I was a reporter for 30 years, before I became a Senator. So I know governments of all varieties dump information they don't want to draw attention to on the Friday before a long weekend. That's when Canadian Heritage dropped proposed regulations for C-18, which require Google & Meta to share 4% of Canadian earning with Canadian media. University of Ottawa internet law prof, Michael Geist is....not impressed. https://mgeist.substack.com/p/a-4-link-tax-why-the-governments#C18#BillC18#cdnpoli#Meta#Google#TRCM#SenateofCanada
(And apologies for the abrupt shift from soil health posts to posts about communications policy. But I am both deputy chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, and a member of the Standing Senate Committee on Transportation and Communications. So I care about soils. And transportation policy. And communications laws. It makes for an eclectic Mastodon feed, interspersed with pictures of my dog.) #AGFO#TRCM#SenateofCanada#cdnpoli#sorryabouthat
A few more photos from our final day touring Alberta to study soil health. We spent the morning at the Olds College of Agriculture and Technology, learning about smart farming and precision agriculture. Then we visited rancher Doug Wray, near Irricana, who is at the “bleeding edge” of regenerative ag innovation in Alberta. #SenateofCanada#AGFO#Calgary#Alberta#soil#soilhealth#regenerativeagriculture#OldsCollege
Allow me to share a few photos from our Senate agriculture committee tour of southern Alberta today. This morning, we visited the South Porcupine Ranch near Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, and Kevin Auch’s dry land pulse farm near Carmengay, to learn about their regenerative farming practices. What a privilege. #SenateofCanada#AGFO#Alberta#cdnpoli#soil#SoilHealth#regenerativeagriculture
Our Senate soil study continues, with literal field trips. On Monday, we visited the Kernan Research Farm at the University of Saskatchewan, where the Dean of Agriculture, Dr. Angela Bédard-Haughn, spoke to us about the uniqueness of prairie soils, the legacy of glaciation, and the importance of native grasslands. #AGFO#SenateofCanada#Saskatoon#UniversityofSaskatchewan#soil#soilhealth#saskatchewan
For those who are new here (or for those who've decided to activate the accounts they made months ago, just in case) let me offer, if I may, a re-#introduction. I'm Senator Paula Simons. I represent Alberta in the Senate of Canada, where I have served since 2018 as an independent senator and a member of the ISG, or Independent Senators Group. My home is in #Edmonton, on Treaty Six Territory. So I care about #Canadian politics, #Alberta politics, #cdnpoli#SenateofCanada, #yeg, #abpoli and such.