About Salt Spring Forum

With many new pipeline projects stalled & existing ones running at capacity, oil patch producers are turning increasingly to rail to transport their product. How safe is this? Should we be concerned? What about ferries and floatplanes? Ferry accidents claim thousands of lives in other countries, but not in Canada. Floatplanes are one of the […]

The “us versus them” rhetoric increasingly employed by politicians is endangering human rights around the world. What are some of the major human rights struggles of our times, and what we can do about them? Payam Akhavan – renowned human rights scholar, former UN prosecutor at The Hague, and 2017 CBC Massey Lecturer – has […]

In the lead up to the provincial referendum in British Columbia on proportional representation (happening now), the Salt Spring Forum hosted University of British Columbia Professor Max Cameron, a world-leading expert on democratic theory and electoral design. Professor Cameron teaches comparative politics, constitutionalism, and democratization at UBC, where he also directs the Centre for the […]

What drives a person to scale the most dangerous routes up the world’s highest mountains? Find out with Doug Scott, one of the most famous mountaineers of all, with over 40 ascents of major peaks in the Himalayas and around the world. The Salt Spring Forum hosts a very special evening with Doug Scott on […]

Humans have long grappled with the topic of war and peace. Yet war, although still with us, causes fewer deaths today than it ever did before. Is the global order undergoing a power shift? Through what means did the United States become the single superpower, and is that power waning? Is China the next global […]

What is the future of Canada’s oil sands? How will shifts in US energy and environmental policies affect Canada’s fossil fuel industries and our economy as a whole? What is really happening with NAFTA? Has globalization left Canadian workers behind? Join Jeff Rubin, a world-leading economist and energy expert, in conversation on Friday, October 5th […]

The Trans Mountain pipeline expansion and tanker project was stopped in its tracks when the Federal Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, finding that the constitutional obligation of meaningful consultation had not been fulfilled. The Tsleil-Waututh live on Burrard Inlet, directly across from the pipeline’s terminus. They have, by far, been […]

With a provincial referendum on proportional representation happening this fall, how much do we really know about democracy? This Friday, September 21st at 7:30 PM at the Gulf Islands Secondary School, the Salt Spring Forum is excited to host Professor Max Cameron – a world-leading expert on democratic theory and electoral design – to help us […]

The European Union (EU) was created to ensure peace and stability in Europe. Today, Europe faces some truly deep challenges—of migration, populism, Brexit, and Trump. Will the EU dissolve, and what would this mean for the rest of the world? Is Europe turning its back on migrants? Are far-right parties gaining power across Europe? How […]

The brain is one of our most important organs, yet we know very little about how it develops and functions. In fact, scientists once believed that after childhood the brain was fixed. It turns out that nothing could be further from the truth! Did you know that every time you learn a new fact or […]

No-one was prepared for the closest election outcome in British Columbia history, on May 9, 2017. The BC Liberals had emerged with just two seats more than the BC NDP, leaving the decision—as to who would form the government—to three Green Party MLAs. What led to Christy Clark’s downfall, to the NDP forming government and […]

Comedy brings people together and, through laughter, helps us more easily explore difficult topics. Comedy can empower and it can be a tool for social justice. For the final event of the school year, the Salt Spring Forum is excited to partner with the GISS Student Council to present a speaker who will do all […]

Is Canada’s public health-care system under threat? What are the social and economic impacts of mental illness? Why is tackling poverty not a health-care priority? Why do so many Canadians lack a family doctor? Health issues have long occupied top headlines in Canadian media, and no journalist has written on public health with more authority […]

Artificial intelligence (AI) is more and more in the news. Are our cell phones actually becoming ‘smarter’ and will our cars soon be driving themselves? From healthcare to warfare, will robots become our future companions and our future soldiers? How much of the media hype about AI should we believe? Who benefits from the ‘the […]

Clean technology is one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world—and an essential response to climate change. In British Columbia, several First Nations are leaders in the renewable energy sector. By the end of 2016, 30 First Nations had operational solar, run-of-river, geothermal, wind, and biomass projects powering their communities and BC. There are […]

Why are there so few women in politics? Why is public space, whether in the street or on social media, still so hostile to women? Is the #MeToo movement signalling a real shift in society’s treatment of women? From Hillary Clinton’s failed campaign to the quest for equal pay, and from the transgender movement to […]

Salt Spring Islanders know the importance of healthy oceans. Indeed, many Salt Spring residents are protesting the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion, which if completed will add hundreds of oil tankers to the Salish Sea each year. The threat of oil spills is but one of many challenges facing our oceans. Overfishing, climate change, and plastics […]

The legalization of cannabis in Canada is approaching quickly—as early as this July. Here in BC, the provincial government just announced that adults will be able to buy marijuana from private retailers and in government-run stores. However, the province will only license retailers with support from local governments. What will legal pot mean for you, […]

With missile tests and nuclear threats, how dangerous is North Korea and, for that matter, Donald Trump? Are sanctions against North Korea having any effect? What might China and Russia do if the crisis worsens? Last week, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday Clock two minutes from midnight as the threat of nuclear warfare has […]

Governments hold an increasing amount of your electronic information. So too do private companies. Who exactly has access to your information, and what are they allowed to do with it? What is the state of Canadian law regarding online surveillance and data-sharing? Are our privacy laws out of date? What can we do to protect […]

There are currently more than 1.8 billion people worldwide between the ages of 10 and 24. This is the largest young generation in history. This is also the generation most affected by climate change. The Salt Spring Forum is partnering with members of the Student Council at the Gulf Islands Secondary School to present more […]

Kofi Annan, the former United Nations Secretary-General, called certain global issues “problems without passports”—challenges that cannot be solved by one country acting alone. According to Annan’s former adviser Michael Doyle, climate change is a clear example of a problem that cannot be solved unless China, the United States, and India all take strong and decisive […]

Did you know that half of us believe in at least one conspiracy theory? Did you know that thirteen percent of Americans believe that climate change is a hoax? Although scientists long ago settled on the conclusion that human activities are causing climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases, a small but vocal number of […]

When you think of philosophy, do you wonder whether philosophy can actually help us today, during a time of ecological crises and populist politics? Mark Kingwell – The Salt Spring Forum’s next speaker – reveals a contemporary, accessible, and highly relevant side of philosophy. On Sunday, October 29th at 7:30 PM at ArtSpring, Kingwell– who […]