An evaluation by a third party consulting firm warns the department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada that its employment program is holding Aboriginal youth back from getting work.
Goss Gilroy was commissioned by the department to write the March 2015 report, released under the Access to Information Act. In it they “raised concerns” that the department had no way of assessing whether its job-training On-Reserve Income Assistance Program was actually working, leaving First Nations youth from 88 reserves across the country at risk of remaining jobless.
Source: Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada – Income Assistance Program FAQs
An evaluation by a third party consulting firm warned that a federal government employment program is holding Aboriginal youth back from getting jobs.
Goss Gilroy Inc., a consulting firm hired by the department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, “raised concerns” that the department couldn’t assess whether its On-Reserve Income Assistance Program was actually working, according to a March 2015 technical report released under the Access to Information Act.
LINKING PROGRAMS WITH OPPORTUNITIES
The Income Assistance Program was designed to “help youth achieve self-sufficiency and independence” in order to end the “work-welfare cycle.”
According to the 2011 National Household survey, unemployment rates for Aboriginals were double those of non-Aboriginals.
Encouragingly, a 2012 report by Aboriginal Affairs predicted that the forecasted increase in jobs could present an “opportunity for First Nations youth to be working.”
However, the consulting firm warned that this would only be possible if the employment program was sufficient enough to leave them “able and ready” to enter the job market.
IN THE DARK
In order for Aboriginal Affairs to understand whether the On-reserve Income Assistance Program was actually capable of doing this, the report said the department needed to collect “valid and reliable” information on the program’s progress from the participating reserves, shown below.
Source: Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada – Income Assistance Program FAQs
The department requires bands and tribal councils to submit updates every three months through its reporting system.
But the consulting firm found that the information coming in did not clarify that the program was actually able to get First Nations youth the “skills and training” they needed in order to secure long-term jobs.
“ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL” NOT GOOD ENOUGH
Dalhousie University’s Kathleen Kevany, an expert on community development, admits that it’s “tricky” to have standards of measurement “if you’re trying from a government perspective to compare communities.”
“It’s hard to do that because you don’t have the same reports from every place.”
But Curtis Reilly, the employment councillor for PEI’s Lennox Island First Nations, wondered, “how do you put every community and every situation in a box and make it work for everybody?”
Reilly says that the program will need to figure out how to meet the unique needs of every community if it’s going to work .
ALTERNATIVE MEASURES OF SUCCESS
The community shows support to its members through the MCPEI employment Facebook group.
For his reserve, Reilly says he demonstrates success “not so much” through reports – but in the pictures he uploads on the Island’s Employment Services Facebook Group.
“A lot of people may see [our achievements] as small successes,” he said, “but a lot of the time they’re big successes.”
From his close vantage point over the years, Reilly has seen “first-hand” what works and what doesn’t – and it’s starting to pay off.
“Nothing is perfect by any means,” he said, recalling the “ups and downs” along the way. “But [by starting small], I think we’re really starting to see that success story now.”
With permission from Mi’Kmaq Confederacy PEI’s Employment Services
A controversial Halifax developer gets to have his “Wedding Cake” – and eat it too – at the doorstep of Halifax’s most prestigious neighbourhood: Young Avenue.
In late April, developer George Tsimiklin applied for a permit to tear down the avenue’s historic Cleveland estate – better known as “The Wedding Cake House.”
Despite explosive opposition by the neighbourhood’s “movers and shakers,” less than three weeks later it was gone.
“It seems like this whole block is gonna be chopped up,” a neighbour said bitterly as he glanced at the gaping wound of the demolition site.
But the deflated spirit of the community is little more than collateral damage as Tsimiklis’ development empire charters new frontiers.
A FAMILY LEGACY
Tsiliklin’s father, Dimitrios, shortly after immigrating from Harakopio, Greece in 1964. In Canada he hoped to “achieve his dream” of starting a family and finding success in business. Source: Family Photos, JA Snow Funeral Home
Following in the footsteps of his late father, Tsimiklis has cultivated a strong presence in the business community.
Since 1994, Tsimiklis has accumulated over 30 properties, peppered throughout the HRM.
(You can see the properties by clicking on the red dots on the map below)
Source: Property Online, Nova Scotia
Their combined valued is more than $28.7 million.
The majority of his businesses are concentrated in Dartmouth, but this year Tsimiklis made a decisive – albeit unwelcome – move into Halifax’s deep South End.
[HEAT MAP]
CONTROVERSIAL FIGURE
Single mother, Tylisha Way, says she lacks water and heat, and was unwittingly evicted by Tsimiklis. Credit: Chronicle Herald
Tsimiklis’ presence across the coast may be impressive, but his record as a landlord isn’t.
His properties have preoccupied a disproportionate amount of police attention, and attracted the scrutiny of resentful and allegedly mistreated tenants.
Sean Drohan, Tsimiklis' tenant in 2010, accused his landlord of bullying and "threatening" him. To be fair, the judge found that both men played a role in their toxic relationship.
George Tsimiklis was prosecuted in 2010 for failure to respect by-law S-600: Solid Waste: "to ensure commercial containers accommodate source-separated waste."
When he set his sights on 851 Young Avenue, he added one more influential enemy to his list.
“SAVE YOUNG AVENUE”
Alan North, an architect who lives two doors down from the contentious property, co-founded “Save Young Avenue;” the Facebook group in resistance to the developer’s plans.
Its leading strategy was to petition the Heritage Advisory Committee to designate heritage status to the historic estate. But only one address on Young Avenue is on the registry – and 851 Young Ave didn’t make the cut.
David Hendsbee, committee member and District 2 councillor, said that since the previous owner of “the Wedding Cake House” didn’t register the property as a heritage site, the “current owner can do what he wishes.”
What remains of the Cleveland Estate: nothing Credit: Nicoletta Dini
The building that had survived a century of change finally crumbled, survived by nothing more than an empty lot and a barbed-wirefence.
THE FIGHT CONTINUES
A desperate campaign Credit: Nicoletta Dini
Even though the “Wedding Cake house” is gone, North warns that the developer still plans to replace it with “tract-style houses on narrow 40 foot lots.”
This threatens the “historically wide properties [,] designed to complement and enhance […] Young Avenue as the main entrance to Point Pleasant Park,” he said in a petition to change the city’s Bylaws.
One of the North's proposed amendments to the city's Land-use By-law is a minimum 10-foot side yard rather than the four feet specified here. He's also advocating for a "minimum lot frontage" of 80 feet, in order to preserve "the spirit...of the planning intent of the avenue."
314 people have signed it, but North still has 185 signatures left to go.
MORE TO COME…
Although he continues to fight for his neighbourhood, North will soon be fighting for his neighbouring house as well.
On the same day Tsimiklis purchased 851, he claimed the adjacent property, 825 Young Ave.
The city approved its demolition permit last month.
825 Young Avenue Credit: Google Street View
Tsimiklis is vacationing in Greece until September and was not available to comment. His lawyer, Michael Moore, said out of an “ethical consideration” to his client, he would not speak for him.
Nicole Simmons is “swimming in student loan debt – just drowning” in order to support herself and her two year-old daughter, Adelyn. As a single parent, it turns out she’s in a crowded pool.
According to the 2011 National Household Survey, single parents’ bank account balances in the HRM were three times as shallow as their co-parent counterparts’.
Source: NHS Profile, Canada, 2011 – Census TractsThis suggests that, when it comes to family income, two parents might be better than one.A GROWING TRENDWhile the voluntary nature of the data makes it less than perfect, it nonetheless paints a troubling picture.
Co-parents’ triple financial advantage marks a 20 per cent increase from their 2009 income, when they brought in more than double what single-parent households did.
This ends up meaning a lot less money for a lot more single-families.
THE SINGLE MOTHER
Single parents head a substantial chunk of the families in Halifax.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 111-0022One in five women are already either single, divorced, or separated by the time they’ve given birth, suggesting a greater overall tendency towards single motherhood. And frankly, we’re mostly talking about mothers.Women headed the overwhelming majority of single-parent families in 2011 – more than 80 per cent.
Unfortunately, this could account for why the income gap is so wide. According to Statistics Canada, when families with single-earners are headed by women, they tend to make far less than when it’s men who “bring home the bacon.”
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 111-0020“Since I’ve had [Adelyn], I’m just at school during the days and she takes up my evenings and weekends so I haven’t really been able to return back to work,” said Simmons.
WHEN MONEY’S REALLY TIGHT…
When she was working, Simmons said that saving money was “no problem.” But now things are “a little bit tighter.”
For the lowest earning single parents in Halifax, it can be as tight as less than $17,000 a year.
Many single-parent families are concentrated in Halifax’s lower income areas, but even they fare better than some in other regions of the province – especially Digby, Nova Scotia.
This is where Simmons has to drive to her mother every time she needs a babysitter for more than a few hours. She may not be paying for grandma’s time, but the six hour round-trip certainly makes her pay for gas.
“I had to buy a car for…getting [Adelyn] around, so I have to pay my payments on that which is tough – but doable. We’re getting by.”
WHEN TIME IS MONEY AND MONEY IS TIME
Simmons is working towards a career in Public Relations and Communications Technology, but she says it’s challenging to juggle spending time with her baby and “being there” for things that could eventually help her earn her more money.
“It hurts me that I’m not spending time with her and that I have to find babysitters on the evenings and weekends,” she said. “It’s tough.”
ARE TWO PARENTS BETTER THAN ONE?
Parenting in a partnership and parenting alone each come with their own set of unique challenges.
While things like finances and time are precious resources in a single parent’s home, Simmons says that having “that extra responsibility” can be a good thing too.
“I’m definitely more motivated to find a job and to do my best in school,” she said. “I don’t think I’d be as mature about it [as] I would [have been] if I didn’t have her.”
When you reach for your favourite mascara at Sephora, you’re probably wondering whether it’ll look more dramatic in “Onyx Rush” or “Blackest Black” – but after Julie Gelfand’s scathing audit on Health Canada, you should probably be wondering whether it’s safe.
In late May, Gelfand – the commissioner of the environment and sustainability – found that Health Canada’s Consumer Product Safety Program “could not fully assure Canadians that its…oversight activities were [protecting] the public” from unsafe cosmetics.
PROBLEMS IN HEALTH CANADA
The following infograph highlights some of the most concerning findings in the commissioner’s report:
Testing
The audit found that the total number of products Health Canada examined in the last decade have fallen dramatically.
The Consumer Product Safety Act explicitly states that consumer products must not be packaged or labelled in any manner that can be misleading to the consumer regarding "safety or its compliance with a safety standard or the regulations." Audit: Health Canada failed to inform consumers that labels such as "hypoallergenic" and "preservative-free" are not health and safety claims.
The Consumer Product Safety Act was specifically designed to keep up with the “modern realities” of global trade, including e-commerce. Yet the commissioner found that Health Canada did not have adequate oversight or assessment of “the scope and magnitude of risks associated with international e-commerce.” This includes the “health and safety risks posed by counterfeit consumer products and cosmetics,” which can contain “poisonous chemicals including cyanide and even human urine”, according to an alarm raised by city of London police last year.
These “information gaps” mask potential health threats in the products that are coming into the most intimate contact with Canadians.
Dr. Ariel Burns, a dermatologist associated with Dalhousie University, said that this could be problematic, especially where substances like heavy metals are concerned.
“If you put enough on, you could get systemic absorption and basically get arsenic or mercury poisoning,” said Burns. “This could result in blue/grey skin pigmentation – but also organ failure.”
Gelfand sums up the findings of the audit and why it should matter to Canadians:
RECOMMENDATIONS OR TWEETS?
In response to the commissioners recommendations to better inform Canadians, Health Canada said it would invest in outreach activities through its social media.
Health Canada included social media as one of its strategies to inform the public of its regulatory deficiencies and recalled products. The underlying assumption places the responsibility on the shoulders of Canadian consumers to educate themselves through proactive measures like visiting Health Canada's web page and social media platforms.
While its Twitter account has 143K followers, this is a mere fraction of the 35.16 million Canadians it’s held accountable to, and even fewer for those who buy cosmetics.
SEPHORA SURVEY
– flickr.com
To find out if the consumers most affected were informed, I surveyed 20 people walking out of Sephora, a makeup chain.
Not one said they followed Health Canada on social media. In fact, no one even knew which department regulated cosmetic safety.
Or if you’re feeling complacent, you can always follow them on Twitter…
– flickr.com
“Usually we just kind of react to things rather than being proactive,” said Brooke Mackenzie, a bohemian blonde who was dangling a black and white Sephora bag from her fingers.
She longingly glanced at the metallic blue package nestled inside the bed of red tissue paper.
“I just came out with a huge eye pallet that I was so excited about – but now I feel embarrassed,” she said sheepishly.
“We just pull the wool over our eyes and don’t think about what we’re putting on our face – but we should.”
Tesla’s legendary CEO, Elon Musk, defiantly took his eyes off the road and stared into the sun after unveiling his “Master Plan” (“Part Deux”) on twitter last night.
In it, he officially announced his intention to “provide solar power” (facetiously adding, “No kidding, this has literally been on our website for 10 years.”)
But it still comes on the heels of a bid to merge Tesla and SolarCity, a solar energy and capture company.
In light of poor market performances from both companies, critics have said that, as far as Tesla is concerned, the move is not such a bright idea.
Cloudy days
According to Brad Erickson, a research analyst at Pacific Crest, the merger illuminates Tesla’s “downward sloping credibility curve” with its shareholder base.
Analysts have called the bid an “ill-timed” and “unneeded distraction”. Argus, a market research group, downgraded Tesla’s rating from BUY to HOLD because of the “meaningful risk” a company like SolarCity poses.
The stock market has takenmajor hits on all fronts, from low oil prices to the financial exodus after Brexit.
“Low oil prices hurt a company like Tesla because they need electric to look like a cheaper alternative for drivers,” explained Slaunwhite.
2. A BIG PRICE TAG
Musk’s ultimate goal is to to create an affordable, high volume car. But with even the cheapest model starting at around $100 grand, his product simply isn’t within reach for the average buyer.
The Model 3, S and X’s high price tags come as a result of an extremely expensive production process. Despite having had a healthy gross profit in 2015, Tesla’s enormous operating costs slashed its bottom line.
Toyota had similarly steep expenses, but at least Tesla’s biggest competitor managed to make a profit. That year Tesla didn’t even break even.
Slaunwhite blamed this on its hefty research and development fund, which ate away 17 per cent of its 2015 net revenue. But he also conceded that research is a necessary investment.
“If they can figure out how to improve their automotive’s…and make their cars for less,” he said, “they’re gonna sell more.”
4. SUPPLY AND DEMAND
While selling more cars is the goal, delays in supplies and deliveriescontributed to Tesla’s consistent failure to meet production and delivery demand so far in 2016.
“GIGA” – the factory of scale
Reducing production costs and increasing efficiency will be essential if Tesla is to increase its output ten-fold by 2018 to 500,000 vehicles a year.
That’s exactly what Tesla intends to do at Gigafactory – Musk’s $5-billion, 13-million sq/ft. battery megafactory in the Nevada desert, according to the UK’s Daily Mail. It’s set to open July 29 – one week from today. Source: Electrek.co on Youtube
Gigafactory will ensure that lithium ion – the main ingredient in its batteries – costs less and lasts longer as an energy storage solution.
By bringing affordable, sustainable transportation to the mass market, Musk will be able to “achieve a sustainable energy economy” sooner than anyone ever imagined possible.
A “GOOD” FUTURE
While Musk conjures the vision of a greener future, some investors still only see the colour of money.
If the future really is all about “fiscal solvency”, then perhaps Erickson is right about Tesla. But Dr. Peter Harrop, Chairman at IDTechEx and co-author of “Electric vehicles, Forecasts, Trends and Opportunities 2016-2026”, is the one who is not convinced.
“Tesla is a leader in the design and commercialisation of pure electric cars,” said Dr. Harrop through email correspondence. “It lacks profit but has an orderbook that its competition can only dream about.”
Critics may call Tesla’s bid to acquire SolarCity “ill-timed”, but the only word Harrop had for the move was “strategic.” For Musk, it’s just one more piece in a bigger puzzle.
“The point of all this [is] accelerating the advent of sustainable energy, so that we can imagine far into the future and life is still good,” said Musk. “That’s what ‘sustainable’ means. It’s not some silly, hippy thing – it matters for everyone.”
Luke Uteck blows smoke as he remembers his time in prison.
After a long pause, ex-“juvie” and con Luke Uteck exhaled a plume of smoke before blowing off his uncomfortable past.
“I don’t like to talk about it, but I hope that rates going down means less kids will end up like I did.”
By “rates”, he’s referring to Atlantic Canada’s five-year streak for holding the nation’s highest number of incidents and charges under the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA). The Maritime record far outpaced all data to the west. Newfoundland’s 2014 figures alone were double that of all other provinces’ data, combined.
The good news While all this may sound alarming, there is still hope for the Maritime’s. Despite it’s monstrous figures, Atlantic youth crime rates and charges have actually been declining over that same five-year period.
Fewer young offenders in Nova Scotia were charged under the criminal code between 2010 and 2014, including for violent and property crime-related charges.
The drop – a factor of 69 per cent since 2012 – in the daily average number of juvenile offenders in custody at the province’s youth correctional facilities is what’s most visceral for Uteck.
“It seems pointless to think back on how things could have been different,” he said dismissively. But his voice was tight. Uteck’s time in detention isn’t something he speaks about freely. But he did say he’s convinced the experience directly contributed to the assault that made him an adult offender only a few months later. Ironically as I sat there, it had happened over a bummed cigarette. “I was in a dark place. But I hope things can be different for kids today if they can find some support.” Youth programs Kathryn Khan, the manager of child and youth settlement programs at the YMCA, said “interacting with youth on a daily basis and developing trust” is key to getting young people engaged in their communities and free from crime. There are many different societal factors that can help to depress the youth crime rate:
Lower daily average numbers of juveniles in detention centres may be influenced by the YCJA’s provisions for “extrajudicial measures”, which advocate for lighter sentencing when appropriate.
“Our Kids are Worth it”, Nova Scotia’s strategy for children and youth, identifies prevention and reduction as key points to lowering youth crime rates and supporting young people at risk of offending and reoffending.
Between August 2010 and January 2014, the National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC) implemented their “Youth Inclusion Program” (YIP) across Atlantic Canada, with Nova Scotia sites in Spryfield and North Sydney.
The NCPC launched YIP with the intention of reducing youth crime through educational and community-based means. Although reported improvement rates – some as high as 95 per cent – were very promising, the NCPC says the data is incomplete.
Halifax has a Youth Advocate Program that seeks to prevent young people from engaging in crime. Sharon, the program manager, goes into more detail below.
For more information, you can Google “Youth programs Halifax”, or find resources at the YMCA, Phoenix House, and more…
As for Luke, in a few weeks he’ll be back in Quesnel, B.C., where he plans to return to his “one true love”: tree planting.
