SHANNON CLEARY

Calgary is home to five public, two independent and several private post-secondary institutions and one of the most highly educated populations in Canada. As a new school year kicks off, we take a look at what our local educational institutions are doing to address the challenges of the current job market for new graduates, accommodate mature students who are upgrading or enhancing their skill sets and foster academic success for indigenous students.

By Shannon Cleary, Jacquie Moore, Gwendolyn Richards and Julia Williams; photography by Jared Sych You’d be forgiven for expecting a conversation with Michael Noble to touch on food. The inaugural chef at Catch, innovator of Earl’s menus and now chef-owner of The Nash and Notable is, after all, four decades into an enviable career that pivots on developing some of the restaurant industry’s most creative and enduring dishes.

Design isn’t just about appearances. Good design includes a nuanced consideration of how a thing or space works, how it’s made, and how it meets a need. Some of the greatest innovations of the past century have used the tenets of design to create products and buildings that add value, shed inefficiencies and change the way we live. Calgary’s cosmopolitan awakening has created a unique opportunity for design-driven innovation.