November 2024
News Editors: Maia Tustonic & Cassandra Bellefeuille | news.charlatan@gmail.com
Carleton researcher to study EDI policies at Ottawa universities
Carleton University researcher Manjeet Birk will study equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policies at Ottawa universities after receiving a federal Insight Development research grant.
Birk said she was “elated” to see an institutional commitment to her project, which seeks to understand how EDI policies function on university campuses and serve communities of colour.
Throughout her time in academia, Birk said she has seen EDI policies implemented differently at post-secondary institutions across Canada. She developed the idea for her research project after Carleton launched its fiveyear EDI action plan in 2021.
“I was really inspired by that moment to think, ‘OK, we have this great document. How does it actually get implemented and what differences does it actually make in the lives of people who are experiencing it on campus?’” Birk said.
Through the Insight Development grant, Birk’s project received just under $63,000 in funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
The money will fund data collection, student researchers and travel to conferences to present the research, Birk said.
Her project, named “EDI or Bust?” is still in its early stages. Currently, Birk is working toward the best way to gather information about EDI policies and track progress.
Birk said she originally wanted to conduct interview-based research, but will now pivot after experiencing challenges in contacting EDI-involved staff on campuses. The small number of people conducting EDI work and budgetary crises at universities often place EDI initiatives on the “back burner,” Birk said, creating obstacles for EDI research. EDI in universities also depends on the “ebb and flow” of public attention and the political
climate, according to Carleton law professor Rebbeca Bromwich.
Bromwich said equity action should have strategic and long-term plans, so it is not “swept away by whatever ends up being in the news cycle at any particular time.” She pointed to current changes in public discourse around immigration and international students as an example of political climates leading to more exclusionary rhetoric.
EDI is currently in an “ebb” period of budget decreases after reaching a high in 2020, Bromwich said. However, she said EDI action in universities remains crucial and post-secondary spaces have an “additional layer of duty” as educational institutions.
“There’s the explicit and the implicit curriculum,” Bromwich said. “Whatever people see modeled in a post-secondary context is what’s normalized to them.”
Universities can also be a “window or a bottleneck” for diversity within workplaces, Bromwich added. If university student bodies aren’t diverse, she said workplaces will struggle to hire diversely.
Julien Doris, a research administrator at the Université du Québec en
Outaouais, said effective EDI policies remove barriers to employment access, advance careers and improve the lives of people belonging to minority groups.
Different universities can have different internal EDI policies, he said, but the philosophy behind equity action plans is the same.
“It’s not only access to employment, it’s how to improve the quality of the workplace,” Doris said.
Birk said that while commitments to EDI by individual faculty members are “impressive,” EDI policies often simply serve the interests of universities as white settler supremacist institutions.
“The crux of it is, we have so many commitments,” Birk said. “But are the lives of the people on campus actually changing? I don’t know. It remains to be seen.”
In the end, Birk said she hopes her research will have a “tangible difference” in the way that racialized and Indigenous faculty, students and staff engage on campus.
“Ultimately, I am less committed to the policies themselves and more committed to the people.”
MAIA TUSTONIC
A federal grant will support Carleton assistant professor Manjeet Birk’s study of the implementation of EDI policies in Ottawa universities. [Photo provided by Manjeet Birk]
Campus Master Plan to revitalize Carleton with five ‘big moves’
CASSANDRA BELLEFEUILLE
Carleton University’s Campus Master Plan Update (CMP) outlines long-term initiatives designed to transform campus.
The plan focuses on five “big moves,” which are initiatives aiming to improve the overall student and campus experience.
These include improved natural landscapes, pedestrian pathways, flexible street design, expanded tunnel systems and building developments.
“The 2023 CMP reflects feedback from more than 1,000 faculty, staff and students,” wrote Steven Reid, Carleton University’s spokesperson, in an email. The plan is reviewed every five years and is approved by the Board of Governors.
Amani Hamzeh, a former architectural studies and urbanism student at Carleton, said she thinks Carleton has one of the best designed campuses from an urban design perspective.
“There’s definitely the space to develop more on campus,” Hamzeh said. “They should try to use up all the space they have.”
The plan outlines 28 potential new buildings across campus and one planned building, Rideau House, set to open fall 2025.
These new buildings include an enclosed glass-ceiling atrium in the Mackenzie Building, a mixed-use transit hub, parking lots and new residence buildings.
The plan aims to develop new buildings and greenspace in every corner of Carleton’s campus, including the surrounding area by Athletics and Alumni Hall.
“I feel like them expanding and going up to Alumni Hall is great, especially if they’re doing more edu cational buildings,” Hamzeh said.
The plan also proposes a four-ki lometre Green Ribbon trail weaving around the borders of campus to improve recreational opportunity, strengthen landscape integration and create social spaces.
“It’s clear Carleton is promoting a healthy lifestyle where students can go for a walk in nature during exam season or sit in the quad during the summer,” said Hamzeh. “But for the winter, they need to balance between indoor and outdoor spaces.”
Carleton has constructed several new buildings over the last couple of years, including the Nicol Building, Lennox and Addington House, the Health Science Building and the
ARISE building.
“We are so limited with where to go to study or gather,” said Hana Abdelwahab, a third-year architectural studies and design student.
“Whether you’re in a group or on your own, I feel like we need more spaces for students to just be,” Abdelwahab said.
Also outlined is a transportation framework to address congestion and road network inefficiencies.
“I like that on Carleton’s campus, you feel like you’re in a smaller city,” Hamzeh said. “But the road systems are complicated, and they keep changing and developing, making it hard for everyone to navigate.”
The university is looking to convert Campus Avenue into a flexible street to allow cyclists, pedestrians and vehicles alike to share the space, limiting buses in the area.
Library Road would be converted to a pedestrian priority street, restricting general vehicle traffic.
The plan is also proposing tunnel improvements and expansions to “humanize” the tunnel system.
These include incorporating brighter colours and materials to the tunnel system, introducing natural light through skylights and widening the tunnel pathways.
Master plan enhancements to outdoor spaces and buildings will occur in multiple phases over several years with no confirmed timeline.
“This is going to be a hefty project, especially when they’re taking a whole parking lot and redeveloping it,” Hamzeh said. “I’m very excited to see where this goes.”
Culture & Community
November 2024
C&C Editor: Sadeen Mohsen | culture.charlatan@gmail.com
Pollinator garden project promotes biodiversity, builds community
Carleton students are working alongside Ottawa community organizations to increase awareness and accessibility of pollinator gardens as a tool for environmental sustainability.
Now in its fourth consecutive year, the semester-long project is a collaboration between Carleton’s sociology and anthropology department and Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES) Ottawa.
Through this partnership, 59 Carleton students in a second-year community engagement course are paired with community representatives from Bel Air, Centretown, the Glebe, Hintonburg, Overbrook and Westboro.
Erica Shardlow, the trees and greenspace co-ordinator at CAFES, said pollinator gardening — which involves planting native species rather than non-native species — plays an important in local sustainability efforts.
“Pollinator gardening is such a powerful way of promoting biodiversity in our neighbourhoods and helping to reverse the decline of our pollinators like bees, butterflies, other insects as well as birds,” she said. Shardlow added that few people know about the benefits of pollinator gardens. As part of the course, students are now taking what they’ve learned to spread awareness through educational outreach projects, she said.
Some of these projects include high school presentations, informational signage and pamphlets, and interactive garden maps. Other projects take existing literature or signage on pollinator gardens and include additional languages to increase accessibility.
Nishtha Hurrydass, a second-year sociology student in the course, led a planting event in front of Westboro’s MEC outdoors store on Nov. 2 as part of her project. More than 30 attendees were provided with pollinator
-friendly plants and were invited to plant and drink hot chocolate. They also had the chance to ask questions to community speakers, including city councillor Jeff Leiper.
“My goal for the planting event is to show people that it’s not difficult to grow their own pollinator garden in their own backyard or front yard, in any space they have,” Hurrydass said.
“This is a moment where we can be empowered to do something.”
- Phillip Primeau
Hurrydass added that the “community communication” in reaching out to potential event speakers and community representatives was a rewarding part of her project.
Gabriel Jamieson, the course’s teaching assistant, said that while final products and community impacts are important, they’re not the only measure of success in a community engagement course.
The teaching team also evaluates the process and long-term impact of how the course has “affected [students] in terms of their knowledge and ability to engage in the community,” Jamieson said.
Phillip Primeau, the course instructor, said a lot of their students’ learning happened during a visit to Fletcher Wildlife Garden in the second week of the course. Over the last 30 years, they said the garden went from an unusable space to now being “full of ecological diversity.”
This visit was “transformative” for some students, Primeau said, and provided a unique opportunity for those who may not have had access to a garden before.
Jamieson added they have been “very impressed” by the students’ ability to make an impact thus far.
“This is a moment where we can be empowered to do something,” Primeau said. “It may seem small, but every little action, when it comes to climate action, can result in a big benefit.”
Students learn about pollinator gardens and their benefits on a tour of Fletcher Wildlife Garden on Sept. 13, 2024. [Photo by Erica Shardlow]
MARISSA MEILLEUR
Q&A: Carleton researcher explores inclusive and community-based long-term care
-ing lots. Instead, it was a part of the community, built into the community.
TC: Why is a community-centric approach important?
SB: Making long-term care a part of our community is really treating older people not with ageism and ableism, but treating them for who they are, as important citizens and members of our community.
Second of all, this actually fights the fears people have about getting older and end of life. We don’t know much about it. Why? Because we’re never around it.
TC: How does it benefit those in long-term care?
For years, Susan Braedley, a researcher at Carleton University’s School of Social Work, has been looking into different ways to imagine how long-term care can be provided in Canada.
She has travelled to countries including Norway, Denmark and Australia to study the benefits of non-traditional housing models of care. Through her research, Braedley wants to see long-term care homes serve the people that rely on them by creating a well-integrated and comfortable environment.
The Charlatan spoke to Braedley to learn more about her research and how she’s re-envisioning Canada’s long-term care facilities.
The Charlatan (TC): What is the purpose of reimagining care in Canada?
Susan Braedley (SB): Our work aims to ensure that older people who are in late life and need 24/7
care experience conditions that offer them dignity and respect. At the same time, we think the workers, both the families who care and the volunteers who care, and those who do the paid work, should enjoy conditions that offer them dignity and respect.
TC: Which models that you have explored stood out to you?
SB: There’s a long-term care home in Denmark that’s located in a wonderful community setting in Copenhagen. It’s a place where community members go every week for various activities. In Norway, we went to a home that was co-located with a shopping mall and the local swimming pool. We would see people come to the longterm care home, pick up grandma, take her over to the pool to watch the kiddies in the swimming pool. It wasn’t set aside in a big park down by the water or somewhere out of town. It wasn’t a big, tall building that was isolated by park-
SB: In the places where I’ve seen the community flowing, people are healthier. They have something to look forward to. They feel valued. They have lots of visitors. I think their quality of life is improved.
TC: How can we implement these community-centric models into our society?
SB: There was an ideological idea that if people want to make a profit, they’re going to create efficiencies that will improve quality. Well, you know what? It just doesn’t work with care. It takes time. It is hugely labour intensive.
I think we need to get the profit out of long-term care. A lot of countries put more money into long-term care homes than Canada does. Canada is sort of in the middle of the high-income countries. Given that our gross domestic product is higher than other countries, it would seem to me that we can afford to pay more for longterm care as a country, but political will can prevent that.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
GRACE MARTIN
Graphic by Alisha Velji
November 2024
Features Editor: Kyra Vellinga | features.charlatan@gmail.com
‘The world was never built for me’: Carleton washroom accessibility is lacking, student researchers find
Last winter, a third-year Carleton University Disability Studies: Policy and Activism class conducted an extensive audit of Carleton’s washroom accessibility and created an interactive map based on their findings.
The students’ research found that only six buildings on Carleton’s campus are fully com -
pliant with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) standards.
Even fewer campus washrooms meet the student researchers’ higher standards for accessibility, which include audio and visual fire alarms, adult changing tables and wash basins for prayer.
In light of Carleton’s goal
to make 50 per cent of campus washrooms accessible, the students produced 12 calls to action for the university’s administration to consider in future washroom design. Students are also calling on administration to expand the attendant services program, which provides students with personal living care.
GRACE HUNTLEY
Jay Baldwin sits by their favourite spot next to the Ottawa River on Oct. 7, 2024. [Photo by Grace Huntley/The Charlatan]
STUDENT RESEARCH
Fady Shanouda, a critical disability scholar, taught the Disability Studies: Policy and Activism class and decided on the research topic. The students undertook the rest of the research decisions, scope, methods and data collection.
The class collectively audited 330 washrooms across 13 buildings. To assess each washroom’s accessibility, they measured everything from door widths to hand dryer heights.
“It’s also shameful of the university that it hasn’t done more previously,” Shanouda said. “Now, of course, that this is done right, the university has asked for it to be part of its mapping.”
When asked by the Charlatan to respond to this criticism, the university media relations officer did not provide an answer, instead writing, “the university administration actively works with the Carleton University Students’ Association and the Graduate Students’ Association to support accessibility upgrades on campus through the Dedicated Access Fund.”
Shanouda said he refused to share the students’ data directly with the university, instead opting to allow the university to share a link to the student’s work on its website to ensure the students received the proper credit.
“They can’t just appropriate it, without paying the students, without acknowledging that it’s 100 per cent student work,” he said.
Fourth-year public policy student Sonika Sharma was part of the project’s research and scaling team.
The team designed a scale to audit the accessibility of each washroom. The scale included elements such as whether the washroom could be found on a map, if the doors were 86 cm wide (the minimum accessibility standard set by the AODA), if the sinks were of variable height and if free menstrual products were
charlatanfeatures
available.
Sharma and the rest of the scaling team then processed this data by placing each building on a five-point scale.
No buildings on Carleton’s campus were rated five out of five, meaning no building on campus meets the optimal standards of washroom accessibility as defined by the student research team.
Additionally, only six buildings on campus meet the lower threshold of AODA standards. The AODA standards include elements such as minimum door width (86 cm), grab bars and
“It’s also shameful of the university that it hasn’t done more previously ... Now, of course, that this is done right, the university has asked for it to be part of its mapping.”
- Fady Shanouda
automatic doors.
AODA, which sets the standards for accessibility in Ontario, is “very weak” because it is rarely enforced, Shanouda said. Advocates point to a lack of provincial auditing and mechanisms for reporting AODA violations as contributing factors to enforcement issues.
Shanouda said the Ontario building code, which is enforced at Carleton, includes some aspects of the AODA guidelines but is still limited in its scope. That’s especially true when compared to the students’ broader understanding of accessibility, such as accessibility for people with cognitive impairments or people who need assistance in the washroom.
Additionally, the provincial buildingcode only applies to new buildings or substantial renovations, not existing buildings. As a result, many buildings on campus aren’t required to meet the code.
In a statement to the Charlatan , the university media relations officer wrote, “Carleton is committed to ensuring that all new buildings meet or exceed [AODA] standards for accessible washrooms and that washrooms in existing buildings are being updated/upgraded to meet established standards in a timeframe that aligns with current fiscal responsibilities.”
Other data collected by the student researchers found that 65 per cent of washrooms on campus lack automatic door openers and 70 per cent do not have tactile or braille signage.
After assessing each washroom, the students’ calls to action sent to the administration include installing more grab bars, height-adjustable fixtures, proper ventilation and automatic door openers.
They also reflect the intersectional approach to the research, including a call for more gender-inclusive washrooms and changing tables.
When asked by the Charlatan if Carleton’s administration is aware of these calls to action and intends to address the calls, the university media relations officer did not provide a response.
ATTENDANT SERVICES LACKING
Carleton and Algonquin College offer attendant services programs which provide students with personal care services for daily living. These services include helping students dress, use the washroom and exercise personal hygiene.
Jay Baldwin, a fourth-year women and gender studies student, was one of the team leaders in the disability studies class.
Baldwin uses attendant
services to go to the washroom in their Leeds House residence room.
Baldwin wears adult incontinence briefs when they leave residence because they often cannot make it to the washroom in time when rotating between academic buildings for classes and their residence building.
“This is my ceiling lift,” Baldwin said as they showed the Charlatan around their accessible room in residence.
“And these are my supplies [incontinence briefs] that I wear every day when I go to classes, just so I don’t piss myself having to wait for someone to help me go to the bathroom.”
However, Baldwin said using
“Even though it’s an accessible room, it wasn’t made with me in mind. It wasn’t made with people who have different mobility aid sizes in mind.”
- Jay Baldwin
incontinence briefs places them at higher risk for urinary tract infections. With accessible washrooms across campus and if attendant services went beyond the residence buildings, they said they could wear the briefs less often.
An accessible washroom for Baldwin includes a sink their wheelchair can fit under, a ceiling lift, a commode, an adult-size change table and someone to assist them. None of the campus washrooms outside of residence contain any of these features.
Sinks in most washrooms are too low to the ground for Baldwin to comfortably fit under when washing their hands. To accommodate, they bring hand sanitizer
charlatanfeatures November 2024
with them everywhere they go. Even their residence room sink is barely high enough for them to wash their hands, they said.
“Even though it’s an accessible room, it wasn’t made with me in mind. It wasn’t made with people who have different mobility aid sizes in mind,” Baldwin said.
Baldwin also said that Carleton’s attendant services are underfunded and understaffed. The program is currently funded by the Ontario Ministries of Health and Long Term Care.
Kiara McGivern, a third-year human rights and social justice student, is a member of CU Care Act — a Carleton grassroots organization advocating for accessibility on campus.
McGivern also relies on attendant services, and said they can only use the washroom in residence. Because of this, they schedule their classes so that they are not away from residence for too long.
When they have to be away for a longer time, for example, during exams, they said they reduce their fluid and food intake to avoid needing to use the washroom.
McGivern said attendant services is an important service for accessibility and CU Care Act is advocating for the service to extend to other campuses across Canada.
“For so long we have been kind of cast to the side and excluded from higher education,” McGivern said.
“CU Care Act aims to make higher education more accessible to everybody, not just students who have access to Carleton University, because attendant services is a great program and it deserves to be expanded.”
According to the university’s statement to the Charlatan , “Attendant Services has made positive changes over the past few years to ensure effective staffing patterns for the program.”
Baldwin said the lack of washroom accessibility at Carleton washroomsmakes them feel “less
than” and scared for the future if the status quo continues.
“It makes me feel everything I already feel just moving through the entire world as a disabled, Black, queer, non-binary person with a spicy brain and body,” they said.
“The world was never built for me,” they added. “I’m not gonna pretend like it is, because I don’t owe anyone the toxic positivity that they think disabled people need to give them.”
Graphic provided by Carleton Disability Studies: Policy and Activism class
‘SHIT
POLITICS’
Baldwin also highlighted the intersectional elements of accessibility, stating a one-size-fitsall approach to accessible spaces will not be
They noted people with larger bodies, people with visual or auditory disabilities, gender-diverse people and people who need washbasins for prayer have diverse sets of needs when it comes to an accessible washroom.
“Everyone has [access needs]. Going to the bathroom and doing a human thing should not be something that’s so stigmatized and should not be something with so much red tape,” they said.
As a non-binary person, Baldwin said they feel conflicted about using gender-neutral washrooms to wash their hands in public. Because they often need help in the washroom, they said they don’t want to take up space in the few gender-neutral washrooms available on campus.
“Doing a human thing should not be something that’s so stigmatized.”
- Jay Baldwin
“I’m not a shitty person, even though things around me are shitty. Pooping and peeing and doing normal things you’re supposed to do as a human being is politicized to the point where it makes you feel shitty about yourself,” they said.
To make washrooms more accessible, Baldwin said the most important thing is consultation. They said Carleton should ask everyone, not just disabled people, what they need and want from a washroom, and take that into consideration in the
Shanouda refers to the politics of washrooms as “shit politics.”
“To make specific reference to shit and piss as a political action or process, and one that’s more politicized for one group over the other, is very important,” he said. “I think people take for granted access to spaces to defecate and relieve themselves and do all the other types of things
He said one of the reasons he chose this topic for his students’ research is to acknowledge the pain associated with washroom accessibility.
“Regardless of embodiment, all of us have experienced the feeling of needing a bathroom and not being able to use it. We understand the pain associated with that,” he said. “There’s something about auditing the university and demonstrating how disabled people come across that pain more regularly.”
Sports
November 2024
Sports Editor: David Cummings | sports.charlatan@gmail.com
NATIONAL CHAMPS: Ravens baseball team prove their chops against Canada’s best
RYAN CLARK & DAVID CUMMINGS
The Carleton Ravens non-varsity baseball team captures the national championship. [Photo provided by Ravens Baseball via
At the top of the seventh inning, Carleton Ravens first baseman Owen Constantineau stepped up to the plate with the championship on the line.
The Carleton Ravens baseball team was tied 3-3 with the Guelph Gryphons and had already collected two outs in the last inning of the 2024 Canadian National University Baseball Championship final.
The Ravens had centre-fielder Andrew Sahadeo in scoring position on second base, but if Constantineau struck out, the Gryphons would only need one run in the bottom of the inning to secure the championship.
“I don’t usually hear much when I’m at the plate, I’m in my zone,” Constantineau said. “And once I get in that zone, it’s pretty tough to get me out of it.”
Constantineau, the eventual tournament MVP, fired a line drive into left field, sending Sahadeo in for a run to give the Ravens the lead when it mattered most.
“I haven’t seen a baseball player in a weekend that locked in,” Ravens head coach Daylon Courchene said of Constantineau.
With momentum in their favour, the
Ravens never looked back. They scored four runs in the final frame to earn a 7-4 victory and the national championship.
The national championship in Kitchener and Guelph, Ont., brought together some of the top baseball programs in the country.
Following years of contention and a dominant 2024 season with a 22-8 record, the Ravens were finally national champions. All the while, they competed as the only non-varsity team in the tournament.
“I knew something big was about to happen.”
- Owen Constantineau
“We are a club team oftentimes competing against fully funded varsity programs,” Ravens baseball general manager George Rigakos said.
Playing without the financial support that varsity status provides, players pay lofty team fees and miss out on luxuries like team trainers. Although this did not
deter them, the Ravens were under pressure from the start of the tournament as they lost to their eventual championship opponents, the Gryphons, in their first game of the tournament.
“We knew Guelph was going to be probably the best team in the tournament other than us, so losing to them 2-1 wasn’t like a backbreaker,” Rigakos said. “We just knew that we had to win our next two games.”
The Ravens dismantled Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières by a 7-3 score on Oct. 18.
In a tight matchup that same day against the University of New Brunswick Reds, the Ravens desperately needed a win to move on to the semifinals.
With a one-run lead and two outs in the fifth inning against UNB, the Ravens called on reliever Jackson Hurst to shut the door. He recorded four strikeouts in two-and-a-third innings to punch Carleton’s ticket to the semifinal.
Pitching was consistently a huge factor in the Ravens’ success throughout the tournament. Their pitchers were awarded player of the game honours in three games where they faced elimination.
Ravens starter Jack Novak continued the team’s pitching dominance in the semifinal and tossed a complete game against the Acadia Axemen on Oct. 19.
Perhaps the gutsiest performance of the tournament came from starting pitcher Nathan Van Putten, who turned in a quality start in the final against Guelph.
Van Putten went head-to-head with Gryphons pitcher Ryan Cooper for six innings, each allowing only three runs. With the game tied, each team brought in closers to shut the opposing lineups down. The Gryphons’ closer forced two Ravens outs in the seventh, pushing the Ravens to the brink.
That was, until Constantineau took the plate.
“As soon as I got on deck, I was just waiting to get up there,” Constantineau said.
“I knew something big was about to happen.”
Dan Inglis Photography]
charlatansports
From farm to rink: Former Raven Allie Lehmann Looks to make hay in the PWHL
JANSON DUENCH
In Fribourg, Switzerland, Allie Lehmann has been living something of a double life. By day, she works as a part-time farmhand at a dairy farm in Bösingen, just outside of Fribourg. By night, the 24-year-old stops pucks for the Swiss Women’s Hockey League’s Fribourg-Gottéren Ladies.
But she said her dual existence may not be a sustainable one.
“In Switzerland, especially if you want a real career job, you have to work full-time. You can’t work part-time,” she said from her home in Fribourg.
But with an invite to the PWHL’s
Ottawa Charge training camp this month, Lehmann has an opportunity to make hockey her sole career focus.
“I hope it’s not a distant dream,” she said. “I could be professional, fully focused on hockey.”
It would mean a
shift from her current day-to-day life.
“Right now, a few days a week, I’ll go work in a dairy barn and shovel shit,” she chuckled in early October.
“And I’m like, ‘Man, in a month, I could be playing professional hockey.’
That’s pretty wild.”
Lehmann played for the Carleton Ravens women’s hockey team during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. With dual Swiss and Canadian citizenship, she moved to Switzerland in 2020, where she’s playing her fifth season.
On top of that, she’s participated in two world championships for the Swiss national team.
A call from an old teammate’s fiancé altered everything — Lehmann was informed Ottawa Charge general manager Mike Hirshfeld could offer her a tryout, which was made official Oct. 11 when the team’s training camp roster was released.
Ever since then, she’s been in frequent contact with the Charge’s strength coach, dietitian and goalie coach Pierre Groulx.
“This organization seems really top class,” Lehmann said. “They want all their players to succeed, and it’s really awesome to see.”
Ottawa is loaded with goaltending talent this season, including Canadian and American national team goalies Emerance Maschmeyer and Gwyneth Philips. Along with Logan Angers, these three goalies have all secured contracts for the upcoming season.
But Groulx maintained that nobody’s spot is guaranteed. Ottawa failed to secure a playoff position in its inaugural season, and the lack of dependable goaltending behind Maschmeyer was a pressing issue.
Allie Lehmann looks on during a game with the Fribourg-Gotteron Ladies in Switzerland. [Photo provided by Allie Lehmann]
“We need goaltending depth, and we need the goaltending to help us win games,” Groulx said. “So they will all battle for ice time, and they will all try to show us who deserves to play.
“If Allie shows that she has what it takes to play at the PWHL level, she definitely has a chance to make the team.”
Philips, who’s coming from Northeastern University with the highest save percentage in NCAA history, said she’s excited to compete with Lehmann. Both goalies are 24, so despite their resumé differences, they come in with similar years of experience.
“They’ve both been very receptive to what it takes to be at the pro level,” Groulx said.
Philips said the Charge have been holding optional calls to go over hockey systems, and Lehmann has been eager to learn.
“She’s pretty dialed, so I’m really excited to get to meet her and skate with her,” Philips said.
“[Switzerland has] had some pretty good goalies come through, so I’m pretty confident she’ll be able to hold her own.”
No matter what happens, Lehmann’s former Carleton teammate Justina Beard will be proud.
“Her dedication to the sport and passion for the sport was just next level,” said Beard, the Ravens’ current captain. “I knew she would always do something with it.”
Beard said it’s inspiring for the Ravens to witness a Canadian university athlete competing at the sport’s highest level.
“It just proves how good our leagues are that we play in, and I think it’s bringing our game to the next level.”
At the same time, Lehmann isn’t shying away from her other passion: farming. Lehmann’s parents own a 2,000-acre grain farm in Cecil Lake, B.C. It’s her home in the summers when she’s not chasing her hockey dreams or dairy farming in Switzerland.
“I really like farming with my dad, doing the spring planting season, because if I’m there, the two of us can get it all done pretty easy, no problems,” she said.
Lehmann graduated from Carleton with a neuroscience and mental health
degree, but after working as a lab technician for Johnson & Johnson in Bern, Lehmann said she realized she wanted something more hands on.
“I’m in a career transition outside of hockey,” she said. “[Working at Johnson & Johnson] was a pretty cool job, so that was kind of using my degree, but I’ve learned now that I really enjoy farming.”
Since leaving Johnson & Johnson in March, Lehmann returned to her family’s farm before becoming a farmhand in Switzerland. Her family farm produced milk, which helped with the transition across the ocean. It also stoked her interest in farming after her
hockey career concludes.
“It seems like over the years I’ve really been more drawn to that,” she said. “I wrote my bachelor’s thesis and now it’s just a little icon on my computer. It’s all that work for nothing. As a farmer, you plant your crop, you see that you planted it, you watch it grow, or not.”
Whether she also gets to see her work flourish in the PWHL remains to be seen, but now is the time to put herself out there.
“You only have so many years to really pursue that as a career,” she said. “I have a chance to make it, that’s the big thing.”
Allie Lehmann hangs out on farm equipment at her family farm in Cecil Lake, B.C. [Photo provided by Allie Lehmann]
November 2024
Arts Editor: Bianca McKeown | arts.charlatan@gmail.com
‘Tap-tap device’ makes non-verbal cues accessible for blind and low-vision musicians
BIANCA MCKEOWN
It’s often said that orchestra musicians function on a sixth sense, knowing when to play louder or softer with the rest of the group.
However, one way musicians achieve this is by relying on quick signals from a conductor which are often visual and non-verbal, making it challenging for blind or low-vision musicians to follow along.
“How is someone with vision loss supposed to step into the environment where people are signaling each other with maybe, a raise of an eyebrow or just a little nod?” asked Dalia Sakas, director of music studies at the Filomen M. D’Agostino Greenberg Music School (FMDG) for blind and low-vision musicians in New York City.
“In the case of someone with vision loss, that should be a tactile signal, or something that could be felt,” she said.
“In the case of someone with vision loss, that should be a tactile signal, or something that could be felt,” she said.
Carleton PhD candidate Leon Lu targeted this need for accessible, non-verbal communication through a wearable device strapped to a musician’s ankle.
The project, coined the tap-
“Knowing when to start, knowing when to bow [or] knowing when to stand up and acknowledge people in the crowd, [blind and low-vision musicians] would rely on other folks around them to tap them on their shoulder,” he said.
The tap-tap device is wireless and instantaneously sends and receives vibration signals between two users. It’s activated by a button pressed with a tap
Sakas said device uses varied depending on the musician’s skill level. Many amateur musicians used the device to fix bad habits, while more proficient musicians used it to elevate their performance.
“[A violinist] and her teacher found an innovative way to use the device to remind her of dynamic markings, when she was slowing down or tempo
tap device, stemmed from his conversations with blind and low-vision musicians about the barriers to learning music.
“How is someone with vision loss supposed to step into the environment where people are signaling each other with maybe, a raise of an eyebrow or just a little nod?”
- Dalia Sakas
[Photo
of the heel.
by Leon Lu]
Chase Crispin, a blind music teacher who was consulted for the project, said the pattern-based signal is similar to Morse code, but can be adapted to fit individual musicians’ needs.
“[A] person can say, ‘I want two quick vibrations to tell me to play quieter.’ Or somebody else would say, ‘I want one long vibration to mean, take a breath,’” Crispin said. “There’s no fixed-use case.”
After creating the device with Carleton students Aino Eze-Anyanwu and Rodolfo Cossovich, Lu gave FMDG students and teachers free reign of the device for eight weeks of testing.
fluctuations,” Sakas said.
“Rather than shouting above the music or interrupting the music, [the teacher] could just signal her with a little code.”
Crispin said there’s only ever been two options for blind musicians to learn music: learning by Braille music notations, or by ear. The tap-tap device provides an alternative.
“There’s never, as far as I know up to this point, been research or products geared toward a middle ground or toward an alternative way to learn,” he said. “In a lot of ways, it’s uncharted territory.”
The device is currently a prototype, but Sakas said she’s excited for how it can be refined and used in large musical settings with multiple musicians in the future.
“The first level of
experimentation was there, so now it needs to go to the next level,” Sakas said.
The device even has potential uses outside of music. Lu said he plans to upgrade the device to help deafblind researcher Caroline Pakėnaitė communicate non-verbally with her guide to summit Mount Everest. Lu also said he plans to make the project publicly available, so anyone can build their own tap-tap device.
“There’s a lot that’s communicated nonverbally through visuals, it’s not just music,” Crispin said. “We don’t know [all] the ways it can be used, and that’s a good thing.”
A person wears Leon Lu’s tap-tap device showing how the device fits around the ankle and sends signals in real time.
provided
work, the better it is to decolonize,” they said.
The three-hour workshop was divided into two parts. In the first portion, attendees started by talking about microaggressions. In the second part, attendees participated in exercises to practice the “five Ds” of bystander intervention: direct, delegate, delay, distract and document.
One of the workshop exercises is called “slow-motion commentary.” It consists of one person miming an action that represents the microaggression in slow motion, like putting in a new light bulb, while
the remaining people watch and describe what they see.
Ottawa artists offer ways to practice disrupting racism through improv
ANA MARIA CADENA
Using improv exercises and techniques, Velvet Wells and Hingman Leung are re-imagining how to disrupt racism in their daily lives.
Wells, an award-winning comedian, creative producer and musician, led workshops at The Grove on Oct. 19 and Nov. 9 titled “Practicing Disrupting Racism.”
“This is a practical workshop to disrupt racism through practicing the bystander intervention, [and] through acknowledging and countering
microaggressions,” they said.
Wells said the improv workshop offers some-thing that others don’t — a chance to practice what they teach.
“We’re trying to get people to practice what it feels like to disrupt racism,” said Leung, co-owner of The Grove, an arts space for queer and BIPOC artists and allies.
MJ Costales, an Ottawa-based felt artist, said when witnessing past instances of racism, she froze in the moment and only later realized what
she could have done.
“I’m a very visual person, so if I see something happen and if I practice it, it’s easier to do than when I don’t have that in my back pocket,” Costales said.
The project started a few years ago when Leung approached Wells about developing an improv workshop to help people react during uncomfortable situations.
Wells led a pilot session called “Use improv to disrupt anti-Black racism” on Oct. 19. But they rebranded the workshop because its name led to incorrect assumptions that it was only for Black people.
“The reason I worked with my community first was because we’re the ones who are impacted by it the most,” Wells said. “And society says, ‘Suck it up.’”
Now, with a more universal approach, everyone is encouraged to attend, whether or not they have experienced racism. Wells said the more people learn and look out for one another, the less these situations will escalate.
“We live in a racist society, so the more people you have engaged in the
“The point is to help people have something to focus on,” Wells said. “To get used to documenting what they are seeing happening right in front of them.”
Costales said she wants to attend future sessions to learn and practice improv elements in her life.
“Growing up as a person of colour, I think my way of dealing with microaggressions… I would laugh about it,” she said. “As I’ve become an adult, I’ve been more serious, and been like, ‘Oh no, that’s actually fucked up.’ But sometimes you
can’t say that.”
Leung said the workshop is a success if people leave knowing at least one thing they could do during an uncomfortable situation.
In the future, Leung said they plan to host shorter and more intimate sessions focusing on responses to specific scenarios and types of harassment.
Wells added they plan to pitch the workshop to organizations, schools, corporations and community spaces, and adapt it to fit people’s specific needs.
Even amid plans of expansion, Wells said the workshop will always work toward one ultimate goal: encouraging the community to take care of one another.
“If you empower somebody, then their esteem grows, and if their esteem grows, they’re more likely to be brave, to be courageous. Not just for themselves, but for others,” they said.
Conductor of the “Practicing Disrupting Racism” workshop, Velvet Wells, smiles and stands outside the Arts Court on Oct. 23, 2024. [Photo by Ana Maria Cadena/The Charlatan]
Graphics by Alisha Velji
Opinions
November 2024
Opinions Editor: Elissa Mendes | oped.charlatan@gmail.com
Opinion: Educational institutions can prevent the spread of disinformation. Here’s how
DANIEL
The fast rise of disinformation and misinformation has become a massive issue in today’s media landscape. False narratives — often politically charged — spread like wildfire across social media, influencing public opinion and even undermining democratic processes.
The growing use of AI tools to generate news, create deepfakes and even impersonate public figures is creating a dystopian reality. As this technology becomes more advanced, the ability to tell what’s real and what’s fake won’t be a luxury — it’ll be a necessity.
Enter educational and civic institutions to save the day.
By ushering in critical thinking, media literacy and civic responsibility, institutions such as schools and local governments must become a critical line of defence against the spread of falsehoods.
It’s fair to question how to realistically achieve these goals. Should we implement required media courses specifically designed to help people distinguish between fact and fiction? Particularly as AI-generated content becomes harder to differentiate from genuine news?
One of the most effective ways to combat disinformation is through
FRASER
Graphic by Alisha Velji
Two years ago, did you know what ChatGPT was? Now, it’s hard to ignore. In the coming years, it’s troubling to think how AI will become even more prevalent.
To boot, schools should encourage open discussions on fiery topics plaguing the media landscape. Students need a space where they can engage with more than one perspective, ask questions and arrive at conclusions based on evidence — not just ideology. This approach would encourage a culture of scepticism — an important characteristic for a productive society — that would ultimately disarm information that isn’t backed by facts.
In the age of algorithms tailored to a user’s views and interests, this multi-perspective, academic environment is crucial. Social media doesn’t typically feature positive or productive discussions, especially within echo chambers that only tend to reinforce one side of the story.
education. Schools and universities are in a great position to shape the next generation’s ability to discern truth from fiction.
In an age where information and misinformation is so easily accessible online, it is critical to include media literacy as a fundamental part of university and high school curricula.
High school years are a crucial time for students to develop their opinions and perceptions on the world. A focus on media literacy would certainly render young people with the tools and curiosity to be better informed.
Media literacy should not be an elective, but a required course. In this course, students would learn to critically examine sources, check for biases and develop the skills necessary to evaluate information they consume.
A mandatory course in university could then serve as a more in-depth follow up as students enter into society.
Fake videos, photos and even audio clips can appear remarkably real. As AI and deepfakes become more advanced and widely accessible, the need for media literacy education becomes even more urgent.
Outside of lecture halls and classrooms, awareness campaigns could also play a large role in preventing the spread of false information. Civic institutions, like Ottawa’s municipal government and the government of Ontario, coupled with media organizations, are in an important position to kickstart campaigns on how to identify misinformation, as well as to direct citizens to trusted and legitimate sources.
These campaigns could use social media, public service announcements, and even public workshops to spread awareness about the rise in disinformation while teaching people how to catch falsities.
Mandatory education may sound intense, but consider what’s at stake. Disinformation can destabilize societies by erasing trust in institutions, manipulating elections and spreading dangerous ideologies.
Right-wing disinformation in particular has proven to be highly effective at exploiting peoples’ deepest fears while simultaneously stoking divisions. It’s a major factor in why our world is more divided than ever.
Proper education and awareness would give people the skills to detect these divisive tactics before they can influence opinions.
Educational and civic institutions hold a massive responsibility in creating a better-informed public. Placing a greater emphasis on fostering media literacy and promoting critical thinking are important first steps.
By putting a plan like this into action, society could save itself from the clearly damaging effects of disinformation and the emergence of razor-sharp AI.
How to connect with the Earth as a Carleton student
MIRIAM VISSER
This past summer, I was lucky enough to work at Rideau River Provincial Park, just outside of Ottawa. I spent every day in nature, surrounded by trees and wildlife.
I showed up to Carleton in September full of excitement for what was to come. The first couple of weeks were amazing, but as the semester picked up, things have started to feel overwhelming. Assignments are piling up, the busy campus is overstimulating and I always feel like I need a break.
The nature surrounding Carleton’s campus has been an escape, bringing me back to the peace I felt this past summer.
We all know that nature helps us mentally, physically, and emotionally. Studies show more time spent in nature is linked to lowered heart rate and blood pressure, better mental health and an improved ability to focus. Nature has the unique effect of slowing us down.
In our urban environments, we are bombarded with noise, artificial lights and constant stimulation, lea-ding to heightened anxiety and mental fatigue. In contrast, nature offers respite, sanctuary and peace.
By increasing our immersion with nature, we develop a deep appreciation for the environment, which fosters a sense of responsibility toward protecting it. If people no longer value nature or see its relevance in their lives, how will they be willing to properly invest in its protection?
Now, you don’t need to go deep into the wild to reap the benefits of nature. You can do it right here as a busy student at Carleton. Here are some suggestions: Walk across the new pedestrian bridge and you’ll find Vincent Massey Park, a 28.9-hectare public park
with wooded walking trails and barbeque pits for a picnic. Follow the Rideau River through Vincent Massey Park to arrive at Hog’s Back Park, a series of artificial yet serene waterfalls created during the construction of the Rideau Canal.
The Rideau Canal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is only steps away from Carleton’s residence buildings. In the winter (weather permitting) it will transform into the world’s largest skating rink that can take you all the way downtown.
Cross the canal locks across from the Canal Building, and you’ll find yourself in Fletcher Wildlife Garden. The garden aims to restore wildlife-friendly habitats in our neighbourhood, emphasizing the use of plants native to the Ottawa region. It is a perfect escape from the bustle of city life.
In addition, Carleton’s H.H.J. Nesbitt Biology Building is home to one of the best greenhouses in Canada, as touted on its website. The two display greenhouses
accessed through the Nesbitt Lobby are open Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
If you are looking to get your hands dirty, Kitigànensag, meaning “Little Gardens,” is a student-led community garden created by Carleton’s Graduate Students’ Association. Located north of the Leeds Building beside parking lot P6, the garden allows students, faculty and staff to grow and harvest their own plots.
And hopefully, if I’ve convinced you of the importance of touching grass and you want to go even further, become a member of the Parks Canada Outdoors Club of Carleton. They regularly organize hiking and camping trips throughout the year. It’s easy for me to get lost in the never-ending to-dos of being a university student. But the nature around Carleton has reminded me to slow down, pause and look around. I hope it can do the same for you.
So please, get up, take a break, and go touch some grass.
Carleton is home to one of the best greenhouses in Canada. [Photo by Murray Oliver/The Charlatan]
Carleton Ravens football falls 36-34 in nail-biter against the MaraudersMcMaster at TAAG Park in Ottawa on Sept. 21, 2024.
[Photo by Oliver/Murray CharlatanThe ]
Carleton Ravens freshman running back Keyshawn Reid (22) is tackled by three uOttawa defenders at the Panda Game at TD Place in Ottawa on Oct. 6, 2024
[Photo by Murray Oliver/The Charlatan]
Student advocates gather at Carleton University’s academic quad to demand accountability from the administration on Sept. 12, 2024.
[Photo by Murray Oliver/ The Charlatan ]
Carleton students gather for the lowering of the flags to half mast during Carelton’s Remembrance Day Ceremony on Nov. 11, 2024.
[Photo by Murray Oliver/The Charlatan]
Following the arrest of a member,communityprotesters continued marching for the Palestinian cause at Carleton University on Sept. 12, 2024.
[Photo by Oliver/Murray The Charlatan]
Carleton wide receiverBenHuckabone(85) celebrates his touchdown with onFrederikHachey(89) Oct. 6, 2024. It was Carleton’s third touchdown at the[PhotoPandagame.
Oliver/byMurray CharlatanThe ]
From rural Africa to Carleton University: How community radio keeps locales current
ABYSSINIA ABEBE & JUSTIN BALL
In Lenekuy, Mali, Paul Yaya Traoré found himself grappling with the decision to marry off his daughter.
In a community where girls often left school by Grade 9 for early marriages, Traoré’s perspective shifted after listening to a Farm Radio program that challenged the norm in young girls’ educations.
Stephanie Coucopoulos heard this story shortly after completing her master’s degree in education, which struck an interest in access to education for marginalized communities. Inspired by Farm Radio’s story, she knew she wanted to get involved.
Farm Radio is a Canadian non-profit organization dedicated to using community radio to reach rural parts of Africa in ways print media cannot.
But rural farmers in Africa aren’t the only ones who benefit from local radio. Within the Ottawa community, Carleton University’s CKCU-FM, is an independent community-owned and operated radio station that has been telling homegrown stories since 1975.
From communities across Africa to Carleton’s campus, the invisible waves of community radio unite local voices with local ears.
Coucopoulos, now radio resources co-ordinator at Farm Radio, emphasized radio’s unique role as an accessible medium that reaches millions.
“It doesn’t require internet or electricity, making it a reliable source of information for those communities,” she said.
Community radio is thriving across Africa, reaching approximately 45 million rural listeners in 54 languages. With such a large audience, Farm Radio can address topics including art, agriculture, health, gender equality and climate change.
Podcast Hosts: Abyssinia Abebe & Justin Ball | host.charlatan@gmail.com
With many young journalists wanting to help reach these rural communities on air, Carleton’s School of Journalism and Communication offers international internship opportunities with Farm Radio.
Adrian Harewood, a Carleton journalism associate professor, hosted a live podcast at Cooperation Canada’s “The Future is Informed” event on Oct. 10. Harewood discussed the power of community radio to foster community change, adding that it can address community needs in ways mainstream media does not.
“Community radio provides marginalized communities, that are often left out of conversations, with a platform to tell their stories, to assert themselves and to contribute to wider conversations,” Harewood said.
While radio is an important global daily resource, Harewood added that it can be especially important for rural communities facing dire circumstances.
“[Radio] can provide life-saving information in moments of crisis,” he said, referring to the critical role local radio played during the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone.
During that time, he said communities relied on radio to obtain, “survival information on how to deal with [the] killer disease.”
In Western communities, radio fights an entirely different battle: the public’s eroding distrust in journalism. But Harewood said radio is a medium uniquely positioned to mitigate those
fears.
“There’s something about the [human] voice … It’s a bit more intimate, something that maybe they can trust more,” Harewood said.
According to Anne-Marie Brugger, CKCU’s interim station director, hearing a local, familiar voice on the air is a big part of community radio’s success.
“As a community radio, we are able to be involved with local businesses, local news stations, local artists and our volunteers,” Brugger said. “It’s everyone coming together for a community effort.”
Entering its 50th year, CKCU has managed to stay on air as an advertisement-free station thanks to a $8.74 per term Carleton student levy, year-round donations and its annual funding drive.
For CKCU and community radio, keeping funding local is as important as keeping the content local.
“Our funding drive helps us connect with our listeners and when we meet our goals, that means there are still a lot of listeners out there,” Brugger said.
According to Harewood, community radio adjusts to community needs in ways mainstream media might not, creating a unique space where community members actively participate in the station’s survival and direction.
“Community radio provides communities that are left out of the conversation with a platform,” he said. “It enables them to tell their story, and contribute to a wider conversation.”
Graphic by Alisha Velji
