Why playing the "Guardian" works in Alberta

The dust has settled in Alberta after a rough-and-tumble election campaign and Jason Kenney is ready to assume the mantle of premier. But today in The Conversation Canada, political scientist Jared Wesley of the University of Alberta explains that Kenney has already taken on a familiar role in the prairie province: Guardian of Alberta.

There’s another election coming up this month – in Spain, a country that so far has not elected members of a populist, anti-immigration party. Edward Koning of the University of Guelph says that’s likely to change next week because Vox, a party that looks very similar to the French Front National and the Austrian Freedom Party, is poised to win a sizeable number of seats in parliament.

Anyone who lives in Toronto knows the smart city development Sidewalk Toronto has attracted a fair amount of controversy. Sylvie Albert of the University of Winnipeg looks at the troubled history of technology and urban planning in the quest to build utopian communities.

And finally…if your kids aren’t in school today, will they spend part of the day playing video games? Maybe they should be doing the same thing at school! Thierry Karsenti of the Université de Montréal tells us how students in Montréal classrooms are using the popular video game Minecraft for educational purposes.

Regards,

Scott White

Editor

Today's Featured Articles

By portraying himself as Guardian of Alberta, Jason Kenney easily moved from opposition leader to premier. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

Jason Kenney won by portraying himself as the Guardian of Alberta

Jared Wesley, University of Alberta

Jason Kenney took a well-worn path to the premiership by portraying himself as the Guardian of Alberta. But remarkably, he played this role successfully when he was opposition leader.

Demonstrators take part in a recent protest against a rally by the Spanish far-right Vox party in Barcelona, Spain. The nationalist Vox party has recently emerged onto the political scene by winning representation in regional elections in the country’s south in December. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Why Spain’s upcoming election will change Spanish immigration politics

Edward Koning, University of Guelph

The upcoming Spanish election will not only change the political landscape in the short term. The success of Vox will likely secure a place for anti-immigrant parties for the indefinite future.

For utopian cities to succeed, they should offer technological solutions to urban challenges. Shutterstock

Smart cities: The promises and failures of utopian technological planning

Sylvie Albert, University of Winnipeg

As cities aspire to be smarter, technologies are only part of the answer. No utopia on the horizon but we need hostistic answers more than ever before.

In Minecraft and other games, players are highly receptive to learning embedded in the game scenario. Thierry Karsenti

Minecraft can increase problem solving, collaboration and learning - yes, at school

Thierry Karsenti, Université de Montréal

The supervised, structured and balanced use of Minecraft could allow students to fully benefit from the potential of this game to build skills and increase motivation.

La Conversation Canada

Les eaux de crue montent tout près de maisons situées dans une rue résidentielle de la ville de Rigaud, à l'ouest de Montréal, le vendredi 19 avril 2019. La Presse Canadienne/Graham Hughes

Inondations: pourra-t-on faire mieux la prochaine fois?

Philippe Gachon, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM); danielle_maltais@uqac.ca, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC); raphoz.marie@uqam.ca, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM); Suzanne King, McGill University; taha.ouarda@ete.inrs.ca, Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS)

Les inondations causent de lourds dommages tant économiques, sociaux qu'environnementaux, en plus d'avoir des effets sur la santé physique et psychologique des sinistrés.