The Pulse: June 11, 2021

The Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board (EMRB) has voted to explore the creation of a unified climate strategy, which would include coordinating carbon budgets and green construction standards between many Edmonton-area municipalities.

The board members, including mayors and officials from 13 municipalities, agreed unanimously on June 10 to support the motion.

The motion was initially brought forward by Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson in April, who argued that coordination between municipalities is necessary to properly address the effects climate change will have on the region.

"Climate change impacts ... don't start or end at our municipal boundaries," he said. "(They) require us to think and design approaches in a similarly borderless way."

As part of Edmonton's Community Energy Transition Strategy and Action Plan, approved by city council this spring, the city has already begun implementing building standards that ensure greater energy efficiency. It also introduced a carbon budget, which outlines restrictions on how much carbon dioxide the city can emit to align with the worldwide goal of limiting overall global warming to 1.5C, as outlined by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Edmonton's carbon budget allows it to emit a maximum of 155 megatonnes of carbon dioxide between 2019 and 2050 — requiring a reduction in the average household's annual emissions from 20 tonnes to three tonnes.

Iveson said the motion will encourage the rest of the municipalities to follow Edmonton's lead.

"The (carbon) budget is one we need to balance," he said. "Edmonton is going to balance that budget in the coming years, and it sends a much stronger signal ... if our whole region is trying to do that."

• City councillor and mayoral candidate Mike Nickel was found in violation of the council code of conduct. He faces hearings on two separate matters, including using "email addresses obtained through his duty as a councillor for election campaign purposes," reports the Edmonton Journal.
• An appeal for convicted rapist Matthew McKnight will be heard in court today. McKnight's lawyers are claiming the Crown prosecutor was "abusive" toward the defendant during the 2019-2020 court proceedings. A former night club promoter, McKnight was tried for 13 counts of sexual assault and convicted on five.
• The Augmented Reality Pride Tour 2021 launches today. Presented by the Fruit Loop Society of Alberta, it explores the history of Pride in Edmonton and features music, dancing and a drag race.
• Edmontonians are frustrated over the closure of the Capilano footbridge — a popular bridge used by a quarter of a million people last summer — and a lack of trail detours, reports CTV News.
• The University of Alberta fell in global university rankings for the fourth consecutive year — sliding seven positions to 126th in the latest QS World University Rankings.
• Premier Jason Kenney issued a cease and desist letter to the Western Standard and is denying the outlet's allegations that he repeatedly broke public health measures by dining with ministers at a downtown restaurant.
• The province announced its plan to create a provincial Hate Crimes Coordination Unit to "investigate, enforce and prosecute hate-motivated incidents," reports the Edmonton Journal.
• A national group called Zero Covid Canada sent a letter to Premier Jason Kenney expressing concerns over the province's reopening plans, pointing to recent outbreaks caused by the Delta variant.

Northlands is ending a 142-year run as a major Edmonton arena, events and trade show operator and will hand the management of future editions of K-Days and Farmfair International over to Explore Edmonton in July.

The change comes after a feasibility study in early 2021 found that Explore Edmonton could deliver the two remaining events on the Northlands calendar because of its new role as the city's destination management and marketing organization as well as operator of both the Expo Centre and Edmonton Convention Centre.

"The Explore Edmonton team was humbled by the confidence city council and others showed in us when it was suggested we could take this on," Explore Edmonton interim CEO Maggie Davison said in a news release.

The organization called it "bittersweet" that the opportunity to relaunch the events brings to a close the history of Northlands, which grew from non-profit agricultural association to stage hundreds of events every year at its facilities. "We are all proud of the legacy of our organization, a legacy that truly belongs to the dedicated staff and tireless volunteers who have sustained Northlands for almost a century and a half," said Northlands CEO Peter Male.

For decades that legacy made Northlands a "magical place with horse racing, rides, wrestling, hockey and concerts" along with the city's signature summer event before the Edmonton International Fringe Festival and Edmonton Folk Music Festival emerged to compete with K-Days, according to former news reporter Grant Ainsley.

Stage 2 of the provincial government's "open for summer" plan started June 10 with eased restrictions for businesses ranging from restaurant to retail. Here's how businesses are responding to the newest rules and the promise that all restrictions could be lifted soon:

• West Edmonton Mall is reopening Ed's Bowling, Professor WEM's Adventure Golf, Marine Life, Ice Palace, DRIVE, Alien Outbreak Escape Room, and Dragon's Tale Blacklight Miniature Golf. "We're thrilled, we're ecstatic, we're happy, we're all of the above and so much more to be opening again," Lily Lein, parks and attractions marketing manager at WEM, told CTV Edmonton.
• Movie theatres, along with casinos, cinemas, museums, galleries and libraries, can open at 30% of fire code capacity. "It's been a long six months, so we're super excited to be welcoming our guests back into the theatre," Stuart Passey, general manager of the Cineplex Cinemas in North Edmonton, told CBC Edmonton.
• The Aviary, a 140-person capacity music venue, hasn't hosted live shows for nearly 15 months and is taking a wait-and-see approach when it comes to booking performances. "I've already had about 20 emails asking for shows already, and I'm just telling people to just sit tight a little bit till fall," co-owner Philip Muz told CBC Edmonton.
• Edmonton-based entertainment production company Trixstar plans to bring live concerts back by creating a physically distanced venue using the former racetrack of Northlands Park. The space will accommodate 6,000 people at tables for acts like 54-40, I Mother Earth and Jess Moskaluk, president Mike Anderson told CTV Edmonton.

That's Food is CSJR Radio's foodie podcast that tells "the backstory to food in Edmonton, one meal at a time." Last month, Season 2 hit the airwaves.

The team of hosts includes students Melania Antoszko, Katelin Karbonik, Saveta Cartwright, Simran Pherwani, and Bobby Kainth. Other contributors are musician Doug Hoyer and artist Maaike Lynn, who have both generated original works for the project. Readers may recognize co-producer Chris Chang-Yen Phillips, who was the facilitator of Taproot's People's Agenda listening sessions.

Topics, like the hosts, vary each episode, so those listening can always expect a new palette. Most recently, host and producer Kainth broke down the differences between gourmet and store-bought pastries in Is Cake Really A Piece of Cake?

Other projects by the independent station range from environmental news, to heavy metal, to underground electronica, to LGBTQ news, organ music, and the latest from Eritrea. A registered and volunteer-run non-profit, CJSR broadcasts from an old bank vault in the Students' Union Building basement at the University of Alberta.

If you want to get involved with CJSR Radio, you can donate or apply to volunteer. If you're hoping to tune in to That's Food, you can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Youtube, or the CJSR website.

You can listen to podcast picks from Taproot on Listen Notes or Spotify.