We know that the Alberta tar sands industry forms one of Canada’s biggest environmental blights. Now, a new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Peter Mettler shows us that the tar sands site is also stunning to look at, literally. Petropolis is a beautifully filmed piece portraying aerial perspectives of the open pit mines and processing facilities at the tar sands and also the pristine Boreal forest that surrounds the site. Petropolis filmmaker Peter Mettler joins reporter LeeAnne MacGregor in the studio to discuss this unique project that combines art and activism. For a photographic tour of the film visit http://www.petropolis-film.com/.

Guerrilla environmental activists the Yes Men have infamously exploited all forms of media to shame the WTO, the BBC, Dow Chemical, the New York Times, Exxon, Haliburton, the US Chamber of Commerce and most recently, the Government of Canada. Yes Man “Andy Bichlbaum” joins Peter Stock in studio in advance of the Toronto opening of their new film “The Yes Men Fix the World”.

Whether it’s for reasons of sustainability, health promotion, or just for fun, the popularity of urban gardening is on the rise. Tyler Irving speaks to Jason Qu of the Campus Agriculture Project and Heather Wray of the Urban Agriculture Society about what it takes to start growing your own food in the city.

Spirotetramat is an agricultural pesticide that was banned in the US by a recent court order. This pesticide, however, is still legal in Canada. We speak with Michael Bernard of Sierra Club Canada about spirotetramat and why Sierra Club Canada would like to see it banned here as well.

Producer Peter Stock speaks with renowned academic, environmentalist and father of the Carbon Footprint, William Rees. The topic is ostensibly his Alternatives Journal New Ecology article “What If Prime Minister Harper and President Obama Led as Though Ecology Mattered”. But the conversation covers much more ground.

The entire show this week is dedicated to our second annual review of the past year. News correspondents Chris Berube and Daryn Caister join host Tyler Irving and producer Jordan Poppenk to recall their favourite environmental headlines of the past year. Highlights include:

• The UNFCCC Conference in Copenhagen
• Canadian political turmoil, including Michael Ignatieff’s endorsement of the Tar Sands and the collapse of the Green Party of Alberta
• The victory in Tiny Township over the prosed dump known as Site 41
• Ontario’s Green Energy Act and Pesticide Ban

And much more!

Producer Peter Stock speaks with food economist, columnist, and author Wayne Roberts about his seemingly audacious plan to solve unemployment by encouraging Canadians to buy local food.