The last decade of the 20^th century saw new features emerge in Canadian folk music and many old forms resurgent. As in earlier decades Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and Ewan MacColl had had a profound influence on Canadian artists, so Billy Bragg and Ani DiFranco inspired new approaches in the nineties. The grrrls, the punk folkies, Celtic stomp and other new variants entered the scene. The environmental movement and the anti-globalization campaigns provided inspiration for new political songwriting.  The growth of world music continued and accelerated. From the most hybrid and visionary to the most traditional, the music of scores of cultures is being performed. The Atlantic Canadian invasion made Gaelic a living language on the folk scene. Celtic music was heard everywhere in the most diverse treatments. At the same time several generations of songwriters continue to perform and create. New technologies have made the music more available than ever. There are 300 web sites of Canadian folk musicians listed on the Northern Journey list. Never has there been more and more diverse folk music in Canada.   Never has there been a more clear distinction between those artists who use folk music to conjure up the ghost of a kinder and gentler past and those who are using the music to create a vibrant new culture outside the framework of the mainstream of the music industry. All the debates about the nature of folk music continue and every variant that has existed under the name folk during the last hundred years remains a living part of the mix.