1 Week, 7 Stories - the newsletter #8

Every edition will feature 7 stories, from the past week. I’ll draw on my background in media, journalism, agriculture, biotech, and renewable energy to come up with an interesting selection and to offer some context. Sometimes built around a theme, sometimes random, but with a Canadian twist.

Two more directors of Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) have resigned. SDTC is an arm’s-length organization created by the federal government in 2001 to help Canadian companies develop sustainable technologies. Its website says it has a portfolio of more than 300 companies and makes a point of noting its commitment to transparency. However it was a lack of transparency which led STDC into trouble ?back in November when president and CEO Leah Lawrence resigned after complaints were made about HR issues and the mismanagement of public funds. The president of the SDTC Board resigned later in November as did Board member Jessica McDonald. With Judith Athaide and Jill Earthy throwing in the towel the boardroom must be starting to look empty when a meeting is called. According to her LinkedIn profile Ms. Athaide is currently a Board member of CPP Investments, Kiwetinohk Energy Corp. (which is part of a consortium that received SDTC funding), Computer Modelling Group, and President and CEO of The Cogent Group. Jessica McDonald is on the Board of GFL Environmental which is also a member of a consortium receiving STDC funding as well as sitting on the Board for Foran Mining and was British Columbia’s Deputy Premier from 2005 to 2009.

It was generally accepted that 2023 was a year of record-breaking heat around the world, but it is now official. The Washington Post headlines sums it up, “Scientists knew 2023’s heat would be historic — but not by this much”. Our pale blue dot experienced a couple of firsts worth being concerned about. We had 2 days in November that were more than 2 C warmer than pre-industrial averages, with July and August hit by the warmest two months on record. And we are in for more, because history suggests that the second year of an El Ni?o is usually warmer than the first.

It could become our new normal.

We can't always agree on why the climate is changing but we can at least agree that it is getting warmer and the facts show large swaths of agricultural land are experiencing severe drought conditions. While we work towards trying to ‘fix’ our climate we can also find ways to adapt.? Gene-editing tools have led to hope that we can develop “more temperature tolerant wheat”. Wheat fertility works most efficiently at temperatures between 17 and 23 C (62 and 73 F) so if researchers are able to isolate the gene which controls that range they can develop varieties able to withstand hotter (and colder) temperatures during the initial development phase.

Its back to school for students, and for those in Quebec it is the first week without cell phones allowed in class - which one parent described as “a lot like trying to put the toothpaste back into the tube.” Quebec is the second province to initiate the ban. Ontario has had a similar policy in place for 5 years, but many have said it is hard to enforce and generally not working.? This CBC interview with two Quebec teachers offers some insight into how they approach cell phone use in class. Other provinces will likely be watching how the policy fares, especially in BC where the United BC opposition party is calling for a ban in that province. You should also listen to The Current where host Matt Galloway talks with a reporter who replaced her modern iPhone with an old school flip phone. A technology reporter no less!

Want a deal on a used EV? Maybe keep an eye on Hertz because it has announced plans to sell a third of its US electric vehicle fleet according to Bloomberg News ( or try this Business Insider story if you hit the Bloomberg paywall). In 2021 Hertz announced it was investing in the largest electric vehicle rental fleet in North America but it appears some fiscal reality has set in. Reports say that consumer interest is low and repair costs are high. Here is what an EV mechanic in Alberta has to say about repair costs.

Superbugs. These are bacteria strains resistant to most antibiotics and cause conditions such as pneumonia or urinary tract infections. Globally, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is believed to be responsible for more than a million deaths every year. Reducing the use of antibiotics and adopting a One Health approach has generally been considered to be the best way to deal with what has become a serious health problem.? Now researchers at York University’s Global Strategy Lab are challenging our thinking. In a peer-reviewed paper in Perspectives on Politics this week, the authors argue that it is a “socio-economic challenge” and that the “War on bugs can’t be won”. That doesn’t mean walking back existing protocols, but rather addressing the basic reality that bacteria, viruses, and fungi have always evolved to be more viable and will continue to do so. We do, however, need to address societal thinking about the problem and how we live with it.

Methane is a problem when it comes to managing air pollution and climate change. It is not necessarily the “low hanging fruit” as is sometime seen, but it is definitely a problem that needs to be addressed. ??Methane is often encountered in oil and gas well drilling and is simply flared off into the atmosphere. Better regulation has reduced the number of flare stacks or flare pits and addressed what would seem to be a rather basic fix – leaks. The US EPA also announced this week that fines would be imposed for excess methane emissions in the oil and gas sector.??

An overlooked source of methane is cattle. In particular, cow burps. When I was working with Genome Alberta we helped fund research into reducing these emissions through changes in feed and genetic selection. We partnered with the University of Guelph on some projects and now that work has been recognized by the U of G with an Innovation of the Year Award for 2023. Note that the work is not genetic engineering – it is genetic selection which ranchers have been doing for hundreds of years . Researchers “gathered data on milk, feed intake, methane emissions, fertility and health, and genomic information” in dairy cattle. From there it becomes possible to breed dairy cows that don’t belch as much methane. Congratulations to all researchers involved in the work for this latest recognition.

Much of Canada is shivering in some very cold days and nights. -30 C has been the norm on Alberta for a few days so my weekly shoutout is to encourage you to take care of those who need some extra help in this weather. Donate time, money, or good winter clothing to your local homeless shelter or other charitable organizations who look out for the disadvantaged.

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I’m available for contract and freelance work with not-for-profits and charities. With 40 years of experience in hand, I’m here to help you make a difference in your media relations, public relations, and general communications needs.??