Latest news with #Concordia
CTV News
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Classic Sports Moments
Watch The Vanier Cup was at Skydome in Toronto in 1998 between the U of S Huskies and the Concordia Stingers in a tightly contested affair
Business Wire
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Fiberon composite decking earns Green GOOD DESIGN® Award
MAUMEE, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Demonstrative of the company's commitment to sustainable manufacturing and design, Fiberon was recently recognized with a Green GOOD DESIGN® Award for its Astir Collection of Concordia polyethylene (PE) composite decking. 'Since our founding in 1997, we've made a point to create products that customers know are a good choice for their family, their home and the environment,' said Kate Haws, director of brand communications. Share 'It's an honor being recognized with this achievement,' said Kate Haws, director of brand communications. 'Since our founding in 1997, we've made a point to create products that customers know are a good choice for their family, their home and the environment.' Presented annually by The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and The Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design, the Green GOOD DESIGN award program 'identifies and emphasizes the world's most important examples of sustainable design.' Concordia is a premium composite decking line made with 94% recycled material that would otherwise be destined for landfills, incinerators, or oceans. About half of what's in the decking boards comes from recycled wood—sawdust and leftover material that would otherwise be discarded. The other half comes from recycled plastic, including grocery bags and recycled packaging material. Fiberon recycles these woods and plastics at an in-house facility that converts the waste into the materials needed to make new deck boards. The facility prevents more than 70,000 tons of waste from reaching landfills and incinerators annually. By using recycled materials, Fiberon saves more than 1 million trees—or 20,000 acres of healthy forest—from being cut down every year. As many as 2,000 plastic bags can be used in the manufacturing of a single board, averaging 100 million pounds of recycled plastic each year. The company's commitment to sustainability extends beyond the product design. Every Fiberon plant has a water reservoir about the size of a standard swimming pool to collect and reuse water during the manufacturing process. This closed-loop water system saves nearly 3.5 billion gallons of water annually. The Astir Collection is the newest addition to the Concordia portfolio. It features a rustic cathedral grain and three fresh, nature-inspired multi-tonal hues: Prairie Wheat, a light tan reminiscent of lush fields of grain; Mountain Ash, a rich, deep brown inspired by mountain forests; and Seaside Mist, a modern grey with a warm, sandy undertone. To learn more, visit About Fiberon Fiberon is a leading U.S. manufacturer of wood-alternative decking, railing and cladding distributed worldwide. Fiberon products are available in a wide range of styles and price points, all designed to respect nature while outperforming it. Fiberon is part of Fortune Brands Innovations, Inc. (NYSE: FBIN). Learn more at About Fortune Brands Innovations Fortune Brands Innovations, Inc. (NYSE: FBIN), headquartered in Deerfield, Ill., is a brand, innovation and channel leader focused on exciting, supercharged categories in the home products, security and commercial building markets. The Company's growing portfolio of brands includes Moen, House of Rohl, Aqualisa, Emtek, Therma-Tru, Larson, Fiberon, Master Lock, SentrySafe, Yale residential and August. To learn more about FBIN, its brands and environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments, visit
Montreal Gazette
6 days ago
- Business
- Montreal Gazette
Concordia may lay off workers as it slashes tens of millions from its budget
By Concordia University is warning of possible layoffs as it orders all departments to cut spending by 7.2 per cent. It says it must slash tens of millions from its budget amid declining revenue, falling enrolment and other financial challenges. 'Layoffs are a last resort and part of a set of measures being discussed given our financial situation,' Concordia spokesperson Vannina Maestracci told The Gazette Wednesday. The university employs about 7,000 faculty and staff. In a budget update this week, Concordia said it's 'not currently implementing layoffs, but they may be required later in the 2025-26 fiscal year.' This appears to be the first time the cash-strapped university has indicated it may cut positions. McGill University, facing similar financial difficulties, has already taken that step. In March, McGill said it planned to lay off about 100 employees as it worked to eliminate a projected $45-million deficit for next year. In the end, about 60 employees were let go, a spokesperson said Wednesday. Concordia's board of governors recently approved the university's 2025-26 budget. Faculty and staff have been invited to a town hall meeting on Monday. Concordia's chief financial officer and provost are to provide an 'update on the university's situation and funding priorities.' In the 2024-25 academic year, Concordia lost about 700 students, or 2.3 per cent of its student body. 'This drop is directly linked to policy changes introduced by the Canadian and Quebec governments,' the university said. Concordia blames its budget outlook on several converging issues. The challenges include a two-year freeze on provincial operating grants despite rising costs, and a provincial clawback of revenue from international students. In addition, 'enrolment has declined, particularly among international students — the result of restrictive visa rules by the Canadian government, the Quebec government's tuition policy changes and other barriers,' the university said. Student enrolment accounts for 85 per cent of revenue. The university said that as an anglophone institution, it faces specific obstacles, including the Coalition Avenir Québec government's decision to significantly hike tuition for out-of-province students. It noted that Concordia, McGill and Bishop's, Quebec's English universities, were also 'excluded from two grants open to francophone universities supporting international recruitment and the transition to the new funding framework.' Concordia launched its financial recovery plan, approved by Quebec's Higher Education Ministry, in 2023. The university plans to return to a balanced budget by 2029, by which time it expects to have made almost $200 million in cumulative cuts. Concordia has scaled back operations in recent years, cutting the number of classes offered, as well as shuttle bus service and cleaning and security schedules. For the first time, the university is projecting an overall revenue decline for the upcoming academic year. The drop is expected to be $18.4 million. 'At the same time, the university is managing salary increases, inflation, indexed contracts and other rising costs,' Concordia said. 'After two years of meeting its deficit targets, Concordia must now take even stronger action to stay on track.' Under its recovery plan, Concordia must aim for a $31.1-million deficit in 2025-26. To achieve that, the university said it must find $54 million through savings or new revenue. Concordia is implementing a 7.2 per cent budget cut across all sectors. It's also exploring ways to reduce workforce expenses, which make up 72 per cent of its budget. The university said it will 'more vigorously' apply an ongoing hiring freeze. It's also closing 100 vacant staff positions, bringing the total closed jobs to 200. To cut workforce expenses further, it's 'actively discussing' other initiatives, including 'reduced workloads, shared services, broader use of attrition, a voluntary retirement program, and layoffs if required to meet targets.' To help generate revenue, Concordia aims to recruit an additional 1,000 students in 2025-26. However, that objective could be challenging due to Quebec's decision to cap international student enrolment and give itself more say on where and what they study. Concordia president Graham Carr said his university faces a 'pivotal moment.' In an open letter, he said Concordia, like other universities, has long relied on growth in student numbers, but that model no longer holds, he said. Now, Concordia must transform its business model, 'becoming less vulnerable to unexpected shifts in government policy.' 'We can do this by continuing to economize and thinking differently about our internal operations and organization, while also augmenting our traditional academic programs and research revenues through the pursuit of new opportunities and lines of activity,' he said. Concordia isn't alone. A recent Bureau de coopération interuniversitaire report projects that Quebec universities collectively face a deficit of almost $134 million in 2025-26. In March, the Bureau, which brings together 20 Quebec universities, criticized Premier François Legault's government for freezing university funding in the last provincial budget. The freeze will 'force universities to make cuts to honour already-negotiated salary agreements and absorb cost increases due to inflation.' Meanwhile, the mandated drop in international students will cost universities $200 million. 'Quebec still lags in university attainment and suffers from chronic underfunding compared to other Canadian universities — still estimated at more than $1 billion,' Christian Blanchette, the rector of the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, said at the time.
News18
6 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Indian Students In Canada Protest Against Compulsory French Language Exams, Face Backlash
Last Updated: Indian students in Quebec said their colleges in Montreal are forcing them to pass French exams before they can obtain their degrees. Indian students in Quebec, Canada are facing backlash after protesting against compulsory French language exams required for their degrees. In a widely shared video, the students, with blurred faces, expressed their opposition to being forced to take French exams to receive their degrees and a PGWP or Post-graduation Work Permit. Indian students in Quebec said their colleges in Montreal are forcing them to pass French exams before they can obtain their degrees. In the video, the students highlighted that the requirement to learn the language does not seem to apply to students at McGill and Concordia, both universities in Montreal, Quebec. 'Why are your college students treated differently?," the students asked. They further added, 'Our college must stand with us. No more double standards, no more barriers. Equal rights for all students." The students said that failing to pass these exams means they will not receive their degrees. They stated that their issue is not with learning French, but with the fear and uncertainty caused by Bill 96, a law passed in Quebec in 2022 to promote French language. The video has been posted on the Instagram page of 'French With Fairness' . Canada has two official languages: English and French. The later is predominantly spoken in Quebec. The video received backlash with many locals suggesting that international students return to India if they cannot learn the language of the country. 'They literally picked Montreal, which is part of the AUTONOMOUS province of Canada, Quebec where French is the official language. If the students can't even communicate in the official language, what's the point of giving them PGWP?" wrote one Instagram user. 'Go back to India if you don't want to learn French. This is the language and culture here; nobody owes you a compromise because you don't want to put the work in to learn the language," wrote another user. First Published: May 28, 2025, 18:50 IST
Montreal Gazette
6 days ago
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
Mulcair: Liberals must heed lessons on connecting 'two Quebecs'
An environmental research team from McGill University made front-page news in the Journal de Montréal this past weekend about their discovery of massive environmental devastation stretching from the South Shore of Montreal to the U.S. border. The McGill team, styled 'Leadership for the Ecozoic,' had been studying the watershed of the Châteauguay River with colleagues from Vermont. Their landmark research revealed that the entire region had become a dumping ground for tens of thousands of truckloads of construction, demolition and other waste. The long-term damage to the environment, in particular to the underground water, is incalculable. This incredible work was not just important for the ecosystems, it is, to me, symbolic of a positive evolution I've been seeing in the institutions of the English-speaking community. Ever since the Legault government decided to undermine McGill and Concordia, I've noticed an enhanced presence of both universities at academic and research events. Their work has always been world class, but now, more than ever it seems, it's being connected to the wider community — and it's a good thing for the universities and for life here in Quebec. Over the past few months I've seen and heard researchers from McGill, Concordia and Bishops at conferences on the environment and on pressing social issues. The most recent ACFAS assizes included a thoughtful conference on Section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms on minority language education rights. ACFAS (founded in 1923 as the Association canadienne-française pour l'avancement des sciences) is the premier organization promoting research and science in French in Canada. To see QUESCREN (the Quebec English-speaking Communities Research Network) out of Concordia organizing a part of the activities was positively refreshing. To hear these complex legal and social issues being shared and discussed dispassionately and professionally was also more than welcome. This evolution opens onto the wider question of how we can connect the 'two Quebecs': greater Montreal, and the rest of the province dominated by the Coalition Avenir Québec in the last two provincial elections. Understanding that urban-rural divide is central to the race now taking place for the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party. There are three main contenders: Karl Blackburn, former MNA from Roberval and Conseil du patronat head; Charles Milliard, a pharmacist and former head of the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec; and Pablo Rodriguez, a former federal minister. Rodriguez has strong support within the QLP caucus that is dominated by Montrealers like himself. Unfortunately for the Liberals, the entire province gets to decide the result of the next election, not just Montreal. Watching their first debate in Laval early this month I was struck by how little Rodriguez seemed to know about Quebec and its institutions. He was the only participant who was obliged to constantly flip through a binder of notes to find something to say, and it's easy to understand: He spent his entire career in Ottawa. It now appears clear that no one will win on the first round of voting. The rules of this leadership contest provide that only the two top finishers will take part in the run-off vote, and that provides hope for a candidate who can speak to all of Quebec. Milliard has rallied a lot of support from the youth wing, but Blackburn's numbers appear the most promising for a second-round win, owing to his widespread popularity in the regions. The QLP is a large tent that brings together federalists of very different stripes. It includes many Quebecers who vote Conservative or NDP federally. To win, the QLP cannot be seen to be the federal Liberal party in Quebec; otherwise, votes will again peel off to the Quebec Conservatives and Québec solidaire. It would be nice to see our universities' spirit of openness to working with the wider Quebec society pierce the wall of the QLP Montreal caucus.
