Weekly News Recap: September 19, 2025

Weekly News Recap: September 19, 2025

The new Kipnes Institute at the University of Alberta, situated in the newly renamed Dianne and Irving Kipnes Health Research Academy, will bridge the gap between scientific discoveries and health outcomes to improve health care for the people of Alberta and beyond. (Photo: Richard Siemens)

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind. -- Bernard M. Baruch

SOME GOOD NEWS

  • How a Group of Students in the Pacific Islands Reshaped Global Climate Law (New York Times) #ClimateHeroes "They watched climate change ravage their home countries as rich, polluting nations did nothing. Then they had an idea [...] When the class met in 2019, it had been a little more than three years since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, an international treaty negotiated under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to keep warming from exceeding 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. 'When the Paris Agreement was concluded, the youth of the world looked up to it as an instrument of hope,' Cynthia Houniuhi, a student from the Solomon Islands, later recalled. But that hope was already beginning to fade."

  • Conductor Jumps Onto Tracks to Save Teen Who Fainted. Out of All the Praise, His 6-Year-Old’s Response Stands Out (Exclusive) (People) #EverydayHeroes " 'I saw that there was a train coming in, and I looked at the tracks, and I saw that there was a person pretty much lying on the tracks,' McKie tells PEOPLE. He immediately rushed to help, even though the heavy rainstorm made the platform dangerously slippery. McKie would later learn from passersby that the teen had fainted and fallen onto the northbound track, where commuters catch the N and W trains."

  • California’s first solar-covered canal is now fully online (Canary Media) More of this please. "A novel solar power project just went online in California’s Central Valley, with panels that span across canals in the vast agricultural region. The 1.6-megawatt installation, called Project Nexus, was fully completed late last month. The $20 million state-funded pilot has turned stretches of the Turlock Irrigation District’s canals into hubs of clean electricity generation in a remote area where cotton, tomatoes, almonds, and hundreds of other crops are grown."

  • This shop fixes student instruments for free. Now, a music legend is chipping in (NPR) Music will save us all. "Johanna Gamboa-Kroesen is a professor of music education at UCLA and says, 'When students have an instrument that's not working for them, it can be incredibly frustrating. It causes them to think music's not for them.' So, she says, for a student to have access to free repairs 'takes away that burden on families and lets [students] put their energy into just creating music.' Music can play a role in children's development, she adds, and helps with various aspects of their education."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

  1. Olympic 100m medallist Fred Kerley joins Enhanced Games weeks after ban (The Guardian) It is an interesting new world in sport. "The Olympic 100m silver and bronze medallist Fred Kerley will compete in the inaugural Enhanced Games, the event’s organisers revealed [...] weeks after the Athletics Integrity Unit handed the American a provisional suspension for whereabouts failures. The 2022 100m world champion is the first track athlete and American man to join the event that permits athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs that are banned in official competition."

  2. Ben & Jerry's co-founder Jerry Greenfield resigns over dispute with owner Unilever (NPR) #Ugh "Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of the beloved ice cream brand Ben & Jerry's, announced this week that he's resigned from the company he helped create in the late 1970s over an ongoing dispute with its parent company, Unilever. The Vermont-based ice cream maker, with its zany packaging and inventive flavors, has long been known for its progressive politics and the company routinely speaks out on social issues."

  3. VIDEO: No-tip café in Saskatoon challenges gratuity norms (CBC) SASKATOON STORY Even as a former restaurant worker, I think this a great move. " 'I think we're just kind of tired of the tipping culture and where it's gotten to,' Horning said in a [...] interview with CBC Radio's Blue Sky. He doesn't want customers to feel the pressure of a payment terminal where the lowest option might start at 20 per cent, he said."

  4. From The Beatles to Taylor Swift, why stadium concerts still resonate with fans (CBC) "Despite the shifts in technology and economics, Krewen says one thing hasn't changed. 'I think that artists are always really touched when people love their music and they want to reward them for that,' [Lam] said. 'So if you can gather and grow your fan base to the point where you know that you can fill stadiums, that's really why you're doing it.' Lam felt that connection during Swift's Eras Tour, who performed songs that spanned her nearly 20-year career."

  5. Canadian Navy's first female flag officer commemorated in Calgary (CBC) CALGARY STORY Bravo Zulu Commodore Orthlieb. Long deserved. "An officer's lifetime of service and shattering glass ceilings is being honoured by the Naval Museum of Alberta Society, with the Calgary museum now bearing her name. The newly-renamed Commodore Laraine Orthlieb Naval Training Centre, officially unveiled at HMCS Tecumseh in Calgary on Saturday, commemorates the accomplishments of its namesake, the Royal Canadian Navy's first female flag officer."

  6. In Memoriam: Heather Herring, University of Calgary Senate alum (UCalgary) CALGARY STORY I worked with Heather on a number of projects at the UofC. She was amazing. #HugeLoss RIP Heather. We will not see your like again. "Former University of Calgary Senator Heather Herring passed away July 30, 2025 at the age of 67 after battling cancer. Heather was a professional engineer and alum of the Haskayne School of Business. In her work she was known for an ability to pinpoint challenges and opportunities and lead towards excellence, always with a view of 'making things better.' She was known for her ability to forge connections and was a beloved mentor. She served with enthusiasm as a UCalgary senator from 2003 to 2009 and more recently was active at the university's Scholars Academy."

  7. VIDEO: 3 flights landing in Calgary this week were targeted with bomb threats. Here's how they're handled (CBC) CALGARY STORY "A CF-18, F-15 and a refueling tanker aren't typical sights in the skies over a city like Calgary. Many local residents immediately took notice of unusual activity [...] sharing photos and videos on social media of military jets roaring over the city. Later, North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) confirmed that it had responded to reports of bomb threats aboard three commercial passenger flights from Germany bound for the Calgary International Airport."

  8. Beloved California octopus showered with love and farewells as she spends final days caring for eggs (CBC) RIP Ghost. You and your like are amazing creatures. "Ghost the giant Pacific octopus has been a viral sensation since her arrival at the Aquarium of the Pacific in California last summer. But these days she leads a quieter life — albeit, showered by farewell wishes and love from adoring fans. Ghost is dying. The octopus is in her final phase of life, known as senescence, caring for the eggs she laid just last week. The average lifespan for this octopus is about three to five years."

  9. 'A big loss': Calgary's Beakerhead festival 'paused' for 2025 (Calgary Herald) CALGARY STORY We will miss you Beakerhead. "Calgary’s science-themed Beakerhead festival will not go ahead this year. On its website, Telus Spark says it is 'taking a pause' on the festival for 2025 as organizers 'reload for the future.' The festival, which marked its 10th anniversary in 2023, has been described as a mash-up of interactive experiences, immersive installations and mind-bending performances that blend cutting-edge science with artistic displays."

  10. VIDEO: Video shows huge truck plunging into B.C. lake in sudden shoreline collapse (CBC) BRITISH COLUMBIA STORY #Ugh "A company based on central Vancouver Island has been reprimanded after its articulated rock truck and driver fell into Nitinaht Lake, about 100 kilometres northwest of Victoria — an incident that was captured in a stunning viral video posted on social media."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

  1. 10 Coldest Countries in the World, From Greenland to Kazakhstan (Condé Naste Traveler) CANADIAN CONTENT Canada is #3.

  2. VIDEO: Octopuses Use Their Arms in Surprisingly Similar Ways to Us (Science Alert) Looks like this is the Octopus edition of the weekly recap.

  3. AGEIST Meal: Mediterranean Sweet Potato Boats (Ageist) Mmmm...Yum!

  4. 27 Photos Of ABBA’s Meteoric Rise To International Fame In The 1970s (All That's Interesting) Those who know me, know I am a big ABBA fan. You're welcome.

  5. Why the Volkswagen Beetle Is One of the Most Important Cars Ever Made (Robb Report) A fascinating story.

  6. VIDEO: Redwoods Shouldn’t Be So Tall. Here’s Why They Are. (Atlas Obscura) I have visited these forests. They drink from the sky.

  7. How to Clean Stainless Steel Pans So They Shine Like New (Bon Appetit) I have some pans like this. This is helpful.

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

  1. Landmark $25M gift establishes new U of A health institute to accelerate medical breakthroughs (UAberta) EDMONTON STORY A Wonderful gift from a great family. Congrats to all. "A new institute at the University of Alberta – made possible through a generous $25-million gift from The Dianne and Irving Kipnes Foundation – will ensure health research gets to patients and communities faster in the form of real-world care."

  2. $80 million gift to UofT law faculty will further lower financial obstacles for students: dean (The Law Times) TORONTO STORY "A record-breaking $80 million donation by alumnus Hal Jackman to the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law will allow the faculty to strengthen what dean Jutta Brunnée calls its “key ingredients”: the diversity of its student body and top-tier faculty members."

  3. Former Apple executive donates $50 million to UMass Amherst (WBUR) "UMass Amherst is set to receive its largest-ever private donation — $50 million over 10 years — and will rename its engineering college after the former Apple executive and UMass alumnus who made the gift. Daniel Riccio, a 1986 graduate of the university’s flagship campus and one of Apple’s top former hardware executives, committed the donation to support the engineering school and foster partnerships with other areas of the university. Riccio and his wife, Diane M. (Casey) Riccio, pledged $15 million in 2022 to fund ALS and neuroscience research at UMass Chan Medical School."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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