Your hosts  Terry, Levon, and Marc (video of show at bottom) ListenEN_The_Link-20191220-WEE15 Refugee advocacy group sounds the alarm on crisis in Mali Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) soldiers drive along women and children during the Operation Barkhane in Ndaki, Mali, July 29, 2019. (Benoit Tessier/REUTERS) A Canadian humanitarian aid worker says the situation in Mali is deteriorating even further. Alexandra Lamarche authored a report called Mali’s Humanitarian Crisis: Overmilitarized and Overshadowed. She says international efforts have been focussed on the military and stabilisation effort while the growing humanitarian aid need has bee woefully underfunded. Levon had a chance to speak with Lamarche for a podcast episode discussing her report and its recommendations for improving the humanitarian situation in Mali, addressing root causes of the conflict, which has now spilled to neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso, and implementing the terms of the country’s peace agreement. (full story/interview here) Think tank backs PM on massive tree planting possibilities A new study by a leading Canadian think tank says a government promise to plant over two billion trees before 2030 to combat climate change is very feasible. (Fred Tanneau/Getty Images) A new study by the Smart Prosperity Institute at the University of Ottawa says planting the trees could reduce emissions between two and four million tonnes a year by 2030, and up to eight million tons a year by 2050 as the trees mature and absorb more carbon dioxide. In the recent election campaign, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to spend $3 billion on land and water conservation projects--including planting two billion additional trees–before 2030. Terry spoke with Dave Sawyer–an environmental economist at the institute who  co-wrote the study. (full story/interview here) Smart speakers and privacy: helpful devices, but gathering data on you as well Smart speakers with their voice assistants are hugely popular, but they also gather vast information about you for corporate and other interests (Shannon Stapleton-Reuters) They is yet another high-tech device claiming to make your life easier. But as with most such devices, there are privacy issues. So -called 'smart speakers' are also microphones and while helping you find information you've requested, are also recording that data about your private habits, likes, wants, destinations etc.  Also they have the potential to accidentally record conversations you had thought were confidential. Jordan Pearson talks about the concerns. He is a Senior Editor at Motherboard, a tech news site from VICE Media. (full story/interview here) THE  LINK video (Youtube RCI channel- RCI Facebook)