Ukrainian Guide to Winnipeg directory puts focus on area businesses, services run by Ukrainians

A new online directory brings together Ukrainian-owned businesses and service providers in Winnipeg.

The brainchild of Mila Shykota, a provincial government worker who immigrated to Winnipeg in 2022 after Russia invaded her native Ukraine, the directory features 138 businesses — a number she says she adds to every day.

“I came up with the idea a year ago, when I initiated a project at work celebrating our diversity, since our team is very multicultural,” Shykota said on Friday.

She invited co-workers to represent their own country in some way, be it cuisine, culture or heritage. She said when she was preparing her own presentation, she decided to collect data on all of the Ukrainian restaurants and souvenir boutiques in Winnipeg so her colleagues could experience her culture.

Moscow businesses struggle as Russia restricts cellphone internet services

MOSCOW (AP) — Many foreign websites were blocked Friday on mobile phones in central Moscow under restrictions that have gripped the Russian capital for more than a week, derailing the routine of millions of residents and slamming businesses that rely on cellphone internet.

Russian authorities have said the restrictions are part of security measures to fend off Ukrainian drone attacks, but many industry experts suspect they are part of preparations by the authorities to block Russians' access to the global web if the Kremlin decides to do so.

The intermittent shutdowns, which had previously been recorded in dozens of Russia’s regions for months, have prompted some Moscow residents to turn to long-forgotten gadgets like walkie talkies, pagers and media players.

The shutdowns are part of multipronged efforts by the authorities to rein in the internet. They have adopted restrictive laws and banned websites and platforms that don’t comply. Technology also has been perfected to monitor and manipulate online traffic.

Canada, Manitoba lagging behind promise to meet 2030 target of protecting more land and water

There are just four years left on the clock for Manitoba — and the rest of the country — to meet a promise to conserve 30 per cent of land and water by 2030.

But halfway through the timeline adopted at the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity in 2022, Canada has made little progress, adding less than one percentage point to its protected land tally and three points to its protected waters.

The country needs to double its protected areas to meet its target, known as 30-by-30. But conservation groups, including the Wilderness Committee and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, warn progress could stall even further as federal funding for conservation initiatives is set to run out at the end of the month — and there’s no indication it will be renewed.

“We have a conservation economy that we can build on, that gives local jobs, that helps honour our Indigenous reconciliation commitments,” Sandra Schwartz, national executive director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, said.

The sidelines: perhaps the safest place to be

The military power of the United States — and of Israel — is brought to bear on Iran, and the Canadian response is well, muted. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

End the ban: France backs return of intellectually disabled athletes to Winter Paralympics

LANS-EN-VERCORS, France (AP) — On a well-groomed, snow-covered slope in the Montagnes de Lans ski area near the French city of Grenoble, a group of Alpine skiers take aggressive lines through the gates. Their trajectories are precise, the tempo is fast and the technique polished.

Among this competition squad are world champions — some with multiple medals to their names.

Yet none will line up in the starting gates at the Milan Cortina Paralympic Games, where more than 650 athletes will compete in 79 medal events from March 6.

The reason? They have cognitive disabilities and are not eligible to compete.

Chief says more funding needed to repair homes after power outage, flooding

A northern First Nation hit by a days-long power outage and subsequent water crisis is seeking additional government funds to cover the cost of mould and asbestos removal in homes.

Pimicikamak Cree Nation Chief David Monias said Friday there is a shortage of funding to remediate the hazards and bring homes with damage up to code so they are habitable.

“We can’t have (residents) return to a situation where there might be some bacteria or moulding issues that will affect their safety, that affect their health, and possibly cause medical issues that will be made worse because they already have existing health issues,” he said during a virtual call.

Pimicikamak’s leaders said an estimated 1,300 homes were damaged after pipes froze and burst two months ago. Water leaked into basements and crawl spaces. The community’s water and sewage plants were also affected.

Churchill s’expose à l’Hôtel Fort Garry

À peine franchi le seuil de la passerelle arrière de l’emblématique Hôtel Fort Garry, le visiteur est happé par un regard. Immense. Blanc. Perçant. Celui d’un ours polaire saisi à Churchill par le photographe manitobain Jean-Pierre Parenty. Depuis quelques jours à peine, 46 de ses clichés transforment le couloir vitré de l’hôtel en une véritable immersion arctique.

Photographe animalier, Jean-Pierre Parenty s’est spécialisé depuis une dizaine d’années dans la faune canadienne. “Je suis Canadien et j’aime chercher, photographier et représenter la faune canadienne,” confie-t-il.

Né et élevé au Manitoba dans une ferme, Jean-Pierre Parenty nourrit depuis l’enfance une passion pour les animaux et la photographie. “La partie qui m’intéresse et que j’adore, c’est être en nature, chercher des animaux, les trouver et puis essayer de les capturer dans mon appareil photo,” dit-il. S’il a longtemps parcouru le monde, c’est désormais vers le Nord qu’il tourne son objectif, et plus particulièrement vers Churchill, cette localité de la baie d’Hudson capitale mondiale de l’ours polaire.

L’idée de l’exposition est née d’un appel de l’hôtel, il y a environ un an. “L’Hôtel Fort Garry m’a appelé pour créer une galerie dans la passerelle arrière de l’hôtel. Et ils ont demandé que ce soient des photos d’animaux de Churchill,” explique-t-il. Une demande sur mesure pour celui qui fréquente régulièrement la région. “Je vais à Churchill très souvent, donc j’ai beaucoup de photos que j’ai prises là-bas,” souligne le photographe.

Opposition parties back changes to status rules in Indian Act, Liberals say not yet

OTTAWA - All four opposition parties in the House of Commons are backing legislation to change the status rules in the Indian Act to end the "second-generation cutoff."

But the Liberals say that while they support changes to registration eligibility, more consultations with First Nations are needed before the law is amended.

Bill S-2, introduced in the Senate with support from the Liberals, initially sought to restore First Nations status to some 3,500 individuals.

Those individuals' ancestors lost their status before 1985 due to a law that said they could not maintain status if they wanted to vote in federal elections or own property.

Big dreams, cold reality: Buzz builds for Port of Churchill, but risks could outweigh rewards

The marine town of Churchill, cherished for its wildlife, landscapes and history, has recently taken on a new sense of national importance. Plans to expand Canada’s lone deepwater Arctic port on the shores of Hudson Bay have gained momentum — and investment — in the last year as the country looks north for solutions to an unprecedented conflict with its southern neighbour.

Premier Wab Kinew has pitched the Port of Churchill as an answer to Canada’s trade concerns, and a means of galvanizing both provincial and national economies.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has designated a plan to upgrade the port facilities as “transformative,” committing millions in federal dollars to the project and touting its merits in meetings with European trade partners.

In late January, Kinew announced the province was in talks with several companies, including at least one major energy company, about investing in port expansion.

Almost 12% of city parks, open spaces in poor condition: report

Nearly 12 per cent of the city’s parks and open-space assets are in poor or very poor condition and it would cost $108.5 million to replace them, a new city report says.

Data centres and Manitoba: a cautionary tale

Alongside the rapidly expanding use of AI in everyday life, there’s a growing awareness that the technology also comes with extreme, big-picture threats to the things we need more: fresh water, affordable clean energy and a healthy information ecosystem.

Eight of 10 people using bus to get downtown unhappy after system overhaul, BIZ survey reveals

“The level of dissatisfaction — that is dire,” said Coun. Sherri Rollins. “Winnipeggers are… voting with their feet. They’re not taking transit anymore. We’re losing revenue.”

Sikh Canadians say state violence a continued threat as PM prepares to visit India

OTTAWA - Some Canadian Sikhs are calling on the government to take a firmer stand on India as Prime Minister Mark Carney prepares to travel there this week on a mission to expand Canada's non-U.S. trade.

B.C. Sikh activist Moninder Singh, who received a warning from Vancouver police on Sunday about a credible threat to his life, said he suspects that threat is linked to the Indian government.

Singh said this is the first duty-to-warn report he's received from police since 2022. This one is different, he added, because it's the first warning to be extended to his wife and children.

"No other Sikh activist, with a dozen plus of us having (received police warnings) across the country, has had the family brought into it," Singh said in a phone interview with The Canadian Press.

Métis leaders unveil 1920s model dog sled repatriated from Vatican

OTTAWA - Métis leaders on Wednesday unveiled a model dog sled repatriated to their communities after more than a century in the Vatican collection.

The sled, made in the 1920s of leather, wood and glass beads, was one of 62 items repatriated to Indigenous Peoples from the Vatican last year after decades of calls for their return.

“We’re not simply opening a box. We’re welcoming something very special home. We’re beginning a new chapter, a chapter that’s grounded in relationship, kinship and connection,” Métis National Council president Victoria Pruden said during the ceremony.

“These are not artifacts in the Western sense. These are carriers of memory – that Kiyas Kiskiowin Oma – remembering who we are, our memories returning. They hold the imprint of the hands that made them, and the communities who once knew them.”

Social media can be addictive even for adults, but there are ways to cut back

Social media addiction has been compared to casinos, opioids and cigarettes.

While there’s some debate among experts about the line between overuse and addiction, and whether social media can cause the latter, there is no doubt that many people feel like they can’t escape the pull of Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and other platforms.

The companies that designed your favorite apps have an incentive to keep you glued to them so they can serve up ads that make them billions of dollars in revenue. Resisting the pull of the endless scroll, the dopamine hits from short-form videos and the ego boost and validation that come from likes and positive interactions, can seem like an unfair fight. For some people, “rage-bait,” gloomy news and arguing with internet strangers also have an irresistible draw.

Much of the concern around social media addiction has focused on children. But adults are also susceptible to using social media so much that it starts affecting their day-to-day lives.

New report says youth should help guide Ottawa’s campaign against online exploitation

OTTAWA - The federal government should listen to young people as it takes on the problem of online harms, a group of youth advocates told reporters on Parliament Hill Wednesday.

The John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights held a joint press conference with the youth advocates in Ottawa to present a new report. It says current systems aren’t protecting young people in digital spaces.

"Youth are calling for clear federal action," including a national youth advisory council on digital safety, said Blue Vetsch.

The report outlines harms young people are experiencing online, including sexual exploitation and technology-facilitated gender-based violence.

With new American pressure, will Cuba fall?

If you were to listen to many of the commentators, experts and prognosticators, you would think that Cuba is about to collapse.

Homelessness a humanitarian crisis, Rattray says

Jennifer Rattray says few challenges facing Winnipeg are as urgent as the homeless crisis.

“Collectively as a society, as a province, as a city, we need to do better,” the new executive director of End Homelessness Winnipeg told the Free Press.

She says a humanitarian crisis has unfolded on city streets.

“It’s awful,” she says. “We need to do something, and we need to do more than what we’re currently doing.”

Advocate urges feds to update equity act, settle class action with Black employees

OTTAWA - An advocate is urging the federal government to update equity legislation for Black employees and to drop its fight against a discrimination lawsuit that has cost more than $15 million so far.

Nicholas Marcus Thompson, president and CEO of the Black Class Action Secretariat, told The Canadian Press that changes to Canada's Employment Equity Act are long overdue.

In 2023, former labour minister Seamus O'Regan announced two new designated groups would be created under the act for Black and LGBTQ+ people.

The act requires that federally regulated employers, including the public service, take steps to eliminate barriers and maintain proportional representation in the workplace for members of designated groups.

Ukrainian emergency visa holders expected to return after war: immigration department

OTTAWA - Canada's immigration department says it still expects Ukrainians who fled the war with Russia to return to their home country once the conflict ends.

That's in spite of comments from Immigration Minister Lena Diab, who recently acknowledged that many Ukrainians who came to Canada on temporary visas are here to stay.

"Canada and the people that made the decision felt that it would be temporary, which is why they were called temporary programs. We now know it's not temporary," Diab said in a Jan. 26 interview with The Canadian Press.

"They've been here for X number of years, and for the most part, people are working, they're building a life, they have children and so on. So I understand that."

Relationship with city’s icy waterways warms many a Winnipegger’s heart

In summer, a screened porch or gazebo adds another room to Winnipeg houses, full of light and fresh air.

A balcony in a high-rise apartment seems to double the horizon available to residents: it feels like you could step out into the branches of a big old elm or a cottonwood, full of birds.

In the same way, the frozen Assiniboine, Red and Seine rivers add concert hall- and football stadium-sized swathes of space to the city.

The iced-over rivers provide new ways of seeing and understanding this place we call home.