Northern Routes

2021: A year dedicated to climate and social justice

So far, 2021 has started out as a political hot potato, both for our American neighbours and our own rising number of COVID-19 cases across Ontario. Yet, here in Northern Ontario, with vaccinations on the horizon, this new year brings some promise of the end (but not the eradication) of COVID-19 as a pandemic. It is the anticipation of in-person reconnection with loved ones, and hopefully, the resumption of academic and business work. We are taking stock and planning new courses of action to better ourselves and to better serve our communities. This year our resolution might be to re-evaluate the meaning of ‘normal’ and whether we s...

Season’s greetings! Thankfully, the end of 2020 is nigh.

I am continuing with my tradition of sharing laughter and lessons learned from holiday movies. Now that there is a little snow in Northern Ontario, it feels festive. As we head into the holiday season, it seems like a good time to hunker down and get into the holiday movie-watching mood. If you ask me, even the bad ones are pretty amazing. With most of us staying home during the pandemic this year, why not make it more joyful with some NOSM-themed cheer and these movies. The Holiday (2006) In this lovely flick, Cameron Diaz plays a neurotic movie trailer editor and Kate Winslet plays a British newspaper reporter who decides to swap hou...

Hope is bulletproof: We, at NOSM, have hope.

An Urgent Meeting to Address Racism Experienced by Indigenous Peoples in Canada’s Health Care Systems, organized by Indigenous Services Canada, was recently hosted with nearly 400 participants. This deeply influential meeting was occasioned by the videos of the racism experienced by Joyce Echaquan while seeking health care prior to her death. Many speakers highlighted the pervasiveness of racism in our health care and health-education systems. The most gripping testimony was that of the family of Joyce Echaquan. Many Indigenous leaders, Indigenous physicians, medical students, nurses, and other health-care professions spoke eloquent...