Empowering Toronto women to be environmental leaders: Women4ClimateTO mentorship program to announce 2024 pitch competition winners in June

As the global climate crisis becomes increasingly urgent, it’s vital for cities to foster and facilitate innovation, and to invest in original ideas dedicated to making urban environments more resilient. Women4Climate Toronto does exactly that for Toronto.

A City-run mentorship program aimed at bolstering the work of Toronto’s most innovative women climate entrepreneurs will announce the winner of its $20,000 grand prize in June.

The program empowers and supports women climate leaders in Toronto in creating cutting-edge solutions that mitigate the growing effects of climate change by giving 12 women mentorship opportunities – and money.

After completing the mentorship program, all participants receive a $500 grant to advance their enterprises.

The City of Toronto and presenting sponsor, EY Canada, also host an annual pitch competition where participants have the opportunity to compete for financial awards.

The winner of the pitch competition will take home $20,000 in prize money and two runners-up will be awarded $5,000 each to support their businesses.

So far, Women4ClimateTO has supported 37 women and 35 climate action initiatives since it began in 2020 and welcomed its fourth cohort of mentees in January.

The program offers a combination of mentoring, training and networking opportunities to effectively equip participants with the tools to further their climate-related projects and business start-ups.

Women4ClimateTO mentors are professionals working across both the public and private sectors boasting broad ranging expertise in a variety of ﬁelds, such as climate action, business, ﬁnance, marketing and communications. Women4ClimateTO is co-championed by Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie and Selina Young, Director of the Indigenous Affairs Office, City of Toronto.

Women4ClimateTO will announce the winners of this year’s pitch competition on June 18.

Last year’s winner, Tina Safaei, is the CEO and co-founder of Pahk Solutions, a tech platform dedicated to helping communities reduce their carbon footprint. Safaei developed the platform in response to the growing number of communities and individuals committing to achieving net zero emissions.

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This year’s roster of mentees includes:

Amanda Ottley – Zero Hunger

The Zero Hunger app is a digital platform designed to fight food waste and, by extension, reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Elham Shams Zadeh Amiri – Greenlight

Greenlight revolutionizes wind energy through an integrated wind funnel system inspired by Iranian wind-catchers. This innovative approach elevates wind speed within the funnel, doubling it on average and significantly enhancing power generation compared to traditional turbines.

Christina Elliot – Curb the Rain

Curb the Rain aims to create innovative solutions to address intense rainfall events by trying to increase the permeability in existing infrastructure and revolutionize current stormwater systems that are severely out of date.

Helena Yu – Toronto Just Climate Resilience

By improving availability, access and utilization of climate resilience data and information, the Toronto Just Climate Resilience project aims to bridge the gap between top-down climate plans and grassroots actions to effectively facilitate data-driven climate resilience decision-making in partnership with communities.

Janet Chong-Le – Vial Cycle

Vial Cycle is the ﬁrst reusable medication bottle program. The company works closely with its pharmacy partners to ensure sustainable recirculation of prescription vials.

Katherine Festeryga – Edie Farming

Edie Farming is building Toronto’s ﬁrst urban commercial rooftop greenhouse. Utilizing the newest machine learning and AI, a closed-loop hydroponic system, and powered entirely on renewable energy, it’s leveraging technology to grow the most sustainable produce in the world.

Lisa Amerongen – The Good Swap

The Good Swap is a monthly clothing exchange, fostering inclusivity across genders, body types, and ages. Its mission is rooted in the drive to combat textile waste and overconsumption while promoting global adherence to ethical and sustainable fashion practices.

Lisa Price – Net Zero at Home

With a mission to mitigate climate change, Net Zero at Home helps Toronto homeowners reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and save money on their energy bills.

Haley Anderson – Material Matchmaking

Material Matchmaking targets the construction sector in Toronto, addressing the critical issue of construction, renovation, demolition waste and embodied carbon. The initiative seeks to enhance sustainable practices within the construction industry, while finding climate co-benefits for community and nature.

Nasim Naderi – Intocharge

Intocharge focuses on electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure. It started by importing electric supply equipment and soon added specialized consultation and installation services.

Orfelina Millan – Orfe EcoArt Program

The Orfe EcoArt Program is an initiative dedicated to fostering creativity and environmental responsibility in school-aged children with a vision to cultivate a new generation of environmentally conscious leaders.

Omowunmi Badmus – Omo Bamboo Inc

Omo Bamboo Inc is a zero-waste shop based out of Toronto, where you can find a range of bamboo products, handmade soaps and body butters, as well as minimalist textured art and cement crafts.

For more information about the mentorship program and its impressive roster of innovators, visit the city’s website.

The City of Toronto will open applications again on October 30, 2024.

Rachel Goodman

Writer / Reporter

REVIEW: Toronto play exploring medically assisted suicide thoughtfully balances the rollercoaster of emotions that comes with it

Posted 21 hours agoRachel Goodman

Though a play about medically assisted suicide may prompt certain preconceived notions, In Seven Days defies expectations by firmly anchoring itself in the hearts of the living.

In Seven Days, beautifully penned by Jordi Mand, follows multiple protagonists in the same Jewish family, whose collective and individual lives are rocked by the news of the imminent and planned death of their patriarch, Sam, (Ron Lea).

Rachel, (Shaina Silver-Baird) Sam’s 30-year-old daughter, is blindsided by her father’s decision to end his own life in one week during a supposedly routine visit to her childhood home.

The revelation sends her into an involuntary panic, much to the dismay of her stepmother, Shelly, (Mairi Babb) who has been aware of Sam’s choice for some time.

At first, Shelly presents as a neurotic homemaker and overbearing mother figure, whose relationship with Rachel is riddled with unresolved tensions, though her genuine love for Sam shines.

Upon receiving the news, Rachel’s ex-boyfriend Darren (Brendan McMurtry-Howlett) shows up, in part to support her, but also in a desperate and final attempt to secure Sam’s long awaited approval.

But amid the unforeseen chaos, there exists a balance of humour and strife. A tone carefully crafted by Mand and astutely executed by Director Philip Akin.

“I love plays that have challenges or traps in them, and I felt there was a really wonderful fine line to be found between the writing and the playing of the script,” Akin told Now Toronto.

Tekla Hendrickson, Executive Director of MAidHouse, a non-profit supporting those eligible to receive medical assistance in dying (MAiD), works extensively with families whose loved ones have chosen MAid, and commended both Mand and Akin for the production’s articulate portrayal of the spectrum of human emotion experienced by the people she helps.

“We see this in real life as people are going out. One of the things I really like about the play were the transitions and the timing, because I see when we’re providing support, people are taking those moments and there is a vast array of emotions happening very quickly at the same time,” Hendrickson explained.

Akin chooses to mark those feelings with dramatic tonal shifts, often depicted through lighting changes that spotlight a single character caught in a quiet moment of reflection.

The transitions are also an effective plot device; they “drive the action into the background,” and “move the story forward,” Akin said.

The teachings of Judaism are central to the plot, and are represented predominantly through the presence of Sam’s Rabbi and lifelong friend, Eli (Ralph Small).

At first, Eli refuses to be in the room when Sam passes because his Jewish faith prevents him from doing so. But as the play unfolds, his attitude shifts, a reflection not only of his coming to terms with Sam’s choice, but an acknowledgement of the need for adaptable religious leadership.

“This [decision] is one of the most challenging things he [Eli] has had to deal with because it doesn’t just challenge him on a religious level, it challenges him on a very personal level,” Mand explained.

Despite its premise, to label In Seven Days a show about death would be to dismiss its vivaciousness. Its characters are complex and evolving, the dialogue is sweetened by comedic retort and intensified by profound emotion, and Sam is at peace from the outset. Unwavering, deeply loveable, devoted, always funny, and, his fate aside, the lifeblood of this fascinating story.

In Seven Days is playing until May 16 at the Meridian Arts Centre, tickets are available to purchase here.

Rachel Goodman

Writer / Reporter

News

From ‘Gucci’ to ‘Slay,’ here are the most common ‘slang’ compliments Canadians like to use

Posted 1 day agoBreanna Marcelo

A common stereotype is that Canadians are very polite but a new study is proving how true that label really is, and which regions are the most and least polite across the country.

Online tutoring platform Preply conducted a study outlining the most polite Canadian cities based on Google search trends. The study collected Google Trends search data from 2023-2024 across Canada to uncover which provinces and cities most often search the web using polite words.

The study found that Ontario is the province most interested in politeness, while Quebec came in last as the least interested.

Burnaby, British Columbia, is the Canadian city most interested in politeness with over 10,000 polite-term searches per 100,000 residents in the past year.

Meanwhile, Gatineau, Quebec, topped the list for the lowest number of searches for polite words and phrases with only 1,054.

Here are the top 10 Canadian cities most and least interested in politeness (per 100K residents):

Burnaby, BC – 10,087
Halifax, NS – 7,306
Saskatoon, SK – 6,424
Regina, SK – 6,365
Kelowna, BC – 6,026
London, ON – 6,004
Coquitlam, BC – 5,928
Richmond, BC – 5,716
Guelph, ON – 5,660
Calgary, AB – 5,577

When it comes to the most common polite words in online searches among Canadians, the top word was “cheers” with over 200,000 searches. “Please” came in second place with over 88,000 searches and “cordial” was last at nearly 80,000 searches.

The study also looked into which Canadian cities are most interested in terms of endearment and the coolest slang compliments.

Here are the top five most common terms of endearment in Canada’s online searches:

Honey – 729,650
Angel – 461,760
Love – 390,400
Princess – 335,570
Baby – 328,180

In Toronto, the most popular search term of endearment was “honey.” In Brampton, it was “darling” and in Hamilton it was “hottie.”

Based on the most online searches for these terms per 100,000 residents, the study found that the top three sweetest cities in Canada are:

Burnaby, BC – 44,861
Halifax, NS – 30,037
Vaughan, ON – 26,970

When it comes to the most common slang compliments in Canada, the most popular one was “Gucci” with over 1.3 million searches, followed by “fire” with over 400,000.

Here are the top five most common slang compliments in Canada’s online searches:

Gucci – 1,343,040
Fire – 467,020
Ace – 289,400
Bet – 142,750
Slay – 106,600

In Toronto, “jump for joy” was the most common slang compliment, in Brampton, “Gucci” and in Mississauga “psyched.”

Breanna Marcelo

Writer / Reporter

Culture

‘We’ll see if I get run belly tonight,’ TikToker reviews over the counter Jamaican food at Walmart

Posted 2 days agoRachel Goodman

A TikTok video posted by Canadian Walmart customer @destiinyschild digging into an array of hot, over the counter Jamaican dishes is gaining momentum online.

“I’m about to try some Caribbean food, some Jamaican food…from Walmart,” the creator of the video says to the camera, before selecting a pack of three chicken patties, priced at $5, and Oxtail.

“I don’t know what I was expecting, but it’s actually not that bad,” the creator says, after biting into a cut of Oxtail.

The creator of the video shared in the comments that she found the Jamaican food, which she described as “not authentic” but enjoyable, at the Walmart in Square One mall in Mississauga.

Walmart confirmed to Now Toronto in an email statement that it offers hot meals to go in three of its supercentres in the GTA, including Brampton East, Scarborough and Square One.

“These counters offer global flavours and favourites, which can include Jamaican cuisine, that we hope will continue to delight our local customers. There may be some differences in what is offered in each store,” the statement said.

Some TikTok users seemed hesitant to try the supermarket’s take on the classic Jamaican dishes.

“Idk this scares me,” one user commented.

“We’ll see if I get run belly tonight,” the creator of the video responded.

Others appeared over the moon.

“Fine, I’ll move to Canada,” another user wrote.

“I saw this at Walmart, I couldn’t believe it, God bless you for being our guinea pig,” another person wrote.

Rachel Goodman

Writer / Reporter