In The News

Eye Weekly writes on Type Books' fifth anniversary. The independent Queen West bookstore celebrated their success with a day of free cake, tea, and readings.

"It's fun to have 'good news' and 'books' together in the same sentence," laughs Joanne Saul, the co-owner of Toronto independent bookstore Type Books. Saul has plenty to smile about: Type is celebrating its fifth anniversary this Saturday (April 30) with a full-day public-reading event at their Queen West location. The event will feature 18 authors reading their own material, ranging from novels to memoirs and all literary works in between."

T"he day will consist of the authors giving "pop-up" readings, where they emerge from within the crowd and read from their work for two to three minutes. "It's kind of crazy; every 20 minutes we're going to have an author 'pop up,'" Saul says. "It could be the customer standing next to you at the magazine rack� the store will be bustling, and the person beside you will hop on a stool and start to read!"

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original source Eye Weekly

CNN features Nav Canada, the Pearson Airport-based air traffic control provider. Nav Canada is known internationally for its commitment to safety and professionalism and was awarded last year's IATA Eagle Award for being the world's best Air Navigation Service Provider.

"Nav Canada controllers are meticulously trained, they never work alone, they work no more than about 17 days in every 28 and they must have at least 10 hours off between shifts."

"For more than a decade Nav Canada has researched and implemented strategies to mitigate the effects of fatigue and that includes sanctioning a nap if needed."

"We actually have a lounge where Nav Canada provides us with reclining chairs so we'll use them for naps and if you go over there in the morning you'll often see a controller who's had a long commute and they'll slide away on their breaks and take a 10 or 15 minute nap to re-energize," explains Arnold."

"But napping is not the only thing that sets Nav Canada apart."

"Canadian controllers are trained and managed by one of the most successful and safe air traffic control systems in the world. Last year they won the IATA Eagle Award winner means they were judged the world's best Air Navigation Service Provider."

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original source CNN

In a breakthrough for healthcare innovation in Canada, Toronto's Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre has signed a lucrative licensing deal with global pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Aventis. As reported by the Globe and Mail, the deal resulted from Sunnybrook's groundbreaking research into the wound-healing molecule vasculotide, which Sanofi-Aventis hopes to eventually bring to market.

"It's a great example of what we've been missing here in this country and this city," says Mark Lievonen, president of Sanofi Pasteur Ltd., the Toronto-based vaccines division of the Sanofi-Aventis Group. The deal will see the drug company develop and commercialize Sunnybrook's research."

"We have great academic research and lots of work being done, but we have very difficult challenges in actually bringing deals to market," Mr. Lievonen said. "It's important to recognize and celebrate the success it really is."

"Historically, Canadian hospitals and other groups have shied away from commercialization, Mr. Lievonen explains. But people are growing excited about innovation and the positive effect it could have on the economy. "Hospitals and universities see the need to do it and more and more people are jumping on this bandwagon of innovation and looking for ways to achieve this kind of success," he says."

"The compound, called vasculotide, is used to treat chronic wounds. It is provided intravenously, and in animal studies it helped accelerate wound healing, in addition to creating better, deeper healing. Diabetic wounds tend to reopen."

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original source Globe & Mail

The Daily Mail writes on why Canada has been rated the number one destination for UK expats. In a survey of British citizens living abroad Canada received across-the-board high marks for its quality of life, its natural beauty and it healthcare system and education standards.

"It is the land of maple syrup, the Mounties and... British expats. Those emigrating from the UK have rated Canada as the best country to live in, it has been revealed.There are currently more than 600,000 British expats living in the country. New Zealand was second, followed."

"Natwest PIB head Dave Isley said: 'Canada's excellent working conditions, financial security and peaceful reputation have pushed it into this year's pole position."

"It seems the pull of the beautiful Rockies, the Mounties and the marvellous taste of maple syrup is a real sticking point for British expats.'
As well as universal healthcare system, the country is also known for its low crime rate, and for having a good worldwide reputation with other countries."

"It has one of the highest average life expectancy rates of 80.7 years, and a 97 per cent literacy rate."

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original source Daily Mail

The Globe & Mail features new Toronto gym Motion Room in a short online video. The fitness club, which opened its doors December 2010, distinguishes itself from other gyms by working with each individual client to develop a unique guided fitness program.

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original source Globe & Mail

Canada is the second happiest country in the world according to global survey by Gallup News. 69% of Canadians rated their lives as "thriving" in 2010 -- tying Sweden for second place.

"Gallup classifies respondents' wellbeing as "thriving," "struggling," or "suffering," according to how they rate their current and future lives on a ladder scale with steps numbered from 0 to 10 based on the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale. People are considered thriving if they rate their current lives a 7 or higher and their lives in five years an 8 or higher."

"Majorities of residents in 19 countries -- mostly in Europe and the Americas -- rated their lives well enough to be classified this way. Denmark, along with Sweden (69%) and Canada (69%), led the list, which is largely dominated by more developed and wealthier nations, as expected given the links between wellbeing and GDP. The U.S. falls somewhat near the middle of the pack, with 59% of Americans thriving."

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original source Gallup News

Torontoist goes behind the scenes of Toronto's Pinewood Studios, Commissioners Street's 11-acre film and television production facility. With seven soundstages and a giant warehouse on site, Pinewood provides a combined 250,000 square feet of studio space making it "one of the most comprehensive purpose-built film facilities in the world."

"Getting behind the gates of Pinewood Toronto Studios is kind of exactly like securing a golden admission ticket to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Except instead of chocolate waterfalls, everlasting gobstoppers, and jolly, ginger-skinned Oompa-Loompas, Pinewood has well-maintained offices, an impressive ventilation system, and a muddy old berm out back. And a whole lot of movie studio space. Like, huge expanses of it."

"Granted, Pinewood Toronto's 11-acre facility in the Port Lands (near Commissioners Street and the Don Roadway) may not appear to be suffused with "movie magic"�especially if your only frames of reference for what a movie studio is are the scene in Pee-Wee's Big Adventure when our bike-riding hero giddily baits a low-speed pursuit through the Warner Bros. lot and a bunch of Animaniacs cartoons. But though its facade may be a little plain, evoking little of the Hollywood "Dream Machine" or whatever, in the past three years alone, Pinewood has gained a reputation as a go-to destination for film and television productions in Toronto."

"Since opening in 2008, the studios have provided space for plenty of Canadian film and TV productions (CBC's Battle of the Blades, Atom Egoyan's Chloe). They've also done something even more exceptional: attract big-time Hollywood bucks. Since 2008, larger-budgeted shoots like the forthcoming prequel/remake of John Carpenter's The Thing (also called The Thing) and last summer's hometown would-be blockbuster Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) setting up shop at Pinewood. And with Pinewood currently hosting the most expensive production to ever come to Toronto (we were asked not to name the film, even though it's already been announced elsewhere), we finagled our way behind the scenes of the studio that's reinvigorating Toronto's film industry."

"Toronto has historically been a very successful film and television production centre, but it hasn't had a facility like this," notes Edith Myers, managing director of Pinewood Toronto Studios. "[Toronto] has very good facilities and a lot of people put a lot of money into the industry. But this facility is designed to attract a certain type of film that had come infrequently to Toronto. Our biggest selling tool is to show people what we've got here." And what Pinewood's got is impressive."

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original source Torontoist

In a testament to Toronto's burgeoning software startup sector, Google Inc. has completed its third purchase of a Toronto-based tech company. The Internet search engine's newest acquisition is PushLife Inc. Founded in  2008, PushLife creates software that allows users to organize, share, and purchase digital content across different mobile platforms.

"PushLife developed software similar to Apple iTunes that allowed users to seamlessly purchase online content (like ringtones, music, video, other media) that could be synced across different mobile platforms, including Apple iOS, Google Android, and BlackBerry devices."

"PushLife said key employees at the company would continue to work as part of Google's broader engineering team at Google's Canadian headquarters located near Dundas Square in downtown Toronto."

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original source Business 2.0

Twin cities newspaper StarTribune writes on Toronto's captivating Distillery District neighbourhood. The restored Gooderham & Worts Distillery is lauded for its unique art galleries, many shopping and dinning destinations, and historic streetscape.

"Toronto is a safe, clean, comfortable city. Its eclectic streets and scenic avenues appeal to your inner walker, and few parts are better to explore on foot than the automobile-free, pedestrian-friendly Distillery District."

"Just off Lake Ontario, with the CN tower and a collage of skyscrapers hovering above, this former industrial area melds the corporate and cultural in a historic setting. Walking through the Mill Street entrance, you'll immediately get the picture, sensing the significance of it all."

"By 2001, the distillery had become mainly rubble when Mathew Rosenblatt and his development partners began to re-create the area into something that people, locals or tourists, would return to, says Rosenblatt."

"Viewing business as art, and intent on establishing a neighborhood where you "get a sense of the city's culture," Rosenblatt and his partners have taken 44 buildings, possibly the largest collection of Victorian industrial architecture in North America, and incorporated business, retail and artist spaces into a setting that exudes small-town charm. Walking these streets is akin to visiting an amusement park, and not having to pay for the rides, as the visual feast is entertainment enough."

"Koilos," a 14-foot tall, crouching sculpture by California artist Michael Christian, lords over Distillery Lane, alerting Parliament Street entrants that this is not going to be your ordinary walkabout.

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original source StarTribune

The Toronto Star writes on the city's burgeoning craft beer industry. Pubs and restaurants across Toronto are increasingly opting to create their own brand of locally brewed suds - a lucrative business that's transforming Toronto's beer scene.

"[Craft beer] is the only part of the beer market that's growing, and it's doing it in double-digit numbers," said Beaumont, who calls it an exciting time for Toronto's beer scene. "We're so close to seeing craft beer drastically alter the beer scene."

"At the LCBO, sales of Ontario craft beer have been growing by leaps and bounds, too. In the year ending Feb. 26, Ontario craft beer sales rose by 46 per cent at the LCBO. Overall beer sales at the LCBO rose just 4 per cent in the same period."

"It's a small segment but by far the growth segment for beer," said LCBO spokesperson Chris Layton."

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original source Toronto Star

A recent City of Toronto report entitled "Canada's High-Tech Hub: Toronto" looks at the city's growing and internationally recognized high-tech sector. The MaRS blog highlights three areas in particular where Toronto seems deemed to continue to excel - mobile apps, digital media, and social networking.

""Digital media is well positioned for healthy growth in Canada: 42% of Canadians share pictures online, 41% play games, 36% download music and movies and 35% access online newspapers. Businesses are going digital too�think paperless education, reviewing presentations on the fly and sales presentations with clients onsite."

"Social networking is playing an increasingly important role in the ways people connect, from our personal lives to our interactions with organizations. According to a 2009 consumer survey, 74% of respondents participated in or posted to social networking or community sites. 50% of Canadian organizations use social networking for recruiting and 40% use it as an information source when making ICT purchase decisions."

"Toronto is home to Facebook's Canadian office and will soon be home to a LinkedIn outpost. With two of the biggest social networking sites setting up their Canadian offices in Toronto, opportunities for thought leadership, knowledge sharing and partnerships will undoubtedly arise."

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original source MaRS Blog

The National Post writes on the Lord Provost of Glasgow's recent Toronto visit. Bob Winter, in Toronto this past Monday as part of his North American tour, reached out to Torontonians with the message that Glasgow and Toronto should leverage their similarities into stronger business partnerships.

"[Bob Winter's] trade visit comes during Scotland Week in North America; it also comes three years before Glasgow is set to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games, to be followed a year later by the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto."

"Our eye from the very beginning has been on the legacy that we can get for our own city and for our own people ... showcasing our city, giving a tremendous warm welcome to everyone who visits," said Mr. Winter in a lilting Scottish accent."

"Glasgow will likely have "a lot to share" with Toronto about the experience of hosting the games, Mr. Winter said, citing an unprecedented opportunity to invest in new facilities and promote the city on a worldwide level."

"Glasgow has developed over the years from a heavily industrial and overcrowded city to one that has shed half its population in Mr. Winter's lifetime, a development attributed in part to the post-war period and the industrial collapse of the 1980s."

"The city has rebounded since then, and Mr. Winter says the River Clyde has been "transformed" by the departure of heavy industry. Today, he adds, as Glasgow struggles to recover from the most recent global economic downturn, the city has been investing in education and fostering stronger links with such cities as Toronto."

"These are key issues that we share: How do you regenerate a city and keep regenerating a city, because a city can never stand still," he said. "If you rest on your laurels at all, you can only go backward."

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original source National Post

Washington Times columnist James A. Bacon explains why Americans should be paying more attention to Canada. Bacon points out that not only did Canada weather the economic crises better than any other G-7 nation, it also boasts world class creative cities and an immigration tradition that attracts the most talented professionals from across the globe.

"Unless the Winter Olympics are on television or someone is clubbing baby seals, Americans don't pay much attention to what's happening in Canada. It's as if we live in a house with a set of quiet, orderly neighbors on one side and a bachelor pad with drunken parties, girls in the hot tub and occasional gunshot eruptions on the other. To whom would you pay more attention?"

"Look what's not happening in Canada. There is no real estate crisis. There is no banking crisis. There is no unemployment crisis. There is no sovereign debt crisis. Recent reports suggest that consumers are loading up too much debt, but Canada shares that problem with nearly every other country in the industrialized world."

"Among the Group of Seven nations, which also include the United States, France, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy, Canada's economic activity has come the closest to returning to the pre-recession peak. The country has recovered three-quarters of all jobs it lost. The International Monetary Fund estimates that Canada will be the only country among the G-7 to have achieved a balanced budget by 2015."

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original source Washington Times

Ryerson University recently unveiled the design for it's new Ryerson Student Learning Centre. The design, courtesy of Toronto-based architecture firm  Zeidler Partnership Architects, features a glass facade designed to create textured light qualities within the interior space. As reported by WIDN, constuction on the new building, to be located at the corner of Yonge and Gould, will begin sometime late this year.

"The eight-storey Student Learning Centre will be built at the corner of Yonge and Gould Streets. It will feature a glass fa�ade, a welcoming elevated plaza, a bridge to the existing library and a host of academic, study and collaborative spaces for Ryerson's students, faculty and staff. Yonge Street frontage will feature destination retail at and below grade, creating a major commercial facade."

"The 155,463 square-foot Student Learning Centre will feature a host of creative and inspiring learning environments and spaces. Every floor will be designed differently with some spaces to be open and interpretive with flexible furniture and terraces while others to be densely filled with enclosed study rooms for groups of four to eight people. Special spaces for independent, quiet study will also be featured."

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original source WIDN (World Interior Design Network)

Chicago Tribune food columnist Monica Eng writes on Toronto's "wonderful eats." In a recent visit to the city Eng chowed down at some of Toronto's most iconic eateries--from College's Caplansky's Deli, to St. Lawrence Market's Carousel Bakery to Dundas West's Smoke's Poutinerie--and raved about them all.

"I just rolled back into town from blustery Toronto, where the winter cold is worth braving for the wonderful eats. Here are 10 that I happily trudged around town trying. In between, I got to enjoy street level views of this fabulous walking city that's also easy to navigate by street car, bus or subway."

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original source Chicago Tribune