Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. But if we’re not careful, his reindeer could soon be nothing more than a myth. Climate change has put quite a toll on Santa’s herd over the last 40 years. Populations of one North American reindeer subspecies, the Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi), have dropped nearly 85 percent [...]

Last year, amid much media hoopla, polar bears (Ursus maritimus) received protected status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. One aspect of that protection is that American hunters, who often travel to Canada to hunt polar bears, can no longer  bring their trophies into the U.S. Canada considers polar bears to be a "species of [...]

As Canada kicks off its controversial seal hunting season this week, several species of seals around the world face uncertain futures. In Finland, the Saimaa ringed seal (Pusa hispida saimensis), one of the world’s few freshwater seals, is likely to become extinct in a few years, according to the Finnish natural resources agency, Metsähallitus. Its [...]

By Melissa C. Lott and Scott McNally According to Dr. James Hansen, developing Canada’s tar sands would mean “game over for the climate.” And, the current Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies is disappointed with President Obama for not taking action to stop Canada from causing a climate change-induced apocalypse. But, what Dr. [...]

In Tyson Schoeber’s class at Nootka Elementary School in Vancouver, 15 fourth through seventh graders struggle to read, write or do math at a level near that of their peers in other classes. Ten-year-olds have entered Schoeber’s program, called THRIVE, virtually unable to read independently (see “One Man’s Mission to Save Struggling Students”). Yet Schoeber [...]