Next Gen Insider

Morgan Sharp reports from Toronto on the city's young population and their civic engagement and impact on the local institutions that make democracy function.

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531 Articles

How this Irish handcraft store is virtually fighting COVID-19

Fashion designer Sinéad Clarke whipped up thousands of face masks starting last March to contribute to local pandemic-fighting efforts, and has been adapting the operations of Toronto’s Irish Design House ever since.

Morgan Sharp

January 25th 2021

Young GTA poet Wali Shah hopes Amanda Gorman will help light the way for more diverse voices

On Wednesday, Amanda Gorman became the youngest poet ever to perform at a presidential inauguration, calling for "unity and togetherness" in her poem, The Hill We Climb.

Morgan Sharp

January 22nd 2021

Can high schoolers help save political discourse?

Teams of young people competing in a high school “ethics bowl” are looking to replace the zero sum nature of debating with a more collaborative approach to society’s dilemmas.

Morgan Sharp

January 21st 2021

The ups and downs of one restaurant’s pandemic fortunes

The sudden halt to sales while bills kept mounting was frightening for chef Rick Matharu in the early days of the pandemic. But with help from an interest-free federal loan, the owner of Rick’s Good Eats fusion diner in Mississauga turned a challenge into a partial win.

Morgan Sharp

January 20th 2021

Post-secondary schools offer support, but is it reaching students?

For students who dive into every social activity and ask for help when needed, their institution’s response to COVID-19 and their mental health needs is enough. But experts say they aren’t the only ones post-secondary schools need to reach.

Morgan Sharp

January 19th 2021

How one brewpub owner and his business are weathering COVID-19

The Avling Kitchen and Brewery Max Meighen opened in Toronto's Leslieville neighbourhood back in July 2019 has spent more of its young life in COVID-19 lockdown than out of it, but is still making a decent income.

Morgan Sharp

January 15th 2021

Toronto's young entrepreneurs face pressure to adapt — or fold — as second stay-at-home order begins

From one end of Toronto’s usually bustling Queen Street to the other, the thousands of small businesses that populate local economic zones have, by and large, had a rough go of it throughout 2020 — but young entrepreneurs are adapting to the pandemic's changes more quickly, some business community leaders say.

Morgan Sharp

January 14th 2021

Young workers suffer again as Canada sheds net jobs for first time since April

Younger women again bore the brunt of job losses in December, Statistics Canada data show, with part-time work drying up as tighter pandemic restrictions limited retail, service activity in Toronto and elsewhere.

Morgan Sharp

January 8th 2021

How Ontario youth are virtually helping tackle COVID-19 mental health challenges

Young people are co-directing a range of innovative mental health initiatives since the COVID-19 pandemic forced help to move online, the head of a network of service providers says, while more young men are seeking support for mood and anxiety issues.

Morgan Sharp

January 8th 2021

Stuck in their bedrooms due to COVID-19, students want universities to do more

The tightening of public health restrictions due to surging COVID-19 cases is exacerbating the alienation that students feel towards universities they say could be doing more to help. Administrators say they’re making the best of a bad situation.

Morgan Sharp

January 7th 2021

Urban planning student makes a run for vacant Toronto council seat

Renee Jagdeo wants to make Toronto a greener and more equitable place for all its residents. The second-year university student hopes to apply classroom lessons immediately via her bid to fill a vacated city council seat in Scarborough.

Morgan Sharp

January 6th 2021

Teen aims to harness tech to treat Tourette syndrome

A teenager with Tourette syndrome in Vaughan, Ont., is working with a team of university students to develop a virtual treatment to reach more people living with the disorder.

Morgan Sharp

January 4th 2021

How the founder of Suppli hopes to fix Toronto's takeout waste woes

Megan Takeda-Tully had been thinking about excessive takeout waste for more than five years before starting Suppli this year. She hopes to slowly expand the reusable food packaging service next year.

Morgan Sharp

December 30th 2020

A tale of two students: How the pandemic hurts some more than others

High school seniors Basma Berih and Celine Ho's experiences navigating the COVID-19 pandemic illustrate the nuanced ways it alters students' academic trajectories differently.

Morgan Sharp

December 28th 2020

This Mississauga teen wants to make high-tech prosthetics for the world’s poor

A teenager from Mississauga has enlisted help from a U.S. university to make sophisticated yet affordable prosthetic limbs for the world’s poor.

Morgan Sharp

December 24th 2020