It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Sunday, April 24, 2022
Starbucks eyes changes to mobile app after order deluge fuels barista burnout
Former Couche-Tard exec Deb Hall Lefevre tapped by CEO Howard Schultz as chief technology officer
Author of the article: Hilary Russ
Apr 22, 2022
NEW YORK — Starbucks has hired a former McDonald’s executive to oversee technology as returning CEO Howard Schultz explores changes to the coffee chain’s drive-thru, mobile order-and-pay and other systems.
Deb Hall Lefevre will become Starbuck’s chief technology officer on May 2, according to a spokesperson. She takes over for Hans Melotte, who served as interim CTO for five months.
Changes are likely to include increasing personalization in the company’s mobile app for customers, as well as improvements to systems for employee training, scheduling and equipment maintenance to free up baristas to spend more time with customers, a Starbucks spokesperson said, adding Lefevre was not available to comment.
Hiring a CTO with experience in restaurants and retail will ensure that digital transactions run smoothly, which became particularly important during the pandemic as more customers flocked to mobile apps and new payment systems, said Chas Hermann, a consultant and former vice president of marketing at Starbucks.
Schultz “wants to have someone that can really run the engine in the car,” Hermann said. “But the driver in the seat will be Howard.”
As he returns to the CEO role for the third time, Schultz is plotting a broader corporate overhaul that also includes improved employee benefits aimed at deflating a ballooning union organizing effort at hundreds of cafes, which has been driven in part by barista burnout from a deluge of mobile orders.
Schultz already freed up potentially billions of dollars for investments by suspending share buybacks. When Starbucks reports earnings on May 3, investors will look to see if the company cuts its guidance and if price hikes have offset rising costs. The coffee chain missed sales and profit estimates last quarter and its stock has since fallen another 20 per cent and is down nearly 33 per cent for the year.
“We have to reimagine the customer experience….We have to reimagine mobile-order-and-pay, the drive-thru,” Schultz said in an April 11 video message to store managers and seen by Reuters.
At McDonald’s Corp, Lefevre oversaw all aspects of technology for its roughly 14,000 U.S. restaurants — helping launch its first app, introducing kiosks where customers place their own orders, launching digital menu boards — before moving in 2017 to Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the global operator of Circle K and other convenience stores.
Under her watch, Circle K launched trials of automated checkout systems at stores in Arizona — similar to Starbucks’ first cashier-less location that it opened with Amazon Go in New York City in November.
"Dangerously Terrifying": Canadian poet Rupi Kaur's book banned in Texas
Daily Hive Staff Apr 24 2022 rupikaur_/Instagram Book bans in Texas are affecting Canada, where one author is deeply troubled by young people no longer having the same access to their work.
On Friday, April 22, Canadian poet Rupi Kaur shared video clip of an interview she did with ABC News Live on her Instagram account after her work was banned in Texas.
“It breaks my heart,” Kaur said in the interview about the ban.
“It’s kind of disturbing to see the way those poems, our experiences about the abuse that we endure, are the reason that this book is being banned.”
“Over the last few months, parts of Texas and Oregon have banned or attempted to ban Milk and Honey from schools and libraries. Why? Because it explores sexual assault and violence experienced by a young woman,” Kaur wrote.
Over three million copies of Milk and Honey, a book of poems and short stories, have been sold worldwide since it was published in 2014. Now, Kaur says that being banned in Texas is “scary,” but they hope they can continue working with teachers and librarians to get it unbanned.
“The banning of Milk and Honey along with an ever-growing list of literature is dangerously terrifying. Banning books is the banning of culture and experiences for everybody,” she wrote in her post. Kaur is about to embark on a world tour that will take her to numerous Canadian cities, so it’s a perfect opportunity to support the author.
According to a report from Pen America, censorship in the US has “expanded rapidly” in the last nine months.
“In Texas, politicians have been especially assertive in exercising pressure to scrutinize school books,” reads the report. “Resorting to draconian tactics of banning books, silencing writers, and attempting to erase stories and communities represents an unacceptable attack on First Amendment freedoms fundamental to democracy,” concluded the report.
Here's when Canadians can catch the Blood Flower Moon total eclipse
The Canadian skies are set to be extra captivating in May 2022.
During the total eclipse, the moon will be shrouded in darkness, hidden from the sun’s light by the earth’s shadow.
When is the next lunar eclipse?
The next total eclipse of the moon is happening on May 15, 2022.
“The Moon will enter the penumbra at 9:31 pm EDT on May 15 (6:31 PM PDT) and leave it at 2:52 am EDT on May 16 (11:52 pm PDT on May 15),” said the Farmers’ Almanac. Where is the lunar eclipse visible?
The lunar eclipse on May 15, 2022, will be visible in most of Canada. According to Wonders of Astronomy, the East Coast will get a great view as the eclipse begins later at night, while on the West Coast, the eclipse will have already begun as the moon rises.
Wonders of Astronomy
This eclipse will last for 84-minutes in total. Thankfully, you don’t have to wake up at 3 am for a chance to see this spectacular lunar event.
Of course, the weather will have to cooperate for people in Canada to get a chance to see it, and ideal conditions would be clear skies. Why is it called the blood flower moon?
This May, the full moon is called the blood flower moon. The origin of the “flower” part of its name is because May is the time of year when lots of flowers are blooming.
“Blood” comes from the dark, rusty red colour the moon takes on as it changes from gleaming white to red during the eclipse.
According to WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com, “the colours of a “Blood Moon” are caused by the Earth’s atmosphere, which sent some scattered and bent sunlight onto the lunar surface.”
Curious to learn more about the coming eclipse? You can watch an animation of what the eclipse will look like across Canada.
Slavery protesters target royal tour in St Vincent Earl and Countess of Wessex met with a frosty welcome amid demands for reparations
Protesters in St Vincent and Grenadines at the arrival of The Earl and the Countess of Wessex.
Photograph: Kenton X Chance/I-Witness News
Kenton Chance in Kingstown, St Vincent, and Shanti Das
Sat 23 Apr 2022
When the Queen visited St Vincent and the Grenadines in 1985, she was met with a jamboree, the prime minister presented her with a commemorative gold coin and residents lined the streets waving flags.
During a trip to the Caribbean island nation on Saturday, her son and daughter in law have received a somewhat frostier welcome.
After a red carpet arrival in the capital Kingstown, to a steel band playing One Love by Bob Marley, the Earl and Countess of Wessex were confronted by protesters calling for slave trade reparations.
Idesha Jackson, 47, was among a crowd of about 20 in the farming village of Diamond, where Prince Edward had travelled to watch athletes training for the Commonwealth Games.
She said she was there to show her “disgust and disappointment” for those who “over 400 years, had to suffer the slave master’s whip”.
“This wrong was done against a sector of the human race by another and this wrong must be compensated,” Jackson said.
Theo Thomas, 69, who travelled to the protest from the Lowmans Hill community on the other side of the country criticised his government for permitting the visit.
“It’s a shame that a so-called progressive government would be using our people as props to entertain members of the royal family and there has been no conversation about reparations,” he said.
Jomo Thomas, a former chair of the St Vincent and the Grenadines National Reparations Committee, was also among protesters. He called for reparations from Britain.
“They hunted us down, they kidnapped us, they stole us, they worked us. They owe us and they must now pay us,” he said. The protests are the latest controversy to mar recent Royal visits to the area.
Prince Edward presents medals to the T10 Cricket team at the Montreal Gardens Bloomers at Arnos Vale Playing Field.
And last week Prince Edward and Sophie’s visit to Grenada was abruptly called off. Grenada’s Reparations Commission on slavery had wished to meet the couple.
The next leg of the Wessexes’ tour will take them to Antigua and Barbuda, where things could become even bumpier. The local Reparations Support Commission chairman Dorbrene O’Marde has warned more protests are likely.
Protesters in Kingstown greet the Royal couple.
Photograph: Kenton X Chance/I-Witness News
In an open letter, the commission accused the royal family and British government of coming to the Caribbean to “lament that slavery was an ‘appalling atrocity’, that it was ‘abhorrent’, that ‘it should not have happened’.”
“We hear the phoney sanctimony of those who came before you that these crimes are a ‘stain on your history’,” the letter said. “For us, they are the source of genocide and of continuing deep international injury, injustice and racism. We hope you will respect us by not repeating the mantra. We are not simpletons.”
In the UK, the National Council of St Vincent and the Grenadines urged the royals to rethink future visits to the Caribbean.
“We as a community feel that the royal family and Buckingham Palace must rethink the future of royal tours following previous visits, given their involvement in the treatment of people of colour,” a spokesperson said. “Feelings were running very high after the last visit to the Caribbean. What’s changed?”
Royal Family face backlash on second Caribbean tour in a month as locals protest over slavery and colonialism
The Earl and Countess of Wessex are visiting the Caribbean just a month after Prince William and Kate Middleton
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Sophie, Countess of Wessex
at Government House on April 23, 2022 in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and The Grenadines
(Image: Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
The Royal Family are facing a strong backlash and calls for an end to colonialism after a second tour of the Caribbean in less than a month. The Earl and Countess of Wessex, Prince Edward and wife Sophie, are currently in the Caribbean but have not been met with a welcome reception.
The royals had already been forced to cancel one leg of their trip to Grenada amid protests over Britain's record on slavery and reparations, with the Royal Family being warned about engagements which may seem tokenistic or ineffective when it comes to the legacy of slavery.
Now the couple has come face to face with anti-colonial and anti-commonwealth protesters as they arrived at Government House in St Vincent and the Grenadines. A group of protesters holding signs which read "Britain your debt is outstanding", "reparation now", "compensation now" and "down with neo colonialism" lined the road to coincide with the royals' arrival in the country.
The Cambridges faced particular criticism for greeting Jamaicans from behind a wire fence
(Image: Samir Hussein/Getty Images)
Separately, the Antigua and Barbuda Reparations Support Commission has released an open letter which said it had become "common for members of the Royal Family and representatives of the government of Britain to come to this region and lament that slavery was an 'appalling atrocity', that it was 'abhorrent', that 'it should not have happened'".
The letter added: "We hear the phony sanctimony of those who came before you that these crimes are a 'stain on your history'."
Last month the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge undertook a tour of the Caribbean as part of the Queen's Royal Jubilee celebrations - but faced strong criticism for what many termed an "insensitive" and "tone-deaf" tour. In particular photos of the royal couple passing dozens of impoverished children in Jamaica who were crammed against a wire fence were widely condemned.
They were also slammed as old-fashioned after a photo opportunity in the back of a 4x4 which imitated a similar photo shoot the Queen undertook on a previous visit to the Caribbean.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge undertook a 15-day tour (Image: Paul Edwards - Pool/Getty Images)
They too faced Caribbean citizens protesting for proper reparations for the slave trade from the UK and signs reading "apologise". Prince William did address the 'abhorrent' legacy of slavery in a speech on the tour, but many felt this stopped short of a full apology.
Before the most recent protest, Edward and Sophie were given their second red carpet and guard of honour of the tour after landing in St Vincent and the Grenadines. The couple are due to visit Antigua and Barbuda on a later leg of the tour.
It's official! This is the hottest rock ever recorded on Earth
Cheryl Santa Maria Digital Reporter
Friday, April 22nd 2022, 4:05 pm - The findings could help researchers better pinpoint the locations of other hot rocks.
In 2011, then-Ph.D. student Michael Zanetti was working on a Canadian Space Agency-funded project in Newfoundland and Labrador's Mistasten Crater, a 28-kilometre wide area created when an asteroid hit Earth 36 million years ago.
During that expedition, Zanetti picked up a piece of rock, which was studied and first documented in 2017. In that paper scientists proposed it formulated at temperatures of 2,370°C during the violent asteroid impact. That's a temperature hotter than much of Earth's mantle, and would make it the hottest rock ever discovered on Earth.
A sample of glass that recorded at 2,370 degrees Celsius. Photo credit: Gavin Tolometti.
The conclusion is based on mineral analysis led by researchers from Western University, led by postdoctoral researcher Gavin Tolometti. His team sampled four additional zircon samples from the Mistastin crater to confirm the 2017 findings.
Zircon is a hard mineral that crystallizes under high heat and is commonly used as a diamond substitute.
The four zircon samples were taken from different types of rocks in the crater and from separate locations, to help paint a clearer picture of how the ancient impact heated the ground.
The results showed the zircons formed in temperatures of at least 2,370 degrees Celsius. The research could help scientists better pinpoint where to look for evidence of other hotspots.
"We're starting to realize that if we're wanting to find evidence of temperatures this high, we need to look at specific regions instead of randomly selecting across an entire crater," Tolometti said in a statement.
The results could also provide insight into the impact cratering process on the moon and elsewhere.
“It can be a step forward to try and understand how rocks have been modified by impact cratering across the entire solar system," Tolometti said.
"This data can then be applied into impact models to improve the results that we get.”
Discovery of dead birds prompts warning from Town of Coaldale
File photo of the sign for the Town of Coaldale.
(Lethbridge News Now) By Cathy Gibson
Apr 22, 2022 |
COALDALE, AB — The Town of Coaldale has issued a notice to residents after receiving reports of dead Canadian Geese in the area.
Town officials are concerned that the deaths may be connected to the highly pathogenic avian flu outbreaks that are affecting wild bird populations and commercial poultry operations across North America.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is currently investigating dozens of infections across the country.
The town is warning residents to stay away from any dead birds. Coaldale Mayor Jack Van Rijn says if you find a dead bird, don’t touch it. He recommends keeping children and pets away from the carcass and any droppings, and contacting the town office.
“We’ve dealt with this in the past,” says Van Rijn, “and we have people that are trained with our Parks Department to look after this, and we will pick up the dead animals and take them to a secure area. Then we’ll be in contact with Alberta Fish and Wildlife to talk about disposal.”
The current avian flu strain that is circulating is highly contagious among birds, so any spread presents a high risk to poultry producers in the area.
“As far as the avian influenza in this area, it’s very serious,” adds Van Rijn. “It doesn’t only affect municipalities like the town of Coaldale. It has huge impacts on poultry farms, and there are many that are affected across the country already. So, again, the town of Coaldale wants to be proactive and get the messaging out to our residents to be very cautious when they come across any dead birds.”
People are also being asked not to take any potentially infected birds to the local Birds of Prey Centre in Coaldale because of the possible risk of spreading the disease.
The CFIA says avian influenza (AI) can affect several species of birds, including poultry raised for food production, as well as pet birds and wild birds.
That’s why one of the founders of the Alberta Birds of Prey Foundation, Colin Weir, says he is concerned about the potential risk to the Coaldale facility.
“For the centre, I’m very, very concerned,” says Weir, ” because we don’t know if we’re going to be taking in any injured birds or not this summer. Of course, we’re always concerned about the health and welfare of our birds going forward. So, just because there’s so many unknowns about it, and how prevalent it’s going to be, we’re just keeping a watchful eye on what is happening, and then just trying to minimize the exposure ourselves.”
The CFIA says AI viruses are classified into two categories: low pathogenicity and high pathogenicity based on how severe the illness is in birds. In Canada, both types are are considered to be Notifiable Avian Influenza, which is a reportable disease under the Health of Animals Act. Therefore, all cases must be reported to the CFIA.
Canada eyes new measures to protect economy from national security threats
WORKING TO PROTECT ECONOMY
The Canadian Press - Apr 24, 2022 | Story: 366895
Photo: The Canadian Press
Caution tape is seen around the front lawn of Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Tuesday July 7, 2020.
New measures to ensure Canada doesn't export sensitive technology to foreign adversaries are among the changes being eyed by Ottawa to bolster the country's economic security.
Other possibilities include making it easier to fine companies that fail to comply with investment screening rules and mapping supply chains to identify critical vulnerabilities, according to a federal consultation paper.
The paper, released through the Access to Information Act, was circulated to key parties in industry, academia and civil society last spring to canvass views on better protecting Canada from hostile players out to exploit the country's technologically advanced sectors.
Public Safety Canada is expected to publish a summary of the feedback shortly.
The paper says Canada benefits from the vast majority of the foreign investment in the country, trade in Canadian goods and technology, and research partnerships between foreign organizations and Canadian universities and research institutions.
However, it adds, some foreign states and non-state actors try to acquire technologies or forge commercial partnerships that can potentially jeopardize Canada's national security and long-term economic prosperity.
"Canadian companies, in almost all sectors of our economy, have been targeted."
The frequency and sophistication of state-sponsored threat activity is increasing, the consultation paper adds.
Threats come in the form of espionage, theft and cyberattacks.
But the government warns they can also be waged covertly in otherwise legal transactions such as foreign investments in sectors and industries integral to Canada's security, or the purchase or transfer of sensitive goods, technology and know-how that are currently not subject to export controls.
Other threats involve the purchase of controlled goods and intellectual property through front companies, brokers or others that misrepresent the end use, as well as foreign-funded partnerships between Canadian researchers and entities linked to adversaries.
The consultation paper does not mention specific countries of concern. However, Canadian security officials have long warned that Russia and China, in particular, target Canada's classified information and advanced technology.
Even so, the exercise is intended to ensure Canada's approach is effective in responding to threats, no matter the source.
Among the federal suggestions:
— Creation of a continuously updated list of businesses, research institutions, governments and people subject to specific export permit requirements to help Canadian businesses feel more secure in knowing their goods are not being shipped to a buyer of concern;
— more flexible or even stiffer penalties for breaching investment screening rules intended to protect Canada from national security threats;
— government help to companies to better understand vulnerabilities in their global supply networks for procuring goods;
— and providing federal venture capital to sensitive technology firms to get around the need for foreign investment from potentially risky sources.
The government has spearheaded the creation of national security guidelines to help protect federally funded research.
The recent federal budget included almost $160 million over five years, starting in 2022-23, and $33 million ongoing, to implement the guidelines fully, largely through work with colleges and universities.
The consultation paper also asks how various levels of government can better co-operate to safeguard sensitive and emerging goods and technologies, critical infrastructure and personal data.
Cybersecurity is a vitally important issue that affects businesses large and small since breaches can mean losses to customer privacy as well as operational productivity, said Mark Agnew, senior vice-president for policy and government relations at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
"So that one really stands out to me as such an important part of the conversation around the threats to national security."
Q:WHAT CAUSES INFLATION?
'Eye-popping': 90-year-old Burnaby house sells for $568K over the asking price
Have you thought about selling your home right now?
The latest example as far as sales go is a 90-year-old house on 12th Avenue that has a charming entrance and just sold for $2,168,000 – which is an eye-popping $568,000 over the asking price.
Another day, another really old house selling for huge money as the Burnaby real estate market stays hot.
More people are putting their old houses up for sale because they are getting good value for these homes. It's a really good time to sell your house, it seems. Someone has put a 55-year-old house up for sale on Government Road for just under $4 million - far more than many modern marble palaces are being priced at.
The latest example as far as sales go is a 90-year-old house on 12th Avenue that has a charming entrance and just sold for $2,168,000 – which is an eye-popping $568,000 over the asking price.
The house sold after just a week on the market. The house is deceptively large at more than 3,100 square feet and with six bedroom. The lot size is a little over 7,150 square feet.
The place has been lovingly cared for an updated in several areas of the home.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver's monthly report for March shows that two out of three Burnaby areas surpassed the $2-million mark for a benchmark price last month.
Burnaby South currently sits at a benchmark price of $2,067,100 (+4.2% in one month) while Burnaby North was at $2,021,400 (+4.9% in one month).
Burnaby East stayed under $2 million at $1,776,300 (+2.7% in one month).
Meanwhile, a forecast published by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation noted that, despite the expected moderation in prices and the number of sales throughout Canada, costs growth will continue to outpace income growth in several major cities – placing “greater pressure on the affordability of home ownership.”
“Improving levels of employment and immigration are expected to be key factors, as the impact of pandemic restrictions continues to recede,” said CMHC chief economist Bob Dugan in a statement about sales, prices and housing starts remaining elevated in 2022. “In 2023 and 2024, the growth in prices will trend closer to long-run averages, with sales and starts activity expected to remain above 5- and 10-year averages.”
The report paints the same picture for Metro Vancouver, Canada’s most expensive real estate market. According to the CMHC outlook, price growth of homes should slow down this year from the blistering pace seen in 2020 and 2021 – but immigration-driven demand and rising debt servicing costs will lead to a worsening of affordability.
CMHC projects the growth rate of home prices in the Greater Vancouver region will not continue on its double-digit rate beyond Q1 2022, and the rate of growth in prices will actually fall to below 5% year-over-year by 2023.
With files from Jess Balzer and the Canadian Press
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
Canadians find other ways to grow wealth as housing escapes them
Iva Poshnjari, BNN Bloomberg Published Wednesday, February 2, 2022
Across the country, housing markets continue to soar beyond the reach of many. For most Canadians, the price of buying a home is completely unaffordable. For others, the large debt incurred from a mortgage is no longer justifiable.
Some potential buyers are walking away from the housing market and finding new investment strategies to grow what would have been a down payment. They are choosing to focus on stocks, art and alternative investments to appreciate their wealth.
Trevor Scott, president at the hedge fund Tidefall Capital, is well aware of the uncertainties that the stock market can bring, but still chooses to invest in it instead of purchasing a home in Canada.
A real estate sold sign is shown in Oakville, Ont., on Sunday, Dec.20, 2020. A topsy-turvy real estate market has opened up new opportunities for first-time home buyers this year — but those seeking to take advantage still face major hurdles.
“The advantage of Canadian stocks today is their high free cash flow yields relative to interest rates. This is the opposite of real estate which has record low rental yields, making renting attractive,” Scott said.
Scott pointed to investment opportunities that can be found in index funds that track the TSX, which is comprised mainly of financials and natural resources — both of which are positioned to do well during inflationary times, he noted.
While price spikes might boost many stocks found within the TSX, it should be noted that deflation and recession also go hand-in-hand, along with a drop in equities.
Sky-high prices for living in Canada gave Scott another reason to favour stocks over real estate. And then there's the risk of rising interest rates, he said.
While the Bank of Canada did hold interest rates steady at January’s meeting, Governor Tiff Macklem made it clear that interest rates are coming.
“If rates increase, a lot of these mortgages on million-dollar homes would be difficult to carry,” Scott added.
He's not the only one who feels this way.
Colby Mintram, a partner at Volt Strategic Partners, also jumped into the stock market after he decided it would be more advantageous than buying a home.
“I’m not paying $1 million to own a one-bedroom apartment,” he said.
Mintram justifies renting versus owning a home in this market through the healthy returns he receives from a mixture of U.S. equities, dividend stocks, alongside put and call options.
“I’m able to make more money investing in stocks than I would have if I sunk all that cash into a mortgage,” he explained.
Market intel is a lot more accessible now than it was 30 years ago, which informs Mintram on how to make money, he said.
If trading stocks is the traditional way to make money in the markets, investors have now found new vehicles like non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and cryptocurrencies to further their returns.
This is the avenue that Amir Parsa Yazdi decided to take.
Yazdi, a 27-year-old who works in data analytics, took his hobby of trading physical sports cards and expanded it into digital collectibles.
“I doubled down on alternative rare collectables and digital formats of cards and art instead of using my money to buy a home,” he said.
Yazdi said he grew his portfolio of digital and collectable assets — including NFTs like NBA Top Shot cards and Beeple art pieces — to roughly $50,000 from less than $10,000 over the course of the last 24 months.
The boom in digital art has also helped usher in young investors to the physical art world, said Brian Liss, the founder of Liss Gallery in Toronto, which saw a 20 per cent increase in sales last year driven by younger clients.
“Millennials are spending anywhere between US$500 to US$30,000 on some of our art pieces," Liss said.
Art as an alternative investment is one trend that even real estate firms see as a good opportunity.
While remaining committed to buying and selling real estate just outside Canadian city cores, Shaminder Gogna, the founder of Condoville, has placed under 25 per cent of his firm’s funds in physical art to hold until the housing market looks more attractive.
Condoville is also eyeing foreign real estate for clients where the pricing makes more sense.
The average cost of a home in Canada remained historically high in the month of December, at $713,500. That’s up 17.7 per cent from the same time in 2020, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.
In the country’s more populated areas, the costs have risen even further.
As of December 2021, the average home price in the GTA was $1,157,849, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board.
Vancouver home prices went for $1,910,200 on average for the month of December 2021, according to The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.
Younger clients who waited for a pullback to happen two years ago have found that the market has now completely run away from them, said Mark Salerno, owner of Salerno Realty.
“Every house under $2 million is in a bidding war, and it’s simply because there is no inventory,” Sonata said.
One way for buyers to get their hands on real estate without actually buying a home is through a real estate investment trust (REIT).
Avenue Living Asset Management, a firm that oversees $3.2 billion in real estate assets, has noticed eligible investors flocking to several of its alternative fund offerings. That includes multi-family, residential, agricultural, and storage real estate, explained Jason Jogia, the firm’s chief investment officer.
This is one option, outside of direct ownership of real estate, that provides renters the chance to hedge against inflation, he added.
“Young people need to have a shot at real estate exposure in some capacity, so that generational wealth doesn’t escape them,” Jogia said.
Breakthrough in estimating fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions
Weybourne Atmospheric Observatory, Norfolk, UK. Credit: Grant Foster
A team of scientists led by the University of East Anglia (UEA) has made a major breakthrough in detecting changes in fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions more quickly and frequently.
In a study published today they quantified regional fossil fuel CO2 emissions reductions during the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020–2021, using atmospheric measurements of CO2 and oxygen (O2) from the Weybourne Atmospheric Observatory, on the north Norfolk coast in the U.K.
The estimate uses a new method for separating CO2 signals from land plants and fossil fuels in the atmosphere. Previously it has not been possible to quantify changes in regional-scale fossil fuel CO2 emissions with high accuracy and in near real-time.
Existing atmospheric-based methods have largely been unsuccessful at separating fossil fuel CO2 from large natural CO2 variability, so that estimates of changes, such as those occurring in response to the lockdowns, must rely on indirect data sources, which can take months or years to compile.
The atmospheric O2-based method, published in the journal Science Advances, is in good agreement with three lower frequency U.K. emissions estimates produced during the pandemic by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Global Carbon Budget and Carbon Monitor, which used different methods and combinations of data, for example those based on energy usage.
Crucially, as well as being completely independent of the other estimates, this approach can be calculated much more quickly.
The researchers are also able to detect changes in emissions with higher frequency, such as daily estimates, and can clearly see two periods of reductions associated with two U.K. lockdown periods, separated by a period of emissions recovery when COVID restrictions were eased, during the summer of 2020.
Researchers at UEA—home of the U.K.'s only high-precision atmospheric O2 measurement laboratory—worked with colleagues at Wageningen University in the Netherlands and the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Germany.
The study's lead author, Dr. Penelope Pickers, of UEA's Center for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, said: "If humans are to reduce our CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and our impact on the climate, we first need to know how much emissions are changing.
"Our study is a major achievement in atmospheric science. Several others, based solely on CO2 data, have been unsuccessful, owing to large emissions from land plants, which obscure fossil fuel CO2 signals in the atmosphere.
"Using atmospheric O2 combined with CO2 to isolate fossil fuel CO2 in the atmosphere has enabled us to detect and quantify these important signals using a 'top-down' approach for the first time. Our findings indicate that a network of continuous measurement sites has strong potential for providing this evaluation of fossil fuel CO2 at regional levels."
Currently, fossil fuel CO2 emissions are officially reported with a "bottom-up" approach, using accounting methods that combine emission factors with energy statistics to calculate emissions.
These are then compiled into national inventories of estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to the atmosphere from anthropogenic sources and activities, such as domestic buildings, vehicles, and industrial processes.
However, inventories can be inaccurate, especially in less developed countries, which makes it more difficult to meet climate targets.
It can also take years for the inventory assessments to be completed, and at the regional scale, or on a monthly or weekly basis, the uncertainties are much larger.
An alternative method of estimating GHG emissions is to use a "top-down" approach, based on atmospheric measurements and modeling.
The U.K. emissions inventory is already successfully informed and supported by independent top-down assessments for some key GHGs, such as methane and nitrous oxide.
But for CO2, the most important GHG for climate change, this has never before been feasible, because of the difficulties distinguishing between CO2 emissions from fossil fuels and land plant sources in the atmosphere.
Dr. Pickers said: "The time taken for inventories to be completed makes it hard to characterize changes in emissions that happen suddenly, such as the reductions associated with the COVID pandemic lockdowns.
"We need reliable fossil fuel CO2 emissions estimates quickly and at finer scales, so that we can monitor and inform climate change policies to prevent reaching 2°C of global warming.
"Our O2-based approach is cost-effective and provides high frequency information, with the potential to provide fossil fuel CO2 estimates quickly and at finer spatial scales, such as for counties, states or cities."
The team used 10 years of high-precision, hourly measurements of atmospheric O2 and CO2 from Weybourne Atmospheric Observatory, which are supported by the U.K.'s National Center for Atmospheric Science. Having long-term measurements of these climatically important gases was crucial to the success of the study.
To detect a COVID signal, they had to first remove the effects of atmospheric transport on their O2 and CO2 datasets, using a machine learning model.
They trained the machine learning model on pre-pandemic data, to estimate the fossil fuel CO2 they would have expected to observe at Weybourne if the pandemic had never occurred.
They then compared this estimate to the fossil fuel CO2 that was actually observed during 2020-2021, which revealed the relative reduction in CO2 emissions.
"Novel quantification of regional fossil fuel CO2 reductions during COVID-19 lockdowns using atmospheric oxygen measurements," by Penelope A. Pickers et al., is published in Science Advances on Friday, April 22, 2022Video: Counting carbon
Britain's ETS CO2 emissions reached 107.8 million tonnes in 2021
By Reuters • Updated: 22/04/2022
LONDON -Carbon dioxide emissions covered by Britain’s emissions trading scheme (ETS) in the first year of its operation in 2021 were 107.8 million tonnes, the UK ETS Authority said.
The UK ETS – a scheme to incentivise big polluters to cut emissions by forcing them to buy permits to release CO2 – replaced the UK’s participation in the European Union’s ETS on Jan. 1, 2021.
It applies to energy intensive industries, the power generation sector and aviation. The first phase of the UK ETS will run until 2030.
UK government data shows that total greenhouse gas emissions in Britain in 2020 were estimated at about 405.5 million tonnes, down around 10% from the previous year, of which CO2 emissions made up around 79% of the total.
“As a result of changes to aviation and stationary scope, UK ETS emissions and UK emissions under the EU ETS are not directly comparable,” the UK ETS Authority said.
Under the EU scheme, emissions for aviation operators are recorded by origin of operator. But under the UK ETS, the rules capture UK domestic flights, flights between the UK and Gibraltar, and flights departing the UK to the European Economic Area by all aircraft operators, regardless of country of origin.
We can now tell how much CO2 in the air is due to fossil fuel burning
A way of distinguishing between natural carbon dioxide emissions and those from burning fossil fuels could help cities and countries monitor their progress in cutting emissions
A way of directly measuring the carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels could help cities and countries monitor their efforts to reduce emissions in near real time.
“We are in a shrinking window of time to do this, so I think we really need to know what the situation is as quickly and as accurately as possible,” says Penelope Pickers at the University of East Anglia, UK.
At present, governments and research organisations estimate countries’ overall emissions based on data such as how much oil or gas has been sold. While initial estimates are often made fairly quickly, it can take years to fully compile this information and estimates can vary substantially.
Measuring fossil fuel emissions directly would help confirm the accuracy of these inventory-based estimates and reveal more quickly if emission-reduction policies are working or not. It could also enable us to track how much specific regions or cities are emitting.
But such measurements are extremely difficult, because plants take up or release varying amounts of CO2 as the seasons shift and weather changes. It is like standing on a beach and immediately trying to tell whether the tide is going in or out, as waves are constantly coming and going.
So, while the long-term global rise in atmospheric CO2 due to human activity – from around 280 parts per million before the industrial revolution to nearly 420 ppm today – is crystal clear, the short-term, regional picture is much less so.
Researchers have tried various ways of directly measuring fossil fuel emissions. One is to determine what proportion of CO2 is in the form of the radioactive isotope carbon-14, which isn’t found in fossil fuels because it decays over time, and oil and gas supplies are millions of years old. But this requires the collection of samples in flasks, so continuous measurement isn’t possible. What’s more, some types of nuclear reactors emit carbon-14, obscuring the picture.
Pickers’s team has used an alternative approach based on measuring both atmospheric oxygen and CO2 simultaneously. When plant matter is used as food, or it decays or burns, the ratio of the oxygen lost from the atmosphere to increased CO2 is around 1.1. For coal, it is around 1.2 and for gas it is 2.
The researchers used measurements taken at the Weybourne Atmospheric Observatory on the Norfolk coast to calculate emissions from the southern UK since 2020. They used machine learning to estimate how changes in weather and wind direction affect oxygen and CO2 levels in the area.
The team was able to detect falls in fossil fuel emissions during the first and second covid-19 lockdowns in England. “Covid has been a great example of a quite sudden, abrupt change,” says Pickers.
With around four observatories, it would be possible to measure emissions from Britain, she says. More would be needed to monitor individual cities.
The study makes a strong case that the method is effective, says Brad Weir at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland. But building monitoring stations around the world would take a lot of time and money, he says.
“If we are going to have a fossil-fuel-carbon-monitoring system, it’s going to start with satellites,” says Weir.
His team reported last year that falls in carbon dioxide emissions due to the pandemic were detectable using existing CO2-sensing satellites, and there are plans to launch more missions focused on detecting this gas in the coming years.
Pickers says the problem with satellites is that they can’t detect CO2 through clouds and can’t distinguish between biological and fossil fuel emissions. Instead, satellite estimates rely on computer models of natural processes to determine fossil fuel emissions.
But these models are informed by data and can be highly accurate, says Weir, who points out that Pickers’s team relies on the “black box” of machine learning.
Ultimately, the best results may come from using all the different methods. “We should go for a combined approach,” says Pickers.
“We are going to have to integrate all of these observations,” says Weir.
