Storybook ending for student warming hut winners

Manitoba’s newest student-designed warming hut doubles as a public awareness campaign for a child advocacy centre.

First Nation’s power-outage misery ‘frozen like a rock’

An army of plumbers, engineers and members of the Canadian Armed Forces are continuing to assess damages after a lengthy power outage at Pimicikamak Cree Nation froze water and sewage pipes.

Chief David Monias said it is going to take months to repair damage to homes and years to install new water and sewage treatment plants and systems.

“They have frozen pipes — the sewage plant is completely frozen,” Monias said Wednesday. “The raw sewage has frozen like rock, it is as hard as rock. There is enough (methane) gas in there that we can’t even enter the building. So they are trying to figure out a way how to air out that building so that they can assess the sewage problem.”

Monias said the experts are going to try to get the water and sewage systems up and running while the community works with government on a longer term solution. He said the plants will eventually need to be decommissioned.

Ribbon Skirt Day leader reflects on changes since her cultural attire was shamed

In Isabella Kulak's home is a box of about a few hundred letters, notes and hand-drawn pictures of ribbon skirts sent to her from across Canada and beyond — fan mail from those who consider her story and the origins of "Ribbon Skirt Day" as inspirational.

"I have like a whole notebook of letters, a whole stack of drawings from all these schools and it makes me feel so happy and it warms my heart," said Isabella, a shy 15-year-old, on a phone call from her home in Kamsack, Sask., located about 270 kilometres east of Regina.

"I do want to eventually write back to them, but I am really busy with school."

After all, the Anishinaabe girl is still a teenager. This past week, she had a volleyball tournament. These next few months, she will be completing Grade 10 and the next big step is on the path to medical school, she said.

Damage estimates spiral as Pimicikamak tries to recover from power outage, deep freeze

The power is back on, but the damage has been done. Water leaks. Burst pipes. Burned houses. And still, more than 4,000 residents of Pimicikamak Cree Nation are forced out of their homes, with no clear timeline of when they’ll be able to return.

On Saturday, six days after a downed power line left the remote Northern First Nation without electricity for over four days, Pimicikamak Chief David Monias spoke to reporters by Zoom to give an update on the crisis — and emphasize the expertise and supports the community still needs to recover.

Although power has been restored to the community, which is located roughly 100 km south of Thompson, over four days without electricity caused major damage, Monias said. The water treatment plant is “pretty much ready to explode” due to leaks and is unable to draw water into its reservoir, leaving the community without potable water.

Houses too suffered in the deep freeze, including damage to pipes and cracked floors. So far, of the 1,335 houses on the community, which is also known as Cross Lake, at least 200 are severely compromised and not yet safe for residents to return. That number may grow as officials continue their inspections.

Body’s cellular makeup leads to big, existential questions

French science journalist and author Lise Barnéoud’s first book Hidden Guests is a fascinating, well-researched, atmospheric book on micro-chimerism — the presence of genetically distinct cells from one person circulating in another person.

The Forks Market to serve up second helping of Sharecuterie

Cassandra Carreiro has been on quite a ride the last 2 1/2 years.

“It’s all kind of a blur,” the 35-year-old entrepreneur said. “A fever dream.”

In May 2023, Carreiro opened Sharecuterie, Winnipeg’s first drop-in, sit-down charcuterie café, at 160 Stafford St.

Now she’s preparing to open a second location at The Forks Market. Currently under construction, the 150-square-foot kiosk will serve a variety of dine-in and takeout options. It’s scheduled to open in February.

Northwest Territories facing a hard-as-diamonds reality as pivotal industry wanes

It’s said that pressure makes diamonds, but a diamond mining downturn is what's putting pressure on the Northwest Territories economy these days.

Diamond mines have long been a vital source of well paying local jobs, with spinoffs in hospitality, construction and other areas. It’s been estimated that the region's three operating mines directly and indirectly employ more than 1,500 residents — a significant chunk of the territory's population of almost 46,000 — and account for about one-fifth of the N.W.T.'s gross domestic product.

“Diamond mining in the Northwest Territories has been incredibly pivotal to our economy over the last 25 years,” said Caitlin Cleveland, the N.W.T.'s minister of industry, tourism and investment.

“It's put over $30 billion into the Canadian economy, $20 billion of which has stayed here in the Northwest Territories.”

Sauna, cold plunge business Saunic expands to second Winnipeg location in early 2026

Sauna, cold plunge and community. That’s what an entrepreneurial Winnipeg couple says their business offers. Saunic co-founders Kyle Silva and Dani Boily say they were inspired by their travels through Finland, Sweden and Denmark.

‘Canada is not for sale’ hat makers want to share domestic manufacturing tips

OTTAWA - One of the people behind the viral "Canada is not for sale" hat says he wants to help other companies get on board the made-in-Canada train.

Liam Mooney told The Canadian Press he and his fiancée and business partner Emma Cochrane felt distraught watching Ontario Premier Doug Ford tell U.S. President Donald Trump and American media in early January that — the president's musings about annexation notwithstanding — Canada would never be for sale.

A few days later the Ottawa-based pair, now married, stitched together a hat bearing the premier's message. Mooney called it a "creative rebuttal" in a form familiar to Trump.

But after a year of learning the ins and outs of domestic manufacturing — and seeing the lengths Canadian firms have to go just to get their products on local store shelves — Mooney said his goal in 2026 is to spread the "Canada is not for sale" ethos.

Hundreds evacuated amid power outage in Pimicikamak

More than 300 Pimicikamak Cree Nation residents have been moved to other communities in Manitoba amid a power outage that is now not expected to be resolved until 6 p.m. on New Year’s Day.

The evacuation to Thompson, Whiskey Jack Landing and Norway House Cree Nation involved elders, people with certain health conditions and families with babies, Chief David Monias said.

“The problems we are having keep on piling up the longer we go (without power),” Monias said Tuesday morning. “People are frustrated, and people are angry that this is happening. We have people at risk.”

Hotel space in Thompson was limited, he said. Buses were scheduled to transport dozens of residents to Winnipeg starting Tuesday afternoon.

Meta buys startup Manus in latest move to advance its artificial intelligence efforts

DETROIT (AP) — Meta is buying artificial intelligence startup Manus, as the owner of Facebook and Instagram continues an aggressive push to amp up AI offerings across its platforms.

The California tech giant declined to disclose financial details of the acquisition. But The Wall Street Journal reported that Meta closed the deal at more than $2 billion.

Manus, a Singapore-based platform with some Chinese roots, launched its first “general-purpose” AI agent earlier this year. The platform offers paid subscriptions for customers to use this technology for research, coding and other tasks.

“Manus is already serving the daily needs of millions of users and businesses worldwide,” Meta said in a Monday announcement, adding that it plans to scale this service — as Manus will “deliver general-purpose agents across our consumer and business products, including in Meta AI.”

Foods with healthy-sounding buzzwords could be hiding added sugar in plain sight

Many consumers feel pride in avoiding the glazed pastries in the supermarket and instead opting for “all natural” granola that comes packed with extra protein. Same goes for low-fat yogurts “made with real fruit,” organic plant-based milks and bottled “superfood” smoothies.

Buyer beware: Healthy grocery buzzwords like those often cover up an unhealthy amount of sugar.

Added sugars are difficult to quickly spot because many companies use clever marketing to distract consumers, said Nicole Avena, a professor of neuroscience and psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical School and Princeton University who has studied added sugars.

Avena said while some health-forward brands know people are starting to become aware of the hazards of added sugars, "a lot of the bigger brands don’t worry so much about people’s health.”

Students tasked with designing shelter for homeless

Concerned about the state of empathy at her suburban high school, a St. Vital teacher has tasked teens with designing transitional homes for their unsheltered neighbours.

Collège Jeanne-Sauvé made headlines in September when a student was involved in an altercation with a man living in nearby Dakota Forest.

Winnipeg police and the Louis Riel School Division reported at the time the man came out of a tent and chased after a group of students, injuring one. Allegations the teenagers provoked the man by hurling insults and items at the man’s tent were also reported.

The Sept. 9 incident — as well as the gossip in its aftermath — led Kay Wojnarski to reach out to End Homelessness Winnipeg for advice.

It’s not personal, AI… and that’s the problem

I have a photo album on my phone called Smile File.

In it are screen shots of all kinds of correspondence from my friends and family, a hall of fame of sorts. Like the text my dad sent me after he dropped me off at the airport to see Chappell Roan in Nashville: “3 songs in H-O-T-T-O-G-O.” Or the funny messages from friends that make me feel like they really know me. Or thoughtful emails from readers letting me know my writing has affected them in some way.

Among my most prized keepers: two notes from two different dear friends, asking me if I would be Auntie Jen to their kids.

I look at my Smile File on the days when my brain is tricking me into thinking nobody likes me or when I worry that I’ve run out of words and maybe I’m actually secretly illiterate.

U of M researchers studying whether genetic testing helps zero in on effective mental-health treatment meds

A team of University of Manitoba researchers is recruiting people seeking mental-health treatment for a study that could take the guesswork out of medication with the help of genetic testing.

The study will offer free pharmacogenomic testing — which predicts how a person may react to medications based on their genetic makeup — to 200 adults who are looking to start a new medication or switch their medication treating a mental-health issue.

“Someone with mental-health conditions, they (try) multiple medications, and sometimes it takes months or years to get to a point where those drugs work for them, or to have less side effects,” said Dr. Abdullah Maruf, the lead investigator on the study and assistant professor in U of M’s College of Pharmacy.

“Pharmacogenomic testing can find out how our body will respond to these kinds of medication.”

Canada responsible for ensuring safe First Nations housing, Federal Court rules in $5-B class-action suit

A Federal Court judge has recognized Canada is responsible for ensuring safe housing on First Nations in a $5-billion class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of two reserves in Manitoba and Ontario.

Local entrepreneur's time-tracking app Construction Clock ticking along

As a self-described blue collar construction worker, David Peters says he felt like a charlatan when he first became a tech founder.

“At the beginning, when you have no tech experience and you’re trying to convince the world, your customers, your investors that you’re the one that’s going to pull this off, yeah — you definitely feel like you’re selling a dream that you don’t know if you can pull off,” Peters said.

In 2022, the Winnipeg entrepreneur launched Construction Clock, a time tracking app for the construction industry.

The thing that gave him confidence in spite of his imposter syndrome, he said, was the amount of money he invested in the business.

WRENCH’s Cycle of Giving provides bikes to children in need

The same thing that motivated Gerry Hagglund to participate in a bike building marathon 14 years ago brought him back to the event on Sunday.

“It just seemed like the right thing to do,” he said.

Hagglund was one of more than 100 volunteers who participated in the WRENCH’s 15th annual Cycle of Giving, which sees the organization take bicycles bound for the landfill, restore them and give them to children in need.

More than 350 bicycles were brought back to life during the 24-hour event, which started Saturday at noon.

À travers le Punch de Noël, l’esprit de la communauté revient en onde

L’émission Le Punch de Noël, fera son grand retour cet hiver sur les ondes d’Envol 91 fm.

C’était une émission phare, animée par feue Denise Lécuyer. Pendant ses 28 années de bénévolat à la radio communautaire, Denise Lécuyer animait chaque samedi le Punch aux fruits. Ce rendez-vous hebdomadaire, qu’elle ne manquait sous aucun prétexte, Denise Lécuyer l’avait aussi décliné pour l’adapter à la période des fêtes de fin d’année.

Pendant 20 ans, le Punch de Noël a été un évènement immanquable pour une partie de la communauté francophone. La sœur et le mari de Denise Lécuyer, Michelle Lécuyer-Hutton et Randy Magirowski ont donc pris la décision de reprogrammer l’émission ce 20 décembre 2025.

À l’époque, les studios de la radio se transformaient en une grande assemblée pendant le Punch, “c’était vraiment fou là-dedans,” se souvient Michelle Lécuyer-Hutton, avec affection. Randy Magirowski, laisse échapper un rire.

Beleaguered parents of young children with diabetes ask province for help in schools

Parents of children in elementary school with Type 1 diabetes pleaded for help from the province Tuesday at the legislature.

Two mothers — one who has to leave her job at lunch, the other who had to quit her job altogether — in order to get to their children’s schools in time to make insulin-pump adjustments say other provinces, including B.C. and Nova Scotia, have trained school staff to help.

“It’s heartbreaking to have to gauge whether or not I can maintain my livelihood or my child’s health care,” said Christy Peterson, whose five-year-old daughter Lillian is on an insulin pump.

The pumps support better blood-glucose management, help reduce the risk of long-term diabetes complications and their use results in fewer insulin injections.

‘We’re going up, up, up’: K-pop dominated Canada’s YouTube viewing trends in 2025

If YouTube’s year-end data is any clue, Canada is deeply in its K-pop era.

The streaming platform says Netflix’s hit animated musical film “KPop Demon Hunters” was a major driver of engagement in 2025, with several of its tracks becoming Canada’s most-watched music videos and shorts.

Meanwhile, “APT” — American singer Bruno Mars’ collaboration with K-pop star Rosé — ranked as the country’s top song of the year. It also became the fastest K-pop track to reach 1 billion views on YouTube, beating "Gangnam Style."

“KPop Demon Hunters” songs including “Golden,” “How It’s Done” and “Soda Pop” also cracked the top songs list, with the latter additionally ranking among the country’s most-watched shorts, which are YouTube's vertical short-form videos.

News publishers’ copyright lawsuit against OpenAI cleared to go ahead in Ontario

OTTAWA - An Ontario court has decided a copyright lawsuit filed by Canadian news publishers against OpenAI will proceed in that province.

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, had put forward a jurisdictional challenge and argued the case should be heard in a U.S. courtroom instead.

OpenAI said the company isn’t located in Ontario and doesn’t do business in the province, and that the alleged conduct — the AI model training and crawling of web content — took place outside of Ontario.

But the decision by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice concludes the court does have jurisdiction to hear the case.