Steven Wilson

This past weekend saw the fourth annual Energy City Exposure Showcase deliver its most ambitious and successful event yet at Nickle Lake Regional Park. The three-day showcase brought together softball players from across the Prairies for a weekend of skill development, games, and face time with college scouts. 

Nature Saskatchewan is drawing attention to one of the province’s most unique and endangered grassland birds, the chestnut-collared longspur. 

“This is a super cool grassland specialist songbird,” explained Emily Putz, Habitat Stewardship Coordinator with Nature Saskatchewan. “They have a very bold colouring and they’re the 2025 Avian Ambassadors of Birds Canada.” 

Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck was in Weyburn Wednesday morning, meeting with CUPE Local 5430 Region 4 Vice President Arlene Picard. The two spoke to the media, highlighting concerns over staffing shortages in healthcare, worker burnout, and service disruptions at emergency rooms in the Weyburn area.  

The Saskatchewan government is ramping up its support for short line railways, announcing $1 million in infrastructure funding through the Short Line Railway Improvement Program. This amount represents an 88 percent increase from last year’s budget. 

As wildfires continue to impact communities in northern Saskatchewan, some evacuees temporarily housed in Weyburn are raising concerns about access to essential resources and financial support. 

One evacuee from Denare Beach, who requested anonymity, said they have struggled to access food vouchers, travel assistance, and support for infant care supplies while staying at a hotel in Weyburn. 

A groundbreaking Saskatchewan-based carbon storage initiative has earned international recognition. The Petroleum Technology Research Centre (PTRC) has been awarded the Suzanne West Environmental Excellence Award for its Aquistore project, located near Estevan’s Boundary Dam, at the Global Energy Show in Calgary. 

The Saskatchewan Health Authority is restructuring its leadership in a move aimed at strengthening health care delivery in rural and northern communities, increasing frontline support, and improving the integration of physician leadership throughout the province. 

In the wake of sharp criticism from Saskatchewan’s Ombudsman about delays and deficiencies in the government’s wildfire evacuation response, Premier Scott Moe announced new supports for displaced residents on Wednesday, while acknowledging the province must do more to help affected families. 

With 24 wildfires currently burning across Saskatchewan and 18 communities evacuated, including La Ronge, Air Ronge, Denare Beach, and Creighton, Ombudsman Sharon Pratchler issued an urgent public call to the provincial government to address widespread complaints from evacuees who say they are being left without food, shelter, or timely communication. 

The latest job numbers from Statistics Canada were released Friday morning, and southeast Saskatchewan again saw a drop in the unemployment rate. The unemployment rate for the Regina-Moose Mountain Economic Region, which includes Estevan, was 4.8 per cent in May, down from 5.1 per cent in April. This was the third consecutive month the unemployment rate declined in the region.