Weekly News Recap: March 29, 2019

WEISS/MANFREDI — The soon-to-be-built Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre will accelerate innovation in Toronto and Canada by creating the country’s largest university-based innovation node.

Life, if you know how to use it, is long -- Seneca

News

  • Canada Reads 2019: The defenders, the books and what's at stake (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "If you're searching for new reading material, and up for some feisty competition to help you decide, look no further than the literary version of Survivor — better known as Canada Reads." 3/24/19

  • How Joe Fafard's legacy is living on in Ottawa (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "Even if you've never been inside the National Gallery of Canada, you would have seen Joe Fafard's work just from passing by the building. The Saskatchewan born artist — who died last week — sculpted a series of aluminum horses that run alongside the gallery building on Sussex Drive." 3/24/19

  • Calgary Homeless Foundation honours Alan Norris for being a trailblazer (Calgary Sun) Congrat Alan! Very well deserved. "A prominent executive in the Calgary residential construction industry was honoured this past week for his efforts in fighting homelessness in the city. Alan Norris, chairman and CEO of Brookfield Residential Properties, received the Trail Blazer Legacy award from the Calgary Homeless Foundation (CHF) at its marquee fundraising breakfast on March 21." 3/23/19

  • The closer you live to an urban greenway, the more physically active you are, says UBC study (CBC) CANADIAN CONTENT "Being physically active is good for us, we know that. And a new study from the University of British Columbia shows that the closer you live to an urban greenway, the more physically active you are." 3/23/19

  • Contemporary Calgary looks for public feedback, input into ambitious transformation of the Centennial Planetarium into art gallery (Calgary Herald) CALGARY STORY "Hundreds of Calgarians got an early look at plans to transform the Centennial Planetarium into a world-class contemporary art gallery Thursday evening — and to provide input into what they would like to see the facility both become and maintain from its 50-year history in the city." 3/22/19

  • Calgary firefighters renew $1M funding of skin regeneration research at UCalgary (Education News Canada) CALGARY STORY "Calgary firefighters and researchers at the University of Calgary share a passion and a vision: finding a way to significantly improve skin healing in people who have survived fires, one-third of them children. [...] Five years ago, the Calgary Firefighters Burn Treatment Society (CFBTS) donated $1 million to create the CFBTS Chair in Skin Regeneration and Wound Healing [...]. Fast forward to 2019, and the society is pledging another $1 million in continued support of [Dr. Jeff] Biernaskie's groundbreaking research into how dermal (skin) stem cells work." 3/21/19

  • Construction on Winspear Centre's $54M expansion expected to start in summer (CBC) EDMONTON STORY "The Francis Winspear Centre for Music is expecting to break ground on its $54-million expansion project this summer. The downtown music venue, home to the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, hopes to get funding from all three levels of government to cover $39 million of the total cost, Winspear CEO Annemarie Petrov said." 3/20/19

First Peoples of Canada

  • Three oilsands companies surrender land for new Alberta park to be co-managed with First Nations (The Narwhal) "Four years ago the Mikisew Cree First Nation proposed the creation of a buffer zone around Wood Buffalo National Park to preserve land for traditional activities as oilsands projects surrounding Fort McMurray crept further north. That buffer zone is now the 161,880-hectare Kitaskino Nuwenene Provincial Park — Alberta’s newest wildland park, designed to remain open to traditional land use by Indigenous peoples." 3/25/19

Life and career hacks

Uncommon knowledge

  • The Calorie Myth (Health) As an avowed calorie counter, I am crushed. As a student of science, I am inspired. 3/20/19

Philanthropic personalities

Philanthropic controversy

  • Yale Rescinds Admission of Student Who Got in on $1.2M Donation (Real Clear Life) "Yale University has rescinded the admission of a student previously admitted after a $1.2 million donation was made to the school by her family. The move is a first among universities that have so far been named in the recent college admissions scandal that revealed how several prestigious schools across the country have taken bribes from parents in exchange for admission." 3/26/19

  • As more museums say no to Sackler donations, family trust halts its giving (Washington Post) "Facing rejection from three major art museums, the philanthropic trust of the Sackler family, which built its wealth from the sale of opioids, announced that it would stop making donations. 'I remain fully committed to all the causes the Sackler Trust supports, but at this moment it is the better course for the trust to halt all new giving until we can be confident that it will not be a distraction for institutions that are applying for grants,' Theresa Sackler, chairwoman of the trust, said in a statement on its website." 3/26/19

  • Dr. Dre deletes post about daughter's acceptance to USC after $70M donation resurfaces (NBC) "Hip hop legend Dr. Dre deleted an Instagram post about his daughter getting into the University of Southern California without 'jail time' after news of him donating $70 million to the school in 2013 resurfaced." 3/25/19

  • Guggenheim no longer accepting money from Sackler opioid manufacturing family (CBC) "The Guggenheim in New York is the latest major art institution to stop accepting money from the Sackler family, founders of a pharmaceutical company linked to the emergence of the ongoing opioid epidemic. The museum shared the decision on Friday and confirmed $9 million US had been donated by family members between 1995 and 2015." 3/24/19

  • London’s National Portrait Gallery Rescinds $1.3 Million Donation from Sackler Family, Owners of OxyContin Pharma Company (KTLA) "The National Portrait Gallery in London and the Sackler family, owners of the pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma LP, have said in a statement that the £1,000,000 donation, about $1.3 million, from the Sackler Trust to the gallery’s Inspiring People project will not proceed." 3/22/19

  • For-profit thrift store chain gets sued for dressing like a charity (Philanthropy Daily) "One reason many of us give our used clothes or out-of-date TVs to Goodwill or the Salvation Army is that we know that the funds these organizations get from our donations are used for charitable purposes. When you drop off your donations at Value Village, a nationwide chain based in Bellevue, Washington, it appears that your gifts help others. ‘DONATE TO A NONPROFIT HERE,' a banner in front of a typical Value Village says. But then on smaller letters at the bottom of the banner it says,'Value Village is a for-profit national fundraiser.' As it turns out, Value Village is a for-profit company that does not appear to be a social enterprise but has adopted the protective mimicry of a charity." 3/21/19

Trends and shifts

  • A New Generation of Philanthropy in China (PENTA) "Great fortunes have been made in Asia in the past decade. But as the region’s riches have swelled, and as a younger generation emerges, China’s wealthy are increasingly seeking to maintain their family legacies and to give back. Groups have formed to encourage collaboration and education, including the China Global Philanthropy Institute, founded by three Chinese philanthropists—Niu Gensheng, He Qiaonyu, and Ye Qingjun—along with U.S. billionaires Bill Gates and Ray Dalio. Jack Ma, through the Alibaba Foundation, meanwhile, has sponsored the biannual Xin Philanthropy Conference since 2016." 3/26/19

  • Andrew Pitt: How has social evolution changed philanthropy? (Civil Society) "Philanthropy entered the English language in 1600 but its origins date back to ancient civilisation. Back then, religion and religious communities drove a lot of philanthropy and giving was dominated by devout beliefs and traditions. Times have changed, community dynamics have evolved and individualism has entered the scene. But, what does that mean for philanthropy? How has the giving landscape changed with social evolution? And how will the younger generations change the giving landscape of the future?" 3/26/19

  • New Fidelity Program Adds Philanthropy to Employee Benefit Platforms (Think Advisor) For those of you with employee benefit plans, this is a pretty cool trend. "Fidelity Investments announced a new program on Monday that allows employers to integrate charitable giving into their current benefits program, and at the same time offers employees a way to manage their philanthropic activities." 3/25/19

  • 10 Millennial Women Talk About Where They Donate Money & Why (Refinery29) "Millennials are more often associated with the penny-pinching $1 Venmo charge than with charitable giving. But in many of the Money Diaries we publish, right under Utilities and Spotify on the OP's list of monthly expenses is a line for donations. From Planned Parenthood to Patreon to ASPCA, millennial women are giving — regardless of how much money they make — to the causes and charities they care about." 3/19/19

Large gifts

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