🗞️ State of (un)rest

Good morning!

Despite the omnipresent dank, looming fog of existential dread, I’m actually feeling happy-ish (🤷🏻‍♀️) today because Taylor Swift is going to the Super Bowl and seals wearing what look like small yellow hats have been seen off the coast of Atlantic Canada.

The purpose of the hats is twofold: First, to act as markers used in a scientific study to monitor seal movement, behaviours and habitat use. And second, to make them look like sleek, whiskered construction workers.

The hats/tags are made from lightweight biodegradable plastic and are designed to minimize the impact on the animals. Researchers say that it’s quite minimal intervention and the tags normally fall off after a few months—addressing concerns around whether the devices hinder the seals’ natural behaviour.

I imagine it’s much like how putting this lion mane hat on Frank barely hindered his natural behaviour:

Last year, the team used red and yellow tags on 167 pups and recaptured 72 of them to track their progress. In spring 2025, they plan to use orange and pink tags—very on trend for spring, which I appreciate on behalf of the seals.

Love and light! 🦭🩷

– Julie

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: 🌧️ 2°

Tomorrow: 🌨️ -4°

Next Day: 🌨️ -8°

7-day forecast

🚗 Driving, biking or busing today? Check out the current traffic conditions and ongoing road closures.

ARTS + CULTURE

New art show remembers student-made university

“We will not rest until liberation. Al Zeitoun forever.” The student-creators of Al Zeitoun University shared this line on July 29—the day their camp was dismantled by security guards and police after 78 days on Dalhousie University’s campus. AZU was built by a coalition called Students for the Liberation of Palestine-Kjipuktuk, made up of students from five Halifax universities.

On the day of the decampment, SLPK members told The Coast they had to rummage through dumpsters at Dal to recover pieces of AZU that security guards had thrown away—including artworks, signs and parts of a vigil for children killed in Gaza, Palestine. SLPK members had asked to keep these because they belonged to or had been donated to the encampment. 

Now, many of these recovered artifacts are on view in (un)rest, a show that opened yesterday at the Treaty Space Gallery at NSCAD, 1887 Granville Street. Owen Skeen, NSCAD student union president and SLPK member, tells The Coast that (un)rest honours and “activates” the movement's intention through teach-ins, videos, photographs, a library, and live performances. 

Get a full preview of (un)rest from The Coast’s Lauren Phillips.

🤔 Need To Know

🕯️ Eighty years after the liberation of the largest Nazi concentration camp, 89-year-old Auschwitz survivor Miriam Ziegler said the rising tide of “hatred” around the world makes her fear that history might be ready to repeat itself.

⚖️ A Nova Scotia judge has rejected a request from an investment adviser to split a lawsuit against him into 78 separate cases—Frederick Saturley, with his company High Tide Wealth Management, is accused of wiping out the life savings of his clients.

🧑‍🎨 Discover what you can bring to the table. Local artists and chefs, apply for this Museum's Artist in Residence Program.*

🌊 Nova Scotia premier Tim Houston says his government will respect the oil and gas development moratorium for Georges Bank, and he's blaming unnamed special interest groups looking to "promote falsehoods" for a misunderstanding of his position on the matter.

*Sponsored Post

SPONSORED BY STEELE FORD LINCOLN

Canadian e-vehicle rebates end this Friday 🚗🤯♻️

The federal program giving Canadians money to buy electric vehicles has abruptly ended, threatening a market seen as a key part of our country's climate ambitions. Last week, the federal government ended the Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV) program, as funds ran out due to the program’s popularity.

Fret not, our eco-conscious advocates! For a very short time—we’re talking only a week—you can still grab up to $8,000 in savings on EVs and PHEVs at Steele Ford Lincoln.

Here’s how: Start with up to $5,000 in new Ford Canada EV rebates plus up to $3,000 in NS provincial rebates and then tack on additional exclusive offers from Steele Ford, like 0% financing.

These combined special rebates will end January 31 😢. Visit the EV specialists at Steele Ford (3773 Windsor Street, Halifax) or hop online to get your search started now, before the EV rebates are gone forever.

CITY HALL PREVIEW

Can city council avoid wasting another year? 

Tuesday’s meeting of Halifax Regional Council is shaping up to be consequential for this city. It could be the TSN turning point. It could be like Boston’s Nathan Horton scoring a goal with just over 10 minutes left in game seven against the Leafs.

But it could also be a dud. It’ll really depend on council’s performance—if they are able to put aside district squabbles and demand accountability from staff, then we’re in business. At issue are council’s big plans for Halifax, and the fact city staff aren’t making progress on nearly half of them. 

The Coast’s Matt Stickland has a look ahead at what’s in store for the Tuesday, Jan 28 city council meeting.

🗞️ In Other News

🎣 The Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaw Chiefs says it has rejected an offer from the federal Fisheries Department regarding the establishment of livelihood fisheries—the 13 chiefs issued a statement today saying the latest offer was a “rebranding” of previously rejected proposals.

🪧 Cleaners represented by SEIU Local 2 have ratified a new contract—the deal came as the 300 members were poised to walk off the job Monday, which the union says would have been the first-ever large-scale private sector janitorial strike.

🤰 A program that pairs specially-trained Public Health nurses with pregnant people in Nova Scotia has expanded to northern and western zones of the province—the program is a free, voluntary home-visiting program where nurses provide additional support during pregnancy.

🐋 Researchers at Saint Mary's University have acquired funding that will help them update a DNA database for the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale—the database is used to identify individual right whales without relying on sight alone.

👀 The province’s Serious Incident Response Team has launched an investigation after a man was hit by a vehicle driven by an off-duty HRP officer—the man was airlifted from the scene to hospital with what investigators have described as serious injuries.

⚖️ The provincial government has announced a new four-year agreement with the Nova Scotia Crown Attorneys’ Association that includes wage increases, a change to on-call compensation and enhancements to equity, diversion and inclusion language in the hiring process.

SPONSORED BY CRAFT ALLIANCE ATLANTIC

Trade Show Focused on Local Craft

Craft East Buyers’ Expo is an annual trade show to promote the crafts and giftware industry in Atlantic Canada. For two days in February, the finest in handmade products from the region—products like this beautiful Shawl Pin by Atlantic Pewter—are featured. Open only to the qualified retail trade.

SPONSORED BY SUPPORT4CULTURE

Proudly Supporting NS Theatre

Support4Culture proudly supports theatre in Nova Scotia, including Neptune Theatre's Industry Nights. A night to recognize the amazing theatrical talent in Nova Scotia, whilst taking in an exciting show.

🗓️ Things To Do

Looking for something to do this week? Check out these Coast picks:

🗓 Sip n’ Shuck 2025 Presented by Taste of Nova Scotia: Sip n’ Shuck your way through one of the most delicious culinary events in Nova Scotia. If you enjoy oysters, seafood and award-winning Nova Scotia wines, beer, cider and spirits, this is the place for you! | Jan 31 | 7pm | $143.75

🗓 Downtown Dartmouth Ice Festival: Bundle up and come out for this winter celebration of local love! Enjoy live ice carving, entertainment, a street party and so much more. | Jan 31-Feb 2  

🗓 Dino Disco 19+ Party: Step into a roaring night of music, dinosaurs and science as Discovery Centre presents Dino Disco, a 19+ Silent Disco experience. Move to the beats of DJ Mucky Ebanz while exploring the latest Discover Centre exhibit, Dinosaur Explorer, featuring animatronic dinosaurs. Show off your best dino dance moves, wander the centre after dark, and experience the ultimate mash-up of music, and prehistoric vibes. | Feb 1 | 9pm | $23

Have an event to share? Let us know at [email protected].

⚓️ What’s In The Harbour

🚢➡️ The Atlantic Star container ship arrives in Halifax from Liverpool at 5:20am and leaves for New York at 5pm.

🚢 The MSC Ornella container ship arrives in Halifax from Montreal at 11:15am.

🚢 The Ophelia container ship arrives in Halifax from New York at 3:20pm.

🍴 Where To Eat & Drink

🍄‍🟫 Don’t miss the return of the Mushroom Swiss Crunch Burger at Wave Foods inside The Local: quarter-pound smash burger, mushroom duxelles, Swiss cheese, chili crisp, lettuce, pickles, Wave sauce.

🍲 This week’s special at Tart and Soul is Classic Chicken Pot Pie: savoury filling of juicy chicken, herbs and vegetables, hand mixed and rolled in flaky butter pastry, brushed with butter and parsley.

👀 In Case You Missed It

🏛️ The warning signs have been there for a while, but it’s becoming harder to deny that Halifax is dying. Not some glamourous death, a noble sacrifice for the greater good. Nor is it something expected after a prolonged and public illness. No, it’s a far more embarrassing death—we’ve been bitten by a zombie, and staff are trying really hard to hide it. The Coast gives you an  inside look at city staff’s years-long guerrilla campaign to undermine city council.

🚙 Thursday, Jan 24th’s Transportation Standing Committee meeting was one for the record books—but only because the city keeps records of all municipal meetings. Councillor Shawn Cleary’s motion to charge higher permit parking fees for bigger vehicles came back to the committee. The Coast’s Matt Stickland has more on that—and everything else that happened—at Thursday’s meeting of the Transportation Standing Committee.

That’s it!

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