in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, F eb ru ar y 4, 20 21 | 8 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Director of Production Mark Dills Regional Production Manager Manny Garcia Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Ryan Maraj CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, we have launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This column is part of that project. If you have been follow- ing the news lately, you should be well aware of the recent media coverage sur- rounding politicians and prominent public figures who travelled over the holi- days. One such public official was Finance Minister Rod Phillips, who the media learned travelled to the Ca- ribbean island of St. Barts over Christmas. He subse- quently resigned from his cabinet role. Flamborough-Glan- brook MP David Sweet re- portedly went to the U.S. to deal with a property-relat- ed issue, but then stayed af- terward for leisure. He re- signed as chair of the House of Commons Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics Committee. Then Halton Police Chief Stephen Tanner joined the list of public fig- ures who exercised poor judgment when it was re- vealed he travelled to Flori- da for a property-related matter. We have received feed- back from our readers ex- pressing disappointment with the actions of their leaders, but others may wonder, why is it so impor- tant for the media to cover these incidents? In a nutshell: These ac- tions erode public trust -- especially at a time when that trust is so fragile. Both the federal and provincial governments have repeatedly asked Ca- nadians not to travel abroad during the pandem- ic and urged citizens to avoid gathering with fami- ly outside their household over the holidays. Halton police also shared multiple tweets en- couraging residents to fol- low public health advice and stay home. Surely, our public offi- cials should lead by exam- ple, and it is the media's du- ty to hold them account- able when they don't. What would become of the checks and balances vi- tal to a democratic society if the media did not own this watchdog role? Democracy would be the next thing packing its bags and going south. Karen Miceli is manag- ing editor of Metroland's four community newspa- pers in Halton. We welcome your questions and value your comments. Email our trust committee at trust@metroland.com. LEADERS' TRAVEL AMID COVID: WHY WE WERE QUICK TO REPORT MEDIA HAS A WATCHDOG ROLE THAT IS IMPERATIVE FOR DEMOCRACY, WRITES KAREN MICELI Alberta's major pipeline cancellation is a blow to its oil-heavy economy. A few hours after his in- auguration, U.S. President Joe Biden cancelled the controversial Keystone XL pipeline. The pipeline was de- signed to transport 830,000 barrels of crude a day from Alberta to the U.S. Midwest and Gulf Coast. Suddenly, those jobs and commerce disappeared. Alberta lost. The cancellation was not a surprise because Bi- den campaigned on this is- sue. Environmental issues in the U.S. are now front and centre. The environment won. There is a shift occur- ring in the world and it is long overdue. Sustainability has gained considerable trac- tion in recent years. The seven billion people that occupy planet Earth have to do a better job to protect our environment. One of the largest envi- ronmental concerns is greenhouse gas emissions. These are caused by burn- ing oil and other fossil fu- els. Government regula- tion and changing consum- er preference will steer us toward a healthier planet. Global warming has led to an increasing number of significant fires in Canada and the United States. Ex- tensive flooding has also become a problem. Many times, you will hear a catastrophe re- ferred to as a 100-year event. But these 100-year events seem to happen ev- ery couple of years now. Recently, we have had an onslaught of car compa- nies announcing new elec- tric cars will be built in coming years. Gas guzzlers will be pushed from the marketplace. Sustainability, out of ne- cessity, is gaining traction. People will vote with their pocketbook, by their ac- tions. Change is happening. Change is good for the envi- ronment. Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP®, R.F.P., CIM®, FCSI offers a weekly financial plan- ning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. ALBERTA LOST: THE ENVIRONMENT WON PIPELINE CANCELLATION AN ENCOURAGING MOVE TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY, WRITES PETER WATSON PETER WATSON Column KAREN MICELI Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM