Rebel News Podcast

Host: Sheila Gunn Reid

Episode: Sheila takes your questions on the UN 'climate change' conference

Date: November 20, 2025

Episode Overview

In this special episode of The Gunn Show, Sheila Gunn Reid broadcasts from Belem, Brazil, where she is covering the United Nations Climate Change Conference. The show centers on Sheila directly answering viewer questions about the UN conference, the implications for Canada, government spending, and her experiences on the ground in Belem. Listeners get candid behind-the-scenes insight into both the realities of the conference’s local impact and broader criticisms of international climate policy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Reporting from Belem, Brazil: Challenges & Context

• Location & Safety: Sheila records from her Airbnb’s kitchen amidst suboptimal audio due to travel constraints.
  • “I'm answering your questions today from Belem, Brazil, at the United Nations Climate Change Conference... I'm actually sitting at the kitchen table of our Airbnb in Belem, Brazil.” (00:05)
• Press Freedom & Selection of Venue: She explains why Rebel News only attends UN conferences in countries with relatively free press, unlike previous years in Egypt or the Emirates.
  • “We haven’t done one of these in a few years because they were being held in places where press wasn’t free. And I knew that I would be asking prickly questions if I went... and I didn’t want to get arrested.” (00:24)

2. Canadian Delegation and Costs

• Public Funding & Delegation Size: Multiple viewer questions center on the number of Canadian delegates and cost.
  • The official Canadian federal government delegation is about 220–240, not counting additional participants from NGOs, municipalities, and provinces—most also receiving government funds.
  • “The true and full cost, I don’t think we’ll ever know... It’s surely millions of dollars to send all the Canadians here.” (03:09)
  • Notably, the UN brought in two cruise ships with a special high-security dock for delegates, highlighting the extravagance.
  • “The UN brought in two cruise ships and built a special multi million dollar high security dock for the cruise ships so that the fancy people could stay there...” (04:10)

3. Canada's Role & Motivation at the Climate Conference

• Globalism vs. National Interest:
  • Viewer question: Why is Canada a part of this?
  • Sheila underscores Canadian politicians’ embrace of “global government” and the costs in sovereignty and domestic policy.
    • “What do we get out of this? Except this global government... that will dictate whether or not your son, who is a welder, gets a job one day on a pipeline.” (09:09)
  • In contrast, the US reduced its greenhouse gas emissions through fracking and largely snubbed the conference this year—sending “basically nobody.”
  • “By not coming, it sends a real message that you’re not going along with any of this.” (10:43)

4. Critique of Elites & Hypocrisy

• Double Standards in Environmental Actions:
  • Sheila directly criticizes the hypocrisy of international elites, pointing out that while average citizens are lectured to reduce their carbon footprint, elites travel in style and leave behind local environmental damage.
    • “These people get to circumnavigate the globe and we get lectured about our summer road trips.” (05:46)
  • Local impact: In Belem, with 60% living in favelas (slums), basic services are lacking, yet the UN’s presence brings little benefit and may worsen conditions.
    • “2.5 million people live here. 60% live in abject squalor... The United Nations has used one neighborhood as a dumping ground for their construction garbage.” (13:39)

5. The UN Conference’s Local Environmental Impact

• Exposé on UN Construction Waste:
  • Sheila recounts her investigative effort to uncover UN dumping of construction trash in a local favela, guided by locals’ Instagram posts.
  • Rapid, risky reporting:
    • “We were running quite literally for our lives. Nobody was chasing us, but we just definitely didn’t want to get left there.” (22:21)
  • Discovery: UN signage and construction debris were found repurposed by locals to build fences, highlighting disregard for the environment by supposed environmental leaders.
  • Notable quote: “Wouldn’t you know it? We found the dump site that the United Nations is using... This is real environmental racism.” (20:19 B, 21:08 A)

6. Viewer Feedback on The Climate Conference

• Cynicism Regarding Climate Policy and Elite Motives:
  • Viewer comments reflect exhaustion with perceived “climate theater” and policy burdens on ordinary and poor people.
  • “It’s called the 1%. Rich get rich on the backs of the poor and blue collar workers. Everyone is tired of this climate crap.” (Mike O’Keefe21, 23:45)
  • “The UN is just another corrupt entity preaching to others while they themselves are the real problem.” (Sacred406, 24:38)
  • “Destroying the Amazon rainforest so elites can stuff themselves on beef and lobster arriving on their private jets.” (Barry Brand, 2970, 24:52)
  • Sheila agrees, noting, “The elites, they don’t actually care about the environment. They just care that everything around them is pretty and they don’t care about how other people have to live.” (24:01)

7. Policy Commentary: Canadian Military & Youth Employment

• Feedback on Military Recruitment:
  • A viewer proposes youth summer military training to address youth unemployment and military recruitment issues.
  • Sheila is supportive: “It’s a great idea. Every time I’m in Israel, I’m shocked at how normal the kids are. Like, there’s so few weirdos there. And I think it has a lot to do with the mandatory military service. And I think in the Western world, we don’t expect enough of our young people.” (31:08)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the opulence of the UN conference:
  • “Their sewage is literally being pumped into the bay around here. It’s crazy how nobody is actually looking at the city we’re in.” (03:24)
  • “If these environmental activists really cared about the environment... every one of these 55,000 delegates... give them a garbage bag, tell them to come back when it’s full. That’s what I love to see—that makes a real difference.” (16:30)
• On the hypocrisy and social justice narratives:
  • “I think this is real environmental racism. This is a poor community... and the very powerful world’s elites have decided to hide their environmental carnage inside of their community.” (20:19)
• On reporting under risky conditions:
  • “We had two minutes to run to the bay and run back because the driver wasn’t gonna wait for us. He was like, I’m gonna leave you guys in this favela because it’s not safe for me. And who could blame him?” (21:43)
• Cultural reflections on Canada-US relations:
  • “The relationship between Canada and the United States, I think is the greatest military, security, strategic, cultural, and trade partnership the world has ever known in the history of human civilization.” (12:48)
• On the value of discomfort and resilience:
  • “There’s value in being uncomfortable. Or maybe it’s just because I look at this through a Catholic worldview… It’s a learning experience. It makes you physically and mentally stronger. And I think the young people of this country could stand for that.” (33:40)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00 — Sheila’s introduction from Belem & context for this “viewer questions” episode
• 03:09 — Size and cost of the Canadian delegation
• 09:09 — Debating Canada’s participation and global climate commitments
• 13:39 — Describing local poverty, favelas, and UN conference’s negative impact
• 16:30 — Critiquing climate activists’ inaction vs. real environmental stewardship
• 20:19 — Investigating UN construction waste in local favelas
• 21:43 — Behind-the-scenes of dangerous, rushed reporting in Belem
• 23:45 — Reading and responding to critical viewer comments
• 31:08 — Debating military training for young Canadians

Tone and Language

Sheila Gunn Reid maintains an informal, conversational, and sometimes irreverent tone, frequently using humor, vivid anecdotes, and direct engagement with viewers. Her critiques of global elites, climate policy, and government spending are blunt, with occasional use of colloquial or emotive language (“the relationship between Canada and the United States... has gone absolutely to shit”). She balances personal storytelling, policy critique, and audience appreciation.

Listener Takeaways

• Extensive government and NGO funding (often shrouded in opacity) supports a large Canadian presence at the UN climate conference, while meaningful action or improvement for the host city’s citizens is minimal.
• Sheila spotlights a significant disconnect between the values and actions of global delegates and the real, lived environmental disaster in Belem.
• Listener questions provide a vehicle for in-depth critique of Canadian climate policy, government spending, and cultural change.
• The show emphasizes the value of independent journalism in challenging official narratives and reporting overlooked stories from the ground level.

For Further Engagement

Listeners are encouraged to submit feedback, comments, and questions for future episodes via email (sheila@rebelnews.com, “gun show letters” in subject), Rumble, YouTube, or other platforms to help boost engagement and shape future reporting.