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The case of three Canadian citizens: Abdullah Almalki, Ahmad El Maati and Muayyed Nureddin, resurfaced this week in the media bringing back the dark side of Canadian complicity with regimes that routinely use torture and forced disappearance in their so-called "war on terror."

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Clothing is power. Your carefully selected (or mindlessly thrown on) ensemble goes hand in hand with the industries that provide them. Industries that, in many countries around the world, are supported by the governments above them. Canadian designers need to be backed by a council that will promote the industry as an art form worth fighting for.

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Imagine the horror of learning that the faux fur-trimmed coat you just purchased was not made from synthetic material, but dog or cat fur. Surprisingly, in Canada, this is not only a real possibility but one that is potentially legal.

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Robertson wants a 70 per cent cut in natural gas use by 2020, and 90 per cent gone within 10 years. This will cost individual residents thousands of dollars -- and was approved by Robertson and his council without any thought to the affordability crisis in Vancouver.

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Ottawa's position is aligned with that of the few who question the merits of a nuclear weapons ban. Canada's current stance -- and that of most nuclear weapons states -- is that conditions are not ideal for a ban on nuclear weapons. But the reality is that they never may be.

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From foreign buyers gobbling up properties sight unseen to young families trying to raise kids in condo towers, the Canadian housing market is a hot topic of discussion these days. But what do houses really cost these days?

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Government representatives and community leaders joined dozens of policy, utility and legal experts in one room for the first time to talk about the realities of weaning Arctic communities off dirty diesel fuel, and onto habitat-friendly renewable energy.

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The decision to downsize is often made along with another difficult life transition, such as divorce, death of a spouse or kids moving out. A life transition is always painful and difficult, resulting in a plethora of complex emotions. Downsizing highlights the reasons for the transition, making it even harder.

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"It's a totally brand new city. I don't recognize anything," my mom says, gazing wide-eyed out of the decades-old tram and into the chaotic streets of Hong Kong. It's been 33 years since she moved from Hong Kong to Toronto and four months since I did the opposite. This is how I became my mother's tour guide in her own hometown.

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How you feel about this decision depends on how you felt about the target was in the first place. The Harper target is a 30 per cent reduction in Canada's greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030. That works out to eliminating 208 million tons of carbon over the next 14 years. Is that ambitious? Maybe not, if you think Canada's goals should be judged by what our peers are doing.

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Cannabis cultivation operations are dumping sediment, pesticides, fertilizers and trash into the rivers, diverting water for irrigation which has left some riverbeds dry and others unable to sustain the wildlife that depend on the region's waterways, and killing large numbers of wildlife with rodenticides meant to keep rats out of the cannabis plants.

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There is a common factor underlying some problematic choices: the natural human desire to be approved, validated and popular. This can sometimes be taken to extremes, whereby young people make choices based on external approval and social expectations, rather than internal desire and individual preferences.

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We have had the same basic voting system in this country since Confederation. After 150 years, it is time for a change to something more modern, inclusive and democratic. It is time for an electoral system that ensures that everyone's voice is heard and counted when deciding the next government.

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For loved ones left behind, suicide is not painless. It leaves you holding your heart in your hand, vibrating with emotion and reeling with questions. The ground has given way and you are free-falling through space. Here are seven things you need to know after losing a loved one to suicide; they can help you re-find your feet and piece together your broken heart.

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The ability to communicate effectively to groups is a key requirement for any business executive. As someone who has written speeches for various politicians and business executives for decades, I often get asked if there are any "tricks" that might make the ordeal more palatable. Inevitably, people eventually get around to asking about humour. Should they start a speech with a joke? My emphatic answer to this question is "maybe." And it is based on actual experience.

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It's hard to focus on math when your head is pounding. Or decipher complex instructions with your stomach gurgling. And essays are a write-off if you have no fuel. Children filled with nutritious food -- and enough of it -- are fortified to learn. Children who've eaten well can concentrate better and perform better in class.

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Krista Guloien is a Canadian rower, a 2012 Olympic silver medalist and newly published author. She wrote her book Beyond the Finish Line: What Happens when the Endorphins Fade to document her journey post-Olympics... the discussion moving to what happens to athletes when they retire from sport.

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For most employers, firing an employee is not as easy as calling him or her into your office and telling them "things just aren't working out," giving them two week's salary, and asking them to vacate the premises within one hour. No two employment situations that lead to dismissal are the same because there are usually extenuating circumstances that are anything but routine. It is up to the manager to decide on the best course of action in each situation, never losing sight of what is fair, legal, and most ethical.

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BEIJING -- Chinese people fear that regardless of who moves into the White House in 2017, the United States will put more pressure on China to restrain its behavior.

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Any change in our lives brings about feelings of anticipation and nervousness -- even positive and happy change. And this is OK. It is normal -- and even healthy. From an evolutionary perspective, anxiety is a helpful and adaptive emotion. For thousands of years, anxiety has motivated humans to act (and survive) in the face of danger. In 2016, anxiety still helps us to face challenges and do battle in our daily lives.

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City planners and developers need to realize that building a good mixture of home types for people of different incomes and ages, with amenities for people at all stages of their life, is what make a stable, healthy, vibrant city, and one where people want to, and are able to, stay and thrive.