Canada: Positive news reports, 19-23 February 2010

Global Country of World Peace    Translate This Article
23 February 2010

From 19 - 23 February 2010 positive stories for Canada were reported from several news sources, including reports from the Financial Post, Forbes, The Canadian Press, Canwest News Service, Reuters Canada, Toronto Star, CTV News,and The Globe and Mail. It is a joy for Global Good News service to feature this news, which indicates the success of the life-supporting programmes Maharishi has designed to bring fulfillment to every field: education, government, business, culture, and science.

Financial Post - You can trust us most: survey (23 February 2010)

If trust, or reputation, were Olympic events, Canada's businesses and financial institutions would win gold medals, according to the authoritative 2010 Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual survey of global trustworthiness. Edelman is the world's largest independent public relations firm, and the Barometer canvassed the views of 4,875 well-educated people from 22 countries last fall.

Canada and Sweden are the two most trusted business cultures, said 76% of respondents.

'What's interesting is the universality of the acceptance of the Canadian brand, along with the Swedish,' said CEO Richard Edelman. 'To me, the values that come with the Canadian brand— cology-oriented and the sense of decent treatment of employees—are hugely advantageous . . . .'

Canadian businesses are not only more respected, but have hit highs despite the economic meltdown and now match the 'trust' factor (57% of respondents) enjoyed by NGOs, or non-government organizations, such as the World Wildlife Fund. (In all other countries, NGOs are ranked by respondents dramatically higher in terms of credibility than are businesses there.)

A surprise in this survey is that respondents worldwide believe business trust (defined by Edelman as 'trust to do the right thing') is more important than the quality of goods, services or financial results.

Forbes - The Canadian Century? (19 February 2010)

The 21st century is shaping up great for the Canadians. For starters, Canada's banking system remained strong during the global credit crisis, marked by a steady and responsible continuation of lending and profits. Not only the banks remained solvent, but Canada has the lowest debt burden of any G8 country.

Bill Gross, who runs Pimco, one of the world's biggest bond managers, recently said that he thinks Canada is the best bet for investment among developed nations. 'It moved toward and stayed closer to fiscal balance than any other country,' said Gross.

In addition, the Canadian economy is endowed with natural resources increasingly valuable in this century. The world is taking note. Canada will host both the G8 and G20 conferences later this year.

The Canadian Press - Poll indicates 9 out of 10 Americans have favourable view of Canada (19 February 2010)

Americans love us, a Gallup poll conducted in the United States Feb. 1-3 shows. Canada is once again on top in Gallup's annual country ratings list, with 90 per cent of Americans viewing their northern neighbour favourably.

Canwest News Service - Canadian economic outlook brightens (23 February 2010)

Olympic Games spinoffs and an improved outlook for forestry and manufacturing will make British Columbia the leader in economic growth among Canadian provinces in 2010, the Conference Board of Canada says. B.C. will benefit from an estimated C$770-million boost to the economy from the Winter Olympic Games. B.C. will post growth of 3.7% over the year, while renewed U.S. auto demand will help Ontario surpass the national average for the first time in nearly a decade with growth of 3.5%, the board said. 'The recovery in Central and Western Canada began to take shape in the last few months and will continue to do so through 2010. In fact, all provinces are expected to post positive economic growth this year,' said Marie-Christine Bernard, the associate director of provincial forecasting. The Conference Board described Canada's near-term outlook as 'surprisingly strong,' and predicted national growth will total 2.8% this year.

From a Financial Post report on this:

Government stimulus spending will be the main driver of growth until a recovery in the private sector begins to take hold in the latter part of 2010 and into 2011, the Conference Board forecasts. Household spending, aided by a recovery in labour markets in the second half of 2009, will also be a strong contributor. Housing is expected to benefit from that and push up residential construction investment by 4.7%.

Reuters Canada - Bank of Canada's Jenkins sees no housing bubble (22 February 2010)

The Canadian housing market is strong, but it is not experiencing a bubble, Paul Jenkins, senior deputy governor of the Bank of Canada said on Monday at a panel discussion at the Government of Canada and Financial Times Global Business Leaders Day in Vancouver, where the housing market is especially hot.

'At the moment, we are certainly seeing a certain amount of the recovery in the Canadian economy coming from the housing sector,' Jenkins stated. 'I would certainly not say we are looking at a housing bubble,' he added.

Sales and prices of existing homes in Canada soared last year, boosted by the central bank's near-zero interest rates and the resulting low-cost mortgages. Many in the industry have forecast further strength in 2010.

Toronto Star - Sharing the road (20 February 2010)

The are roughly 20,000 Toronto members of AutoShare and Zipcar, two car-sharing services in the city that have enjoyed rapid growth in the past four years. A member simply makes an online reservation, picks up the neighbourhood AutoShare car, and pays by the hour. No fuel costs. No maintenance. No need for their own insurance or parking spot.

In North America, membership in car-share services is expected to balloon more than eightfold between now and 2016. David Zhao, an automotive research analyst with Frost & Sullivan, published a report on car-sharing in late January. He predicts car-share membership in North America will reach 4.4 million by 2016, translating into a car-share fleet of more than 70,000 vehicles. But then there's the multiplier effect. 'On average, each shared vehicle replaced 15 personally owned vehicles in 2009,' according to Zhao. Do the math and it works out to about a million fewer cars on North American streets by 2016.

The services have become so popular in Toronto that developers who see car-sharing as an attraction are actively seeking partnerships with municipalities. Having a Zipcar or AutoShare parking spot on the property is promoted as a perk for residents, the same way indoor swimming pools, on-site health clubs and proximity to subway stops are trumpeted. Condo builders are cutting deals with the city that often lets them reduce the number of parking spots allotted to residents by 10 for every car-share spot provided.

Just this month, the city approved nearly two dozen curbside car-share parking spots—split between Zipcar and AutoShare—making it even easier to find and drop off cars. The aim of the pilot project is to reduce downtown congestion and the demand for parking.

Promoting car-sharing downtown also reduces air pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions. Frost & Sullivan estimated that car-share members drive 31 per cent less than they would have if they owned their own vehicle.

The Canadian Press - Feds find financing for green farm energy sources, minister says (22 February 2010)

The federal government is offering financing to agriculture producers and agribusiness operators who want to use renewable energy sources in their businesses. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says the Farm Credit Canada Energy Loan will be good for the environment and for farmers' bottom lines. The government estimates 60 per cent of producers and agribusinesses are considering new ways to find financial value by reducing their environmental impact, and more than a third of those are considering renewable energy in their operations. Available 1 March, the government program will offer producers and agribusiness operators help in purchasing and installing on-farm energy sources like biogas, geo-thermal, wind or solar power.

The Canadian Press - More Canadians favour local food over imported, dietitians survey reveals (23 February 2010)

A survey released for the annual national Nutrition Month campaign in March, sponsored by the Dietitians of Canada, shows that Canadians favour food produced in this country. The Ipsos Reid/Dietitians of Canada survey of 2,201 Canadians conducted Nov. 25-Dec. 8, 2009, found 96 per cent of respondents believe that the term 'healthy' describes foods found in their region, while almost eight in 10 (78 per cent) agree that it is important for them to know where their food is grown. The survey also found that 59 per cent believe it to be true that fruits and vegetables produced closer to where they live contain more nutrients than those that have travelled from afar.

Further, eight in 10 Canadians are cooking at home more often. The survey also found that many are buying from a farmers market (27 per cent) and growing their own garden (24 per cent). Dietitians of Canada spokesperson Mary Bamford says that gardening at home is a growing trend.

The 6,000-member dietitians organization offers other suggestions to help your community promote healthier food.

—Start, support or get involved with local community garden projects to grow fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs.

—Work with your local school board to create ways to showcase locally produced foods either in the classroom or in school cafeterias.

—Ask your grocery store to carry more locally grown foods.

CTV News - Canadians living longer, Statistics Canada reports (23 February 2010)

The average Canadian born between 2005 and 2007 can now expect to live to 80.7, Statistics Canada reports. That's up from a decade ago, when a baby born between 1995 and 1997 could expect to live to 78.4. It's also up slightly from a few years ago, when a baby born between 2004 and 2006 could expect to live to 80.5. Experts say several factors have contributed to Canadians' longer lifespans. 'Improved health, reduction of diseases like childhood diseases, good food, and good nutrition,' Dianne Groll of Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. told CTV News. British Columbia has the longest life expectancy, the report says. Babies born in B.C. in 2005-2007 will live an average of 81.2 years. The next highest life expectancy is in Ontario, at 81.0 years.

From The Globe and Mail report on this:

The average male life expectancy reached 78.3 for babies born between 2005 to 2007, a gain of nearly three years compared to a decade earlier. The average woman's life expectancy rose 1.8 years in the same time period and now sits at 83. 'I think there's been a shift in society with men taking more care of themselves ... where previously that was seen as the woman's domain,' said Holly Tuokko, a professor of psychology and director of the Centre on Aging at the University of Victoria, B.C.. 'We know quite clearly that certain eating patterns are not good for our health, same as certain behaviours like smoking and not exercising,' Prof. Tuokko said. 'All of them have been changing at the same time [and] they seem to be having quite a remarkable influence on the health of society and consequently the longevity.'

Canwest News Service - Own the podium or not, Canadians still proud: survey (23 February 2010)

A national survey, conducted by Ipsos-Reid Feb. 18-19, reveals that 84% of us disagree that 'if Canada fails to win the most medals of any nation or lead in the medal count, the Games will be a disappointment.' Andrew Cohen, president of The Historica-Dominion Institute, which commissioned the survey, said, 'More than medals and more than our athletes, the Olympics are showcasing who we are ... Canadians are feeling very good.' Cohen exclaimed, 'There are very few moments that provide this kind of solidarity, this kind of unity.'

Every day Global Good News documents the rise of a better quality of life dawning in the world and highlights the need for introducing Natural Law based-Total Knowledge based-programmes to bring the support of Nature to every individual, raise the quality of life of every society, and create a lasting state of world peace.

© Copyright 2010 Global Good News®



Translation software is not perfect; however if you would like to try it, you can translate this page using:

(Google) Select a language English to Afrikaans English to Albanian English to Arabic English to Belarusian English to Bulgarian English to Catalan English to Chinese (Simplified) English to Chinese (Traditional) English to Croatian English to Czech English to Danish English to Dutch English to Estonian English to Filipino English to Finnish English to French English to Galician English to German English to Greek English to Hebrew English to Hindi English to Hungarian English to Icelandic English to Indonesian English to Irish English to Italian English to Japanese English to Korean English to Latvian English to Lithuanian English to Macedonian English to Malay English to Maltese English to Norwegian English to Persian English to Polish English to Portuguese English to Romanian English to Russian English to Serbian English to Slovak English to Slovenian English to Spanish English to Swahili English to Swedish English to Thai English to Turkish English to Ukrainian English to Vietnamese English to Welsh English to Yiddish

(Altavista babelfish) Select a languageEnglish to Chinese-simpEnglish to Chinese-tradEnglish to DutchEnglish to PortugueseEnglish to FrenchEnglish to GermanEnglish to GreekEnglish to ItalianEnglish to JapaneseEnglish to KoreanEnglish to RussianEnglish to Spanish

Send Good News to Global Good News.

Your comments.