Wency Leung

I spent a night in a field an hour outside Kitchener getting an up-close look at the worm industry. Our tiny corner of the province exports all of North America's bait worms: it's a curious business run by families and powered by immigrant labour, and every fact I learned enchanted me a little more🪱

Here’s what we need to tell young women — and young men — about life and safety after Hockey Canada trial Young women are always taught about how to keep safe - but as the Hockey Canada trial shows, the law is only one framework

www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...

Everything is connected. I really enjoyed this. It's the sort of storytelling we need more of to show people how their lifestyles and interests are deeply dependant on migrant labour, supply chains, and environmental stability.

Inside the Takeover of Toronto-Area School Boards | The Local The province says its decision to put multiple school boards under supervision is about restoring financial stability. But observers see a larger play for power.

📣 Today we’re launching a new special series—School Board Takeover. We’ll track the latest developments, analyze the province’s decisions, and investigate what’s behind this unprecedented moment in public education. @wencyleung.bsky.social kicks us off: thelocal.to/school-board...

Joint statement on Gaza from Reuters, AFP, The AP and BBC News Joint statement on Gaza from Reuters, AFP, AP and BBC News

"Journalists endure many deprivations and hardships in warzones. We are deeply alarmed that the threat of starvation is now one of them."
reutersagency.com/media-centre...

On the Hunt for Nightcrawlers in the Worm-Picking Capital of the World | The Local Nearly all bait worms sold in North America are hand-plucked from farmland in this part of Canada. But with labour shortages and climate change, some worry we’re witnessing the final wiggles of a once...

This is a perfect story thelocal.to/ontario-nigh...

Did you know we live in the WORM CAPITAL OF THE WORLD? Read this excellent story by @royinori.bsky.social !!!

Globe and Mail reporter targeted by online campaign, photographed surreptitiously in public settings An anonymous X account posted photos of Alberta reporter Carrie Tait and described her movements as she reported on a health authority controversy

Hi, yes, g'morning. This is awkward.

But targeting a reporter - hi! - with
surreptitiously obtained photos and details of her tooling around town is an attack on the public's right to know.

www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

2025 Awardees — The Data-Driven Reporting Project

We're delighted to share that The Local is part of the Spring 2025 cohort of the Data Driven Reporting Project! The financial and technical support we receive through the award will go towards investigating long-term care in Ontario (1/2).
datadrivenreporting.medill.northwestern.edu/2025-awardees

On the Front Lines of the War Against 'Super Lice' | The Local With the emergence of drug-resistant nits, lice removal has become a booming business, catering to harried, itchy parents willing to pay for relief.

With the emergence of drug-resistant nits, lice removal has become a booming business. Sarah Liss goes to the front lines of the war against “super lice.” thelocal.to/lice-treatme...

Well done, Alice!

First long(er) feature I wrote in a while, go check it out!

On course to miss emissions targets, Ontario asks feds to repeal climate laws | Globalnews.ca A joint letter from Alberta and Ontario asked the federal government to withdraw a series of existing laws to boost the economy in the face of U.S. tariffs.

NEW: Ontario’s environment minister is feeling the heat after writing to his federal counterpart asking Ottawa to repeal a slew of climate laws, a few months after briefing documents showed his government was set to miss its own emissions targets. #OnPoli
globalnews.ca/news/1128222...

Thank you! ❤️ I believe so, too!

More than half of Toronto's homeless (in October) were refugee claimants. Imagine fleeing persecution, starting over somewhere foreign and new and sleeping on the street or in a shelter. www.toronto.ca/wp-content/u...

And it's not depressing--well, not completely depressing. Maybe it's even kind of hopeful?

It examines interactions between the virus and wildlife and human activity you may or may not have considered before. (Though those of you who have been paying attention to infectious diseases like SARS, or Zika virus, or #COVID, or #mpox will most certainly have.)

This story is about #birds! And mammals like skunks and fox kits! And it features really cool wildlife experts and the most charming #birders you'll ever enounter! And awesome photos by @chloeellingson.bsky.social!

🤪 I know, I know. No one wants to read about the threat of the next #pandemic. But...

Bird Flu Comes For Toronto’s Wildlife | The Local For humans, the virus has the potential to spark the next pandemic. But for wildlife, it's already causing devastation.

Hi! Can I entice you to read a story I've been obsessing over for months about #birdflu? thelocal.to/avian-flu-to...

‘A Trojan horse’: how toxic sewage sludge became a threat to the future of British farming Sludge used as fertiliser on farmland contains harmful chemicals that scientists suspect are entering food chain

Sooner or later the penny will drop thatby degrading our soils we kill ourselves. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Phenomenal work, @leahbortskuperman.bsky.social !

I spent the last eight months investigating a cluster of life-altering and terminal illnesses on a military base in Moose Jaw, Sask. What I found will stay with me forever. Give it a read here:

Spoiler alert: It starts with valuing them.

Bird Flu Comes For Toronto’s Wildlife | The Local For humans, the virus has the potential to spark the next pandemic. But for wildlife, it's already causing devastation.

The impact of avian influenza on wildlife is DEVASTATING. But this isn't meant to be a depressing story! There are things we can (and need to) do for our wild neighbours! They just aren't what you might assume. thelocal.to/avian-flu-to...

Bird Flu Comes For Toronto’s Wildlife | The Local For humans, the virus has the potential to spark the next pandemic. But for wildlife, it's already causing devastation.

For humans, avian flu has the potential to spark the next pandemic. But for wildlife, it's already causing devastation. @wencyleung.bsky.social on how bird flu hit Toronto. thelocal.to/avian-flu-to...

Melissa speaking about the long-term effects of COVID-19 infection on set with CBC Vancouver News at 6 anchor Dan Burritt

5 years after #COVID19 turned the world upside down, what do we know about its long-term effects?
Good to join @danburritt.bsky.social tonight to talk:
👩 who's at risk
💉 how to prevent it
🦠 how multiple infections jump your risk of Long COVID from 15% to 40%
+ more.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVKp...

‘It’s too late’: David Suzuki says the fight against climate change is lost - iPolitics "We have failed to shift the narrative and we are still caught up in the same legal, economic and political systems," said David Suzuki in an exclusive interview with iPolitics. "For me, what we've go...

New from me: An exclusive interview with David Suzuki, who talked about reaching the conclusion that humanity has failed in the fight against climate change, and why communities should start preparing for more destructive natural disasters #cdnpoli #cdnenviro

www.ipolitics.ca/2025/07/02/i...

Everything You Need to Know About School Trustees | The Local We don’t elect people to oversee any other specific public service. But maybe we should?

With the province taking over four Ontario school boards, it's worth remembering what school trustees actually do. An @alisonmotluk.bsky.social primer from a few years ago that's relevant today: thelocal.to/school-trust...

He cut his hand badly when it hit a chainsaw. But when he showed up at the local ER, he found it was closed for the day.
That's the new reality in many rural Canadian hospitals that no longer have 24/7 ER services.
We took a deep dive and analyzed the data.
www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...