Weekly News Recap: August 10, 2018

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley makes a funding announcement to help not-for-profit group Vivo expand its recreation-centre offerings. (Justin Pennell/CBC)

The desire to be right and the desire to have been right are two desires, and the sooner we separate them the better off we are. The desire to be right is the thirst for truth. On all counts, both practical and theoretical, there is nothing but good to be said for it. The desire to have been right, on the other hand, is the pride that goeth before a fall. It stands in the way of our seeing we were wrong, and thus blocks the progress of our knowledge. -- Willard V. Quine and J.S. Ullian (The Web of Belief)

Canadiana

  • How to Have Sex in a Canoe (New York Times) When the New York Times quotes the former director of the Canadian Canoe Museum, it's recappable. "'Three words: center of gravity,' says James Raffan, former executive director of the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario. To avoid capsizing, bodies should stay low in the hull, especially if you intend to make any lateral rocking movements." 7/26/18

A wonderful world

  • 5-year-old gets new arm at the Home Depot (Washington Post) "The prosthesis is one of about 120 that Longo, a [Home Depot] hardware sales associate who lives in Crownsville, has fabricated and donated to children and adults with missing hands and limbs over the past year and a half." 7/30/18

Lists of lists

News

  • Swerve shuts its doors after 14 years of featuring ordinary Calgarians and their extraordinary lives (CBC) CALGARY STORY This makes me sad. "Swerve magazine closed down Friday, after 14 years as one of the most captivating weekly magazines in Canada. Swerve's creator and its first editor, Shelley Youngblut, spoke to the Calgary Eyeopener on Tuesday about the publishing life —and death — of one of the city's most beloved publications." 8/7/18

  • Edmonton Food Bank once again short of Heritage Festival goal (CBC) EDMONTON STORY "This time last year, Edmonton's Food Bank found itself in a predicament — despite record attendance at the city's Heritage Festival that year, they raised 29,000 kilograms of food, or about half their goal. But this year, they're in worse shape: they've only raised 22,000 kilograms of their 50,000-kilogram goal. The Edmonton Heritage Festival is the food bank's single biggest fundraiser — which they rely on heavily to help Edmontonians through the summer and into the fall." 8/7/18

  • Canada's oil price discount rises to widest gap since 2013 (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "The price of the heavy tarry type of oil that comes out of Alberta's oilsands — known as Western Canada Select — is now trading below $40 US a barrel, and was changing hands at $38.29 a barrel on Tuesday. West Texas Intermediate, which is a type of oil that's much easier to refine and as such is the much more commonly used oil price benchmark, was trading at just under $70." 8/7/18

  • Gordie Howe Day at Waskesiu celebrates Mr. Hockey at his 'favourite place on Earth' (CBC) WASKESIU STORY "Gordie's son Murray Howe returning to Sask. resort village for events celebrating father." 8/5/18

  • Alberta government commits $15M to Calgary recreation centre expansion (CBC) CALGARY STORY Congrats to Vivo! Nice work. "A not-for-profit community recreation centre in northeast Calgary is getting provincial cash to help expand by 50 per cent. [Premier] Rachel Notley was at the Vivo for Healthier Generations centre in Calgary to announce a funding investment of $15 million over three years to help the facility expand by adding on to existing facilities." 8/3/18

  • Lacombe ranks 5th of 415 in survey of Canada's best places to live (CBC) LACOMBE STORY We are proud to be working with Burman University, located in Lacombe. We agree with this story. "It's not temperate like Vancouver or glitzy like Toronto. It's not even well-known outside of Alberta. But Lacombe, Alta., with a population of 15,000 located 125 kilometres south of Edmonton, is the fifth-best place to live in the country, according to an analysis by moneysense.ca." 8/2/18

  • Calgary has lost at least $10M due to lack of sports facilities, report warns (CBC) CALGARY STORY "A city report has found a dozen sporting events have by-passed Calgary because its facilities are inadequate. Not getting those competitions to land here has cost the city's economy $10 million from the participants alone." 8/2/18

  • UCalgary team recognized for 'fearless' marketing (UToday) CALGARY STORY Congrats to the UofC. Well deserved. "More often than not, people ask why universities even need marketing, let alone why they should excel at it. With so many post-secondary options available to the community today, the reality is that universities must differentiate themselves compellingly in order to attract the best possible students, faculty, staff, and supporters. The University of Calgary’s in-house marketing team was recently recognized — alongside peers across the private and public sectors — for its leading-edge work in this challenging environment." 7/30/18

  • Calgary International Children’s Festival shuts down after 32 years (Global News) CALGARY STORY "If you attended this year’s Calgary International Children’s Festival, you were among the last people to take part in the annual event. The festival’s board of directors announced Thursday that tough times have prompted the cancellation of the 2019 event and that they’ve begun to dissolve the Society." 7/27/18

First Peoples of Canada

  • 'He was an extraordinary man': Sask. elder who cared for 350 foster children dies (CBC) SASKATCHEWAN STORY What an amazing human! RIP Mr. Linklater. "Linklater and his wife Maria dedicated their lives to creating awareness of First Nations culture. Supporters say they also worked tirelessly to bridge the gap between Indigenous people and the rest of society. They also raised an estimated 350 foster children, some with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and other conditions." 8/7/18

  • B.C. First Nation enters the pipeline services business (CBC) BRITISH COLUMBIA NEWS "The Lower Nicola Indian Band near Merritt, B.C. has purchased a pipeline services company that provides maintenance support to Kinder Morgan and other energy sector clients." 8/5/18

  • 13-year-old collects 3,000 books to donate to Indigenous summer literacy camp (CBC) CALGARY STORY "A 13-year-old student's generous donation means his neighbours on Tsuut'ina First Nation will get to dive into thousands of summer reads. Christian Waldron, a Grade 8 student at Webber Academy, organized a book drive with his fellow students. 'We collected 3,000 books over a two-month period. And after I found out that we collected that many books, I felt really proud of myself,' Waldron said." 8/3/18

  • Indigenous football camp welcomes first female recruit (CBC) SASKATCHEWAN STORY "Chandinee Laliberty says girls like smashmouth football just as much as the boys. Laliberty is the only female at a Football Saskatchewan camp for young Indigenous players. The Six Nations Elite Development Camp runs until Sunday in Saskatoon." 8/3/18

  • Alberta's Indigenous population outpacing non-Indigenous growth (CBC) ALBERTA STORY "Alberta's Indigenous population is growing rapidly, but one expert says it's unlikely the growth is the result of a baby boom. Alberta's First Nation, Métis and Inuit populations collectively increased by 37.1 per cent from 2006 to 2016, while the non-Indigenous population grew by 22.3 per cent, according to Alberta's Office of Statistics and Information report based on census data." 8/2/18

Corporate social responsibility

  • Pioneering a People-Centered Approach to Corporate Philanthropy (Stanford Social Innovation Review) "During a time when many multinational companies are trying to understand how to integrate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into their business strategies, 'Our Credo' is more than a moral compass for Johnson & Johnson; we believe it is a recipe for business success." 8/1/18

Life and career hacks

Sector research

  • Are Heroism, Philanthropy, and Religion About Showing Off? (Psychology Today) "In the past, it had been difficult for scientists to understand altruistic acts such as large philanthropic gifts, heroic self-sacrificial behavior, or handouts to beggars that could never be reciprocated. From an evolutionary point of view, these things appeared at first glance to be somewhat counterproductive. However, a perspective known as Costly Signaling Theory makes sense of these extreme forms of altruism." 7/26/18

Uncommon knowledge

Philanthropic personalities

  • H.F. Lenfest, former media mogul, philanthropist, dies (AP News) "H.F. 'Gerry' Lenfest, who made a $1 billion fortune in the cable industry and gave almost all of it away, supporting schools, museums, journalism and the arts in Philadelphia and beyond, died Sunday, a family spokesman said." 8/5/18

  • Why Journalists Should Get to Know the Abrams Foundation (Inside Philanthropy) "If you work in journalism in any medium, you should check out the Abrams Foundation, the philanthropic vehicle of David and Amy Abrams. Founded in 1997, it has three areas of concentration: journalism and narrative, arts and creativity, and access and opportunity." 8/4/18

Philanthropic controversy

Stats and facts

  • 14 Stats About How NGOs in Canada Use Technology (Hilborn) CANADIAN CONTENT "Four hundred and fourteen Canadian NGOs, nonprofits, and charities participated in the survey for the 2018 Global NGO Technology Report. Their responses are summarized [in this article]." Great stuff here. Thanks to Andrea McManus for sharing this article. 7/30/18

Trends and shifts

  • An attempt to understand Canada's inheritance tax backlash: Don Pittis (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "Anyone who thinks the CBC does not serve conservative-leaning Canadians should look at the comments for a recent online story about inheritance taxes. The article was based on a report about the wide gulf between rich and poor issued by the left-leaning Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives think-tank. The report suggested the lack of an inheritance tax in this country makes inequality worse. Other countries, including Britain and the United States, have 40 per cent inheritance taxes that kick in if people are rich enough. In the U.S., you have to have about $11 million when you die for your estate to pay death duties." 8/7/18

  • Homeless shelter plans to ID clients with facial recognition, but it's a fix that comes with privacy risks (CBC) CALGARY STORY "Agencies have struggled with how to identify clients that don't have official ID, and one Calgary shelter thinks it might have a high-tech solution - facial recognition - but it's a fix that comes with serious privacy risks for an already marginalized population, one privacy expert said." 8/4/18

  • Chinese Philanthropy Continues to Surge (Barrons) "Charitable giving in China has continuously grown since the country instituted a legal framework for philanthropy in 2016, as the country’s wealthiest citizens and prominent business leaders feel more compelled to shoulder a larger part of the burden of social responsibility." 8/1/18

  • The Rise of Female Philanthropists - And Three Big Bets They Make (Forbes) "At the Forbes Philanthropy Forum organized in May earlier this year, there was near parity between female and male participants. Though there were still more male philanthropists than female ones, the face of wealth is changing. The Economist’s title on International Women’s Day states boldly that, 'Investment by women, and in them, is growing'. As reported in the Economist article, between 2010 and 2015 private wealth held by women grew from $34trn to $51trn— an increase of 50% in merely five years." 7/25/18

  • How Silicon Valley Has Disrupted Philanthropy (The Atlantic) "For more than a century, the Boys & Girls Club of America has had a pretty simple mission: providing somewhere for kids to go after school so they stay out of trouble [...]. But in 2018, that message isn’t enough to attract local money to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula, which serves Silicon Valley, where the biggest donors tend to favor causes that use novel solutions to 'disrupt” poverty, or that can employ data to show just how many problems their money solves." 7/25/18

  • Toronto is the center of new technology jobs in North America (Technology Review) TORONTO STORY "By the numbers: According to a survey by real estate company CBRE, nearly 29,000 tech-related jobs were added in Toronto last year—14 percent more than in 2016. The next highest city on the list was Seattle, with 8,200 new jobs. New York was a close third, with 8,100." 7/24/18

Large gifts

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