- The Edmonton Community Foundation (ECF) and the Edmonton Social Planning Council released their annual Vital Signs research report, which this year focuses on systemic racism in Edmonton and draws from sources including academic studies, Statistics Canada, and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. ECF CEO Tina Thomas said she hopes the report, which looks at affordability, unemployment rates, and a variety of other topics, will "encourage discussion and provide useful, current statistics that can be used to spur meaningful change." Several people involved in creating the report said their efforts were frustrated by a lack of detailed and up-to-date information about minority groups in Edmonton. Edmonton-City Centre MLA David Shepherd, who earlier this year introduced an unsuccessful anti-racism bill that would have required provincial organizations to collect race-based data, spoke at the report's launch event.
- Boyle Street Community Services confirmed to Postmedia it will be running a new community health hub in Old Strathcona at 10119 81 Avenue, which will open next spring if the plan goes ahead. The hub will include an overdose prevention site, and doctors and nurses will be there to provide primary care and referrals. "It'll be a wraparound holistic environment where folks will, we hope, not just come in to use their substance but to really build relationships with the people that are on site," said Sindi Addorisio with Boyle Street.
- Alberta recorded four more influenza deaths, bringing the total number for this season to 16, and surpassing the 14 total deaths recorded during the previous flu season, according to the latest provincial data. Alberta also added more than 1,500 new cases of influenza, a 42% increase in one week, for a new total case count of 5,163. During the 2021-22 flu season 2,906 cases were recorded in total. Just over one million Albertans have received their flu vaccine this year, representing about 22.5% of the population. An Edmonton pharmacist is encouraging more people to get their shot as the holiday season approaches. "You're going to go visit your families and friends. You don't want to make other people sick," said VIDA Pharmacy manager Vishav Singh.
- ATB Financial released its latest economic forecast for Alberta, which anticipates real GDP growth of 2.8% in 2023, a decrease from 5% in 2022 but enough for Alberta to outpace the rest of the country as Canada faces a possible recession in the new year. "While Alberta is not experiencing a boom, the positive prospects for our oil and gas sector are providing a significant boost that will continue into 2023," said ATB's deputy chief economist Rob Roach.
- Sully, a four-year-old Cocker Spaniel-Poodle mix, landed a job at a small consulting company after his owner, Meg Maclean, posted on the Edmonton subreddit asking if anyone needed an office dog. Sully suffers from separation anxiety and allegedly prefers the company of humans to the other dogs in his house. "I don't typically do that kind of thing, but I thought I'd reach out and see if my office would be a good fit," said Stephanie Reddecliff, who now brings Sully to work along with her own dog, Abby. "Having the dogs there is definitely good for morale."
Headlines: Dec. 2, 2022
By Kevin Holowack and Mariam Ibrahim