Hello all,

I hope everyone is enjoying their long weekend! As there are no classes today, we will also not be having our usual pitch meeting. We hope to see you at the next one!

Best,

Dylana

News Pitches

You can reach Dylana at [email protected] or over Slack!

New research could help honeybees fight off their worst enemy 

New U of A research could help in the fight against the honeybee’s number one enemy — the Varroa mite. This parasite is a major contributor to annual losses of 30 to 40 per cent of bee colonies in Canada.

Edmonton university students build plastic recycling facility from scratch

Level 7 Plastics, a plastic recycling and manufacturing initiative led by student engineers at the U of A is taking action against plastic pollution.

Alberta looking at new methods to protect water supply

The new technology allows wastewater treatment plants to remove toxin pollutants like ammonia from water. It’s cost-effective and allows the province to reduce and reuse water during a time of drought.

U of A provides new online course on Black history at no cost

Interview course director and provost fellow in Black excellence and leadership, Andy Knight.

Regenerative agriculture on the Prairies can help in the climate change fight, experts say

Experts say that regenerative agricultural practices can be used to fight climate change, since they capture more carbon in the soil, and also use less oil and gas in production.

Opinion Pitches

You can reach Leah at [email protected] or over Slack!

Supporting the arts: Mayor Amarjeet Sohi discussed options for supporting arts and culture festivals in Edmonton. This came after the Edmonton Fringe Festival launched an appeal for community support. Expenses for festivals have risen following the COVID-19 pandemic, and for many revenue is decreasing. What should be done in order to keep the arts alive and thriving in Edmonton? Does the city and the province have a responsibility to support festivals like the Fringe Fest?

Point/Counterpoint - Final Exams vs Final Projects: We’re nearing the end of the semester where students are cramming to work on their final projects or studying for their exams. When it comes to end-of-semester assignments, do you think a final exam is better during the exam period, or a final project/paper due on the last day of classes? Looking for someone to write the final exams side of the argument!

Scam Calls: We’re coming up on tax season, and fraudulent Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) calls and texts are rampant. These fake messages are harmful, and can be distressing to receive during something as complicated as tax season. Write about the problem of persistent phone scams. What can be done to prevent these calls? Should phone companies help, or is it something the provincial government can do?

Possible provincial audit for the City of Edmonton: Danielle Smith recently said that the provincial government is ready to assist the City of Edmonton if needed. This follows the announcement that Edmonton’s city manager is stepping down and a budget release that showed a multi-million dollar deficit for the city. But some blame the provincial government for Edmonton’s financial situation. Is the province to blame for Edmonton’s financial situation? Would an audit help or would it be an overreach on the province’s part? Are there other things the province should consider doing to help Edmonton?

My Schedule Builder: The University of Alberta introduced My Schedule Builder as a way to enrol in courses “in minutes”.  However, students experienced much of the same issues with My Schedule Builder as they did with the Shopping Cart in years before. In addition to that, the Watchlist has disappeared. It will supposedly be “available soon”, but it’s unclear exactly when students will have access to it again. Was this a step in the right direction for improving course registration for students or did it only create more problems? What should the university do to improve course registration for next year?

A&C Pitches

You can reach Lily at [email protected] or over Slack!

Interview: OddBird Art and Craft Fair

Following The Royal Bison’s last market in 2023, a group of past vendors and organizers came together to create a new arts and crafts fair, OddBird.

OddBird with have its first market from May 10-12 at the Old Strathcona Performing Arts Centre. It will “keep serving up all things weird, wonderful, and delightfully Edmonton.” Speak to someone from the team about the new market and the legacy it hopes to continue!

Interview: Director Daryl Cloran of The Citadel’s The Three Musketeers

The Citadel Theatre’s final mainstage show of the 2023-24 season is The Three Musketeers. The Three Musketeers’ famous mantra, “All For One, and One For All!” framed the Citadel’s season and its stories.

Speak to director Daryl Cloran about this final show, and how it is "a celebration of everything that is great about theatre and everything that is special about the Citadel.”

Exhibit Review: Creating beauty: A watercolour exhibition

This exhibit features artworks from 11 alumni of the University of Alberta Faculty of Extension Visual Arts certificate program. These emerging artists completed the Introductory Watercolour Technique course with curator Amy Lowean, who received her Master of Fine Arts degree in Painting from the University of Alberta.

The exhibits theme, creating beauty, is not about being pretty or glamorous. Rather, it’s about “expressing beauty with a deep sense of reverence to human relationships and to the natural world.”

April 6 to June 2, Art Gallery of Alberta

Interview: Winnipeg songwriter Keri Latimer from band Leaf Rapids

“On the third Leaf Rapids record, Velvet Paintings, veteran Winnipeg songwriter Keri Latimer makes room for the world. Over a lush palette of roots music—ethereal folk, driving country, and wiry honky-tonk—she shifts her gaze to the environments around her, observing and reflecting on their movements and the movements of the people who direct their motion. The album will be out on April 19th. The band will celebrate the album with a run of tour dates, including a stop in Edmonton on April 25th.”

Speak with Keri about the album and the band!

Play Review: The Prom

April 4-7, Varscona Theatre

“The Prom is a musical [that] follows four Broadway actors lamenting their days of fame, as they travel to the conservative town of Edgewater, Indiana, to help a lesbian student banned from bringing her girlfriend to high school prom.”