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These are the latest posts across all categories:
Category: Governance
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 26, 2025 — 7 min read
In Newfoundland, land is treated less as heritage and more as leverage. Sweeping claims, untested legal structures, curated “documentation,” and a surge of mineral exploration all reveal how governance vacuums are exploited. From the silenced 6(1)/6(2 debate to UNDRIP consent politics, outside agendas thrive on ambiguity. Land becomes currency, heritage becomes narrative, and without transparent governance, decisions about Newfoundland’s future are already being signed elsewhere. Read More...
Category: Governance
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 15, 2025 — 7 min read
This piece exposes how “outrage” in Newfoundland’s environmental and political movements is often selective, serving alliances rather than principles. Using examples from Jasen Benwah’s shifting stance on wind projects, UNDRIP land claim gatekeeping, and Darrell Shelley’s opportunistic politics, it shows how ecological harm is condemned or excused depending on who benefits. The article ties these local double standards to global financial agendas like GFANZ, where narrative control matters more than actual environmental impact, and warns that until consistent standards are applied, the land will remain a bargaining chip and truth negotiable. Read More...
Category: Peer Pressure
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 13, 2025 — 5 min read
This article examines the cultural pattern in Newfoundland where independent voices are often sidelined for speaking up too early. Using cases like Brenda Kitchen’s boundary-setting, Rae Miller’s role in delaying a petition with 85% local opposition to a wind project, and Duran Felix’s public confrontation during a protest, it shows how early dissent is reframed as disruption, punished socially, and later rewritten out of the narrative. The piece connects these incidents to broader community dynamics where unity is mistaken for conformity, making it easier for outside actors to control local debates. It argues that being early should be an asset, not a liability, in healthy communities. Read More...
Category: Governance
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 9, 2025 — 8 min read
This editorial exposes the “Technocracy of the Base” — a governance culture in Newfoundland where councils and committees operate more as administrative layers than as engines of strategy. Drawing on the Local Paradox framework, it shows how weak local capacity, reinforced by social conformity and peer pressure, creates the perfect environment for top-down agendas to flourish. From Muskrat Falls to Paris Agreement-aligned wind and hydrogen projects, decisions are accepted without scrutiny, not out of agreement, but from the ingrained belief that resistance is futile. Breaking the cycle will require more than policy tweaks — it will take cultural change, strategic capacity, and the courage to dissent. Read More...
Category: The Local Paradox
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 9, 2025 — 9 min read
This article examines how the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) — a global coalition of banks, insurers, and asset managers aligned with the Paris Agreement — leverages financial power to shape Newfoundland’s development without democratic oversight. Drawing on the “local paradox” framework, it shows how weak, fragmented local governance leaves the province vulnerable to top-down financial agendas. Projects like Port au Port’s wind-to-hydrogen proposal illustrate how Paris-aligned funding bypasses local consent, reinforcing the governance gap and shifting decision-making power from communities to creditors. Read More...
Category: Paris Accord
Author: Holly Revollàn-Huelin
Date: August 9, 2025 — 6 min read
A deep look at how the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) turns the Paris Agreement’s finance clause, Article 2.1(c), into a powerful tool for shaping national policy through private capital. By embedding “Paris alignment” into banking, investment, and insurance standards, GFANZ can drive energy transitions without direct legislation — raising questions about sovereignty, market coercion, and who really decides the pace of change. Read More...
