Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Thanks to DNA tests, police have solved decades-old cold cases, errant dog owners have been tracked down for failing to scoop up their pets' messes and long-lost family members have been reunited.
Once a tool only available to investigators, DNA test kits can now be ordered online and shipped to a buyer's door within days, meaning discoveries about our ancestry and heritage have never been easier.
While DNA testing has proven to be useful for helping to solve crimes and filling in the blanks in family trees, the related databases have also raised ethical questions about police's use of forensic genealogy and the potential for genealogical DNA test results to disrupt family relations, among other concerns.
For example, a recent case in the Vancouver area involved undercover police posing as tea marketers, using their front to collect DNA samples as they investigated the death of a teenager. And an unsuspecting relative's innocent DNA test led to the identification of a suspect in the Golden State Killer case out of California.
Those examples are tied to violent crime, but even small discoveries can cause upset.
"You're meeting family that you didn't know existed, and that can be very psychologically disruptive and a huge stress to mental health and family harmony," Robert Whitley, an associate professor of psychiatry at McGill University, told CTVNews.ca in 2022.
Alternately, taking a test might lead a person to rediscover their heritage, connect with family members they didn't know they had or other positive surprises.
CTVNews.ca is looking to speak to Canadians about their experience with genealogical DNA tests from companies such as 23andMe, AncestryDNA, MyHeritage DNA, Living DNA, Vitagene, LetsGetChecked and Futura Genetics.
What was your experience with the test and the results?
What were you surprised by? What did the test uncover?
Did you discover something you didn't know, or were wrong about? Did a test prompt further research, leading to any discoveries?
Did your results help solve a cold case or something similar?
What impact, if any, did your results have on your family? Have you tried a pet DNA test?
Share your story by emailing us at dotcom@bellmedia.ca with your name, general location and phone number in case we want to follow up. Your comments may be used in a CTVNews.ca story.
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”