FedDev Ontario supports specialty steel manufacturer in Welland

Today, the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages and Minister responsible for FedDev Ontario, announced a FedDev Ontario repayable contribution of up to $5 million for Valbruna ASW Inc. in Welland, to support its expansion to reach new markets in Canada and abroad, while maintaining and creating quality jobs in the Niagara Region.

Valbruna ASW Inc. is Canada’s only specialty steel producer, unique in its ability to refine high-quality stainless steels, and a significant employer in the Niagara Region’s prominent manufacturing sector. The company produces a combination of carbon, stainless and other specialty steel materials for application in numerous sectors including automotive, medical, aerospace, defence and energy.

By adopting new technologies, Valbruna ASW Inc. will become Canada’s only steelmaker with the capability to produce stainless steel and nickel alloy, with improved machinability and heat and corrosion durability. As a result, Valbruna ASW Inc. will be able to increase its capacity to serve the U.S. market and increase domestic manufacturing.

This project will leverage over $24 million in private and other investment, maintaining over 110 jobs and creating 15 more jobs in Welland to strengthen Niagara Region’s economy. With Government of Canada support, Valbruna ASW Inc. expects to double its local supplier purchases, resulting in a significant increase in domestic supply chain spending in regions like Hamilton, Niagara and Toronto.

Ontario government to invest $105 million in non-profit tourism, culture & sport

The Ontario government is investing $105 million through the new Community Building Fund to support non-profit tourism, culture, sport and recreation organizations. The funding will be used to help these non-profits recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and meet the needs of their communities.

The fund will be administered by the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) through two program streams:

• The $55-million operating funding stream will provide community non-profits with the support they need to help sustain their operations and create new experiences and events – such as trail systems, heritage attractions, winter activities and local sport and recreation programming – that are critical to the economic and social well-being of their communities.
• The $50-million capital funding stream will go to municipalities and non-profit organizations to carry out sport- and recreation-facility infrastructure repairs, including retrofits and rehabilitation to meet COVID-19 public health protocol requirements and local community needs.

The operating stream of the Community Building Fund will open for applications on March 31, 2021, while the fund’s capital stream will open later in 2021.

Government of Canada opens public engagement on Canada’s first National Infrastructure Assessment 

Today, the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities launched an Engagement Paper on Canada’s first National Infrastructure Assessment:  “Building the Canada We Want in 2050.” It sets out the purpose and benefits of undertaking a National Infrastructure Assessment and seeks input from the public, Indigenous Peoples, provinces, territories, municipalities, and stakeholders on three main priorities of the assessment:

• Assessing Canada’s infrastructure needs and establishing a long-term vision;
• Improving coordination among infrastructure owners and funders; and
• Determining the best ways to fund and finance infrastructure.

The Government of Canada looks forward to receiving feedback prior to June 30, 2021 on the three priorities for the National Infrastructure Assessment and how to achieve them, as outlined in the Engagement Paper. Following the engagement process, the Government will consider the next steps for the National Infrastructure Assessment, including reviewing priorities, establishing an independent advisory body, setting out the processes for obtaining expert advice, ongoing public engagement and producing interim studies and reports to inform infrastructure policy and investment.

Canada Strengthens Energy Partnership with Germany

Canada and Germany will establish a High-Level Steering Committee, co-chaired at the Deputy Minister–level, to foster the energy transformation through exchanges on policy, best practices and technologies as well as through cooperative activities and projects focused on:

• energy policy, planning and regulations;
• resilient electricity systems that can integrate high levels of renewables;
• energy efficiency;
• sector coupling and low-carbon fuels; and
• innovation and applied research.

The partnership underscores the importance of strategic partnerships between the two countries, including Canada’s commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

Reading recommendations

Electricity needed to mine bitcoin is more than used by ‘entire countries’

Lauren Aratani, The Guardian

It’s not just the value of bitcoin that has soared in the last year – so has the huge amount of energy it consumes.

The cryptocurrency’s value has dipped recently after passing a high of $50,000 but the energy used to create it has continued to soar during its epic rise, climbing to the equivalent to the annual carbon footprint of Argentina, according to Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, a tool from researchers at Cambridge University that measures the currency’s energy use.

The amount of electricity used to mine bitcoin “has historically been more than [electricity used by] entire countries, like Ireland”, said Benjamin Jones, a professor of economics at the University of New Mexico who has researched bitcoin’s environmental impact. “We’re talking about multiple terawatts, dozens of terawatts a year of electricity being used just for bitcoin … That’s a lot of electricity.”

Staying Mindful When You’re Working Remotely

Alyson Meister, Amanda Sinclair, Harvard Business Review

It’s no surprise that online work is depleting our energy and resilience. The evidence shows that many of us are working longer hours, suffering chronic stress, and burning out at levels the world has never witnessed. At the same time, we’re longing for and losing our social connections and sometimes experiencing profound loneliness and grief in solitude. To regain energy, find renewed pleasure in our work, and truly connect with colleagues and friends, we need to find ways to block out the noise in our virtual reality.

One way we can do that is through cultivating mindfulness — online.

Mindfulness is the choice we make to be present in the here and now: This moment, in this meeting, with this person or group of people. Research shows that most activities of our working lives, from working on an independent task to team meetings and one on ones, benefit from being conducted with mindfulness. By pausing, checking in with others, or starting meetings with a few moments of meditation or reflection, stress levels drop and we feel more connected to our purpose and to others in the room. We listen better and feel happier.

But how can we be mindful in an online working world? How can we be truly present for others when we couldn’t be (physically) farther from one another?

Niagara COVID status tracker

Niagara’s most up-to-date COVID statistics, measured against the targets for the various stages of the Ontario COVID-19 Response Framework, are presented below. This does not predict government policy, but is offered to give you an idea of where Niagara is situated and how likely a relaxation (or further restrictions) may be. These data are drawn daily from Niagara Region. The Grey-Lockdown level does not have its own metrics, but is triggered when the COVID-specific measurements in a Red-Control region have continued to deteriorate.

Definitions:

• Weekly Incidence Rate: the number of new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people per week
• Percent Positivity: the number of positive COVID-19 tests as a percentage of all COVID-19 tests performed
• Rt: the reproductive rate, or the number of people infected by each case of the virus