The Pulse: April 23, 2021

The City of Edmonton needs to make massive changes if it wants to mitigate the effects of climate change, says Jacob Komar, an engineer specializing in green building design and geothermal systems.

"The climate crisis is going to make (COVID-19) look like a bad cold," he said.

Komar is the principal and lead mechanical engineer of Revolve Engineering Inc., and is a member of the Green Energy Alliance of Alberta.

On April 22, he shared his expertise with an audience of more than 20 Edmontonians as part of Taproot's seventh listening session, which asked attendees to participate in a discussion about the global climate emergency, and what city council can do about it. The event was prompted by Taproot’s People's Agenda, a document that’s being compiled based on the responses to this question: What key issue do you want the candidates to talk about as they compete for votes in the 2021 municipal election, and why?

The current council recently passed Edmonton's new Community Energy Transition Strategy and Action Plan, which aims to bring the city to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and align the city with the International Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) goal of limiting overall global warming to 1.5 C.

While participants were divided on whether the city's plan takes enough action, whether the messaging around the climate emergency needs to change, and what the next council could or should do differently, they agreed the climate should be a focal point for anyone running for office.

"Climate change policy should be the government's first priority,” said one participant, and others echoed that sentiment.

• Alberta Enterprise Corporation released the findings of its 2021 Alberta Technology Deal Flow Study on April 22. The province is now home to more than 3,000 technology companies, a 233% increase since 2012, it said. Of those, 30% are in Edmonton.
• The University of Alberta was named one of the world's top 100 post-secondary institutions "making an impact toward achieving (the) UN’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030."
• The City of Edmonton released an update of what to expect in 2021 for its parks and open spaces. Of note, the city will not be mowing most city parks or sports fields weekly this season, instead moving to a 10-14 day cycle.
• "An Edmonton non-profit (Native Counselling Services of Alberta) has created a new wallet-sized card to help Indigenous people know their rights if stopped by police in Alberta," reports CBC News.
• Edmonton Public Library tweeted to welcome Jo-Ann Saddleback as its Kêhtêyayah (elder) in-residence. She'll be working out of PÎYÊSÎW WÂSKÂHIKAN in the Milner Library.
• Maclean's Best Communities ranked Edmonton at number five, in part because of how Edmontonians have been able to live during the pandemic.
• The first case of the B.1.617 variant initially identified in India has been discovered in Alberta.

The lead-up to Earth Day on April 22 saw Edmonton-based Capital Power announce a solar power contract with the brewer of Canada’s best-selling beer while Edmonton International Airport joined an Amazon-led global initiative to be carbon neutral by 2040.

Capital Power will sell 51% of the electricity generated from its planned 75-megawatt Enchant Solar project in southern Alberta to Labatt, brewer of Budweiser in Canada, which boasts it is produced with 100% renewable energy.

The project, expected to go online in 2022 at a cost of up to $105 million, will also generate carbon credits to hedge against carbon compliance costs from its Alberta thermal generation facilities.

"As we work to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2050, we plan to develop renewable projects that not only help us meet our sustainability goals but support a low-carbon economy overall," said Sian Barraclough, vice-president of strategy and sustainability for the power company.

The deal comes as Alberta becomes the fastest-growing market for solar energy in Canada with the addition of the country’s largest solar farm starting up this month in Claresholm, the Calgary Herald reports.

Solar power also plays a role in the Edmonton airport’s plans to achieve net-zero carbon by 2040, a decade earlier than called for in the Paris Agreement, along with more than 100 companies that have signed The Climate Pledge. EIA is the first airport to sign on to the commitment.

The Well Endowed Podcast is the Edmonton Community Foundation's cheekily named show exploring the impact that passionate people make as they work to build a vibrant city.

ECF helps donors create endowment funds, which then grant money to charitable causes and students. And it's a lot of money — since 1989, the foundation has granted $300 million, including a record total of $35.7 million in 2020.

The podcast tells stories about the foundation's generous donors as well as the people who use that support "to build and sustain social initiatives, empower youth, strengthen arts and culture, and so much more."

The team of Elizabeth Bonkink, Andrew Paul, and Lisa Pruden has been putting the podcast together since 2016, with recent episodes exploring Shift Lab's Wahkohtowin game or introducing educator Dustin Bajer. Their work is supplemented by contributions from storytellers such as Taproot's own Emily Rendell-Watson; or Julian Faid, who did a six-part series on the history of urban planning; or Hunter and Jacquelyn Cardinal, who produced It Takes a Community.

The Well Endowed Podcast won gold at the Canadian Online Publishing Awards for 2018, and it always serves up insight and inspiration.