So let's get real here. Thirty-seven years have passed since the south wellfield in Elmira, Ontario was suddenly shut down allegedly due to NDMA contamination. There were already solvents in the groundwater at those two wells (E7, E9) at low concentrations, courtesy of both Uniroyal and Varnicolor, as per the M.O.E.'s 1989 Elmira drinking water report. Since that time a total of three companies have been proven to be environmental pigs namely Nutrite/Yara (ammonia), Uniroyal Chemical (NDMA, chlorobenzene & hundreds of others plus DDT, dioxins) and Varnicolor Chemical (NDMA, chlorobenzene, & dozens to hundreds of other solvents plus PCBs). Leaking gas stations have been culprits and possibly other larger companies may have also contributed (McKee, Sanyo, Borg etc.) but only Uniroyal and Varnicolor have actually been proven, dirty polluters of the really worst sort. 

So let me say this to Uniroyal Chemical (Lanxess), Ont. Min. of Environment (MECP) and Woolwich Township in particular. You are a pack of  lying, cowardly, bullying pieces of sh*t who have knowingly and intentionally covered up the extent of contamination and human and environmental damage caused by Varnicolor Chemical (& Uniroyal Chemical) for your own self-serving reasons. You disgust me.

Patience is key. The Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) finally have been publicly exposed for what they are. It is also my hope that certain public figures who made their reputations as members of that disgusting organization might just have citizens reexamining their support for them. I will list but two names for the moment and that would be Liz Witmer and our very own, thank God hopefully soon to be gone, Sandy Shantz. Is it coincidental that both were attractive women who had been appointed as Chair of the School Board (i.e. trustees) ? I think not. We citizens (both genders) are suckers for an attractive face and the politically motivated among us know that.

Caroline Burjowski has been a one woman wrecking crew. She through her tenacity and conviction took no crap from a bunch of ego maniacs looking for a cause to promote themselves. Furthermore long time trustees Mike Ramsay and Cindy Watson were in it for the long haul. Both have upbraided and criticized gross behaviour by their colleagues over the last few decades. They have stood out as beacons of determination against all odds. 

Last Monday's K-W Record published the following article written by Jeff Outhit and titled "Exodus at the school board".  It critiques the actions of the Board including their lack of transparency and perhaps even honesty in some matters. The Record also covered the court appearances and battles regarding Caroline Burjowski and the WRDSB bullying and intimidation attempts. The School Board really stepped into it big time and made a huge mistake thinking that Ms. Burjowski could be battered and broken through "lawfare" which is one of the ways the Board attacks and intimidates parents and other critics. The WRDSB believe that using the public's money against them in long running and grossly expensive court cases is the key to their winning every dispute. They are filth and Ms. Burjowski, I will admit with assistance from the K-W Record kicked their butts both in the media and in court and it was long overdue! It is my hope that not just the majority of idiot and biased trustees but also the slime at the top of the Board all rot in hell. This also applies to the scum at the top decades ago who protected and covered up both bad teachers and pedophiles like Ron Archer and others.  

There’s a specific kind of panic going around founder circles right now, and it usually sounds like this:

“If a bigger company with more money and a better model can build this in six weeks, what’s actually stopping them?”

It’s a fair question, and the honest answer is: usually nothing, if the product’s entire value proposition is “we put a good prompt in front of a capable model.” That kind of product genuinely is one funding round and one engineering sprint away from being replicated by someone with more resources. The uncomfortable truth most founders eventually run into is that “smart” was never the durable part.

What’s harder to replicate — and what quietly separates the AI products still standing in two years from the ones that got steamrolled — isn’t intelligence. It’s whether the product has built a real feedback loop between usage and improvement, or whether it’s just wearing a smart model like a costume.

For a while, having access to a capable model felt like a competitive advantage in itself. That window closed fast. Model capability has become a commodity that any team can license, and the gap between “using GPT-4” and “using whatever the current frontier model is” has narrowed to the point where it’s rarely the deciding factor in whether a product wins its category.

Once the underlying intelligence is available to everyone, the question stops being “how smart is your model” and starts being “what does your product know that a freshly-built competitor doesn’t.” That knowledge doesn’t live in the model weights. It lives in the accumulated, product-specific signal that only comes from real usage over time.

A feedback loop isn’t just “we collect analytics.” It’s a structural property of the product: every interaction makes the next interaction measurably better, in a way a brand-new competitor literally cannot replicate on day one, no matter how much capital or talent they throw at it.

It shows up as increasingly specific personalization. A recommendation engine that’s watched a million real decisions gets better at predicting the million-and-first, in ways a cold-start competitor’s engine simply can’t, regardless of whose underlying model is more advanced.

It shows up as error correction that compounds. A product that logs its own mistakes — and specifically the corrections users make to those mistakes — builds a private dataset of exactly where the current approach falls short. A competitor starting fresh has to rediscover every one of those failure modes independently, one at a time, in production, in front of their own users.

It shows up as domain-specific judgment a generic model doesn’t have. A general-purpose model knows a huge amount about the world and very little about your specific customers’ edge cases, workflows, and unstated preferences. A product that’s spent a year accumulating that specific knowledge has an advantage no amount of general model capability closes.

It shows up as trust earned through consistency, which is really just the human-facing version of the same idea — users returning because the product has reliably gotten better at solving their specific problem, not because it demoed well once.

The reason this kind of moat is real, and not just startup-conference platitude, comes down to a simple asymmetry: a competitor can copy your interface in a weekend, your feature list in a month, and possibly even your prompt engineering with enough reverse-engineering effort. What they cannot copy is time-in-market with real users, because that’s not a static asset sitting somewhere to be reverse-engineered — it’s a process that only exists if it’s been running.

This is precisely why “shallow wrapper” products — thin interfaces bolted onto a foundation model’s raw capability with no data loop feeding back into them — have become so vulnerable this cycle. They’re valuable exactly until someone with slightly more resources builds the same wrapper, and then the entire competitive position evaporates in the time it takes a bigger team to ship a comparable feature. There was never a compounding asset underneath to defend.

A dangerous middle ground exists here, and a lot of founders sit in it without realizing: building genuinely useful AI features, while still having no real feedback loop underneath them. Personalization, recommendations, and smart defaults can all be faked, in the sense of working well on day one without actually compounding over time.

The tell is a simple question: does the product get measurably better at your specific problem the longer you use it — not just because the underlying model got a version bump, but because of what your own usage taught it? If the honest answer is no, the “AI feature” is decoration on top of the base model’s capability, not a moat, no matter how well it demos.

This isn’t purely a data-science problem — it’s a product and engineering design decision made early, often before a team even realizes they’re making it.

Instrument the parts of the product where users correct or override the AI, not just where they accept its output. The moments a user says “no, actually” are far more valuable than the moments they say “yes, that’s right,” because they’re the raw material for the loop.

Design the product so that usage naturally generates structured, reusable signal, rather than generating a pile of unstructured logs nobody looks at. A feedback loop that requires a data science project to extract insight from six months later is much weaker than one designed to feed improvements back automatically and continuously.

Decide early which parts of the experience are meant to compound, because not every feature needs to. A utility feature can stay static forever without hurting the product. The features that touch a user’s specific context, preferences, or repeated behavior are the ones worth building a genuine loop around.

Resist the urge to over-index on the model upgrade cycle. Chasing every new model release as the primary source of product improvement is a treadmill that never produces a durable advantage — the product’s own accumulated, specific knowledge is the part competitors can’t instantly access by upgrading their model too.

“Our model is smarter” was never going to be a permanent advantage, in the same way “our servers are faster” stopped being one once cloud infrastructure commoditized compute. The products surviving past the current wave of AI hype aren’t the ones that found the cleverest prompt or the newest model first. They’re the ones that turned ordinary usage into a private, compounding advantage nobody else has access to — including, eventually, a much bigger and better-funded competitor.

✔ Identify whether your product’s AI value depends on model capability alone, or on usage-driven improvement

✔ Instrument correction and override moments, not just acceptance moments

✔ Design for structured, automatically-compounding signal rather than logs someone has to manually mine later

✔ Decide deliberately which features are meant to compound and which are fine staying static

✔ Stop treating the next model upgrade as your primary source of competitive advantage

Isn’t a great model still a meaningful advantage? It’s an advantage, but rarely a durable one — model capability tends to commoditize quickly as competitors gain access to comparably capable models. A feedback loop built on your own usage data is much harder for a competitor to replicate on the same timeline.

How long does it take to build a real feedback loop? There’s no fixed timeline, but it requires sustained real usage, not a short pilot. The core requirement is instrumenting the product early enough that the loop has time to compound before a competitor can catch up on features alone.

Can a small startup compete with a bigger company on this basis? Often yes, specifically because the bigger company usually has to start its own feedback loop from zero for any new product, regardless of its size or model access. Being first to real usage in a specific niche can outweigh a competitor’s larger resources.

• Model capability has become a commodity; it’s rarely the deciding factor in which AI product wins its category long-term.
• A genuine feedback loop — where usage measurably improves the product over time — is much harder for a competitor to replicate quickly than a feature set or interface.
• Many “AI features” are decoration on top of a base model with no real compounding loop underneath, which is why shallow AI wrapper products remain especially vulnerable to being out-built.

Building a product that compounds instead of just demoing well starts with the underlying architecture and data design, not the choice of model. 7 Pillars works with startups on exactly this kind of AI development and custom software, designing products built to get better with real usage rather than depending entirely on whichever model happens to be newest.

The Products That Survive AI Hype Aren’t the Smartest. They’re the Ones That Learn. was originally published in Code Like A Girl on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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Fresh figs are a delicious and nutritious fruit that fly under the radar in comparison to their dried counterparts. Historically, however, figs have been around for quite some time, and they deserve more of our attention.

Truth be told, the little morsels were critical to early human survival: the fact that they dry very well, thereby forming a source of preserved and caloric nutrition, made figs an important food for humans in the Mediterranean and Middle East thousands of years ago. There are records of humans consuming figs dating to 9,000 BCE, and evidence of a fig “industry” in the Tigris and Euphrates area of the world known as Mesopotamia.

Ancient Greek Olympic athletes ate figs as training fuel and were awarded fig-leaf crowns in victory. There is an etymological myth that “sykon,” the Greek word for fig, was used in the context of anyone stealing the best Greek figs: the person reporting the activity – who did so in the hopes of gaining favour with the authorities – was called a “sycophant.” I don’t know if that’s true, but it sounds good!

Millennia later, figs were introduced to, and were growing in, North America when in 1769 Franciscan missionaries planted trees. It’s why we have the popular black-hued “Mission” figs. As for their first wide-scale commercial appearance, Fig Newton cookies came along in 1892.

The fig and fig trees are mentioned in Deuteronomy in the Old Testament and Matthew in the New Testament, among other books in the Bible. It is plausible that the so-called “apple” of the Garden of Eden was actually a fig. Chapter 95 of the Quran is named “Al-Tin,” The Fig, which refers to regions of Palestine and Syria where prophets were raised. Buddha, it is said, gained enlightenment meditating beneath a species of fig tree. The tree is also considered sacred by many eastern religions, including Hinduism which calls it the “world tree.”

What is a fig? First, it’s a relative of the mulberry, of which we have plenty here in Waterloo Region. Unusually, fig trees do not produce blossoms, say, like an apple tree. The fig itself is a sort of inverted strawberry: it’s more flower than fruit, with its flesh folded in on itself.

The little seeds inside – called achenes – are actually similar to what you find on the outside of a strawberry. Small wasps called fig wasps enter a pore at the base of the fig to pollinate it. Figs are a rare fruit that will ripen fully on the tree and partially dry there.

As for nutrition, three or four figs have roughly as much fibre as a cup of cooked oatmeal and the amount of calcium that is found in a glass of milk – that’s unusually high for a fruit. They are good substitutes for sweeteners in baking and their moisture content helps keep baked goods soft and delicious. Fig puree can be used in some recipes as a substitute for butter as well.

You can find dried figs at just about any grocery store, usually in tightly packed circular packages, while a number of grocery stores have started carrying fresh figs in flats of a dozen. Look for Greek figs by September and end of October, while California figs arrive in the middle to late-summer and year-round they come in from Peru and Israel.

Figs, both dry and fresh, are great for snacks on their own, but they also can have other applications in your kitchen, including in salads with fennel, pomegranate and a little bit of arugula. The go well with stronger, firm cheeses too.

Check out my latest post Fresh figs for fall from AndrewCoppolino.com.

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Location: Toronto, Ontario. The board meets remotely and directors may be anywhere in Canada.
Seeking: Board of Directors, Volunteer
Time Commitment: 4 to 6 board meetings a year, active service on at least one committee at 2 to 6 hours a month, plus the annual meeting and annual planning session. 5 to 10 hours a month overall.
Apply By: September 25, 2026, 11:59pm ET

Our members elect the board on October 27, 2026. We’re running an open call: everyone who applies and meets the eligibility requirements appears in the candidate information sent to every member on October 1. Nobody is shortlisted or interviewed.

We’re looking hardest for not-for-profit or charity board governance, financial oversight, and fundraising, and would also value HR and employment, equity and anti-racism, and conflict resolution experience. Prior board experience is an asset and there’s room to grow into the role without it.

Apply at: flywheel.babyghosts.org/board/apply
Role description: flywheel.babyghosts.org/board/responsibilities

Baby Ghosts is a Canadian registered charity providing cooperative governance education, professional development, and open resources for marginalized creators in Canada’s interactive digital arts sector. We spread awareness and education about cooperatives, as both a business model and a grassroots movement to address the social and economic issues faced by displaced and disheartened game workers.

Our work centres marginalized artists, collectives, and cooperatives in the sector, advocating for their freedom to create work that reflects our collective cultural and social richness. We deliver low-barrier educational programs and build a supportive cross-disciplinary community where the process and work of artists historically left out of digital arts spaces is resourced, celebrated, and platformed. By providing material support and education on cooperative and worker-centric models to underrepresented artists, we add diverse stories and perspectives to the Canadian interactive digital arts ecosystem and remove barriers these creators face when entering the sector.

We are also mandated to advocate for systemic change: an ecosystem that supports cooperative and worker-centric studio models. We work with artists, funding bodies, educational institutions, and other partners.

• Support Baby Ghosts’ mission and values, and protect the organization so it can do its work.
  Set policy, direction, and strategic priorities. Work through them with staff, and allocate resources as needed.
• Act as an ambassador for Baby Ghosts. Talk about the work in your communities and bring back ideas, volunteers, and partnerships.
• Help find and reach funding through donations, grant applications, and partnerships, so the organization stays financially stable.
• Provide direction and oversight on the annual budget and grant applications.
• Review, recommend, and revise organizational policies and by-laws, and stay familiar with how Baby Ghosts operates: its plans, budget, and activities. By-law changes made by the board go to the members for confirmation, and some can only be made by the members.
• Approve the hiring and release of the Co-Executive Directors, including their employment contracts, and review their performance annually.
• Serve on, and ideally chair, at least one committee.
• Support recruitment of candidates for election by the members, onboard newly elected directors, and help build a steady team of staff, board, and volunteers.
• Represent Baby Ghosts at industry, academic, and community events, and support fundraising and community activities as you have capacity.
• Participate in the development of strategic plans and annual reviews, and in board and community training as needed.
• Ensure the organization remains in compliance with the requirements of the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act and its charitable registration in Canada.
• Contribute to the mission, vision, and values through what you already know and what you want to learn.

• Four to six board meetings a year, prepared by reviewing the agenda and materials in advance. The first meeting of the new board is November 4, 2026 at 1:00pm Eastern, where officers are appointed. The board has also fixed February 10, 2027 and April 14, 2027, both at 1:00pm Eastern.
• Active service on at least one committee (2 to 6 hours per month), and ad hoc committees as needed.
• The annual meeting of the members and the annual planning session.
• Asynchronous organizational conversations on Slack, and follow-through on assignments between meetings.

Representing Baby Ghosts at industry and community events in your region, as available.
In total, expect 5 to 10 hours a month on Baby Ghosts work, with more in the weeks around a board meeting, the annual meeting, and the planning session. The role is flexible to life circumstances, but we need board members who are willing to show up and put in the work.

Click here to apply

The post Baby Ghosts appeared first on Capacity Canada.

It now appears less likely that the Ontario Ministry of Environment (M.O.E./MECP) fudged lab results on the Varnicolor site in order to hide chlorobenzene, an extremely common solvent and paint component which absolutely would have been ubiquitous in that company's incoming liquid toxic wastes. Varnicolor were in both the solvent recovery and the toxic waste storage and reduction business. Of course they did more storage illegally than they did actual reduction. 

Other factors for its' presence include the incredible steps the MECP went to in order to hide Varnicolor's environmental disaster and mass toxic dumping on their site. They promised more and deeper monitoring wells on the site and included that requirement in their initial Control Order. They then later reneged on that requirement by removing it from the Control Order. They absolutely refused to accept witness statements regarding a buried road tanker and a buried septic tank in Varnicolor's backyard which were part of an elaborate mass toxic liquid dumping process. Once they were pressured by the public and the media they excavated the road tanker but claimed not to see the septic tank literally a few metres away from it. Myself and Richard Clausi were shown the colour photographs of the excavation and immediately accused the two Ministry employees (Papenhuzen & Robinson) of a coverup as the one employee was actually standing on top of the recently broken up subsurface septic tank and broken concrete and rebar were visible. Sure enough the septic tank was excavated a couple of weeks later and both it and the road tanker's contents and internal stains were tested and found to contain numerous different solvents and other liquid wastes. Finally we were promised that the road tanker would be preserved and carefully examined for intentional holes and leaks that would allow rapid dispersion of liquid contents that flowed into it from the floor drain inside the nearest (orange) building. Instead within a few days the road tanker was reduced to pieces via cutting torches. Also the piping from the floor drain through the building and into the road tanker and septic tank was also seen, found and photographed. 

The coverup of the extent and breadth of Varnicolor's pollution did not end there. Years later soil was excavated and removed from their west side neighbour (Motiveair) and Varnicolor's shallow pump and treat system was expanded to include contaminated groundwater that had flowed from their site over to the Motiveair property.  Again not only zero public notice but also zero notice to myself, the EH Team, APTE (Hmm?), CPAC or any other appropriate stakeholders.

Then we have the nonsense of the June 19, 2025 TRAC meeting where Jesse Wright of Arcadis Inc. showed a blurry picture of allegedly four or five businesses near the corner of First St. and Union St. who had handled chlorobenzene as well as possibly other chlorinated solvents. No company names given and no explanation as to why now in 2024 this information was being made public. Frankly it was all for show.  For many years as the pump & treat system and wells have slowly done their thing the remaining chlorobenzene plumes above 80 ppb. (drinking standard) have been reduced and moved back towards their source. You got it. Right there in both the Municipal Upper and Municipal Lower Aquifers below Varnicolor Chemical and below Union and First St. area is the highest remaining concentrations of chlorobenzene. I kind of suspect that even the slowest members of TRAC were beginning to feel uneasy about that and privately asked questions. Having Mr. Wright make his public announcement was enough to satisfy the poorly informed TRAC members and possibly they hoped to deflect myself as I'd been on the hunt for the truth literally for decades. 

The Ministry of Environment have consistently refused to make information or documents regarding Varnicolor Chemical available to me. This includes the Risk Assessment done in 2016 for Elmira Pump (i.e. the former Varnicolor). They have also refused me simple data such as new monitoring wells whether shallow or deep and their location on the former Varnicolor site.  With MECP agreement I and other CPAC members were bounced from the public advisory committee by Chemtura and Woolwich Township in September 2015. Since then the public including myself and other involved stakeholders have been refused the right to either ask questions at public TAG (now TRAC) meetings or even to make verbal presentations. Clearly Chemtura (now Lanxess) and the MECP have been doing their best to isolate and minimize the by far best informed and knowledgeable local citizen, myself. 

The Ontario Ministry of Environment with support from other local political bodies have been unaccountable and non transparent for decades. They have been caught lying and deceiving over and over again and clearly do not want local citizens knowing the truth of all the sources of contamination  to the Elmira aquifers. 

On the first Tuesday of every month, we’ll announce a new Fearless Female, including a video interview of them sharing their business story. Want to be featured as a Fearless Female?

Contact Memberships at memberships@greaterkwchamber.com for more details. The Fearless Female Program would not be possible without our Title Sponsor, Scotiabank.

To learn a little more about the Scotiabank Women Initiative, and why they’ve chosen to sponsor this program, see the video below.

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The Fearless Female we’re featuring for the month of September is Tomoko King, Chief Executive Officer & Founder of King Enishi Inc.

Tomoko King is Founder and CEO of King Enishi Inc., a Japan-Canada business advisory practice based in Waterloo, Ontario. Bilingual and bicultural, born in Ottawa and raised in Osaka, she brings over 25 years of cross-sector experience spanning corporate, government, healthcare, and education.

She spent over 15 years at Toyota’s Canadian subsidiary, leading global projects and bridging teams across Japan and North America. She went on to build enterprise project management capability in the public sector, establishing the City of Guelph’s Corporate Project Management Office from the ground up and leading a Kaizen program in Ontario healthcare that returned an estimated $1 million in annual administrative time.

Today her practice focuses on the Osaka and Waterloo Region corridor. A certified Women Business Enterprise, she is committed to building stronger ties between women entrepreneurs in the two countries. She serves on the Board of Directors of Project Management Institute, Canada’s Technology Triangle chapter (PMI-CTT) and speaks regularly through guest lectures and panel discussions.

kingenishi.com | linkedin.com/in/tomokoking | contact@kingenishi.com

To learn more about Tomoko’s journey as a Fearless Female, watch the interview below (or read the written format).

Please introduce yourself.

I’m Tomoko King. I’m the founder and CEO of King Enishi Inc., a Japan-Canada business advisory practice based in Waterloo region. 

Tell us more about your company.

At King Enishi, we bridge Japan and Canada in either direction, supporting market entry, finding and building partners, and strengthening existing relationship for better alignment. Enishi is a Japanese word for the connections between people, the sense that an encounter is not coincidence and the one that’s meant to be and my company logo is a cherry blossom and a maple leaf growing in harmony from a single stem.

What inspired you to start this business?

What inspires my career path actually goes back quite a bit, generations ago. My great-grandfather, my mother’s side, he met a missionary from Canada in Japan a long time ago and ended up becoming Christian, which was very uncommon in Japan; and that led to his son, so my grandfather, my mom’s dad, coming to Montreal to go to McGill and before becoming a ministry at a church in Japan.

And later, my mom and dad met and my father choosing Ottawa for his two-year research, and that’s when I was born. So, thinking about these generations between and within my family that had connection between Japan and Canada, that itself feels like Enishi, the connection that was meant to be, and starting this business to continue this for generations to come after mine, was a natural move for me. 

Tell us more about your professional and educational background.

On education, not just lived in both countries, I was educated in both countries, Japan and Canada. Going through a Japanese school system, which is quite unique compared to the ones in here, I gained quite a bit of discipline.

And all of my post-secondary in North America, in the States, as well as Canada, including the MBA from Wilfrid Laurier in this region; and in terms of background and experience, I talk about my experience at Toyota quite a bit. I learned so much at Toyota, honestly, from really the best, and all about operational excellence.

What really stuck with me is about the balanced need to balance the stakeholders and in terms of not just shareholders, not just about the bottom line, but about their employees, customers, suppliers, business partners, and community. And I was certified by Toyota HR Global as a certified Toyota Hosting Country Master Trainer, which is about their strategic planning process, cascading their objectives throughout the organization, and aligning their strategy and operations in people. That really equipped me with leadership skills that I was able to leverage and lead that work in various organizations that I joined afterwards.

What have been some of the highlights of your career?

I had a lot of highlight moments at Toyota and other organizations. But I must say, one of the biggest highlights is actually my recent trip to Japan. Ever since I started this business, I had kind of going back and forth between different directions, but always within Japan, Canada, bridging  Japan, Canada.

But only really recently, early this year, so eight, nine months ago, did I start to see the real potential between this region and my hometown, Osaka. So I started to speak about it every chance I got here in this region and also in Toronto and other interviews. And I plan a six week trip to Japan.

And with a lot of help from all the connections I made, who are based in Osaka, my hometown, I was able to host and speak at four different events. And a lot of the some of the people from the rooms are now my clients. To build a bridge between the Waterloo region and my hometown, Osaka, to make it a real corridor, as opposed to just talking about it as an idea, you really have to bring those people together.

So, for example, I need to get some of the Waterloo companies to go to Japan and visit Osaka and meet my contacts there and bring in Osaka companies to this region, which I’m actively working on and something exciting to share later as well. 

What are some of the challenges that you faced so far?

 Spent my childhood in Japan and all my adult life in Canada. I’ve always thought I’m not a Japanese woman.

And I’m not a typical Canadian woman. And some of the challenges I felt was at some time in my career, I felt I kind of lost my identity or didn’t know who I was, or I was supposed to be. Because each, you know, a typical Japanese woman or a Canadian woman, each of those comes with a set of certain expectations and pressure.

And I felt like I wasn’t meeting either of them. After losing my father, this kind of got harder. You know, am I Canadian? Am I Japanese? Who I’m supposed to be and where I’m supposed to be? But all of that reflection led to actually starting this business and feeling that it’s okay to be both and I’m both and wanted to actually embrace that and spread that to others who might be feeling that way.

If you could go back in time, is there something you would have done differently?

I wish I started this sooner, like 10 years ago, because there’s so much I want to do.  And there’s only enough, you know, 24 hours in a day, and I’m just cutting my sleep hours, right? And challenge when I was at Toyota, as well as now is when I try to work with both countries, the time zone, right? 13, 14 hours difference. So sometimes you’re doing double shifts.

And that’s a challenge. And having said that, that I wish I started this 10 years ago, every bit of experience to date is actually strengthening what I’m doing now. So if I started 10 years ago, maybe I wasn’t in this mindset, or I wouldn’t have had this network.

So no regrets there. And in that sense, I’m constantly taking different courses, I love, you know, lifelong learner, I am lots of certifications. One of the certifications that really opened doors for me is a PMP, project management professional, I’ve been certified since 2002.

While I was at Toyota in doing actually MBA at the same time. And at the time, project management certification or project management itself wasn’t really commonly recognized other than construction and IT fields. So getting into that early had really helped me.

Because no matter what the industry sector role you’re in, or even no matter what country you’re in, there’s always project. And (9:51) having that skill set really has been a good strategy and door opener for me.

Tell us more about Project Management Institute (PMI). 

 PMI, Project Management Institute, is a global organization, their headquarters are in the but it’s in more than 200 countries.

And you can be a chapter member of any, you don’t have to reside in that area. So for example, I’m a member of Canada’s technology triangle chapter, which serves Kitchener, Guelph, Waterloo, this area, and I’m actually serving as a board member. I’m also a member of PMI, Tokyo, Japan chapter.

They allow remote access, I, you know, visit and network and take courses from there as well. The 25th anniversary gala we had, I was able to co-sponsor or organize the event with great KW Chamber, because Ian McLean was the keynote speaker talking about vision 1 million. Because it was very much fitting where our chapter has been growing rapidly over the last 12 to 18 months.

And this region preparing for 1 million. So having him come in to share the vision, and having the industry panel of leaderships in this region, Toyota, Open Text, and Skills Wave was very fitting talking about what projects are upcoming in this region.

What does success look like to you?

Professional success, for example, for me, is something that I’m able to build for long term, as opposed to flavor of the month, whether it’s process improvement, project management, I really try to train people, educate people as opposed to doing it on behalf of others.

And hearing after so many years after I left Toyota or City of Guelph, what I’ve built such as playbook or project management structure is still in use to date, that success for me. And in my work, I am trying to focus on building a long term relationship and partnership between Japan and Canada, as opposed to a short term or one off transactions.

What are some of the core values that you have integrated into your business?

Core value for me is, as I named my company, any she the connection, I do believe people the right people find each other, whether it’s through introduction from your friends and colleagues, or through events that you bump into each other, or somebody find each other on LinkedIn.

 I do believe when when I feel the right connection, I follow through and I follow up. And typically, you know, it’s mutual feelings. And that’s the kind of connection that I really, really value and pay attention to; and that has been very helpful in terms of growing my network that is not superficial.

What are some of the advantages of establishing your business in Waterloo Region? 

 I really like this region and I love Waterloo because of the university vibe, right? When you have one university, but actually have two good universities and also a college; and so you have a lot of people from all over the world, and makes this community so unique and diverse. And great mixture of different generations, young people and people who are retiring.

I find that people who may come here for school, actually end up getting a job and staying. Which is, you know, similar experience as a lot of people I know. It’s a friendly, vibrant community, excellent universities, and having those students after graduating from university stick around.

And we have a lot of great local startups and it’s not quite the biggest cities like Toronto and Vancouver, but it’s big enough to be able to bring talent together to achieve something that’s top notch. And yet small enough, so that when you think of, hey, I need to meet this person, you can meet them within half an hour. Try that in Toronto and Vancouver, right? 

What inspires you?

What keeps me going? Definitely one of the biggest is my family in both countries, both sides. They are supportive, and they create an environment that allows me to go back and forth and to pursue my dream. But what’s really motivating currently are actually my clients.

They are taking a very big step in a territory that is totally unfamiliar, different language, different culture, different business practices, different laws, and so far from their home and that takes a lot of courage. And that’s why it motivates me to want to help them in either direction, so that from somebody who understands both sides, so that their transition or experience is smooth and pleasant and comfortable and reduce risk and actually, honestly, to have fun.

What advice would you give to other aspiring women?

As I shared earlier about a difficulty of pressure and expectations that you may have from your own cultural background, or your own family background, or others around you. One of the best advice I could give to young woman is really to embrace yourself and your authentic self and as a woman, I think there’s tendency to over-prepare.

I do that too, and be a bit of a perfectionist in some ways. But saying yes to invitations and opportunities before you feel ready, it’s hard. I kept telling myself to do that as well.

And every time I do, good things happen. And really be open-minded and share what you want to do with people you trust. Say it out loud.

And most people want to help you, and they wouldn’t know how if you don’t tell them. So yeah, be yourself and say yes before you’re ready, and tell everybody what you want to do.

What are some of your strategies for team building and collaboration?

 What makes a strong team in my industry or in my space is about collaboration. When I see individuals or professionals or companies offering similar services as my company, I don’t see them as my competitors. I actually see them as potential collaborators or partners. because we’re all working towards the same purpose and with same passion of strengthening Japan-Canada relationship.

And we all have different skills and different perspectives, different background. For example, I met somebody who may look like me, and it’s not about ethnicity, right? She’s Japanese-Canadian, but completely opposite from me. Born in Japan and raised in Canada.

In my case, I was born in Canada, raised in Japan. And we felt that we could connect on a lot of things at the same time can be complementary to each other in terms of skill sets and gaps. So if any of you who are listening to this, who are in the same ecosystem, with same purpose and same passion, if you’re open to connecting, I am very happy to chatting and finding ways to collaborate so that we can together be stronger in our services of helping Japan-Canada, whether it’s market entry or strengthening relationships.

What are some of your future goals and projects?

I have something exciting brewing. So in about 12 months from now, which is August 2027, mark your calendar, first weekend of August 2027, I’m bringing a group of Japanese leaders from Osaka and surrounding areas to this region. And it’s 12 months away, but I already have one (20:13) business individual signed on and committed to coming to this region.

 And I have three others in discussion. And I’ll be reaching out and approaching for more early, early stage with a lot of great ideas that could include things like networking events between the business leaders in the region and the Japanese leaders who are coming, B2B matchmaking meetings, collaboration between the local partners and the individual that are coming from Japan, for them to have some opportunities to showcase their business, as well as Waterloo businesses to get opportunities to showcase their businesses to Japanese counterparts, looking for local venues, local business, even food companies, cafes, restaurants, catering, government organizations and business individuals to get involved. So if you’re in Waterloo business owners, looking to get involved either as a collaborator, a participant, a sponsor or speaker, or any of the above, please reach out to me.

How can someone reach out to you directly?

I’d love to get connected to start shaping this together so that it is beneficial for Waterloo business community as much as for the Japanese people coming. It will be the best and easiest way to connect with me is through LinkedIn and just search my name Tomoko King. And my website is KingNishi.com. Nishi is spelled E-N-I-S-H-I –KingNishi.com. I’m in Waterloo region a couple times a week. I live in Guelph and look at sort of Waterloo and Guelph as you know, one big region and around and up for meeting up for in-person coffees all the time.

The post Tomoko King – Scotiabank September Fearless Female appeared first on Greater KW Chamber of Commerce.

• Who: ♦www.ontariohealthcoalition.ca/
• What: Rally at Waterloo City Hall
• When: Noon to 1:00pm on Tuesday 1 September 2026
• Where: Outside the Hon. Bardish Chagger’s office at Waterloo City Hall
• Location: 100 Regina Street South, Waterloo Map
• Website: www.ontariohealthcoalition.ca/index.php/sept-1-help-stop-albertas-govt-from-destroying-public-health-care/

Join us as we hold nationwide Day of Action for federal action to stop two-tier, American-style health care

Canada-wide: On Tuesday, 1 September 2026, health coalitions and allies across Canada will hold information pickets, rallies, and other actions in a National Day of Action to amplify our calls on the Federal Government to take action against Alberta's Bill 11.

With the legislation set to take effect on September 1, health coalitions are coming together to send an urgent, unified message to the federal government: there is no more time to waste. We are urging federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel and Prime Minister Mark Carney to fulfil their responsibility to enforce the Canada Health Act to protect Canada’s universal, single-payer, public Medicare system and health care for Canadians that is accessible based on need, not ability to pay.

Actions will be held in 26 communities across Canada on Tuesday, 1 September 2026.

• Alberta’s Health Statutes Amendment Act, 2025 (no. 2), formerly known as Bill 11,
  passed December 11, 2025.
• The legislation establishes an unprecedented model of two-tiered health care access in Alberta by permitting physicians to work in both the public and private systems concurrently, including charging patients out of pocket for medically-necessary services.
• No other province currently permits this “dual-practice” model.
• Legal opinion prepared by Goldblatt Partners LLP for the Canadian Health Coalition states that Bill 11 violates the principles of comprehensiveness, accessibility, and universality protected and required by the Canada Health Act, and violates the prohibitions against extra-billing and user fees.

Please help us protect our public healthcare by sharing our Social Media links.

We meet virtually using a Zoom Link on the second Monday of every month from 7:00pm to 8:00pm. Please join us in protecting and rebuilding our Universal Health Care.

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♦

An Open Letter To:
The Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada,
The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario,
The Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Federal Minister of Transport,
The Honourable Prabmeet Sarkaria, Ontario Minister of Transportation,
Mr. Michael Lindsay, President and CEO of Metrolinx,
Ms. Tracy Robinson, President and CEO of CN Rail,
Mr. Matthieu Paquette, Interim President and CEO of VIA Rail Canada,

To paraphrase author Judith Viorst, on Friday, August 7, 2026, VIA Rail had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. For my family, it started with VIA Train 84.

VIA Train 84 left Sarnia on time at 8:40 a.m. By the time it reached London, it was 23 minutes late. The delays compounded east of London due to conflicts with CN freight trains and slow orders on CN tracks between Stratford and Kitchener. By the time Train 84 reached Kitchener, it was almost an hour late.

Erin, the kids, and I were riding VIA Rail to Ottawa for a conference. We departed Kitchener at 12:58 p.m., moving onto tracks owned and operated by Metrolinx, but our problems did not end there. Although we made good speed out of Kitchener and across the Grand River, our train pulled into a siding just east of Breslau and eased to a stop.

And there we stayed for close to two hours.

At the time, we were told that we had to wait for a GO Train to pass us. However, I had the Transit app on my iPhone, and I could see that the GO Train that was supposed to meet us just east of Breslau was actually at Mount Pleasant GO Station in Brampton, two whole counties away. That GO Train was at least 45 minutes from our position. But apparently, there was nothing we could do.

The GO Train finally passed us at 2:17 p.m., but VIA Train 84 stayed in its siding. The GO Train made its way to Kitchener, switched ends, and came back the other way, passing us again around 3:00 p.m.. The reason for this delay was because, thanks to the earlier delays caused by conflicts with CN freight runs, slow orders on CN tracks, and waiting on a GO Train that wouldn't reach us for three quarters of an hour, we'd passed our engineers' legal time limit imposed by Transport Canada for the very sane reason that they don't want tired and overworked engineers driving huge trains across this country. Thus, we had to wait for VIA to bus out a new crew to take over. We finally got underway at 3:15 p.m.

As a result, our two-hour layover at Union vanished completely. The train we had to connect to left without us, and we had to rebook the second leg of our journey on a later train. We were far from the only ones, as dozens of us lined up at the VIA ticket stands at Union. In the end, where we were supposed to get into Ottawa at 8:00 p.m., we ended up arriving at midnight, crashing into our hotel closer to 1 in the morning.

To be fair to VIA, they did their best to ease the pain. They comped us 50% of our ticket price for the journey between Kitchener and Union. Because of delays between Union and Ottawa, we received another 25% refund on that leg of the journey, which let me ride for free on VIA a couple of weeks later. Multiply this by the dozens of passengers affected, and this must have cost VIA Rail thousands of dollars. VIA's ticket agents managed a long line of harried passengers quickly and professionally and got everyone on their way. Even while waiting on the train, the seats were comfortable, the air conditioning worked, and train staff explained as much as they could and were suitably apologetic. To the credit of the riders, everyone remained polite and in good humour. So, this is not a complaint that should be addressed to VIA Rail. They had little or no control over the delays that afflicted their train and cascaded across their system (other VIA Trains saw considerable delays that day). It's the fact that VIA Rail has little or no control over the conditions their trains operate under, and their poor treatment by CN Rail and Metrolinx, that is the problem.

CN's slow orders due to poor track conditions between Stratford and Kitchener were perhaps the biggest problem. The long stretches where the VIA Train had to crawl along at 16 km/h (precisely 10 miles per hour, because that's the North American standard speed for tracks that are in particularly poor condition, and CN is a North American railway company) was frustrating to watch on VIA's Live Train Tracker, as Train 84's arrival time was progressively pushed back. Metrolinx recently extended GO Train service to Stratford, but that service, while useful, is hamstrung as it copes with these same slow orders. A trip between Stratford and Kitchener that used to take 27 minutes a couple of decades ago, now takes closer to fifty. Metrolinx's extension to Stratford won't succeed unless these poor track conditions are fixed.

Possibly Metrolinx will pay for these necessary repairs, but while CN is currently a private for-profit railroad, it was a Crown corporation from 1918 to 1995. Canadian taxpayers paid billions to maintain and upgrade CN's tracks, and it's shameful to see our investment left to rot.

But even more aggravating was Metrolinx's treatment of VIA Train 84. Bringing that train to a stop when the meeting GO Train was more than 45 minutes away boggles the mind. Surely there are other places between Kitchener and Georgetown where these trains could meet and pass each other. If not, what is Metrolinx waiting for? They initially promised that we would have two-way hourly service between Kitchener and Toronto by 2024, but that's not possible with the limited passing sidings they've built west of Georgetown.

As I said, VIA Rail compensated its passengers for the delays of that day, but it seems unjust that they should have to pay when CN Rail and Metrolinx directly contributed to the problem. Private for-profit railway or not, CN's rail infrastructure should be better maintained. While Metrolinx has a GO Train network to run, passengers are passengers, and VIA Rail's passengers shouldn't be treated as second-class citizens. The federal government and the Ontario government should hold CN and Metrolinx more accountable to ensure such a delay on VIA Rail doesn't happen again. By making sure that no trains are bogged down to 10 miles per hour, and that all passengers get through the network with minimum delay, benefits not just VIA Rail's passengers, but the economy as a whole, by speeding up freight service, and ensuring people can ride from southwestern Ontario through the GTA to Ottawa, Montreal and beyond without clogging up traffic on Highway 401.

My family deserved better. My fellow passengers deserved better. VIA Rail deserves better, and so does everyone trying to move back and forth across this province.

Fix this.

Sincerely,
James Bow

ONLY BY MASS POLITICAL AGREEMENT & COLLUSION WAS IT POSSIBLE

This of course entailed lying to citizens, residents, voters, men, women and children for the last thirty-seven years. It required gross contempt by every single municipal and regional councillor in the know as well as by provincial Ministry of Environment officials and likely provincial politicians. Is it even possible that our federal government kept a hands off attitude towards the Elmira Water Crisis all these decades because they didn't want to get their hands dirty? Hmm that seems unlikely doesn't it?

The coverup of Varnicolor Chemical's environmental disaster started early with local Min. of Environment (M.O.E.) officials lying to local media and citizens and even going so far as to claim regular passed inspections by the company. This was despite by that time four years of hydrogeological reports (Canviro Inc.) showing significant groundwater contamination with numerous solvents. Further lying and coverups regarding Varnicolor have never really stopped as a sweetheart deal between the M.O.E. and Uniroyal Chemical required Uniroyal to accept full responsibility for all NDMA and chlorobenzene in the Municipal drinking water aquifers in exchange for a very quiet free pass saving them potentially millions of dollars in removing or encapsulating the known free phase DNAPLS on their site which included numerous chlorinated solvents along with chlorobenzene. While denied at the time DNAPLS have also been found off-site in the Elmira Aquifers which source may also be shared between the two companies (Uniroyal/Varnicolor) or not. What the Ontario M.O.E. received out of this deal was less humiliation and loss of face and credibility as despite the severity of the water crisis the M.O.E. might not have survived if it had become public knowledge that there were actually multiple gross polluters operating in Elmira under their noses (i.e. Nutrite/Yara, Uniroyal , Varnicolor). 

The coverup has never ended as evidenced by the September 12, 2024 TRAC meeting in which Allan Deal of GHD Inc. on behalf of Lanxess Canada presented a report titled "Chlorobenzene Source Evaluation". He claimed that despite a report written a few years earlier by Dr. Neil Thompson (U. of Waterloo) that advised that two or three thousand kilograms of "excess" chlorobenzene had somehow entered into the groundwater regime above and beyond Uniroyal Chemical's contribution, that in fact there was no second source. Furthermore isotopic analysis done later also concluded that in most likelihood the chlorobenzene in our drinking aquifers came from different sources. Well!

Not to be deterred Mr. Deal entered his own "evidence". It consisted of analytical data showing chlorobenzene concentration results in a few different wells nearby to Varnicolor Chemical. Out of five different wells presented, three of them had nothing but Non Detects and two had these low concentrations in their Upper Aquifer. Wells CH-43 B/C both were Non Detect as was CH 68-C/D. Then CH-69 C/D had 1.42 and .67 presumably parts per billion. Well OW56-16 presented with .72  (ppb.) and finally a well on Varnicolor Chemical which allegedly is screened in the Upper Aquifer namely MW45 had a Non Detect reading for chlorobenzene.       

This is all very strange for various reasons. First of all while chlorobenzene and all contaminants in the deeper Municipal Aquifers travel horizontally for a considerable distance the same is not true for shallow groundwater especially when its' discharge point is a very nearby Creek. The norm is for little to no shallow soils or aquifers to indicate contamination away from the source. Normally pollution starts at the surface and descends downwards into the deeper soils and aquifers. From there usually the further away from the source the lower the concentration of contaminants in the deeper aquifers. At nearby surface without a source directly above we expect nothing. Hence the whole premise of looking at Upper Aquifer results off the Varnicolor (& Uniroyal ) sites is more than a little weird.

The next problem is the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) who have indicated that chlorobenzene usually has a very fast degradation time in air, surface waters and shallow soils that are well aerated. Deeper soils and aquifers are a different matter with sometimes incredibly long degradation times depending upon anaerobic conditions. Of course chlorobenzene in DNAPL form can be centuries and longer breaking down on its' own. What this means is that this particular compound can not be easily found via shallow soils or surficial aquifer sampling because unless there is an ongoing fresh source, the old discharges are likely long degraded.

So yours truly has been doing some digging this past weekend as well as this morning. Guess what? Nary a shallow soils or surficial aquifer or even much available in the deeper Upper Aquifer that exists in some locations below Varnicolor's Surficial Aquifer and Surficial Aquitard (and Uniroyal's on the east side). Yes of course the deeper yet aquifers and aquitards have lots of chlorobenzene but not the well aerated much shallower soils and aquifers. This explains why all the very shallow wells (Surficial Aquifer) on the Varnicolor site had Non Detect results for chlorobenzene way back in 1990. Yes one well did have a ridiculous Method Detection Limit of 100 ppb. which may have hidden some chlorobenzene detection at Varnicolor but we'll never know. I had actually begun to think that the M.O.E. had grossly fudged/corrupted the lab results back then. This explains why in the title above I wrote "LESS CORRUPT (?)".  

Mr. Deal, MECP and local politicians are all full of it. Always have been, always will be. Re-elect as many of these politicians this October at your peril. 

The post Rubble Rebels appeared first on Grand River Rocks Climbing Gym.

The post Pebbles appeared first on Grand River Rocks Climbing Gym.

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Location: Region of Waterloo and Guelph/Wellington County
Position: Board Directors
Time Commitment: average of 2 to 4 hours per month; initial term of three years with potential of renewal for another three years

Our Foundation is seeking passionate and dedicated individuals reflective of our diverse community to join our volunteer team as members of our Board of Directors. A strong background in legal, governance, finance, accounting, investments, human resources and/or fundraising would be very beneficial to the current board and committee complement.

KidsAbility Foundation is directed by a board of up to 16 directors who have the responsibility of leading, developing and approving the strategic direction of the Foundation and establishing appropriate governance and risk management strategies to support the Foundation and its mandate. The Board meets seven times annually with a mix of virtual and in person meetings at KidsAbility sites in Waterloo and Kitchener.

• Participate in the development, approval and monitoring of the Foundation’s strategic plan, fundraising plan, annual operating and capital budgets.
• Act as ambassadors in the community to build relationships and support Foundation staff in fundraising initiatives.
• Oversee good governance and risk management/mitigation practices of the Board and Foundation.
• Hire, support, assess performance and determine compensation of the Executive Director.
• Monitor the organization’s performance against performance standards.
• Prepare for and participate in Board of Director meetings (seven per year; mix of virtual and in person)
• Typically participate on one Board Committee (approx. four meetings per year),
• Serve a term of three years and be eligible for renewal for an additional three-year term.

Successful candidates will be required to undergo a Vulnerable Sector Screening Police Check.

If you are looking for an opportunity to work with a dynamic team of staff and volunteers and support the transformative services KidsAbility provides to children, youth, and families. If you have any questions or require any accommodations during the selection process, please connect with our Foundation Office at foundationoffice@kidsability.ca

Please submit your application using this form.

The post KidsAbility Foundation appeared first on Capacity Canada.

KITCHENER - The 2026 season has come to an end for the Kitchener Panthers.

After winning its home finale Thursday, the team went 1-2 on the road to finish the campaign with a 16-32 record.

In Toronto Friday night, the Panthers and Leafs split a doubleheader. Kitchener won the first game 7-3, while Toronto took the second game 13-3.

Kitchener scored four runs in the eighth inning to break a 3-3 deadlock. Trent Lawson hit a home run in the fifth while Malik Williams was three-for-four.

Evan Elliott went the distance in that first game, giving up three runs on seven hits in eight innings of work. He walked five and struck out five.

Toronto got the jump early in the second game, scoring four runs in the first and led 9-1 after three innings.

Zane Skansi hit a solo shot in the fifth in the loss. Yosvani Penalver recorded four hits.

Saturday was a finale to forget as the Brantford Red Sox pounded the Panthers 26-3 to end Kitchener's season on a low note.

The Sox scored 13 times in the third inning alone.

Dionys Rodriguez gave up eight runs on five hits in the first two innings. Brett Reid came on with two men on in the third, but gave up five runs without recording an out. Trey Cruz gave up another five runs.

On behalf of the Kitchener Panthers, we thank you for following along all season and we cannot wait to #PackTheJack again in 2027!

Registration for the new season is well underway and we are looking forward to connecting with previous players and new players.

Summer jobs can be about so much more than what you accomplish during a few months at work. They can be a chance to try something new, build relationships, discover what you’re good at and sometimes even figure out where you want to go next.

This summer, students joined teams across three areas of KW Habilitation. Sofia and Angelina worked as Summer Job Coaches with KW Career Compass, Evangeline, Cooper, Nolan and Noah joined Our Farm as Farm Interns, and Rebecca, Bill, Sydney and Miriam spent their summer with YEP. Their jobs looked very different, but when we asked about their experiences, some common themes came through: learning, relationships, community and discovering just how much can happen in one summer.

At Our Farm, summer days have been busy with harvesting, planting, preparing beds, caring for crops, getting ready for markets and plenty of time spent outdoors. But for the Farm Interns, the experience has been about much more than learning how to grow food.

For Nolan, the summer was simply a “big learning experience,” including getting to try things he hadn’t done before, like driving the lawn mower. Cooper, a returning summer intern, found just as much value in the people around him, describing everyday life at the Farm as working with a great team that appreciates each other and spends time “over iced coffee, learning and laughing.”

For Evangeline, who has spent five summers working at Our Farm, this year offered a chance to see just how far she has come. When new team members arrived, she found herself helping to teach them and realized how much knowledge she had gained over the years. Her experience at the Farm has even helped shape what comes next. After discovering how much joy she finds in agriculture and nature, Evangeline changed her university plans and will begin a double major in Global Development and Environmental Science this fall.

“My summer at KW Hab has been rejuvenating, sparking my passion and creativity as well as my dedication.”

For the YEP Summer team, much of the summer has been spent out and about. Rebecca, Bill, Sydney and Miriam have helped participants explore Waterloo Region using GRT, try new activities and, most importantly, connect with one another.

Sydney shared one of her favourite moments from the summer. While everyone was outside, a group naturally formed a circle and started talking. Participants shared their interests and experiences and discovered things they had in common. It wasn’t a planned activity or a big event, but that was exactly what made the moment stand out.

“It was a simple moment, but it showed me how meaningful it can be when everyone feels included and connected.”

Miriam has also enjoyed seeing the direct impact of supporting people after spending years learning about it at university. The summer has introduced her to accessible places around the region she hadn’t known about before and confirmed that she wants a future career working directly with people. Bill has been building his public speaking skills, learning his way around the ION and bus routes, and says the experience has opened his mind to direct support work.

Over at KW Career Compass, Sofia and Angelina spent the summer supporting people with their employment goals. That meant everything from job searching and resume writing to interview preparation, but one of the most important parts was simply getting to know each person. Through one-on-one conversations, they learned more about people’s talents, skills and interests and saw firsthand why support needs to be tailored to each person.

For Angelina, the relationships she built were a highlight of the experience.

“An experience that stood out to me is being able to build strong connections with the people that I work with. In one-on-one conversations, I got to learn more about a person’s talents, skills and interests.”

Whether they were harvesting vegetables, navigating the community, building friendships or helping someone work toward an employment goal, our summer students brought a lot to KW Hab this year. Just as importantly, they are leaving with new skills, relationships, memories and experiences of their own.

Thank you to Sofia, Angelina, Evangeline, Cooper, Nolan, Noah, Rebecca, Bill, Sydney and Miriam for spending your summer with us. In the words of Cooper, we hope it “rocked your socks off!”

The post More than a Summer Job appeared first on KW Habilitation.

"OUNCES PER GALLON" - JIM GERMANN (Elmira Pump)

"THEY ALL LIE" - PAT POTTER (Environmentalist)

Revelations since 2000 include PCBs discovered in a buried drum on Varnicolor Chemical's infamous Lot 91 site in the floodplain of the Canagagigue Creek. Prior to 2000 PCBs were found by the M.O.E. in tanks in one of their tank farms at their 62 Union St. site. By 2004-2008 Nutrite (Yara) were firmly on the hook for Ammonia contamination within the Elmira Municipal aquifers. In 2016 a Risk Assessment presented at a public meeting in Woolwich Council Chambers for the former Varnicolor site on Union St. (now Elmira Pump) revealed six chlorinated solvents had been found beneath the site in the Municipal Aquifer. Allegedly none of them were Uniroyal chemicals which may have been a little disingenuous. In 2024 a consultant (Jesse Wright)  Arcadis Inc. announced at a TRAC meeting that six chlorinated solvents found in Elmira's Municipal Aquifers came from Varnicolor Chemical. Allegedly chlorobenzene was not one of them. Also very oddly Mr. Wright announced and showed on a map that four or five nearby industrial sources of chlorobenzene had been determined. Very odd considering that this was incredible news that should have been announced approximately thirty or thirty-five years earlier when authorities allegedly were searching for the sources of NDMA and chlorobenzene contamination to the Elmira aquifers. These nearby sources were very close to the intersection of First St. and Union St. also oddly very close to Varnicolor Chemical bounded by First St., Union St. and Howard Ave. The last revelation is that DNAPLS (chlorobenzene) were admitted to have been present by the Elmira Water Tower on Howard Ave. in the TRAC Minutes of  September 12, 2024. This is beside former pumping well W4 and monitoring well OW57-32R. 

The 2016 and 2024 revelations combined with reviews of other documents mentioned here in yesterday's Blog posting led me to yesterday's determination that NDMA being formed beneath Varnicolor Chemical at 62 Union St. in the 1980s at the least contributed to the NDMA poisoning of the Elmira population. 

At least one more revelation is likely long overdue. How is it that a solvent recycler of thirty years  experience on that site allegedly never handled/mishandled chlorobenzene like every other common paint and finishing solvents they dumped, spilled and leaked? If many of the lies and truth distortions of the past 37 years have been exposed then is their contribution to the chlorobenzene contamination next? If so then the Ontario Ministry of Environment faked the hydrogeological reports showing chlorobenzene as Non Detect on this site. That is corruption they can not survive.

 Jim Germann's quote above was stated at the public meeting in Woolwich Council chambers in 2016.

Pat Potter's quote was on T-shirts she wore to public environmental meetings.

It’s the end of August. Summer is coming to a close, and recruitment should be ramping back up. Whether you’ve just finished a degree, completed an apprenticeship or vocational programme, or are stepping into the workforce for the first time, the same message keeps landing in my inbox: “I’ve applied to so many jobs. I’m hearing nothing back. What am I doing wrong?”

You’re not imagining it. The job hunt is genuinely harder right now. I posted a single role recently and had over 300 applications land within 24 hours, most of them nowhere close to a fit. That’s not a one-off. It’s what recruiting looks like right now.

Handshake, which powers career offices at over 1,400 US colleges and universities, in its Class of 2026 Graduation Report found job postings down 2% year-over-year and 12% below pre-pandemic levels, while a separate Handshake analysis found the Class of 2026 submitting more than double the number of applications compared to peers just three years earlier. That squeeze shows up in outcomes too: for the first time since the New York Fed started tracking recent graduate outcomes in 1990, unemployment among recent college graduates has edged past unemployment for the general population.

We’re seeing fewer roles relative to where the market used to sit, and more than twice as many applications to each one.

Why are there fewer roles in the first place? Stanford’s Digital Economy Lab offers one part of the answer: employment for 22 to 25 year olds in the most AI-exposed occupations is now 19% below where it would otherwise be, a gap driven by reduced hiring and concentrated in roles where AI substitutes for tasks rather than supporting them. That’s exactly the routine, repeatable work graduates have traditionally used to get a foot in the door.

And why is each of those remaining roles getting swarmed? Because that same AI technology has made it effortless to apply to dozens of roles in an afternoon, so more people do. If you’re relying on automated tools to fire off applications at scale, you’re likely part of a very crowded, very undifferentiated pile. Before you apply, ask yourself: is this actually a role I’m suited to?

If employers are being more selective, the obvious question is: selective about what? Not simply the degree. A degree tells an employer you finished something. It doesn’t tell them what you can do with it.

What’s being asked for now is evidence of potential. Can you show that you can think, adapt, solve a real problem, and work alongside the tools your employer already uses, AI included? That doesn’t mean becoming an AI specialist overnight. It means showing you can work with it, not be replaced by the parts of your role it can already do.

September is when this becomes real for most graduates. Career fairs open back up, autumn graduate schemes launch, and the temptation is to go back to doing more of what hasn’t been working: more applications, more volume, more silence. Here’s what I’d do differently instead.

Get clear before you apply. Not just what you’re qualified for, but what actually interests you, what you’re good at, and what kind of environment brings out your best work. Skipping this step is a big reason graduates apply broadly and land nowhere.

Stop searching by degree title. Look instead at the skills your degree or programme built and the problems you could genuinely help an employer solve. That opens far more doors than a job title search ever will.

Audit your evidence. Projects, placements, part-time work, societies, volunteering. Most graduates are sitting on more proof of capability than they realise; they’ve just never been asked to list it out and name what each piece actually demonstrates.

Rebuild your CV around relevance, not volume. The shift is small, but it changes everything: not “here is everything I’ve done,” but “here is why what I’ve done makes me relevant to this specific role.”

Use AI intelligently, not indiscriminately. Let it help you research, challenge your thinking, and practise. Don’t let it write your voice for you or invent experience you don’t have. Employers are getting better at spotting the difference, and authenticity is fast becoming the actual differentiator in a flooded market.

Build relationships, not just applications. Research the people and organisations you want to work for. Ask real questions. Have real conversations. Used properly, LinkedIn is still one of the most underused tools graduates have.

Prepare for the interview before you’re in one. Don’t wait for the call to start thinking about how you’ll answer for yourself. By the time you’re in the room, preparation should already be done.

You’re not imagining it. The graduate job market in 2026 is genuinely more competitive than it looks from the outside, and the fact that a degree no longer guarantees better odds than the general population, for the first time on record, proves it. But the data doesn’t support the idea that there’s nothing out there. What’s changed is both the number of roles at entry level and how many people are chasing each one, and that means the way you approach the search has to change with it.

Fewer, better applications. Clear evidence of what you can actually do. Real relationships instead of a folder of rejection emails. That’s not a smaller job hunt. It’s a more effective one.

Elizabeth Lenihan is an award-winning Career Strategist and Recruiter with nearly 20 years of experience helping professionals navigate interviews, career transitions, and professional growth. She is the author of The Ultimate Interview Guide, The Resume Writing Guide, The Performance Review Playbook, and Navigating Your Career with the MAPS Compass, available at elizabethlenihan.com

Fewer Roles, Higher Bar: What’s Actually Changed for Graduates was originally published in Code Like A Girl on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

♦

I thought we’d take a look at harissa, a spice paste found widely in Middle East cookery. There are several locations where you can find the spice in many grocery stores and specialty shops.

It may appear in brands with the lovely name “Harissa du Cap Bon El Manara de Djerba,” and likely makes a welcome appearance on restaurant menus too.

It’s a delicious and important condiment that has an interesting food history that flies under the radar.

The spice-blend is often made from oil, chiles, garlic, cumin, caraway, coriander and sometimes dried mint. It’s usually served with dried meats, soups and couscous.

Hailing from the Maghreb -— the northwest of Africa along the Mediterranean -— harissa is a special favourite in Tunisia.

The chiles likely came to Maghrebian cuisine by way of Spanish conquistadors to North and Central America — before they occupied Tunisia in the mid-1500s and after having been in the New World. It’s likely harissa got its start in Tunisia and Algeria at about this time.

The spicing is not particularly hot in terms of the Scoville scale and the ingredient may even be added to breakfast dishes in northern Africa. I once had harissa on a crispy duck salad that was repared with arugula, celery, cashews, citrus vinaigrette, fresh ricotta, figs and dried fruit.

Simply delicious and a good addition to your pantry. Give it a try, if you haven’t already.

Check out my latest post A bit about … harissa from AndrewCoppolino.com.

This week, I learned that AI-generated images can make women increasingly invisible online.

In How AI Hype Helps Render Women Invisible, researcher and philosopher Dr. Eugenia Stamboliev explores this emerging form of “synthetic discrimination.”

The problem isn’t new. Women are already underrepresented in many online search results, recommendation systems, and visual media. And the gaps can be even greater for older women, women with disabilities, and women of color.

But Stamboliev warns that as we rely on more and more AI-generated images, these groups could become even less visible. And that matters: Representation shapes who we imagine participating in public, professional, and democratic life.

So, if you’re selecting AI-generated imagery for presentations, articles, ads, or products, ask yourself, “Who is being represented? Who is absent?”

Let’s also make sure we aren’t reinforcing harmful messages or negative stereotypes with our media, AI-powered or not. For example, the recent Callaway/Good Good Golf ad where a man violently shoves a woman and Target’s racist ad for a halloween clown costume.

(Many thanks to newsletter subscriber Grant Hogarth for sending Stamboliev’s article my way.)

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Last week, I learned about a sexist phrase called the Wife Acceptance Factor.

It describes whether an expensive speaker or home theater system looks good enough for someone’s wife to approve the purchase.

Why would someone assume a woman would be more interested in how it looks than how it sounds?

To be more inclusive, some in the industry are moving to Spousal Acceptance Factor. Another alternative? “So beautiful that your interior designer will approve.”

It reminded me of another assumption I’ve heard countless times during my 25 years working in tech: “Explain it simply enough so that your mother can understand it.”

Why assume a mom isn’t technical or smart?

Let’s all listen for sexist assumptions hidden in everyday terms. And ask if there is a better word.

“It’s Karen here. I have a question.”

That’s a small habit that can make a virtual meeting more inclusive.

Here in the U.S., September is Deaf Awareness Month, and it’s an opportunity to make sure we’re being respectful to people who are deaf or have hearing loss.

In a LinkedIn post by Christopher Caulfield, a product manager at Microsoft who is D/deaf, I learned a few ways we can be better allies for coworkers who are part of the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community.

One is his tip for virtual meetings: Identify yourself when speaking. That small action will help people follow along and contribute to the conversation.

Caulfield also pointed out that this community is diverse, and each person has a preferred method of communication. So, ask what’s best for them. It might be sign language, written communication, video conferencing, or something else. (This fits in with the advice from last week’s newsletter: “Nothing for us without us.”)

P.S. Wondering whether to capitalize the word deaf? As The Diversity Style Guide explains, lowercase deaf generally refers to a hearing-loss condition or someone who prefers lowercase, while Deaf is capitalized by many members of the Deaf community to describe themselves.

Not sure which term someone prefers? Disability Rights California recommends using D/deaf when you’re unsure. Or better yet, ask the person what they prefer.

Here’s another suggestion for Deaf Awareness Month, which I learned from Casual Ableism. This Instagram account raises awareness by sharing real-life experiences of ableism.

In one post, @1800frankie wrote:

“The amount of times, as a HOH [hard of hearing] person, I need to ask people to repeat themselves and they just say ‘don’t worry about it’ or ‘I’ll just tell you later.’ It’s not hard to try again. It’s not hard to include and accommodate.”

When someone asks us to repeat ourselves, let’s do so right then and there.

Let’s not leave them out of the conversation.

Instead of a subscriber spotlight this week, I want to share this video from Chrissy Marshall, a filmmaker is Deaf.

She describes something that’s happened to her much too often: a speaker tells an ASL interpreter to censor something they’ve just said. “Don’t interpret that” or “You don’t need to tell her” or “This information isn’t important.”

But if everyone else in the room heard it, why shouldn’t she?

Let’s not decide for someone else what they need to hear. Instead, let the interpreter do their job and make sure everyone can participate fully.

That’s all for this week. I’m glad you’re on this journey with me,

Karen Catlin (she/her), Author of the Better Allies® book series

100% written by me. I use AI for researching a personal archive of my books and past newsletters, and for light editing.

Copyright © 2026 Karen Catlin. All rights reserved.

Together, we can make a difference with the Better Allies® approach.

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Notice Who’s Missing, and Other Actions for Allies was originally published in Code Like A Girl on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

KITCHENER – A fantastic finale for the Kitchener Panthers.

Kitchener finished off the home portion of its 2026 campaign with a 7-3 win over league-leading London Thursday night.

The Panthers scored six runs in the first two innings, including two homers from Malik Williams and a solo jack from Mateo Zeppieri. 

For Zeppieri, it continued a hot month of August, where he has eight home runs, second only to Yasiel Puig's nine.

Zane Skansi also drove in a pair of runs on a rare Jack Couch Park triple.

Jorge Minyety delivered one of his better performances of the season, giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits in six innings of work to collect his third win of the year. 

Owen MacNeil collected his first career CBL save, striking out five batters and gave up just two hits in the final three innings of play.

For the visitors, Majors shortstop Maikol Escotto tied the league's single-season record with his 81st hit of the year.

The Panthers will take to the road to face the Toronto Maple Leafs for a doubleheader at Christie Pits on Friday night at 5 p.m., and will conclude their 2026 season in Brantford on Saturday at 2 p.m.

The final home game meant it was fan and volunteer appreciation night.

Kitchener Rangers defenceman, 2026 Memorial Cup champion and Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick Alexander Bilecki delivered the ceremonial first pitch.

When asked about the team’s focus going into 2027, general manager and interim field manager Shanif Hirani mentioned pre-game, “we’re going to put a winning product out there.”

On behalf of the Kitchener Panthers, we thank you for tuning in all season long and we look forward to #PacktheJack again in 2027!

Looking for a job can be challenging, especially when you’re not sure where to start. Maybe you need help creating a resume. Maybe interviews make you nervous. You might want to improve your skills before applying for jobs, or you may be looking for someone who can provide more individualized support as you work toward your employment goals.

If you’re an adult in Waterloo Region looking for some extra support finding a job, LEG Up! to Work can help you take that next step.

LEG Up! to Work is an in-person job readiness course offered by KW Career Compass at KW Habilitation for adults 18+ who experience a barrier to employment. The course isn’t about finding just any job as quickly as possible. It’s an opportunity to build the skills and confidence that can help you prepare for employment and figure out what your next steps should be.

Over eight weeks, you’ll spend 32 hours learning and practicing skills that can help you prepare for the realities of employment.

You’ll explore topics like:

• How to present yourself with confidence
• Time management
• Rights and responsibilities
• Professionalism
• Communication and self-advocacy
• What to expect when starting a new job
• Managing your personal life and employment
• Setting realistic goals
• Job searching
• Interview skills
• Giving and receiving feedback

You’ll have opportunities to learn, ask questions and practice before putting those skills to use in a job.

If you’ve ever sat in front of a blank document wondering what you’re supposed to put on a resume, you’re not alone. As part of LEG Up! to Work, you’ll receive one-to-one support with your resume and cover letter. You’ll look at the skills and experience you already have and learn how to communicate them to an employer. You don’t need to arrive with the perfect resume, helping you build one is part of the course.

Knowing what you want to say in an interview and actually sitting across from someone answering questions can feel very different. LEG Up! to Work gives you a chance to practice. You’ll participate in practice interviews with community partners, giving you an opportunity to answer interview questions, talk about your experience and become more comfortable with the interview process.

What are your strengths? What kinds of tasks do you enjoy? Where could you use some more practice? You don’t always discover those things sitting in a classroom. That’s why LEG Up! to Work includes hands-on skills evaluations at two to three local businesses. You’ll have opportunities to try different tasks in real community settings and learn more about your skills, interests and areas where you may want additional support.

You may have seen employment programs described as being for people with a “barrier to employment” and wondered whether that includes you. A barrier to employment is something that makes it harder for you to prepare for, find or keep a job. That can mean many different things.

Maybe you don’t have much job experience yet. You may need help with your resume or interviews. You might find certain parts of looking for or starting a job difficult. You could have a disability or need accommodations. Or you may simply benefit from more support developing the skills and confidence you need to move forward. Having a barrier to employment doesn’t mean you can’t work. It means there may be something getting in the way of reaching your employment goals and some additional support could help.

LEG Up! to Work is open to adults 18+ with any barrier to employment.

For some people, learning the skills is only the beginning.

You might be looking for someone who can help you identify the right jobs, navigate the job search process or provide individualized support as you work toward finding and keeping employment. KW Career Compass offers fee-for-service job coaching and employment supports for people who want that additional help. If you’re interested in accessing these fee-for-service supports, LEG Up! to Work is your first step.

Once you’ve completed the course, you’ll meet with the KW Career Compass team to talk about your employment goals and what should come next. Depending on your goals and KW Career Compass’s capacity to work with new people, your next steps could include continued skill building, volunteering, job development or individualized support from a Job Coach or Job Developer.

Completing LEG Up! to Work does not guarantee that ongoing job coaching will be immediately available, but it gives you and the team an opportunity to understand your skills, goals and support needs and create a plan for moving forward.

You don’t have to have everything figured out before you start. If you know you’d like to find a job and could use some support getting there, LEG Up! to Work can help you build your skills, practice, explore your strengths and make a plan for what comes next.

Dates: September 9 to November 16, 2026
Classes: Mondays, 1:30–3:30 p.m. and Wednesdays, 9:30–11:30 a.m.
Location: KW Habilitation, 99 Ottawa Street South, Kitchener
Cost: $360 per person
Funding: Passport funding eligible

There is no class on October 12, 2026.

Want to learn more?

Contact KW Career Compass at info@kwcareercompass.org or 519-744-6307 ext. 1252.

The post Job Search Help Kitchener Waterloo | LEG Up! to Work appeared first on KW Habilitation.

The post Rock Rascals appeared first on Grand River Rocks Climbing Gym.

Written by: Ian McDonald, Executive in Residence, Capacity Canada is an experienced executive, board leader, and strategic advisor who helps organizations navigate growth, innovation, and change while creating lasting community impact.

TL:DR The inherent nature of AI technology, where outcomes are probabilistic instead of deterministic, requires a proactive approach to AI governance. We have updated our AI policy to reflect a year of practical experience using AI, and our expected future use of autonomous agents and AI-aided solutions. The policy emphasizes human-in-the-lead accountability, responsible use of approved tools, and proactive lifecycle assurance for AI solutions.  This policy is informed by our Nonprofit Framework for Responsible AI Adoption and Impact.

A year ago, Capacity Canada developed its first AI policy, and we shared that policy as an example to help other charities and nonprofits develop their own AI policies.

Due to the rapid advancement and change in the AI landscape, our AI policy is on a one-year review cycle, so we are sharing our revised policy and the learnings that shaped it.

Grounded in Capacity Canada’s mission, strategy and values, our updated AI policy reflects how we are currently using AI-chat and AI-agents and proactive governance for anticipated use of autonomous agents and the development of new AI-aided solutions.

Our policy also reflects how our understanding of AI risks has advanced, informed through a year of intentional AI experimentation and use.  Applied internally, AI has delivered significant operational efficiencies allowing us to invest more resources supporting our nonprofit clients.  In providing governance, leadership, strategy, and other nonprofit support services, we’ve been able to deliver more value to our clients than ever before.

These are a few of the new and refined sections of our policy, informed by our new Nonprofit Framework for Responsible AI Adoption and Impact that uses a systems approach to help nonprofit leaders and boards accelerate the safe and productive use of AI to advance their mission and strategic goals.

• AI Governance and Accountability emphasizes a human-in-the-lead approach (instead of the more common human-in-the-loop) to underline that all AI-informed decisions and actions remain the ultimate responsibility of human decision-makers.
• Organization licensed and authorized AI tool(s) prohibits use of unauthorized AI tools, as studies continue to show the alarming use of individual AI tools (“shadow IT”) that can put sensitive organizational knowledge and client information at risk.  We believe AI’s accelerated commoditization means that most individual platform advantages will be short-lived (billions invested, good ideas easily copied), so we remain focused on the productive use of core tools to compound organizational returns over the long term.
• Autonomous Agents and AI-Aided Solutions establishes proactive governance and lifecycle assurance requirements for the development of internal and vendor-provided AI solutions that can autonomously act, make decisions, orchestrate workflows, or materially influence outcomes without direct human oversight.

Sharing our AI policy as a resource for other nonprofits advances our mission of “bringing together the ideas, people and resources that fuel social innovation.”  No policy is perfect, or suited to every context, so it must be adapted to your needs and goals.

Written by:

Ian McDonald, Executive in Residence, Capacity Canada
Email: ian@capacitycanada.ca

♦Ian McDonald (he/him) is a recognized expert in business and product strategy, marketing, partnerships, and emerging industries. He has extensive international experience developing emerging markets, commercializing products and services, and scaling business operations globally.

Formerly Chief Customer Officer at Communitech, a globally recognized innovation hub, Ian led advisory services for startups, scale-ups, and Fortune 500 organizations. Ian’s senior leadership experience includes strategic growth, change, and innovation roles at world-class companies including TD Bank Group, InFlight, Aeryon Labs, and BlackBerry.

Ian holds a Master of Business Administration and is a Chartered Professional Accountant. His recent executive education includes Modern Board Governance, Change Leadership, Coaching for Performance, and Organizational Leadership in Equity, Diversity & Inclusion.

As an active community member, Ian is a Board Member of Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region and supports community organizations focused on food security, housing, education, employment, newcomer assistance, and other family services.

The post One Year Later: What We Changed in Our AI Policy and Why appeared first on Capacity Canada.

 AS PREVIOUSLY STATED MECP & UNIROYAL ILLEGALLY COVERED UP VARNICOLOR'S CULPABILITY IN ORDER FOR MECP TO SAVE FACE & CREDIBILITY, WITH UNIROYAL GIVEN CLEANUP CONCESSIONS SAVING THEM MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

The evidence is overwhelming and includes witnesses and affidavits of an on-site can coating process in which the liquid wastes including dimethylamine were dumped down the drain into the illegal backyard disposal system. NDMA analytical results for both Varnicolor groundwater and soils, proven chlorinated solvents having penetrated into the Municipal Aquifer, both free phase DNAPLS and LNAPLS on the Varnicolor site indicating that the volumes being discharged were far greater than the groundwater could dissolve and finally the fact that Uniroyal and successors have admitted failure to successfully remediate our drinking water aquifers by the mandated 2028 deadline. This is due partially to the excess chlorobenzene and NDMA discharged illegally into the Elmira aquifers by multiple polluters including Uniroyal, Varnicolor Chemical and maybe more.

The witnesses and affidavits include a former Varnicolor and Uniroyal employee who operated the can coating process as well as myself. The former Varnicolor and Uniroyal employee's Affidavit is in the Environmental Appeal Board's Brief of Documents Volume 9.  NDMA analytical results include Golder Associates Hydrogeological Assessment of Varnicolor Chemical as well as the Addendum to that. One on site shallow well has a result 48 times greater than the drinking water standard with others lower but still greater than drinking water standards. On site soils had results also considerably higher than the groundwater concentrations. A Supplementary Brief Of Documents by the Environmental Appeal Board (Jan. -June 1990) also has a result of NDMA  in a tank farm sump at 14 parts per billion. Keep in mind that the drinking water standard for NDMA is .009 parts per billion. The proven half dozen chlorinated solvents from Varnicolor that penetrated into the Elmira Municipal aquifer included trichloroethylene and vinyl chloride, two highly toxic compounds. The first proof of this occurred in May 2016 in Woolwich Council chambers during a public Risk Assessment of the former Varnicolor Chemical. The media did pick this up briefly plus two years ago a consultant for Lanxess publicly confirmed at a TRAC meeting that six chlorinated solvents from Varnicolor had gotten into the Elmira Municipal Aquifer. DNAPLS and LNAPLS at Varnicolor were confirmed by Golder Associates as well as LNAPLS by the owner of Elmira Pump, Jim Germann at the public meeting.    

It is public knowledge that the cleanup has failed to deliver as promised or on time. What is not public knowledge is that the Ontario government were clients of Varnicolor Chemical and it wasn't recycled solvents that they were buying. They were buying disposal of toxic liquid wastes from various Ontario Ministries including the Ministry of Transport. Some of these wastes included plastic pails of trichloroethane. They also were disposing of lab wastes with Varnicolor. Some might find a bit of a conflict of interest here in that Ministry of Environment inspectors were beyond lenient with so many infractions, shortcuts and obvious illegalities on both Varnicolor properties in Elmira. Other strange behaviour by the Ontario Ministry of Environment includes their refusal to provide requested cleanup documentation including the 2016 Risk Assessment to myself, the person who blew the whistle on Varnicolor and lost my job over it. They also have refused to acknowledge further off-site cleanups precipitated by Varnicolor's pollution to the immediate west of Varnicolor; perhaps all in the spirit of  collusion with Uniroyal and successors, to the detriment of the public interest.   

Like all Canadians, the Chamber is disappointed and concerned with where we find Canada-US trade relations.

Your Chamber’s is consulting widely with our colleagues at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) and Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CCC) on where we go from here. Many businesses are and will be affected by these tariffs on both sides of the border and our role is to get you the information you need to navigate the uncertainty.

The federal government announced some programs have been announced but the details are yet to come. While the program details are finalized, we want to assure our members, your employees and our community that we will be a trusted source for information. And we will be your voice to decision makers on how business is being impacted and how to best support business.

The Chamber’s role is to be a source of trust, information and support for our business community. We have and will continue to gather information through our network, partners and business community to ensure we have the best information available and can help members and employees understand how it will affect local business.

We know uncertainty creates questions of what comes next. We are here to support you through that uncertainty, whether you are a business owner navigating new challenges, an employee concerned about what this may mean for your workplace, or a community partner looking for ways to help.

We are working to create a way to keep our members, partners and community informed in real time, with updates and resources as frequently as needed. Our goal is to provide the information, perspective and connections you need to make informed decisions and navigate what lies ahead.

But just as importantly, we want and need your feedback. Please reach out anytime.

Stay tuned. More details are coming soon.

Ian McLean

President & CEO

Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce

The post Navigating Uncertainty: Canada-US Trade War appeared first on Greater KW Chamber of Commerce.

September has a way of making everything feel a little more organized. Summer vacations wind down, kids head back to school, sports and recreation programs start up again, and weekly routines begin to take shape.

But getting back into a routine doesn’t have to mean spending more time at home.

In fact, September is one of the best times of year to get out and explore your own community. Across Kitchener-Waterloo and Waterloo Region, a new season of sports, programs, events, shopping and volunteering gets underway, making it a great opportunity to discover a new favourite local business, join a recreational league or find a way to get more involved in your neighbourhood.

Here are a few ways to make the most of the September reset.

September is synonymous with back-to-school routines, but it’s also a great time for adults and families to get active.

The City of Waterloo offers a wide range of recreational sports and leagues, including basketball, badminton, hockey, pickleball, soccer, volleyball, slo-pitch and ultimate frisbee. There are also opportunities for drop-in activities if committing to a full season isn’t quite your style.

Kitchener also offers sports programming for a range of ages and abilities, along with connections to more than 40 volunteer-led minor sports organizations.

Whether you’re joining a team, signing up for a new activity or simply looking for a weekly reason to get moving, a recreational league can be an easy way to build community into your routine.

You don’t have to travel far to find something new to do.

Community centres are often some of the most underrated resources in a neighbourhood. They can be places to take a fitness class, register for a program, meet other residents, attend a community event or simply find out what’s happening nearby.

Kitchener has community centres throughout the city, with programs designed for children, teens, adults and seniors. Locations include Breithaupt Centre, Country Hills Community Centre, Doon Pioneer Park Community Centre, Huron Community Centre, Stanley Park Community Centre and many others. See the City of Kitchener’s community centre directory.

Waterloo residents can also take advantage of facilities such as Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex, RIM Park, Albert McCormick Community Centre and Moses Springer Community Centre. See the City of Waterloo’s community centre directory.

One of the best parts? You may discover that the activity you’ve been looking for is happening just a few minutes from your front door.

September is also a great excuse to change up your usual errands and explore the businesses in your own backyard.

Instead of automatically heading to the same coffee shop, restaurant or big-box store, choose one local business you’ve never visited and give it a try.

Spend a Saturday morning exploring Uptown Waterloo. Grab coffee in a neighbourhood you’ve never explored. Visit a local independent bookstore. Pick up something from a farmers’ market. Try a restaurant you’ve been meaning to visit. Or make a point of supporting a small business near your home once a week.

Waterloo Region has no shortage of neighbourhoods worth exploring, from Uptown Waterloo and Downtown Kitchener to St. Jacobs, Belmont Village, Hespeler Village, Downtown Cambridge and Preston. Check out Explore Waterloo Region’s Neighbourhood Guide.

Think of September as a chance to turn “I should check that place out sometime” into an actual Saturday morning plan!

Exploring your community doesn’t have to involve a major outing.

Try creating a simple September challenge for yourself or your family. Make it part of your weekly routine. Each weekend, try to check something off your list together. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Try one new restaurant or café.
• Visit a local shop you’ve never been to.
• Explore a different neighbourhood.
• Visit a local farmers’ market.
• Check out a community centre program.
• Attend a local sporting event.
• Take a walk somewhere you’ve never explored.
• Visit a local gallery, museum or cultural attraction.

Small outings like these can make a familiar community feel new again.

And if you’ve recently moved to Waterloo Region, they’re an especially good way to start building a sense of belonging.

If you’re looking for a more meaningful way to connect with your community, September is also a great time to find a volunteer opportunity.

You don’t necessarily need to commit to volunteering every week. There are opportunities ranging from one-time events and short-term projects to ongoing roles.

Volunteer Waterloo Region connects residents with opportunities based on interests, skills and availability, including youth, group, newcomer, virtual and general volunteer opportunities.

The City of Waterloo also lists volunteer opportunities and ways residents can get involved, including event volunteering, neighbourhood projects, city committees and park projects.

The Region of Waterloo also relies on volunteers for programs and services ranging from museums and libraries to seniors’ services and special events.

Volunteering can be a great way to meet people, learn more about the community and contribute to the places that make Waterloo Region feel like home.

The return to routine doesn’t have to mean returning to the exact same routine.

This September, consider adding a little more local exploration to your calendar.

• Try a new sport.
• Visit a community centre.
• Support an independent business.
• Explore a neighbourhood you’ve never spent much time in.
• Volunteer at a local event.

You might find a new favourite place, meet someone who becomes a friend or discover an activity that becomes part of your regular routine.

Because one of the best things about living in Kitchener-Waterloo is that there’s always something new to discover…often much closer to home than you think.

Whether you’re new to Waterloo Region, thinking about making a move, or simply curious about what different neighbourhoods have to offer, knowing your community can make a house feel even more like home.

Looking for a neighbourhood that fits your lifestyle? Connect with us and let us help you discover what makes each Waterloo Region community unique.

Learn more about this great region through some of our other guides:

♦15Local Instagram Accounts You Need To Follow To Stay Up-To-Date on Kitchener-Waterloo Events, News & More

♦Community Spirit in Kitchener-Waterloo: How Local Events and Festivals Bring Neighbours Together

♦Raising a Family in Kitchener-Waterloo: Schools, Safety, and Supportive Communities

When was the last time you thought of your library as a place to borrow a basketball, projector or park pass?

Libraries across Waterloo Region have evolved far beyond books. Today, your library card can help you try a new hobby, plan a family outing, tackle a small home project, or enjoy a weekend adventure. All without buying something you may only use once.

In fact, the City of Waterloo encourages residents to “borrow instead of buy,” highlighting local libraries as a way to access everything from instruments and skates to seeds and other useful items.

Whether you’re a longtime library regular or haven’t visited since you were a kid, here are some of the surprisingly useful things you can borrow locally.

Waterloo Public Library’s Cool Things to Borrow collection includes an impressive mix of entertainment, recreation, technology and outdoor gear.

Here are some of the highlights:

• Board games & puzzles – Perfect for a family game night without adding another box to the closet.
• Bike repair tool kits – Handy when your bike needs a little TLC.
• Bike locks – A useful option when you’re out exploring Waterloo by bike.
• Ice skates – Available year-round at the Eastside Branch and seasonally at McCormick Branch.
• Lawn games – Think outdoor fun without having to purchase your own set.
• LED Projectors – A great way to host an outdoor movie night.
• Nordic walking poles – Try them before investing in your own pair.
• Outdoor nature kits – Great for turning a walk in the woods into a mini adventure.
• Digital microscopes – For curious kids, budding scientists and anyone who likes to get a closer look.
• Air monitors – A surprisingly practical item for learning more about your home’s air quality.
• LED projectors – Ideal for movie nights, presentations or backyard entertainment.
• Nintendo Switch kits – A fun way to try gaming without purchasing a console.
• Wi-Fi hotspots – Useful when you need internet access on the go.
• Park passes – Borrow an Ontario Parks Day-Use Permit or Grand River Parks pass.
• Museum passes – Visit the Region of Waterloo Museums or THEMUSEUM with a library pass.

The park passes are particularly useful for summer adventures. Waterloo Public Library’s Grand River Parks pass provides access to 10 GRCA parks plus the Luther Marsh Wildlife Management Area for up to six people travelling together in one vehicle. Its Ontario Parks pass provides access to more than 100 provincial parks.

Kitchener Public Library has its own collection of Things to Check Out, and it is just as eclectic. The library currently lists everything from sports equipment and games to technology and museum passes.

You can find:

• Musical instruments – Available through the library’s instrument collection.
• Board games – More than 90 unique games are available, with up to three games borrowable per card.
• Video games – Games are available for a variety of gaming systems.
• Nintendo Switch Lite consoles – Available at all KPL locations for in-library use, along with Switch games.
• Wireless hotspots – Take your internet connection with you.
• Chromebooks – Available for one-week loans.
• Toys – A great option for families looking for something new to play with.
• Bike locks – Available at select community library locations.
• Roller skates – Available at Southwest Library in youth, junior and adult sizes.
• Sports equipment – Including basketballs, bocce, croquet sets and tennis racquets.
• Outdoor equipment – Perfect for getting outside without purchasing gear.
• Museum passes – Borrow passes for THEMUSEUM and Region of Waterloo Museums.
• Parks passes – A library card can help you access Grand River Parks and Ontario Parks.

KPL’s borrowing collection also includes more unusual items such as Jenga Giant, memory kits, device charging kits and Playaways.

For families, this is a particularly good way to test-drive something before buying it. Want to know if your kids will actually play a particular game? Borrow it first. Thinking about getting into roller skating? Try a pair from the library.

Cambridge’s public library system, Idea Exchange, takes the borrow-instead-of-buy concept seriously.

The Preston location is home to a Tool Library, Seed Library and Preston Community Garden.

Depending on the collection, Cambridge residents can find Unusual Things to Borrow such as:

• Garden and yard tools – A great option for occasional landscaping and gardening projects.
• Sports equipment – Items such as basketballs and hockey sticks have been part of the library’s lending collections.
• STEAM kits – Hands-on kits designed to encourage science, technology, engineering, art and math learning.
• Art and technology boxes – Fun options for creative projects and experimenting at home.
• Bug boxes – Turn backyard exploring into a learning activity.
• Music boxes – A playful way for kids to explore music.
• MathQuest PlaySmarts kits – Hands-on activities that make learning feel more like play.
• Seeds – The Seed Library makes it easier to try growing something new.
• Tools for outdoor projects – Past collections have included items such as pruning tools, edgers and leaf blowers.

Idea Exchange has specifically positioned these collections as a way for residents to try something before buying it, whether that’s a hobby, sport or piece of equipment.

Homeowner tip: Before purchasing a specialty tool for a one-time project, check whether your local library has something similar available to borrow.

Beyond saving money, these collections offer another benefit: you don’t have to find a place to store everything.

That matters in any home, but especially in smaller homes, condos, apartments and busy family households where storage space comes at a premium.

Borrowing can also help you:

Try before you buy.
Not sure whether you’ll actually use a projector, game, sports equipment or outdoor gear? Test it first.

Reduce clutter.
Why dedicate permanent storage space to something you might use twice a year?

Try new hobbies.
Want to experiment with birdwatching, skating, gardening, gaming or a new instrument? Your library may be the perfect place to start.

Create affordable family activities.
A library card can turn an ordinary weekend into a game night, park adventure, museum visit or backyard activity.

Make better use of your community.
The idea behind these collections is simple: not everyone needs to own everything.

The next time you head to the library, don’t just browse the bookshelves.

Search the catalogue for “Cool Things,” “Library of Things,” “passes,” “games” or specific equipment. Collections can change, and availability varies by location, so it’s always worth checking before heading out.

See each library’s online catalogue here
Waterloo | Kitchener | Cambridge

And if you’re a Waterloo Region resident, don’t assume you’re limited to just one library system. Kitchener Public Library notes that free library cards are available across the Region through reciprocal borrowing arrangements, including Waterloo Public Library and Idea Exchange in Cambridge.

So, before you buy that new board game, specialty tool, sports set or outdoor pass, check your library first.

You might already have access to it.

Waterloo Region’s luxury real estate market remained relatively balanced last month in July 2026, but the latest numbers show noticeably different conditions depending on property type, price point and buyer demand.

According to the August 2026 Waterloo Region Luxury Market Report from the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing, the luxury benchmark price was $1.1 million for single-family homes and $700,000 for attached homes. These benchmark prices are thresholds established by the Institute for the purposes of its luxury market analysis.

For homeowners considering selling, buyers looking for a luxury property and anyone keeping an eye on the Waterloo Region luxury real estate market, here is what the July 2026 data tells us.

The luxury single-family home segment recorded 257 properties for sale and 45 sales in July, resulting in an 18% sales ratio and placing the market firmly in balanced territory. The Institute defines a balanced market as a sales ratio between 12% and 21%.

Compared with July 2025, however, both inventory and sales activity declined.

In July 2025, there were 313 luxury single-family homes available and 60 sales. By July 2026, inventory had fallen 18% to 257 homes, while the number of properties sold declined 25% to 45.

At the same time, values held up well. The median sale price increased from approximately $1.22 million in July 2025 to $1.26 million in July 2026, representing a 4% year-over-year increase.

One of the more important changes for sellers is the amount of time luxury homes are spending on the market.

The median days on market increased from 22 days in July 2025 to 32 days in July 2026, a 45% increase. Luxury single-family homes also sold for a median of 96.67% of their asking price, compared with 98.69% one year earlier.
For sellers, this reinforces the importance of getting the initial positioning right. In a balanced luxury market, buyers generally have enough choice to be selective. Pricing, presentation, property preparation and the quality of the marketing launch can have a meaningful impact on how quickly a home attracts serious interest.

A luxury listing can still sell exceptionally well, but relying on the market alone to create urgency is less effective when buyers have competing options.

Demand also varied considerably based on bedroom count.

Three-bedroom luxury homes recorded a 26% sales ratio, placing that segment in seller’s-market territory. Four-bedroom homes had a 14% sales ratio, five-bedroom homes 19%, and properties with six or more bedrooms 17%.

Median sale prices in July included:

• 3 bedrooms: $1,225,000
• 4 bedrooms: $1,292,500
• 5 bedrooms: $1,356,000
• 6+ bedrooms: $1,402,500

The median days on market ranged from 25 days for four-bedroom properties to 51 days for homes with six or more bedrooms.

The report identified $3.6 million to $3.999 million as the most active price band during July, with a 100% sales ratio. Because activity at individual luxury price points can involve a relatively small number of properties, these figures are best considered alongside broader market conditions rather than in isolation.

Luxury attached homes told a somewhat different story in July.

The attached segment had 69 active listings and 12 sales, producing a 17% sales ratio and also qualifying as a balanced market.

Unlike the single-family segment, both inventory and sales were higher than a year earlier.

Inventory increased from 56 homes in July 2025 to 69 in July 2026, a 23% increase. Sales rose from 7 to 12, representing a 71% year-over-year increase.
Despite the increase in activity, pricing remained relatively stable. The median luxury attached-home sale price was $773,250 in July 2026, compared with approximately $775,000 in July 2025.

While single-family homes took longer to sell, the attached luxury market moved in the opposite direction.

Median days on market fell from 34 days in July 2025 to 26 days in July 2026. Homes sold for a median of 97.47% of list price, compared with 97.93% one year earlier.

The most active price range was $840,000 to $859,999, where the report recorded a 200% sales ratio.

Among attached homes, three-bedroom properties were particularly active. They recorded 10 sales against 41 properties in inventory, producing a 24% sales ratio, which places that segment in seller’s-market territory according to the Institute’s methodology. Their median sale price was $774,000, with a median 25 days on market.

The headline is fairly straightforward: the Waterloo Region luxury housing market is balanced, but balanced does not mean every property is experiencing the same market.

Single-family luxury inventory is lower than it was last year, yet sales have also slowed and homes are taking longer to sell. Buyers at this level are typically comparing several factors, including location, lot, condition, renovations, design, privacy, amenities and overall value.

That makes strategic positioning especially important.

For sellers, the strongest approach begins before the property reaches MLS®. Understanding comparable sales, competing listings and current buyer expectations can help determine where a home should be positioned within its specific segment of the market.

Professional photography, video, staging, targeted digital marketing and exposure to the right buyer audience are also particularly important for distinctive and higher-value properties. Luxury buyers are not simply comparing square footage and bedroom counts. They are evaluating the complete property and whether its asking price reflects what is available elsewhere in the market.

For buyers, a balanced market can provide more opportunity to evaluate a property carefully without assuming that every listing will immediately generate intense competition.

That does not mean desirable homes will not sell quickly.

The data shows that certain segments, including three-bedroom properties, were moving more quickly than the overall luxury market. Individual homes with strong locations, desirable features and compelling pricing can still attract significant interest.

Buyers considering a luxury home in Kitchener, Waterloo or the surrounding townships should look beyond broad regional averages and evaluate the market surrounding the specific property.

Recent comparable sales, competing inventory, days on market and seller motivation can all help determine how aggressively to approach an offer.

July’s numbers point to a luxury real estate market that is neither strongly favouring buyers nor sellers overall.

For Waterloo Region single-family luxury homes, the median selling price increased year over year even as the number of sales declined and marketing times increased. Meanwhile, the attached luxury segment experienced substantially more sales activity and shorter marketing times while median pricing remained relatively unchanged.

That is why broad headlines rarely tell the full story.

The value and marketability of a luxury property depend on its neighbourhood, property type, condition, features, price range and current competition. A strategy that works for one home may not be appropriate for another, even within the same city.

If you are considering selling a luxury home in Waterloo Region, understanding where your property fits within today’s market is the first step.

The Deutschmann Team combines extensive Waterloo Region market experience with strategic pricing, professional property preparation, premium marketing and experienced negotiation to help position each home for the strongest possible result.

Thinking about selling? Contact The Deutschmann Team to find out what your home could sell for in today’s Waterloo Region real estate market.

The post Waterloo Region Luxury Real Estate Market Update | August 2026 appeared first on Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Agent - The Deutschmann Team.

There is a most unusual technical, hydrogeological report on-line that I read many, many years ago. Like many others, rereading it years later is very helpful especially if one has been constantly elevating one's   background knowledge and staying up to date with current events. Now I am somewhat reluctant and concerned to be the bearer of bad news particularly because I know that our idiot politicians are highly likely to do what they do best, which is to misuse and abuse information for their own self-serving purposes.  This report is titled "Groundwater Contamination In The Kitchener-Waterloo Area, Ontario". It was written in 1995 by a group of hydrogeologists from the University of Waterloo and possibly elsewhere. Many of these are well known, world class hydrogeologists including names such as Sanderson, Karrow, Greenhouse, Paloschi, Schneider, Mulamoottil, Mason, McBean, Fitzpatrick, Mitchell, Shrubsole & Child. Dr. John Cherry is also referenced in this report.

Recently I have published here various known contaminants in various Waterloo Region wellfields. This report expands significantly on my Blog postings of last month (July 2026) describing various wellfields and the various toxic contaminants in their groundwater. This report focuses on four older wellfields namely one in Waterloo (William St. Wellfield) and three in Kitchener (Greenbrook, Strange St. and Parkway). It also advises that at the time of this 1995 report there were twenty-three different wells involved over the four wellfields with four in the William St. Wellfield, seven in the Greenbrook Wellfield, seven also in the Strange St. Wellfield and finally five in the Parkway Wellfield. Currently not only are there different numbers of wells versus in 1995 but appropriately old wells that have been shut down since 1995 have had their names removed and new wells have of course new names.   

This report indicates that BTEX compounds normally from gasoline have been detected in all four of these wellfields. The BTEX compounds are benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene. Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) has also been found in all four wellfields.  PCE or Perc(hlorethylene) has often been used by dry cleaners in decades past. Very worrisome are aluminum, cadmium, chromium and lead all found in the Parkway wells. Two items of interest: these metals are often associated with tanneries producing leather of which two local names come to my mind i.e. Breithaupt and Lang. Gee you don't think that our regional politicians have been keen to avoid embarrassing prominent local, industrial families do you? The second item of interest is the plan to allegedly rehabilitate the Parkway wells. Oddly we have mercury in the Greenbrook Wellfield. That compound could be from a tannery or even possibly naturally occurring nearby. 

The last one is a humdinger. Total PCBs have been detected in the William St. and the Strange St. Wellfields. My God!  PCBs or Polychlorinated Biphenyls are a first cousin to dioxins and in some cases are even referred to as "dioxin like". My guess is that the former Uniroyal Tire plant on Strange St. may be a culprit based upon their plethora of toxic compounds found in the air in and around the plant decades ago. 

Now I have a teaser for you. Is it possible that there is strong analytical evidence that Varnicolor Chemical in Elmira not only contributed six chlorinated solvents to the Elmira drinking water aquifers as stated here yesterday, but also NDMA? Stay tuned for tomorrow's Blog posting.

If you are considering building a custom home in Kitchener-Waterloo, one of the first questions is usually: how much does it cost per square foot to build a house?

The quick answer is that a reasonable 2026 planning range for custom-home construction in Kitchener-Waterloo is approximately $300 to $600+ per square foot, depending on the builder, design, site and level of finish.

A current Kitchener-Waterloo-area custom builder places quality custom construction around $300-$375 per square foot, premium construction around $375-$475, and luxury construction around $475-$600+. RE/MAX Canada’s current Ontario guide places many professionally built detached homes around $375-$500 per square foot for construction alone, while noting that the broader Ontario range can extend from approximately $300 to $800 per square foot.

These are planning estimates, not fixed prices.

The most important point is that cost per square foot is not the same thing as the total cost of your project.

Land, development charges, permits, architectural and engineering fees, demolition, site preparation, servicing, financing, HST, landscaping and the level of finish can all materially affect the final number.

There is no official municipal or industry-wide price per square foot for building a custom home. Each builder prices projects differently, and what is included in a quoted square-foot cost can vary significantly.

For preliminary budgeting, current published estimates suggest:

For anyone planning a build, these numbers should be used as an early feasibility tool – not as a substitute for an actual builder quote.

Using $375-$500 per square foot as a practical preliminary construction range:

At the luxury end, the numbers increase quickly. A 3,500-square-foot home at $600 per square foot represents approximately $2.1 million in construction before land and any project costs outside the builder’s quoted construction price.

Again, these examples are budgeting exercises based on current published construction estimates – not guaranteed building costs.

This is where comparing builders can become confusing.

There is no universal definition of what a builder must include in a price-per-square-foot quote. One builder may include items another treats as separate costs.

Before comparing two prices, ask whether each quote includes:

• Architectural and design fees
• Structural and mechanical engineering
• Excavation and foundation
• Site servicing
• Development charges
• Building permits
• Finished basement space
• Garage construction
• Driveway
• Landscaping
• Cabinetry and millwork allowances
• Plumbing and lighting allowances
• Appliances
• HST
• Builder or construction-management fees
• Contingency allowances

This is why we would never compare two builders based solely on their advertised cost per square foot. The specifications, allowances and exclusions matter just as much as the headline number.

Development charges are an important part of a new-build budget, and they vary between Kitchener and Waterloo.

For a new single-detached home in either city, there is generally a City development charge as well as a separate Region of Waterloo development charge.

The City of Waterloo’s currently published revised 2026 development charge applicable to a new single-detached home is $25,201.

The Region of Waterloo’s current full-service development charge applicable to a new single-detached dwelling in the city is $43,285.

Published Base Rates:

• City of Waterloo: $25,201
• Region of Waterloo: $43,285
• Published base-rate total: $68,486

There is, however, an important 2026 development to be aware of.

On June 15, 2026, Waterloo Council approved, in principle, a 30% reduction in residential City development charges, retroactive to March 30, 2026, through the Ontario-Canada Development Charge Reduction Program. Participation depends on a competitive funding application, and the City has stated that funding approval is not guaranteed.

As of August 19, 2026, Waterloo’s public development-charge schedule continues to show the $25,201 rate.

For that reason, anyone budgeting a Waterloo build should not assume that the 30% reduction applies unless the City confirms it for the specific project.

Kitchener’s development charge depends on where the property is located.

For permits issued after December 1, 2025, the City’s published rate applicable to a new single-detached home is:

Kitchener City Development Charge:

• Central neighbourhood area: $21,215
• Suburban full-service area: $31,587

Adding the current Regional full-service charge of $43,285 gives published base-rate totals of approximately:

City + Region Published Base-Rate Totals:

• Central Kitchener: $64,500
• Full-service suburban Kitchener: $74,872

Kitchener notes that development-charge rates are subject to change and that the applicable rate is generally determined based on the rules in effect when the building permit is issued.

These figures should therefore be used for planning purposes. Before purchasing a lot or finalizing a construction budget, obtain a project-specific calculation from the municipality.

Potentially.

This is one reason a teardown property and a vacant lot should not automatically be treated the same way financially.

The Region of Waterloo provides redevelopment allowances where qualifying new development replaces existing development. Depending on the circumstances, those allowances can reduce Regional development charges.

Municipal redevelopment credits may also apply under the applicable City development-charge bylaws.

If you are considering buying an older home specifically to demolish and rebuild, have the potential credits confirmed before calculating the economics of the project.

As of August 19, 2026, neither local school board is currently collecting Education Development Charges on new development.

The Waterloo Region District School Board stopped collecting EDCs effective June 1, 2026 because it does not currently meet the provincial eligibility requirements for a new bylaw.

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board also states that, as of June 1, 2026, it is not collecting EDCs until notice is given of a new EDC bylaw.
This could change, so it should be reconfirmed when a building permit is actually being obtained.

The City of Waterloo’s current published permit fee for a new single-detached home is $1.41 per square foot.

Waterloo states that the initial review timeline for a complete new-home permit application is 10 business days once all required documents have been submitted and applicable fees have been paid.

That does not mean every permit will be issued within 10 business days. Revisions, missing information or additional approvals can extend the process.

Kitchener’s current published permit fee for a new detached home is $1.07 per square foot, plus a $500 rebate fee that is automatically refunded when the final building inspection is approved.

Kitchener also notes that additional charges, including a damage deposit and stormwater-management fee, may apply.

Its initial review period for a complete residential permit application is also 10 business days.

This is one of the most important parts of the entire process.

A $500,000 lot can ultimately be a better purchase than a $400,000 lot if the less expensive property requires significant servicing, grading, retaining walls, demolition or other site work.

Before buying land for a custom home, investigate:

• Zoning and permitted use
• The actual building envelope
• Front, side and rear setbacks
• Maximum lot coverage
• Building-height restrictions
• Easements
• Existing water and sanitary services
• Utility locations
• Grading and drainage
• Soil and groundwater conditions
• Tree restrictions
• Whether demolition is required
• Heritage considerations
• Whether the property falls within a GRCA-regulated area
• On rural properties, whether a well and septic system will be required

The Grand River Conservation Authority regulates certain river and stream valleys, floodplains, slopes, wetlands and other regulated areas. If proposed construction falls within a GRCA-regulated area, a GRCA permit may be required in addition to municipal approvals.

For rural and estate properties in areas such as Woolwich, Wilmot and Wellesley, servicing can also be very different from a city lot. Rural properties may rely on private wells and septic systems, both of which introduce additional site-planning and cost considerations.

This is why buildability should be investigated before purchasing the property.

There isn’t one right answer.

A vacant serviced lot may be simpler because there is no existing house to demolish.

A teardown can sometimes offer advantages such as an established location, existing road access and services, and potential redevelopment credits.

But a teardown can also introduce additional costs for demolition, utility disconnections, hazardous-material remediation, tree removal, grading and site preparation.

The right comparison is not: Which property is cheaper to buy?

It is: What is my total cost to get from the property I am buying to the finished home I want?

That is the number that matters.

Generally, yes, on a cost-per-square-foot basis.

A bungalow requires a larger foundation and roof to produce the same amount of above-grade living space.

For example, a 3,000-square-foot bungalow may require close to a 3,000-square-foot footprint, while a 3,000-square-foot two-storey home might provide approximately 1,500 square feet on each level.

Because foundations and roofing are major construction components, building upward can often be more cost-efficient than building outward.

That does not necessarily mean a two-storey is the better investment. Bungalows can command a premium because of their accessibility, functionality and appeal to buyers looking for main-floor living.

Square footage is only one part of the equation.

Two 3,000-square-foot homes can have dramatically different construction costs.

Some of the biggest cost drivers include:

• Complicated rooflines and architecture
• Large structural spans
• Extensive glass
• Premium windows and exterior doors
• Natural stone
• Custom cabinetry and millwork
• Integrated appliances
• High-end plumbing fixtures
• Large-format tile and stone
• Heated floors
• Sophisticated HVAC or hydronic systems
• Home automation
• Generators
• Finished basement space
• Extensive exterior structures
• Pools and outdoor living areas

When comparing builder quotes, confirm whether garages, basements and covered outdoor areas are included in the square footage used to calculate the price.

For higher-end custom homes, the project often extends well beyond the house itself.

An inground pool, cabana, covered outdoor kitchen, extensive patios, retaining walls, fencing, irrigation, landscape lighting, mature landscaping and a finished driveway can represent a significant additional investment.

If those items are part of the vision for the finished home, they should be considered during the initial site planning – not after the house is nearly complete.

Pool location, grading, equipment access, drainage and future construction access are much easier to solve before the home and landscaping are finished.

There are significant temporary HST programs that anyone building a qualifying new home in 2026 should investigate with their accountant or tax advisor.

The CRA’s Ontario Enhanced New Housing Rebate applies, subject to eligibility requirements, to qualifying homes purchased from a builder between April 1, 2026 and March 31, 2027 and to eligible owner-built homes where construction begins during that period.

Depending on the value of the home and the applicant’s circumstances, qualifying homeowners may be eligible for substantial rebates of the provincial portion of HST.

There are also separate federal and Ontario programs for qualifying first-time buyers of new homes.

The eligibility requirements and interaction between the various rebates are detailed, so these programs should be confirmed directly with the CRA and the homeowner’s accountant or tax professional before being incorporated into the construction budget.

A current Kitchener-Waterloo design-build guide estimates approximately 3-6 months for design and permits and 10-16 months for construction.

That equates to approximately 13-22 months from the initial planning stage to completion in many cases.

That is an industry estimate rather than a guaranteed timeline.

Project complexity, municipal revisions, conservation approvals, weather, trade availability, material lead times and changes made during construction can all affect the schedule.

For a truly custom home, it is generally better to plan conservatively rather than structure a sale or move around the most optimistic possible completion date.

This depends on what you are trying to achieve.

Building gives you control over things that are difficult or impossible to change later: the placement of the house, floor plan, ceiling heights, windows, mechanical systems, garage dimensions and overall architecture.

But when comparing building with buying an existing home, you need to compare the complete investment, not just the builder’s price per square foot.

We would look at three numbers:

1. What will the land or teardown property cost?
2. What will the complete finished project cost?
3. What is the completed home realistically likely to be worth?

The third number is often overlooked.

It is possible to build an incredible home and still spend significantly more than the surrounding market will support.

For that reason, resale value should be considered before the design and budget are finalized – particularly when building a high-end custom home.

Before committing to a lot or teardown in Kitchener-Waterloo, we recommend confirming:

• What can legally be built
• Where the house can sit on the lot
• Whether the intended size and design fit the building envelope
• Municipal and Regional development charges
• Possible redevelopment credits
• Servicing
• GRCA restrictions
• Demolition requirements
• Realistic site-preparation costs
• Realistic construction costs
• The probable market value of the completed home

The best time to discover a problem with a building lot is before you own it.

A property can look perfect and still be completely wrong for the home you intend to build.

A reasonable preliminary planning range for a custom detached home is approximately $300-$600+ per square foot. Current local industry guidance places quality custom construction around $300-$375, premium construction around $375-$475 and luxury custom construction around $475-$600+ per square foot. Actual costs depend on the builder, design, site, specifications and what is included in the quote.

At $375-$500 per square foot, a preliminary construction-only budget would be approximately $937,500 to $1.25 million. A more highly customized luxury home could exceed that amount. Land and costs excluded from the builder’s quote would be additional.

At $375-$500 per square foot, approximately $1.125 million to $1.5 million is a reasonable preliminary construction-only planning range. Luxury architecture, finishes and site conditions can push the cost substantially higher.

Generally, no. Land should normally be considered separately from construction cost. Development charges, permits, financing, servicing, landscaping and other project expenses may also fall outside a builder’s quoted price per square foot. Always confirm exactly what is included.

The City’s currently published revised 2026 base rate applicable to a new single-detached home is $25,201, while the current Regional full-service rate is $43,285, producing a published base-rate total of $68,486. Waterloo Council has also approved in principle a 30% reduction in City residential development charges through the new Development Charge Reduction Program, but funding approval was not guaranteed and the City’s published rate continues to show $25,201 as of August 19, 2026. The actual amount payable should therefore be confirmed with the City for the specific project.

Kitchener currently publishes a City charge of $21,215 in the central-neighbourhood area and $31,587 in a full-service suburban area for a new single-detached home. With the current Regional full-service charge of $43,285, the published base-rate totals are approximately $64,500 and $74,872, respectively. Rates are subject to change and should be confirmed for the specific property.

As of August 19, 2026, neither the Waterloo Region District School Board nor the Waterloo Catholic District School Board is collecting Education Development Charges on new development. This should be reconfirmed when permits are obtained because that status can change.

Generally, yes, on a cost-per-square-foot basis. A bungalow requires more foundation and roof area to create the same amount of living space, while a two-storey home can spread those costs over more above-grade floor area.

No. Zoning, setbacks, lot coverage, servicing, easements, grading, environmental constraints and other restrictions can affect what can actually be built. Properties within GRCA-regulated areas may also require conservation-authority approval in addition to municipal permits.

Building a custom home starts with much more than choosing a builder.

The property you buy, what you pay for it, what can actually be built on it and what the finished home will ultimately be worth are all part of the same decision.

At The Deutschmann Team, we help clients look at potential building lots, estate properties and teardowns from a real-estate perspective – including the value of the land today, the surrounding market, potential resale value and whether the overall project makes financial sense.

If you are considering purchasing a building lot, buying a teardown, undertaking a major renovation or deciding between building and purchasing an existing luxury home in Kitchener-Waterloo, reach out before you make the purchase.

A little due diligence at the beginning can prevent a very expensive surprise later.

The post How Much Does It Cost to Build a House in Kitchener-Waterloo in 2026? appeared first on Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Agent - The Deutschmann Team.