When we picture zero waste, we often think of recycling bins or reusable coffee cups. But Helga Jacobsen sees something bigger: behind every piece of waste is a human story — someone who made it, someone who handles it, and communities who live with its impact.

As Sustainability Coordinator at The Forks, Helga Jakobson is turning one of Winnipeg's most beloved gathering places into a living example of how community spaces can practice real sustainability. From her background as a transdisciplinary new media artist to her current work transforming coffee grounds into de-icer, Helga brings creativity and data together to communicate what's happening with our planet in ways people can actually understand and act on.

We're talking:

- Why protecting the earth and protecting people are the same conversation

- How The Forks operates in a circular economy instead of the "produce, consume, throw away" linear model

- Why setting "zero" as a goal matters even if you don't quite reach it

Helga reminds us that sustainability work doesn't require perfection or pushback. Sometimes the most innovative solutions come from conversations with tenants over coffee, listening to Indigenous voices and water protectors, and staying hopeful even when the news feels overwhelming.

As she puts it: "Everyone has the ability to create impact around them. So speak up."

Learn more about the Forks' "Target Zero" project.

More on Helga:

Helga Jakobson is the Sustainability Coordinator at the Forks and is a Transdisciplinary Artist. In 2017, she received an MFA from AKV St. Joost (The Netherlands) in conjunction with courses in the Transdisciplinary New Media program at the Paris College of Art (France). She has exhibited, lectured and participated in residencies across North and South America and Europe. She was selected for the Emerging Excellence Award by the Manitoba Arts Council in 2019, has mentored through Creative Manitoba, Video Pool and, currently, MAWA. She lectures on material ecologies, eco-feminism, and sustainability in art. Her art practice often focuses on how to live on a damaged earth and how to make tangible the almost invisible and inaudible losses that are occurring all around us, from an environmental perspective.

As CEO of a bourgeoning recycling business (REDO Waste), a Butterflyway Ranger for the David Suzuki Foundation and former Executive Director of ArtsJunktion (a creative reuse depot), Helga brings to her role as Sustainability Coordinator wide spanning experiences that help her to promote sustainability, with waste diversion and composting at the Forks.

When she’s off duty, she can be found hiking and camping, gardening and cuddling her foster fail dogs; Wednesday and Huginn.

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If your goals for 2026 include actually moving the needle on reconciliation, lawyer Bruce McIvor has news: you need to get uncomfortable.The Manitoba-born author of Indigenous Rights in One Minute joins us to cut through the performative gestures and explain what reconciliation actually demands. Bruce breaks down centuries of Indigenous law and constitutional rights in plain language—then challenges us to move beyond land acknowledgements to action that matters.

We're talking:

• Why Indigenous rights aren't "special" privileges—they're legal obligations Canada made and must keep
• What Section 35 of the Constitution actually protects (and why most Canadians don't understand it)
• The difference between consultation theatre and genuine partnership
• Why feeling uncomfortable is exactly where real reconciliation work begins
• What non-Indigenous Canadians can actually do to move reconciliation work forward
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Bruce reminds us: "If reconciliation is making you feel good, you're doing it wrong."Read Indigenous Rights in One Minute: What You Need to Know to Talk Reconciliation

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We sit down with Patty Weins—author of That'll Never Work Here, host of the That's Her Problem podcast, and Bicycle Mayor of Winnipeg. Patty's journey from winter cycling newcomer to city-wide advocate reveals how transportation choices connect to mental health, physical wellbeing, climate justice, and the fundamental right to move safely through our cities.

We're talking:

• Why 30% of the population can't drive—and what that means for designing equitable cities
• How winter cycling transformed from a parking cost workaround into a movement for safer streets
• The hidden connection between snow removal priorities and gender equality in urban design
• Why "trip chaining" matters: how women navigate cities differently than traditional planning assumes
• What happened when one collision on Wellington Crescent galvanized 54 advocates in four weeks
• How Brazil's bike culture shaped Patty's view of car dependency in Winnipeg—and what needs to change

Patty challenges us to see transportation not as a convenience issue but as a fundamental right. When we design cities exclusively for cars, we're making choices about who belongs, who stays safe, and who gets left behind. Whether you're a daily driver reconsidering that right turn at Sherbrooke and Broadway or someone curious about the freedom winter cycling can bring, this conversation offers practical insights into building cities where everyone can arrive alive.

Connect with Patty:

Website: PattyBikes.com

Book: That'll Never Work Here

Podcast: That's Her Problem

Learn more:

Bike Winnipeg: bikewinnipeg.ca

Bycs (Bicycle Mayors Network): bycs.org

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