Commuting conundrum: School

TalentEgg Incubator. 1 September 2010.

It’s almost back to school time and many students are considering their housing options for next year: Should I live on-campus, should I live off-campus, or should I commute?

Like commuting for work, commuting to school can have a number of advantages over living close to (or on) campus. The closer you are to campus, the more expensive your housing will be, so if you would like to save some money, living further away from campus can be beneficial.

Much of this depends on exactly what your accommodations will be, and what your living arrangement will be. For example, if you are living at home, do you have to pay for rent, groceries, and utilities, or will your parents waive those fees for you?

If you are living in shared accommodations (student house or an apartment), are your expenses going to be cheaper than if you lived closer to campus? And how does the money you save factor when you add the extended amount of time it takes for you to get to campus?

Paul Aoanan, a second-year mechatronics engineering and management student at McMaster University, takes two buses and travels up to 50 minutes to get to school everyday from the other side of Hamilton, Ont.

Aoanan’s family recently immigrated to Canada, so being able to save money while going to school was very important to him. “School is expensive as it is. I can use the money that I have saved [through commuting] to pay for books and other school requirements.”

If you are thinking about commuting being the right option for you, the most important thing you need to consider is the amount of time it will take out of your day. “You need to plan ahead and to leave early to avoid being late or caught up in something. During the winter months, commuting can be really difficult: you must tread icy sidewalks and wait for the bus during a cold afternoon. You must also endure extreme weather,” says Aoanan.

As anyone who takes public transit often is well aware, when you are waiting for your bus in the rain (or a blizzard or a hailstorm), it is going to be late or it won’t show up at all. Similarly, as soon as you get on to your bus, the sun will come out. Murphy’s Law happens all the time when you commute.

Depending on the length of your trip and the amount of transfers you have sometimes you can do some reading or other homework while you travel. If you’re prone to motion sickness however, that’s probably not a good idea!

Like many students, Aoanan primarily uses his commute as a way to veg out: “Most of the time, I just listen to the music on my mp3 player and stare out the window. This is how I meditate and mentally prepare for school.”

Aoanan has four excellent tips to pass on to students who commute:

1. Don’t rush

Keep in mind that school is a long way and that there is no turning back in case you forget something. During winter, people who commute are prone to slips and falls while on their way to their respective destination. Walk slowly.

2. Dress properly

Watch your local weather forecast and decide if you will need to bring your heavy winter coat. We do no want to freeze outside, do we?

3. Plan the trip

Knowing when and where to go is a must.

4. Leave early

Take into account unforeseeable events such as missing the bus or the need to satisfy your hunger pangs by quickly grabbing a tea biscuit from a store.

These four things will help make commuting a breeze!

For more on commuting, check out Danielle’s other Commuting Conundrum article about commuting to and from work.

Becoming a Welcome Week Rep: Reflection of a Graduating Student

February 7 2010. MacInsiders.

I cannot believe I will (finally) be ending my undergraduate career at Mac as of this April. I have had lots of good times (as well as some hard ones) here, met tons of people, and had a lot of shenanigans (random or otherwise). I'm very sad (bordering on despondent) that I will no longer be able to be a Welcome Week Rep.

I was a WW Rep for four years: I was a res rep three times (Whidden '05, Bates '06 and Bates '07), a Faculty Rep (Soc Sci '06) and a Maroons rep in 2008. My experience as a rep were some of the best I had at Mac: I met a lot of people; I got to initiate students into the traditions we created during my Welcome Week; I've helped start new traditions; I've raised money for Shinerama; and perhaps most importantly, yelled and jumped around like an idiot in a brightly-coloured jumpsuit.

I'm going to miss it so much.

My frosh have told me that they have wanted to become Welcome Week reps because of how awesome I made their Welcome Weeks. Not everyone enjoyed their Welcome Week (or even attended it, for that matter), but that doesn't mean you can't be a rep. Everyone I know has a better time being a rep than they did as a first year student, which is why so many people become reps year after year.

If you are thinking about becoming a rep, we have a stockpile of old articles that give first-hand experience to what it was like being a rep. Applications to become a rep for Welcome Week 2010 start soon, and we will be posting information as it becomes available.

In the meantime, please check out some of our existing articles on being a Welcome Week Rep. If you would like to tell the MacInsiders community about your experience please do so! You can submit it here.

Welcome Week Reps Part One: IRC
Welcome Week Rep Applications Part Two: Faculty Rep
Welcome Week Rep Applications Part Three: SOCS Rep
Welcome Week Rep Applications Part Four: Residence Rep
Welcome Week Rep Applications Part Five: Maroons

MacInsiders Mentioned in McMaster Times (Volume 25, Number 1)

12 January 2010, MacInsiders

MacInisders has been mentioned in the McMaster Times, the McMaster Alumni Association's magazine!

The magazine is published three times a year (Winter, Spring and Fall), and is sent free to all alumni in the mail.

In the Alumni Directions section, Karen McQuigge, the director of Alumni Advancement talks about how her life has changed since she was a student at McMaster because of the advent of Web 2.0, and how the MAA has utilized it in the past couple of years to bring McMaster to people even if they are not on campus or elsewhere in Hamilton.

She says:

These are just a few of the ways Web 2.0 is extending the McMaster experience beyond the edges of campus. McMaster students have created a popular website called www.macinsiders.com that provides a venue for students to share insights, tips, advice, news and even recipes (among other things).

We are so excited to be mentioned in the McMaster Times! This magazine goes out to all McMaster Alumni (over 120 000 to date), and reaches people all over the word. A PDF of the magazine will be availableonline soon.

Cheers,
Chad Fullerton, MacInsiders founder and President
Danielle Lorenz, MacInsiders VP Admin

Getting involved at school to the beat of a different drum

December 21 2009. TalentEgg Incubator.

This year, I had a large number of people ask me what my ethnic background is. I’ve been told I look Mexican, Persian, Egyptian, native or biracial over the years. I’m actually of mixed European background and my last name is German, not Spanish or Italian like everyone thinks.

Meanwhile, I’m minoring in Indigenous Studies and I’m a member of the McMaster First Nations Student Association (MFNSA), which makes a lot of people automatically think I’m native. Let me be clear: I do not want to turn into a contemporary, female version of Grey Owl.

I just don’t see the reason why you have to be from a certain group (be it race, gender, ethnicity, social background, academic program, etc.) in order to participate in the activities of other groups.

I suppose a lot of my confusion stems from the way McMaster does things. There are many different cultural clubs and none of them excludes students from joining or participating because they are not part of that culture. For example, McMaster’s ALLY Program is open to any student who supports the LGBTQ community on campus. I’ve been a member since my first year.

I will admit it’s sometimes a bit weird being the outsider because I don’t always get all of the inside jokes and how certain things work sometimes needs to be explained because I wasn’t exposed to them growing up (among other things). However, I firmly believe – as a very wise author once put it – “a person is a person, no matter how small” (or tall, black, white, old, young, etc.).

Traditional dancer Devan Kicknosway

I think there are many benefits to taking Indigenous Studies and I’ve learned a lot while being a member of MFNSA. I helped organize a welcoming powwow on campus; I’ve seen important individuals like Dr. Taiaike Alfred and Fernando Hernandez speak; I’ve helped organize a toy drive for the holidays and acquired donations from students so more toys could be purchased; and I’ve volunteered as a representative of McMaster at the Canadian Aboriginal Festival.

This upcoming semester there are a bunch of other events, lectures and activities in the works, and I’m excited to participate.

Perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned about another point of view: modern Western society, cultures, politics, history values and science vary greatly from that of Indigenous persons. I’ve had an interest in social justice since high school and what I’ve learned through my education and extra-curricular activities has made me try to facilitate change.

Let me elaborate: people choose to see certain truths when information is presented to them, which can be to their detriment or benefit.

Take Stephan Harper, for example, who said only a few months ago that ‘Canada has no history of colonialism.’ He was called a fool for his ignorance and it is clear he does not know the history of this country.

I have had an interest in other cultures for as long as I remember (thank you, parents for taking me travelling as a child; thank you to all the family who has given me books over the years; and thank you, Anthropology degree) and that has contributed my rebellion against certain societal norms.

I will continue to be involved in groups outside my self-identified box because I find them interesting. I enjoy my status as a liminal figure; I am doing what I want to do and that is the most important thing.

Paradigm shifts: From Alberta to Ontario and from biology to business

December 17, 2009. TalentEgg Incubator.

Regardless of where you’re from or where your school is located, starting post-secondary education is a big step and you’re not always sure where you will end up. Sometimes things don’t work out as they plan and we switch majors one or more times between September of first year and graduation. Alternatively, others decide to pursue a different career path after they graduate.

Jeffrey Baker, an alumnus of McMaster University with a bachelor of science in biology, is now attending the University of British Columbia’s diploma in accounting program. Jeff was born and raised in Calgary and moved to Hamilton to attend Mac, but after four years there, he moved further west to Vancouver to attend UBC.

Q. What made you decide to attend school in Ontario when you were originally from Alberta?

A. I wanted to live away from home and experience residence and university life, which I didn’t think one could do living at home. My sister was attending Laurier at the time, so I was away from family yet within easy driving distance if I ever did get homesick. McMaster also felt like it was going to be the right fit for what I was looking for, it’s that hard-to-explain feeling, but I just felt like I would succeed there.

Q. Did you face any challenges that made living far from home really difficult?

A. The biggest challenge was being away from all my high school friends. It is difficult to maintain those relationships, but I quickly developed new ones with people living in my residence. I only visited home three times during the school year (Thanksgiving, Christmas and Reading Week), so I had few opportunities to meet up with them when I was home, especially when balancing family gatherings with homework, it got quite hard to make time.

Q. Why did you start on the path to completing a biology degree?

A. I originally had aspirations of going into med school and biology has always been the common path for people going down that road.

Q. When did you realize that you were no longer interested in a career in biology?

A. Midway through third year I found I was not interested in biology to the degree that I would want to do it for the rest of my life. I have always enjoyed biology, but I was no longer able to see my future in it. Around the same time, I was becoming very interested in the stock markets and trading (it may have just been the thrill of making some money).

Q. Why do you want to become a chartered accountant (CA)?

A. It mainly boils down to job potential. There are several jobs I could get working in a bank branch as a investment advisor, but there is not much room to advance without the knowledge and expertise that an accounting designation would provide me. The CA designation focuses so much on analysis of a company as a whole that it seems like the best fit for jobs analyzing and trading stock and bonds.

Q. How will the program at UBC help you become a CA?

A. The diploma in accounting program is designed for students who already have an university degree but have little or no training done in accounting. It is an accelerated program that will satisfy all of the course requirements for any of the three accounting designations. It provides a nice alternative to returning and completing an additional BBA in three or four years.

Q. What do you find different about living in B.C. now that you did your undergrad in Ontario?

A. The DAP programs is run differently than the traditional bachelor’s degree because all of the classes are held at night. It has been a difficult transition for me to force myself to study during the day and then go off to class at night.

Q. Do you have any last words for students who may be considering switching programs or pursuing something different after they graduate?

A. I guess the most important thing to do is make sure you research your options well: phone or meet with counsellors and recruiters to find all the different options available to you so you can make the best decision. You don’t want to be caught in the same scenario where you are doing something that isn’t right for you.

Q&A with an economics-sciences student trying to be a pro photographer

October 29th 2009, Talent Egg Incubator

I have a real passion for photography and would love to do it as a career, but I’m not sure how possible that is for me.

There is an over-saturation of people trying to make it as photographers right now and, from what I’ve seen, many of them aren’t very good.

I don’t really know how to get myself in there without taking a huge risk, so for the time being at least, I am on the fence.

But the same is not true of Jeff Jewiss. He’s a photographer and designer who has captured some pretty impressive artists (Jonas Brothers, IllScarlett, the Weakerthans, and Dallas Green) and organizations as a photographer.

Jewiss’ work focuses primarily on portraiture, promotional and concert photography, but he has also done some work in other areas, such as shooting sports events. In addition to working as a photographer, he attends McMaster University where he is completing a bachelor of economics degree, with the possibility of simultaneously finishing a physical sciences degree.

I interviewed Jeff recently about his work and education while we were people-watching on campus in between classes.

Q. Why did you decide to go to university for science?

A. At the high school I went to that’s what they pushed, mostly the sciences in general. Our school was known for sending kids off to Queen’s, U of T and [McMaster].

We were told to put our time in at high school, get one of these degrees, and get a good job at the end of it all. I applied to those kind of schools, but I have family here [in Hamilton] so here I am.

Q. How did you get started in photography?

A. I worked finance full-time for one and a half years. If you’ve ever worked a job like that, you’d understand there is a lot of downtime. It’s against the corporate culture to talk about it, but there is. So I’d look at photography websites and photos when I had the chance. One day I just walked into a Henry’s and bought a camera.

I’ve always had a love of music, so I’d go to shows and take pictures. I started making friends with people in bands who’d appreciate what I was doing. So I started doing promotional shots, parties, etc., for different bands.

Like anything artistic, you need to continue what you are doing no matter how discouraged you get. You’ll think your stuff sucks, but others will appreciate what you’re doing, and pushing forward and keeping your head up will give you access to bigger and better things. You also have to be realistic.

One of the hardest things – for me at least – was fighting [a] ceiling. I mean kind of like the glass ceiling that women face in the workplace. It’s years of experience, time and equipment that make you successful.

But let me debunk the equipment thing a little bit. Just because you have really good equipment doesn’t mean you will take a better picture; it can make your job easier, though. It’s knowledge that makes you a better photographer, a better everything, really.

The hard thing for me is I’ll soon mark two years of doing this and I’m basically using the same equipment I started with. I haven’t been doing it for very long in terms of freelancing – I’m an amateur at best. I’m thankful for what I have but I want to shoot better bands, take more interesting photos and continue to grow.

Q. How do you think your education has helped you and can help you in the future?

A. All degrees . . . serve a purpose. Still, the person who markets themselves better will make more money, even if they’re not the best. Sadly, incredible talent often goes unnoticed.

It’s frustrating because there seem to be two main types of photographer: those who are technical and those who are artistic. The ones who get paid aren’t necessarily the ones who have a high technical aptitude, since the buyer is often ignorant to these aspects of a photo.

For a lot of people it’s chance. They will take thousands of photos and hope their idea will happen. But I want to be able to make it happen every time.

My hope is that I’ll end up in graphic design or photography. It’ll give me a stable job where I can support myself and do freelance work. That’s the way I’ve chosen to do it and it’s worked [so far]. Degrees are taken seriously, like a diploma from Seneca or degrees from OCAD or Ryerson. I won’t have that, so I’ll have to work harder to get my foot in the door.

Q. What do you recommend to other students who want to pursue a career different that what they have gone to school for?

A. I don’t want to mislead anyone. I’ve made mistakes which have cost me a lot of money. The route I took is probably not [the best] one.

Students need to realize what they’re doing now should be what they want as a career. Take into account the money and effort you’ll invest. From my experience, if you don’t love you subject of study, either stick it out because you’ve committed, or don’t waste [more] time and money and take a step back.

Trying new things and getting out of your comfort zone may let you find your dream job, or let it find you. What it comes down to is if you can afford to make lots of mistakes: mentally, physically, socially, but mostly financially.

You don’t want to be in school forever, but you don’t want a degree you won’t use either.

McMaster alumnus finds resolution of peace and conflict in her job

October 16 2009. TalentEgg Career Incubator

When we think of peace, many different conceptions of the concept may pop into our minds. Peace can mean settling a dispute with your loved one; a confrontation with a co-worker that still needs to be worked out; or the many of the global issues that plague our world today, such as the numerous conflicts in the Middle East or tensions with North Korea. Very rarely do we think of peace on the micro level. For the most part, we only think of peace in an outward sense and rarely within ourselves.

Danielle Boissoneau comments on peace and conflict and how the two can be resolved as part of her job, as well as in her blog, Sken:nen. Danielle’s academic background is from McMaster where she was a student of Indigenous Studies and Political Science. Danielle is an Annishnaabeq of the Old Turtle Clan, from the Garden River First Nation. She and I recently met up so I could get her perspectives on peace.

Q. Where are you employed right now?

A. I’m working for an NGO: the Canadian Centers for Teaching Peace. [I work at] The Hamilton Centre for Teaching Peace [which] is located in the Skydragon Centre, we call it the Peace Café. Specifically my program is called Indigenous Peace Education.

Q. So what is it exactly that you do?

A. It is a lot of workshops, dialogue sessions, and sharing information with people in different ways. I am putting on a conference on November 11^th called the Indigenous Peace Education Conference. It is in correlation with the National Peace Education Conference from November 12^th-15^th. The whole thing about the conference is that you learn about making peace with yourself and with your community and then take that to the global level. One of the sayings of the conference is about finding peace within yourself, something I think is important.

Q. How has your background influenced your job?

A. I think the current definition of the peace dogmatic, where peace only comes from non-violent resistance and peace outside the thing that is unreachable, is problematic.

We watch on the news that 100 people died today, and that thousands of others are killing people, but all of that is good because we get money from that. My work is part of the counter-sphere education. It’s kind of like Peace Studies: you might as well call it war studies because it is not bringing peace or changing the impact of what is going on.

The things I teach are kinda airy fairy but those are the kinds of things I know. Kind of like the movie What the #$*! Do We (K)now?: It’s about a paradigm shift; the documentary kind of examines that concept through quantum physics, but proves that changing the way you think can have dramatic effects. That’s what I try to share with the work that I do.

Q. How has your degree influenced your job choice?

A. I became very angry and bitter [during] my time at Mac, learning about power relations between state and citizen, the narrow definitions and seemingly twisted diabolic of contemporary society. Instead of feeding into the bitterness and anger, I became proactive; instead propagating the mainstream system, I decided to change the information that was being shared about Indigenous peoples and the narrow definition of peace. My experience through my education taught me that ideas and information are very important facets when discussing power relations.

Q. Do you feel that your background has influenced the way you see the world?

A. Definitely. Because I’m Native I was looking for reassurance for why things were the way they were. The political science degree explained to me who has the power and why they maintain it. All things – background, education, job – compiled together to make me who I am now. I’m kind of living resistance I guess, because instead of settling and being in this angry hole in the ground, I’m sharing info with people. It makes me happy [to do this], instead of dragging me down spirit and soul. I’m awesome.

Why I'm Thankful I Know the Real History Behind Thanksgiving

13 October 2009, Launch Magazine

At McMaster every fall, there is a mass exodus of students who head home to spend time with their families and consume lots of turkey, or sometimes tofurkey. But I am never one of them.

For all of the years I’ve been in university, I only managed to make it home for Thanksgiving in my first year. When I mention this to people they think my parents want nothing to do with me and I must have starved over the weekend. That, or I’m really anti-social. I assure you none of this is true, but we are a bit non-traditional when it comes to Thanksgiving.

My parents are cool with this arrangement. I’m their only child and have left the nest. They have adjusted to life without me being around and I have done the same. It’s not that we don’t talk often (we do), but it seems we do things differently than most families.

My parents drove down to visit me last weekend, took me out for Thai food, and then spent Thanksgiving weekend at their cottage. I, on the other hand, spent the weekend frantically working on the three essays I have due between Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon. Maybe this is our Thanksgiving tradition because it seems to happen every year.

Interesting fact: grocery stores still sell pumpkin pie to you even if you’re not with your family over the weekend.

As part of one of my lectures last week, I learned about the Haudenoshonee Thanksgiving Address, also known as Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen, or “words that come before all else.” This ceremony is important to the Haudenoshonee peoples and is a means of thanking the natural world for all of the things it provides. Traditionally, the address can go on for days at a time, and is recited in one of the six Haudenoshonee languages.

However, there are now short summations in English. Although I am not advocating for cultural co-option, I firmly believe we should all be giving thanks every day, instead of once a year. I really dislike that everyone feels obligated to give thanks because it’s a holiday. It seems to cheapen the meaning behind everything.

This time of year also makes me reflect on how much we actually know about the holidays. I’m sure you all know the real history of Thanksgiving, right? Sometime in the sixteenth century, the pilgrims and Native Americans came together and celebrated, as the Native people were preventing the British separatists from suffering from starvation. Everyone was happy, food was plentiful, and the world was full of rainbows, cuddly kitties, cute puppies and magical unicorns.

In case my sarcasm didn’t register with you, what we are taught about the first Thanksgiving is actually a huge myth. There was no Thanksgiving feast and relations were not good. Although the puritans were starving (they ate their dogs, boiled their clothes for the starch, and even cannibalized each other) and the Tsenacomoco did help them survive the first winter, there ends the truth behind the Thanksgiving narrative.

Once the colonists gained more supplies the following spring, they turned against the Tsenacomoco; a trend toward Indigenous people that has lasted for centuries.

Although there have been commonalities in the way Canadians and Americans treated and continue to treat our Indigenous populations, there are many differences between the two nations. The story of the foundation of Canada is based on both British and French colonists, creating a different narrative and thus a distinct culture down the road. The first Canadian Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1859, it had a pro-British, white, Christian, Anglo-Saxon message, and was incredibly anti-American. However, by the 1870’s the American “traditions” as stated above took hold on Canada much against the chagrin of our religious leaders of the time.

Since then, the holiday’s meaning has changed yet again for Canadians. The holiday we celebrated in the Victorian era wanted us to express thanks for the things in our world and the people around us. It was in 1957 that Parliament passed a law that Thanksgiving would move to the second Monday in October, and that is how it has remained, along with the American story. This has lead to Thanksgiving becoming yet another Hallmark holiday.

For Indigenous people, Columbus Day and Thanksgiving represents a celebration of ethnocide, since their population has decreased as a result of colonialism and the xenophobia that accompanied it. Copies of the May 4, 1493, Papal Bull “Inter Caetera” – the document that allowed colonizers divine rule over North America – are burnt as a form of protest. The Papal Bull stated only Christians had rights to the land and since the continent was inhabited by heathens, their rights were revoked as possessors of the land. The myth of terra nuellis followed and also “allowed” Europeans their claim to North America.

I am thankful that I have my health, a roof over my head, a family that loves me, and fridge full of food. I am thankful that my parents instilled in me the desire to keep learning new things. I am even thankful for the ability to attend university, even though I am not all that impressed at the due dates my professors set out for me this year.

What I am most thankful for is that Hamilton does not have a wild turkey population. Those bastards are mean and will chase you.

The History of Thanksgiving Part II

October 8 2009: http://www.macinsiders.com/showthread.php?t=24316

Most people do not know the real history of Thanksgiving, and I don't begrudge you that completely. We are simply not taught what really happened during the course of our education. Last year, I wrote an article about the real History of Thanksgiving. I suggest you check it out.

As part of one of my classes this week, we learned more things about the real history of Thanksgiving that I didn't cover in the article last year. What I learned mostly pertained to the "original" US Thanksgiving, which is the one ours is modeled after. Nevertheless, I learned some things I hadn't learned before. We also watched a clip from The Addams Family Values. You can check it out below.

YouTube Video.

Perhaps the most interesting thing I learned was about the Haudenoshonee Thanksgiving Address, also known as Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen, or "words that come before all else". This ceremony is important to the Haudenoshonee peoples and is a means of thanking the natural world for all of the things it provides. Traditionally, the address can go on for days at a time, and is recited in one of the six Haudenoshonee languages. You can find out more information about Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen here and read a short summation of it in English here.

Thanksgiving and/or Columbus Day also happens to be a day of protest for Indigenous persons, which I mentioned briefly last year. This year will be the twelfth annual papal bulls burning, where copies of the May 4th 1493 Papal Bull "Inter Caetera"; the document that allowed colonizers divine rule over North America. The Papal Bull basically stated that only Christians had rights to the land, and since the continent was inhabited by heathens their rights were revoked as possessors of the land. The myth of terra nuellis followed and also "allowed" Europeans their claim to North America.

I firmly believe, and have for some time, that we should all be giving thanks every day, instead of once a year.

Turning an interest in environmental advocacy into a career

October 7 2009: http://talentegg.ca/incubator/2009/10/turning-an-interest-in-environmental-advocacy-into-a-career/

Gen Y is one of the “greenest” generations to date. We grew up learning how to recycle as small children and were taught conservation methods by David Suzuki on TV. As a result, many of us have philosophies toward our environment and its protection which are drastically different than that of older generations. We don’t like how quickly resources are being used and how much the planet has changed in terms of climate and ecology in our lifetimes. We sincerely believe that if the degeneration of Earth continues at this rate, future generations will be doomed.

Conferences and protests have been happening all over the world in recent years to try to create solutions for these issues. Only some of these events have targeted those of us who have the most to lose and the most to say: youth.

Thus, in 2007 the first Power Shift conference was held in Washington DC, and due to its success a second event occurred early this spring. Power Shift Australia was held this July, with the UK Power Shift following suit on October 9-12, and finally an event in Ottawa being held from October 23-26.

Power Shift Canada is two days of training, action and strategy, and one day of lobbying to hold our elected officials accountable to the people they serve: those who want a solution to the climate crisis and those who want to build a successful youth climate movement. The event has sprouted a large following due in part of social networking media such as a Facebook Fan Page, a Twitter account, and a YouTube Channel.

One thousand youth from all of the provinces and territories will be converging on Parliament Hill to make a statement about the environmental procedures in this country as a part of Power Shift Canada. Will you be one of them? Katie Stiel will be there.

Katie is a recent McMaster graduate with a degree in philosophy and geography. In her last year at Mac, Katie was the director of MACgreen, the McMaster Student Union’s student-run service whose mission is to serve the greater McMaster community in creating a more sustainable campus. She currently works for Environment Hamilton and is also responsible for recruiting participants from the greater Hamilton area to come to Power Shift. You can check out an article she wrote about Power Shift for McMaster students here.

Katie and I chatted recently about how her extra-curricular involvement has helped her get involved in various environmental issues in Canada.

Q. How do you think your education helped you land the current opportunities you have?

A. To be honest, it hasn’t. I took some Geo[graphy] courses that piqued my interest. But it was mostly through extra-curriculars and students leadership activities I participated in that gave me the opportunity to explore. If philosophy taught me anything, it was I can’t be a philosopher and that I don’t want to be a philosopher.

Q. How did you get involved in environmental advocacy programs?

A. It started when I was a community advisor in Brandon Hall [a residence at McMaster]. There is a four-pillar programming plan you follow, and one of the areas is awareness. I did it on an environmental event … and wanted to take it to a larger scale. I kept on getting involved in different groups because I wanted to keep taking things to a larger scale.

Q. What sorts of organizations have you been involved with recently?

A. The Sierra Youth Coalition is something I got involved in during my fourth year. Greenpeace has really sparked my interest in the last couple of months. And the Polaris Institute is something I’ve been really interested about because they deal with water justice, which is a passion [of mine]. My interest in the Sierra Youth Coalition has sparked interest in others, like the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition, which in turn sparked an interest in Power Shift.

Q. What have you learned from being involved in these groups?

A. On a more selfish level, geared to me personally, I’ve learned some things skill-wise like different organizational techniques. But these are things I had before but learned some more while working within a national network. I’ve done some things on a smaller scale, in Hamilton and in Ontario. Although the Sierra Youth Coalition is on a national scale, you don’t really get involved with people in other areas. For the Polaris Institute, with conference calls you learn different perspectives of the same things which is awesome.

Q. What do you hope to gain from the Power Shift experience?

A. Personally, I don’t think I’ll gain too much; I’m going more based on interest. I do appreciate taking on the leadership role on something I’m passionate about. But I want to see how this will impact Canada as a whole and how youth will be impacted. It’s a critical time of the year for us because of the [United Nations Climate Change] conference in December [also known as the Copenhagen 15, or COP15]. Hopefully it will make an impact like it did in Australia and the US.

Q. How do you recommend that other students and youth in general get involved in environmental organizations?

A. My personal suggestion is to find an issue you’re passionate about and search from there. To use the Polaris Institute as an example: water justice and water issues were something I was passionate about so I looked them up. Don’t try to get involved with everything because you’ll just get overwhelmed. Also, look to your schools because at this point all [post-secondary] schools should have some sort of organization on campus.

Confessions of a first generation student

http://talentegg.ca/incubator/2009/09/confessions-of-a-first-generation-student/ September 29 2009

I always knew I would go to university or college, but I was never sure what I was going to school for, since I had such a large variety of interests. I applied to an array of programs at a bunch of different schools, and was accepted into them all. (I made my choice based mostly on a campus visit that involved cotton candy and bubbles.)

I became the third person in my extended family to go to post-secondary education and the second to graduate; however, in my nuclear family I was the first for both. I am what is known as a first generation student (also called first gen or FGS): the first person in my immediate family to go on to post-secondary education.

With the number of students attending university and college on the rise in the last decade, the number of first gen students has increased as well. We fill an interesting demographic and face challenges that students whose parents have post-secondary education do not.

In general, first gen students often confront the following issues:

• Being confused by the application process
• No knowledge of academic expectations
• Use of confusing jargon by the institution
• Lack of information regarding support-systems on campus
• Coping with life as a post-secondary student
• Financial barriers
• Not having support of parents and family
• Guilt in regards to the post-secondary experience
• Higher dropout rates than traditional students

The hardest part for me was not having anyone to turn to. I knew nothing about choosing courses, how university experience worked, living in residence or what the university could offer me when I was applying.

I also did not know the benefits that some schools had over others, in terms of reputation, cost, location, transportation, programs offered, class sizes, supplementary fees and extra-curriculars. The only real form of guidance I had about Canadian universities was the annual publication from Maclean’s magazine.

My parents didn’t have any way to assist me in my choice; the only advice they could offer was from other parents to their children, which in many cases did not apply to me.

Once I made my choice, made it through Welcome Week and started my studies, I was once again inundated with unknowns. I sort of fumbled my way through, and more or less ended up OK (I’m still alive, aren’t I?).

But I faced another problem: the language I was comfortable using at university was completely foreign to my parents.

Things that became normative to me and my peers had to be explained to my parents, oftentimes more than once. They have become more familiar with terminology and practices as time has gone on, but there are still many things I do not think they understand.

I noticed my world progressively became more and more dissimilar to theirs. I can’t really say what will happen in the future in terms of my relationship with my parents, since I am not sure if I will pursue more post-graduate education.

But if I had gone straight into the workforce, I honestly believe our relationship would have been much different, as there would be more things I could relate to with them and vice versa.

Since I came to university, I have noticed that many colleges and universities now offer support programs to first gen students in terms of peer mentoring, financial assistance, orientation sessions and workshops during the academic year.

There has also been an influx of information about first gen students in academic literature, suggesting schools have recognized the impact felt by FGS in post-secondary education.

If you happen to be a first gen student, take advantage of the programs offered by your school. Such a program did not exist in my first year, but I wish it did. It likely would have helped me avoid some of those snags (and there were quite a few) in my first year.

A few years ago, I was a peer mentor for first year first gen students as part of the flagship year of the program. Not only did we face a lot of the same issues in our respective first years, but I was able to assist someone else in their transition into university life.

I know my mentee was grateful for the information I passed on to him, and he passed on his experiences to other first year students while being involved as a Community Advisor in the residence system.