Wildfires are still raging in California, but officials are also fighting the rapid spread of misinformation and even conspiracy theories. We hear how efforts are being hampered by these false claims, including one Hollywood actor’s allegation that the fires are intended to clear people out of the state.

When was the last time you stopped to notice the animal tracks in the snow, or listened for the chirp of a bird in the stillness of winter? Edmonton researcher Holli-Anne Passmore wants people to stop and notice nature, saying that the emotions evoked can improve our sense of well-being.

Teresa Andrade says she’s living in limbo after the federal government cancelled immigration programs that helped caregivers secure permanent residency in Canada. Andrade came from the Philippines in 2019 to work as a live-in nanny, but says she and many other caregivers may now need to leave Canada — or take the risk of staying here illegally. 

Pornhub has blocked access to its own site in several U.S. states, where new laws require pornography sites to verify the age of their users. We look at whether age verification is an effective way to protect children, and why critics argue those laws infringe on free speech.

Barry Blanchard and Chic Scott are two world-renowned mountaineers who have just been appointed to the Order of Canada. They tell us about feeling like they were put on this earth to climb, and surviving a death-defying ascent with an avalanche that continued for 27 minutes.

Former CBC Radio producer Karen Levine has been named to the Order of Canada for her groundbreaking journalism. We listen to her 2001 documentary Hana's Suitcase. It tells the story of a girl murdered in Auschwitz in 1944, and how her suitcase turned up in Tokyo 57 years later. 

In the new season of CBC podcast On Drugs, Geoff Turner examines his own relationship with alcohol, and how a deeply personal tragedy led him to ask who he would be without it.

Carl Burke’s teenage son Harry died by suicide shortly after he fell victim to sexual extortion online. But proposed legislation aimed at addressing dangers on social media — the Online Harms Act — may now not become law because parliament has been prorogued until March. Burke tells Matt Galloway that playing politics shouldn’t get in the way of protecting children. For Linda Debassige, grand council chief of the Anishinabek Nation, it’s an embarrassment for Canada that a bill to ensure clean drinking water for First Nations may also not pass.

Orly Israel was stuck in traffic trying to escape the wildfires ripping through Los Angeles, when he decided to turn around. He tells us what it was like trying to save his home from the roaring flames — staying until the last possible second. 

Donald Trump is sounding increasingly serious about making Canada a part of the U.S., saying he’d use “economic force” to make this country the 51st state. Matt Galloway talks to former ambassador Jon Allen about how seriously we should take these threats, and how Ottawa should respond.