Chris Benjamin, Freelance Writer

Relevant Skills

Relevant Experience

The Coast: Columnist, Features Writer (Halifax, 2008/present)

·         Write a bi-weekly Sustainable City column, news/arts stories and features

Freelance Writer (Halifax, 2008/present)

·         Business, news, feature writing, press releases, online and print journals

·         Write and edit professional reports and guidebooks on a variety of subjects

The Statesman: Development Correspondent/Editor (Ghana, 2006/2007)

·         Wrote news, features, and editorial relating to Ghanaian development issues for daily national newspaper and website

·         Edited weekend newspaper, special issues, business and news content

·         Editorial and strategic input for newspaper content, style, and marketing

·         Political speech-writing/editing

Toronto & Region Conservation Authority, Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants: Volunteerism & Diversity Coordinator (Toronto, 2003/2007)

• Promoted access & equity issues to 2 million people through the media

• Wrote for website, public reports, newsletters reaching 60,000+ recipients

Greenest City: Community Resources Coordinator (Toronto, 2002) 

• Promoted sustainability programming to 1 million people through the media across Greater Toronto

Collins Associates: Environmental Communications (Toronto, 2000/2001) 

• Published newspaper and online articles for Canadian and UN agencies

• Wrote company website

Nova Scotia Department of Environment, Canadian Crossroads International: Media Relations (Halifax, NS, and St Lucia, West Indies, 1998/1999) 

• Publicized 40 international youth projects across Nova Scotia

• Edited quarterly and annual publications on sustainable development

Relevant Volunteer Work

Potluck Magazine: Contributing Editor (Canada, 2001/2008)

·         Wrote/edited poetry, features, & fiction in peer-reviewed online collection

 Board Member: Greenest City (Toronto, 2003/2006)

• Promoted and doubled Board Membership

• Wrote newsletter for 400+ members

Undercurrents Magazine: Editing Committee (Toronto, 2000):

• Selected and edited articles for the annual faculty magazine

Dalhousie Gazette newspaper: Writer (Halifax, 1996/1997)

• Wrote column on environment, business, and social justice in Nova Scotia

Education

York University (Toronto, 1999/2001): Master’s in Environmental Studies

• Media, social marketing, research methods

• Wrote communication strategy for Indonesia Environmental Studies Centre

Wilfred Laurier University (Waterloo, 1998): Writing for the Media

Dalhousie University (Halifax, 1993 - 1997): Bachelor’s of Commerce Co-op

Awards/Memberships

• Longlisted for Canada Reads 2011
• Finalist, Fusion Go Sustainability Award 2010
  
• Third Place, Atlantic New Cultures Writing Competition 2010

• Member, Nova Scotia Professional Writer’s Council 2008/present

• Honourable Mention, Canadian Magazine Awards 2009

• First Prize, Novel Category, Atlantic Writing Competition 2008

• Toronto Arts Council Grant recipient for literature 2006

• Larry Turner Award for Non-Fiction, Honourable Mention 2006

• Canadian Race Relations Council Award of Excellence Finalist 2005

• Toronto Community Foundation Vital Ideas Award 2005

• TRCA Local Hero Award 2004

Publishing History of Chris Benjamin

• Atlantic Canada’s Sustainable Trailblazers, Nimbus Publishing, September 2011 (forthcoming)
• Let us reinvent the wheel in the Open Heart Forgery One Year Anthology, Open Heart Forgery, Poem, April 2011
• Bill on a Code of Ethic for the Province in the Open Heart Forgery One Year Anthology, Open Heart Forgery, Poem, April 2011
  
• Moving Targets, The Coast, Column, Mar 2011
• Clinical Culture Clash, The Chronicle Herald, News Feature, Feb 2011
• Disappearing Farms, The Coast, Column, Feb 2011
• Wrecking Ball Breaker, The Coast, Column, Feb 2011
• Reserve Judgements, The Coast, Column, Jan 2011
• Fear and Seeking in Nova Scotia, The Coast, Column, Jan 2011
• The Law Won, Prisons Issue, Descant, Creative Non-Fiction, December 2010
• Xofa X-Mas, The Coast, Short Fiction, Dec 2010
• Flying Into the Abyss, The Coast, Column, Dec 2010
• Gifts from the North, The Airborne Anthology, Third Person Press, Fall 2010
• Natural Demise, Nashwaak Review, Fiction, Summer/Fall 2010
• Halifax Gets Connected, The Coast, Column, Nov 2010
• Certifiably Green, The Coast, Column, Nov 2010
• Don't Fear the Coyote, The Coast, Column, Oct 2010
• We Are All Junkies, The Coast, Column, Oct 2010
• Rebuilding Halifax's Most Feared Neighbourhood, The Globe and Mail, News Feature, Sept 2010
• Drive-by Saviours: a novel, Roseway Publishing, Long Fiction, September 2010
• Wasted Energy, The Coast, Column, Sept 2010
  
• Native Green, The Coast, Column, Sept 2010
  
• Chinese Puzzle, The Coast, Column, Sept 2010
• Halifax Ponders Its Crap: Biosolids debate heats up, The Coast, News Feature, Aug 2010
• Bad Development, The Coast, Column, Aug 2010
• Energy Poverty, The Coast, Column, Aug 2010
• How to Build a Local Food System, The Coast, Cover Story, July 2010
  
• Muzzling Environment Canada, The Coast, Column, July 2010
• Alien Invasion, The Coast, Column, July 2010
• The Urban Farmer, The Coast, Column, July 2010
• Coastal Disaster, The Coast, Column, June 2010
• Population Bomb, The Coast, Column, June 2010
  
• Lorincz on Environment, The Coast, Column, June 2010

• Illegal Chicken Coop, Rural Delivery Magazine, Feature, May 2010

• Cycling Frustration, The Coast, Column, May 2010

• Protect the Fish, The Coast, Column, May 2010

• Shared Visions, The Coast, Column, May 2010

• Clayton’s Letters, The Society, Fiction, April 2010

• It’s Muhammad, Atlantic New Cultures Website, Fiction, April 2010

• Supportive Housing Stories, Community Action on Homelessness, March 2010

• Housing Crisis Can’t be Ignored, Halifax Media Co-op, News, March 2010

• Highway Connections, The Coast, Column, April 2010

• This Day for Sale, The Coast, Column, April 2010

• Transition Period, The Coast, Column, April 2010

• Radical Cheap, The Coast, Column, April 2010

• Gas Tax Dodge, The Coast, Column, April 2010

• Delia and Phil, Earlit Shorts, Rattling Books, Fiction, March 2010

• War on Earth, The Coast, Column, March 2010

• More Jobs Per Green Buck, The Coast, Column, March 2010

• Wasting Away, The Coast, Column, March 2010

• Penning for a Cause, The Coast, Arts, March 2010

• Midwifery is ready for delivery, but public health lags, This Magazine, Feature, February 2010

• Finding a Simple Cure for Cancer, The Coast, Column, February 2010

• Sable Island National Park Natural Disaster, The Coast, News, February 2010

• Mining Biodiversity, The Coast, Column, February 2010

• Round and About, The Coast, Column, February 2010

• Tragedy of the Common, The Coast,Column,  February 2010

• Branding the Environment, The Coast, Column, January 2010

• Nova Scotia’s Biomass Mess, The Coast, Column, January 2010

• Quit & Start Over, The Coast, Column, January 2010

• Green Santa, The Coast, Column, December 2009

• Local Activists Return from Copenhagen, The Coast, News, December 2009

• Yes Men Prank Canada, The Coast, News, December 2009

• Halifax Geared Up, The Coast, News, December 2009

• Bhutan Measures National Happiness, The Coast, Column, December 2009

• Futuristic Climate Advice, The Coast, News, December 2009

• Critical Mass Confusion, The Coast, Column, November 2009

• Control Your Technology, Your Workplace Magazine, Feature, October 2009

• Bullfrog Power is Coming, The Coast, Column, October 2009

• Tree Hugger Power, The Coast, Column, October 2009

• City Chicks Rawk, The Coast, Column, October 2009

• The Indian Brook House of Learning, Briarpatch Magazine, Feature, September 2009

• Breaking Wind Power, The Coast, Cover Story, September 2009

• Losing the Enviro War, The Coast, Column, September 2009

• For Letter or for Verse, The Coast, Arts, September 2009

• Imagine a Car-Free Halifax, The Coast, Column, August 2009

• The Brimy, Grimy Deeps, The Coast, Column, August 2009

• The Futurology of Fatherhood, Nova Scotia: A Vision for the Future, Pottersfield Press, Essay, July 2009

• Finnish Innovation and Mongolian Degradation: The myth of the wealthy environmentalist, Briarpatch Magazine, Feature, July 2009

• Nova Scotia lagging on reducing pesticides, Chronicle Herald, Opinion, July 2009

·         Talking to Ontarians, The Coast, Column, July 2009

·         Alien Fire Ants Invade Halifax, The Coast, News Feature, July 2009

·         Little Green Schoolhouse, The Coast, Column, July 2009

·         March Protests Criminalization of Black Youth, The Coast, News Feature, June 2009

·         First Nations Left High and Wet, The Coast, Column, June 2009

·         Art to Heart, The Coast, Column, June 2009

·         Wind Blows, This Magazine, Insert, May 2009

·         Ghana Prison Story, Briarpatch Magazine, Feature, May 2009

·         Raising Awareness - For the Birds, The Coast, Sustainable City, May 2009

• Keji Burning, The Coast, Column, May 2009Nature’s Law, The Coast, Column, April 2009

• Earth Day Attack, The Coast, Column, April 2009

• Green Energy Entrepreneur Tom Heintzman Profile, Faces of the New Economy Exhibit, Green Enterprise Toronto, April 2009

• Ethical Investment Broker Sucheta Rajagopal Profile, Faces of the New Economy Exhibit, Green Enterprise Toronto, April 2009

• Pay it forward, Progress Magazine, Feature, March 2009

• Religious Eco-Wars, The Coast, Column, March 2009

• African Nova Scotian Heritage and Climate Change, Environmental Justice Organizing Initiative, Feature, February 2009

• Impacts of Climate Change on Nova Scotians, Environmental Justice Organizing Initiative, Feature, February 2009

• What is Climate Change?, Environmental Justice Organizing Initiative, February 2009

• Tracking Our Eco-footprints, The Coast, Column, February 2009

• Drive-thru Madness, The Coast, Column, February 2009

• Morse’s Environmental Shakeup, The Coast, Column, January 2009

• On the House, The Coast, Column, January 2009

• Ukrainian Christmas in October, The Coast, Fiction, December 2008

• Sustainable Santa, The Coast, Column, December 2008

• Nova Scotia Power: Don’t Blame Us, The Coast, Column, December 2008

• Provinces Must Stand up to NAFTA Bullying, Chronicle Herald, Opinion, November 2008

• Blood Coal, The Coast, Column, November 2008

• True Crime, The Coast, Movie Feature, November 2008

• Sustainable Prosperity, Open to the World Magazine, Feature, Fall 2008

• Cycling in Circles, The Coast, Column, October 2008

• Paint City Hall Green, The Coast, Column, October 2008

• To Surf and Protect, The Coast, News Story, October 2008

• HRM’s eco-candidates, The Coast, Column, October 2008

• Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine, The Coast, Feature, September 2008

• Green Biz, The Coast, Column, September 2008

• Africville Art Marks the Spot, The Coast, Arts Feature, September 2008

• Something Fishy, The Coast, Column, September 2008

• Popular Diversions, The Coast, Special Feature, September 2008

• Ontario’s Wild Ideas, The Coast, Column, August 2008

• Lincolnville Dumped On Again, The Coast, Column, August 2008

• Carbon Tax, The Coast, Column, July 2008

• A Vote for Sustainable Government, The Coast, Column, July 2008

• Chebucto Road’s Dead End?, The Coast, News Story, June 2008

• Alex Wilson Plans for the Worst, The Coast, Column, June 2008

• Bulldozers Stalled on Chebucto Road (with Tim Bousquet), The Coast, News Story, June 2008

• Exposing the Bottomfeeders, The Coast, Arts Story, June 2008

• Faux Democracy, The Coast, Feature, June 2008

• Liking Biking, The Coast, Column, June 2008

• Imagine Fewer Schools, Nova Scotia Policy Review, Feature, June 2008

• Liking Biking, The Coast, Column, June 2008

• Climate Crisis, The Coast, Column, June 2008

• Consulting Games, The Coast, News Story, May 2008

• Poop Scoop, The Coast, Column, May 2008

• Bio-not-so-solids, The Coast, Column, April 2008

• Halifax Harbour Non-solutions, The Coast, News Story, April 2008

• Scrapping Skyscrapers, The Coast, Column, April 2008

• Urban de-forestry, The Coast, Column, March 2008

• Saws, The Coast, Cover Story, February 2008

• Economic Emancipation in Ghana, Africa, The World, Z Magazine, Feature, January 2008

• The Latte’s Revenge, CBC Radio 1, Comment, December 2008

• Exclusive by Design, Nova Scotia Policy Review, Feature, December 2007

• Neighbourhood versus HRM, Halifax Chronicle Herald, Comment, November 2007

• Ghana@50: It’s Good to be Home, Touch BASE Magazine, Feature, October/November 2007

• Nothing but Flowers, Potluck, Short Screenplay, September 2007

• Why I Want to Lead Ghana (for Nana Akufo-Addo, with Asare Otchere-Darko), Feature, The Statesman, August 2007

• African Social Evolution, The Statesman, Feature, August 2007

• Living in the Dirt – a novel, Excerpt, The Statesman, Special Report, August 2007

• Fear the Monoculture, Potluck, Poetry, July 2007

• African Social Evolution, Potluck, Essay, June 2007

• The phantom lives on: Chris Benjamin reviews King Leopold’s Ghost: A story of greed, terror, and heroism in colonial Africa, The Saturday Statesman, Reviews, March 2007

• Why Ghana needs a strong left wing, The Statesman, Comment, March 2007

• Development In Freedom, A New Paradigm? The Statesman Editorial, March 2007

• Hawkers begrudge AMA’s Pedestrians Shopping Mall: Where are the customers? The Statesman, News, March 2007

• Light a Candle or Curse the Darkness: Unless you care to pay for it (with Conor McCreery and Albert Oppong Ansah), The Statesman, News, March 2007

• AU structure must be made-in-Africa, The Statesman, Comment, March 2007

• Guinea’s 50-year leadership vacuum, The Statesman, Special Report, March 2007

• The Ewe affliction, The Statesman, Feature, March 2007

• Liberian refugees fear home: but they are planning for peace, The Statesman, Comment, March 2007

• Ewes cross the line, The Statesman, Feature, March 2007

• Is brain drain not also brain gain and grain gain? (with Asare Otchere-Darko), The Statesman, Comment, March 2007

• The Next 50 Years: All Ghanaians must play a part, The Statesman Special Ghana@50 Issue Editorial, March 2007

• Family Care: The movement from residential ‘orphanages’ to family reunification, The Saturday Statesman, Special Report, March 2007

• AIDS and thugs: a joint review of ‘Tsotsi’ and ‘Yesterday,’ two South African movies available at a DVD vendor near you, The Saturday Statesman, Reviews, March 2007

• Let it flow: The Tamale water supply expansion, rehabilitation, and optimization project, The Statesman, Feature, March 2007

• The Cycling Evolution, The Statesman, Comment, February 2007

• Empowered women, enlightened men, The Saturday Statesman, Special Report, February 2007

• Princes of Lebanese cuisine, The Saturday Statesman, Reviews, February 2007

• Accra is Dying, The Statesman Editorial, February 2007

• Buy a Highway or Break the Law, The Statesman, Front Page, February 2007

• Planning Healthy Ghanaian People, The Statesman, Feature, February 2007

• $25 M seed money for Bui City, But would this integrated option satisfy environmentalists? (with Asare Otchere-Darko), The Statesman, Front Page, February 2007

• The economics of crime, The Saturday Statesman, Feature, February 2007

• Is 50 percent cocoa processing a reasonable goal for Ghana?, The Statesman, Special Report, February 2007

• A brief history of Family Planning and Sexual Reproductive Health in Ghana, The Statesman, Special Report, February 2007

• Botched Abortions Account for 30% of Maternal Mortalities, The Statesman, Front Page, February 2007

• Ghanaian Rights, The Saturday Statesman, Special Report, February 2007

• Cultural pomposity: a history lesson for the here and now, The Saturday Statesman, Reviews, February 2007

• Ghana and Democratic Development in Africa: Back to the future, The Statesman, News, February 2007

• The State of Our Nation: Golden Jubilee, Parliamentary Boycott, Collective National Celebration Threatened (with Asare Otchere-Darko), The Statesman, Front Page, February 2007

• The Skeptical Vikings, The Statesman, Comment, February 2007

• My Energy Utopia, The Statesman, Comment, February 2007

• Corruption Issues Grip Ghana Still, The Saturday Statesman, Front Page, February 2007

• Asetena Pa: Positive Living in Dangerous Times, The Statesman, Special Report, February 2007

• Are Ghanaians Proud of Ghana? (with Nikki Yeboah), The Saturday Statesman, Special Report,  February 2007

• Actualizing the United States of Africa Project, The Statesman Editorial, February 2007

• How Ghana Can Prevent Global Warming, The Statesman Editorial, February 2007

• Kofi Annan – A Gem, Born for Greatness, The Statesman Editorial, January 2007

• The Relocation and Reinvention of Old Fadama, The Statesman, Special Report, January 2007

• Eco and cultural tourism in the Volta Region, The Statesman, Feature, January 2007

• Rich Growth; Poor Distribution: A review of Ghana’s economic situation, The Saturday Statesman, Special Report, January 2007

• A Case for De-Monopolizing Ghana’s Capital Cities, The Statesman, Front Page Editorial, January 2007

• Offices at Residential Areas Pushing Up House Prices: SSNIT Calls for Stiffer Zoning Laws, The Statesman, News, January 2007

• The case for rentals, The Statesman, Comment, January 2007

• Deflating the Housing Market, The Statesman, Special Report, January 2007

• A brief history of housing in Ghana, The Statesman, Feature, January 2007

• How Can We Achieve Housing for All?, The Statesman Special Edition on Ghanaian History and Identity Editorial, January 2007

• What is Culture?, The Statesman Special Edition on Ghanaian History and Identity, Comment, January 2007

• The Outskirts of Housing, The Saturday Statesman, News, January 2007

• Prof Afrifa: Diasporan Relations should be about Ghanaians abroad not African Americans, The Statesman, News, January 2007

• How to achieve the Millennium Development Goals: according to former UN Secretary-General Special Envoy, The Statesman, Comment, January 2007

• People’s Assembly Good for Participatory Democracy, But…, The Statesman Editorial, January 2007

• The President and His Successor, The Statesman Editorial, January 2007

• Championing African Excellence in Reflection, The Statesman Editorial, January 2007

• Ghana@50 greening Ghana during Golden Jubilee, The Statesman, News, January 2007

• Brain drain and remittance revenue: cost, benefit, analysis, The Saturday Statesman, Feature, January 2007

• Is Ghana a beggar nation? (with Nikki Yeboah), The Saturday Statesman, Special Report, January 2007

• Beauty is a clear path: Chris Benjamin reviews ‘The Beautyful Ones are Not Yet Born,’ a classic 1968 novel by one of Ghana’s finest writers: Ayi Kwei Armah, The Statesman, Reviews, January 2007

• Towards a Hassle-Free Hajj, The Statesman Editorial, January 2006

• Who will be Prof Mills’ running mate?, The Statesman, Comment, December 2006

• Indemnity Clauses Likely to Stay…Half of NRC victims receive compensation, The Statesman Special Christmas 2006 Edition, Front Page

• Turning challenges into opportunities: GIPC and the Club 100 marks its eighth year, The Statesman Special Christmas 2006 Edition, Feature

• The Development of Akim Ayirebi, The Statesman, Special Report, December 2006

• A warrior dies but the war lives on: Pinochet was a superstar in the war of Right v. Left, but his death brings no end in sight to this vicious global power struggle, The Statesman, Comment, December 2006

• World Bank: Social, Environmental pressures from globalization need more attention, The Statesman, News, December 2006

• Why Rush to Join ECO Now?, The Statesman Editorial, December 2006

• Ben Ephson on packed NPP flagbearer race: ‘Only Four Serious Contenders’ (with Nana Obeng-Danquah), The Statesman, Front Page, December 2006

• The Law Won, The Grist Mill Anthology, Creative Non-fiction, August 2006

• So Many Benefits to Helping Out Mother Earth, Stratford City Gazette, Comment, 2006

• Are We All Vikings? Welland Tribune, Comment, 2006

• Pollution or Poverty: Pick Your Poison, Organic Earth Magazine, Point of View, 2006

• Sharing Environmental Information in Makassar, From Sky to Sea, University of Waterloo Press, Essay, 2005

• Who Are the Real Crazies Here? Now Magazine, Comment, 2005

• The Great Green Hope: Proportional Representation in Canada, Organic Earth Magazine, Point of View, 2005

• Isolation – the Human Condition II, Potluck, Poetry, 2005

• Opportunity in the Land of Diversity, Municipal World, Feature, 2004

• Diversity at Toronto and Region Conservation, Novae Res Urbis, Comment, 2004

• Recalling a Dead Cyclist, Toronto Star, Comment, 2004

• Morality v. Tolerance Round II, Potluck, Poetry, 2004

• The Obtuse Angel of Irreversible Alterations (& Irresistible Alliterations), Potluck, Short Fiction, 2004

• Tipping the Scales of Delusion – A View on the War in Iraq, Essay, Potluck, 2003

• Conflict, Potluck, Poetry, 2003

• A Systemic Policeman’s Poem, Potluck, Poetry, 2003

• A Vision for Johnny Cash, Potluck, Poetry, 2003

• Murderous Pinko Propaganda, Potluck, Poetry, 2003

• Perpetual Political Autopoiesis, Potluck, Essay, 2003

• The Question is Why? Potluck, Essay, 2003

• Woolly Visions, Potluck, Novella, 2003

• A Creation Story, Potluck, Short Fiction, 2003

• Supports & Services for Children 2-6 Years-Old & Their Families in East York & East Toronto, South Riverdale Community Health Centre, East End Community Health Centre, and Action for Children Today and Tomorow, Essay, 2002

• Wetlands in the Classroom, Environment Canada, News, 2000

• Pesticide Barriers on Ontario Farms, Environment Canada, News, 2000

• Trash Bash ’99 Focus on Littering, Illegal Dumping, Nova Scotia Department of Environment, News, 1999

• Halifax Youth Issue Transportation Challenge, Nova Scotia Department of Environment, News, 1999

• Conservation Corps Training Camp a Success, Nova Scotia Department of Environment, News, 1999

• Asian Visitors to Learn from Youth Corps Model, Nova Scotia Department of Environment, News, 1999

• Youth Conservation Corps Projects Begin This Week, Nova Scotia Department of Environment, News, 1999

• Resuscitating the Sackville River, Bedford-Sackville Weekly News, Feature, 1998

• To Boycott or Not to Boycott, Dalhouse Gazette, Essay, 1997

• Defending the Red Cross, Dalhousie Gazette, Comment, 1997

• The Last of the Treehuggers, Dalhousie Gazette, Essay, 1997

• Open for Business, Dalhousie Gazette, Business News, 1996