Chris Snyder

Chris Snyder

  • Joined: February 17, 2026
  • Articles: 20

GOOD NEWS | National Indigenous Peoples Day — Seize the Opportunity

All special named days draw attention to the people/group being celebrated, and when it comes to Canada's Indigenous Peoples, it is a day to recognize and celebrate the unique heritage and diverse cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. The Canadian Constitution recognizes these groups as Aboriginal peoples, also known as Indigenous peoples. Although these groups share many similarities, they each have their own distinct heritage, language, cultural practices and spiritual beliefs.

In recent years, Truth and Reconciliation practices have helped us to understand the injustices and the negative consequences of colonialization. There's no question that the residential schools and their heritage; violence against women; an ongoing lack of potable water, and the slowness of government to take corrective action are all long-overdue essential areas of focus. But there's also other positive things happening. There is good news.

• In Nova Scotia, Indigenous-run secondary school programmes are producing a higher percentage of graduates than regular programmes for non-Indigenous students
• The Indigenous arts are flourishing, including award-winning writers Bob Joseph (21 Things You May Not Know about the Indian Act), Michelle Good ( 5 Little Indians) and Richard Wagamese (Indian Horse).
• There have been financial reparations to Indigenous Peoples including $9.8 billion for individuals and communities affected by unclean water and $23 billion awarded for child welfare.
• There have been great steps forward in the business world. A few years ago, the Mik'maq in Nova Scotia purchased control of Clearwater Seafoods the largest shell fish producer in North America. Various Institutions (including a new Indigenous Bank) are making capital available for Indigenous enterprises.
• Non-Indigenous peoples are acknowledging that they are present on traditional lands, with increased understanding regarding the injustices that have occurred through colonization.

Non-Indigenous and Indigenous peoples are meeting and talking to get a better understanding of how change can happen. People are asking, "What can I do?"

Reading and learning about Indigenous Peoples, past and present happenings is a first step. Also, a great example of "action" is Honouring Indigenous Peoples (HIP), a joint venture between Rotarians and Indigenous People. Board members are 50% Rotarian and 50% Indigenous with coast-to-coast representation and an equitable gender distribution. The focus of this group, after much discussion and input from Indigenous peoples, is education and awareness and creating relationships.

Another way for non-Indigenous peoples to deepen their understanding of Indigenous culture is to visit an Indigenous community and/or a local friendship centre. Some places have Pow Wows — a great way to learn about their dances, the heartbeat of the drum and the wisdom of an Indigenous Elder.

National Indigenous Peoples Day offers an opportunity to listen and learn. Take time to visit some Indigenous places. Talk and listen to the people. Only then can we, "understand the past and move forward together."

To find out more about the HIP program visit www.rotaryhip.com

Chris Snyder is the author of several books and several hundred articles on personal finance, Chris' most recent book "Creating Opportunities-A Volunteer's Memoir" describes a lifetime of volunteer experiences, much of it as an active member of the Rotary Club of Toronto and on many not-for-profit boards. Chris is past chair of the Canadian Landmine Foundation, founding chair/current chair of HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples) and the Trudeau Centre of Peace, Conflict and Justice as well as past board member of CUSO and the Nature Conservancy of Canada. His latest book, "Good News in A Crazy World," will be published by Civil Sector Press in 2024.

GOOD NEWS | International Braille Day Reminds Us of the Miracle of Cataract Surgery

Last week, I spotted an item in my online news feed. January 4 was International Braille Day. Celebrated since 2019, Braille Day is observed to raise awareness of the importance of Braille as a means of communication in the full realization of the human rights for blind and partially sighted people.

In a moment, I was a child of seven with my mother outside the Eaton's store in downtown Toronto. World War II had ended only a couple of years earlier. There was a man in a tattered serviceman's greatcoat holding a big cup in one hand and a fist-full of pencils in the other. The top half of his face was covered with bandages. He was obviously blind and begging to survive. My mother put some change in his cup, took a pencil, and gave it to me. "Poor man! He was injured during the War," she said as she hustled me away.

Decades later it was my turn, and I was upset. My ophthalmologist advised me that my blurred vision was because of cataracts, and I should have them removed. Even though my doctor indicated that cataract surgery was routine and covered by my provincial medical plan, I had flashbacks to when Adele (a good friend of my mother) had hers removed. It was long after the war, but still several decades back.

Adele was hospitalized for a week in considerable pain, and it took several months for her eyes to heal. In fact, one didn't heal properly, and she was never again comfortable driving a car. Despite colours being more vivid, she lost her interest in painting. Although I knew it was unlikely, I had visions of the operation being painful, not working, not being able to drive or read, and even getting around with a white cane.

I took some time to learn about the advances made in cataract treatment Adele's operation. Cataract surgery had become the most common surgery performed around the world, with an estimated 28 million procedures done every year—350,000 of them in Canada.

I knew too, that I was far from alone in my previous ignorance. According to Alcon Canada, almost 66% of people over 65 know almost nothing about cataracts.

A clouding over of the lens in the eye, cataracts are generally unpreventable, age-related, and very common. By 65, about 25% of us have cataracts. By the age of 80, it rises to 92%. The current treatment, (to remove the clouded lens and replace it with a new artificial one) takes about 20 minutes and is painless and very safe. The procedure has more than a 95% success rate, and 93% of those who've had cataract surgery would recommend it to others.

Years ago, most people with cataracts received no treatment and went blind. However, as far back as 1200 B.C. in India, Mesopotamia, Greece and China, a procedure was developed called Couching. A needle was injected into the eye, dislodging the cataract and moving it out of the visual axis. The cataract stayed in the eye but was no longer blocking the light. With no antiseptic or antibiotics and unsanitary conditions, 70% of the courageous patients went blind.

This frightening treatment was all we had until 1747, when a French doctor, Jacques Daviel, successfully removed the lens. This became the standard treatment—an improvement, but still with many limitations, until two hundred years later in 1949. At that time, a British surgeon, Dr. Harold Ridley developed an artificial lens and revolutionized cataract treatment. Unfortunately, until about 1990, most cataract patients went through what Adele went through. The use of ultrasound and lasers further revolutionized treatment, bringing procedures to today's fast and sophisticated level.

Now, cataract patients turn up for their appointment, answer a few questions, and an hour and a half later they are free to leave, having experienced no pain. There'll be a temporary eye-patch, eye-drops for administering at home, and no driving or hard physical activity for a week or so. Then a return in a couple of months to have the other eye done.

After the procedure, everything becomes brighter. Many patients feel that the black and white movie they've been seeing suddenly turns technicolor. Many no longer need glasses to read. Technology has allowed ophthalmologists to develop many new techniques, not only for cataracts, but also for glaucoma and macular degeneration. It is indeed a miracle for those of us alive to reap the benefits. Most costs are covered by provincial medical insurance, making this type of surgery accessible to all.

Of course, cataracts are not the only cause of poor eyesight or blindness and the services provided by organizations such as the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) allow many with poor or no eyesight to live a normal life.

Chris Snyder is the author of several books and several hundred articles on personal finance, Chris' most recent book "Creating Opportunities-A Volunteer's Memoir" describes a lifetime of volunteer experiences, much of it as an active member of the Rotary Club of Toronto and on many not-for-profit boards. Chris is past chair of the Canadian Landmine Foundation, founding chair/current chair of HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples), on the board of the Trudeau Centre of Peace, Conflict and Justice as well as a past board member of CUSO and the Nature Conservancy of Canada. He organizes and runs hands-on school building trips to the developing world and is the recipient of many volunteer and community service awards, among them the Paul Harris Fellowship Award, the Queen's Gold and Diamond Jubilee Awards, the Rotary Service-Above-Self Award and the Governor General's Sovereign Award for Volunteering. His latest book, Good News in A Crazy World, will be published by Civil Sector Press in 2024.

Photo by Marina Vitale on Unsplash.

GOOD NEWS | The Mysterious Gift of our Migrating Wildlife

Out for her morning walk, as Marissa was turning down the path towards the lake, she heard two sharp chirps and sensed there was something hovering over her head. She was right. A few seconds later a red-winged blackbird swooped down, pecked her on the head, and then returned to protecting its eggs in a nest nearby. Startled, she jumped and threw out her hands in the direction of the retreating bird yelling, "Get out of here! Get out of here!"

The same thing had happened to her almost a year ago at the same spot from a nest in the same tree. Somewhat belatedly, she realized there were signs posted nearby warning walkers to be aware of dive-bombing birds. She told herself she should have been more attentive.

How and why does this bird know to come back every year to the same tree? she wondered. She knew the sockeye salmon returned to their home area to spawn, and monarch butterflies find their way from Southern Ontario to Mexico and back. The how and why of migrating wildlife consumed her thoughts for the rest of her walk. Back at home, she sat at her computer and searched for "migrating wildlife" and within minutes found that a wide range of wildlife migrates, often for food or to reproduce. Why, however, remains a mystery.

A survival instinct

The practice of returning home is referred to as natal honing, or philopatry. Scientists think it's part of a genetic survival instinct that's evolved over thousands of years, using geomagnetic imprinting capabilities and olfactory clues to determine where and when to go, while providing a feeling of safety and stability.

Hundreds of bird types migrate, including many shorebirds, swallows, Atlantic puffins, pigeons, and geese ... almost 400 species alone through Point Pelee on Lake Erie, and most fly the same route every year. In Eastern Canada, birds typically fly thousands of kilometers between Canada, South and Central America, and the Southern USA. From the west, they migrate to and from Southern California. Marissa's red-winged blackbirds travel over 800 miles. In the 1890s, migrating passenger pigeons were so common they blackened the sky. That is, until humans shot them into extinction, mostly just for "fun" or "sport."

Many fish species swim long distances to spawn: salmon, tuna, some crustaceans (crabs) (who amazingly might travel as much as 150 miles to give birth) as well as mammals such as whales and porpoises. Many hoofed animals migrate long distances—especially the wildebeest in East Africa, and the caribou who travel over 2000 miles in the tundra.

Some people argue that dogs and cats have this instinct. We've all heard stories of dogs and cats finding their way home after several years away, but stats show only 15% of dogs and 2% of cats without microchips find their way home.
Butterflies and turtles

Perhaps the best known and most mysterious of the migrating species of all are monarch butterflies, named after King William III, the Prince of Orange. Eastern monarchs fly in large flocks, leaving the north in the Fall, travelling at 9 km/hr and up to 80 km/day, to end up primarily in Florida, Mexico, or Central America. Western monarchs head for Southern California. Those that make it to the south, according to scientists, are not the ones who leave the north. Each of the first three generations only live several weeks along the way, and only the fourth generation makes it to the south, lives six to eight weeks, breeds and, if still living, begins the return journey. It's their offspring who arrive back.

Sea turtles are also fascinating. Upon hatching, the vulnerable, still soft-shelled young turtles crawl towards the ocean, many failing to make it due to predation by birds and animals. Males rarely leave the water, but females do (from ages 10-50), laying up to 100 eggs every three to four years after travelling 10-20,000 miles back to the beach on which they were born. We think they use currents, the earth's magnetic field and water chemistry to find their way.

Protecting nature

Humans are likely the biggest threat to wildlife migration, thanks to hydro poles, cell towers, cars, ships, pollution and land loss. Weather and climate change are also huge threats. Of late, however, we humans have become more aware of the magic, beauty, and importance of wildlife in the world. Over time, conservation groups have sprung up, providing awareness, research, and scientific interventions, pushing for wildlife protection. Governments have created rules and laws, and individuals have helped where they can—by blacking out windows at night during bird migration, providing food in bird feeders and growing milkweed for the monarchs.

Possibly the best known and dramatic migration conservation initiative is the saving of the whooping crane. While there were more than 10,000 whooping cranes before European settlement, by the1940s there were only 21 remaining. Through innovative conservation programs involving many partners over many years, the population has steadily recovered to around 800. Each year these beautiful and majestic birds — some as tall as five feet with a six- to seven-foot wingspan, weighing up to 18 pounds and living as long as 40 years — spend 45 days migrating from the Gulf Coast to Wood Buffalo Park in northern Canada, a trip of over 4,000 km.

The research opened Marissa's eyes. Her blackbird was doing what every parent of every species does: protect their children. She was also thankful that the bird that had pecked her was not a 5-foot whooping crane! She vowed that next year she would avoid the tree in which the red-winged blackbird had built a nest and forever respect and revere all migrating wildlife.

Chris Snyder is the author of several books and several hundred articles on personal finance, Chris' most recent book "Creating Opportunities-A Volunteer's Memoir" describes a lifetime of volunteer experiences, much of it as an active member of the Rotary Club of Toronto and on many not-for-profit boards. Chris is past chair of the Canadian Landmine Foundation, founding chair/current chair of HIP (Honouring Indigenous Peoples) and the Trudeau Centre of Peace, Conflict and Justice as well as past board member of CUSO and the Nature Conservancy of Canada. He organizes and runs hands-on school building trips to the developing world and is the recipient of many volunteer and community service awards, among them the Paul Harris Fellowship Award, the Queen's Gold and Diamond Jubilee Awards, the Rotary Service-Above-Self Award and the Governor General's Sovereign Award for Volunteering. His latest book, "Good News in A Crazy World," will be published by Civil Sector Press in 2024.