The house that plastic builtOur world is flooded with cheap subsidized plastic. How did we get here? Part II of an investigation with NBC News. Collaborators: NBC News, Peter Klein and Jane Lister (UBC) Learn more
The new steel? Hope and fear as a new plastics factory rises in AppalachiaWill a new plastics complex prove a boon for a struggling region, or an echo of a toxic past making a product now falling from favor? Part I of an investigation with NBC News. Collaborators: NBC News, Peter Klein and Jane Lister (UBC) Learn more
Inside the factories that make your clothesThe COVID-19 pandemic triggered unprecedented levels of poverty, indebtedness and exploitative conditions in the garment industry, according to the findings of a joint Toronto Star/Global Reporting Centre investigation in collaboration with researchers from the University of Sheffield. Collaborators: Genevieve LeBaron (University of Sheffield) and Rob Cribb (The Toronto Star) Cluster Collaborator:Genevieve LeBaronRob CribbLearn more
On China's New Silk RoadJoin the Global Reporting Centre for a new podcast that explores how China’s calculated bet on its new global trading infrastructure—its Silk Road for the modern era—may take it to the top. Reported from five continents, this series uncovers the effects of the most sweeping global infrastructure initiative in history. Collaborators: Mary Kay Magistad (UC Berkeley), Dave Rummel (freelance), and Philippe Le Billon (UBC) Learn more
America's Medical Supply CrisisThe coronavirus has exposed deadly weaknesses in global medical supply chains. Why was the U.S. left scrambling for PPE and other critical medical supplies — and why do problems persist now, months into the crisis? For the past seven months, our team has been interviewing manufacturers and government officials, analyzing records, and tracing key medical supplies along a fragile chain. Produced by the PBS series FRONTLINE, The Associated Press, and the Global Reporting Centre, America’s Medical Supply Crisis is a joint investigation examining the failures and unheeded warnings of a system at risk. Collaborators: Martha Mendoza (AP), Juliet Linderman (AP), Raney Aronson-Rath (FRONTLINE), Peter Dauvergne (UBC), and Deborah Cowan (UofT) - for a full list of collaborators please visit our credits page. Learn more
The fish you don’t know you eatTwenty-five percent of fish caught in the ocean don’t land on our plates. They’re churned into fishmeal, which is used to feed farmed fish. But what are the true costs of this process? This project is a partnership between NBC News and the Global Reporting Program. Collaborators: Daniel Pauly (UBC), Simon Donner (UBC), NBC News Learn more
The Anthropocene ProjectWe have reached an unprecedented moment in planetary history. Humans now affect the Earth and its processes more than all other natural forces combined. The Anthropocene Project is a multidisciplinary body of work combining fine art photography, film, virtual reality, augmented reality, and scientific research to investigate human influence on the state, dynamic, and future of the Earth. Cluster Collaborator:Edward BurtynskyLearn more
Trading Routes: Grease Trails, Oil FuturesTrading Routes: Grease Trails, Oil Futures is a publicly-engaged, trans-disciplinary art and research project undertaken in the midst of a liminal moment in Canadian history. In the pursuit of the nation’s place among world energy superpowers, debates have emerged about the benefits and social and environmental risks associated with rapid changes brought about from investment in fossil fuel industries. Trading Routes, seeks to contribute to this discourse by engaging with the interlaced terrain of traditional Indigenous trading routes and an ever-expanding network of oil and gas pipelines throughout British Columbia. Cluster Collaborator:Ruth BeerLearn more
Seafood from SlavesAn AP investigation helps free slaves in the 21st century Over the course of 18 months, Associated Press journalists located men held in cages, tracked ships and stalked refrigerated trucks to expose the abusive practices of the fishing industry in Southeast Asia. The reporters’ dogged effort led to the release of more than 2,000 slaves and traced the seafood they caught to supermarkets and pet food providers across the U.S. For this investigation, AP has won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. The articles are presented here in their entirety. Cluster Collaborator:Martha MendozaLearn more
Global Environmental Justice Documentaries CollectionThe Global Environmental Justice Documentaries project is an interdisciplinary collection of stories about the combined environmental and social impacts of globalization, industrial development, colonization and climate change. The collection, available to colleges and universities online, was launched in April 2019 with a focus on under-reported stories from Asia and North America. Seven of the documentaries explore the hidden cost of supply chains. Cluster Collaborator:Gary MarcuseLearn more
Fighting the Giant Samsung workers in South Korea fighting for acknowledgement their illnesses and cancers were caused by the chemicals they worked with. After a decade of fighting Samsung - including 3 years protesting on the sidewalk - the company agreed to a compensation plan and a promise to improve the workplace environment. Cluster Collaborator:Sandra BartlettLearn more