Royal Society of Canada honours UVic scholars - UVic News

Toronto, ON, October 13, 2026 – Ipsos is pleased to announce the honourees of its 2026 Financial Service Excellence Awards, an annual program recognizing Canadian financial institutions for excellence in customer experience. The 2026 edition includes data collected weekly from November 2025 to September 2026, providing Canadian financial institutions an ongoing view into customer perceptions of the banking industry. This year’s results point to a more competitive landscape among Canada’s largest banks, with TD gaining ground and CIBC returning to the winner’s circle. Among All Financial Institutions, Wealthsimple built on its standout debut to distinguish itself from the broader field. “Persistent cost pressures and uncertainty have made endurance, rather than recovery, the defining mindset for Canadians in 2026,” says Vik Sood, EVP and Leader of Ipsos’ Customer Experience practice. “Consumers are no longer waiting for conditions to return to normal.

The 20th annual Cape to Cabot road race is taking place tomorrow. The grueling 20 km trek sees participants running from one historic landmark to another: From Cape Spear to Cabot Tower on top of Signal Hill. The race starts at 8 a.m., and because of that there are a few related road closures in St. John’s. Between 7:45 and 11a.m. there will be numerous road closures along the route. A full list can be found online at VOCM dot com. Expect traffic impacts from 7:45 a.m. to 11 a.m. on routes including Blackhead Road, Southside Road, Water Street, Harbour Drive, Duckworth Street, Temperance Street and Signal Hill Road.

On Monday, Albertans vote on whether to stay in Canada or hold another binding referendum on quitting Canada. If the vote goes as polls suggest, a majority of Albertans will mark an X to stay in Confederation, and Premier Danielle Smith has said if that’s so, she expects everyone to accept it and move on. Leaders of the independence movement contest that. And political watchers are divided about whether separation — previously a fringe sentiment — will now be a prominent, permanent feature of Alberta’s political landscape, as in Quebec. Julian Castro-Rea, a political-science professor at the University of Alberta who studies the separation debates in Quebec and Alberta, believes as long as Alberta feels alienated from the Canadian capital — feeling that Ottawa benefits from Alberta’s resource economy without giving back — the movement will have fuel. “Even if the referendum is lost, the westernization will still be around, because it’s kind of a way which, traditionally, Albertans have related to the rest of Canada,” says Castro-Rea, who believes western alienation may remain indefinitely. Story continues below advertisement