ActiveHistory.ca
@activehist.bsky.social
What is Active History? ActiveHistory.ca connects the work of historians with the wider public and the importance of the past to current events. #ActiveHist
"The Indian Act as Wendigo" by Jenni Makahnouk is part of our series exploring the environmental dimensions of the Indian Act, in collaboration with @activehist.bsky.social niche-canada.org/2026/07/28/t... #envhist #indigenous #cdnhist #indianact
The Indian Act as Wendigo
Framing Canada's Indian Act as the insatiable Wendigo exposes its predatory nature, shifting the focus from policy reform to starvation-based refusal.
niche-canada.org
"Documents are only partial records of the past. Archives preserve the records those in power choose to keep. Absence in the record is itself evidence." Read the new essay from @historyjacob.bsky.social, Chloë Farr, and Jessica Jack.
The Archive is Not a Toy: The Hidden Problems of a ‘Vintage’ AI
talkie’s poor representation of history is a side effect of a larger problem. The model was conceptually built as an experimental tool to see if language models can accurately predict the future, a…
activehistory.ca
Nastasha Sartore explores the importance of 'busywork' in writing history amid ongoing discussions about the use of AI in academia and research. Read more below and check out our other series exploring AI in the classrooms here: activehistory.ca/generative-a...
In Defence of Busywork
Nastasha Sartore Earlier this year, over forty people logged in to Zoom to attend a CHA webinar titled “Generative AI and the Practice of History.” Introduced as a “show and tell” for AI tools and …
activehistory.ca
Democrat-appointed judges have since approved the government's appeal so that the taking down and white-washing of signs can continue.
Appeals court reverses order requiring removed signs to be restored at National Park sites
A federal appeals court reversed a lower court’s order requiring the National Park Service (NPS) to restore signs and exhibits that were removed by the Trump administration. The 1st Circuit Court o…
thehill.com
ActiveHistory.ca@activehist.bsky.social · 4w ago"This project builds on a lineage of place-based public history and crowdsourcing projects that bring the public into the research process." Amelia Palacios, Molly Blake, Jenny McBurney and Kirsten Delegard, the co-founders of Save Our Signs, discuss the importance of it and public history.
"This project builds on a lineage of place-based public history and crowdsourcing projects that bring the public into the research process." Amelia Palacios, Molly Blake, Jenny McBurney and Kirsten Delegard, the co-founders of Save Our Signs, discuss the importance of it and public history.
Save Our Signs: Preserving Censored Histories in America’s Largest Outdoor Classroom
By Amelia Palacios, Molly Blake, Jenny McBurney and Kirsten Delegard; co-founders of Save Our Signs On the corner of Sixth and Market streets in Philadelphia sits a contested site at the heart of t…
activehistory.ca
July 4th 2026 marked the 250th anniversary of the United States of America's Declaration of Independence. Felicia Gabriele @feliciagabriele.bsky.social explores how she approached teaching it in a Canadian university classroom and shares some of her students' projects. Read it below!
Teaching in Interesting Times: America @ 250 in the Canadian Classroom
Felicia Gabriele The expression, “May you live in interesting times,” seems on its face, pleasant enough. Resembling a well-wish, its sunny exterior deftly cloaks the dark, cavernous depths within.…
activehistory.ca
July 1st 2026 marks the deadline for the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), which replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 2020. James Cullingham's post explores the history of this moment and other major events the three countries have experienced.
Happy Independence Day 2026 – Mexico & Canada
James Cullingham Canada and Mexico approach an historic juncture in their relations with the United States. Both countries face a July 1 deadline over the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement (CUS…
activehistory.ca
Michael Dawson explores the history of tourism and anti-tourism in Venice amid current local frustration regarding overtourism. From the 1940s to now, check out the story below!
“We are in danger of becoming a stage without actors:” Contextualizing Contemporary Overtourism in Venice, Italy
Michael Dawson Today’s visitors to Venice are hard-pressed to ignore the locals’ frustration with their presence. In 2025, CNN lamented the impact of overtourism on this popular destination “hollow…
activehistory.ca
Peter L. Twohig @ptwohig.bsky.social explores the history of occupational health and safety in health care alongside unions and the labour force. Check it out below!
Health care workers and the ‘third wave’ of occupational health
Peter L. Twohig On 16 April 2026, five thousand long-term care (LTC) workers in 56 facilities throughout Nova Scotia began a strike. A tentative agreement ended the labour action after eight weeks,…
activehistory.ca
I wrote a little piece for Active History on health, safety, and unions in health care. activehistory.ca/blog/2026/06... Thank you @activehist.bsky.social ... look forward to working with you again
Health care workers and the ‘third wave’ of occupational health
Peter L. Twohig On 16 April 2026, five thousand long-term care (LTC) workers in 56 facilities throughout Nova Scotia began a strike. A tentative agreement ended the labour action after eight weeks,…
activehistory.ca
For the ninth post of the Great Acceleration series, Stéphane Castonguay and Colin Coates explore the industrialization of Laurentian agriculture and the dairy transition. This series is cross-posted with @nichecanada.bsky.social Make sure to check out the entire series!
The Great Acceleration of the Laurentian Dairy Transition
Stéphane Castonguay and Colin Coates This is the ninth post in a series about the Great Acceleration as a framework and reconnaissance for Canadian environmental history. The posts in this series a…
activehistory.ca
To explore Chile’s diplomacy with Canada and Quebec separatism, Thomas Stroyan takes a look at Quebec aircraft.
Fighting Fires: Quebec Separatism in Canada – Chile Relations, 1968
Thomas Stroyan In February 1968, the Quebec government agreed to loan Chile two Canadair CL-215s (also known as the CANSO). The CL-215 was an amphibious flying boat built for the purpose of perform…
activehistory.ca
“History should make you feel weird.” Through the letters of Edward Whymper, Dani K. Inkpen confronts ideas of life and death and politics and compassion in the archives.
Feeling Weird in the Archives
Dani K. Inkpen “History should make you feel weird.” So proclaims a widely touted slogan of history nerds. While there is much in the world foisting weirdness upon us today, too rarely do we intent…
activehistory.ca
Jim Clifford challenges ideas of periodization in global history and Great Acceleration frameworks. This is the 8th post in a series on using the Great Acceleration as a framework and for reconnaissance in Canadian environmental history. This series is cross-posted with @nichecanada.bsky.social
When did the Great Acceleration start? Saskatchewan might hold the answer
Jim Clifford When did the Great Acceleration start? Saskatchewan might hold the answer. Between the 1890s and the 1930s, the settler population exploded, and these newcomers broke 20 million acres …
activehistory.ca
Good nugget of international history from today's @activehist.bsky.social Fighting Fires: Quebec Separatism in Canada - Chile Relations, 1968 activehistory.ca/blog/2026/06...
Fighting Fires: Quebec Separatism in Canada – Chile Relations, 1968
Thomas Stroyan In February 1968, the Quebec government agreed to loan Chile two Canadair CL-215s (also known as the CANSO). The CL-215 was an amphibious flying boat built for the purpose of perform…
activehistory.ca
Walter T. Cassidy explores the life of Christine Jorgenson and the parallels between the story and Queer, Trans, and Intersex communities today and in the past.
Canada’s Christine Jorgenson?
Walter T. Cassidy The Windsor Star reported an incident on May 28th, 1954—as did papers all over North America—about a Port Colborne, Ontario woman being arrested in Buffalo, New York, for trying t…
activehistory.ca
Amy Swiffen, Keith Charry, Hannah Wyile, and Kris Millett explore the history and specifics of Section 141 of the Indian Act, which was in effect from 1927 to 1951. This is the 6th post in the Indian Act 150 series; make sure to check out the entire series!
“An Unwarranted Restraint:” Shining Light on Section 141 of the Indian Act (1927-1951)
Amy Swiffen, Keith Charry, Hannah Wyile and Kris Millett This post is part of the Indian Act 150 series There is a harmful provision of the Indian Act that, until recently, has never been…
activehistory.ca
Erin Isaac and Cady Berardi revisit the Ross-Thomson House and the topic of Nova Scotia's rural museums facing budget cuts and closures. Isaac and Berardi first explored this in March 2026; that post can be found here: activehistory.ca/blog/2026/03...
Nova Scotia’s Rural Museums Remain at Risk!
By Erin Isaac and Cady Berardi In the weeks after a sudden February announcement that twelve provincial museums were slated to close in Nova Scotia, murmurs began to circulate that some of these si…
activehistory.ca
Daniyal Elahi and Harris Elahi reflect on the research process that led them to discover Private Hasan Amat, Canada’s first Muslim soldier killed in the First World War. Their initial paper on Amat was posted on Active History in 2025 and can be found here: activehistory.ca/blog/2025/12...
Finding Private Amat: A Research Method for Recovering Overlooked Soldiers of the CEF
Daniyal Elahi and Harris Elahi In December 2025, ActiveHistory.ca published our first piece on Private Hasan Amat, a soldier of the 1st Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, killed at the Battle…
activehistory.ca
"A Source of Perspective: The Great Acceleration and The Canada Land Survey System" by Andrew Burke is the seventh post in a series about the Great Acceleration, published in collaboration with @activehist.bsky.social niche-canada.org/2026/06/02/a... #envhist #cdnhist
A Source of Perspective: The Great Acceleration and The Canada Land Survey System
Centering Canadian environmental history on the Great Acceleration and the Canada Lands Survey System reveals how administrative tools evolved during rapid change.
niche-canada.org
For the third and final post of the Canada Post and Canadian Culture series, Christo Aivalis explores labour and bargaining rights and the increasing use of bureaucratic tools. Read it here: activehistory.ca/blog/2026/05...
“As political scientist David B. MacDonald would later put it. Indeed, Indigenous peoples are the ones who have born the expense of the political compromise of “multiculturalism within a bilingual framework,” the ones who have been consistently excluded by it.”
ActiveHistory.ca@activehist.bsky.social · 2mo agoDaniel R. Meister looks at the foundations of Canada’s framework of official languages and cultures in light of the recent controversy regarding the Governor General being insufficiently “officially bilingual."
Daniel R. Meister looks at the foundations of Canada’s framework of official languages and cultures in light of the recent controversy regarding the Governor General being insufficiently “officially bilingual."
Canada’s Competing Definitions of Bilingualism
Bilingual & Bicultural Press Conference with A. Davidson Dunton and Jean Louis Gagnon. Library and Archives Canada item 5101609. Daniel R. Meister Recent stories in the CBC revisit the controve…
activehistory.ca
Shannon Stunden Bower explores the history of knowledge and science for the sixth post of the Great Acceleration series. This series is about using the Great Acceleration as a framework and reconnaissance for Canadian environmental history and is cross-posted with @nichecanada.bsky.social
Knowledge and Science in Canada’s Great Acceleration
Shannon Stunden Bower This is the sixth post in a series about the Great Acceleration as a framework and reconnaissance for Canadian environmental history. The posts in this series are cross-posted…
activehistory.ca
For the fifth post of the Great Acceleration series, Alicia Carefoote rethinks environmental history, focusing on prisons and confinement. This series is cross-posted with @nichecanada.bsky.social Make sure to check out the entire series!
Concrete Afterlives: Carceral Landscapes in Canada’s Great Acceleration
Alicia Carefoote This is the fifth post in a series about the Great Acceleration as a framework and reconnaissance for Canadian environmental history. The posts in this series are cross-p…
activehistory.ca
As part of the Canada Act 150 Series, Daniel Sims discusses the technicalities and nuances of the Indian Act. Make sure to check out the entire series!
Confirmation Bias and the Indian Act: How Common Knowledge Can Fuel Anti-Indigenous Racism
Daniel Sims This post is part of the Indian Act 150 series In May 2024, I attended a meeting of Parks Canada’s Indigenous Cultural Heritage Advisory Council in Sydney, British Columbia. O…
activehistory.ca
CCEL member Jamie Jelinski was interviewed by @activehist.bsky.social about his book, Needle Work, for their podcast What’s Old is News. Link below! activehistory.ca/blog/2026/05...
Commercial Tattooing – What’s Old is News
By Sean Graham This week, I’m joined by Jamie Jelinski, author of Needle Work: A History of Commercial Tatooing in Canada. We talk about Jamie’s interest in the history of tattoos, the …
activehistory.ca
Today we have "Mining Data and Canada’s Great Acceleration" by John Sandlos This is the 4th post in a series about the Great Acceleration as a framework and reconnaissance for Canadian environmental history, published in collaboration with @activehist.bsky.social niche-canada.org/2026/05/20/m...
Mining Data and Canada's Great Acceleration
Historical mineral tables illustrate Canada’s Great Acceleration, highlighting explosive economic growth alongside devastating environmental pollution, worker mortality, and future transition challeng...
niche-canada.org
"Reservoir Modernity: Lake Diefenbaker and the Great Acceleration on the Prairies" by John W. Bessai is the third post in a series about Canada's Great Acceleration, published in collaboration with @activehist.bsky.social niche-canada.org/2026/05/19/r... #envhist #cdnhist #skhistory #sask
Reservoir Modernity: Lake Diefenbaker and the Great Acceleration on the Prairies
Lake Diefenbaker unified postwar engineering, agricultural expansion, ecological transformation, and colonial authority, embedding the Great Acceleration within a state-managed prairie watershed.
niche-canada.org
The second feature in our series on Canada Post is an interview with Evert Hoogers, a retired postal worker, long-time union activist, representative, and organizer with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers. Read it here: activehistory.ca/blog/2026/05...
