September 2025 – Canada’s immigration policy continues to move in the wrong direction and requires a fundamental course correction, according to a new Communiqué from the C.D. Howe Institute’s Immigration Targets Council.
In “Immigration Policy Still in Need of a Course Correction,” the Council – composed of leading academics and policy experts – stresses that who is selected matters more than meeting numeric targets. They determined that immigration should be guided by human capital and long-term prosperity, not short-term labour market fixes or non-economic objectives. Notably, members also emphasized the importance of transparent, predictable policy that ensures economic immigrants have strong skills, earnings potential, and integration prospects.
Second Meeting of the C.D. Howe Institute Immigration Targets Council
The C.D. Howe Institute Immigration Targets Council held its second meeting on August 26, 2025, bringing together leading academics and policy experts to provide recommendations on Canada’s immigration-level targets and system design.1
Members agreed that Canada’s immigration policy has moved in the wrong direction and needs a fundamental course correction. Members stressed that the labour market skills and earnings potential of immigrants – both temporary and permanent – matter more than meeting numeric targets. Immigration policy should raise average human capital, rather than focusing narrowly on filling short-term labour market gaps, which prevents wage increases and capital investment to enhance productivity, or meeting non-economic objectives such as increasing Francophone immigration outside Quebec. Policy should also be transparent, predictable, and oriented toward long-term prosperity, ensuring that economic immigrants have strong skills, earnings potential, and integration prospects.
Building on these principles, the Council recommended annual permanent resident admissions of 365,000 in 2026, 360,000 in 2027, and 350,000 in 2028, reflecting the Council’s median votes. For 2026, this recommendation is modestly below the government’s current target of 380,000. Some members favoured a gradual reduction over three years to return to historical norms, while others supported higher levels to ease transitions from the non-permanent resident (NPR) population.
The group also raised serious concerns about the rapid growth and complexity of the NPR (Non permanent residency) population, as well as persistent challenges in the asylum system.
Members emphasized the importance of clear guardrails for the NPR population, recommending that the government maintain a ceiling of 5 percent of Canada’s population for NPRs in 2026, with a review in early 2027. They noted that the optimal NPR share requires balancing inflows, outflows, and clear pathways for temporary residents employed in high-skill occupations to transition to permanent residency, using objective criteria such as earnings. Improving efficiency in the asylum system was viewed as critical to protect genuine claimants and reduce pressures on the broader immigration system, since many currently see asylum as a pathway to permanent residency.
The Council further agreed that immigration programs require substantial reforms.
Regarding temporary immigration, members expressed concern that the international student system has become a pathway for low-wage labour rather than a means of attracting top global talent. They recommended higher admission standards, stronger language and academic requirements, limits on off-campus work, and stronger federal oversight to ensure only high-quality institutions and programs are eligible. Similarly, the Temporary Foreign Worker Program should be scaled back and not be used as a substitute for raising wages or improving working conditions, since relying on temporary workers can reduce employers’ incentives to offer better pay or workplace standards. Reducing reliance on low-skilled temporary workers – except in sectors such as agriculture, where transitions take time – was viewed by the group as essential to encourage productivity growth and higher wages for Canadian workers.
For permanent immigration, members were critical of the proliferation of boutique pathways in the economic class, such as category-based selection – targeted draws from the Express Entry pool based on specific attributes like occupation or language – and provincial nominee programs that prioritize lower-skilled workers, which allow provinces and territories to nominate candidates to meet regional labour market needs. They highlighted the need to simplify and strengthen the selection mechanism and agreed that Canada should move toward a single, transparent system centred on Express Entry and the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS), a points-based tool used to assess, score, and rank candidates in the pool. They supported a human-capital-based model for economic principal applicants, which evaluates individuals on their education, work experience, and language ability, with a revised CRS that places greater weight on predictors of long-term success. New criteria should include the field of study for all applicants and verified earnings in Canada for those with prior Canadian experience. All economic principal applicants, they stressed, should be required to meet the CRS threshold. Members also agreed that these reforms – across temporary and permanent immigration programs, together with improving the integrity of the asylum system – are essential to reducing the size of the non-permanent resident population.
In addition, members highlighted the importance of fast-track pathways and policies to attract top-tier global talent. They called for stronger federal–provincial coordination and targeted initiatives to recruit individuals with extraordinary achievements in fields with lasting impact, such as science, medicine, and artificial intelligence. For high-profile research leaders, this should include pathways that allow them to bring their teams. Attracting such talent, they noted, requires not only immigration pathways but also the infrastructure and support that world-class research demands.
In conclusion, the Council emphasized the urgent need to restore a principled and sustainable immigration policy. By focusing on raising human capital, maintaining guardrails on the non-permanent resident population, addressing weaknesses in the asylum system, and reforming the economic immigration system, Canada can ensure that immigration contributes to long-term prosperity and sustains public confidence.
Members of the C.D. Howe Institute Immigration Targets Council:
Members participate in their personal capacities, and the views collectively expressed do not represent those of any individual, institution, or client.
Convener:
• Parisa Mahboubi, C.D. Howe Institute
Members:
• Don Drummond, Queen’s University
• Pierre Fortin, Université du Québec à Montréal
• David Green, University of British Columbia
• Daniel Hiebert, University of British Columbia
• Michael Haan, Western University
• Jason Kenney, Bennett Jones LLP
• Mikal Skuterud, University of Waterloo
• Christopher Worswick, Carleton University
• Donald Wright, C.D. Howe Institute and Global Public Affairs
If you are like me- someone who has drunk much more than one coffee in your life, you might be interested in pondering this question: Why do you think the multi-billion-dollar global coffee industry can be a losing business for the growers, whose hands till the land from where coffee starts?
In fact, if you drink 2 cups of coffee a day for one year, you’ll be spending more than the annual income of the coffee farmer in a developing country. To help present to fellow North American coffee drinkers this huge disparity between the farmer and the other key players across the coffee value chain, take a look at the infographic below.
Considering that North America is the biggest coffee consumer in the world, we can make a big dent by supporting the fair trade advocacy that ensures farmers get paid properly. Take a look at the infographic again. It describes how coffee is made from the farm to the mill, to the roasting plant and all the way to the consumer. Here are some of its highlights that show the bigness of this industry:
– 100 M people depend on coffee for livelihood; 25 M of which are farmers
– The U.S. spent 18 B for coffee yearly, equivalent to Bosnia’s GDP
– Coffee is the second most globally traded commodity after petroleum
For the Silo, Alex Hillsberg Web Journalist
Supplemental- How North Americans can help the #fairtrade program
Roughly once a month, I visit an artist’s studio for the ongoing series Studio Visits. I take iPhone photos of the corners and nooks of their studio, offering a more intimate look into a practice that usually takes place behind closed doors. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: it’s such a gift to be invited into an artist’s studio, which often doubles as a kind of sanctuary for them.I don’t often visit photographers’ studios.
This changed a couple of weeks ago when I was invited to visit Suzy Lake at her studio in Toronto. I’m a huge fan of Lake, and I might have said as much a few times in our email correspondence, no doubt coming across as a crazed fan girl. But I’m a fan for good reason! An American-Canadian artist, Lake has been seminal in both countries for the last five decades. Her photographs combine self-portraiture and performance to comment on larger themes: political justice, the role of an artist, feminism, and aging.
She played a foundational role in shaping Conceptualism in Canada. There’s so much to admire in Lake’s career, and the work itself is equally compelling. So here I am, at Lake’s studio, one of the foremost photographers in Canada, and I am taking pictures. As you can imagine, I am very self-conscious. I start clicking away on my iPhone, no doubt diminishing the medium with my lack of artistic ability. (Of course, this series isn’t about the photos themselves, but a desire to document and archive important artist practices.)
For Lake, the act of photographing is important. The images are complex and layered. The photograph doesn’t happen the moment the shutter clicks, but in the process, creation, and performance that spans the duration of the photograph.For example, in her seminal series, Extended Breathing (2008-14) [see image below], Lake stands still for long enough to be picked up by the long exposure—at least 30 minutes. These photographs become touchstones for how we are remembered, the self as a constant, as life moves around us. Lake is asserting agency over the medium, conveying a powerful message through process.
Artist Bio: Suzy Lake is an American-Canadian artist based in Toronto, Canada. Lake’s work explores the politics of body and identity through performance, video and photography. Her later work addresses the ageing body, questioning structures of power politically and poetically. Lake’s work has been presented extensively across Canada and internationally at the Centre Pompidou-Metz, Museum of Modern Art (New York), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), National Gallery of Canada (Ottawa), Brandhorst Museum (Munich), Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Vancouver Art Gallery, Hayward Gallery (London), Santa Monica Museum of Art, Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, and the Art Gallery of Windsor.
For the Silo, Tatum Dooley.
Featured image- Suzy-Lake_1983_Pre-Resolution_Using-the-Ordinances-at-Hand
Considered by many to be The Holy Grail of Polyphonic Synthesis, this meticulously refurbished Oberheim FVS-1 took 88 hours of skilled vintage synth tech time via our friends at tonetweakers to perfect. The FVS-1 contains 4 classic Oberheim SEM modules, each providing a single dual oscillator voice. Sounds are dialed in manually on each module, with global control over the most tweaked parameters via the programmer module, where patches are also saved and recalled. Since each SEM is manually adjusted, it’s hard to get them sounding exactly the same. The result is a much more organic, slightly detuned, richer, truly magical sound than you’d get out of most other poly synths.
Famous users include Lyle Mays, 808 State, Depeche Mode, Styx, Pink Floyd, The Shamen, Gary Wright, Joe Zawinul and John Carpenter (yep the film director of The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China, Starman, Escape From New York and other classics often composed and recorded music for his movies). You won’t find a better example of this beautiful classic synthesizer, so if you’re looking for an exceptional 4 voice, now’s the time. Visit our friends at tonetweakers.com to learn more.
The OB Four Voice contains 4 SEMs and a mixer module. This beautiful instrument can play up to 8 oscillators at once, for insanely humongous sounds.
One of the first
The 4 voice was one of the first polyphonic synths. Each of the four Synthesizer Expander Modules ( SEM ) can be assigned to a different note. Splitting voices between modules is also possible, as is a monophonic unison mode. A single voice is surprisingly powerful, offering 2 oscillators, 2 envelopes (1 for filter, 1 for volume), an LFO, pulse width modulation and a real sweet multimode filter with sweep-able mode (which few synths offered). The programmer module allows fast saving and recall of programmed sounds. With a combined 8 oscillators, these sound unbelievably fat. Even a single SEM sounds great. In unison mode, play all VCOs on one key for one of the most powerful vintage synth sounds ever. Nothing sounds like it to us and we’ve played everything. This is a personal favorite. This FVS-1 has the standard configuration of modules: 4 x Synthesizer Expander Module ( SEM ) Keyboard Output module Polyphonic Keyboard module Programmer module.
No clangs or zaps
If you are an analog synth head who makes musical sounds, you need one of these. To avoid disappointment though, we would recommend anyone looking for a dedicated sound effects machine to go for something else. This 4 voice is fabulous at musical tones and can make some interesting sound effects but there are better choices for clangs, zaps, explosions and similar atonal timbres.
Other famous users include: Joe Zawinul, Chick Corea, Larry Fast (Synergy), Jan Hammer, Herbie Hancock, Human League, Michael McDonald / Doobie Brothers, Patrick Moraz, Steve Porcaro, The Shamen, Tim Simenon, Depeche Mode, Vince Clarke / Erasure, Tangerine Dream, Stevie Wonder and many other influential musicians who could afford one – this was a very expensive instrument when it came out!
Did you know that, every year, home renovation projects are derailed by hidden costs, vague language, and inconsistent contractor bids—pushing 78% of jobs over budget and forcing two-thirds of homeowners into debt? It’s not just homeowners who feel the pain: contractors, property managers, real estate agents, investors, and flippers all struggle to assess and compare bids quickly and accurately.
The problem is that contractor quotes are rarely “apples to apples,” often missing critical details or disguising inflated charges—making it hard to identify true scope, cost, and risk. Now, the free-to-use and industry first BidCompareAI tool analyzes and compares multiple contractor bids, instantly identifying missing scope items, unrealistic allowances and other red flags before any work begins … often with tens of thousands of dollars on the line. In minutes, the AI generates a clear, line-by-line report that standardizes bids into transparent, actionable insights—helping homeowners avoid costly overruns, while enabling industry pros to quote with confidence, negotiate smarter, close deals faster, and protect ROI. Interest in this innovation raising industry transparency standards?
AI Reveals These Top 10 Home Renovation Bid Red Flags
First-of-its-kind free AI tool turns confusing, inconsistent contractor bids into clear, side-by-side insights—helping homeowners avoid costly overruns and enabling industry pros to quote, negotiate and close with confidence
Renovations are one of the most expensive and stressful decisions a homeowner makes. Yet 78% of projects blow their budgets, and 2 in 3 homeowners go into debt just to pay for them. Why? Because contractor bids are often riddled with hidden costs, vague language, and missing work that leave you paying more than you bargained for. Thankfully, new AI technology is now making these red flags impossible to ignore—saving homeowners thousands before a hammer is even swung. BidCompareAI is the first-ever AI tool that lets homeowners upload multiple bids and get a fast, detailed report comparing scope, pricing, and red flags—no construction expertise needed and no signup or payment required.
“Homeowners have been forced to make major financial decisions based on unclear or incomplete bids,” says GreatBuildz Co-CEO Jon Grishpul. “BidCompareAI adds instant transparency and clarity—saving people from costly mistakes before a project even starts. For contractors, property managers, and real estate professionals, it’s a credibility and efficiency tool that streamlines communication, builds trust and helps win more business.”
Here are the top 10 red flags often hiding in contractor bids, and how the BidCompareAI tool reveals them instantly:
1. Missing Scope Items — “Surprise” Costs Waiting to Blow Your Budget
Your contractor’s quote doesn’t include demolition, cleanup, or critical tasks? That’s a ticking time bomb. Now, homeowners can catch these omissions so you never get hit with surprise charges.
2. Vague Allowances — The Fine Print That Drains Your Wallet
Ambiguous line items like “fixtures” or “materials” can mean anything. The AI tool flags vague terms so you can demand specifics upfront.
3. Unrealistically Low Bids — Too Good to Be True? Usually Are
Low-ball bids often mean corners will be cut or costs will balloon later. This AI exposes these dangerously low estimates before you get stuck with change orders.
4. Pricing Inconsistencies — Comparing Apples to Oranges?
Quotes come in all formats with wildly different terminology. This advanced technology standardizes and compares them side-by-side, so you’re not left guessing.
5. Hidden Fees — The Black Box of Renovation Budgets
Permits, procurement, and labor fees sometimes get lumped in mysteriously. The AI reveals these “hidden” charges clearly in its summary report.
6. Overlapping or Duplicate Charges — Paying Twice Without Knowing It
Some bids unknowingly charge for the same work twice. The AI delivers a line-by-line analysis that spots these costly errors fast.
7. Unclear Project Timelines — When Delays Lead to Extra Costs
Vague or missing timelines can spiral into costly delays. While timelines aren’t priced, spotting missing info helps you demand accountability.
8. Missing Cleanup and Disposal — Don’t Get Stuck with the Mess
Quotes that don’t include cleanup leave you responsible for hauling debris and disposing of waste. This AI highlights these crucial omissions.
9. Discrepancies in Material Quality — Low-Quality Where You Expected Premium
One bid may specify high-end fixtures while another hides “allowances” that could mean anything. The AI tool flags these differences so you know exactly what you’re paying for.
10. Inconsistent Labor Charges — Watch for Inflated or Unexplained Fees
Labor costs vary widely, and some bids overcharge or include unnecessary markups. This user-friendly technology points out these red flags clearly.
“This is about more than just tech,” added Paul Dashevsky, Co-CEO of GreatBuildz. “It’s about empowering homeowners to feel confident and in control of their renovation projects—and helping contractors better serve their clients.”
Renovations don’t have to be a financial nightmare. As consumer-facing AI tools proliferate across industries, the BidCompareAI innovation demonstrates how artificial intelligence can bring real-world value by making complex, high-stakes decisions—like selecting the right contractor—faster, clearer and far less stressful. For the Silo, Marsha Zorn.
Installation view of Man Ray: When Objects Dream, on view September 14,2025–February 1, 2026at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by Anna-Marie Kellen, Courtesy of our friends at The Met.
American artist Man Ray (1890–1976) was a visionary known for his radical experiments that pushed the limits of photography, painting, sculpture, and film. In the winter of 1921, he pioneered the rayograph, a new twist on a technique used to make photographs without a camera. By placing objects on or near a sheet of light-sensitive paper, which he exposed to light and developed, Man Ray turned recognizable subjects into wonderfully mysterious compositions.
Introduced in the period between Dada and Surrealism, the rayographs’ transformative, magical qualities led the poet Tristan Tzara to describe them as capturing the moments “when objects dream.”
The exhibition will be the first to situate this signature accomplishment in relation to Man Ray’s larger body of work of the 1910s and 1920s. Drawing from the collections of The Met and more than 50 U.S. and international lenders, the exhibition will feature approximately 60 rayographs and 100 paintings, objects, prints, drawings, films, and photographs—including some of the artist’s most iconic works—to highlight the central role of the rayograph in Man Ray’s boundary-breaking practice.
“Before my eyes an image began to form, not quite a simple silhouette of the objects as in a straight photograph, but distorted and refracted … In the morning I examined the results, pinning a couple of the Rayographs—as I decided to call them—on the wall. They looked startlingly new and mysterious.” — Man Ray
The exhibition is made possible by the Barrie A. and Deedee Wigmore Foundation.
Major funding is provided by Linda Macklowe, the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Daniel and Estrellita Brodsky Foundation, The International Council of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Andrea Krantz and Harvey Sawikin, and Schiaparelli.
Additional support is provided by the Vanguard Council.
The catalogue is made possible by the Mellon Foundation.
Additional support is provided by James Park, the Carol Shuster-Polakoff Family Foundation, and Sharon Wee and Tracy Fu.
Exhibition Catalog
Man Ray: When Objects Dream
This volume is the first in-depth study of Man Ray’s groundbreaking rayographs of the 1920s and their interconnections with his Dada and Surrealist works.
The “D” word. Stressful right? When your divorce is finally final, how will you begin again?
The transition can be liberating for some, daunting for others. Mixed feelings – anger, relief, sadness, joy, fear and uncertainty – are common and may take time to sort out.
Meanwhile, the clock on your new life is ticking, and regardless of your emotions, it is time for a freedom-inspired relaunch, says Jacqueline Newman, a Manhattan-based divorce lawyer and author of Soon To Be Ex: A Guide to Your Perfect Divorce & Relaunch (www.Jacquelinenewman.com).
The divorce proceedings – all the time spent with your attorney and in court, all the hours burned while considering highly emotional and financial factors, from the impact on your children to the division of assets – put a big part of your life on hold, not to mention a major strain on it. And now with the difficult process over, Newman says, it is important to focus on creating a brand new you.
“The last umpteen months have been about your kids, your ex, and your divorce,” says Newman, “thus, a little ‘me’ time is in order. Here is an opportunity to be free from having to answer to anyone but yourself. So live your life to its fullest.”
Newman’s message is that divorce does not have to be the worst thing that could have happened to you.
There are silver linings as you begin to take control of what you can, and she offers three tips on how to relaunch after a divorce.
• Treat yourself. Right out of the divorce gate, buy something meaningful for yourself. Lose the guilt your ex made you feel for spending on clothes or expensive shoes. Your gift could be something symbolic and therapeutic that fires a shot back at your ex. “I would absolutely recommend you buy yourself a divorce present of some kind,” Newman says. “You deserve it. One woman I represented was constantly mocked by her husband during their marriage for being flat-chested. It is easy to guess what she bought as soon as her cash payment cleared.”
• Embrace single hood. This does not mean you have to hug your first post-divorce dinner partner. It means embracing a new stage of discovery, with the different, interesting people you meet while dating becoming part of your growth. Newman recommends online dating as a way to “relearn how to date.” Many newly divorced people feel insecure about dating, but Newman suggests learning about people outside your comfort zone. And rather than trying to focus on finding Mr. or Mrs. Right, Newman says, “Give yourself some time to look around and meet different types of people. You may learn something that can broaden your perspective on life. If you can start seeing relationships not as the goal but as opportunities for growth, then you can start being more accepting with the outcome of each relationship.”
• Expand your freedom. Use your new windows of time to catch up with friends you have not seen. Newman recommends Facebook as an easy way to reconnect. On weekends when the ex has the kids, strengthen your friendship circle and broaden it. Explore and re-discover yourself. Pursue new hobbies or renew ones you did not have as much time for in marriage. Advance your career. “Your post-divorce life is offering you a chance to go after the promotion you have been dreaming about,” Newman says.
By doing the things you long wanted to do, you can find the new you.
“You are free to be who you are without judgment from a spouse,” Newman says, “and to do whatever you want. Learn to love yourself.” For the Silo, Cathy K. Hayes.
He listened to Mike Oldfield. He saw the pictures on the albums and he read about ‘this thing called a Fairlight’. Which raised Klaus’ curiosity about this ‘Computer Instrument’. Fellow keyboardists told him it was a mission impossible, getting your hands on one. But Klaus managed to find the holy grail…
‘To me, It’s still fresh. I can use the Fairlight to create sounds no one’s ever heard before.’
If we take a look at the history of popular musical style creation we see a common theme: new technology leads to new inventions leads to new possibilities for musicians and composers. Consider the evolution of the modern piano from its beginnings as a somewhat-limited-oft-out-of-tune harpsichord. Or the evolution of the electric guitar from the acoustic guitar- by adding an pickup to electronically capture sound, another inadvertent effect became possible: the ability to alter the signal and sound characteristic via electronic manipulation. Heavy Metal music would never have been possible without the distortion pedal, which itself is an evolution of overdriven mixing board input channels and later on- fuzz pedals.
The first fuzz pedal to hit the market was the Maestro Fuzz-Tone, which was launched in 1962. It was developed by engineer Glenn Snoddy in collaboration with Gibson Guitars.
Inspired by Grady Martin’s distorted bass, Glenn worked with Revis Hobbs to create a device that could replicate the sound consistently. Despite its clever design, the Maestro Fuzz-Tone wasn’t really liked by many musicians. They were unfamiliar with this new distorted sound and didn’t know how to use it into their music.
However, this all changed in 1965 when The Rolling Stones used it in their hit song “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” pedalplayers.com
In a similar way the Fairlight, the AKAI MPC, the EMU and other sampling based instruments allowed for extreme sound manipulation and even the creation of entirely new sounds leading to new techniques of musicianship and composition. Will we see another development to change the playing field? Is AI the next musical frontier?
”I was lucky enough to find a Series II, back in 2010. It’s quite a historical piece, for it used to belong to Synthesizer Studio Bonn, one of the only two Fairlight retailers in Germany. They bought it in 1982. It was their demo machine and It was kept in their shop until 1999. They went bankrupt, and the Fairlight was sold to a synth collector, who went bankrupt as well. He had to sell a lot of his equipment, including the Series II. I got it for a good price. But I do hope I won’t be the third one to go bankrupt.”
Klaus Himmelstein has been a music and science teacher on several German international schools for about twenty years now. He developed a special interest in electronic music, but originally he is a classically trained violin player. ”That’s how I started, at the age of 8. My parents took me to violin lessons, because they discovered I have perfect pitch hearing. I really love to play the violin and I still play it. Through the years, I got more and more interested in electronic instruments.”
Green screen, big box
”I remember getting my hands on a Yamaha DX7 for the first time, when I was about 12 years old. That was in 1986. I didn’t know what any of these knobs were for. I tried out the presets and I tried to tweak them, to get some other sounds out of it. Around that time period, I also heard about the Fairlight for the first time. I listened to Mike Oldfields’ albums and I read he was using a ‘Fairlight computer’. So I thought: ’What the hell is a Fairlight computer?’ And then, I figured out it was this funny machine with this keyboard and this green screen and a big box, pictured on some of his albums.”
He bought his first synth in 1991. ”A Roland D-5. Not to be confused with the famous D-50. The reason I bought it was because it is multitimbral. I already had an Atari ST computer. I used this set-up for making my first compositions. And, around that time, I started asking other keyboard players about the Fairlight. Some people didn’t know anything about it. But the people who knew about it, they’d be saying things like: ’Oh boy, that’s the holy grail…’, ’15.000 Deutsche Mark’, ’You won’t get your hands on one’ or ’That’s only for the big studios’. By the end of the nineties, Klaus had built himself quite a studio with a decent amount of vintage synthesizers. ”I started looking on eBay, checking for Fairlights. I’ve learned there are two types of Fairlight-ads: either the refurbished machines which cost a fortune, or just crap.”
Closing the deal
In 2010, an acquaintance of his – the guy from RetroSound, who publishes videos of pretty much every vintage synthesizer you can think of – notified Klaus there was a Fairlight for sale. “He knew I was looking for one, through my posts on forums. So one day, he sent me an e-mail. He knew there was one for sale, somewhere in the Eiffel area. A Series II, not in perfect condition, but good enough. He offered to put me in touch with the seller.
So, in the end, I went to this guy, checked it out, talked about the price and closed the deal. It was pretty easy going. I picked it up myself, for I don’t trust companies like UPS and DHL too much handling valuable packages. I had a huge car back in the day, a station wagon. I put lots of cushions and blankets in the back of the car. I wrapped it all up and drove back to my studio, which was located in the city of Münster. I set it all up and after that, people didn’t see me for quite some time, for I was in the studio all of the time.
I went through all the floppy disks. They contained a large collection of samples from Synthesizer Studio Bonn. They made their own samples, their own sounds. It was used for demo sessions. I checked out all the sounds; quite some unique stuff in there.”
Nothing like the real thing
”I was always fascinated by its sound. That was one of the reasons I wanted to have one. Not just for collecting purposes. I’m not treating it like some piece of history that sits in my studio, like some precious artefact, being polished every day. I really want to use it for making music.” Of course, it took some getting-used-to. Klaus: ”When you start to work with it, you’ll probably find out it’s quite difficult. For instance, the light pen isn’t as accurate as you think it might be; no drag ’n drop, no pull-down menu’s. But in the end, after a couple of days, I’ve found my way around it.
I also figured out, and this is a thing I learned from other users as well: after two or three hours working with the light pen, your arm gets really tired. And that CRT monitor, that green screen compared to todays monitors.… It isn’t too comfortable. But that sound, it makes it all worth while. I think the percussive sounds are the best in the world. And it’s that 8-bit sound… I don’t know why exactly, but I think it’s just the best. It’s unique. You don’t get that particular sound out of todays software. For instance, Arturia’s CMI V, it’s really nice, it’s a good reproduction. But if you want that original particular sound, there’s nothing like the original Fairlight CMI.”
Warm community
”I bought it back in 2010 and I have been using it ever since. It’s still in quite good condition, except for the CRT-monitor. It’s a little bubbly and not quite clear around the edges. But furthermore, the light pen is still working, one of the floppy drives still works, as well as the 8 voice cards. At the age of almost 40 years, it’s still a good machine. Together with Jean-Bernard Emond from France, I’ve made some modifications. For instance, we’ve replaced on of the floppy drives with an SSD-drive. Peter Wielk helped me out with one of the voice cards. I had a dead one. He had one in Australia, so he sent it to me.
I have two Emulators, and one of them just serves as a box of spare parts. I figured out there aren’t too many people familiair with repairing an Emulator. And it’s very, very difficult to get spare parts for it. With the Fairlight on the other hand, there’s a well grown community, pretty much world wide. You can get parts from France, from Australia, from the UK… There’s always someone somewhere in the world, with a great love for the instrument and lots of knowledge, who can help you out with any issue you might have.”
Inspirators
“In my studio, there are at least 25 keyboards and a whole lot of modules and other stuff. The Fairlight is a part of ’the orchestra.
I’m a big fan of Tangerine Dream, that is to say: their early work. Everything after about 1989 began to sound like pretty much everything else. They used cutting edge technology. But the funny thing is: they never used a Fairlight. According to Edgar Froese, they used a Synclavier, and Emulators. Their music comes close to what inspires me. Some people are comparing some of my work to Tangerine Dream. Others are saying it reminds them of Jean-Michel Jarre. The perception is quite different. I’m totally happy when people like my tracks. If they don’t? That’s fine with me. I’m working on my ideas and I’m enjoying the proces. That’s it. Sometimes, I get involved in some recordings, I made a couple of jingles for radio commercials and I once made a small movie score. Sometimes, I play keyboards and violin in bands. I’d prefer doing a little less teaching and a little more music production. The good thing about being a teacher: it’s a steady job. The bad thing about being a musician on the free market: you’re never sure of income. I prefer the more secure way. Teaching music actually is a lot of fun. Recently, we performed a few pieces with some students. I love teaching music to kids. But, I don’t take many of my synthesizers to school. My Moog Rogue is the only one I bring from time to time. They can tweak on pretty much every knob or slider; it doesn’t go out of order. But I’m not bringing the Fairlight to school. I don’t want to transport it too often.”
Final thoughts
“The Fairlight CMI, it’s a particular part of history. It has integrated sampling into modern music. Without the Fairlight, things would have happened totally differently. Back in the early 80’s, it was the latest thing to go on, the latest way to produce new kinds of music. I love that particular sound. For me, it’s still up to date. It’s not old-fashioned, it’s not vintage. For me, it is still fresh. In my opinion, I can use the Fairlight – as well as the Emulator – to create new and fresh sounds that have never been heard before. I’m convinced of that.” For the Silo, Mirjam van Kerkwijk/ Jarrod Barker. Read more about the Fairlight via For The Love Of The Fairlight . Have a fun Fairlight story to tell? Contact Mirjam at [email protected].
American Federation of Arts Announces New Season of Touring Exhibitions for Fall 2025 through 2027 ‒ Museums in over 11 cities will headline art exhibitions created by the American Federation of Arts, with more cities to come ‒
The American Federation of Arts (AFA), the leader in traveling exhibitions worldwide since its founding in 1909, proudly announces the new season for the fall of 2025 through 2027. So far, museums in over 11 cities will headline several art exhibitions created by the AFA and its partners, with more cities to come. Throughout its celebrated 116-year history, the nonprofit institution has helped to spearhead the course of art for generations by enriching the public’s experience and understanding of the visual arts.
Pauline Forlenza at the 2024 AFA Gala in New York (Photo by Alycia Kravitz)
“The AFA’s expansive panorama of new exhibitions demonstrates the importance of listening to the input of visual arts leaders nationwide, focusing on what audiences want to see, and continuing our legacy of shining a light on new artists and trends,” says Pauline Forlenza, the Director and CEO of the American Federation of Arts. “Our longstanding commitment to touring art exhibitions, publishing exhibition catalogues with scholarly research, and developing educational programs is vital – now more than ever.”
These traveling museum shows will open doors to creativity for the next sixteen months to museumgoers. Some of the shows include:
Abstract Expressionists: The Women • Alex Katz: Theater and Dance Civic Virtue in Rembrandt’s Amsterdam: 17th-Century Group Portraits from the Amsterdam Museum • Presence: The Photography Collection of Judy Glickman Lauder • Making American Artists: Stories from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1776–1976 • Experimental Ground: Modernist Printmaking in Paris & New York at Atelier 17
Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection, and more. Links to all of the AFA’s 2025 through 2027 exhibition tours may be viewed at: current shows and upcoming tours. Pauline Forlenza at the 2024 AFA Gala in New York (Photo by Alycia Kravitz)
Some of the museums across the country include: National Museum of Women in the Arts, Wichita Art Museum, Muscarelle Museum of Art, Southampton Arts Center, The Gibbes Museum of Art, Taubman Museum of Art, Peabody Essex Museum, Indianapolis Museum of Art, New Orleans Museum of Art, Mobile Museum of Art, and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, among others.
Since 1909, the AFA has toured more than 3,500 exhibitions that have been viewed by millions of people in museums in every U.S. state, and in Canada, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. From the Smithsonian – “A vital part of American art history, the AFA was one of the first organizations to develop successfully the concept of traveling art exhibitions on a national and international level. Many arts organizations and museums have followed the AFA’s precedent. This national nonprofit museum service organization is recognized for striving to unite American art institutions, collectors, artists, and museums.”
“Through the years, the AFA has also had an impact on patronage in the arts. During its 116-year history, the Federation’s exhibitions of contemporary art provided collectors with knowledge of new artists and avant-garde art forms, creating a broader demand and market for this type of work. Museums and collectors began purchasing work by new or obscure American artists whom they learned about through AFA exhibitions and programs. The AFA also recognizes the importance of the exchange of cultural ideas.”
“Throughout its history, the organization has concentrated on its founding principle of broadening the audiences for contemporary American art, breaking down barriers of distance and language to expand the knowledge and appreciation of art. The touring exhibitions have brought before the public contemporary American artists and craftspeople, genres, and artistic forms of experimentation – exposing viewers to new ways of thinking and expression.”
Highlights from the New Season
View the full list of tours at: amfedarts.org/exhibitions/current and amfedarts.org/exhibitions/upcoming-exhibitions/. The complete lists of current and upcoming touring museum shows are updated regularly, as new exhibitions and new museum dates are added. Following are highlights of eight of the AFA exhibitions that will be touring during the fall of 2025 through 2027.
Abstract Expressionists: The Women
Explores the vital, under-acknowledged innovation of women artists in the Abstract Expressionist movement, the first internationally renowned artistic movement to originate in the U.S. • Featuring 47 works from The Levett Collection, by more than 30 women artists who worked in New York, California, and Paris from the early 1940s through the 1970s.
“Too often, the canon of art history has relegated women artists to supporting roles in major art movements,” says Pauline Forlenza, the Director and CEO of the AFA. “This exhibition upends that narrative, asserting that women painters were critical contributors to the formulation of Abstract Expressionism from the very beginning.
Equally talented and visionary, the female artists featured in this show helped put American art on the map,” adds Forlenza. The exhibition is organized by the American Federation of Arts from the Christian Levett Collection and FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), France. This exhibition is curated by Ellen G. Landau, PhD, Andrew W. Mellon Professor Emerita of the Humanities at Case Western Reserve University.
17th-Century Group Portraits from the Amsterdam Museum
The large group portraits in this exhibition have rarely left Amsterdam since they were commissioned in the 1600s, and have never traveled in the U.S. as a group. • The show traces how life in the largest and most important city of Holland was based on the collective responsibility of the burghers, who combined their mercantile wealth with political power. • Amsterdam’s economic success, however, was the result of ruthless trade wars within Europe, colonization and enslavement overseas. • Artists include Adriaen van Nieulandt, Gerrit Berckheyde, Ludolf Bakhuizen, Frederik Jansz, Dirck Santvoort, Ferdinand Bol, Bartholomeus van der Helst, Nicolaes Eliasz Pickenoy, Jan Victors, and of course, Rembrandt van Rijn. • By governing and guarding the city, by organizing and managing a social safety net for the poor and needy, and by stimulating scientific and industrial developments, the burghers contributed to making Amsterdam the most prosperous city in Europe.
The Osteology Lesson of Dr. Sebastiaen Egbertsz, artist unknown (1619). Oil.
Presence: The Photography Collection of Judy Glickman Lauder 100 photographs by 70 artists. • Explores the concept of presence through the tenderness of portraits, the awe within landscapes, the clarity of reportage, and the spontaneity of cityscapes. • Works by Merry Alpern, Diane Arbus, Richard Avedon, Irving Bennett Ellis, Nan Goldin, Dorothea Lange, Danny Lyon, Sally Mann, Susan Meiselas, Helmut Newton, Ruth Orkin, Gordon Parks, Edward Steichen, Joyce Tenneson, James Van Der Zee, Todd Webb, Edward Weston, and more. • Photographs can be imprinted with the totality of human experiences, and this exhibition embraces that totality, examining the deeply humanistic history of photography.
Robert Mapplethorpe and Patti Smith, New York, by Norman Seeff (1969). Archival pigment print. Portland Museum of Art, promised gift from the Judy Glickman Lauder Collection.
Making American Artists: Stories from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1776–1976
Presenting more than 100 of the most acclaimed and recognizable works of American art. • New narratives of the history of American art, embracing stories about women artists, LGBTQ+ artists, and artists of color, alongside iconic works traditionally associated with PAFA. • Women artists participated in PAFA’s exhibitions as early as 1811, and this show includes paintings by Sarah Miriam Peale, Mary Cassatt, Cecilia Beaux, Alice Neel, and May Howard Jackson (the first African American woman to receive a scholarship to attend PAFA, in 1895). • By 1900, PAFA acquired its first work by a Black artist, Henry O. Tanner. PAFA educated African American artists and acquired their works throughout the twentieth century, and this show features works by Joshua Johnson (one of the first professional Black artists in America), Dox Thrash, Laura Wheeler Waring, Edward Loper, and Barkley L. Hendricks.
Curated by Anna O. Marley, PhD., a scholar of American art and material culture from the colonial era to today.
The first comprehensive museum presentation of Katzʼs highly collaborative and playful work with choreographers, dancers, and members of avant-garde theater ensembles over six decades. • Showcases Katz’s deep and lasting influence on the history of the American performing arts. • Rare archival materials, major sets and paintings, and previously unexhibited sketches from more than two dozen productions. • Spotlights fifteen productions that Katz produced with Paul Taylor, exploring their creative partnership that generated some of the most significant postmodern dance and art of the twentieth century. • Artworks from the show are drawn from the Alex Katz holdings at the Colby College Museum of Art (home to a collection of nearly 900 works by the artist), from Paul Taylor Dance Archives, and from the artist’s studio.
• Provides an innovative kind of retrospective: that of an artistic sensibility. • Attesting to the intertwined histories of painting and stage design in Katzʼs works. • Curated by Levi Prombaum, former Katz Consulting Curator, Colby College Museum of Art.
Willie Birch: Stories to Tell
Chronicles Birch’s unique vision of the Black American experience and examines the interconnected nature of global art forms. • The first ever career retrospective brings together groundbreaking works from the early 1970s to the present.
Throughout his career, the artist has explored how African traditions have been retained in music, art, and culture in America and beyond. • Birch was raised in New Orleans and trained in Europe, Baltimore, and New York. • His work as an artist, community organizer, and cultural provocateur questions why certain things are retained and not others, unearthing uncomfortable truths about American identity, but also offering possibilities for greater cultural awareness.
Left to-right: Memories of the 60’s, by Willie Birch (1992). Papier mâché, mixed media. Courtesy of Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans. • Uptown Memories (A Day in the Life of the Magnolia Project), by Willie Birch (1995). Painted papier-mâché and mixed media. New Orleans Museum of Art, Gift of Frederick R. Weisman. Image Copyright of New Orleans Museum of Art / Photo: Roman Alokhin.
Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection
Reveals the intergenerational relationships fostered among women artists over the last eight decades, assembling over 70 works made by 60 women artists between 1946 and today. • Sculpture, painting, installation, textiles, pottery, and mixed media works all converge. • Pioneering examples of post-war abstraction —including early works by Janet Sobel, Judy Chicago, and Mary Corse — are shown alongside compositions by leading contemporary artists such as Julie Mehretu, Lorna Simpson, and Aria Dean. • Paintings and mixed media works by Christina Quarles, Tschabalala Self, and Firelei Báez blur the boundaries between abstraction and figuration. • Connections between the handmade and digital emerge in the various forms of piecework employed in Faith Ringgold’s quilts, Howardena Pindell’s collages, and the pixelated, hypermediated canvases made by Jacqueline Humphries and Anicka Yi.
Works by the Freedom Quilting Bee, Françoise Grossen, and Sheila Hicks explore irregular geometries and eccentric abstractions via fabric and fiber. • Curated by Cecilia Alemani of High Line Arts in New York City. Sisters, by Tschabalala Self (2021). Velvet, felt, tulle, marbleized cotton, craft paper, fabric, and digitally printed, hand-printed, and painted canvas on canvas. Collection of the Shah Garg Foundation. Crisscross, by Sarah Sze (2021). Oil, acrylic, acrylic polymer, and ink on composite aluminum panel, with wood support. Collection of the Shah Garg Foundation. Counterculture B, by Rose B. Simpson (2022). Carved New Mexico pine, twine, clay and acrylic. Collection of the Shah Garg Foundation.
Experimental Ground: Modernist Printmaking
In Paris & New York at Atelier 17 The first large-scale survey of original prints made at Atelier 17 to tour the U.S. in 50 years. • This revolutionary printmaking workshop (1927 to 1988) was famous for its impact on the development of modern art.
Kaleidoscopic Organism, by Fred Becker (1946). Softground etching. Courtesy of O’Brien Art Project Foundation.
It served as a hub of artistic and intellectual exchange — first for Surrealists in interwar Paris, and after World War II for the exploration of abstraction and other modernist styles. • Commemorates 100 years since the founding of the studio. • Presents works by notable artists who gained formative skills at Atelier 17, such as Joan Miró, Yves Tanguy, Louise Bourgeois, Franz Kline, Jackson Pollock, Louise Nevelson, and Krishna Reddy, among many other artists who participated in intense collaborations at the studio. • Atelier 17 attracted hundreds of international artists, drawn to the radical vision of printmaking as a mode for experimentation rather than reproduction.
About the American Federation of Arts
The American Federation of Arts (AFA) is the leader in traveling exhibitions in the U.S. and worldwide. One of the first to successfully tour art exhibitions on a national and international level, the organization unites American art institutions, collectors, artists, and museums. The AFA has toured more than 3,500 exhibitions that have been viewed by millions of people in museums in every U.S. state, and in Canada, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
A nonprofit organization founded in 1909, AFA is dedicated to enriching the public’s experience and understanding of the visual arts through organizing and touring art exhibitions for presentation in museums around the world, publishing exhibition catalogues featuring important scholarly research, and developing educational programs.
Abstract Expressionists: The Women is organized by the American Federation of Arts from the Christian Levett Collection and FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), France. The exhibition is curated by Dr. Ellen G. Landau. It is generously supported by Berry Campbell Gallery, Betsy Shack Barbanell, Monique Schoen Warshaw, Christian Levett, and Clare McKeon and the Clare McKeon Charitable Trust. Additional support has been provided by the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the Every Page Foundation.
Making Art, Making History: 200 Years of American Stories from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is co-organized by the American Federation of Arts and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Lead support was provided to PAFA by the William Penn Foundation, with additional support from the Richard C. von Hess Foundation and donors to PAFA’s Special Exhibitions Fund. In-Kind support is provided by Christie’s and Gill & Lagodich Fine Period Frames, New York. This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.
Alex Katz: Theater and Dance is organized by the American Federation of Arts and Colby College Museum of Art. This exhibition is curated by Levi Prombaum, former Katz Consulting Curator, Colby College Museum of Art. The 2022 presentation of Alex Katz: Theater and Dance was organized by the Colby Museum with curatorial guidance from Robert Storr.
Willie Birch: Stories to Tell is co-organized by the American Federation of Arts and the New Orleans Museum of Art. Major support for the exhibition and catalogue is provided by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the Henry Luce Foundation, Wyeth Foundation for American Arts, and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection is organized by the American Federation of Arts and the Shah Garg Foundation. The exhibition is curated by Cecilia Alemani, the Donald R. Mullen, Jr. Director and Chief Curator of High Line Arts in New York City.
Experimental Ground: Modernist Printmaking in Paris & New York at Atelier 17 is organized by the American Federation of Arts. This exhibition is curated by Ann Shafer and Christina Weyl. Civic Virtue in Rembrandt’s Amsterdam: 17th-Century Group Portraits from the Amsterdam Museum is organized by the American Federation of Arts.
Presence: The Photography Collection of Judy Glickman Lauder is co-organized by the Portland Museum of Art, Maine, and the American Federation of Arts.
Untitled. abstract expressionism- oil on canvas Jarrod Barker 2021
A few weekends, late nights, a powdery mess of raw ingredients and a 3-foot-long ( 0.944-meter- long) immersion blender working up a storm later ,it’s become more than apparent that our friends lab at kommandostore has been cooking up another big batch.…Of Versengtarn & Acidtarn.We get it, they’re in South Dakota, USA but what did you think we were talking about? Tabs?
“Versengtarn” and “Acidtarn” are their most popular dyed-in-house military surplus garments by a longshot and it’s easy to see why. They use a special reactive dye that lasts far longer than most off-the-shelf compounds & a top-secret DJ routine on a washing machine for a shadowy redux of Flecktarn Field Shirts & Parkas that you just can’t find anywhere else. Being pre-inspected and laundered during the dye process, they’re ironically some of the best quality flecktarn pieces you can buy from kommandostore.
Versengtarn is the classic, an almost Multicam-black-esque variant of flecktarn that’s been created that quiets down the classic camo pattern to a whisper, giving it an ashy appearance that’s fantastic for working in to your daily wardrobe or just being a little edgelord who loves buying black stuff. Acidtarn is much of the same but has a green-er overtone. It retains the subtlety, and a bit of the original military looks of the Flecktarn Field Shirt.
With the first batch a few months ago being a massive success, kommandostore heard you guys loud and clear. The perpetual dyeing industrial supercomplex in their warehouse now cannot be stopped .
So, whether this is your first time dyeing with them or you missed out on the last batch, today’s the day to click the link above and get an order it. They’ve got plenty of other dye projects to do before circling back to good ol v-tarn so it might be a while before it’s back…
The Lore Drop
What watching the first season of True Detective does to a mfer… If you cant tell how excited we were after learning about dyed flecktarn, the double-exposure edit above should give you enough of a hint. It goes hard in a way we just can’t match one for one these days.
The concrete Malibu mansion abandoned mid-renovation by Kanye West is back on the market with a previous deal now on the rocks.
The Malibu Beach home that Kanye West bought in 2021 for $57.3 million usd/ $79.03 million cad but then gutted, abandoned and sold for $21 million usd/ $28.97 million cad has hit a new snag. The 4,000-square-foot home, designed by renowned architect Tadao Ando, has bounced between several developers and is now back on the market for $34.9 million usd/ $48.14 million cad.
It’s the latest twist in the saga of the oceanfront house, designed by award-winning Japanese architect Tadao Ando, which the rapper purchased in 2021.
West bought the three-story home for $57.3 million—and then immediately gutted it, leaving only a concrete shell with no windows, plumbing or electricity when he dumped the project about two years later.
Note- prices below are in USD, please read intro paragraph above for CAD conversion at time of publication.
The skeletal beach house then sold for $21 million last year to Steven “Bo” Belmont, a developer who returned it to the market within months. He quickly went into contract to sell it to another developer, the Montana-based Andrew Mazzella, for $30 million, both parties confirmed.
Listing images show the home before a gut renovation was begun.The Oppenheim Group/Roger Davies
The deal with Mazzella, a luxury home developer, was scheduled to close in May but has now stalled, as the shell of a house was back on the market as of Wednesday asking $34.9 million, down from an initial ask in March of $39 million.
According to Belmont, CEO of crowdfunding platform Belwood Investments, the deal is enirely dead, he told Mansion Global on Monday. Belmont cancelled the contract after Mazzella requested a third extension to find financing when the second extension expired on July 31.
Mazzella confirmed that they mutually cancelled the contract earlier this month, but was quoted as saying he’s “not out of the game just yet”, and is “still interested in negotiating a deal for the house”.
Roughly 1,200 tons of concrete were used to build the original home.The Oppenheim Group/Roger Davies
Prior to the March deal, Belmont had already begun the $8.5 million process of returning the 4,000-square-foot home to its original design by the Pritzker Prize-winning architect, built in 2013 for financier Richard Sachs, he said. He consulted with Sachs and hired the same design-build firm, Marmol Radziner, who had constructed the house originally.
Belmont plans to sell the building as-is at the new price to recoup the money already invested, or return to the original plan of restoring it and selling the completed house—which he expects to be in even more demand in the wake of the January wildfires.
“Malibu is going to get a full face lift, with fire-retardant concrete homes, and we have the ultimate high-end concrete home. A tsunami can’t take it out. A fire can’t take it out,” Belmont said. “And it’s the only Ando for sale.”
The listing is with Jason Oppenheim of the Oppenheim Group and Mauricio Umansky of the Agency, who have been representing the seller from the start. Oppenheim previously repped Kanye in the sale to Belmont, as well. Neither immediately responded to a request for comment.
Realtor.com first reported the home’s return to the market.
Mazzella had also planned to complete the reno of the house and list it closer to Kanye’s original purchase price. “It’s a very complicated construction project,” he said.
Mazzella is working on restoring another Los Angeles mansion and plans to keep looking for opportunities if the deal for this one does fall through. “I consider my business style to be that of Trump, Musk and Carl Icahn combined so it’s not an easy process,” he said.
For the Silo, Liz Lucking/ Mansion Global, Jarrod Barker.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has infiltrated our lives for decades, but since the public launch of ChatGPT showcasing generative AI in 2022, society has faced unprecedented technological evolution.
With digital technology already a constant part of our lives, AI has the potential to alter the way we live, work, and play – but exponentially faster than conventional computers have. With AI comes staggering possibilities for both advancement and threat.
The AI industry creates unique and dangerous opportunities and challenges. AI can do amazing things humans can’t, but in many situations, referred to as the black box problem, experts cannot explain why particular decisions or sources of information are created. These outcomes can, sometimes, be inaccurate because of flawed data, bad decisions or infamous AI hallucinations. There is little regulation or guidance in software and effectively no regulations or guidelines in AI.
How do researchers find a way to build and deploy valuable, trusted AI when there are so many concerns about the technology’s reliability, accuracy and security?
That was the subject of a recent C.D. Howe Institute conference. In my keynote address, I commented that it all comes down to software. Software is already deeply intertwined in our lives, from health, banking, and communications to transportation and entertainment. Along with its benefits, there is huge potential for the disruption and tampering of societal structures: Power grids, airports, hospital systems, private data, trusted sources of information, and more.
Consumers might not incur great consequences if a shopping application goes awry, but our transportation, financial or medical transactions demand rock-solid technology.
The good news is that experts have the knowledge and expertise to build reliable, secure, high-quality software, as demonstrated across Class A medical devices, airplanes, surgical robots, and more. The bad news is this is rarely standard practice.
As a society, we have often tolerated compromised software for the sake of convenience. We trade privacy, security, and reliability for ease of use and corporate profitability. We have come to view software crashes, identity theft, cybersecurity breaches and the spread of misinformation as everyday occurrences. We are so used to these trade-offs with software that most users don’t even realize that reliable, secure solutions are possible.
With the expected potential of AI, creating trusted technology becomes ever more crucial. Allowing unverifiable AI in our frameworks is akin to building skyscrapers on silt. Security and functionality by design trump whack-a-mole retrofitting. Data must be accurate, protected, and used in the way it’s intended.
Striking a balance between security, quality, functionality, and profit is a complex dance. The BlackBerry phone, for example, set a standard for secure, trusted devices. Data was kept private, activities and information were secure, and operations were never hacked. Devices were used and trusted by prime ministers, CEOs and presidents worldwide. The security features it pioneered live on and are widely used in the devices that outcompeted Blackberry.
Innovators have the know-how and expertise to create quality products. But often the drive for profits takes precedence over painstaking design. In the AI universe, however, where issues of data privacy, inaccuracies, generation of harmful content and exposure of vulnerabilities have far-reaching effects, trust is easily lost.
So, how do we build and maintain trust? Educating end-users and leaders is an excellent place to start. They need to be informed enough to demand better, and corporations need to strike a balance between caution and innovation.
Companies can build trust through a strong adherence to safe software practices, education in AI evolution and adherence to evolving regulations. Governments and corporate leaders can keep abreast of how other organizations and countries are enacting policies that support technological evolution, institute accreditation, and financial incentives that support best practices. Across the globe, countries and regions are already developing strategies and laws to encourage responsible use of AI.
Recent years have seen the creation of codes of conduct and regulatory initiatives such as:
The Bletchley Declaration, Nov. 2023, an international agreement to cooperate on the development of safe AI, has been signed by 28 countries;
US President Biden’s 2023 executive order on the safe, secure and trustworthy development and use of AI; and
Governing AI for Humanity, UN Advisory Body Report, September 2024.
We have the expertise to build solid foundations for AI. It’s now up to leaders and corporations to ensure that much-needed practices, guidelines, policies and regulations are in place and followed. It is also up to end-users to demand quality and accountability.
Now is the time to take steps to mitigate AI’s potential perils so we can build the trust that is needed to harness AI’s extraordinary potential. For the Silo, Charles Eagan. Charles Eagan is the former CTO of Blackberry and a technical advisor to AIE Inc.
Attachment parenting (AP) is a philosophy that basically means: the closer you keep your children to you, you provide a security, a centre. When children grow up, they are very compassionate, loving human beings. Parts of this style include extended breastfeeding, a safe sleep environment (close to parents) and baby-wearing and balance (martyrdom is not a requirement). The tenet of AP is that by meeting your baby’s needs, the child feels secure in their world.
One can practice AP while working. One can also practice AP while bottle feeding (dads don’t nurse). What matters most is meeting your baby’s needs and bonding. A newborn, a child, has basic needs. They need to eat (as humans, meant to drink Mamma’s milk), they need to poop/pee, they need to sleep, and they need to feel loved. Babies feel love by contact and closeness.
Hubby and I said that our babies would never sleep in our bed. From 6-9 months, my eldest and I barely slept. He woke up often to nurse, and with the stringent rules the nurses gave me at the hospital about nursing (rules which I now don’t agree), I was sleeping maybe 40 minutes between nursing sessions. In desperation, I brought him into our bed and ‘hid’ him there until he was around a year old. When Jeff finally discovered him, he said, “That’s why you have been so much nicer lately?” “Yes, because I could finally sleep!”
[The Big Bang Theory’s Mayim Bialik says attachment parenting is “a style of parenting that basically harkens to the way primates parent — things like natural birth, breast feeding, sleeping safely near your child, holding your child. ” CP]
I should say that the Canadian Pediatric Society says not to sleep with your child. But, there has been research the past 6 years that clearly shows that if certain precautions are in place (no smoking, drinking or drugs that put you into a deep sleep, never on a couch, and no pillows/blankets around baby’s face), sleeping with a parent is safe. Most babies who die sleeping with their parent had at LEAST one of those risk factors, if not more. A great website that will give a fully informed choice is (http://www.isisonline.org.uk/). Sleeping with your children is a contentious topic in western culture, but quite normal overseas.
I was a full time midwifery student when my baby girl (last of 4 children) was 7 months. I still was an AP’er. We both slept better at night. She stayed connected to me even though I was gone during the day or days. Of my 4 children (now ranging from 8-16), none have been bullies. They all left our bed. They all stopped nursing when we both chose. It worked for us.
This Digital Dad could use a sling… “Ever since my baby boy was born on February first, everyone keeps asking the same thing. How is it that I can find so much time for video games? Having a baby is very time consuming and, even with my generous 6 weeks of parental leave, I still found it hard to find time for myself (ie: gaming time). That is, before I discovered that my shoulder is more comfortable to a newborn than any bed, pillow, blanket or hammock made by man” from http://tinyurl.com/2qlcm4
Baby-wearing is AWESOME in a mall. Strangers do not enter your private space to look at your child, as they would if your child was in a stroller. They see the world from the safety of mom or dad’s arms. This type of parenting may not work for everyone. No judgement. Like breastfeeding, the choice is with the parent, not society. My children are very resilient and loving human beings. For the Silo,Stephanie MacDonald.
She designed a sanctuary for herself. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a modern masterpiece. E.1027 Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea
Streaming & DVD Launch September 9, 2025! Coming to Amazon, Apple & Kanopy
In 1929, Irish designer Eileen Gray created E.1027 on the sun-soaked Côte d’Azur – a bold and hidden gem of avant-garde architecture. This striking house was meant to be a personal refuge.
But when the legendary architect Le Corbusier stumbled upon it, fascination turned to obsession. He covered its walls with his murals, completely disregarding Gray’s wishes and her vision. His defiant act ignited a battle for creative control, with Gray demanding restitution for the destruction of her work. He ignored her wishes and instead built his famous Cabanon house directly behind E.1027.
E.1027 – Eileen Gray and the House By the Sea is an unusual hybrid docu-fiction film that tells a story about the power of one woman’s creative expression and a man’s desire to control it.
“A unique and uniquely satisfying experience…a bold movie because it takes a deep dive on characters and a house that may not widely known, at least for American audiences. There is nothing quite like it.” – John Soltes, Hollywood Soapbox“ A story of passion, craft, and betrayal…aesthetically beautiful and a great summer watch.” – Fiona Rae, Film Threat “Shot on location at E.1027, this feature-documentary hybrid matches the sleekness of its setting – its serenity, its surface poetry, its fragments of grace.” – Barlo Perry, ParisLA “Eileen Gray was a creative genius and the first woman to conquer the world of architecture at a time when men controlled it all. This new film reflects on Gray’s impressive career and her stunning modernist house on the Cote d’Azur.” – Meredith Taylor, Finito World
“The directors put architecture in dialogue with cinema in order to bring to life the sensibility of a woman who was a visionary yet is too rarely celebrated. Elegant and well thought-out, the film uses the cinematic medium to enrich a discourse.” – Giorgia Del Don, Cineuropa
“Based on the memoirs of Eileen Gray, this meticulously crafted docu-drama, where poetry slips into frames, angles and tones, almost feels like a hallucination.”– Maroussia Dubreuil, Le Monde
A First Run Features / Architecture & Design Film Festival Release E.1027 – Eileen Gray and the House By the Sea Written & Directed by Beatrice Minger Co-Directed by Christoph Schaub With Natalie Radmall-Quirke, Axel Moustache & Charles Morillon 90 minutes, color, 2024 | English & French w/English subtitles
Streaming & physical media disc Launch Date: September 9, 2025 Streaming Platforms: Amazon, Apple & Kanopy DVD SRP: $19.95 usd| DVD UPC: 7-20229-91843-5
For the Silo, Kelly Hargraves/ First Run Features.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna tells Joe Rogan she has seen photos of UFOs in a classified setting and is “very confident there’s things out there that have not been created by mankind.” pic.twitter.com/eL3GWcoRfF
Theodore “T.R.” Roosevelt, Jr. was an American politician, author, naturalist, soldier, explorer, mason and historian who served as the 26th President of the United States.
Remember last year, when there was ongoing UAP/Drone activity hitting the news cycle and without any official explanation of what was happening over the skies of New Jersey and the rest of the world? There is still no answer and it is fascinating to consider that this phenomena is in fact not new and has been reported for over one hundred years.
The drones have become unsettlingly frequent in Monmouth County, New Jersey (Picture: Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office. Dec 2024)
When one thinks of U.S. Presidents and UFOs several of our Chief Executives come to mind. Firstly, there is President Eisenhower purportedly meeting aliens at Edwards Air Force Base in 1954.
Then there is JFK’s memo to the CIA asking for disclosure on UFOs ten days before his assassination:
More humorously but perhaps true is the story of Richard Nixon treating comedian Jackie Gleason to a view of dead alien Grays at Homestead Air Force Base in 1974.
But what about Teddy Roosevelt?
Is anyone in the UFOlogy Community even aware of a documented UFO sighting over the 26th US president’s home, Sagamore Hill, in Oyster Bay, New York on August 1, 1907 when he was in his second term of office?
According to an old clipping found by UFOlogist Kay Massingill from a newspaper called the D.C. Evening Star dated August 2, 1907, two events of a mysterious nature occurred in the town of Oyster Bay in a twenty-four hour period and both concerned Mr. Roosevelt.
In the latter, the town librarian Miss Denton opened up the library on the morning of the 1st and discovered a beautiful mahogany chair donated by Teddy to the museum from his days as Governor of New York had split down the backside sometime the night before. More peculiar was the fact that on the reverse back of the chair was the Bald Eagle Seal of the United States of America and it was split in half! An ominous sign indeed! Was it an omen?
However, the main event occurred the evening before between the hours of 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. when a brilliant white light was seen to hang motionless over Sagamore Hill.
According to the dispatch, it was a light “considerably larger than a star” and hung about 300 feet in altitude over the house according to numerous witnesses. It was an “intense white light” and after 11 p.m. it began to fade to a spark and then extinguished. Meanwhile in the library a short distance away, a chair associated with Sagamore Hill’s occupant was coming undone in a most mysterious way.
The home on Sagamore Hill
Was Mr. Roosevelt home the night of the UFO sighting? The article doesn’t say and we’ll probably never know but it is known that Sagamore was called Roosevelt’s Summer White House and it was the middle of summer.
So the main question to ask is why would a ball of light attend to Mr. Roosevelt in the heat of 1907? Two clues can be found concerning his agenda as President that year.
The speech is mundane for the most part dealing with anti-trust actions, railroads, the Department of Agriculture, conservation, unions and such but near the end of it Roosevelt begins to lay out the groundwork for creating the world’s most dominant modern navy. It seemed Roosevelt had a great grasp of what was happening in the world concerning Japan, Germany and China and their eventual rise on the world’s stage. He specifically recommended dredging Pearl Harbor to make it a world class naval base and increasing Alaska’s defenses. Did he know something about the world no one else did? His maneuvering just months after the Sagamore Hill incident directly led to America’ emergence as the modern world’s greatest Suprerpower. Did he have help from E.T. whispering in his ear? During his tenure America’s Navy grew from 5th to 3rd in the world in size.
The second clue is the very interesting coincidence of the Second International Peace Convention held at The Hague, Netherlands that year from June 15 to October 18, 1907 which was during the Sagamore Hill sighting. That convention was the brainchild of none other than Teddy Roosevelt! It was an attempt to codify the rules of war – particularly naval warfare. More importantly, it was seen as the world’s first attempt at an international governing body – a forerunner to the League of Nations and the United Nations.
The Tin Foil Hat Question
Are aliens attempting to lay out the groundwork for, or interfere with, the earth’s direction in the 20th and 21st centuries? And might they have been in contact with American Presidents long before Eisenhower’s 1954 encounter? To see the complete newspaper clipping go to http://www.worldufowatch.com/historical_newspaper_clippings For the Silo, Robert Spearing.
Another boss article via friends at Hagerty. Vintage Corvettes have been bought and sold as collector vehicles for decades, and so you could be forgiven for thinking that all the hot ones have been accounted for, and that the current body of research has documented all that’s known about them.
That’s not the case, and to seasoned Corvette hunters like Kevin Mackay, that’s actually good news. Mackay started his business, Corvette Repair, 30 years ago in Valley Stream, N.Y. His timing could not have been better. Chevy had just launched the exciting C4 model, and the Corvette collector hobby was shifting into hyper drive. That trend brought a renewed interest in the Corvette’s heritage, including racing.
Canada Corvette Connection?
There were already expert collectors well versed in Corvette history, but history has a way of changing. As deeper dives would reveal gaps in Corvette knowledge, those who applied the resourcefulness and tenacity of TV police detective Columbo were able to find and authenticate super-rare Corvettes.
1968 Sunray DX L88
You won’t find Mackay wearing a rumpled raincoat around his shop, but his detective work continues to uncover cars thought to have been lost. Some of those are race cars that have come through his shop, including the 1960 Briggs Cunningham Le Mans car, 1962 Yenko Gulf Oil, 1966 Penske L88, 1968 Sunray DX L88 (found in a barn) and 1969 Rebel L88. All were Le Mans, Daytona or Sebring class winners. Corvette aficionados will see a pattern: Among lost Vettes that Mackay hunts are ones campaigned in those races.
The Rebel was one of the most successful C3 Corvette race cars ever, winning the GT class at Daytona and Sebring in 1972, where it also took fourth overall behind two prototype-class Ferraris and a prototype Alfa Romeo. Mackay tracked the car to a southern scrapyard 24 years ago and restored it; the car sold at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale in January 2014 for $2.86 million usd/ $3.95 million cad.
“I know where every Corvette that raced Le Mans is,” Mackay said. Knowing, of course, is only the start of a long road to acquiring a car. Aspiring Corvette hunters might take note of other cars that grab Mackay’s interest.
Listen to What The Man Says
It could go without saying that any Corvette collector would want to stumble upon an L88 hiding in a barn. It’s a comparatively small group of cars, but it’s bigger than originally thought.
“We located 13 factory L-88 cars not previously known,” said Mackay, adding that three of the 20 1967 L88s are still missing. So, when an elderly man approached him with a claim that he still owned a 1967 L-88 that he bought new, Mackay listened, if with a skeptic’s ear.
“That happens a lot,” he said. “Guys claim they have a car that nobody has ever seen.”
A doubter may dismiss such claims, but Mackay says his experience has shown that sometimes, they lead to Corvette treasure. For example, he knows of a 1967 L-89 car, one of 16 made, that hasn’t been seen in decades; it was driven just 11 miles / 17.7KM from new and put away.
Not every lead pans out, but patience can lead to gold, Mackay advises.
“I waited 11 years to buy one particular car,” he said. “I’d call the owner every year. It was all about building trust.”
And so comes another lesson in hunting and buying classic Corvettes: It’s not always about the money. Mackay said that some owners are too emotionally attached to their cars to let go. And some never do, leaving valuable cars to be auctioned by heirs. In such cases, years of patience and building trust can seem wasted. But Mackay loves the challenge of the hunt.
For another car, he waited 19 years. And he’s got a list of others.
“There are two cars I’ve been waiting nine years to buy,” he said. “I always tell the owner that he’s just holding them for me for free storage.”
Follow the Clues
Many car enthusiasts enjoy reading old magazine articles. Mackay reads them for clues. “I look for names of people associated with cars, such as race mechanics, and then I look for those people,” he said.
Knowing where a Corvette was sold can be a help for an experienced hunter. If you have a Corvette’s VIN, you can get its original shipping data – including the selling dealer – from the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS) for $40. Even if the dealer is no longer in business, the information could lead to other clues.
Sometimes, answering an ad for parts leads to whole cars. While hunting down a lead on parts for a 1969 Baldwin-Motion Phase III Corvette, Mackay stumbled across a super-rare Phase III GT that turned out to be a car a customer owned when new and had regretted selling many years before. Mackay has also found engines and then later located the cars they belong to.
Serial Boxes
Some collectors like to own “firsts” and “lasts” and therefore hunt low and high serial number cars. The top prize in that category would of course be the very first Corvette built, but the first two were test cars thought to have been destroyed. Yet, as Lt. Columbo might ask, “Where’s the body?”
Mackay can claim something close. He found the original chassis to 1953 serial No. 3 for a customer. He explained: “The first three made were test cars. Before GM sold No. 3, they swapped the chassis, because the first one had been used in Belgian block testing, and there were concerns about possible stress cracks.”
Somehow, the first chassis got out of GM’s grasp and was discovered underpinning a 1955 body in the 1970s. Another chassis swap ensued, and 1953 No. 3 just needed to be reunited with its original body. Mackay said the owner of that car, however, was not interested.
So, instead, Mackay is building a unique cutaway 1953 Corvette around the chassis. It’s something he said could be shown and enjoyed by the whole Corvette hobby.
Other aspects can catch a collector’s fancy. It should be no surprise that original color can affect value, but the effect might be bigger than you thought.
“Black is the most sought-after color for Vettes,” said Mackay. “A black 427/435 car could be worth double a green version.”
And then there are production oddities, the kinds of things that likely would never happen on today’s computerized assembly lines with their just-in-time parts inventory control systems. The fabulous center knockoff wheel offered as an option for the 1964-1966 Corvette actually made an earlier appearance. Mackay said 12 cars got the wheels in 1963. One is claimed to be a Z06 “big-tank” car.
Have a clue to a “lost” Corvette? Mackay would love to hear about it: [email protected] For the Silo, Jim Koscs/Hagerty.
Online casinos actively use bonuses and promotions to attract and retain players. For both beginners and experienced users, understanding how these offers work is important not only to increase the chances of winning but also to ensure safe and controlled gameplay. In this article, we will explore the types of bonuses, how to use them effectively, and what to pay attention to.
Types of Bonuses in Online Casinos
Modern online platforms offer a wide range of casino bonuses. The main types include:
Welcome bonuses – given to new players upon registration and first deposit.
Free spins – free spins on online slots, often included in welcome or seasonal promotions.
Cashback – a partial return of lost funds over a certain period.
Loyalty programs – points awarded for activity, which can be exchanged for bonuses or gifts.
Every bonus comes with wagering requirements, expiration dates, and bet limits. Ignoring these rules can nullify the value of the offer.
How to Use Bonuses Effectively
To get the most out of bonuses, follow a few simple guidelines:
Read the terms carefully – before activating a bonus, pay close attention to the rules, especially wagering requirements and game restrictions.
Plan your budget – use bonuses as an additional resource without exceeding your personal betting limits.
Combine with strategies – bonuses can be applied to online slots and table games, considering your chosen betting strategy.
For example, platforms like Martin Casino offer free spins and cashback systems with clear terms, helping both beginners and experienced players use bonuses safely and efficiently.
What to Watch for When Choosing a Bonus
Not all offers are equally profitable. When selecting a promotion, consider:
Bonus size – very large bonuses may come with complex wagering requirements.
Expiration date – always check how much time you have to meet the conditions.
Game restrictions – some bonuses apply only to specific online slots or types of bets.
Withdrawal conditions – make sure the wagering requirements are realistic and achievable.
Common Mistakes When Using Bonuses
Beginners often make typical mistakes, such as:
Activating all bonuses at once and losing control over their bankroll.
Not reading the terms and not knowing how to meet the wagering requirements.
Trying to use bonuses for “quick profit,” forgetting that gambling should be entertainment, not a guaranteed income source.
A responsible approach, budget and time management help players enjoy bonuses while minimizing risks.
The Future of Casino Bonuses and Promotions
With technological advancement, bonus offers are becoming more personalized. Artificial intelligence analyzes player behavior and suggests the most suitable promotions. Mobile casino bonuses and crypto-platform promotions are also gaining popularity, allowing fast and secure transactions.
Online casinos continue to use bonuses as a tool to increase player engagement. However, the key to successful play is understanding the rules, having a conscious approach, and managing your bankroll wisely.
FAQ
What is wagering a bonus?It is a condition requiring a certain number of bets before bonus funds can be withdrawn.
Can I use multiple bonuses at the same time? Usually not – most platforms allow only one bonus to be activated at a time to prevent abuse.
Which bonuses are best for beginners?Welcome bonuses and free spins are ideal because they let players try games without significant investments.
Can a bonus be lost? Yes, if wagering requirements are not met or betting limits are exceeded. How to choose a profitable bonus? Look at the size, expiration date, game restrictions, and realism of the wagering requirements.
From youtube user 1AmazingWorld: “Popocatepetl is one of the most violent volcanoes in Mexico and North America’s 2nd-highest volcano. The name Popocatepetl comes from the Aztec-Nahuatl words popōca ‘it smokes’ and tepētl ‘mountain’, thus Smoking Mountain.”
Mexico City, Mexico- Popocatepetl tells a náhuatl* legend about a brave warrior forced to go to war. Before he leaves on his mission, he secures permission to marry a beautiful princess named Iztaccihuatl (sleeping woman). After three long months without any messages about her love, the princess receives news that the warrior has died. Because of the sadness the princess cries constantly and finally dies of a broken heart.
There are actually several versions of the Popocatepetl e Iztaccihuatl legend.
In one of these is that the girl was a princess, what the most beautiful being be sacrificed to the gods for good harvests, but the warrior loved her and would not allow the sacrifice, so must flee to avoid with it, but they fled the guards discovered them and an arrow struck the princess.
His beloved picked her up and kept running, once away, safe, laid her on the field, vowing to take care of her forever, he would wait until she awakened from sleep, to continue living their love. But it has been so long that the fields and the snow would have covered.
After a short period of time the warrior returns home and discovers that Iztaccihuatl is no longer alive.
He carries her body up to the mountain where he buries her and falls onto his knees besides her while he screams so loudly that the entire valley of Mexico can hear him. The Gods feel compassionate and cover them with branches and snow and finally turn them into mountains, one with the silhouette of a woman and the other into a volcano that occasionally wakes up. The volcano is the reincarnated warrior from our story, named Popocatepetl.
It is difficult to feel completely safe, when even from a far-away distance, the mountain and the volcano are still visible. The volcano is to the right, in the background just behind the tree. photo: R.M. Robinson Bours
This Mexican volcano has been awake for some weeks now.
My name is Rosa Maria and I live in Mexico City not very far away from Popocatepetl. How is life for me and others living so close to the screaming warrior? I feel like running away every time Popocatepetl wakes up but most people stick to their daily routine; the volcano hasn’t had a major eruption or explosion for more than 1200 years so everybody is used to living with the sleeping Popocatelpetl and our Mexican, authorities order evacuations only in case of imminent danger. What’s really bizarre here, is that I can only see the volcano once in a while because of the pollution in the city. I know it exists and the evidence sits around me, as volcano ashes fall all over the place and on a clear day is quite a spectacle to see these two white, snowy figures through the urban building landscape.
*One of many languages from Mesoamerica culture, from Uto-Aztecan language family, most Nahuatl people live in Central Mexico.
Dice una leyenda Nahuatl que un valiente guerrero quería casarse con una hermosa princesa llamada Iztaccihuatl (la mujer durmiente), para tener el permiso del padre tuvo que ir a la Guerra.
La princesa Iztaccihuatl quedó en espera de su regreso y después de tres largos meses de no saber nada de su amado recibió la noticia de su muerte. La princesa lloró tanto que murió de amor. Después de poco tiempo el guerrero regresó a casa descubriendo el destino de su amada, la tomó en sus brazos y la cargó al monte para enterrarla. El guerrero permaneció de rodillas junto a su amada y sus gritos de dolor eran tan fuertes que se escuchaban por todo el valle de México. Los dioses sintieron compasión por ellos y los cubrieron de ramas y de nieve para finalmente convertirlos en montañas, una con la silueta de una mujer y el otro un volcán que de vez en cuando despierta; el nombre del guerrero es Popocatepetl.
Este volcán lleva varias semanas despierto. ¿Cómo es la vida de los mexicanos que escuchan el grito del guerrero? La mayoría continúa su vida diaria; la última gran explosión fue hace más de 1200 años, todos están acostumbrados a vivir junto al gran volcán y las autoridades evacuan únicamente en caso de peligro. Cada vez que el Popocatepetl presenta actividad me dan ganas de salir corriendo y me pregunto qué alcancé tendría una explosión fuerte. Curiosamente solo de vez en cuando se ven los volcanes, imagino será la contaminación, aunque el volcán te recuerda su presencia con las cenizas que esparce por todo la ciudad. En un día claro es todo un espectáculo ver estas dos figuras nevadas a través del paisaje citadino.
For the Silo, Rosa Maria Robinson Bours in Mexico City.
Running a business can be a challenging task, especially when you are dealing with multiple tasks and responsibilities at the same time. Fortunately, many tools can help streamline your business operations and make management much easier. In this article, we will take a look at five such tools that can help you manage your business more efficiently.
A personalized ERP
ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning, and you may opt for an ERP business application. It is a type of software that helps businesses manage their day-to-day operations by integrating and automating various business functions, such as finance, accounting, inventory, sales, and human resources, into a single system. ERP software provides real-time visibility into all business processes, enabling businesses to make informed decisions based on accurate data.
Slack
Slack is a communication tool that helps teams collaborate more effectively. It allows you to create channels for different projects or teams, which you can use to share files, send messages, and hold virtual meetings. Slack integrates with many other tools, such as Trello and Google Drive, making it an ideal choice for businesses that rely on multiple tools for their operations.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that allows you to track and analyze your website’s performance. It provides valuable insights into your website’s traffic, such as where your visitors are coming from, what pages they are visiting, and how long they are staying on your site. This information can help you optimize your website and improve your online presence.
QuickBooks
QuickBooks is an accounting software that can help you manage your finances more effectively. It allows you to track income and expenses, create invoices, and manage payroll. QuickBooks also integrates with many other tools, such as Trello and Google Sheets, making it easy to manage your finances and other business operations from a single platform.
HubSpot
HubSpot is an all-in-one marketing, sales, and customer service platform that can help you manage your business more efficiently. It includes a CRM (customer relationship management) tool, email marketing, social media management, and much more. HubSpot’s powerful tools can help you automate your marketing and sales processes, and improve your customer engagement.
Trello
Trello is a project management tool that helps teams collaborate and stay organized. It is a visual tool that lets you organize your projects into boards and lists, with cards for each task. You can assign tasks to team members, set due dates, and track progress. Trello is great for managing projects of all sizes, from small tasks to large, complex projects.
Managing a business can be overwhelming, but with the right tools, it can be much easier. ERP, Trello, Slack, Google Analytics, QuickBooks, and HubSpot are just a few of the many tools available that can help you manage your business more efficiently.
By using these tools, you can streamline your operations, improve communication, track performance, manage finances, and much more. So, give these tools a try and see how they can help you manage your business more effectively. For the Silo, Bill Gordon.
Being an entrepreneur is a calling for those who not only cope well with risk, but thrive on the challenges it presents. Those who are satisfied by the comfort of a secure job and a steady paycheque need not apply.
It’s an idea that has crossed the minds of virtually everyone who has worked for somebody else, regardless of the job.
As you put in time and labour that ultimately benefits someone else’s business, it dawns on you: Why can’t I just set up shop and do this myself? Why can’t I be the one taking home the big money after all the bills are paid and enjoying the independence of running my own show?
They’re great questions, but the answers aren’t for everybody.
Actually making the decision to give up the security of a steady job, and the regular paycheque and benefits that come along with it, takes a lot of guts and perseverance — especially in today’s highly competitive economy.
Unless you are among the fortunate ones backed by deep resources, the bottom line is this: when you first set out to become an entrepreneur, you are truly on your own. It’s just you and your idea. And it will be the marketplace — relentlessly detached and unemotional — that determines whether you make it or not.
Budding entrepreneurs who do take the risk to start up their own business generally face two key barriers — capital and human resources.
Many entrepreneurs owe their initial success to the trust of friends and family members, who invest funds in their start-up idea. These types of loans can be troublesome if the proper precautions aren’t taken. Make certain the terms of all loans from friends or relatives are spelled out clearly in a promissory note prepared by a lawyer. You may not be dealing with a bank or a financial institution, but you have to treat repayment in the same manner to avoid conflict with your lenders, who also may happen to be your best friend or your sister.
It’s also important to keep your credit record as clean as possible and establish a line of credit, which you can access for instant cash flow at certain times.
Start-ups are limited to hire only the personnel who they can afford, which often means running on a skeleton staff who may not necessarily be those with the greatest skills and experience. This is why most of us who have conceived what we think is a great idea for a business usually choose too much of the work ourselves and wear many hats in the early days.
It can take a long time to find the right employees when you’re just starting out. Some of the top talent may be reticent to work for a small start-up because they are worried about how it will look on their resume, job security or getting a bigger paycheque.
You need to find candidates who share your entrepreneurial spirit and aren’t averse to taking risks. Look for people who want get in on the ground floor and grow with the business.
As you build your company and expand your market, it’s tremendously important to have a network of mentors whose advice and counsel you trust. No matter how much thought and preparation you put into your business plan, you won’t be able to anticipate everything ahead of you. The marketplace is constantly moving and evolving, causing you and your business to adapt. This is where mentors can help, offering guidance drawn from experiences they had during similar changes in their own journeys.
My own mentors have changed as my career progressed, but they all had a common trait that served me and my businesses well — perspective. They have been able to see things clearly from a distance when my own vision may have been clouded by emotion, allowing me to make more-effective decisions. Entrepreneurship is about taking chances, but not blind ones.
Being an entrepreneur is a calling for those who not only cope well with risk, but thrive on the challenges it presents. Those who are satisfied by the comfort of a secure job and a steady paycheque need not apply. For the Silo, Paola Abate.
Living in space has significant effects on the human body. As we prepare for journeys to more distant destinations like Mars, humankind must tackle these risks to ensure safe travel for our astronauts.
With AI reshaping everything from finance to fast food, the $1.5T auto retail industry is finally facing its overdue disruption. The typical car-buying experience—riddled with hidden fees, lead bloat, pricing games and low trust—has remained stubbornly analog. But now, with 90% of dealerships in America (and growing % in Canada and Mexico) experimenting with AI tools and 1 in 4 buyers already using AI to shop, the tide is turning. Agentic AI technology is fundamentally reshaping one of the most significant purchases in a person’s life.
Zach Shefska, Co-Founder and CEO of CarEdge, asserts that agentic AI is the key to rebuilding trust, removing friction and leveling the playing field for both buyers and sellers. From AI-powered shopping assistants that negotiate on your behalf, to data tools that reveal deceptive dealership practices, Shefska is a pioneer in “agentic AI” — a new form of artificial intelligence bringing much-needed transparency to the industry.
The Broken Status Quo: Car buying is frustrating and inefficient for both consumers and dealerships—highlighting key stats like 72% sales staff turnover and 2% lead conversion from third-party platforms.
Lead Generation Platforms Are Failing: Legacy systems flood dealers with unqualified leads, drain resources, and deliver minimal value to consumers.
The Rise of Agentic AI in Auto Retail: Consumers are turning to tools like ChatGPT and CarEdge’s AI agent to navigate purchases with more confidence, speed, and clarity—25% are already doing it.
From Friction to Fluidity: Agentic AI replaces quantity with quality—streamlining the buyer’s journey, reducing information overload, and improving dealer efficiency.
The End of Pricing Games: AI tools now collect and publish out-the-door pricing from thousands of dealerships, exposing hidden fees and rewarding transparent sellers.
The Future of Negotiation: AI agents can negotiate on behalf of both buyers and sellers—minimizing stress, cutting transaction times from days to hours, and removing the adversarial edge.
Real-World Impact Stories: One buyer saved $1,280 and hours of back-and-forth using CarEdge’s agentic AI—illustrating AI’s practical value in real-life scenarios.
AI Helps Honest Dealers Win: In a trust-starved industry, AI gives reputable dealers a new way to stand out by offering full transparency and faster deals.
What’s Next for AI in Auto Retail: The emerging frontier: AI agents dynamically collecting and updating real-time pricing and inventory data across markets to offer true market intelligence.
For the Silo, Zach Shefska. Zach is CEO of CarEdge, a leading platform—founded by father-and-son team Ray and Zach Shefska—dedicated to empowering car shoppers with free expert advice, in-depth market insights and tools to navigate every step of the car-buying journey. From researching vehicles to negotiating deals, CarEdge helps consumers save money, time and hassle. Alsop with trusted resources like the CarEdge Research Center, Vehicle Rankings and Reviews, and hundreds of guides on YouTube, CarEdge is redefining transparency and fairness in the automotive industry. Connect with Shefska at www.CarEdge.com or on social media on YouTube, TikTok, X, Facebook, and Instagram.
August, 2025 – Canada is not building homes quickly enough to meet rising needs, and red tape combined with low productivity is intensifying pressure on the sector. A new report from the C.D. Howe Institute explores how innovative construction technologies could help accelerate delivery and improve efficiency – if supported by the right policy conditions. The Silo predicted this dilemma over a decade ago and highlighted some of these issues and solutions in this “Tiny House” post.
In the report titled “Building Smarter, Faster: Technology and Policy Solutions for Canada’s Housing Crisis,” Tasnim Fariha outlines how innovative construction technologies – such as modular and panelized systems and mass timber – can enhance labour productivity in residential construction. While these approaches are not a silver bullet, they may offer valuable tools for increasing housing supply and managing construction workforce constraints.
Building Smarter, Faster: Technology and Policy Solutions for Canada’s Housing Crisis
Canada’s housing shortage is worsening. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) estimates that to restore 2019 affordability levels in the market, housing starts need to be doubled. CMHC is projecting a need for 430,000–480,000 housing starts annually. But the country is falling far short. Labour shortages, weak productivity in residential construction, and slow permitting processes are making it harder to meet needs.
Innovative construction methods – including modular, panelized, mass timber, and 3D printing – offer potential to improve productivity and accelerate housing delivery, but adoption remains limited due to high upfront costs, fragmented regulations, and insufficient data on performance in the Canadian context.
The federal government’s $26 billion Build Canada Homes initiative signals a strong commitment to innovation, yet without tackling regulatory, financial, and logistical obstacles, these technologies won’t scale or deliver meaningful cost savings. To realize the productivity benefits, governments must streamline permitting, harmonize building code interpretation, reduce development charges, and support workforce training, among other steps.
Introduction
Canada’s housing sector is experiencing a multifaceted crisis characterized by escalating prices, acute affordability challenges, and a critical misalignment between housing supply and population growth. Demographic pressures – such as strong population growth – combined with economic factors like elevated interest rates, soaring housing costs and land prices are reshaping Canada’s housing market. Escalating housing costs have effectively priced out many potential buyers, compelling a larger proportion of the population to enter the rental market, thereby driving increased investment in rental and multi-family housing units (Statistics Canada 2024). However, those units have become much more expensive to build, too, which is reflected in higher rents and fewer starts than necessary to meet demand.
This modal shift reflects both market adaptations to economic constraints and broader structural changes in housing demand and affordability. On top of that, long-standing restrictive regulatory frameworks, including restrictive zoning regulations, substantial development charges, and land use constraints, contribute to housing supply limitations and price escalations (Dachis and Thivierge 2018). Addressing these structural obstacles is crucial for ameliorating persistent supply shortages, rising costs, and broader affordability challenges. The industry has been raising these issues for several years now. For example, in early 2024, the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) released a comprehensive sector transition strategy identifying specific recommendations for systematic change in four areas: financial system, policy, labour, and productivity. In 2025, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) emphasized that the pace of housing starts must double to gradually restore affordability to 2019 levels.
Many countries are leveraging prefabrication technologies – such as modular construction, mass timber, panelized systems, and on-site 3D printing – to accelerate homebuilding, increase productivity in the face of tight labour markets, and improve sustainability. In Canada, however, adoption remains limited amidst industry-specific challenges, complex regulations, and insufficient incentives to support these innovations.
Despite their promise, these technologies have not consistently delivered cost savings in the Canadian context. Modular, panelization, mass timber, and 3D concrete printing methods often face higher upfront costs, insurance premiums, or material expenses. To support the adoption of these innovative construction methods in Canada, more country-specific evidence is needed to guide policymakers, regulators, and developers. While international data highlight its benefits – such as speed, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability – Canadian decision-makers require more local insights. Academic-industry partnerships can help generate this evidence by analyzing best practices, labour dynamics, project outcomes, and measurable savings within the Canadian context (Dragicevic and Riaz 2024).
This paper aims to identify the main challenges facing the adoption of innovative home-building technologies in Canada. Drawing on a range of sources – including academic research, government and industry reports, and documents from builders’ associations – it offers an introductory examination of the issues at play. It does not present innovative construction methods as the sole solution to Canada’s housing crisis, but rather as a tool to improve labour productivity and accelerate residential development, particularly when supported by stable market conditions, coordinated government action, and a supportive regulatory environment. While recognizing the potential of these technologies, the paper highlights the need for more publicly available data and independent research to benchmark their performance against traditional building methods. The key recommendations from this paper – aimed at addressing the critical barriers of risk, complexity, and inconsistency – include:
Financial Incentives and Risk Mitigation: Low-cost financing and tax credits to de-risk investments by builders, and construction-financing insurance for off-site construction to boost lender confidence; standardized mortgage and home insurance rules to reduce uncertainty for buyers; and tax incentives for maintenance and repairs of homes built with innovative technologies to build trust among lenders and buyers.
Regulatory Streamlining and Efficiency: Expedited fund disbursement by CMHC to accelerate project timelines of purpose-built rentals and affordable housing; streamlined permitting processes and fast-track approvals for innovative projects; elimination of duplicative inspections for modular builds to reduce delays; reduction of development charges and related fees to improve overall housing affordability; and further research to assess how Canada’s multi-layered regulatory framework compares with international practices and whether it may be limiting competitiveness.
Standardization and Harmonization Across Jurisdictions: Standardizing interpretation of building codes across municipalities to ensure consistency and avoid costly, time-consuming redesigns; standardizing – and where necessary, harmonizing – transportation regulations on modular and prefabricated components across provinces to facilitate efficient, large-scale production and delivery.
Current Challenges in the Housing Market
Supply Shortage
Currently, Canada is not building enough homes to meet its needs. In fact, the housing shortfall isn’t closing – it’s widening. When CMHC first sounded the alarm in 2022, it estimated that Canada needed to build roughly 500,000 housing units per year through 2030 to bring affordability back to early-2000s levels. Last year, the country started building just 245,000 units – less than half the target. Now, CMHC’s latest projections scale down the target but still call for 430,000 to 480,000 housing starts annually over the next decade, merely to restore affordability to 2019 levels. In regions like Ontario, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, and Montreal, the shortfall is even more severe.
Urban centres are disproportionately impacted by limited housing supply. Housing costs are dramatically outpacing income growth, creating substantial barriers for middle-class families, first-time buyers, and young professionals seeking homeownership. Shortage of supply and higher housing costs suppress the formation of new, smaller households, pushing more people into shared or doubled-up living arrangements. Building more housing would allow Canadians to form the types of smaller households they increasingly prefer, such as living alone or only with a partner or children (Lauster and von Bergmann 2024). A striking indicator of this supply crisis is the unprecedented decline in dwellings per 1,000 people (see Figure 1), a reversal from Canada’s historical trend of increasing housing supply. This decline highlights the pressing need for strategies to realign the housing supply with population needs.
Productivity Challenges
Residential construction productivity has not recovered in the post-pandemic period, contrasting with the gradual recovery in the broader construction industry and the overall economy (Figure 2). Recent economic analyses show the industry is expanding by increasing its share of the overall workforce while its share of output is simultaneously declining (Caranci and Marple 2024).
One contributing factor may be the construction sector’s tendency to retain its existing workforce during downturns, avoiding mass layoffs to preserve skilled labour for future booms. Despite the sluggish output growth from this sector since 2022, it continues to expand in terms of employment. For example, between 2020 and 2023, employment grew by 15 percent across all industries and 21 percent in construction overall, while residential building construction saw a 26 percent increase (Statistics Canada 2025a). While this strategy may protect long-term capacity, it can also depress short-term productivity metrics during periods of reduced construction activity. If this dynamic persists, it could have long-term consequences for Canada’s housing infrastructure and broader economic growth.
Affordability Crisis
Despite the urgent need for housing, affordability remains a barrier that limits the purchasing power of many Canadians and prevents the market from meeting housing needs. Home prices have risen nearly 40 percent since 2016, contributing to a significant decline in homeownership across the country. While recent changes to down payment rules and extended amortization periods aim to support buyers, high interest rates continue to erode affordability and heighten mortgage insecurity for both new and existing homeowners. Development taxes – including development fees, lot levies, and amenity fees – have increased by 700 percent over the past two decades and can now account for up to 25 percent of a home’s sale price (CHBA 2024). Between 2011 and 2021, the share of Canadians living in owned homes decreased by 2.5 percent, with nearly all age groups experiencing a drop in homeownership rates.
This shift has led to an increased demand for rental housing, prompting developers to prioritize the construction of more budget-friendly living spaces. According to the CMHC, 72 percent of all housing starts in the first half of 2024 were apartments, with 47 percent of these designated for rental units. However, while increased rental construction is a positive trend, it remains insufficient to close the affordability gap. More housing units for homeownership are required, too. Rising home prices, population growth, and high mortgage rates have driven rental costs higher, further exacerbating affordability challenges and placing additional strain on low-income households. The growth of corporate rental ownership by Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), as well as secondary rentals by investors, has played a notable role, too. The average rent for a typical two-bedroom unit across Canada rose by 45 percent between 2018 and 2024, according to the CMHC Rental Market Survey.1 In 2022, Statistics Canada reported that 245,900 households were on the waitlist for social and affordable housing, underscoring the critical need for increased housing supply.2
Labour-Augmenting Home Building Technologies: A Promising Tool for Easing the Housing Crisis
Technological innovation in construction may offer a promising path to improving labour productivity (see Box 1 for a comparison of conventional and innovative homebuilding methods). These labour-augmenting technologies3 have the potential to significantly enhance efficiency and accelerate the pace of homebuilding. Labour-augmenting technologies allow workers to produce more – whether in quantity, quality, or both – within the same amount of work hours. They align with the concept of increasing the capacity of human capital without expanding the workforce. Such progress can arise from various sources, including advancements in machinery, software, work processes, or the education and skills of the workforce. Research suggests that labour-augmenting technological change stimulates gross domestic product (GDP) growth and increases long-run total employment. In open, developed economies, focusing on enhancing the efficiency and productivity of skilled workers yields the greatest benefits (Ross et al. 2024).
Conventional homebuilding methods rely heavily on strenuous physical labour and are vulnerable to weather-related disruptions and higher on-site safety risks. Although specific data on the residential construction sector are limited, the construction industry as a whole remains one of the most hazardous sectors, with on-site building particularly prone to accidents due to the complex and variable nature of the work environment. In contrast, modern homebuilding technologies – such as off-site prefabrication and digital design tools – can reduce project failure rates, shorten construction timelines, enhance defect detection, and significantly improve worker safety (Patel and Kaushal 2024). Working in a stable, climate-controlled factory setting – without the disruptions of a transient worksite – can lead to greater worker satisfaction and productivity (Hoínková 2021).
Modular construction has been around for several decades, involving off-site fabrication in safe, controlled settings and reducing workers’ exposure to harsh outdoor environments. Case studies from countries like Australia, the UK, and the US suggest that modular approaches can reduce construction timelines by 20 to 50 percent compared to traditional methods (Bertram et al. 2019). In panelization, prefabricated panels are assembled quickly on-site, eliminating sequential tasks and allowing different stages of construction to occur simultaneously. This significantly reduces project completion times while minimizing safety risks and physical labour demands. Compared to modular construction, panelization is often more flexible and efficient in terms of storage, transportation, and on-site logistics, making it a more scalable solution in certain contexts. Cross-Laminated Timbers (CLT) used in mass timber construction are easier to handle and assemble. Timber is a suitable material for prefabrication, and its insulating properties create safer working conditions in cold weather. Although somewhat more expensive than other materials, mass timber is valued for its ability to store carbon, contributing to more sustainable construction practices.
Another advantage of shifting to off-site construction is a reduced reliance on labour, especially as Canada’s construction industry faces the retirement of nearly 260,000 workers (22 percent of the workforce) by 2030, requiring over 309,000 new recruits (BuildForce Canada 2021). Research on the global construction sector shows that off-site construction offers a promising solution by enabling 30 to 60 percent of project work to be completed in controlled environments, leading to a potential 5 to 10 times productivity boost through better labour management (Barbosa et al. 2017). Controlled settings also improve worker attraction and support the application of Lean Construction principles. Engaging higher-skilled labour in tasks such as integrating electrical and mechanical systems or operating automated machinery can yield significant productivity gains. Meanwhile, lower-skilled workers can still be effectively engaged in other aspects of the prefabrication process. This approach helps ease the industry’s skilled labour shortage while improving supervision, safety, quality, material efficiency, and schedule adherence (Forestry Innovation Investment 2021).
The time savings and productivity gains cited above are largely drawn from global data across the broader construction sector and may not fully reflect the experience of residential construction in Canada, where adoption of these technologies has been slower and less standardized. The wide variation in estimated time savings often stems from differences in regulatory environments, labour availability, factory capacity, and the degree of integration with on-site workflows. Still, these figures illustrate the potential of innovative construction methods to enhance efficiency. More Canadian-specific research is needed to quantify the net productivity gains – both in time and cost – across different home-building technologies.
Demographic and regional shifts strengthen the case for modular and prefabricated housing. Urban growth, ageing populations, and smaller households are driving demand for compact, denser housing in central areas where land is limited and speed is essential. Modular construction supports this need through rapidly deployable fourplexes, mid-rises, and Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) on infill sites – smaller, self-contained homes located on the same lot as a primary residence. It has also proven effective for student housing, offering speed and flexibility. For example, Selkirk College’s residence in BC used a hybrid of modular and mass timber construction to reduce waste, lower costs, and accelerate delivery, earning high marks for energy efficiency while meeting urgent student housing needs.
Similarly, Trinity Western University’s Jacobson Hall in BC was built in just nine months, and the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) 18-storey Brock Commons Tallwood House saw a more than 10 percent reduction in build schedule, with the structure completed in under 70 days after prefabricated panels arrived on-site. In Northern and remote communities like Nunavut and Northern Ontario – where housing needs are urgent and labour shortages acute – off-site construction allows homes to be built in southern factories and rapidly assembled on-site, bypassing the logistical and workforce challenges of traditional construction.
Lastly, it is crucial to assess Canada’s position on the production possibility frontier (PPF), which represents the maximum number of homes that can be built using available resources, such as labour, materials, and technology, without overextending or underutilizing them. Canada’s litany of problems includes high construction costs, elevated mortgage rates, soaring house prices, adverse weather conditions, and regulatory barriers like zoning laws and building codes, along with a lengthy permitting process. So it is reasonable to infer that Canada is currently operating inside the PPF. This indicates productive inefficiency. The country is not fully leveraging its resources to produce the maximum number of homes possible (productive inefficiency may not be directly quantifiable in precise terms due to data limitations). However, in a more conducive environment where regulatory hurdles are reduced and permit approvals are quicker, labour-augmenting technological advancements could shift the frontier outward, increasing labour productivity. This shift could enable Canada to build more homes more quickly and efficiently, helping to address the ongoing housing shortage.
Where Does Canada Stand on Housing Innovation?
Many countries are leveraging modular construction and mass timber to accelerate homebuilding and improve sustainability. While Canada has begun to explore similar approaches to those used in the US and Australia, its adoption has been slower. The reason: structural barriers, regulatory complexities, and a lack of appropriate support. Scandinavian countries, like Sweden, have embraced off-site construction at scale, where 96 percent of homes are built off-site and 84 percent of detached homes use prefabricated elements (Modular Intelligence 2024). These countries benefit from economies of scale, smaller geographies and unified building codes, with higher volumes justifying the upfront investment in off-site manufacturing. Although a direct comparison of productivity or construction costs between Canada and Sweden is difficult due to differences in labour markets, regulations, and building types, off-site construction has proven more efficient than traditional methods within the Scandinavian context. This relative efficiency has driven greater industry uptake and enabled more advanced forms of prefabrication to emerge – supported by long-term investment, automation, and integration into mainstream housing delivery. Moreover, in Europe and Asia, prefabricated construction differs from that in North America in both the materials used and the size of modules or panels (Forestry Innovation Investment 2021). Understanding how these regions arrived at their current practices can offer valuable insights for industry leaders and policymakers.
Recognizing the urgent need for technological innovation to address the current housing crisis, the Canadian government announced a $600 million package in the 2024 budget. This includes a $50 million Homebuilding Technology and Innovation Fund to scale up and commercialize technologies like modular and prefabricated homes, $500 million to support rental housing using modular construction, and $11.6 million to develop a Housing Design Catalogue featuring standardized and efficient blueprints. The Housing Design Catalogue, released earlier this year, offers standardized low-rise designs focused on traditional construction to support gentle density and infill across Canada, with plans to include modular and prefabricated methods in future updates.
Greater potential for transformation lies in the recently announced initiative by the federal government, an agency called Build Canada Homes (BCH). It aims to catalyze the housing industry and create higher-paying jobs by offering $25 billion in debt financing and $1 billion in equity financing to support innovative Canadian prefabricated home builders. Its premise is that prefabricated and modular housing methods have the potential to reduce construction time by up to 50 percent, cut costs by 20 percent, and lower emissions by 22 percent compared to traditional building approaches. BCH also plans to issue bulk orders to manufacturers to stabilize demand, promote the use of Canadian materials like mass timber and softwood lumber, and expand apprenticeship opportunities to grow the skilled trades workforce.
It is too early to assess the impact of these initiatives. The distribution of funds involves lengthy bureaucratic processes, and the market requires time to adapt. Research and development, being inherently time-intensive, further slows immediate results. While these initiatives may hold significant promise for addressing Canada’s housing crisis – particularly in an environment with fewer structural and regulatory barriers – their effectiveness depends on first tackling the core obstacles that continue to hinder housing development and discourage investment in productivity-enhancing innovations.
Government support plays a critical role in driving a sector’s success and growth. As part of the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan,4 the City of Toronto committed to creating 1,000 new modular homes. By 2021, 250 homes were approved, and since then, 216 modular homes have been completed, contributing to the city’s efforts to address housing shortages and provide affordable living spaces. A report from the Auditor General of the City of Toronto5 stated that due to incomplete data and lack of benchmarking, the effectiveness and comparability of modular construction versus traditional methods – regarding cost and speed – could not be assessed. It recommended improvements in project planning, cost monitoring, and data collection to allow for clearer evaluations in the future. Vancouver is also utilizing temporarily available space to build modular affordable housing with support from CMHC and the Vancouver Affordable Housing Agency (VAHA). Calgary and Edmonton are adopting similar initiatives.
In 2020, the National Building Code of Canada (NBC) increased the limit for mass timber construction from 6 storeys to 12 storeys, reflecting advancements in technology and growing confidence in the safety and sustainability of mass timber. Last year, British Columbia updated its provincial building codes to allow mass-timber structures up to 18 storeys. However, due to higher costs, adoption has so far been largely limited to public sector projects.
Canada’s housing market is gradually adapting and embracing innovative technologies at a faster pace. A growing number of companies are now offering innovative housing solutions in Canada, providing faster, sustainable, and innovative alternatives to traditional construction methods. The Kakatoots (Siksika Nation) or Star Lodge in Alberta,6 the Leamington project in Ontario,7 and the Merritt and UBC project in British Columbia8 are some of the ongoing 3D-printed home projects designed to combat the housing crisis in areas experiencing severe labour shortages.
Key Barriers to Housing Innovation
Despite these advancements, the adoption of innovative home-building technologies continues to face substantial challenges:
High overhead costs, risks of investment, and workforce constraints. Modern construction methods are heavily constrained by the high initial investment and overhead costs associated with high-tech tools and equipment, such as prefabrication machinery, 3D printers, and robotics. In addition to utilizing low-skilled labour for certain tasks, some high-skilled workers trained in operating sophisticated equipment are also required, necessitating formal education and specialized skills development programs. Such training is resource-intensive, limiting its feasibility to larger firms with the financial capacity to invest in workforce development. However, in Canada, some of these larger firms have exited the modular construction space because the anticipated efficiency gains have failed to materialize. Without a consistent flow of orders, even large firms may struggle to sustain operations.
Depressed and volatile housing market. Canada’s housing market is marked by unpredictable boom-bust cycles and a lack of long-term stability, which discourages sustained investment. Volatility in financial markets and frequent shifts in monetary and immigration policy further heighten risks for both builders and homebuyers. Factory-built housing relies on scale and repetition to be cost-effective – firms need a steady throughput to reduce the burden of high overhead costs. However, current market instability makes it difficult to maintain consistent production. On the other hand, high development charges, land levies, and amenity fees drive up housing prices across the entire industry, further dampening affordability and demand, and in turn, restricting the supply of new homes. These also make it more difficult for innovative builders to scale up and compete effectively.
Financing and insurance challenges. Modular or prefabricated homes come with unique challenges compared to traditional houses. Since up to 80 percent of a modular project is completed off-site in a factory, manufacturers typically require substantial upfront payments to secure materials and begin production. However, current lending practices – both among private banks and public programs – are often structured around on-site progress payments. Hence, they rarely accommodate this model, significantly restricting access to financing for modular projects (Dragicevic and Riaz 2024). Additionally, in terms of mortgage and home insurance, modular and prefabricated homes often face inconsistent treatment across provinces, lenders, and insurers. Mortgage providers may require additional documentation, impose stricter conditions, or offer less favourable terms compared to traditional homes. For example, while CMHC does insure mortgages for modular homes, it requires that the home be permanently affixed to a foundation and comply with all local building codes – criteria that may be interpreted or enforced differently across municipalities. Some private mortgage insurers and lenders may impose further conditions or decline to finance certain factory-built or movable units, especially if they are not CSA-certified or permanently sited. On the home insurance side, modular homes may be subject to higher premiums or limited coverage due to perceived risks, misclassification, or unfamiliarity with the building method, sometimes even resulting in denied claims or coverage gaps.9
Financial support alone is not sufficient while structural barriers remain in place. Under the Apartment Construction Loan Program (previously known as Rental Construction Financing Initiative), all financing is subject to approval by CMHC. While there have been some improvements, the process can still take considerable time and needs to be streamlined. There are examples of firms exiting the Canadian market and shifting operations to the US, citing delays in CMHC fund disbursement as one of the contributing factors behind their decision.10 The same is true for the Housing Accelerator Fund, which flowed to municipalities from the federal government. While some major cities have significantly exceeded their annualized housing supply targets in terms of permits issued, others have permitted fewer units than projected under their baseline expectations.11 These challenges undermine the primary advantage of prefabrication: the ability to build faster.
Municipal permit approval is slow for all types of housing. According to the Canadian Construction Association (CCA), it also takes nearly 250 days to obtain a building permit from the municipalities or the regional authorities in Canada – three times longer than in the US – placing Canada 34th out of 35 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in building permit timelines. In some cities, the delays are even worse. Toronto and Hamilton take approximately 25 and 31 months, respectively, to issue permits (CHBA 2025). Municipal process delays during construction can also eliminate all time advantages of off-site construction and drive up costs.
Inconsistency among municipalities in interpreting building codes. A major challenge for scaling up is that different municipalities, sometimes in the same province, interpret the building codes in different ways, requiring time-consuming and costly customized designs. The same can be true within one municipality, with variable interpretations between building officials. This dramatically impacts repeatability and replication that could make the process faster and more cost-effective for builders, and cheaper for homebuyers.
Transportation-related hurdles. Transportation is another challenge in off-site construction, particularly for modular systems, which face strict road permitting requirements that vary by jurisdiction. While flat packing is efficient for panels and CLT, modular transport is more complex, especially across provinces. For example, module widths allowed in the Prairies can reach 7.3 metres, while in BC, they are limited to 4.88 metres, creating constraints for project delivery (Forestry Innovation Investment 2021). Similar constraints apply to transportation entering Ontario. These differences further hinder the feasibility of large-scale, duplicated production.
Duplicative inspections create inefficiencies and difficulties, as two authorities are involved – CSA-certified bodies inspect factory-built components, while local Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) handle on-site work (Forestry Innovation Investment 2021). However, many AHJs lack familiarity with off-site construction and are often unclear about their jurisdiction and the acceptability of the off-site components that should not be subjected to duplicative inspections. This confusion can delay approvals, drive up costs, and create barriers for modular and panelized projects.
Regulatory inefficiencies push firms out of Canada. For example, in 2024, a large modular construction company closed its Kitchener, Ontario factory, cutting 150 jobs. Citing overregulation, financing delays, and rising costs, the company moved operations to the US, where it found a more business-friendly environment.
Policy Pathways and Conclusions
Cost competitiveness and investment risk remain the two most pressing barriers to scaling innovative home-building technologies. According to Keynes’ law, the market will naturally shift toward innovative home-building technologies when sufficient demand exists, and the supply side is prepared to meet it within a business-friendly environment. However, this is not currently the case in Canada, as both demand and supply are constrained by structural inefficiencies, financing gaps, and regulatory hurdles. The goal should not be to restrict these technologies to publicly subsidized, affordable rental projects, but to encourage their widespread use in the regular market. This would enable large-scale production to reduce per-unit costs through economies of scale, achieve more competitive pricing and improve affordability.
To mitigate the challenges and to encourage more innovative home-building projects, the following policy actions and further research should be considered:
The federal government – and other levels of government providing financial support – should work to minimize structural barriers, such as bureaucratic complexities and delays in fund disbursement, across all housing projects. This will accelerate delivery and reduce costs, complementing broader housing goals. While all housing supply efforts deserve timely support, streamlining financing processes for innovative home-building approaches – such as modular and prefabricated construction – will help unlock productivity gains and build capacity in this developing segment of the industry.
To encourage builders to invest in innovative construction, the federal government should provide low-cost financing and investment tax credits. This would help them address high upfront costs and de-risk substantial investments in tools, machinery, and workforce training. Additionally, adopting output-based repayment models – rather than time-based – can help firms remain viable during housing market downturns.
Federal funding can help accelerate the transition to factory-built homes through targeted programming. For instance, the CHBA is advocating for Contribution Agreement Funding to establish a Factory-Built Systems Hub.12 The Hub would offer education and training for builders and officials, help address regulatory barriers, foster innovation in factory-built construction, and provide a concierge service to assist with access to government transition funding.
To boost traditional financial institutions’ confidence in financing off-site construction, CMHC should introduce construction financing insurance tailored to modular and prefabricated housing. While this insurance may add some initial cost, it would help address lender uncertainty and reduce risk premiums –improving affordability for buyers and predictability for builders. A key barrier is that financial institutions currently lack sufficient data to confidently compare off-site construction with traditional methods. This would provide the assurance needed to support lending for a relatively unfamiliar building process. This extra layer of security can be gradually reduced as lenders become more comfortable with these projects.
The federal and provincial governments should standardize the rules and eligibility requirements for mortgages and home insurance for these types of homes to eliminate regulatory uncertainty for buyers. Income tax credits for the maintenance and repair of these homes could build trust among potential buyers, lenders, and insurance companies.
Standardizing – and where possible, harmonizing – transportation requirements across provinces is crucial for the factory-built industry. Consistent regulations would enable cost and time savings by allowing the replication of identical units without the need for costly customization or delays due to jurisdictional differences.
Overall, development charges and related fees should be reduced to improve housing affordability and stimulate construction activity. A more dynamic housing market will enable the industry to benefit from economies of scale.
Municipalities should adopt a standardized interpretation of building codes to maintain consistency. Without this, efforts to develop a housing design catalogue for the industry will have limited value. Indeed, with standardization, existing housing catalogues that builders already have could be deployed easily.
Eliminating duplicative inspections would greatly streamline the construction process and avoid unnecessary costs and delays. Additionally, municipal officials need more training and education to increase their familiarity with off-site building methods and where inspection responsibilities lie.
All municipalities and local authorities should publicly announce clear target timeframes for residential permit approvals, inspection processes, and all municipal approval processes. The goal: to accelerate housing construction and provide much more certainty for development timelines for industry. They should introduce a fast-track permit approval system for residential construction projects utilizing innovative technologies. Time savings and productivity improvements offered by innovative construction methods will not be realized if delays and lengthy administrative procedures persist.
Further research is needed to benchmark Canada’s regulatory environment against peer countries and assess whether overregulation may be discouraging investment or prompting firms to relocate to more business-friendly jurisdictions. This includes studying how countries like Sweden have successfully scaled housing innovations – such as modular construction, off-site manufacturing, and mass timber – and evaluating which aspects of their experience could inform Canadian policy. While a full exploration of these international comparisons is beyond the scope of this paper, it remains a critical area for future investigation.
While some policy recommendations apply broadly to improving overall housing supply, they are essential for creating the enabling conditions that allow modular and prefabricated projects to thrive. At the same time, targeted and preferential measures specifically supporting innovative home-building technologies are also necessary to overcome their unique challenges and accelerate their adoption. Although not a panacea to the ongoing housing crisis, wider adoption of these technologies has the potential to ease pressure in the short term by accelerating construction and to improve affordability in the long term through greater efficiency and scalability. For the Silo, Tasnim Fariha Senior Policy Analyst at the C.D. Howe Institute.
The author extends gratitude to Colin Busby, Nicholas Dahir, Parisa Mahboubi, Carolyn Whitzman and several anonymous referees for valuable comments and suggestions. The author retains responsibility for any errors and the views expressed.
Canadian Home Builders’ Association. 2024. Sector Transition Strategy. Ottawa: Canadian Home Builders’ Association. February 8. https://www.chba.ca/sectortransition/.
Hořínková, Dita. 2021. “Advantages and Disadvantages of Modular Construction, Including Environmental Impacts.” IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1203 (3): 032002. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/1203/3/032002.
Lauster, Nathanael, and Jens von Bergmann. 2025. “The New Rules: Housing Shortage as an Explanation for Family and Household Change across Large Metro Areas in Canada, 1981–2021.” The History of the Family. February: 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1080/1081602X.2024.2448986.
Patel, Jainil, and Vinayak Kaushal. 2024. “Comparative Review Study of Modular Construction with Traditional On-Site Construction.” Preprints. June. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0301.v1.
Ross, Andrew G., Peter G. McGregor, and J. Kim Swales. 2024. “Labour Market Dynamics in the Era of Technological Advancements: The System-Wide Impacts of Labour Augmenting Technological Change.” Technology in Society 77: 102539. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2024.102539.
This is just a first step- The law protecting other Provincial Parks is also in the government’s cross-hairs
Toronto, Ontario Canada | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat – The Ontario government is proposing to sell key parts of Ontario’s second most-visited Provincial Park (2023 data) for a development scheme. The area on the chopping block includes roughly 60% of the Park’s celebrated Georgian Bay shoreline lands and critical habitat of the endangered piping plover. These sensitive areas rely on the Provincial Park’s protections to safely coexist with beachgoers and other recreational users.
Possibly even more concerning, the government is targeting the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act (PPCRA) that protects all of Ontario Parks and Conservation Reserves.
The PPCRA currently requires that elected MPPs approve any significant removal of provincial park land. Rather than simply complying with that requirement and obtaining that approval for Wasaga Beach Provincial Park, the government is proposing currently unspecified “legislative amendments” to the PPCRA itself. The government notice says the amendments are “to remove” land. Because of this, Environmental Defence is concerned that the Provincial government intends to weaken the process requirements for removing Park or Conservation Reserve lands seeing as the current law would not itself need to be changed if its process requirements, including a Legislative Assembly vote on the park area changes, are followed.
“Provincial Parks belong to the people of Ontario and are meant to be protected forever. It is appalling that the current government is trying to give away big parts of one of our most popular parks, and make changes to the legislation that protects all of our Provincial Parks ” said Tim Gray, Executive Director of Environmental Defence. “These beachfront lands on Georgian Bay are worth millions of dollars and are owned by the people of Ontario. They should never be a part of a tourism development”.
Background
Ecological values in the The Wasaga Beach Provincial Park lands to be lost include:
Known piping plover habitat, which is listed as endangered under both the federal Species at Risk Act and the provincial Endangered Species Act.
Mature sand dunes, which provide important ecological and stabilizing functions including providing a protective buffer against high water, wind and storm events for private or adjacent lands, which is an important role as the climate changes.
Significant vegetation communities and provincially significant wetlands.
“The Point” located in Beach Area 1 which is one of those targeted to be removed is designated as a provincially significant earth science Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI)
Transferring ownership of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park lands is not required to support beach-related tourism re-development plans in the Town of Wasaga Beach. On the contrary, it is thanks to the active protection of the Recovery Program at Wasaga Beach Provincial Park that piping plovers and their habitat can coexist with a thriving beach destination.
Hundreds of thousands of Ontarians enjoy the beaches each year, The Provincial Park and Conservation Reserves land disposition is regulated under Sections 9(3) and 9(4) of the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act. Section 9(4) specifies that “The Lieutenant Governor in Council may not order the disposition of an area of a provincial park or conservation reserve that is 50 hectares or more or 1 per cent or more of the total area of the provincial park or conservation reserve, unless,
(a) the Minister first reports on the proposed disposition to the Assembly;
(b) the Minister tables the proposed new boundaries of the provincial park or conservation reserve with the Assembly; and
(c) the Assembly endorses the proposed new boundaries of the provincial park or conservation reserve. 2006, c. 12, s. 9 (4).”
Wasaga Beach Provincial Park land removal and proposed amendments to Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, EBR posting: https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/025-0694
This press release was re-issued to address the following issues:
The ERO posting from the Province of Ontario includes a general map without calculations of the areas proposed for land disposition in the Wasaga Beach Provincial Park. EDC’s third party GIS consultant included the lakebed abutting the beaches in the original calculations found in EDC’s media statement. Those figures have now been corrected to recognize that under the current provincial proposal the lakebed would not be transferred to the Town of Wasaga Beach.
To clarify that the Provincial government has not yet released for review draft wording or a clear description of its proposed changes to the PPCRA and that it is EDC’s opinion that these changes will be focused on making this and future park land removals easier by weakening transparency and the necessity of a Legislative vote on future boundary changes.
The park land is to be sold for an undisclosed sum, not given away as described in our original release.
ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE (environmentaldefence.ca): Environmental Defence is a leading Canadian environmental advocacy organization that works with government, industry and individuals to defend clean water, a safe climate and healthy communities.
New Landmark Exhibition at The Met to Explore Powerful Imagery of the Gods of Ancient Egypt
Over 200 stunning works on view together for the first time will reveal how ancient Egypt’s important gods were believed to manifest themselves through extraordinary imagery and depictions. Exhibition Dates: Oct 12, 2025–Jan 19, 2026 Location: The Met Fifth Avenue, The Tisch Galleries, Gallery 899, 2nd floor
(New York, July, 2025)—Divine Egypt at The Metropolitan Museum of Art—the first major exhibition of Egyptian art at the Museum in over a decade—will explore how images of gods in ancient Egypt were experienced not merely as spiritual depictions in temples, shrines, and tombs but were the instruments that brought the gods to life for daily worship, offering ancient Egyptians a vital connection between the human and divine worlds. Opening on October 12, the exhibition will bring together over 200 spectacular works of art to examine the imagery associated with the most important deities in ancient Egypt’s complex and always-expanding constellation of gods.
Over more than 3,000 years, the Egyptian people’s belief system grew to include more than 1,500 gods with many overlapping forms and traits. Divine Egypt will feature impressive works of art, ranging from monumental statues to small elegant figurines in gleaming gold and silver and brilliant blue faience, that represent 25 of ancient Egypt’s principal deities, including the stately falcon-headed Horus, the potentially dangerous lion-headed Sakhmet, the great creator-god Re, and the serene mummiform Osiris. The exhibition will reveal the ways in which subtle visual cues, like what a figure wore, how they posed, or the symbols they carried, helped identify them and their roles.
The exhibition is made possible by The John A. Moran Charitable Trust.
Additional support is provided by the Kelekian Fund, Alaina and Stirling Larkin, and Norby Anderson.
“Divine Egypt will immerse visitors in the breathtaking imagery of the most formidable ancient deities and expansive universe of the Egyptian gods,” said Max Hollein, The Met’s Marina Kellen French Director and Chief Executive Officer. “The Museum’s galleries for Egyptian art are among the most beloved by our millions of yearly visitors, and this dazzling exhibition brings together some of our most exquisite works with loans from leading global institutions for an exceptional, once-in-a-lifetime exhibition of ancient Egyptian art.”
The exhibition will include magnificent works of ancient Egyptian art that have never been exhibited together before, many of them on loan from institutions such as the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Musée du Louvre, Paris; and the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. There will also be over 140 works from The Met’s own iconic Egyptian art collection. Highlights range from impressive sculpture to a striking pectoral in gold and lapis (the substances that the bodies of gods were believed to be made of) to detailed metal and wood sculptures. A solid gold statue of the god Amun will adorn a re-creation of a divine barque, a type of boat that held the principal deity of a temple and would be paraded through the streets during festivals so that people could commune directly with the god. Each section of the exhibition will provide an immersive opportunity to examine the ways in which the kings and people of ancient Egypt recognized and interacted with their gods.
“The ways in which the ancient Egyptian gods were depicted are vastly different from the divine beings in contemporary religions and therefore are intriguing to modern audiences,” said Diana Craig Patch, Lila Acheson Wallace Curator in Charge of Egyptian Art. “The identity of an ancient Egyptian god may at first seem easy to recognize but looks can be deceiving, as one form can be shared by many deities. Across more than 3,000 years of history, gods, attributes, roles, and myths were rarely dropped from use, yet the Egyptians of the time had no difficulty understanding and accepting the resulting multiplicity. Through hundreds of spectacular objects, Divine Egypt will allow visitors to understand the complex nature of these deities and help translate the images that were needed to make the inhabitants of the celestial realm available to ancient Egyptians.”
By focusing on the imagery associated with many of the most important and powerful deities in ancient Egypt, the exhibition will reveal the multifaceted nature of ancient Egyptian religion as well as the ease with which ancient Egyptians connected with their complicated divine landscapes. Some deities deceptively employed the same imagery with the result that one form could be shared by many gods, while in other cases the roles of deities would expand or change over ancient Egypt’s long history, with one god taking on many forms. The evolution of this landscape over time created deities with numerous roles often having a different representation for each manifestation. Hathor, for example, can appear as a cow, a woman wearing a headdress of horns protecting a sun disk, or a human-headed snake, while some gods maintained consistent forms over thousands of years, like Ptah, who is almost always mummiform and wears a cap.
Divine Egypt will also look at how two categories of society interacted differently with the gods: the Pharaoh and high priests had access to the gods in daily temple rituals, while non-royal Egyptians were not permitted to enter the inner sanctuaries of the great temples where the deities came to Earth and inhabited their images. Through objects of private devotion, including donations to offering tables and shrines in temples and images of deities found in homes and villages, the people of Egypt could find support from their gods daily.
The exhibition will conclude with artifacts relating to the transition to the next life—a reality shared by Egyptians of all rank—with depictions of the gods who together oversaw each person’s passage from this world to the next: chief god of the underworld, Osiris, supported by his sisters, Isis and Nephthys, and Anubis, the canid-headed god who supervises the embalming process.
Credits and Related Content
Divine Egyptis curated by Diana Craig Patch, Lila Acheson Wallace Curator in Charge of Egyptian Art at The Met, with Brendon Hainline, Research Associate, Department of Egyptian Art.
A fully illustrated catalogue will accompany the exhibition and be available for purchase from The Met Store.
The catalogue is made possible by the Kelekian Fund.
Additional support is provided by Patricia A. Cotti.
The Met will host a variety of exhibition-related educational and public programs, including “Sunday at The Met” on Sunday, October 19; Met Expert Talks; an afternoon of scholarly presentations on Thursday, December 4; a film screening; and art-making workshops at both the Museum and offsite with community partners. More details will be announced at a later date.
Education programs are made possible in part by the CORA Foundation.
The exhibition is featured on The Met website, as well as on social media.
Travelling can be an exhilarating experience, whether you’re setting out on a spontaneous weekend getaway or embarking on a long-awaited international trip. One of the most important decisions to make before any adventure is choosing the right suitcase. Your luggage plays a crucial role in the ease and comfort of your travels, and selecting the best one can save you from many headaches along the way.
Fantastic Beasts released in 2016 featuring Newt Scamander’s Magic Suitcase
With the variety of options available on the market today, finding the perfect suitcase can be overwhelming. From materials and sizes to wheels and handles, there are several factors to consider to ensure you make the best choice for your needs. This guide will help you break down the essential features to look for when picking out a suitcase for your next trip.
Size Matters: Choosing the Right Dimensions
The first thing you need to consider when selecting a suitcase is its size. Suitcases come in various sizes, ranging from compact carry-ons to larger checked luggage. The right size for you will depend on the length of your trip and how much you typically pack.
Carry-on size: If you’re planning a short trip or prefer to travel light, a carry-on suitcase is likely your best option. It’s important to check airline guidelines as each carrier has specific size and weight restrictions for carry-on luggage.
Checked luggage size: For longer trips or if you tend to pack more, a larger checked suitcase may be necessary. These suitcases offer more space but can be bulky to handle. Always ensure that the size adheres to airline regulations to avoid additional fees.
For a variety of suitcase sizes and to compare top-rated models, you can explore Meilleurs.ca, which offers expert comparisons and guides to help you make informed decisions.
Spoiler alert- topping Meilleurs.ca list of suitcases is the Swiss Gear La Sarinne 28″ Suitcase.
Durability: Materials That Last
James Bond 007’s- Spy attache case.
Suitcases are typically made from one of three primary materials: soft-shell fabrics, hard-shell plastics, or hybrid combinations. Each material has its own set of pros and cons.
Soft-shell suitcases: Made from durable fabrics like nylon or polyester, soft-shell suitcases offer flexibility and expandability, which is ideal for squeezing in extra items. They’re generally lighter and more forgiving when you’re trying to fit your luggage into tight spaces like an overhead bin. However, they may not provide as much protection for fragile items as hard-shell options.
Hard-shell suitcases: Constructed from materials such as polycarbonate or ABS plastic, hard-shell suitcases provide better protection for your belongings, especially for breakable items. These suitcases are more rigid and usually more secure, but they can also be prone to scratches and cracks over time.
Hybrid suitcases: Some suitcases combine soft and hard-shell elements, offering the best of both worlds. These can provide flexibility while still offering a decent level of protection for your belongings.
Weight: Lighter Is Better
Airlines have become stricter with weight limits, especially for checked luggage. It’s important to choose a suitcase that is light yet durable. A heavy suitcase can quickly eat into your weight allowance, leaving you with less space for your belongings. Look for lightweight materials that don’t compromise on durability, such as polycarbonate for hard-shell suitcases or ballistic nylon for soft-shell suitcases.
An antique art deco Cheney brown crocodile skin suitcase made in England in the 1950s.
Wheels: For Effortless Maneuvering
One of the most crucial features of a suitcase is its wheel system. The last thing you want is to struggle with a suitcase that doesn’t roll smoothly through airport terminals or crowded streets. There are two main types of wheels to consider:
Two wheels: Traditional two-wheeled suitcases tend to be more stable when pulled in a straight line and are ideal for rough surfaces. They also don’t roll away when left on a slope. However, two-wheeled suitcases are more cumbersome to maneuver, especially in tight spaces.
Four wheels (spinner wheels): Four-wheeled suitcases, also known as spinners, offer a full range of motion, allowing you to roll the suitcase upright and in any direction. This can be especially useful when navigating through busy areas or small spaces. While they provide better mobility, spinner wheels can be less stable on uneven surfaces and may roll away if left unattended on an incline.
Handles: Comfortable and Sturdy
The handle of a suitcase may seem like a minor detail, but it’s vital for ensuring comfortable and easy transport. Look for a telescoping handle that can be adjusted to multiple heights and locks securely in place. A comfortable grip is also important, as you’ll be using the handle frequently while pulling the suitcase.
Additionally, consider a suitcase with side or top carry handles for when you need to lift it, such as placing it in an overhead bin or into the trunk of a car. Make sure these handles are sturdy and padded for comfort.
Compartments and Expandability: Maximizing Space
Good luggage design should include plenty of compartments and organizational features. Look for suitcases that offer:
Multiple compartments: Interior pockets and compartments help you keep your items organized, from shoes to toiletries to important documents.
Expandable sections: Some soft-shell suitcases have expandable zippers that allow for extra space when needed, perfect for travelers who tend to overpack or pick up souvenirs along the way.
Compression straps: These interior straps help keep your clothes in place, reducing wrinkles and maximizing the space inside the suitcase.
Security: Keeping Your Belongings Safe
Travel security is always a concern, especially when you’re carrying valuable or personal items. Look for suitcases that come with built-in locks, especially TSA-approved locks, which allow airport security to open the suitcase without damaging the lock during inspections.
In addition to locks, hard-shell suitcases generally offer more protection from theft, as they are harder to cut through than soft-shell models. Zippers should be sturdy and smooth to operate, minimizing the risk of breakage during your trip.
Style: A Reflection of You
While functionality is the most important factor when choosing a suitcase, style can’t be overlooked. Your luggage is a reflection of your personal style, and with so many colors, patterns, and finishes available, you can find a suitcase that suits your personality. Whether you prefer sleek, minimalist designs or bold, vibrant patterns, the style of your suitcase can add a touch of fun to your travel experience.
Conclusion: Invest in the Right Suitcase for a Stress-Free Adventure
Choosing the best suitcase for your next adventure requires balancing practicality, durability, and personal preference. By focusing on key features like size, materials, weight, wheels, handles, and compartments, you can ensure that your suitcase not only meets your travel needs but also enhances your overall experience.
A good suitcase is an investment in stress-free travel, and with a little research and attention to detail, you can find the perfect one to accompany you on all your future adventures. To explore and compare the best suitcases available in Quebec, check out Meilleurs.ca for expert reviews and recommendations that will guide you toward making the best choice for your journey. For the Silo, Vinayak Gupta.
Featured image- Del’s steamer trunk case in the classic holiday film Planes, Trains and Automobiles 1987.
What is with the connection between running shoes and combat? Comfort and stealth? Style and speed? Whatever the case it is time to take a look at another “fighting sneaker”. The Cheetah is made in Pakistan by long-lived footwear juggernaut Servis. A sneaker so intrinsically tied to wartime Afghanistan, it’s been the subject of controversy ever since a few western stores started stocking them on their shelves, our friends at kommandostore included. With it’s looks that embody a time capsule of 2000s shoe design, and its ties to legitimate warfighting in Afghanistan, it’s cemented a legendary status on our store.
Outside of Afghanistan, these runners went viral for their apparent association with insurgency – but inside Afghanistan, as one NYT article reports, they’re a “status symbol worn by warfighters” including the Afghan security forces that also took a liking to them. But tales of internal squabbles and “forever wars” aside, we’re inclined to agree: You’d never guess it based on the design of the shoes alone, but the men who wore them earned them their status as shoes you can literally trust to go to war with.
But reputation only brings a pair of shoes so far — any sneakerhead among you is going to want to look for finer details. And Alhamdulilah, you’ll be pleased. Being made in Pakistan instead of China, you really don’t see the common corners cut. The materials are nice, the outsole surprisingly durable. It’s no wonder that like many throughout history, Afghan warfighters on all sides wore cheetahs as a lighter, nimbler alternative to heavy boots.
And of course they love how they look too.Looking fresher than pre-creased Jordans never had such a close vicinity to the country of Jordan…
A fever, stomach pains or a simple case of the sniffles can send people rushing to the pharmacy for a drug to cure their symptoms.
But Mother Nature provides a number of medicinal plants with healing properties that also can nurse you back to health, a fact more North Americans are beginning to discover.
Doctor Sodhi -” more North Americans realize the effectiveness of remedies found in nature”
“The use of herbal medicine, although traditional in many Eastern cultures, had been only a minor fad in Western medicine until recent decades,” says Dr. Virender Sodhi, founder of the Ayurvedic and Naturopathic Medical Clinic , which provides complementary and alternative medicine.
That trend has been shifting as a growing body of studies and research has demonstrated the effects of traditional remedies on chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension, says Sodhi, author of the new guide, “Ayurvedic Herbs: The Comprehensive Resource for Ayurvedic Healing Solutions”.
That’s not necessarily news to ailing people in other parts of the world, such as Asia and Africa. For centuries, they have found relief through herbal medicines derived from shrubs, vines, trees and other plants, Sodhi says.
Here are four examples, a couple of which are recognizable by better known names and purposes.
American licorice is a native, perennial legume that grows in temperate climates of North America. Licorice, which grows in Europe and Asia, is the root of varieties of the Glycyrrhiza plant.
• Glycyrrhiza glabra. Most people would recognize this plant by its more common name – licorice. It has been used for centuries in the traditional and folk medicines of Asia and Europe to treat ailments ranging from the common cold to liver disease, Sodhi says.
Most Americans likely encountered licorice as children because the sweet root of the plant is used to make candy. Licorice can cure more than a sweet tooth, though. It can protect people from the influenza virus. In cell line studies it was shown to reduce titer of the influenza virus by 90 percent and have strong immune modulation properties.
It’s an important ingredient in many herbal preparations, Sodhi said, especially for bronchial conditions. Because of its expectorant properties, powdered licorice has been used for centuries to treat coughs. Modern cough syrups often contain licorice extract.
• Piper nigrum. This flowering vine’s berries, when still unripe, are used to produce black pepper, but spicing up food isn’t its only talent. Piper nigrum has anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-spasmodic properties that make it ideal for treating digestive disorders, Sodhi says.
It doesn’t stop there. Drug resistance is a major concern in cancer patients. Piper nigrum can reverse multiple drug resistance many fold and significantly increase the apoptotic effect of many pharmaceutical drugs.
CLICK me to discover more about Frankincense
• Boswellia serrate. Commonly known as Frankincense, this herb has powerful anti-inflammatory effects. Several patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s colitis have gone in to remission using a Boswellia preparation.
In brain tumor patients it has reduced cerebral edema by 75 percent. Sodhi has mentioned case studies of many patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, polymyalgia rheumatica and ulcerative colitis who went into remission.
• Bael. Commonly known as “golden apple”, this fruit-bearing tree indigenous to the hills and plains of central and southern India has numerous uses. The fruit promotes healthy digestion and is used medicinally to treat such conditions as diarrhea, dysentery and cholera. The leaves, roots and bark of Bael also have medicinal value.
They help relieve acute bronchitis, heart palpitations, intermittent fevers and many other ailments. Dr. Sodhi has observed 100 percent success in treating patients of clostridium difficile, who did not respond to standard medical protocol of metronidazole (Flagyl), Dificid (fidaxomicin), or vanconycin.
