The Pulse: Feb. 19, 2021

Solar LED manufacturer WeFaces Technology Inc. is setting up its North American headquarters in Edmonton International Airport's (EIA) Airport City, as part of a partnership to develop and manufacture solar technology.

“EIA has entered a strategic partnership to help WeFaces begin research and development as well as the mass production of advanced solar panel lighting systems," said a Feb. 17 press release. The plan is for WeFaces to set up a product showroom and begin research by this fall, and start manufacturing by 2022.

Myron Keehn, EIA's vice president of air service and business development, said WeFaces' products could have a wide range of applications, from street lamps and landscape lighting, to heated bus shelters and pumps for water ponds — all solar-powered.

"You'll see those types of products being used here at the airport, and by anyone else in the region that's interested," he said.

The airport's press release also claims the partnership will "generate long-term jobs, drive advanced solar panel manufacturing opportunities, (plus) diversify and grow Alberta’s economy."

Malcolm Bruce, CEO of Edmonton Global, agreed in the press release that WeFaces’ presence will have a noticeable impact on the Edmonton region's economy.

Keehn explained that WeFaces, a subsidiary of China-based Nande Solar Energy Technology Co., Ltd., chose Edmonton's Airport City for its new headquarters because of the collection of existing green technology companies, resources, and incubators operating in the area.

"We have worked to develop Airport City as a sustainability campus," he said. "What they were attracted to was the ecosystem this has created on the airport, around the airport, and within the region."

• Edmonton Chinatown business owners are asking for increased police patrols to deal with crime and issues with homeless people. "We had a murder just down the alley here a week and a half ago, we had a shooting victim from six doors down who was bleeding to death on the street in front of us," landlord Bob Dowe told CBC.
• The City of Edmonton is taking composting company Cleanit Greenit to court due to ongoing odour complains in the city's west end.
• On Feb. 18, the province said it can currently investigate and trace contacts for up to 1,500 COVID-19 cases each day. It now has about 2,300 contact tracers.
• University of Alberta planetary geologist Chris Herd was excited about the successful landing of NASA's Perseverance probe on Mars on Feb. 18. He is part of a select group of scientists working with NASA, and will help to monitor the probe and tell it where to gather samples.
• Former city hall reporter Scott Johnston has announced he is running for Edmonton city council in Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi.
• Following a review, animal activist Jane Goodall has changed her stance about moving Lucy the elephant away from the Edmonton Valley Zoo.

The Alberta government’s rollout of new pandemic financial aid for businesses and workers is being greeted by demands for more information and complaints about who qualifies.

On Feb. 17, Premier Jason Kenney announced the Enhanced COVID-19 Business Benefit would provide 15% of monthly revenue up to a maximum of $10,000 if businesses can show a revenue reduction of 60% or more. That’s on top of earlier grants of up to $20,000 for small and medium-sized firms that lost at least 30% of revenue.

"It made sense for us to focus future financial support on the hardest hit, those who have lost the most because of these restrictions," Kenney said in defending the higher threshold to qualify for aid.

But some business owners are frustrated details of the program aren’t yet available.

"What's the time period to show the losses? And who has a 60% loss at any point that, first of all, is still in business? And second, is generating the kind of revenue that 15% of that monthly revenue is going to be any sort of meaningful amount of money?" Jess Roos, executive director of mental health practice Cultivate, told CTV News.

Earp Chirp is back in the saddle to nerd out about Wynonna Earp, the supernatural Western horror series shot in Alberta and beloved by fans the world over.

The TV series "follows Wyatt Earp's great granddaughter as she battles demons and other creatures" in a town called Purgatory (a.k.a. Didsbury). Earp Chirp is "a podcast by Albertans, about Albertans, but for all Earpers," hosted by Erika Ensign, Annette Wierstra, and Kirsten Goruk for The Incomparable network.

The hosts were part of the loyal fanbase that campaigned hard to get the show renewed after Season 3. Filming resumed in early 2020, but was interrupted by the pandemic, so the first half of Season 4 aired last summer, and the second half is slated to start in March. The fight is on again to keep it going, not only from fans but also from Keep Alberta Rolling.

Besides the Season 4 return show, you might also enjoy their live show from the Edmonton Expo in 2019, which dives into the #FightForWynonna campaign.

Earp Chirp is a product of Edmonton's own Castria, which produces the venerable Radio Free Skaro, the multi-Hugo-award-winning Uncanny Magazine Podcast, and the audio version of Taproot's Tech Roundup, among many, many other podcasts.