This Matters is pleased to publish episodes of the Toronto Star's podcast, Road Trip: Electric Avenues, every Saturday. The next episode will be available next week here, or already in the Road Trip feed.  Toronto Star photographer Steve Russell and climate change reporter Marco Chown Oved went on a road trip through northern Ontario in the dead of winter. It was cold, blizzarding and icy. They travelled 2,300 km during the coldest week of the year. And they did it in an electric vehicle (EV). Sudbury, Ont., has some of the richest nickel deposits in the world and is already supplying some battery makers. In the future, Canadian nickel could replace the critical minerals needed for the huge batteries that power EVs, which currently come from some pretty awful places. Join us for Episode 1 and a trip 2.5 km underground in one of Canada’s oldest mines.

This Matters would like to share the first episode of the third season of the Toronto Star podcast "Millennial Money." The show includes millennials speaking about relatable financial dilemmas that are often taboo or embarrassing but that many are grappling with behind closed doors.  Maria was saving up to freeze her eggs, but some tough financial decisions forced her to change her plans. Competing financial priorities as an adult makes her wonder: travel, own a home or have a kid - does she have to choose just one? Personal finance and travel expert Barry Choi offers practical advice on how to balance the life you want while also planning for kids. He also talks about the financial and emotional cost he and his partner experienced while going though the IVF process and the real cost of having a kid. Returning for its third season, "Millennial Money" host and Toronto Star business reporter Ghada Alsharif speaks to fellow millennials about relatable financial dilemmas that are often taboo or embarrassing but that many are grappling with behind closed doors. Alsharif then brings the topic straight to an expert to work out some options. This episode was produced by Ghada Alsharif, Julia De Laurentiis Johnston, Sean Pattendon, Kevin Sexton and Andrea Varsany

This Matters is pleased to publish the year-end episode of the Toronto Star's political podcast It's Political, featuring: National Columnist Susan Delacourt, Ottawa deputy bureau chief Stephanie Levitz and reporter Mark Ramzy, who join host Althia Raj. It’s been quite a tumultuous year in federal politics, from allegations of foreign interference involving China and India, to the expansion of industrial and dental subsidies, and a rejigging of public support for Canada’s two main parties. We asked Toronto Star readers and “It’s Political” podcast listeners for their questions — and received many probing queries about themes from the last year, especially about the influence of Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre on Canadian politics and the future of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. We gathered a few of our parliamentary journalists to answer them. Some of the clips this week were sourced from CPAC, CBC, CTV, Global, the NDP’s Instagram account, Rex Murphy’s Full Comment podcast and Pierre Poilievre’s Facebook page.   This episode of “It’s Political” was produced by Althia Raj and Michal Stein. Kevin Sexton mixed the program. Our theme music is by Isaac Joel.

This Matters would like to introduce you to another Toronto Star podcast: Millennial Money.   Millennials face an unprecedented financial landscape in modern life. They’ve been told all along there are financial markers to being a grown-up: owning a home, having kids, travelling, having some kind of social life. But for many, lots of those things feel well out of reach. Returning for its third season, the “Millennial Money” podcast is doing things differently this time around. New host and Toronto Star business reporter Ghada Alsharif speaks to fellow millennials about relatable financial dilemmas that are usually taboo or embarrassing, that everyone is grappling with behind closed doors. Alsharif will then bring the topic straight to an expert to work out some options. Episode 1 (Home ownership or kids: do I have to choose?) is now available on podcast platforms or at thestar.com/millennialmoneypodcast.

Guests: Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow In our series, The Kids Aren’t All Right, the Star has been highlighting the many ways in which children are struggling in Toronto. Mayor Olivia Chow talks about why she thinks a lot of these areas stem from housing affordability, and about her plan to try to break the logjam on that file. She also discusses her history of advocating for children at the city, and what inspired it, and gives some concrete steps she plans to take in the next year or two to try to make things easier for families and children. This episode was produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnston, Edward Keenan and Sean Pattendon. Edward Keenan is a Toronto-based city columnist for the Star. Reach him via email: [email protected]

Hosts: Toronto Star columnists Edward Keenan and Emma Teitel In this episode: The week that was in Toronto and beyond: Including questions about whether the Eglinton Crosstown will be built in any of our lifetimes (and whether they’ll let us know if it is), the fallout from the celebration of a Nazi soldier that ruined what should have been a good and meaningful day for the federal government, Olivia Chow’s measures of progress in Ottawa and at Queen’s Park, and Emma Teitel’s theory about why we’re destined to always hate Yonge-Dundas Square. This episode was produced by Sean Pattendon, Julia De Laurentiis Johnston, Emma Teitel and Ed Keenan.

Guests: Todd Irvine, arborist and founder of City Forest When a woman was killed by a falling tree branch in Trinity Bellwoods park recently, it struck many as an unforseeable freak accident. But the danger was foreseen by at least one man, and his warnings went unheeded as the Star reported this week. Arborist Todd Irvine has also been warning the city that its maintenance of trees is often making them more dangerous, and joins host Edward Keenan to explain how and why the city needs to improve how its treats the urban forest. Read the related column here. This episode was produced by Ed Keendan, Julia De Laurentiis Johnston and Sean Pattendon.

This episode originally aired January 9, 2023. Guest: Jim Rankin, staff reporter Twenty years ago, the Star published a landmark and controversial investigation examining data that showed police interaction with racialized people occurred at a higher rate, kicking of years of stories that reinforced this initial conclusion. This past year, after looking at their own data, acting Toronto police chief James Ramer apologized for police interactions with the Black community. The problems persist through all areas of law enforcement despite the acknowledgments. This episode was produced by Alexis Green, Paulo Marques and Raju Mudhar. Audio source: CBC and Globe and Mail

This episode originally aired June 2, 2023.   Guest: David Suzuki, world-renowned geneticist and environmentalist Before the Paris Agreement, before the Kyoto Protocol, before even the UN Climate Convention was signed in Rio, world-renowned geneticist and environmentalist David Suzuki was ringing the alarm bell and saying that climate change is a “matter of survival.” In this episode, Suzuki joins “This Matters” guest host and climate reporter Marco Chown Oved to discuss the state of today’s environmental movement and where it needs to go. Audio sources: CBC This episode was produced by Alexis Green, Marco Chown-Oved and Paulo Marques

This episode originally aired April 21, 2023.  Two years ago, Cowessess First Nation announced the discovery of 715 unmarked graves near the site of a former residential school. The news shocked the world and ignited a national conversation on Canada’s colonial history. At the centre was  Chief Cadmus Delorme, a young and vibrant leader, who came to office wanting to show that an Indigenous world view could work with, and even improve, Western-style development. Delorme had no idea that he would become the centre of a national reckoning on residential schools. He joins the podcast to discuss what it means to lead a modern first nation and why he’s stepping down after seven years. Audio sources: CBC, CPAC, Global News This episode was produced by Alex Boyd, Alexis Green and Paolo Marques.

This episode was originally broadcast April 18, 2023. Guest: Jeremy Hansen, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Col. Jeremy Hansen, a CAF fighter pilot and Canadian Space Agency astronaut, has been named to NASA’s Artemis II mission, the first scheduled crewed mission of the Space Launch System with the Orion spacecraft. It will leave Earth’s orbit and perform a lunar flyby, the first time people have travelled by the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972 and the first time a Canadian has reached deep space. It’s an ambitious flight, an assignment he says he is still getting his head around as he pulls from all of his experiences to prepare. Why should this mission get Canada’s attention and why is it important? What is Canada doing in space? The rookie space flyer explains. This episode was produced by Raju Mudhar, Brian Bradley and Paulo Marques. Audio sources: NASA

EDITOR'S NOTE: This version was originally broadcast on September 24, but much of what Geoffrey Skelley, of FiveThirtyEight, predicted could happen, happened. The presidency is settled. But Skelley discusses what could come next.  --- Joe Biden is the President-Elect, capturing more than 270 electoral college votes, with more than 4 million votes cast in his favour over Donald Trump. But like so much of his one-term presidency, Trump isn’t following convention. Before, and now after the election, he has claimed voter fraud, with no evidence. He claimed he won on election night, even though he didn’t. He and his campaign refuse to concede the presidency. Does that refusal mean anything? Geoffrey Skelley, elections analyst for FiveThirtyEight, breaks down how Trump can dispute the results, why it could turn into an ugly fight at the Supreme Court level and what the legal checks and balances are to ensure the election winner serves as president.