childhood vaccines.
Opinion: Youth mental health must be a defining issue for Colorado’s next governor
Colorado can be a national leader in supporting young people’s mental health. A new coalition of state advocates and organizations is a start.
Hidden in plain sight: Oregon’s illicit massage business boom
The storefronts can look like ordinary massage businesses, but advocates and prosecutors in Oregon say some are part of a broader human trafficking network.
Election Year Politics Killed Oklahoma’s Eviction Reform Bills, Advocates Say
Oklahoma's tenant protection bills failed this legislative session, leaving renters without new legal remedies against problem landlords. House Bill 2015, which would have given courts power to hold landlords accountable for habitability failures, stalled, as did an eviction timeline extension bill. Advocates blame election-year politics and landlord influence at the Capitol.
"Pollution over politics" Environmental Advocates NY responds to EPA PFA rollbacks
On Monday, EPA administrator Lee Zeldin alongside Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the repeal of drinking water regulations for four different P
Bar Owners, Health Advocates Clash Over Smoking Ban on Outdoor Patios in San Francisco
San Francisco Supervisors delayed their vote on a ban on smoking on outdoor patios until June after pushback from small businesses.
Business Notes: Virginia Beach disability advocates honored; free mortgage for military family
View the latest business happenings in Hampton Roads.
Now What? With Carbon Pricing Eroded and Pipeline Politics Advancing, Here Are the Pathways for Climate Success
At the end of a whirlwind week of news on carbon pricing and electricity strategy, capping a madcap year of pretty much non-stop, dramatic change, the word across much of Canada’s climate and energy transition community is that climate policy in this country has been shredded. Eviscerated. Hit with a sledgehammer by policy rollbacks that have pushed the country’s 2050 net zero target “well out of reach”. That means it’s never been more important to look for the rays of hope and glimmers of possibility. To glimpse the seeds of the next set of strategies to get Canada’s climate pollution under control and the country into the accelerating global dash away from fossil fuels. And then, once we’ve spotted those possibilities, get on with the hard, day-to-day slog of trying to make them a reality. Nothing takes away from the frustration and the deep disappointment so many climate and energy hawks are expressing, the sense of betrayal by the author of Value(s) and the former UN special envoy for climate action and finance. But we knew two things as the week drew to a close. We’re looking at the world as it most definitely is. And we don’t get to give up finding the pathways to confront climate change and deliver faster, deeper carbon cuts that leave no one else behind. So really, the first question we all have to ask ourselves is: What’s next? Subscribe All the Oxygen in the Room The outpouring of anger and grief over the carbon pricing deal between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has been absolutely understandable. So much of the climate community poured years, more than a decade, into dragging the current federal pricing regime across the finish line, then defending it from a deluge of three-syllable rhymes after the Trudeau government proved utterly incapable of delivering its own message. The policy foisted on us by neo-classical economists took up all the oxygen in the room, burned through years of climate response time that we won’t get back, while cornering climate hawks into the position that the best response to the crisis of our lifetimes is a new tax…in an era of historic anti-tax sentiment. I mean, really—what could possibly have gone wrong? Against that history, let’s appreciate columnist Max Fawcett’s point that even a modest carbon pricing agreement with a government as off-the-wall libertarian/conspiracist as Danielle Smith’s—those adjectives are mine, not Max’s—is a win worth savouring (as long as Smith keeps her promises for a change). But part of living in the world as it is (no, I’m not letting that go) is to be clear-headed about what we can and can’t control. And one thing we get to decide, after seeing this week’s carbon price festivities take up all the oxygen yet again, is whether we want to keep letting that happen. Particularly when success down that road depends on a factor that no one with a climate agenda can control or influence—a provincial carbon pricing mechanism that has been manipulated and eroded beyond its lowest possible denominator. Thankfully, that’s not the way it has to go. Not when we have so many other powerful, practical tools at our disposal, including the ones still available to us through this abominable Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Canada and Alberta. Tools In Our Toolbox When I started roughing out this list, I didn’t expect it to grow to nearly a dozen bullet points. It’s probably still incomplete. Some of the greatest hits in today’s climate solutions toolbox include: • No Carbon Capture, No Pipeline: On Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney explicitly stated that there’s been no change to the MOU provision that there will be no West Coast pipeline without an industry commitment to build its massive, $16.5-billion carbon capture and storage (CCUS) hub in Northern Alberta, and vice versa. The two megaprojects were joined at the hip when the MOU was signed Nov. 27, and the implementation agreement this week affirmed that they still are. A parade of independent analysts have spent years pointing to the economic and technical flaws in CCUS, while the industry kept postponing its investment decision until it could arm-twist the government for more “clarity” (by which it meant even more lavish taxpayer subsidies) on the project. Now the industry itself is running away from the CCUS hub and insisting the pipeline should proceed without it, but Carney doesn’t seem to be budging from a central tenet of the MOU to which Smith has signed on. • No Subsidies, No Investors: Climate analysts and advocates have quite rightly been hammering away at Carney and his team, insisting that any new capacity the industry wants to build must proceed without new subsidies. The government has responded with a growing collection of funding and financing mechanisms for the very wide menu of industrial development and nation-building projects they say they want to take on, and that menu always includes fossil fuel infrastructure. But it’s hard to see how even the combined fiscal clout of the federal and supportive provincial governments will deliver the financial backing private investors would need when the business case for new fossil fuel development is evaporating before their eyes. Particularly when… • No Market, No Demand, No Investors: As our friend Markham Hislop at Energi Media (our apparently sleepless friend, given the massive volume of great material he’s been churning out) points out this morning, the biggest vulnerability in any pipeline deal is the assumption that Asian buyers will want the oil or liquefied natural ga that our fossil industry is so keen to send them. Hislop writes in part: Ottawa and Alberta are effectively betting that countries like China and India will continue increasing oil imports for decades as their economies grow and energy consumption rises. That assumption underpins the entire economic rationale for expanding oil sands production and building billions of dollars in new export infrastructure. But Asian energy systems are changing rapidly… China, India, South Korea, and other major hydrocarbon importers are now investing hundreds of billions of dollars into electricity systems built around wind, solar, batteries, nuclear, hydro, and expanded transmission infrastructure. Domestic “energy sovereignty” is increasingly replacing the old energy-security model based on stable oil and gas imports. Those investments are expected to sharply slow oil demand growth and eventually reverse it, even as overall energy consumption continues rising. There are also refining constraints. Many Asian refineries and petrochemical complexes are already optimized to process discounted heavy crude from the Middle East and Latin America. That raises serious questions about how much additional Canadian bitumen Asian markets can absorb at profitable prices. Small wonder that there’s still no private sector investor for the project, despite Smith’s government desperately beating the bushes to put together a deal. For now, Alberta is acting as proponent and covering early start-up costs for a pitch to the federal Major Projects Office, which could actually turn into the next tough hurdle for Smith and her pipeline to jump. • Canada Day Looms: How ironic that Canada’s birthday this year could become a major chokepoint for the provincial premier who’s been working so diligently to tear the country apart! The July 1 target date for Alberta’s pipeline proposal is baked into the MOU, was reaffirmed by the implementation plan, but it hadn’t dawned on me that it cuts both ways. As one very smart colleague wrote in an email yesterday, “they’ve thrown the ball into Alberta’s court to get the project proposal on the table really quickly and to have to do a whole pile of work to put together a massive, complicated project that would typically take years to assemble, and they’ve given them weeks to do it.” That makes July 1 a looming deadline that Smith won’t be able to run away from politically, especially with the separatists in her party and her caucus breathing down her neck. (See previous ref to off-the-wall.) But if Alberta comes in with a sloppy, incomplete submission, even after Carney bent over backwards to simplify the application process and the rules that govern it, it may be harder for the province or the industry to blame Ottawa and insist on the faster process they claim their investors are demanding. (Oh, wait—which investors would those be??) • We’ll See You In Court (Then We’ll See You Again): If Carney did cave, that would be just one more reason for Indigenous and other affected communities to take the government and the process to court—Just as Alberta First Nations did, successfully, in response to Smith’s half-baked separation referendum. Veterans of the Harper era have been warning that a shoddy process around fossil fuel infrastructure or other major projects will be a recipe for the very delays that process seeks to avoid. And now more than ever, with renewable energy and energy storage eating fossil fuels’ lunch in import markets around the world, a delayed pipeline or LNG terminal may be as good as a cancelled one. • Charged Up, Ready to Go: With its goal of doubling Canada’s electricity supply to meet a doubling of demand by 2050, the national electricity strategy that Carney unveiled Thursday has a lot to like. With its explicit language about speeding the shift from fuels to more efficient and affordable electricity, global investment and deployment patterns that already favour that shift, an emerging bidirectional power grid, the role of front-line options like rooftop solar and heat pumps, the emergence of electric vehicles as behind-the-meter energy storage, and the domestic jobs and manufacturing to make it all happen, the document doubles down on the essential cornerstone of a faster shift off fossil fuels. The strategy envisions a more prominent role for gas and nuclear power. But some of those provisions were already in the Clean Electricity Regulations that climate hawks are now fighting so hard to defend, inserted as a compromise in a futile attempt to mollify the industry and its political representatives in Alberta and Saskatchewan. But once again, gas will be a tougher sell when it’s more expensive and now so much more unpredictable than the clean alternatives. The new nuclear technologies are still speculative and deeply vulnerable to cost overruns. Increasingly, utilities, developers, and investors know it. Carney declared Thursday that “it doesn’t do us good to be sitting in court all the time with provinces. It doesn’t do us good to be talking past each other. What does do us good is to come together with specific projects.” There are no guarantees, but so much of the language and narrative-building in the electricity strategy suggests the lion’s share of those projects will be renewable. • The Party Has Already Started: The electricity strategy only rarely digs down to specific projects, but provinces representing three-quarters of Canada’s population are already embracing a faster transition. Hydro-Québec is working on a 10-year, $185-billion renewable energy and grid buildout by 2035. Ontario recently brought 10 provinces and territories together in a National Energy Corridor Agreement to boost interprovincial and -territorial transmission infrastructure. And the MOU implementation agreement commits Alberta to facilitate investment in renewable energy projects, a big step back from its continuing, punitive restrictions on renewables development. The electricity strategy envisions much of the financing and infrastructure that will be needed to pull those advances together into an integrated whole. • Delivering on Affordability: The MOU implementation plan has little or nothing to say about affordability (are you surprised?), but the electricity strategy does, with a top-line pledge to reduce home energy costs for seven out of 10 Canadian households by 2050, a total saving of $15 billion across the board. It’s just a start, but it puts affordability on the government’s narrative map. If they’re serious and deliberate about patching together a least-cost energy strategy, it’ll have little if any room for oil, gas, or nuclear—not with powerful evidence, for example, that electricity prices are higher when those prices are set by gas. • Smith Proves that Canada Works: By signing a deal that makes it harder to claim the federal government is blocking a new pipeline, Smith has helped prove Carney’s constant anti-separatist refrain that “Canada works”—incurring the rage, no doubt, of her own political base. Canada also needs to work for anyone who depends on a clean environment, healthy and thriving ecosystems, and safe, stable climate. But with Smith and her separatist constituents setting up as a fifth column for annexation by Donald Trump’s United States, let’s set aside any notion that 51st state status for Canada is a recipe for anything other than climate disaster (and so much else). Resisting and withstanding Trump (just 170 more sleeps until mid-term elections, which is a damn sight better than the 730 we started with) doesn’t mean a free pass for a pipeline, but we can still appreciate it that keeping Canada whole and sovereign is still Carney’s Job One. • The Words Not Spoken: Apart from a commitment to export a million barrels of “low-emission” Alberta bitumen per day (memo to Smith and Carney: You realize that that’s less than the industry is already exporting??), the MOU implementation plan says nothing about the international trade and economic sovereignty deals that Carney has been travelling the world to negotiate. It didn’t have to. Carney doesn’t need permission from Danielle Smith, her American enablers, or her separatist allies to continue building the alliances that will ratchet down our economic dependency on our unstable, unreliable neighbour to the south. But every connection he builds with countries outside North America helps align our economy and our future with a faster shift off fossil fuels. Little if any of this was on our bingo cards a year or two ago. But it’s the pathway that has opened up to us. And if it gives Canada any climate or energy gains at all in an era still dominated by Trump and his increasingly ridiculous tariffs, his loutish trade negotiations and his continuing annexation threats, we have to take the wins. Not least because they’ll be the point of departure for what we can achieve in 2027, 2029, and beyond, as Trump’s grip and this era begin to loosen and then fade. What is Carney Doing? If this line of thought is right—and it’s a possibility, not a prediction—it means that Carney’s actions and decisions are largely about buying time. Time for Trump’s power to wane. Time for Alberta’s separatist/conspiracist virus to spread, mutate, die out, or at least die back, with help from a vaccine of federal steadiness and calm (appropriate enough, for a movement populated largely by vaccine deniers) that no conspiracy theory can dismiss. And time for the government’s trade and investment agenda to deliver results—even knowing that some of those results will bring impacts that front-line communities will not and should not accept. In the immediate moment, none of this changes the way the wider climate community has to respond, from campaigners to investors to front-line practitioners. All of our voices are still essential. But those voices will be stronger and more confident if we have a clearer sense of the brutal game we’ve been pulled into, and a plausible path (or two it three) for playing it to the win we need. This conversation also underscores our biggest task for the remaining years of what was supposed to be the “decisive” decade for climate response: if we can shift the energy narrative in Canada, make it a mainstream view that the country’s preoccupation with oil and gas has us falling farther behind a changing world, we’ll see far better results in the 2030s and beyond. For many veteran climate advocates, taking on that part of the fight will begin with recognizing that most of our friends and family, neighbours and colleagues already understand that climate change is real and right in front of us: they’re looking away and staying silent because they don’t have what climate communicator Katharine Hayhoe calls “efficacy”. As Hayhoe recently pointed out in a feature interview with The Energy Mix, it amounts to science denial to keep hammering away at the dire news about global warming without also helping audiences understand what they can do about it, with multiple studies telling us why that won’t work. Far better to open those conversations with the dominant crises like energy security, food security, emergency preparedness and business continuity, affordability, and financial security that have knocked climate change far lower on the list of public priorities, and will likely keep it there. We Knew This Would Happen Climate hawks have always known this day would come. For decades, we warned that everyone had to pay attention to climate change right now, because it would be much tougher to respond once the crisis itself started affecting our daily lives. We were right, and here we are. But now, thanks to decades of hard work, communities and countries have an alternative to doubling down on fossil fuels. “In 10 years everyone will have ‘always known’ that solar and batteries were going to win,” Morgan Solar Executive Chair Mike Andrade writes on LinkedIn. With the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz roiling energy priorities around the world, Canada and the United States are among the shrinking number of countries that are still very keen on fossil fuel development. Understanding that gap is a first, essential step in spotting the opportunities ahead, and averting the deep economic as well as environmental and social risk we face if we don’t seize them. Thanks for reading The Energy Mix Weekender! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe Mitchell Beer traces his background in renewable energy and energy efficiency back to 1977, in climate change to 1997. Now he and the rest of the Energy Mix team scan 1,200 news headlines a week to pull together The Energy Mix and The Energy Mix Weekender. Chart of the Week BYD Eyes 20 Dealership Locations After Canada Greenlights Chinese EV Imports ‘Sledgehammer’ Carbon Price Deal Boosts Emissions by 230Mt, Aims for Fall 2027 Pipeline Approval ‘Worse Than Harper’: Regulatory Rollback Would Stop Canada from Assessing Project Impacts, Critics Warn Electricity Strategy Aims for Doubling by 2050, Allows ‘Flexibility’ for Gas Power Plants Opposition Mounts as O’Leary’s Data Centre Approved in Drought-Stricken Utah Diluted Carbon Price Misses ‘Reality of the World We’re In’, Could Impede Diversified Trade: Climate Institute $200B in Clean Energy Investment Will Need On-Time Delivery, Reliable Policies, Trade Association Says ‘Sovereign Pipeline’: CEO Pitches to Keep Trans Mountain in Government Hands What a Supercharged El Niño Could Mean for Canada Canada’s future is electric, and here’s how a power grid superhighway would get us there (Toronto Star) The Perilous Waters of Hecate Strait (Globe and Mail) Saudi Aramco profits jump despite conflict in Middle East (The Guardian) Farmers confront rising cost of fertilizer and fuel as spring seeding under way (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Clarkson forecasts 24% decline in offshore oil, gas capital expenditures (Oil & Gas Journal) Pipe Dreams: How Oil and Gas Fail to Deliver Economic Development in Africa (Oil Change International) Developing countries must hold the pen to script the fossil fuel transition (Climate Home News) Iran war threatens the dream of a post-oil economy in the Gulf (Washington Post) U.S. Oil, Gas Work Force Hits Lowest Level Since 2022 (Rigzone) Why Polestar Is Doubling Down on Net Zero as Rivals Pull Back on EVs (Bloomberg) Why this Michigan utility plans to sell its hydro dams for $13 (E&E News/Politico) Levees can no longer save New Orleans (Vox)
World Health Organization Must Prioritize Workers, Experts Say
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How Mississippi politicians, advocates reacted to redistricting cancelation
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South Carolina leaders mark Multicultural Business Alliance Day at State House
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People of UW: Association for Women in Sports Media President Rachel Cohen builds community, advocates for women
Please introduce yourself (hometown, year, major, role(s)) My name is Rachel Cohen. I am a senior studying journalism and mass communication and getting my certificates in sports communications and digital studies. I’m from Sykesville, Maryland which is a small town suburb of Baltimore. At Wisconsin I do in-game hosting for Wisconsin volleyball and sideline reporting...
Minnesota readies first-ever K-12 health education standards
Advocates say the new standards, set to be phased in over the next three years, introduce needed guidance on nutrition, first aid, sex and abuse prevention. Some school watchers worry the standards will burden already overwhelmed educators.
MAPS Announces Dates for Psychedelic Science 2027; Early Bird Registrations Now Open
Early bird registration is now open for Psychedelic Science 2027, taking place May 3–7, 2027, in Denver, Colorado.Early bird pricing offers discounted registration in limited quantities to the world’s leading psychedelic conference.Psychedelic Science 2027 to convene 8,000+ researchers, clinicians, policymakers, advocates, and cultural leaders from around the globe. DENVER, May 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) announced that early bird
Trust, Play, and Platforms: Sharing Lessons for Safer Digital Spaces
Drawing on expert reflections from a September 2025 symposium, this paper examines how Trust & Safety governance in online gaming compares to social media and what the games industry’s unique experience with community-driven moderation can teach policymakers and advocates working across all digital spaces.
Boston Globe Health Equity Summit: Watch it live
Leaders, experts, and advocates are engaging in in critical conversations on reducing health disparities and fostering more inclusive care.
Colorado’s health care cuts are painful — what comes next could be worse
By Ross Brooks and Beverly Razon Last December, a broad coalition of consumer advocates, safety net providers, hospitals, health plans and physicians statewide published a warning: our state was facing a health care crisis, and fragmented policymaking would make it harder to solve. These members of the Colorado Health Policy Forum called on Gov. Jared […]
Colorado’s health care cuts are painful — what comes next could be worse
By Ross Brooks and Beverly Razon Last December, a broad coalition of consumer advocates, safety net providers, hospitals, health plans and physicians statewide published a warning: our state was facing a health care crisis, and fragmented policymaking would make it harder to solve. These members of the Colorado Health Policy Forum called on Gov. Jared […]
What to know about states' efforts to limit corporate donations in politics
Two states could try to squeeze companies' money out of politics by redefining the powers of corporations. Advocates see the effort as a way to get around the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision...
Health advocates warn government’s claims of baby formula safety contradict data
Independent scientists who reviewed the results said most samples were contaminated with Pfas or phthalates
Nonprofit offers Mother’s Day weekend maternal health panel on South Side
A panel of doctors, midwives and health advocates spoke on navigating the birthing experience as a Black woman.
Black voters are ‘prepared to make noise’ after Republicans quickly pass ‘Jim Crow’ voting maps
Voting rights advocates are scrambling to respond to rapidly gerrymandered congressional maps that dilute Black political power
Huge crowd presses for Louisiana to keep two majority-Black districts in pointed hearing
As the Louisiana Legislature races to redraw its voting maps for Congress, voters and advocates blasted lawmakers for pushing to eliminate majority-Black seats.
As federal government pulls back, Colorado charts independent course with vaccines
As state leaders change laws to make vaccines more accessible, a coalition of doctors, public health advocates and everyday Coloradans is trying to start a public conversation about their importance.
Military spouses head to the Hill, push for removal of barriers to small businesses to boost retention
Advocates aim to introduce the Military Spouse Small Business Recognition Act, arguing it could improve access to capital, national security and retention.
Ohio abortion rights advocates concerned about health access as US Supreme Court mulls mail access
As the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily holds off a ban on telehealth abortion pill care, Ohio reproductive rights advocates and clinics say the potential loss of that type of abortion access will cause uncertainty and direct impacts to public health and wellbeing.
Small business relief has come, but more is needed, Sen. Marshall says
Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall calls attention to tax breaks and reduced regulation; advocates for competition on credit card swipe fees.
Legislating at the speed of artificial intelligence
By Sean Camacho Consumers in Colorado and across the country are demanding artificial intelligence companies be more transparent about how their systems work: how they’re built, how they learn, how they change over time. What we’ve learned as advocates for AI regulation is the process of building AI — iterative, adaptive and never fully finished […]
Bryan Johnson tweet draws attention to vaginal microbiome. What is that?
Bryan Johnson tweeted his wife's vaginal microbiome test results. We spoke to OBGYNs and longevity advocates about what that is and if you should do it too.
Supreme Court abortion case could force Trump to take a public stance on mifepristone
The return of abortion to the Supreme Court is testing President Donald Trump’s strategy of avoiding the issue as the anti-abortion advocates grow increasingly frustrated that his administration hasn’t done more to crack down on access to mifepristone, the drug approved to terminate pregnancies.
Who's Who in Finance: Capital Gap Widens - Los Angeles Business Journal
As one of the key figures in Los Angeles’ chapter of the Small Business Majority, Brian Pifer researches, educates and advocates for the area’s
The Antiabortion Movement Is Turning on Trump
The ubiquity of abortion pills during the second Trump administration has frustrated antiabortion advocates.
US ‘drowning in misinformation’ under RFK Jr, autism advocates say
Health officials in Trump administration were accused of fueling ‘crisis of public trust’ over autism and vaccines
Kid Captain: Rebecca Recalde
Rebecca Recalde developed severe childhood epilepsy at age 3, experiencing up to 80 seizures per day and undergoing two brain surgeries at UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital. Now 15, she relearned basic skills, returned to dance and other hobbies, excelled academically, and advocates for epilepsy awareness as a Kid Captain.
Boston restaurants, stores often flout captions ordinance
Changing a business' TV settings makes spaces more inclusive for Deaf and hard-of-hearing people, say disability rights advocates.
Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana sparks debate over impact
The decision is drawing mixed reactions from voting rights advocates and political groups.
Protect patient access to life-saving drugs
By Leslie Herod Since its inception, Colorado’s Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) created fear among patients around effects to life-saving medicines and the negative ramifications price controls have on affordability. Five years on, those fears persist. Patients and advocates continue to push for protections for those facing the very likely scenario drugs whose price is […]
Science needs student advocates now more than ever
Trainee voices are essential to the future of research and patient care.
Science needs student advocates now more than ever
Trainee voices are essential to the future of research and patient care.
Congressional Republicans propose cutting WIC by $200 million
Anti-hunger advocates say it would be “devastating.”
Congressional Republicans propose cutting WIC by $200 million
Anti-hunger advocates say it would be “devastating.”
Germany: Merz hails 'historic' health care reform
The Cabinet has greenlit a health care draft law designed to lower insurance rates. The bill heads to parliament next, but doctors' associations and patient protection advocates say it amounts to austerity measures.
Business briefs, April 29
Ventas expects 2026 senior living investments will total $3B by year’s end … RFK Jr.’s recent comments on paid family caregivers ‘deeply concerning,’ advocates say … DHS interim final rule codifying immigration fees goes into effect May 29 … Assisted living provider groups back new HCBS quality measures, with caveats … Fitch rates Lebanon Valley Brethren Home at BBB
Seeking the Best in Dairy: Applications Open for the 2026 Milk Business Awards
Nominate the innovators and advocates redefining dairy. Apply by August 1 for a chance to win an all-paid trip to the 2026 Milk Business Conference in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Colorado is ensuring children come first
By Jenelle Goodrich For years, parents and advocates have been calling for stronger regulations around technology that interacts with our children. Colorado House Bill 26‑1263 is a serious acknowledgment by lawmakers that conversational AI systems are deeply embedded in the lives of young people, and they carry real risks that demand real accountability. From Silenced […]
Big companies position themselves for payday from $50B federal rural health fund
A $50 billion federal fund is supposed to modernize rural healthcare. But community clinics and advocates fear that the contractors administering the money for states will bite off a big chunk before it reaches patients.
Bend residents weigh in on push for universal health care in Oregon
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Health care reform took center stage at Trinity Episcopal Church this week, where Central Oregon residents gathered for a town hall focused on the future of universal coverage in the state. The discussion, hosted by Health Care for All Oregon, comes as lawmakers and advocates explore ways to make care more
Save NASA Science returns to Capitol Hill
The 2026 Day of Action brought more than 130 space advocates from 34 states and the District of Columbia to the nation’s capital to advocate for space.
Public health advocates take on sports gambling in first-of-its-kind summit in Boston
A lot happens in Boston every day. To help you keep up, WBUR, Boston's NPR News station, pulled these stories together just for you.
Public health advocates take on sports gambling in first-of-its-kind summit in Boston
A lot happens in Boston every day. To help you keep up, WBUR, Boston's NPR News station, pulled these stories together just for you.
From Chavez to Swalwell, #MeToo Shapes Fallout in California Politics
In California, swift fallout from allegations against Eric Swalwell and Cesar Chavez reflects #MeToo’s impact while advocates say gaps in accountability remain.
Brain to behavior to belief: Stanford Veritas Forum advocates role of science and faith in a fulfilled life
Arthur Brooks and Andrew Huberman shared the science behind fulfillment and how their Christian faith has played a role in their pursuit of happiness.
Justin Willis joins Valley students advocating for mental health at Sacramento rally
Local mental health advocates including students from the Valley, will travel to Sacramento on Tuesday to attend the annual National Alliance on Mental Illness
From novices to advocates: Stanislaus County parents want more computer science classes in schools
After learning basic computer skills, a group of parents hopes their efforts will lead to increased access to computer science, which remains uneven across the state.
After her cancer misdiagnosis, Lucy Liu advocates for early screening
Lucy Liu shares how a misdiagnosis led to surgery and changed how she advocates for her own health.
Taxpayer advocates back Trump push for medical price transparency in federal plans
Trump admin pushes health price transparency for federal workers; advocates support it, while industry leaders raise privacy concerns.
Trump admin seeks health-care price transparency
(The Center Square) - Taxpayer advocates are applauding the Trump administration over its efforts calling for medical price transparency in federal employee health-care plans while health-care industry leaders are pushing
Politics: Iowa House approves bills affecting license plate readers, chatbots
The Iowa House of Representatives approved two measures last week relating to the usage of automated license plate readers and AI chatbots, bills that advocates for privacy and child safety
Lawmakers pressed to address Black maternal health disparities
Advocates pushed Michigan lawmakers to address racial differences in maternal healthcare this week. The activism is part of Black Maternal Health Week.
Why Grindr’s CEO Wants the Gay Dating App to Get Deeper Into AI
In a new interview, George Arison talks AI, California politics and where he disagrees with LGBTQ advocates.
Federal judge dismisses DOJ lawsuit seeking personal details about Rhode Island voters
U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy sided with Rhode Island's top election officials and civil rights advocates, writing that federal law does not permit the U.S. Department of Justice “to conduct the kind of fishing expedition it seeks here.”
Proclamation Brings Awareness To State’s Behavioral Health Workforce Needs - West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Recognition from Gov. Patrick Morrisey is helping autism treatment advocates to expand resources in West Virginia.
Democrats want Colorado colleges to provide medication abortion
A bill proposing to require Colorado colleges and universities to provide abortion medication services cleared a legislative committee on Thursday. Advocates said the measure — which exempts religious-based institutions but applies to public, private, and community colleges — will improve access to abortion, while opponents argue it would force educational institutions to take a side […]
West Salem High teacher advocates for unified sports as Mrs. Salem pageant contestant
A West Salem High School teacher is using a pageant platform to advocate for inclusion and unified sports programs across Oregon.
Listen: With Little Federal Regulation, States Are Left To Shape the Rules on AI in Health Care
As artificial intelligence embeds itself into health care, some physicians and patient advocates worry it could be used by insurance companies to refuse payment for care. Maryland passed one law banning AI from acting alone on a denial. Meanwhile, Virginia’s then-governor vetoed that state’s attempt at regulating AI in health insurance.
CDCR connects via Small Business Administration event
CDCR is making connections thanks to staff from the Office of Business Services participating in a Small Business Administration event.
Health advocates demand lawmakers close AC casino smoking loophole
Health experts and advocates joined dozens of workers on the boardwalk Wednesday, demanding lawmakers close the casino smoking loophole.
City leaders and advocates address disparities in Black maternal health
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco policy leaders and community advocates are marking Black Maternal Health Week with a focus on improving outcomes for Black families. The event at City Hall high…
WATCH: First lady Melania Trump advocates for U.S. foster care system improvements at House roundtable
LIF-HEALTH-PEDIATRICIAN-QA-DMT
Food allergies have risen by 50% since the 1990s. With this in mind, the American Academy of Pediatrics advocates for the health of all children who must avoid certain foods
Universities Allied for Essential Medicines advocates for affordable health care
While a vial of insulin takes as little as $2 to manufacture, it can cost consumers $250 in the United States. Universities Allied for Essential Medicines, an international advocacy organization that has chapters at universities including UCLA, raised awareness about medication unaffordability during its annual North American conference at the Neuroscience Research Building from April 3 to 5.
Black Maternal Health Week highlights disparities, solutions at Hampton Roads conference
Held as part of the national awareness week from April 11 to 17, the conference brought together doctors, nurses, social workers and midwife advocates to address inequities in maternal health care and outcomes.
Peoria double homicide highlights mental health system failures, advocates say
Prosecutors say Jonathan Turk’s parents tried multiple times to get him mental health treatment before their deaths.
Cuba Excluded Political Prisoners From Mass Pardon, Rights Group Says
Cuba’s release of more than 2,000 prisoners last week excluded regime critics and political prisoners, according to civil rights advocates.
Advocates Remain Bullish About Turning the Waterfront Park Bowl Into an Entertainment Plaza
Peter Johnson and his fellow board members have persistently sought public and private support to transform the Bowl into a privately maintained public asset that’s filled with tiered lawns, a marketplace and live music.
If Vermont is going to scale up primary care, health advocates say this one funding priority is crucial
The House-approved budget for next fiscal year gives scholarship and loan repayment programs more money than the governor originally proposed, but many worry it will not be enough.
Why Do Deliberative Discussions Reduce Affective Polarization? Evidence from a Deliberation Experiment in Honduras - April 7, 2026
Deliberative democracy advocates argue that deliberation can strengthen democracy in part by reducing partisan hostility and affective polarization. Yet - Why Do Deliberative Discussions Reduce Affective Polarization? Evidence from a Deliberation Experiment in Honduras April 7, 2026
Advocates Ready For NASA Science Funding Fight, Part II
Once again, the Trump administration has proposed an $18.8B NASA budget that would make large cuts to science and STEM missions. And—once again—advocates and lawmakers are saying they won’t stand idly by while programs are gutted.
Activists and Policy Advocates on the Role of Civility in Politics, Media, and Everyday Life
Activists and policy advocates sit down for a discussion on the impact of civility on politics, the media, and everyday life. NYU Washington, DC, hosts this event.
Mom advocates for son’s autism through local business
A local mom with sewing experience created a business to advocate for her son's autism.
As Montana Prepares to Roll Out Medicaid Work Requirements in July, Health Care Advocates Propose Best Practices
As the state’s Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) gears up to begin checking for Medicaid work requirements this summer, department officials this week announced the launch of a new government webpage designed to help patients navigate the upcoming changes. “Our priority is to ensure that Montanans covered by Medicaid Expansion have the […]
New Mexico's court-mandated pathways to mental health care
Lawmakers have made changes in recent years to bolster the treatment system, but advocates say wide gaps render them insufficient.
Georgia lawmakers pass bill that lets property owners sue over homeless encampments
Homelessness advocates say the bill would cause law enforcement to arrest people because they have nowhere to sleep and spur frivolous lawsuits paid for by taxpayers.
Advocates push for more mental health resources for first responders
Illinois leaders brainstormed ways to get more mental health resources into the hands of first responders who need them.
Sexual Healthcare for Cancer Survivors
Pelin Batur, MD, advocates for clinicians to help patients with cancer by prioritizing the sexual-health treatments supported by strong data.
From classroom to Capitol Hill, UF students help shape health policy
On any given day in the halls of Congress, Ryan Athay may meet with health advocates, research complex policy issues or help write legislation that could impact millions of lives. For Athay, a Master of Public Health student in the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions, the experience is more than a line on a resume. It’s a front-row seat to policymaking in real time.
Big change for California small businesses: No more SBA loans for non-citizens
Green-card holders no longer qualify for loans from the Small Business Administration, eliminating a longtime source of financing for immigrants that advocates say will discourage job creation and harm the economy.
Big change for California small businesses: No more SBA loans for non-citizens
Green-card holders no longer qualify for loans from the Small Business Administration, eliminating a longtime source of financing for immigrants that advocates say will discourage job creation and harm the economy.
Big change for California small businesses: No more SBA loans for non-citizens
Green-card holders no longer qualify for loans from the Small Business Administration, eliminating a longtime source of financing for immigrants that advocates say will discourage job creation and harm the economy.
Babies are an afterthought in the birthright citizenship case, advocates say
An end to birthright citizenship would mean a new layer of bureaucracy for all babies born in the U.S., and could cause delays for health insurance and other benefits.
Leadership Training Academy 2026 Recap
PRH’s 2026 Leadership Training Academy brought together physician advocates to advance reproductive justice through policy, care, and community.