DirtMarket co-founders and Brock University graduates Emma Kirwin (right) and Asad Jalib (left). Less than a year in operation, the start-up was recently named one of Canada’s top 10 tech companies to watch in 2022. Photo credit: Brock University
Brock grads’ start-up one of Canada’s top tech companies to watch in 2022
After less than a year in operation, a start-up company founded by recent Brock University graduates Emma Kirwin (BA ’21) and Asad Jalib (BBA ’20) cracked the top 10 of FounderBeta’s 2022 list of “100 Tech Companies to Watch” in Canada.
DirtMarket, which instantly connects soil generators and soil receivers to save earthmovers time and money through beneficial soil reuse, made it all the way to spot number 8 on the annual ranking.
“Founding DirtMarket and growing it to its current size in the last year has been a very rewarding and challenging experience,” said co-founder Emma Kirwin. “Building a marketplace is a fine line of balancing supply and demand, while also ensuring a great client experience.”
Kirwin, who graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History in Oct. 2021, is the only female CEO named in the top 10 on the 2022 list.
Regional partners create portal to make it easier for hospital build team to connect with local businesses
Infrastructure Ontario and Niagara Health will soon announce the successful project team awarded the opportunity to design, build, finance and maintain the new South Niagara hospital site.
In order to connect the successful team with local Niagara businesses able to supply services or materials for the over $1 billion project, Niagara Economic Development has partnered with Niagara Health to offer an online tool that allows the team to search for Niagara businesses by sector, municipality, size, and other variables.
“We are very excited that the South Niagara Site will provide Niagara businesses with an opportunity to contribute to the growth and development of the region,” said President and CEO of Niagara Health Lynn Guerriero. “Each stage of planning and development provides additional opportunities for innovative partnerships with municipalities, our healthcare partners and the community.”
Construction of the St. Catharines site a decade ago directly and indirectly supported and created approximately 5,400 jobs, many of which were in Niagara, with an estimated 1,000 workers on-site daily at the peak of construction. A larger project, the South Niagara hospital could bring even more opportunities for Niagara businesses.
NRPS getting nearly $50,000 from province to install new CCTV cameras
On Tuesday, the Ontario government announced $1 million in funding to help combat gun and gang violence.
The funds will be dispersed to nine local police services, including nearly $50,000 to the Niagara Regional Police Service (NRPS), to replace outdated equipment, enhance current technology, and expand CCTV (closed circuit television) camera coverage in areas where gun and gang violence and correlated crimes such as drug and human trafficking are most prevalent.
“CCTV surveillance cameras are an essential tool in helping police detect, prevent and deter criminal activity and keep Ontarians safe,” said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones.
“Tackling gun and gang violence requires all levels of government to work together. Ontario has stepped up to do its part, and we are pleased to support these locally led initiatives to help stamp out violence in communities across the province.”
According to the province, St. Catharines and Niagara Falls have become hot spots for criminal activity as a growing number of GTA gangs engage in illicit activity in the region. The expansion of CCTV capacity and coverage will help NRPS to identify these individuals, gather license plate numbers and bring them to justice.
More than four-in-five now believe a COVID-19 infection would be mild, manageable
New data from the Angus Reid Institute finds many in Canada believe a personal infection by COVID-19 would be “like a case of the flu.”
Indeed, half (49 per cent) believe if they caught the virus, they would have serious but manageable symptoms while a further one-third (36 per cent) think their infection would be mild.
Relatively few Canadians worry that if they were infected they would have to be hospitalized (12 per cent) or worse – an infection for them could be fatal (3 per cent). For comparison, in both the summer and winter of 2020, nearly three times as many said that contracting COVID-19 would have these serious consequences.
Notably, far more Canadians now say they’d prefer the country shift its vaccination focus outside of its own borders. Approaching half (46 per cent) of Canadians want Canada to focus on vaccinating people in less wealthy countries, while two-in-five (39 per cent) prefer the efforts stay locally. That represents a significant change in the opinions of Canadians from the summer, when seven-in-ten opposed sharing vaccines globally until vaccinations here were complete.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh denounces truckers’ convoy, brother-in-law’s donation
On Wednesday, federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh condemned the ‘freedom convoy’ of several thousand anti-vaccine-mandate truck drivers currently on route to Ottawa.
Singh said some of the people behind the demonstration are pushing “false information” through “inflammatory, divisive and hateful comments.”
To date, a GoFundMe set up to support the truckers has raised nearly $6 million. Records show that Singh’s brother-in-law, Jodhveer Singh Dhaliwal, donated $13,000 to the cause.
Singh said he disagrees with his brother-in-law’s decision to donate to the convoy. After being approached by the NDP leader, Dhaliwal has allegedly asked that his donation be returned.
Several Conservative MPs have come out in support of the convoy, which is set to arrive at Confederation Park in Ottawa this Saturday.
Bank of Canada keeps key interest rate target on hold, but warns of looming hikes
The Bank of Canada is keeping its key interest rate target on hold at 0.25 per cent, but warning it won’t stay there for much longer.
The trendsetting rate has been at its rock-bottom level since March 2020 during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic as the economy went into a downturn and three million jobs were lost.
The central bank said Wednesday the rebound since then and especially over the last few months has been stronger than it anticipated.
In a statement, the bank’s senior decision-makers said the economy is running at capacity, including a labour market that is by most standards back at pre-pandemic levels.
The rebound is why it now says it will no longer promise to keep its key policy rate at 0.25 per cent, adding that rates will need to rise to bring inflation back to the central bank’s two per cent target.
“Interest rates will need to increase to control inflation. Canadians should expect a rising path for interest rates,” Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem said in a statement.
