Combined pitch email - April 8

Hello all,

I hope everyone is surviving the end of semester madness! Remember to take care of yourself!

As usual, we will be having our pitch meeting in The Gateway office at 4 p.m.. We hope to see you there!

Reminder, the Gateway to Cinema is happening this Thursday at 6:30 p.m., the film will be The Iron Claw. Entry is free with your OneCard. This is our last Gateway to Cinema of the semester, so don’t miss out!

All the best,

Leah

News Pitches

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

A divided and hidden life: Mexican migrant farm workers speak out

In her master’s thesis for the U of A School of Public Health, Maricruz Barba Gonzalez conducted interviews with nine Mexican farm workers in Canada to understand their well-being, working and living conditions, and mental and physical health.

New canola research aims to boost yield, profitability 

By sifting through the genes of broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and kale, a U of A team plan to pinpoint the best ones for breeding new lines of canola to produce hybrid cultivars with higher seed yield.

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.

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!

City support for the Katz Group vs. Boyle Street: The City of Edmonton has said that surface parking lots in the downtown area need to go. Yet, they made an exception for a surface parking lot owned by the Katz Group. This comes after the court battle launched by the Katz Group against Boyle Street Community Services and a vote by the city to not renew Boyle Street’s temporary funding. What does this say about the City of Edmonton’s priorities? Should the city continue to support the Katz Group or are there more important things to prioritize?

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! Last chance to pick up this pitch!

Spring/Summer Courses: As the Winter Semester comes to an end, the spring and summer semesters are fast approaching. Some students choose to take courses during these condensed semesters to get ahead in their degree. Others find the intense workload of the spring and summer courses daunting and there are a limited number of courses provided. Are these shorter semesters something more students should partake in and should the university provide more courses during these semesters? Or are the courses too dense and rushed to really benefit students when they could be working a full-time job instead? Share your thoughts.

U of A creates a permanent role for sexual and gender-based violence: It was announced that the U of A has introduced and appointed someone to the role of Lead, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Response. Since November, the Sexual Assault Centre’s services have been largely suspended. The announcement didn’t address whether or not part of the new role would be to see the Sexual Assault Centre open back up. Should reopening the Sexual Assault Centre be the first priority of this new role? What needs to change going forward for the university to better support victims of sexual and gender-based violence?

Rural Doctor Shortage: The province recently announced a new medical training program that aims to lessen the shortage of physicians in rural areas. Part of the Alberta 2024 budget is to provide funding that will help this issue. The new program will train medical students in rural areas, in an attempt for them to practice there eventually. What do you think of this new training program? Is the province doing enough to support rural communities and their access to health care? Write about this new program, and anything else that can be done for rural communities.

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

April 6 to June 2, Art Gallery of Alberta

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.”

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!