Kevin Whittaker, president of the McGill University Non-Certified Academic Certified Association (MUNACA), has attributed the delay to the administration’s refusal to provide financial information. Whittaker maintained that MUNACA was prepared to present its “non-economical” demands, including increased job protection and better vacation leaves. However, the union’s request for financial information from McGill regarding payroll, benefits, and other matters, had not been met. MUNACA was hence unable to present its economic demands.

“McGill has refused to negotiate with us until we provide its bargaining committee with a full set of our demands. To do this, we first need financial information from McGill,” said Whittaker.

He explained that the only information that McGill provided MUNACA was locked in PDF files that could not be modified. Similarly, MUNACA did not receive any of the scheduling and salary-related information it requested.

A statement issued by McGill’s human relations department claims that it did provide the financial information in the same format as in the past.

According to Lynne Gervais, Associate Vice-Principle of McGill Human Resources, negotiations failed when MUNACA failed to present its full set of demands.

“At our meeting, MUNACA was not ready with its demands. It had not prepared them,” Gervais said. “Until negotiations officially begin, there’s not much I can say.”

Gervais explained that, conventionally, negotiations only begin once both parties have set forth their final and complete set of proposals. This was the expectation heading into the meeting, an expectation Gervais said McGill fulfilled.

“MUNACA was given the requested financial information,” said Gervais. “They just didn’t like the format it was given in.”

The delay has left Whittaker frustrated. “We want to continue with negotiations on non-economical concerns, but McGill has insisted on waiting.”

According to Whittaker, during pre-negotiations in December MUNACA clearly expressed a need for specific financial data from McGill. However, on January 13, the University informed MUNACA that it felt the union already had all the necessary information to form its proposals.

“What puzzles me is why McGill did not inform us of this in December rather than refusing to bargain in January,” said Whittaker.

Demands

According to Whittaker, one of MUNACA’s main demands is fairer staffing processes. “We want better selection of personnel that respects the seniority of MUNACA workers,” he said. “Currently, McGill overrides our contract by hiring less-experienced non-union workers because it is cheaper to do so.”

Whittaker feels that it is important for senior personnel to have their seniority respected rather than act as a hiring obstacle. “We want a staffing process that will encourage our members to grow rather than remain in the same place,” he said.

MUNACA is also seeking a more transparent scheduling process. The union wants to receive specific work schedules from McGill. It also wants to be notified when the schedules are changed, which McGill has failed to do before.

Once negotiations begin, Whittaker will most likely start with non-economical demands. “Why not start now when both parties have prepared their non-economical demands?” he asked. “Perhaps after seeing McGill’s demands, we can decide how to arrange our priorities and continue accordingly.”

Whittaker speculates that salaries will be the point of greatest contention.

Regarding the timeline of negotiations, Whittaker had little to say. “We had hoped to reach a resolution within a year,” said Whittaker. “But since negotiations are being dragged out from the beginning, it could take awhile.”

“When MUNACA is ready with all its proposals, we will be ready to negotiate,” said Gervais.

Both parties are scheduled to meet again on January 26.

The post McGill and MUNACA stumble out of the gate appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The meeting’s main focus was the electoral debate for executive candidates. Although all positions were acclaimed, candidates discussed their platforms for three minutes each and answered questions posed by the audience.

Incoming president Alexandra Bishop addressed three key areas of concern, the first being how to improve the services available to PGSS members. “PGSS services are the first form of contact students have with the Society, making them a key priority of mine,” she said.

Bishop said that while she was satisfied with programs such as family care, she promised to try to gather more student feedback to improve all services.

“When making improvements, we need to look at where the greatest need is and what students want,” said Bishop. “As for other issues, such as increasing office and lab space for students, we’ll have to discuss matters with the University and see what money is available.”

One thing Bishop focused on was a widely discussed issue for the Society: improving communications with students.

Audience members agreed that most PGSS members are not even aware of the election currently taking place and that an endless slew of emails is no help.

“Each time I send out an email, I can feel it being deleted,” said one departmental councillor.

Others felt that it is the responsibility of students to make themselves aware of PGSS proceedings and to take part in the process, though everyone agreed that there was a fundamental flaw in the PGSS’s communications strategy.

Ryan Hughes, the VP (External) candidate, highlighted accountability as one primary part of his platform. “Executive evaluations have not been done and I hope to create a system to evaluate executives properly,” he said.

VP (Internal) candidate Magnus Bein mentioned plans to hold new events for PGSS members in Thomson House and off-campus. One audience member mentioned the lack of initiative in getting students from the Macdonald campus involved – an issue Bein said will be addressed.

There was a brief discussion of PGSS’s upcoming referendum to de-federate from the Canadian Federation of Students. In addition, both CKUT Radio and QPIRG-McGill will be asking for fee increases at the referendum.

“We’re asking for the fee increase because we need to balance our budget,” explained Erin Weisgerber, CKUT’s funding coordinator. “We’ve cut back as much as we can but without a fee increase, we’re looking at more deficit years in the future.”

According to Weisgerber, CKUT has not had a PGSS fee increase since 1987 when the community radio station first established itself. Since then, what the station receives from the PGSS has gone down by 60 per cent, after adjusting for inflation.

QPIRG-McGill has also not had a PGSS fee increase since it joined the Society in 1988.

“We are hopeful that we will be granted the fee increase,” said Andrea Figueroa, QPIRG’s external coordinator. “Students have been receptive and I feel it’s going to happen.”

Weisgerber, however, had some concerns. “Since I am not a member of the PGSS, I cannot campaign for the fee increase. Unfortunately, many people will not be informed about the fee increase when they see it listed on their ballot.”

The post Post-grads fail to reach AGM quorum appeared first on The McGill Daily.

One of the main issues addressed was McGill’s budgetary restraints,and the low level of support for competitive grants to scholars and researchers.

“McGill is currently facing a tight budget,” explained Munroe-Blum. “We are working hard, however, to protect jobs and have done considerably well compared to other research-intensive universities in Canada and the United States.”

The principal added that while budgetary restraints have required the University to make cuts, the protection of jobs would remain a priority.

Others expressed concern with the University’s policy on faculty absence, which requires professors who fall sick with the H1N1 flu virus to find and pay their own replacement, and worried that the policy creates disincentives that would discourage faculty from staying home when ill.

The principal was also asked to comment on the administration’s support for a controversial event organized by Choose Life McGill earlier this fall. SSMU VP External Affairs Sebastian Ronderos-Morgan wanted to know whether there is a standard that the University uses to decide if any event is deemed appropriate.

Munroe-Blum responded that she chose to respect the club’s freedom of speech because she felt that no laws had been broken. Ronderos-Morgan felt that the principal’s response did not address his concern that the University has not provided a standard on issues involving freedom of expression.

“She didn’t address the question. She talked about the Choose Life event, and how she was disappointed that the event had been protested, and therefore not gone ahead as planned,” said Ronderos-Morgan.

He added, however, that “it was definitely clear that [Munroe-Blum] was informed of certain things over the course of the town hall, through the questions asked of her, and that, I think, is valuable.”

Joël Pedneault, the Arts Representative to SSMU, felt that Munroe-Blum’s response to a question on the high cost of international tuition was also inadequate.

“Principal Munroe-Blum claimed that tuition fees are based on public policy decisions and did not take responsibility for the high international fees,” said Pedneault.

“However, she is a member of the Conference of Rectors and Principals of Quebec Universities and therefore does have a certain amount of say in this matter.”

Despite the principal’s limited responses, Pedneault still encouraged students to attend town hall meetings.

“There were several moments when no one had a question to ask. Also, many of the questions did not apply directly to students,” Pedneault explained. “If more students showed up, more issues regarding students would be addressed.”

Munroe-Blum was also asked to comment on the extensive construction taking place on campus, and how the construction has been funded.

According to Munroe-Blum, a great deal of the construction has been maintenance-related, such as tunnel work and renovations to the parts of buildings that pose safety hazards. The construction has been paid in large part by funds provided by the federal and provincial governments.

“McGill received $300-million from the province of Quebec and the federal government to improve its infrastructure, thus creating economic opportunities,” Munroe-Blum explained.

“The University is currently undergoing more construction than it has ever before,” she added. “There has been a long-standing need for renovations on campus.”

The federal stimulus money is also being used for academic purposes, such as infrastructure development for the chemistry department and research funding for the faculties of medicine, science, and engineering.

Munroe-Blum expressed her gratitude to those who attended the meeting and raised questions.

“There are no unacceptable views,” Munroe-Blum concluded. “We need a candid exchange of views in order to work together more effectively and make McGill an even better place.”

“My main frustration is not having enough time to meet with students, faculty members, and other members of this community [with] whom I do not interact with regularly,” Munroe-Blum said. “I feel it is important to hear a wide range of voices on matters of concern.”

The post Principal takes time to talk to students appeared first on The McGill Daily.

LCME, a U.S. based accrediting body responsible for the accreditation of all medical schools in the U.S. and Canada, has 132 standards that schools must meet. Initially, Dalhousie was found to be non-compliant with 17 standards, but this ruling was changed to 10 after an appeal.

“The appeal went well, as we won seven appeals. We are still, however, on probation,” said Thomas Marrie, the dean of Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Medicine. “We did not appeal a number of standards because we felt the Committee was right in its ruling.”

Many of the LCME’s concerns had to do with Dalhousie Medicine’s curriculum management and learning environment.

“The ‘non-compliant’ standards range from not having enough lockers in the hospital for medical students to not having reviewed the curriculum for years,” Marrie said, explaining that Dalhousie has already begun improving the program. “We are reviewing our undergraduate medical program closely. A number of staff are taking a look at the practices of various medical schools and seeing how we can fold them into a new curriculum.”

Aris Lavranos, the president of Dalhousie Medical Student Society, said that despite the LCME’s ruling, medical students feel secure in their program.

“Dr. Marrie and his team have kept us in the know and have taken into consideration the opinions of the students. We aren’t overly concerned,” Lavranos said. “Most of the problems are of an administrative nature, such as improving the clarity of our unit objectives. This doesn’t reflect what we learn. The content is the same.”

Like Dalhousie, McGill’s Faculty of Medicine is accredited by the same two bodies that accredit all Canadian medical schools: LCME and the Committee on the Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS).

According to Joyce Pickering, the associate dean of Medical Education and Student Affairs at McGill, the accreditation process helps faculties of medicine adapt to new standards.

“The accreditation process represents an opportunity to continue raising the bar of excellence within McGill’s Faculty of Medicine,” Pickering added.

Pickering noted that the last time McGill went through an evaluation in 2007, they were fully accredited. Since then, McGill has been been working to improve its program, developing more rigorous evaluation tools and working on formalizing periodic reviews of its curriculum.

According to a letter from Dalhousie’s Faculty of Medicine to prospective students, students should not hesitate to apply to or accept an offer of admission from Dalhousie Medicine.

“We have wasted no time in starting to remedy the problems cited by the LCME and in going beyond its requirements and developing a new leading-edge curriculum,” wrote Marrie.

As for the futures of Dalhousie Medicine’s graduating students, Marrie does not expect the school’s probationary status to affect them.

“Our current medical students are aware of the actions we are taking to better the school and are not concerned. Dalhousie still offers a good medical education,” he said.

The post Dalhousie medical school on probation appeared first on The McGill Daily.

Initially the vision of retired Canadian general Rick Hillier and honourary lieutenant-colonel Kevin Reed, Project Hero will reach out to financially dependent children of soldiers killed while on active duty. Eligible candidates must be 26 years old or younger and full-time undergraduate students at participating universities.

Concordia’s Director of Media Relations, Chris Mota, said the decision to adopt Project Hero was a simple one.

“We learned about the project from a member of our board of governors. Soon after, the University wanted to get on board right away,” explained Mota. “It simply made sense.”

At McGill, Project Hero has not been overlooked. According to Morton Mendelson, McGill’s Deputy Provost, the program is being put into effect here as well.

“We have been working on implementing the program for some time and it was finalized this week,” said Mendelson. “Although no general advertisement has been made as of yet, we will be announcing this decision to the McGill community shortly.”

Once an announcement has been made, applications will be available to students in the Scholarship and Student Aid Office.

“After hearing about the project, we looked at our own scholarship program and asked ourselves, ‘How can we make this work?’” Mendelson explained. “It fit into our program reasonably and allowed us to do our part in supporting the Canadian Armed Forces.”

Judy Stymest, Director of McGill’s Student Aid, felt that Project Hero reflected McGill’s tradition of aiding the families of Canadian soldiers.

“McGill, like many universities, has a history of support for the families of soldiers,” said Stymest. “We have an aid program for the families of soldiers who were in World War I and II, which is still in existence.”

According to Mota, Concordia has had a long-running relationship with the military.

“After World War II, when many G.I.’s returned home, several attended Concordia,” said Mota. “We’ve been there to get them back on their feet.”

“Although there may be individuals who are for or against Canada’s presence in Afghanistan, the University decided that this was not the time for such a debate,” Mota said. “Instead, we chose to support the families.”

According to Heather Mac-Donald, the Media Relations Officer of Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC), VAC does have programs to assist children of veterans or members of the Canadian Forces in financing their educations.

“One such program is the Educational Assistance Program, in which surviving children of deceased veterans and Canadian soldiers receive funding for their education,” said MacDonald. “Another is a program that partially reimburses the tuition of former students.”

Nevertheless, MacDonald does not feel that Project Hero is redundant. “Project Hero is very important in demonstrating that Canadian universities are recognizing veterans and the service they provide. This is invaluable support.”

“Those who serve our country deserve our respect,” Mota said. “They have made the ultimate sacrifice and the least we can do is help their children aspire to a higher education.”

For Mendelson, giving special aid to the children of fallen soldiers is McGill’s duty as a Canadian institution.

“Symbolically, Project Hero is very important,” Mendelson emphasized. “It is a small measure we can take to demonstrate our support for the families of Canadian soldiers who have made the supreme sacrifice.”

The post McGill adopts Project Hero appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The pursuit of happiness should trump our desire for consumption, argued Professor Louis Chauvin during his Wednesday talk as part of McGill Green Week, hosted by the Science Undergraduate Society.

Chauvin, a management professor and President of Le Réseau Québécois pour la simplicité volontaire, an organization which promotes simplistic consumption, pointed directly to over-consumption as endangering our planet.

“For the past 14 years, I have asked myself why we are consciously destroying the carrying capacity of the Earth and what is needed for us to stop,” Chauvin told the audience.

Chauvin’s deep interest in consumption patterns and the environment inspired him to reach out to students, and teach them about responsible consumption and sustainability.

“I am a firm believer in education as a transformative process,” Chauvin said.

According to Chauvin, our society suffers from chronic dissatisfaction – a constant need for more – which harms the environment. He noted that many believe happiness is based on how much one consumes, which leads to over-consumption and depletes the world’s resources.

“People seek the high that comes with pleasure and are convinced that this sensation is the same as happiness,” explained Chauvin. “Whether it is gambling, excessive shopping, or a meaningless relationship, we give into these addictions and rely on such external factors for happiness.”

Chauvin added that usually as one consumes more and more, one requires a larger quantity of goods to maintain the excitement. He contrasted this attitude to pure happiness, which is rewarding for longer periods of time and leaves one with a feeling of fullness, without materialistic desires.

“The pursuit of happiness is the ultimate goal for humans,” Chauvin said. “We want to be happy and we think certain commodities will make us happy or happier. The reality is, happiness comes from inside and is detached from consumption.”

During the question and answer period, one student asked whether the current economic crisis would act as a catalyst for responsible consumption.

“There is definitely an increased interest in voluntary simplicity,” answered Chauvin. “People are unable to get solutions from economists and politicians. Instead, they are looking for alternative ways to adjust their lifestyles.”

Later, one student asked whether or not a federal framework was needed for a real reduction in consumption.

“Even with federal frameworks, many societal issues, such as racism, are still present,” Chauvin said. “What we need to do is target individuals and promote personal transformations.”

Chauvin concluded with a message of hope and called for a change in lifestyle to save what is left of the planet.

“Our planet can only handle so much and so, simplicity is inevitable,” added Chauvin. “The question is, will it be voluntary or involuntary?”

The post Happiness trumps consumption appeared first on The McGill Daily.

“The portal has been going in and out of service for the past two weeks,” said Jackson. “Each day, the system has been easily down a minimum of one to two hours.”

Jackson explained that the hardware housing the portal simply could not cope with the high number of users.

“When the system was first put together, we anticipated an average number of 3,500 users at one time,” said Jackson. “However, that number increased to 6,000 last Fall and increased again this Winter.”

The system collapsed primarily because of high usage during the course change period, a shift that Network Communication Services (NCS) – which provides campus-wide access to the Internet and McGill central systems – was unprepared for.

“Initially, we assumed that about five per cent of the student population would access the portal at any given time,” Jackson said. “However, it turned out the portal is much more popular than we first anticipated.”

Jackson added that improving the system afterward proved to be a difficult task.

While NCS did not receive complaints during myMcGill’s downtime directly, the Information Technology helpline did receive several.

“Everyone uses myMcGill – students, academic staff, and administrative staff,” said Jackson. “Complaints were heard from all constituents.”

Currently, the portal is up and running again, as the number of users normally drops after the course change period. Jackson, however, is looking for a more permanent solution to myMcGill’s capacity problem.

“We’ve been working on a project since last Fall to increase the number of users the portal can handle,” said Jackson. “Unfortunately, we could not finish the project by the beginning of January.”

The project is still in the works and will be launched in late February, during reading week, when the number of myMcGill users is low.

The post Overloaded myMcGill crashes appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The group will provide peer support, resource sharing, and discussion groups for trans-questioning and gender-questioning this week – services that Canada lacks, according to organizers.

Most trans/gender support groups in this country are run out of gender clinics that offer hormones and surgery as solutions to gender-questioning individuals. But Telyn Kusalik, a facilitator for Gender Construction Zone, felt such groups are closed-minded and may alienate those who do not want surgery.

“Many gender clinics are concerned mainly with those who identify 100 per cent as one gender. However, there are a lot of people who don’t identify as either men or women,” Kusalik said.

Kusalik added that the extra stress and pressure faced by young trans individuals makes the presence of Gender Construction Zone even more important. It offers individuals the space to discuss issues concerning their gender identity and build a community with those experiencing similar doubts, based on mutual support.

“There is a demand in our culture to be the gender one was assigned at birth,” said Kusalik. “Those who question their gender are liable to be laughed at, harassed, or even subjected to violence.”

Kusalik hopes to create a non-judgmental environment.

“I became aware of a need for a place where individuals could talk about their gender doubts without coming out to their loved ones,” explained Kusalik. “The process of coming out is difficult, and there are a lot of issues that need to be addressed before one can take that big step.”

For other services, Kusalik refers individuals to the Head and Hands Clinic, whose approach is compatible with the Gender Construction Zone’s philosophy. At Head and Hands, young trans people can seek the help of doctors and counsellors, and access free services, such as peer counselling and legal services.

“Head and Hands has a non-judgmental mandate and provides a comfortable, less clinical atmosphere for patients,” said Jocelyn, the clinic’s Health Animator. “We take patients from wherever they’re coming from and make no assumptions about where they’ve been.”

McGill’s Student Health Services also offers individuals a place to ask their questions to medical professionals.

“We have a nurse on staff who is always available to sit down with students and answer any pressing questions they might have,” said Eva Adomako, the interim Clinic Manager of Student Health. “We also have a Mental Health Clinic available to students with similar concerns.”

Kusalik added that the Gender Construction Zone hopes to complement and fill the gap in this specialised service.

“Most people don’t question their gender. Most go through life 100 per cent okay with the gender they were given at birth,” said Kusalik. “But for those who don’t, Gender Construction Zone provides a confidential, safe place to gain peer support and assistance.”

Gender Construction Zone, to which a fair number of people have shown interest, hopes to hold its first meeting next week.

For more information about the group and its meeting times, email tranniesatwork@gmail.com.

The post Trans group talks out the space between [M] and [F] appeared first on The McGill Daily.

“Sometimes the online voting system does not upload the details of an election properly,” said Nicole Gileadi, the Chief Electoral Officer of Elections McGill. “The problem was that non-first year students were able to vote in the First Year Council elections.”

Only first year students can vote to elect FYC executives – a body of six students who represent the interests of first year students on SSMU Council and encourages first year involvement on campus life.

“Since the SSMU ballot consisted of both the First Year Council election and the referendum questions, voting in both areas had to stop,” Gileadi said.

Approximately 40 students voted during the advanced polls. An email was sent out to all students informing them that their votes were invalidated and encouraging them to re-vote online.

“We encouraged students to re-vote but at the end of the day, it is each student’s individual choice whether or not he or she takes the time to do so,” explained Gileadi.

SSMU President Kay Turner did not consider the invalidation of advanced votes a setback in the SSMU referendum.

“The percentage of students who voted during the advanced polls was not large enough to have a significant impact on the overall results of the referendum,” said Turner. “However, I am confident that if these students were prompt enough to vote as soon as polls opened, they will surely be informed of the technical error via email and re-vote.”

According to Gileadi, Elections McGill has taken all the necessary precautions to prevent such a problem from occurring again, including uploading simple ballots to ensure against system overload.

“We have now separated the election and the referendum questions into two separate ballots, in case the problem arises again,” said Gileadi.

“We also immediately consulted with IT to prevent the reoccurrence of such a glitch.”

Turner remained confident that the referendum would reach quorum.

“We need 15 per cent of the student body to vote, in order to reach quorum. While it is generally more difficult to get students to vote in the Fall semester than in the Winter semester, we are confident that we will reach quorum.”

For the first time this year, students can vote on increases in ancillary fees – the University’s mandatory student fees separate from tuition – in the SSMU referendum. SSMU is also asking students to decide whether they want to renew the Undergraduate Student’s Fee – which funds bursaries, library improvements, and campus events. The Quebec Public Interest Research Group at McGill, which works on social and environmental issues, is asking students to support a 75-cent fee per semester and the Athletics Improvement Fund is proposing a $10 student contribution per semester. Online polls close today at 4 p.m.

………………………

You can vote for:

1) An increase in the McGill fee for online applications to undergraduate programs from $80 to $85 for applicants from out-of-province students and from $60 to $85 for those Quebec students.

2) A $10 increase per semester in the Students Services Fee, which will expand service in the Student Aid Office (SSAO), the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD), and in Student Health on both the Downtown and MacDonald Campuses.

3) Renewing the $19 per semester SSMU fee for the Access Bursary Fund, the library improvement fund, and the Campus Life Fund, which funds clubs, productions.

4) A 75-cent increase in QPIRG’s per semester fee to cover the costs of inflation so the group can continue sponsoring on and off-campus student groups like the Barrière Lake Solidarity Collective and Greening McGill.

5) A $10 per semester for the next five years fee that would complete the Athletics Complex and create more student space in Athletics.

The post Advance referendum polls invalidated appeared first on The McGill Daily.

The network, which will be operational in late December, will span the Boulevard, affectionately known as the Main between Sherbrooke and Mont Royal.

According to André Beauséjour, the Executive Director of Société de développement du boulevard Saint-Laurent (SDBSL), the wireless network will be accessible in all retailers, office buildings, and apartments in the area.

“We hope to ensure access to the network to everyone within the area,” said Beauséjour. “However, this all depends on each building’s individual signal reception.”

The project is being financed by SDBSL, as part of its annual budget. “We see this new network as a worthwhile investment – a longterm advertising and communications campaign for the Boulevard,” said Beauséjour.

To access the network, pedestrians must first pick up a free access card from any of the Main’s retailers. After logging in for the first time, customers can access the network at anytime without the use of the cards for up to six months.

“While computers can easily pick up unlocked Internet signals on their own, the cards ensure the network’s security. When users log in, they give us their email addresses, which enables us to keep the network clean,” said Beauséjour. “At the end of six months, customers can simply obtain a new card from any store.”

Beauséjour is optimistic about the network’s installation, “While the technology is complicated and installation will only be finalized by the end of the year, the network promises to work smoothly without any drawbacks.”

The accessible network promises many benefits to the Main’s customers.

“A lady can shop for clothes while her husband reads the results of a sporting event online. A customer can look up information on a certain product while in an electronics store,” Beauséjour said, noting only a few examples. “Today, there are many applications of a wireless network. It is no longer just used for sitting in a café and using your laptop.”

Many of the Main’s vendors are in favour of the network. “What’s good for the clients is good for us,” said George Ouellet, the Assistant Manager of Laika, a café, restaurant, and bar on St. Laurent and Duluth. “We no longer have to foot the bill to get wireless, which helps to cut down our costs.”

The implementation of a wireless network, however, is unlikely to affect the fine dining experience offered at Montreal’s famous steakhouse Moishe’s.

“People do not sit in my restaurant with laptops,” said Larry Lighter, the owner of Moishe’s. “The presence of this network will have no real effect on my business and as long as I am never charged for it, I have no concerns.”

SDBSL undertook the wireless project to draw Montrealers to the Boulevard St. Laurent.

“The network aims to attract more people to the Main’s establishments, whether it be people who live or work on the street or those just visiting,” Beauséjour commented. “All in all, more traffic on the street means more business.”

The post St. Laurent goes wireless appeared first on The McGill Daily.

Katherine Giroux-Bougard, national chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) – which initiated the project in concert with the David Suzuki Foundation and Sierra Youth Coalition – said the main goal of the project is to get the attention of government leaders.

“We want politicians to increase federal funding of public transit, invest in clean energy, and commit to sustainability on college campuses,” she said.

Brazie, a vegan Ironman, opened the event Wednesday and spoke on the negative trend of over-eating unhealthy food.

“The North American trend we see today is individuals who are overfed but undernourished,” he said.

Robinson, the CEO of the David Suzuki Foundation, highlighted the relationship between apathy and the lack of environmental activism.

“People fear the unfamiliar and [there’s a] resistance to change that crosses all cultures, professions, and geographies,” said Robinson. “While rising sea levels may not seem relevant to those living in Montreal and Toronto, to the South Pacific Islands in danger of disappearing, they are of the utmost importance.”

He also stressed the interdependence of the economy and the environment.

“A common question today is: ‘The economy or the environment?’ The reality is, there is no choice between the two. One cannot prevail without the other.”

Stephen Lewis, United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, was given a standing ovation for his talk on international atrocities spurred by environmental crises and called for immediate government action.

“Individual acts, such as eliminating water bottles and using the right light bulbs, are all valuable. But real progress requires government intervention…[such as] policies that will decrease carbon discharge,” he said.

While speakers troop between 21 campuses in 30 days, “Students for Sustainability” will continue petitioning the House of Commons to adopt measures to minimize the impact of climate change on the people and ecosystems.

The tour also urged students to make a well-informed decision when casting their vote in the upcoming federal election.

“It is likely that Harper will be forming a weak minority, which raises the question, ‘How will Canada be governed?’” Lewis speculated. “Change comes by voting politicians in and out of office. Here is the opportunity to put pressure on political leaders regarding the environment.”

The tour will conclude October 30 at the University of Victoria.

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“It is a high aim, but not an idealistic one,” said Martin Blanchard, assistant director of the Centre de Recherche en Éthique de Montréal, and an organizer of the conference. “We want to break the silence, bring together aboriginals and non-aboriginals. And that starts with a sincere apology.”

Throughout the 19th century, Catholic and Protestant churches attempted to assimilate 150,000 First Nation children into mainstream Canadian culture by teaching English, agriculture, and Christianity. A long list of allegations have been made against the 130 schools, including sexual abuse and crowded, unsanitary conditions where the children boarded. The last of these school, located in Saskatchewan, was closed in 1996.

Blanchard believes participants will achieve reconciliation by rehashing the history of these residential schools, and hopes the Commission could disindoctrinate the notion that victims should simply forgive and forget.

However, Kimberly Phillips, a spokesperson for the TRC, commended the Commission for tackling experiences from Indian residential schools that continue to haunt victims and Canada as a whole.

“This Commission is unique because it is the first court-ordered TRC to be established,” she said. “While legal issues will be addressed, we will also emphasize the experiences of former students.”

Blanchard pointed out that of First Nations people all over Canada were expressing strong interest in the event.

“It’s very difficult to reach out to aboriginals. In previous conferences, there has been very little participation,” he said. “But when it comes to residential schools, they have a lot to say.”

Blanchard recalled the aboriginals’ lack of faith in the ability of government initiatives to better their lives. He believes that has changed with the TRC. “The aboriginal groups that I have spoken to tell me that this Commission has given them hope. It is also making the academic community aware of an issue that has long since been ignored,” he said.

The conference will feature four panel discussions, the first of which – Reconciliation: An International Perspective – will be chaired by Christa Scholtz, a McGill professor in the department of political science.

“The panel will explore the politics of apology, internationally speaking,” said Scholtz, referring to the formal apology of Prime Minister Stephen Harper on June 11 to the vicitims of residential schools. Harper’s statement follows the actions of Australia and New Zealand, countries which instituted similar policies toward aboriginal populations.

“It will attempt to distill the experiences of the aboriginals and the lessons learned into actual suggestions for the Canadian government and its treatment of aboriginals,” added Scholtz. “Any mechanism that brings together policy makers, academics, and aboriginals to discuss such an issue as residential schools is valuable.”

Other panels will discuss the ethical challenges of reconciliation, the role of the media, and the relationship between memory and truth, incorporating academics and experts from a wide range of disciplines.

Anyone affected by residential schools is encouraged to heal by sharing their personal experiences.

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Through Community-University Research Exchange (CURE), an online database, community groups lacking economic resources and academic connections can post research proposals that will reach student networks.

CURE coordinator Emilie Connolly, U3 Cultural Studies said the initiative allows students to apply their research skills to practical and beneficial projects.

“It’s a rare thing to get your research direction from a source outside of academia,” Connolly said. “It’s a direct way to contribute to community organizations.”

Through CURE, students can browse a database for projects related to their area of study and then propose a writing term paper or complete an independent study project to their university department for academic credit. Topics vary from research into violence against the deaf in Algeria to mapping indigenous placenames in the greater Montreal area.

According to Connolly, the project, which posts research requests exclusively from Montreal groups, integrates university students with their surroundings.

“We made a conscious decision to concentrate on local groups so we could remain intimately connected with the students and community groups,” she said.

In keeping with their local focus, CURE hopes to expand by posting bilingual research proposals to make the database accessible to French universities in Montreal.

The non-profit, student-run initiative was born out of this year’s Study and Action conference, an annual meeting run through McGill and Concordia’s branches of the Quebec Public Interest Research Group (QPIRG) that seeks ways of integrating university programs and social justice organizations such as Solidarity Across Borders and the Committee to Support Abdelkader Belaouni.

At the conference it became clear during panel discussions that community groups’ greatest need is often research, an area well-suited to student contribution.

“We realized that there was a concrete way to fortify links between academics, students, and activists,” Connolly wrote in an email to The Daily.

CURE coordinators took their initial cues from activists at Simon-Fraser University in Vancouver that introduced a similar project at their University that has since become widely successful.

For now CURE is bypassing official collaboration with the University administration, instead choosing to offer research ideas and work directly with interested students and professors.

“We think it’s valuable to go under the radar,” Connolly said.

Although no students have contacted CURE to express interest in posted proposals, Connolly was confident that the initiative will gain momentum when term paper deadlines creep up.

Interested students can visit CURE’s web site at qpirgconcordia.org/cure/node/2, or email cure.mtl@gmail.com.

– with files from Shannon Kiely

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