The Current

Donald Trump signed executive orders on everything from immigration, to trade, to trans rights in his first week back in the Oval Office. We ask two political reporters to unpack the big changes for the U.S. — and the wider world — and whether Trump can really bring them about.

Hundreds of families who lost their homes in Jasper’s wildfires are still waiting for temporary housing six months later, while various levels of government fight about how and where to rebuild. What needs to change in how we respond to increasingly frequent and devastating wildfires?

Some pet owners are abandoning their animals because they can’t keep up with the high cost of veterinary care and medications. A CBC/Radio-Canada investigation looked into why vet bills are so expensive in Canada, and found big corporations buying up independent clinics — and a lack of competition due to limits on who can buy and sell pet medications.

Undocumented migrants in the U.S. are bracing for mass deportations threatened by President Donald Trump. Matt Galloway talks to a young man terrified his family will be scooped up by immigration officials, and a Trump supporter who says the deportations are necessary.

Palestinian Akram Said says Gazans are slowly returning to their homes, to search the rubble for loved ones killed by Israel’s airstrikes. Said shares why he stayed in Gaza for the last 15 months, and what the ceasefire means for humanitarian aid reaching those who need it most.

Ian Clements got himself an unusual 30th birthday present: a vasectomy. He’s among a growing number of young men going under the knife because they don’t want kids, pointing to reasons including the economy or the threat of climate change.

Would you rather visit the expansive beauty of Canada’s Arctic, or watch humpbacks breach as you ramble along Newfoundland’s coast? Perhaps you’d be surprised by the Prairies, or get lost in rainforests of Haida Gwaii, the “Galápagos of the North”? Robin Esrock, author of The Great Canadian Bucket List, shares his top picks for holidays closer to home.

Bonny Reichert grew up hearing her father’s stories of the Holocaust, and finding comfort in sharing traditional recipes with him. The Canadian journalist-turned-chef shares her dad’s story, and the trauma she herself carries, in the new memoir How To Share An Egg.

After 13 years in exile, Alma Salem kissed the ground when she finally returned to Syria, after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Matt Galloway talks to the political activist and two other Syrian women — human rights advocates Azza Kondakji and Noura Aljizawi — about their hopes for rebuilding their country, and why they say the role of women in that future is non-negotiable.

Winnipeg has a bold new plan to move people out of encampments and into housing, modelled on a strategy that reduced homelessness by 60 per cent in Houston, Texas. But one critic warns the plan involves moving people out of public housing to make space in a tight rental market — and could put a cohort of lower-income people at risk.

Kaitlyn Braun, a pregnant young woman in crisis, takes dozens of birth workers through an escalating series of disasters – rape, baby loss, and even a coma. One by one, the doulas struggle to support her and grieve with her, and even save her life as they’re led down a distressing path. And then the truth comes out. In this six-part true crime series, Sarah Treleaven untangles a complex web of lies and deception to ask who Kaitlyn really is and why she did the things that she did. Cases like these puzzle legal experts and raise intricate moral and ethical questions. This is not your average con. Kaitlyn is not your usual scammer. Kaitlyn's Baby is Season 2 of The Con — a podcast exposing the art of deception — from CBC and the BBC World Service. Season 1 - the critically acclaimed catfishing quest, Love, Janessa, launched in January 2023. Content warning: The latest season of The Con contains references to medical emergencies, including baby loss. We also deal with sexual assault and there is some strong language. More episodes are available at: https://link.mgln.ai/VPyaaH

The broadcaster Scott Oake lost his son Bruce to a drug overdose more than 10 years ago, and has worked tirelessly since to help other families avoid that same heartbreak. He talks to Matt Galloway about opening a recovery centre named after Bruce, and his new book For the Love of a Son.

It’s been 50 years since two Canadian scientists solved a great mystery: where do monarch butterflies go during winter? But while they unlocked how these tiny creatures fly thousands of kilometres every year, there’s still parts of this natural wonder that we don’t understand.

Kaitlyn Braun convinced dozens of birth doulas that she was pregnant, claiming she was suffering through an escalating series of disasters: rape, baby loss, and even a coma. Sarah Treleaven tells Galloway about the complex web of lies she untangles in the new CBC podcast The Con: Kaitlyn's Baby.

The baker Daniel Leader is a pioneer of artisanal breadmaking, but he says his early loaves were more like paperweights. In a conversation from last month, Leader shares what he learned about his craft along the way, and why baking bread can feel like meditation.

Donald Trump is set to sign as many as 100 executive orders on his first day in office. We discuss the potential fallout if he enacts campaign pledges on mass deportations and tariffs that could devastate Canada’s economy.

Matt Galloway talks to people who have travelled to Washington for Donald Trump’s inauguration, in celebration — or in protest — of his second term as president.

New Brunswicker John Batt is the brains behind popular Instagram account @Canada.gov.ca, sharing some wild stories of Canadiana. He shares some of those stories with us, from the band that got Neil Young signed to Motown to a strangely controversial, very delicious pickle known across the Maritimes.

Doctors are proposing a new definition of obesity that goes beyond measuring BMI. We talk to Dr. Sanjeev Sockalingam about how the new diagnosis, and drugs like Ozempic, could change the conversation around body size and health.

Jacqueline Simoes lined up for hours in the snow for the chance of registering with a new family doctor coming to Walkerton, Ont. earlier this week. But so did more than a thousand others.