Revenue Test: Launch Email

Hello Amazing Humans,From a young age, I’ve been full of questions. But I always had more questions than folks were willing to answer; questions that made people uncomfortable. So, I found myself asking a lot of questions to myself. I worked as a radio journalist for a decade at some of the biggest Canadian media companies. But I never really fit in. I shifted to communications, public relations and community engagement, but that only prompted more unanswered questions. These days, I have more urgent questions than ever — especially as I watch the rural Canada I love fracture and fall apart around me. How did we lose the ability to talk to each other with trust and mutual respect? How did we sink to the level of judgement and vitriol so prevalent in online spaces, pitting neighbour against neighbour?Tired of waiting for traditional media to address these questions in a way that could actually help our community reconnect and rebuild itself, I started my own project.

Now I’m going into season two of my weekly podcast and newsletter, and I am more committed than ever to creating a space for healthy discussion in rural Canada. A space where mutual respect, open dialogue and honest questions are welcome and encouraged as we find our way together through challenging topics. A space where we can reconnect and learn together, fuelled by our integrity and our willingness to be honest, even if that means being vulnerable or respectfully disagreeing. I definitely don't have all the answers but I'm committed to listening and learning, and I sincerely hope you'll join me on this journey.  

Because I believe fostering healthy, honest discussion is the way forward. I believe it’s key to rebuilding trust — both in each other and in open dialogue. And I believe the time has come for us to stitch back together our splintered rural society.Together, I hope we can build a more united, forward-thinking, feminist community in rural Canada, one that genuinely embraces diversity and is driven by reconciliation. The first step is learning how to talk to each other again. I see how much pain people are in. Many feel ignored, unheard, and frankly cheated by folks that were meant to support and defend them. Can we overcome the distrust and misinformation around us to build a space where we can re-learn how to listen to one another, with compassion and empathy? I believe we can, and I would be honoured to help create space for these discussions.But I can't do it alone. I need your help. I know times are tight for a lot of us, but if you could contribute even the equivalent of a few cups of coffee a month, it would go a long way towards making this project more sustainable. 

Will you join me?Let's find our way back to a place of honest, open communication, fuelled by integrity, rather than animosity, judgement and distrust.Together, we can rebuild our rural community and chart a new, more united and progressive path forward.Sincerely and respectfully,Shauna RaeFounder, Clearing a New Path 

Clearing a New Path™ and Clearing a New Path Podcast™ are products of Radar Media, located in Dorchester, Ontario on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee and Neutral peoples who once used this land as their traditional beaver hunting grounds.  As a settler here I’m committed to deepening understanding of Indigenous communities and reframing responsibilities to land and community. I am grateful to Mother Earth for the opportunity for love and connection and to the spirits of the Elders and the Medicine People who still walk the Earth.