“Please feed the bears.” That may be the new advice to heed after a dozen polar bear experts wrote a policy paper about the imminent problems facing the species due to rapid ecosystem changes in the Arctic….York University Faculty of Environmental Studies Professor Gregory Thiemann, one of the authors, said Tuesday that Arctic ecosystems are often underestimated in terms of their complexity….“When the sea ice melts earlier than it used to, there is a whole cascade of effects that are driven by changes in the basic productivity of how complex the ecosystem really is, from the micro-organism level to polar bears,” said Thiemann in the Toronto Star Feb. 12. Read full story.
American, US Airways merger to bring higher fares
The pending merger between American Airlines and US Airways will bring more stability to the turbulent industry, but higher fares seem inevitable, reported the Toronto Star and others Feb. 12….York University business Professor Fred Lazar said the U.S. airline mergers partly reflect three global airline alliances, where frequent flyers put their loyalties. “This was inevitable,” he said. “As long as you have three major global alliances, you were going to end up with three major carriers in the U.S.” Read full story.
Ryerson spending millions to cover food conglomerate Aramark Canada's losses
In the past five years, Ryerson has covered more than $5.6 million in losses that Aramark Canada Ltd. had earlier agreed to assume under its contract with the university….It isn’t rare for a university to lose money on its food operations, said food-service industry veteran Mark Murdoch in the Toronto Star Feb. 13, but he is unaware of other institutions that subsidize the companies under contract to run their food services. York University, for example, uses Aramark at both of its campuses and does not pay it any subsidies, according to York’s Chief Spokesperson and Director of Media Relations Joanne Rider. Read full story.
Trail-blazing judge honoured during Black History Month
If not for pioneers like Lincoln Alexander, George Carter and Leonard Braithwaite, Justice Michael Tulloch said he would not be where he is today: the first black judge on the Ontario Court of Appeal, reported the Toronto Star and others Feb. 12. On Monday, Jamaican-born Tulloch received the inaugural Honourable Lincoln M. Alexander Award recognizing his leadership in the field of law and on the bench as well as his commitment to community service and youth. The award was presented by York University’s Black Law Students Association as part of Black History Month celebrations. Tulloch graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1989; at the time, he was one of three black students. Read full story.
Help clients secure their retirements
Before financial planners can make a decision about the reliability of future income projections, they have to take into account the unexpected, reported Advisor.ca Feb. 13.…“Most of this by definition is unmodellable,” said Moshe Milevsky, a finance professor at York University’s Schulich School of Business. “All we can really do is have contingencies in place. But if a huge disaster hits, their reserves aren’t going to be enough.” In other words, there is no absolute margin of safety, barring insurance. Here, Milevsky argues, people may have to draw on their social capital and turn to friends and family to make up shortfalls. Read full story.