Connect with us

Technology

Building stronger, more climate-resilient communities

Published

on

The Government of Canada provides $530 million to municipalities through the Green Municipal Fund to help communities adapt to climate change

OTTAWA, ON, June 3, 2024 /CNW/ – Communities across Canada need new infrastructure that is built for healthy, affordable living, economic sustainability and ensures the safety of homes and businesses in the 21st century. Making our communities more liveable in a world impacted by climate-related events including floods, storms, and wildfires means planning ahead and building more resilient roads, bridges, water treatment facilities, telecommunication, networks evacuation routes and much more.

To provide fairness for every generation, create new opportunities and launch Canadian Environment Week, the Government of Canada is accelerating adaptation support for resilient municipal infrastructure.

Today, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, along with the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada, Minister of Emergency Preparedness, and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, and Tim Tierney, Third Vice-President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), on behalf of FCM President Scott Pearce, announced the Local Leadership for Climate Adaptation (LLCA) initiative, through the Green Municipal Fund.

This $530-million initiative represents one of the largest ever investments in building liveable and resilient communities in preparation for climate change in Canadian history and is a key initiative under Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy.

Through collaboration with local governments, the initiative will support adaptation planning, capacity building, implementation, and financing, to help municipalities and their partners build long-term, resilient infrastructure. By 2031, the initiative will have funded more than 1,400 municipal activities.

As part of today’s announcement, the federally funded Green Municipal Fund is accepting applications through its website under the Adaptation in Action funding stream of LLCA. In all, there are three funding streams that will provide substantial support for municipalities to carry out climate adaptation projects. In addition to support for climate adaptation planning, municipalities can apply for up to $1 million for implementation projects and up to $70,000 for feasibility studies. Municipalities that have completed climate adaptation plans and/or risk assessments are eligible to apply. The deadline for applications is August 14, 2024.

The Green Municipal Fund is also introducing funding for partner-led initiatives that will enable skills development and training to help local governments build more resilient communities. Eligible partners will receive funding and support to design and deliver training programs that equip municipalities with the tools they need for proactive and equitable climate resilience planning.

While all people in Canada are at risk of climate change impacts, these risks are not shared equally. Those already facing inequities in our society, including marginalized groups, the elderly, and the people living with disabilities, are among those most likely to be impacted by severe weather events. The new climate adaptation initiative announced today will focus on advancing meaningful equity and inclusion outcomes through projects to help build stronger, more liveable, and more resilient communities all across Canada.

Quotes

“Municipalities are on the front lines of climate change, and they know best what local challenges—and solutions—are affecting local neighbourhoods, transportation, and businesses. The Federation of Canadian Municipalities and the Government of Canada partnership is helping build stronger, more liveable communities, providing safety and security in the face of a changing climate. With smart investments, forward planning, and active collaboration, we can support communities that are already feeling the impacts of climate change and help make them more sustainable and prosperous for generations to come.”
– The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

“Today’s announcement marks a significant step forward in empowering local governments to address climate change head-on. By funding climate adaptation initiatives, we are not only supporting communities in their efforts to become more resilient, but also contributing to building stronger, more robust infrastructure. This program ensures a sustainable future and stronger, safer communities for all Canadians.”
– The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities

“Extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and severity. We are committed to helping communities build resilience to these hazards. The new LLCA initiative is a great example of the improvements in adaptation and disaster resilience we can achieve through collaboration across all levels of government.”
– The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada, Minister of Emergency Preparedness, and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada

“The Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Green Municipal Fund and the federal government are stepping up to meet the challenges of a changing climate with innovative and community-focused solutions. With the launch of the LLCA initiative, we can bring real, tangible benefits to municipalities. Imagine a new green space in your community that also serves as a flood barrier, or a local training program that empowers residents to tackle climate change head-on. From projects that support storm-resistant coastal barriers and water conservation practices, to slope stabilization for fire-impacted and permafrost-degraded areas, this initiative is a national declaration with locally felt impacts. LLCA will build resilient communities that not only anticipate future climate challenges but actively adapt to them.”
Scott Pearce, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Quick facts

Since 1971, Canada has celebrated Canadian Environment Week in alignment with the United Nations World Environment Day, observed on June 5. This year’s theme for World Environment Day is “Generation Restoration”, focused on land restoration, halting desertification, and building drought resilience. Canadian Environment Week expands upon this theme by celebrating all of the actions that we are taking, at home and globally, to achieve a greener future.Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy lays out goals, objectives, and targets to reduce the risks associated with climate-related disasters, improve health outcomes, protect nature and biodiversity, build and maintain resilient infrastructure, and support a strong economy and workers.To support the Strategy, the Government of Canada Adaptation Action Plan outlines what the federal government is doing to prepare for climate change. It highlights over 70 actions across 22 departments and agencies to help meet Canada’s adaptation goals and address climate change risks facing Canadians.The Government of Canada has invested more than $6.6 billion in adaptation since 2015. This includes $2.1 billion in commitments since fall 2022 to implement the National Adaptation Strategy and support other adaptation-related activities.The Green Municipal Fund manages approximately $2.4 billion in programs funded by the Government of Canada to support municipal environmental priorities, including the new $530 million investment in community-based adaptation initiatives.This $530-million investment was first announced on November 24, 2022, as part of over $2 billion in new federal funding commitments to help protect communities from coast to coast to coast to prepare for climate change under the National Adaptation Strategy.

Related products

Update on federal climate change adaptation actionsLocal Leadership for Climate Adaptation: backgrounder

Associated links

Canada’s National Adaptation StrategyGovernment of Canada Adaptation Action PlanGreen Municipal FundLocal Leadership for Climate AdaptationFederation of Canadian Municipalities

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s X (Twitter) page

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Facebook page

SOURCE Environment and Climate Change Canada

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Technology

Tampax spotlights all-star athlete lineup led by Olivia Miles, bringing “Queen’s Court” fan experience to women’s basketball’s biggest moments

Published

on

By

CINCINNATI, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Rising star Olivia Miles is leading Tampax’s growing roster of elite athletes, as the brand spotlights its commitment to supporting women in sport through confidence, performance and trusted protection.

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/tampax/9386052-en-tampax-and-all-star-lineup-brings-queens-court-fan-experience-to-wnba

All-star lineup empowering, educating women in sports

In partnership with WNBA draftee Olivia Miles and Olympic medalist Maia Shibutani, Tampax is continuing its commitment to support women in sport — bridging winter and summer athletes through a shared focus on performance and preparation.

“As an athlete, every detail matters when it comes to performance, and that includes how I manage my period,” said Miles. “Partnering with Tampax feels incredibly empowering because they truly understand the need for reliable protection that allows us to compete at the highest level without a second thought. But it’s more than just reliable protection; it’s about trusting the products you use on and off the court.”

“As an Olympic athlete, I know firsthand that periods don’t take a break for training or competition. The need for reliable, comfortable, and safe period care is universal across all sports – whether you’re on the ice, court, or anywhere else,” shared Shibutani. “Seeing organizations like Tampax step up to champion female athletes, and to provide products that instill confidence and trust, is vital for breaking down stigmas and empowering the next generation.”

As part of its associate partnership with the 2026 WNBA Draft presented by State Street Investment Management SPY, Tampax introduced “Queen’s Court,” an interactive, fan-facing experience designed to connect fans to the energy and culture of the game—bringing them closer to the athletes and moments shaping women’s basketball.

Tampax provided athletes and fans alike the opportunity to explore its unique space prior to the draft, which included access to #1 US OB/GYN recommended tampons *based on a 2026 survey designed for comfort and performance.

“Our partnership with the WNBA, and specifically our presence at the WNBA Draft with the Queen’s Court, is a natural and powerful alignment for Tampax,” said Chelsey Harshman, Senior Brand Director at Tampax.

“We understand the unique challenges women athletes face, and our mission is to ensure that period care is never a point of concern or limitation. By being the Official Period Protection Partner of the WNBA and the Toronto Tempo, we’re not just providing products; we’re providing confidence, comfort, and the assurance of trusted protection built on safe ingredients.”

Why is Tampax partnering with women’s professional sports?
Because performance doesn’t pause for a period.

Tampax is helping normalize conversations around periods and empowering women to be at their best while ensuring athletes have access to protection they can trust.

Through its women sports partnerships, Tampax is:

Providing reliable and safe period protection designed for athlete comfort and performanceHelping break stigma around periods in sportsReinforcing the importance of knowing and trusting the products athletes use

The goal is simple: give athletes one less thing to think about, so they can focus on their game.

About Olivia Miles
Olivia Miles is a rising star and one of the faces of the next generation of the WNBA. A native of Phillipsburg, New Jersey, she starred at Notre Dame before finishing her collegiate career at TCU. During her collegiate career, Miles earned All-American honors and multiple All-Conference selections, while consistently ranking among the national leaders in assists. She was selected as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, cementing her status as a rising star at the professional level.

About Maia Shibutani
Maia Shibutani is a two-time Olympic medalist, author, producer, and speaker. Alongside her brother and ice dance partner Alex Shibutani, she made history as part of the first ice dance team of Asian descent, and the first team of color, to medal at the Olympic Winter Games. The duo are three-time World medalists, five-time U.S. National Champions, and were inducted into the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2023.

Off the ice, Maia is a co-author of the “Kudo Kids” series and the children’s books Amazing: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Who Inspire Us All (2023) and Incredible: Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Who Changed the World (2025), and is developing film and television projects. She is an advocate for education, diversity, and representation, serving in ambassador roles with organizations including the U.S. Department of State and Right To Play. Her honors include the Asia Society Game Changer Award, induction into the Asian Hall of Fame, and recognition as a Gold House A100 honoree.

About Tampax
Procter & Gamble‘s leading tampon brand, Tampax, exists to help women and girls better manage their periods through superior internal period protection and medically accurate period education. With more than 80 years of period protection expertise, Tampax meets a variety of needs with a product lineup that includes Tampax Pearl, Tampax Radiant, Tampax Pure Cotton, and Tampax Pocket Radiant. Only Tampax tampons offer a LeakGuard™ Braid and five absorbency sizes to help provide leak-free periods.

About Procter & Gamble
P&G serves consumers around the world with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always®, Ambi Pur®, Ariel®, Bounty®, Charmin®, Crest®, Dawn®, Downy®, Fairy®, Febreze®, Gain®, Gillette®, Head & Shoulders®, Lenor®, Olay®, Oral-B®, Pampers®, Pantene®, SK-II®, Tide®, Vicks®, and Whisper®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. Please visit https://www.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands. For other P&G news, visit us at https://www.pg.com/news.

Contact

Amanda Brown
Senior Communications Manager, North America Feminine Care
brown.a.8@pg.com

 

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tampax-spotlights-all-star-athlete-lineup-led-by-olivia-miles-bringing-queens-court-fan-experience-to-womens-basketballs-biggest-moments-302746382.html

SOURCE Tampax

Continue Reading

Technology

Oracle Health Demonstrates Interoperability Leadership, Achieves CMS Aligned Network Status

Published

on

By

Delivers solution to eliminate check-in paperwork by leveraging CLEAR1 in support of CMS’ “Kill the Clipboard” initiative

AUSTIN, Texas, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Advancing its mission to provide patients with access to their healthcare data when and where they need it, Oracle Health is now a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Aligned Network. Oracle Health has also developed and delivered an easy-to-implement solution that allows patients to digitally verify their identity and provide access to their health records at check-in. This eliminates redundant information gathering and reflects Oracle Health’s commitment to reducing the administrative burden across the healthcare ecosystem and increasing interoperability.

“Oracle Health is committed to making sure patients have access to and remain in control of their health data. Our participation in the CMS Aligned Networks will help health systems and patients connect data across settings, reduce fragmentation, and improve how clinicians and patients access the information they need,” said Seema Verma, executive vice president and general manager, Oracle Health and Life Sciences. “Oracle will continue working with government and industry leaders to deliver a secure, interoperable, and AI-enabled healthcare system that improves experiences for patients and clinicians while driving down the cost of care delivery.”

Streamlining the patient intake process

CMS’ “Kill the Clipboard” initiative encourages providers to replace paperwork intake processes with a seamless digital check in. Oracle will be integrating CLEAR1, CLEAR’s secure identity platform, to enable patients with a simple way to check in and give providers access to the health data they have opted to share by simply showing a QR code. The data will then flow directly into EHR workflows. CLEAR1 is Full Service certified by the Kantara Initiative for NIST Identity Assurance Level 2 (IAL2) and Authenticator Assurance Level 2 (AAL2), high-assurance standards that are foundational to trusted healthcare data exchange.

“Healthcare has long relied on fragmented, manual intake processes that create friction for patients and administrative burden for providers,” said David Bardan, SVP, Head of Healthcare, CLEAR. “By integrating CLEAR1 with Oracle Health, we’re working to help eliminate the clipboard entirely—enabling a simple, secure digital check-in that verifies the person and seamlessly connects their information into clinical workflows. This will be a meaningful step toward a more interoperable, patient-centered healthcare experience where trust, privacy, and ease of use are built into every interaction.”

New Jersey-based health system AtlantiCare is already using the solution to drive a better, more connected care experience for patients and providers.

“As one of the first healthcare systems in the nation to pledge support for the CMS Interoperability Framework, AtlantiCare is excited to partner with Oracle Health to deliver on that vision,” said Jordan Ruch, CIO of AtlantiCare. “We’ve completed full integration of this technology into our ambulatory check-in workflows, positioning us to deliver a faster, paper-free experience for patients, providers, and staff. This eliminates waiting room forms and repetitive medical history collection, with verified patient information flowing securely and seamlessly into our system as we prepare for broader rollout.”

Simplifying patient and provider access to health information

In addition to unveiling its offering to eliminate paperwork at check in, Oracle Health has taken another step toward helping accelerate secure, patient-centered healthcare data sharing by becoming a CMS Aligned Network. This most recent achievement builds on years of work enabling standards-based data exchange across care settings.

By becoming a CMS Aligned Network, Oracle Health has demonstrated its technology supports CMS-aligned approaches to simplify and accelerate healthcare data sharing for patients and providers. Oracle Health’s open and interoperable platform communicates with other CMS Aligned Networks as well as Qualified Health Information Networks® (QHINs) to create a single front door for patients to access and share their health information with providers.

Oracle Health is committed to enabling patient access to health data that is as simple as accessing bank records and is available conveniently when and where they need it. Last year, Oracle Health Information Network Inc., a subsidiary of Oracle, became a designated QHIN as a part of the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement™ (TEFCA™).

About Oracle
Oracle offers integrated suites of applications plus secure, autonomous infrastructure in the Oracle Cloud. For more information about Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), please visit us at www.oracle.com.

Trademarks
Oracle, Java, MySQL and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. NetSuite was the first cloud company—ushering in the new era of cloud computing.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/oracle-health-demonstrates-interoperability-leadership-achieves-cms-aligned-network-status-302746757.html

SOURCE Oracle

Continue Reading

Technology

OrthAlign Accelerates Global Growth Strategy with Announcement of CE Mark in Europe

Published

on

By

IRVINE, Calif., April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — OrthAlign, Inc., the leader in handheld orthopedic enabling technology, today announced it has received CE Mark under the EU MDR for its portfolio of navigation solutions, enabling commercialization across European markets. Both the Lantern® and OrthAlign Plus® platforms are now CE marked and available for sale.

This milestone expands access to OrthAlign’s proven technology across a region increasingly focused on efficiency, flexibility, and cost control in joint replacement.

OrthAlign’s handheld systems are well aligned with the needs of European healthcare systems. Delivered in a single-use format with per-case pricing, the technology eliminates the need for capital equipment, service contracts, and complex infrastructure. Hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers can more easily manage costs while maintaining access to advanced surgical technology.

“Our technology was designed to be accessible and easy to implement,” said Eric Timko, CEO of OrthAlign. “With no pre-operative imaging requirements, minimal training, and rapid product availability, we enable surgeons to adopt technology without disrupting existing workflows.”

OrthAlign’s open-platform supports compatibility with all major implant systems, giving surgeons flexibility across techniques and preferences while helping facilities standardize solutions across sites of care. It delivers consistent outcomes across total knee, revision knee, partial knee and total hip procedures.

With more than 450,000 procedures performed globally, OrthAlign has established a strong track record of delivering accurate, real-time data while maintaining procedural efficiency. The systems are designed to integrate seamlessly into the operating room, offering time-neutral performance compared to manual techniques without the added complexity of traditional navigation or robotics.

“The European market is increasingly prioritizing solutions that balance clinical performance with operational and economic efficiency,” added Timko. “We believe OrthAlign is uniquely positioned to meet that need.”

OrthAlign will begin immediate commercial rollout in key European markets, supported by distribution partners and clinical education programs. For distribution inquiries please contact info@orthalign.com

About OrthAlign

OrthAlign, Inc. is a global medical device company focused on delivering simple, accurate, and cost-effective handheld technology for joint replacement surgery. Its product portfolio, including OrthAlign Plus and Lantern, empowers surgeons with real-time data to improve alignment and procedural efficiency, without the need for capital equipment.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/orthalign-accelerates-global-growth-strategy-with-announcement-of-ce-mark-in-europe-302747234.html

SOURCE OrthAlign

Continue Reading

Trending