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Headlines: Aug. 24, 2026

· The Pulse
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  • The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival wrapped up its 45th edition with a record 825,000 visitors to its festival sites. This year's 209 indoor productions sold more than 142,000 tickets, including 550 sold-out shows, and returned $1.53 million to artists, up from $1.47 million last year. Holdover shows will be held at Fringe Theatre, Varscona Theatre, Rapid Fire Theatre, and Grindstone Theatre this week.
  • The Edmonton Pride Festival parade attracted thousands to downtown Edmonton on Aug. 22, marking the event's second year since returning from a hiatus that began with the 2018 event's cancellation over police involvement. Some groups boycotted this year's parade over its increased police presence, which organizers said was necessary to ensure safety. Police did not march but staffed roadblocks along the route. Some boycotting groups held alternate events, including an art showcase at Dawson Park.
  • Alberta's technology minister, Nate Glubish, faced angry questions and profanity at a town hall on AI data centres, held in Redwater on Aug. 20. About 150 attendees raised concerns about strain on water, land, and electricity from Meta's proposed $13-billion data centre project in Sturgeon County, fed by a $4.6-billion natural gas plant. Glubish defended the project's economic benefits, citing the expected creation of 300 jobs. Premier Danielle Smith is to join him at a virtual town hall on Aug. 27.
  • A leaked internal memo shows the Alberta government will not offer a second $100 energy rebate this fall because the Canada Revenue Agency could classify repeat payments as taxable income, Postmedia reported. The province is instead weighing reviving fuel tax relief if oil prices stay elevated, a step that NDP finance critic Court Ellingson said is overdue given that only 1.2 million of 3.4 million eligible Albertans have signed up for the current rebate. "Instead of providing Albertans immediate affordability relief, the premier created red tape for families and spent a ton of money administering a clunky government program," he said.
  • More than 1,720 babies were born between May and July at the Lois Hole Hospital for Women inside the Royal Alexandra Hospital. That's nearly 20 a day, including 61 sets of twins and four sets of triplets. Neonatologist Sowjanya Sivakoti told Global News that the unit has faced sustained high activity and believes increased use of fertility drugs may be behind the rise in multiples.
  • An Edmonton man is trying to track down descendants of Henrietta Macdougall after his son found part of her cracked 1932 headstone outside his Strathearn home this summer. Macdougall, an Anglican reverend's wife and Edmonton pioneer, is buried with her family at Edmonton Cemetery, the city's oldest, about five kilometres from where the headstone piece was found.
  • Japan's Miyu Yamashita won the CPKC Women's Open at Edmonton's Royal Mayfair Golf Club, closing with a 4-under 66 to finish 23 under for her fourth LPGA Tour title. Vancouver's Anna Huang was the top Canadian, tying for fourth at 12-under.