@danasawchuk
Professor of Sociology and aging studies scholar at Wilfrid Laurier University (views mine). Co-author of American Idle: Late-Career Job Loss in a Neoliberal Era (2025, Rutgers UP): http://bit.ly/4irjVmD #MaskUp #CovidIsNotOver
I've updated wwater.ca so that the next data refresh will generate graphs covering up to 30 months (2.5 years) of data, instead of the current 12 months (1 year).
Thank you all for your interest and for sharing wwater.ca with your communities and loved ones. Stay safe!
The first comic slide of “reasons to wear a mask 2026” depicts a person wearing a white mask who says “Hell yea!” Around them are bright pastel colors and cute but ominous looking SARS-CoV-2 viruses. Text reading “a lil manifesto about taking care of yourself and others- with over 50 citations! By Gillian Levine.”
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine extends playful the Long COVID fest concept and depicts a hand holding a sheet from a music festival with facts about Long COVID facts and prevention, stating that everyone is vulnerable and that there is no cure, among other facts.
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine shows ways to prevent COVID-19 and Long COVID, focusing on the importance of masking.
This comic slide from “why you should wear a mask 2026” by Gillian Levine playfully gives reasons of why to wear a mask using a Monopoly board. Each square represents a different reason to mask, from protecting yourself and others to protecting yourself from other airborne virus. Dice and game board pieces are scattered around.
Artist Gillian Levine recently wrote and illustrated a comic sharing reasons to continue masking in 2026. She kindly gave us permission to republish it.
😷 Read the full comic at The Sick Times: bit.ly/4rVqQdp
Red broken heart graphic on a navy blue background. The text overlay on the heart reads: "Long Covid is heartbreaking because...my child doesn’t have the energy to go to school." Above the heart, highlighted text reads: "Caregivers: Share your Long Covid experience." In the bottom right of the graphic is a teal bubble; inside, the text reads "your experience here" with an arrow pointing to the heart.
This year for Long Covid Awareness Month, we’re highlighting the impact of Covid on the heart & cardiovascular system. But #LongCovid impacts people in many different ways, so we want to feature all sorts of experiences—including those of caregivers—with an instantly recognizable broken heart.
1/2
The BMJ v @bmj_latest X.com Covid-19 is not just a respiratory infection. Cardiovascular symptoms are seen in acute and long covid. Katharine Lang reports on what we've learnt since the onset of the pandemic Why covid-19 is "a vascular disease masquerading as a r...
So at the beginning of the pandemic I said it would take about 5-7 years for people to figure stuff out using heuristic learning methods.
I am a crystal ball.
February is National Care About Your Indoor Air Month, a reminder of how much the air we share shapes our health.
IHEP member, Jeff Siegel (@engineering.utoronto.ca), shares how improving indoor air quality can reduce the spread of respiratory viruses.
Watch the video ▶️
#PublicHealth #CleanAir
Long Covid affects around 6 in every 100 people who get COVD-19. People of any age and health status can get Long Covid. Red human body graphic and the WHO logo.
Long Covid affects around 6 in every 100 people who get COVD-19.
People of any age and health status can get Long Covid.
www.who.int/europe/event...
#MythBusters #HealthSecurity #LongCovidKids #HealthInformationIntegrity #WHO #LongCovid
“The take-home message from this study is clear: long COVID is here to stay, even in children, & can be exacerbated by reinfections and sustained by high viral circulation. …Without decisive action, the long-term societal cost of long COVID will continue to rise.”
www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
1. Very important study - and the primary reason I avoid infection.
'The long-term impact of COVID-19 may be consequential years after the infection and give rise to long-term illnesses including neurocognitive problems similar to what is seen in Alzheimer's disease'.
A faith-based community that truly follows both the teachings of Jesus *and* accurate science on COVID! 🤯 This is a must-read.
“We insist on trying to protect each other frm unnecessary suffering & death in the face of the threat posed by a novel virus whose long-term effects are still unknowable…”
Here's a recording of my 10-minute presentation about addressing shared indoor air as an accessibility barrier in our learning environments.
Feel free to share!
youtu.be/HD0wVoN7Pr8
Wow! This is so impressive. Kudos to them 👍
Black background with white text and an elephant wearing a mask towards the upper left-hand corner: “Spotlight: Masking as an Equity Practice Let's talk about the Elephant in the Room...high-quality masks are a tiny tool with big equity energy this respiratory illness season. Coughing, sneezing, fever, chills, and aches... Ontario's wastewater confirms that it's rough out there! Take it from the Middlesex-London Health Unit (Nov. 25 2025): "Staying home when feeling unwell and encouraging others to do the same helps us protect each other from viral illnesses. Frequent handwashing, covering coughs, socializing in well-ventilated spaces and wearing well-fitted face masks all contribute to reducing the risk of infection." Well-fitting respirators (N95s, KN95s, or equivalent) significantly reduce the spread of illness. That matters not just for individual health, but for equity..”
Text continues: “Not everyone can afford to get sick. Missed pay, caregiving responsibilities, disability, chronic illness, or precarious work mean that "just catching a bug" can have very real consequences. Masking helps keep shared spaces safer for everyone - especially those most impacted when illness spreads. When we choose high-quality masks in crowded indoor spaces, we reduce barriers to participation and help make meetings, classrooms, workplaces, and public spaces more accessible. Not only are they effective at helping to prevent illness, but wearing a mask is also a visual indication of a commitment to equity. Practical, protective, and prosocial. Keeping our campus safe during respiratory illness season also depends on having enough CUPE workers and resources to maintain clean, well-supplied, and healthy spaces. Access to soap, paper towels, clean washrooms, masks, sanitizer, and properly maintained buildings is essential to preventing the spread of illness.”
The @uwofa1 - University of Western Ontario Faculty Association - is quickly becoming a leader in post-secondary education messaging about the equity implications and importance of masking as an integral layer of C19 and flu mitigation.
Let’s show them some love, folks!
❤️🙏
Sick and tired?
Influenza test positivity is very high in Ontario and remains the highest in children (5-11 yrs) at 73.3% and adolescents (12-19 yrs) at 67.3%. COVID-19 and RSV are also circulating.
These viruses are airborne: we get sick by breathing them in!
But it doesn't have to be this way!
It is called "scoop cake," after all 🥄
Image of CHEO entrance from outside. A grey building with yellow lights shining through the windows on the first floor. The pavement looks wet and the sky appears somewhat cloudy.
Ontario School Safety has been fighting for healthy, monitored air in Ontario classrooms and school busses for years.
Flu cases are rising across Canada and we grieve the tragic death of three children in Ottawa this week of Influenza A-related complications.
What will it take to clean the air?
Wow, that is a disturbingly high positivity rate for the flu. Mask up people!
If you want to test at home for Flu A/B and Covid, multi-test kits are available online through Costco Canada and medsup Medical (Canadian). $25 per kit of 5 tests.
www.costco.ca/medsup-covid...
www.medsupmedical.com/products/cov...
Read this twice.
“Our findings redefine SARS-CoV-2 infection as a condition of long-lasting immune compromise.”
www.sciencedirect.com:5037/science/arti...
Minimalist white poster with a subtle crumpled-paper texture; small ‘whn.global’ logo centered at the top. A small intro line sits above a huge headline where ‘COVID’ is bright red and ‘is different.’ is black. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. COVID is different. SARS-CoV-2 behaves differently from the viruses most of us grew up with. And treating it like “another flu” is costing people their health.’ Footer: The World Health Network is a network devoted to global compassion—working together to inspire collective action through science for a safer, healthier world.
Same white, paper-texture poster and top ‘whn.global’ logo. Large title reads ‘What makes COVID different?’ with ‘COVID’ in red, followed by a bulleted list. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. What makes COVID different? • It can breach the blood–brain barrier • It can damage your endothelial lining and increase clot risk • It can persist in tissues • It can lower key immune cells • It may increase cancer risk • You can catch it multiple times per year These are not “normal cold virus” behaviors.’ Footer line about the World Health Network.
Same clean white poster with paper texture; ‘whn.global’ at top. Big statement line mid-page where ‘Long COVID’ appears in red and the rest in black; two short paragraphs below. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. Long COVID is caused by SARS-CoV-2. Persistent symptoms come from real, documented damage. Not anxiety, not imagination, not “just needing rest.” Hundreds of thousands of studies show SARS-CoV-2 affects the body in ways we’re still uncovering. Just because you’ve had multiple infections and “felt fine” doesn’t mean it will stay that way.’ Footer line about the World Health Network.
Same minimalist white, paper-texture layout with ‘whn.global’ at top. A large heading ‘Here’s what you can do.’ sits above a simple bullet list; the final URL slug ‘covid-is-different’ is in red. Text: ‘Paraphrased from David Brasure’s WHN blog post, “COVID Is Different.” Read the full article at whn.global/covid-is-different. Here’s what you can do. • Improve air quality (filters, ventilation) • Wear a high-filtration mask in shared indoor air • Test when exposed or symptomatic • Stay home when sick • Use layered protections with friends, family, and workplaces Read more at whn.global/covid-is-different’ Footer line about the World Health Network.
COVID isn’t acting like the viruses most of us grew up with, and treating it like “just a cold” is putting people at real risk. David Brasure breaks down why SARS-CoV-2 is fundamentally different, how it causes long-term damage, and what we can do to protect ourselves.
We are looking for teachers willing to test Jasper, a CO2 monitor in their classrooms. Jasper is a prototype and we would like to receive user feedback as soon as possible from several countries. If you are interested, please fill out the form: letsair.org/jasper
“Democratic governments and equitable public health must protect everyday people more than they protect private sector profits and declining public health standards, or they risk promoting fascist and eugenicist logic.”
www.thespec.com/opinion/cont...
ASA member Annette M. Nierobisz @carleton.edu w/ Dana Sawchuk @danasawchuk.bsky.social weighs factors contributing to hard vs soft financial landings among boomers after the Great Recession & what this may mean for Gen Xers facing AI disruption in the workplace. @thehill.com
The hypocrisy of the left when it comes to the idea of “following the science” is truly staggering.
Many things will affect how well a student will do in school. Some you can control, others you can't
One that affects every student (and teacher), and that we can control, is indoor air quality
In this video I walk through how and offer some solutions
t.co/sSU5efGhHr
I haven't seen one single study that shows it's harmless to keep getting Covid again & again. But there are thousands of peer-reviewed studies that document long-term harms
We often get asked, "What can I *personally* do to help address climate change?"
Sadly, there hasn't been a very good answer to this question. Previous guides often treated people as monoliths, providing a one-size-fits-all answer.
But that's all changed, thanks to SHIFT.
jointheshift.earth
In case you need an ethicist's input: it's not only acceptable but, I'd argue, obligatory to say what you need to say to get a COVID vaccine. We have duties of care to each other, and particular duties of solidarity to those the regime wants dead, which supersede situational duties of truthfulness.
ASA member Annette M. Nierobisz @carleton.edu-w/ Dana Sawchuk @danasawchuk.bsky.social, Wilfrid Laurier Uni-gives an overview of some findings from their book American Idle: Late-Career Job Loss in a Neoliberal Era in this @fortune.com article. @rutgersupress.bsky.social
This is the best product listing copy I’ve ever read
