The Queen's Journal, Vol. 153, Issue 17

the journal Queen’s University

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Vol. 153, Issue 17

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F r i day , J a n ua ry 9 , 2 0 2 6

Design teams report decreased funding from Dean’s Donation Fund

Engineering groups claim financial difficulties associated with the fund will impact planned operations Jonathan Reilly Senior News Editor

received $4,300 despite requesting $10,000. QSET Rover Captain, Ilse Kloosterman, Sci ’25, also confirmed The Deans Donation Fund, a yearly the numbers shared were accurate fund from Smith Engineering in an interview, explaining QSET provided to Queen’s engineering requested $54,000 but only groups, is facing criticism received $23,000. as design teams speak out Both Khan and Kloosterman against apparent underfunding. explained they’ve heard about According to an anonymous cuts across many of the teams source that’s involved in design this year, adding how this lack of teams at Queen’s, multiple teams funding could present barriers received under half of the funds in their own respective teams. they’ve requested. The source Kloosterman explained that it provided data that alleged has even presented difficulties aQuatonomous received $8,700 returning to a competition despite requesting $18,000, that that their rover team has been Queen’s Rocket Engineering Team participating in since 2016. “We’re really trying now to get (QRET) received $23,200 despite requesting $53,500 and being everything done in time for our granted $35,000 the year prior, submission to the competition and Aerospace received $24,600 to get in, but definitely with the finances, it’s taken us a lot longer despite asking for $75,000. The Journal reached out to the to figure out what we’re actually aforementioned teams to confirm capable of,” Kloosterman said. “We the numbers, but didn’t receive a had [also] been considering looking at launch contracts for a satellite to response relating to their validity. The anonymous source also get it into space, but we just know provided data on Qlean and Queen’s we won’t have the funding to do Space Engineering Team (QSET). that ourselves now.” Qlean co-captain Ahnaaf Khan, Sci Khan explained that while ’27, confirmed the numbers shared the team is still re-budgeting were accurate in an interview and figuring out what they need with The Journal, claiming they to change, they had a goal of

attempting to capture one kilogram of carbon dioxide—a goal which now has to be scrapped. He later added that this feels like a larger issue within Queen’s, explaining that the University has a strong and well-organized Engineering Society with the most design teams out of any University in Canada, but instead of it being celebrated, “it’s kind of treated as a burden or a weakness.” “We don’t really celebrate it unless it’s for a tour or something. We flaunt it only when it’s actually convenient, but we don’t actually put in the money or the time or the effort to actually support it,” Khan said. “That’s kind of what it feels like from the administration.” Both captains repeated that the prevailing sentiment within design teams is that they would get roughly 80 per cent of the funding they requested, whereas most teams this year only received between 30 and 50 per cent. Kloosterman explained that in previous years, there were two deans’ donations a year. However, starting last year, they changed it to only one donation a year, which took a hit to their funding. “When there were two of them,

we would also get the same amount [that we got this year] for the fall, but then there would be another one in the winter. So, we would, historically, always get 80 per cent of what we asked for.” The Journal contacted Smith Engineering to inquire about various claims, including the previous Dean’s Donation Fund process and if it was changed, but didn’t receive a response specifically on whether it was changed and why. However, in its statement Smith Engineering did explain that total annual requests for the Dean’s Donation Fund have ranged from $245,000 to $650,000, with the faculty allocating, on average, $225,000 to support the fund. “The total amount available for distribution each year is informed by previous years’ allocations and interest earned on the fund, rather than a predetermined annual cap. Fundingdecisionsaremadethrough a review process that considers the quality of each proposal, a team’s history of requests to the fund, alignment with Smith Engineering priorities—such as safety, equity, diversity, inclusion and Indigenization (EDII),

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Haudenosaunee peoples.

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and reimagining engineering education—and demonstrated financial need,” Smith Engineering wrote. In its statement, Smith Engineering also encouraged design teams to “pursue funding from multiple sources,” adding that they hold workshops to assist teams with securing funding. In response, both Khan and Kloosterman explained that they’ve found it difficult to secure funding, with Kloosterman explaining they’ve received sponsorships in the past, but the money often falls through, explaining the donation is their only source of secure funding. The faculty also added that the fund supports outreach programs, conferences, clubs, and more, explaining that the “number and diversity of requests each year directly affect the funding available to individual projects.” Both captains called for greater transparency in the donation process, with Smith Engineering explaining in its statement that students with feedback are encouraged to contact the faculty’s Director of Finance and Reporting, Renee Tulk, adding “the Faculty welcomes continued input to ensure the fund best supports student learning and engagement.” “The Faculty is committed to transparency and continuous improvement and has revised the Dean’s Donation Fund process in response to student feedback,” Smith Engineering wrote.

Queen’s bids for future of supercomputing with proposed national facility and new faculty hire

for the computer, and then there’s the computer.” Grant said the goal is to house what he described as “a top 10 time outside of academia have world supercomputer,” capable built and worked on here.” of supporting research at Karlin said his role at a national scale. Queen’s includes teaching “This isn’t a Queen’s and research, with a focus on supercomputer,” Grant applying advanced computing said. “It’s a Canadian systems to real-world problems. supercomputer.” “I tend to approach a lot of Under the MOU, Bell my research from an application would be responsible perspective,” Karlin said. “What for the physical are people actually running on the infrastructure of the facility. machine and using that to motivate “What Bell is responsible how you make it go faster and how for in the MOU is building you improve their quality of life.” the actual bricks,” Grant said. Karlin said his experience “What we’re responsible in industry informs how for is designing, building, he works with students operating, maintaining, and approaches research. and helping users with “It enables me to talk to them a large supercomputer [Queen’s students] about what that goes inside that careers could look like,” he said. building,” Grant said. Ryan Grant, professor Grant said this division in electrical and computer PHOTO BY JASHAN DUA allows Queen’s to prioritize engineering and head of The CAESER laboratory, located in Walter Light Hall. Computing at the Extreme Scale seen how those things work,” investing up to $926 million in AI computing power. “Bell building us a facility means Advanced Research (CAESAR) Grant said during an interview and computing infrastructure. “If we get selected, the facility that we can spend more money on Laboratory, said bringing faculty with The Journal. Alongside Karlin’s arrival, that we’ll be bringing to Queen’s chips,” he said. with industry experience into the Continuesd online at Queen’s has signed an MOU is two parts,” Grant said. “There’s classroom benefits students. www.queensjournal.ca “All of us who’ve spent some with Bell as part of a federal the building that’s special

The initiative hinges on Queen’s securing federal support to host a national supercomputing facility Emmet Paradis Assistant News Editor Advanced supercomputing infrastructure may soon be coming to Kingston following a new agreement between Queen’s and Bell. Queen’s is advancing its role in Canada’s supercomputing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) landscape through plans for a national supercomputing facility and the hiring of new industry expertise. That effort includes the recent appointment of Ian Karlin, an assistant professor with prior experience at NVIDIA and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was also signed between Queen’s and Bell supporting the bid to host the facility in Kingston, announced on Dec. 15. “I wanted to move back into research, and this was kind of the right opportunity at the right time,” Karlin said in an interview with The Journal. “I knew what was being

NEWS - PAGE 2 Yael Rusonik: First gay bar in over a decade opens in Kingston queensjournal.ca

OPINION - PAGE 6 FEATURES - PAGE 4 Eva Sheahan: The unfiltered student Erin Evans: The war manufactured improvement influencer experience @queensjournal

@queensjournal

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application to host a national supercomputing facility. According to Grant, the project is contingent on Queen’s being selected for funding through a federal program

ARTS & CULTURE - PAGE 10 Marijka Vernooy: CRFC launches 2026 Airwave YGK Musicians in Residence Program @queensjournalnow

POSTSCRIPT - PAGE 12 Sarah Adams: Why I’ve never had any goals in my life @thequeensjournal

News

2 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

NEWS Published Queen’s survey results will

Advisor suggests that students must learn to use AI to prepare them for the future Lilly Meechan Assistant News Editor

Queen’s survey surrounding AI reveals that at least 55 per cent of students are already using it. From July 2 to Oct. 15, Queen’s AI Nexus—a team of academic and administrative decision makers advising the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) at Queen’s—collected data from 2,244 Queen’s community members, including students, staff, and faculty, on their thoughts on AI to inform how it will be integrated into Queen’s education. The survey collected data from 562 Queen’s staff members, 381 faculty and librarians, and 1,242 students. According to the 2025

inform AI integration in teaching

Generative AI Needs Assessment Community Shareback document, student respondents were low because the survey was primarily open over the summer months, but expanded student input will be heard in the following months through committees, surveys, and student government. The survey collected data and asked a wide range of questions surrounding AI. Questions revealed that ChatGPT is the most popular AI tool among students, staff, and faculty, with over 80 per cent of survey participants reporting use. As well, 56 per cent of students desire clear rules and regulations about how and when AI can be used in classrooms. According to the survey, 42 per cent of instructors don’t feel prepared to teach with AI. In a statement to The Journal, Eleftherios Soleas, special advisor to the provost on generative AI,

assured that there are tools in place to help teach instructors and that more tools are on the way. “The Centre for Teaching and Learning’s AI Community of Practice is one example. Stay tuned for more from the Library, ITS, Student Academic Success Services (SASS), and the AI Nexus,” Soleas wrote. Soleas also emphasized the need to integrate AI to ensure that students have the tools, knowledge, and capabilities they need to use AI when moving into the real world. “Queen’s has the obligation and opportunity to make sure that our learners have the skills they need to succeed. We’re integrating AI concepts, tools, and approaches into our courses to keep up with the reality in front of us and the future that is to come,” Soleas wrote. Despite Soleas emphasis on the need to integrate AI and prepare students for the future, 32 per

cent of respondents voted that the integration of AI into schools could have a negative outcome. In response to this result, Soleas stated that he, too, assumed negative outcomes from integrating AI and that all diverse concerns and opinions, both positive and negative, are heard and considered. “As a university, our primary approach has always been an opt-in one, where folks can choose, but aren’t forced to use an AI tool in their role. This is reflected in the membership of the AI Nexus, where there are a variety of people and perspectives on the subcommittees,” he wrote. Additionally, over 80 per cent of both instructors and students shared the concern that the use of generative AI could reduce critical thinking skills. Soleas didn’t explain a plan to mitigate this concern, but stated that it was a positive sign that faculty and students shared

Queen’s surpasses fundraising goal, raising over $500,000 for United Way

similar concerns. “In the aggregate, students and faculty had the same top four concerns: AI Inaccuracies, Misinformation, Reduced Critical Thinking, and Academic Integrity,” Soleas said. “In my view, this confirms that community members value the same things, and these provide the foundation for a Queen’s AI coalition effort that meets the moment.” Soleas noted that AI Nexus is focused on improving secure tools like LibreChat, while continuing to strengthen Queen’s policy framework to address evolving risks, ensure ethical use, and support AI adoption that aligns with Queen’s values. As for specific changes and developments that have happened and are to come, Soleas shared that AI Nexus is working to strengthen existing tools alongside strict rules and regulations.

and every last donation that we receive is actually invested back in our community in an the end of November. In 2025, oversees campaign strategies, leads “They [retirees] drive pretty effective and efficient manner,” Queen’s raised over $500,000, outreach and coordinates close to 50 per cent of our overall DiPaolo explained. making it the highest campus volunteers. In an interview with giving back to the community,” One of the agencies United campaign total to date. The Journal, he said this year’s Ligthart said. Way works with and helps fund In an interview with The Journal, success came down to the efforts DiPaolo emphasized the is Kingston Community Health United Way KFL&A CEO and of a committed team and a giving importance of auto-renewal gifts Centres, who delivers, funds and President, John DiPaolo, thanked campus culture. through payroll deductions, noting packages student food boxes for Queen’sforitsworkandemphasized “I would think that it really that about 40 per cent of the Queen’s students struggling with the “incredibly important” comes down to the Queen’s $500,000 came from them. food insecurity. Lilly Meechan campaign and partnership. community support through staff, Funds raised are distributed to “There’s a real food insecurity Assistant News Editor DiPaolo shared that the faculty, and retiree donations,” a network of over 50 local agencies, issue going on with students,” $500,000 makes up about Ligthart continued. “The retiree with allocation decisions made by a DiPaolo continued. “We want Recording-breaking 2025 12 to 13 per cent of the total community is actually very panel of community volunteers. to make sure that students have United Way Campaign driven by funds raised for the entire active within the United Way “We have about 30 to 35 the most healthy meals available University retirees and voluntary KFL&A region. campaign on campus. They drive volunteers that come together to them.” payroll deductions. “It’s [Queen’s United Way pretty close to 50 per cent every single year and go through all This year’s campaign United Way Kingston, Frontenac, campaign] actually the largest of our overall giving back to of the applications that we receive surpassed Queen’s internal goal Lennox & Addington (KFL&A) workplace campaign. If you the community.” from the agencies to make sure of $475,000, ending with more is a local non-profit that raises go west of here [Kingston] to Ligthart shared several that every dollar spent wisely than $500,000. and distributes funds to Oshawa and east all the way to ways Queen’s raises money community issues Ottawa, this would be the largest for the campaign, attributing a through supporting and workplace campaign in that region. large share of the success to the funding local partners and So basically all of Eastern Ontario,” Queen’s retiree community and agencies. Queen’s supports DiPaolo said. payroll deductions—where United Way KFL&A through an Queen’s University United staff and faculty have the annual campus campaign that Way Committee—a committee opportunity to auto-renew gifts engages staff, faculty, retirees, and led by volunteers to support and donate a percentage of their students. The main fundraising and raise money for United Way paycheque directly to the United season runs from September to KFL&A—Chair, James Ligthart, Way campaign.

United Way leaders attribute 2025 fundraising success to a culture of giving at Queen’s

Bottoms Up opens as Kingston’s first gay bar in over a decade

local bars and restaurants have offered queer-focused nights, Bottoms Up marks the first official gay bar in Kingston since Shay Foo Foo closed in 2009. On its opening night, only four days after Bottoms Up was first announced, the bar already saw around 130 attendees. Yael Rusonik The owner of Bottoms Up, Paul Assistant News Editor Fortier, spoke to The Journal about the importance of having a queer Kingstonians have just been bar in Kingston. given another reason to come out “I remember the days when I at night. was at university, and started the The lower level of Renaissance, point in my life where I was coming formerly known as University out,” Fortier said. “It’s so important Tavern, has been transformed into to have a place nearby where you Kingston’s newest gay bar: Bottoms can feel safe, and feel that you’re Up. The venue, which first opened not going to be judged, and that its doors on Jan. 3, will be open most you’re among friends the minute Fridays and Saturdays, offering you come through the door.” hot and cold appetizers until 12 While Bottoms Up is a dedicated a.m., and music and dancing until gay bar, Fortier says that everyone, its close. both in and outside of the LGBTQ+ While in recent years some community, is welcome. He shared

The bar offers its attendees opportunities forfood, drinks, and late-night dancing

that on opening night, the crowd was a mix of all genders and all ages. “And people were very enthusiastic and appreciative,” he said. “So many people came up to me and said thanks so much for doing this. They couldn’t believe it’s been so long since there’s been a dedicated space in Kingston for the community.” Fortier is confident that Bottoms Up won’t fall victim to the same fate as previous gay bars that have closed in Kingston, pointing to his 35-year track record of running restaurants, clubs, and bars in the city. “I mean, we were able to turn this around in a matter of four weeks,” he said. “So I’m happy that we’ve been able to do that, and I know that the staff are enthusiastic about it. I’m enthusiastic about it. My partner’s enthusiastic about it. We’ll do our very best to make this work.”

Queen’s presents cheque to United Way.

PHOTO SUPPLIED BY QUEEN’S

In fact, should the positive orientations and gender identities response to Bottoms Up continue, is important,” Tabares said. “It Fortier is hoping to expand its makes the community feel more opening hours to other days of inclusive and allows those who are the week. “There’s all kinds of struggling to find a community to opportunities for us to bring know that there’s a spot that they in different types of events can reach out and meet people.” for the community as well,” Carys Newman, ArtSci ’26, he said. expressed similar excitement Queen’s students have already regarding the opening of the bar. contacted Fortier, expressing “I think it’s a great thing to interest in attending the bar and have in Kingston,” Newman said asking questions about how they in an interview with The Journal. can get involved. In an interview “I know a few years back there with The Journal, Agustina Tabares, were talks of a gay bar coming in, ArtSci ’26, talked about why she and I know a lot of people that I thinks the opening of Bottoms Up spoke to were very is important. excited about the idea of “I think having spaces in Kingston having one in Kingston. When that accept all identities and that nothing came of that, people are safe spaces for different sexual were disappointed.”

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

News

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA • 3

From Nigeria to Canada, one Queen’s students dream to tackle inequality

‘AmeIyoba is that dream made tangible,’ nonprofit founder says

Growing up in Nigeria, Osunde on supporting children with witnessed firsthand how women basic school supplies and light often must fight for respect or a snacks as they return to school, space to make impactful work. while also learning directly “Even with strides toward gender from families what meaningful equality, we’re so far behind,” she education support actually said, pointing to recent setbacks looks like,” the Instagram Meghrig Milkon in reproductive rights in the caption explained. Editor in Chief United States as an example. These “For us, this is about starting experiences shaped her vision for carefully, listening closely, Some questions are meant ‘AmeIyoba’, which is built on three documenting what we learn, and to be answered, though not guiding principles aligned with building future child-focused everyone is ready to take the call. the United Nations’ SDGs: SDG 3 programs that are shaped Perhaps, however, one student leader was. While applying for the Laurier Scholars Award in Grade 12, Ruth Osunde, ArtSci ’26, didn’t know that one question on the application would stay with her for years. Although she was waitlisted, the question stood out: it asked applicants to imagine a project rooted in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Laurier Scholars Award provides recipients with $40,000 toward their education, including $10,000 dedicated to experiential learning, supporting opportunities such as a summer research assistantship, an international exchange, or other hands-on learning experiences beyond the classroom. For Osunde, that question sparked an idea that would later become much more than a theoretical exercise. Now, four years later, Osunde, former AMS vice-president ‘AmeIyoba’ officially incorporated as a nonprofit in April 2025. (university affairs), turned the idea Good Health and Well-Being ,SDG by the people they’re meant she first envisioned on paper into 4, Quality Education, and SDG 5 to serve.” action. She founded ‘AmeIyoba,’ Gender Equality. Her determination to bring the an official nonprofit grounded in To put these goals into action, project to life was solidified during “advocacy, healing, and the radical the foundation launched the a church service, when two empowerment of women and ‘Rising Series’, a back-to-school moments hit her deeply: first, children across borders.” Its name, pilot program aimed at increasing witnessing a young girl sobbing drawn from the Benin language, access to early childhood because she couldn’t afford means “the well a queen drinks education in Lagos, Nigeria and her school fees, and later, seeing from,” symbolizing a source of focused on SD4. “It’s a Small, people lying on the ground outside strength and opportunity. community-led effort focused the church in front of wealthy

houses and expensive cars. The stark contrast in wealth and opportunities drove her to act on her idea. “That was the push that I needed,” she recalled in an interview with The Journal. In April, she officially incorporated ‘AmeIyoba’ in Canada, dedicating herself to laying the foundation for the organization. Osunde also emphasized the importance of involving communities in decision-making,

“What we see is a white saviour complex that exists in Western society or Western entities coming into a space. And obviously, the original intent is good. I’m not going to say that it’s always bad. But what they do is they make them [the communities they are trying to help] dependent on their way of life, which destabilizes how these people have always worked,” she added. Funding the initiative was challenging. Osunde relied on a mix of personal savings and donations from friends and family, some of whom gave their last dollars to support the cause. Reflecting on this, she said, “People think that when they want to do something, they need to do it big. But what this showed me was that even the smallest thing goes a long way.” Yet for Osunde, success isn’t just about numbers; it’s about lasting impact. She ties her philosophy to her grandmother’s saying: “You can bring a horse to the river, but you can’t force it to drink.” Beyond immediate support like backpacks or school supplies, she’s focused on sustainable outcomes: ensuring children stay in school, and women gain access to resources to start businesses. Osunde shared an early access story from the Rising Series: one girl, two years ahead of her class, whose intelligence and enthusiasm ILLUSTRATION BY JULIA LUDDEN inspired Osunde’s father to fund aiming to avoid the pitfalls of her tuition and track her progress foreign aid that often disempower through school records. For Osunde, local communities. “One thing being able to ensure knowing she that we want to do differently will continue her education is the with AmeIyoba is to prioritize truest measure of success. voices of the community. “AmeIyoba is that dream Very often, when it comes to made tangible—a nonprofit foreign aid, what happens is that grounded in advocacy, healing, the aid destabilizes the way of life and the radical empowerment for the people who exist there,” of women and children Osunde said. across borders.”

AMS Fall in Review: Executives cite JDUC shift, engagement push, and advocacy work

Team JEA reflects on pointing to the organization’s move into the JDUC as a shift the AMS has fall priorities “never seen before.” and lessons All executives pointed to

Perisa, in her statement, echoed the importance of being accessible and listening to diverse student voices, saying she has tried to the JDUC move as central to be intentional about listening Emmet Paradis & the fall term, saying the new before acting. Lilly Meechan location has increased visibility “One of the main ways I’ve done Assistant News Editors and changed how students this is by meeting regularly with access services. the vice-presidents of Faculty With fall elections quickly Additionally, Amer has felt Societies to understand the unique approaching, the current AMS “more cohesion,” now that offices challenges their students are facing,” executives reflect on their first few are centralized in the JDUC, rather she said. “These conversations help months and what’s to come. than split between locations like me stay connected to the realities As Queen’s students settled LaSalle and other campus buildings. of different faculties and make sure into a new semester of life in the “Now that we’re here, students the perspectives I bring forward reopened JDUC, AMS President actually come to us and are able truly reflect the diversity of student Jana Amer and Vice-President to ask a lot more questions,” experiences at Queen’s.” (Operations) Elena Nurzynski sat she said. Amer also pointed to down with The Journal to discuss When asked about campaign consultations with university the successes and challenges of the commitments reaching a diverse offices and equity bodies as part team’s 2025 fall semester. student body, the executives said of their approach, naming groups Vice-President (University their approach this year has focused including the Human Rights and Affairs) Alyssa Perisa was unable on being proactive and accessible, Equity Office, the Division of to attend the meeting due to a rather than expecting students to Student Affairs, and others. scheduling mistake, but sent navigate AMS systems on their own. The Journal a statement with her Amer and Nurzynski both spoke Engagement Strategies thoughts on the year so far. to the JDUC, surveys, newsletters, Amer described the year as and social media, helping make All executives said student “one of learning and adaptability,” this possible. engagement has been a priority,

and they consistently seek new, blew up,” this year, according to effective ways to keep students Amer. The account has averaged engaged throughout the fall. “over a one or two million click The AMS reinstated a monthly rate” per month. The account’s newsletter and has seen over “30 follower counts also doubled plus per cent,” open rates, according after plateauing. to Amer. The AMS has also used giveaways tied to referenda—the Investments, Divestment Calls, Fall Referendum received 14.6 per and Student Safety cent voter turnout—to encourage participation and awareness. The executives addressed According to Amer, the AMS calls on campus for divestment has been sharing updates through related to the war in Gaza and its website, blogs, newsletter, and other concerns about investments. Instagram, and also referenced Amer emphasized a distinction using “a couple different between Queen’s investments and international chat sites,” to better AMS investments. reach international students, “Queens has their own separate Survey feedback has also investment portfolio and the AMS guided decision-making. Nurzynski has their own separate investment pointed to a student experience portfolio,” Nurzynski continued, survey conducted in September, to “and we have an investment ask what students were looking for committee which does look at in the AMS, saying results helped our investments […] we ensure the AMS understand how students that our investments are held to a want to hear from their student certain standard.” government and what information they’re looking for. Continued online at The AMS Instagram “really www.queensjournal.ca

4 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

FEATURES

Studying, uploading, and curating: The

unfiltered student influencer experience Student influencers say they find community and creativity through the online world Eva Sheahan Features Editor

followers on TikTok, with her most liked video on TikTok reaching over 2.5 million views. “I’ve never actually wanted to be [a social media influencer] and when I started the baking business, it wasn’t really my intention to try to go viral or be a big social media influencer,” Shim said in an interview with The Journal. “That was never what it was about, because even in my personal life, I tend to keep to myself.” Shim first turned to social media to promote Cait’s Cookies, the baking business she launched in January 2025. After the success of her debut back sale, she saw its potential—and the platform to grow it. With a natural love for editing, posting flavour reveals and baking tips came easily. “I post every single day, which does mean filming, editing, and planning daily as well. Sometimes I forget that I even do cookies, because I don’t bake every single day, but I do post every single day, so it’s definitely a lot,” Shim said. Social media success also came later in Alexa Paemurd’s university career. Her “Day in the Life” videos and study vlogs on TikTok have now reached more than 100, 000 followers. She began taking TikTok more seriously as a hobby in second year when her videos began gaining more traction, but it wasn’t until

Features

university and submitting Master’s applications and about living my last semester,” Paemurd said in an interview with The Journal. “My account is documenting my life, and hopefully these different life stages, other people will be in and will be looking for someone to relate to and hopefully, I can be that person.” Paemurd says her content is often less about creating and more about documenting—her study vlogs simply capture what she’d be doing anyway. Additionally, she’s always loved documenting and creating content, explaining that she enjoyed “not even simply making TikToks, but making travel recap videos for my friends or videos from being at home with my family.” Similarly for fellow Queen’s student, Catherine Park, ConEd ’27, posting on social media has always been about documenting and curating as well. “I take pride especially in my Instagram and use it to take photos of the little things that people might pass by in their everyday life and not truly see. I think it helps me to romanticize my life. My social media is a reflection, to show other people how I see the world,” Park said in an interview with The Journal, calling upon the popular adage: a picture is worth a thousand words. “I’ve always taken photos of anything and everything even as a kid.” Park has also had some viral videos on TikTok, relating to academia. “I find posting as a way to resonate and connect with people, showing the raw and vulnerable side of humanity. When I post on TikTok about the struggles I have

Student life isn’t only unfolding in classrooms, bars, and libraries—but is developing across curated digital feeds. Whether it’s Get Ready With Me (GRWM) videos or comedy skits, Queen’s micro-influencers are becoming increasingly viral and visible in Kingston—with thousands, even millions of views, on TikTok, these micro-influencers are beginning to be recognized by peers around campus. The Journal met with various students who have amassed a social media following, including Alexa Paemurd, ArtSci ’26, Tyler Doughty, ArtSci ’29, and Caitlyn Shim, ConEd ’26, to discuss how their internet lives have positively shaped and impacted their student experiences. For Doughty, or as he’s known online, the King @ Queen’s, posting about Queen’s and the university experience was something he began right as he stepped onto campus—and he isn’t planning on going anywhere soon. His content ranges from what’s trending to relatable videos for first years, but mostly focuses on comedic skits about the undergraduate student experience. “[My content is] not for any serious debates or anything. If I can take five seconds out of your day and make you smile once, it’s all that matters to me,” Doughty said in an interview with The Journal, encouraging people to enjoy, to laugh, and to tease his content. However, despite unserious content creation, Doughty’s serious about connecting with other first-years about the shared experiences of living in dormitories, navigating exams, and joking with Engineering students who’ve painted themselves purple. Doughty claims he gets recognized around campus by around one person per day, and that number only increases at parties and social events. Especially proud of the fact that he began content creating very early on into his recently that Paemurd began to in academia, I find it gains a lot of undergraduate career, Doughty see social media’s career potential views and traction because other explains how it has allowed him to and started working with different students can easily relate because make a large reach amongst first- companies for collaborations. She most of us are on TikTok, likely year students who are searching also signed with Upside Down facing similar struggles from online for tips and relatability. “I Talent, a management house/talent abundant courseloads,” Park said. take pride in the fact that I’m able to agency in Toronto. Despite all of the positives of talk to the people who are coming Through short TikTok videos, connecting and storytelling that into Queen’s and still have no clue Paemurd shares advice for come from student influencing what they’re doing, because if I’m incoming students, study tips, and and the online world, the balance going to be fully honest, I had no campus “study crawls,” hopping between school and social clue what I was doing as I was between favourite library and café media doesn’t come easily for coming here,” he said. spots. But her content also speaks some microinfluencers. Unlike Doughty, Shim, of Cait’s to the later years of undergraduate Shim spent the past summer, Cookies, was busy baking her life, reminding viewers that balancing two jobs, doing summer future, not her feed—social media student-focused social media isn’t school, and baking on the side. didn’t rise for her until last year. only for first-years. “Running a student business and As of Jan. 8, she has over 80, 000 “Right now, my content is about being a content creator isn’t easy

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

at all,” she said. “Being a student, running a business, and creating content are each difficult in their own world, but doing all three at once is a lot more work than people realize. When I post about my content, I hope that I can portray to people that it does require a lot of time.” As her account has grown, Paemurd says she’s begun to feel a slight pressure to maintain a certain image on campus. That tension reflects a broader shift in student life, where social media influence now feels both attainable and unavoidable. Today’s university students aren’t casual users of these platforms—they grew up on them. Pew Research reports that 95 per cent of American teenagers use TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube daily. The more time students spend online,

understandings of social media are not universally shared. For Park, social media’s representative of the transience and fleetingness of human interest. When it comes to posting, she tells The Journal she doesn’t worry too much about what she posts because she doesn’t find it to be sustainable. “What social media makes popular at one certain point of time isn’t long-lasting, nor do I expect it to be,” Park said. All that is known for certain about student social media use is the profound impact that it has on people’s lives, including fellow Queen’s students’ ideas and passions. Despite the differences in Shim, Doughty, and Paemurd’s brand and approach to TikTok, they are all united in their love of Queen’s, their desire for authenticity both online and in real life, and the fact that none of them feel represented entirely by the term “student influencer”. None of the three students expected to become influencers, micro campus celebrities, content creators, or whatever one wants to call it. All of them share the amazed feeling whenever greeted by people on campus who know them from their videos. Even though social media is often critiqued for making people less social in real life, reducing face-to-face interactions, this isn’t the experience they’ve had. If anything, their social media presences have led more people who they didn’t know prior to approach and introduce themselves. “I will never get tired of people being like ‘Oh my gosh, you’re the more content creation begins to the cookie girl’, or ‘you’re Cait’s feel within reach. Cookies!” Shim said. She mentions Doughty even jokes that some having a bubbly personality and of his understanding of content enjoying conversation with others, creating has come from “doom- and being on social media has scrolling”—an endless scroll on only provided an outlet for social media for a long time without these interactions. any breaks. Shim also mentions “I enjoy having conversations that even after her long days of with strangers and this kind of juggling different responsibilities, brings a little bit more opportunity she’d end the night on her phone, for those conversations. I like to get editing videos to post for the to know different people on campus next day. and [being recognized] creates that Though, because of her deep opportunity,” Paemurd said in understanding of the online an interview with The Journal. sphere, Shim told The Journal that content creation has become Continued online at a “safe space”. However, these www.queensjournal.ca

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

The Journal’s Perspective

Editorials

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA • 5

EDITORIALS

THE QUEEN’S JOURNAL

Canadians have been too focused on preserving a sense of national pride ILLUSTRATION BY JULIA LUDDEN

Too many Canadains are left without clean drinking water within the nation’s own borders. On Jan. 4, the Kashechewan First Nation Chief Hosea Wesley declared a state of emergency, announcing plans to evacuate due to the failure of the water treatment system. It’s the continual occurrence of boiling water warnings on Indigenous reserves that remind Canadians just how far we’re from achieving campaign promises outlined by Justin Trudeau over a decade ago. Boil water advisories are far too common in Indigenous communities across Canada. As of December, there were 39 long-term drinking water advisories in Canada, 37 of which were on Indigenous reserves. Almost 50 per cent of these communities have the infrastructure to produce clean water, but are without the finances to power or repair them. Amid tariff threats, Canadians have become so dedicated to creating a cohesive national identity, Canada has forgotten to acknowledge its own indisputable shortcomings. In 2015, Justin Trudeau made a campaign promise to end First Nations reserve boil water advisories in the next five years, stating the advisories have gone on for far too long.

In 2020, the Minister of Indigenous Services admitted the government wouldn’t be able to meet this deadline. Still, in 2026, Indigenous people are being forced out of their homes with no clear indication of when it’ll be safe to return. Mark Carney campaigned on a platform of economic prosperity. Shortly following his 2025 election, Carney cut over $2.3 billion in funding for the First Nations Water and Wastewater Program. It’s clear Carney wasn’t referring to the prosperity of everyone when he claimed to be building a “Stronger Canada.” Clean water for all Indigenous and rural communities must be at the forefront of any proposed nation-building plan. Large economic aggregates often ignore the smaller communities that Canada is built upon. Countries like Canada can’t boast about prosperity while entire communities are unable to have their basic needs met. Beyond truth and reconciliation, clean water is a human right that shouldn’t be denied to anyone. Each September, Truth and Reconciliation is thrown around like it’s a serious commitment and is forgotten about a month later. While everyone was preparing for the

There’s a line that even AI shouldn’t cross

This article contains discussions of child sexual abuse material, which some readers may find distressing. AI is outpacing accountability, and the outcome is far worse than anyone could’ve predicted. On Jan 3, X finally posted a statement on Grok—the site’s embedded Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistant—and its capability to generate child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The statement read that users who utilized the assistant to create CSAM materials would be banned from the site; however, X announced no plans to update Grok to prevent the output of such images. Knowingly maintaining and promoting technology that can generate CSAM and other graphic materials is complicit in their proliferation. X and owner Elon Musk need to stop putting profit over morality and update Grok’s capabilities. When a platform uses tools that continue to utilize tools that perpetuate a clear harm it becomes a part of the ecosystem that enables exploitation. The meteoric rise in AI has left no shortage of moral dilemmas. However, basic morality isn’t so grey as to suggest that the distribution of CSAM can be justified. A user commented that blaming Grok for inappropriate images was like “blaming a pen for writing something bad.” However, the pen metaphor falls short. Unlike a pen, Grok isn’t at the whim of the user, and can be subject to regulation. The nearly unlimited capabilities of Chatbots must be met with regulation, whereas a pen

manufacturer has no way of knowing how their products will be used. Unlike a pen, AI creations can be infinitely reproduced, making it impossible to get to the root of the problem by banning individual accounts. X needs to be held accountable by its users for the generation of CSAM on their platforms, which is both illegal and a serious violation of privacy. However, xAI—Grok’s development company—hit $500 million in revenue in 2025 and is projected to grow to over $2 billion in 2026. Unfortunately, there appears to be a market for unregulated AI, and Musk doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Owning over six multi-million-dollar companies, each with its own controversies, Musk has shown time and time again that he prioritizes profit over ethical principles.

holidays, advising each other to “shop local” and “support Canadians,” the Kashechewan Nation was informed they might not be able to return home. When the City of Calgary water main broke on Jan 6, crews immediately began repairing the damage. While there is a population disparity between Ontario’s James Bay coast and the City of Calgary, individuals’ right to clean water shouldn’t be up for debate. Each case should’ve been treated with the same urgency. Boil water advisories and the neglect of Indigenous communities have gone on for far too long. Canadians are now desensitized and misinformed about issues facing the Indigenous population, and events such as the evacuation of the Kashechewan nation don’t receive the attention they deserve. A country that’s looking to present a united front in the face of threats south of the border cannot pick and choose whose basic rights are protected. Reconciliation is meaningless if it isn’t backed by an urgent commitment to guaranteeing the fundamental necessities for everyday life. —Journal Editorial Board

Volume 153, Issue 17 www.queensjournal.ca @queensjournal Publishing since 1873

Editorial Board Editors in Chief

Sarah Adams Meghrig Milkon Julia Ludden

Production Manager

Johnathan Reilly

News Editor

Lilly Meechan

Assistant News Editors

Yael Rusonik Emmet Paradis Eva Sheahan

Features Editor Editorials Editor

Cloey Aconley

Opinions Editor

Isaac-Paul Hofbauer Marijka Vernooy

Arts & Culture Editor Assistant Arts & Culture Editors

Daniel Gill-Sitoski Veer Bhalla Margaret Young

Postscript Editor Business, Science & Technology Editors

Katarina Krivokapic

Ananya Sharma Noah Cyr

Assistant Sports Editor

Jashan Dua

Photo Editor

Claire Bak

Assistant Photo Editor

Claire Judice

Video Editor Graphics Editor

Arden Mason-Ourique

Copy Editors

Madeleine Hamilton Shae Soeterik Mabel Johnson

BIPOC Advisory Board Members Lael Alva

Mayah Ricketts

First Year Interns

Kingston is pricing-out Kingstonians

Andrew Lospinuso

Contributing Staff Staff Writers Erin Evans

from the downtown

Jashan Dua Senior Photo Editor

Business Staff Business Manager

Mannat Mehra

Sales Representatives

Hannah Aberdeen Kian Mirzaei

Kingston storefronts are abandoning the local population for out-of-town money. The city has been evolving quickly over the last ten years, and with it, so have prices. While many consider the evolution of a small-town like Kingston a good thing, wages haven’t been evolving with it, leading to the displacement of Kingstonians from its downtown core. Whether it’s stores reducing prices, or wages increasing, something has to give. Local businesses such as thrift stores and twenty-four-hour markets around downtown Kingston have been slowly pricing out local Kingstonians and trading their business for primarily student out-of-towners. These smaller shops are raising prices compared to legacy stores like Metro, which offers a continuous student discount of ten per cent, effectively cutting out locals, who on average, make $73,500 per household annually. Conversely, if stores catered to the Kingston community by keeping prices competitive, sales would rocket as items would be affordable for everyone in the Greater Kingston Area. Continued online at www.queensjournal.ca

Continued online at www.queensjournal.ca

ILLUSTRATION BY JULIA LUDDEN

Fundraising Representative

Jessica Sivaguru

Want to contribute? For information visit: www.queensjournal.ca/contribute or email the Editor in Chief at journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca Contributions from all members of the Queen’s and Kingston community are welcome. The Journal reserves the right to edit all submissions. The Queen’s Journal is an editorially autonomous newspaper published by the Alma Mater Society of Queen’s University, Kingston. Situated on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. The Journal’s Editorial Board acknowledges the traditional territories our newspaper is situated on have allowed us to pursue our mandate. We recognize our responsibility to understand the truth of our history. Editorial opinions expressed in The Journal are the sole responsibility of The Queen’s Journal Editorial Board, and are not necessarily those of the University, the AMS or their officers. Queen’s Cantre, 3rd Floor, Rooms A620/A616 284 Earl St, Kingston, ON, K7L 3P4 Email:

journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca

Please address complaints and grievances to the Editor in Chief and/or Managing Editor. The Queen’s Journal is printed at KT Web Printing Inc. in Toronto, Ontario. Contents © 2026 by The Queen’s Journal; all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior permission of The Journal.

6 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

Opinions

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

OPINIONS The war on manufactured improvement Your Perspective

Erin questions the efficacy of self-improvement in the high-speed digital age. in smartphones made everyone a photographer. Collaborative media networks made co-creation immediate and constant. Today, we've reached a point in technology where the ease of creation itself has Erin Evans generated urgency. The fact that Contributor we can create instantly makes us feel as though we must Instantaneous communication constantly outpace our ability and the propaganda for needed to meaningfully metabolize and urgent improvement are what we've created. Time silently eroding our social has always had tension, and mental perceptions. but we've never moved Every new year comes this quickly before. with a celebration of the French philosopher of clock, the calendar, and the speed, Paul Virilio, voiced way we measure time in concern that modern progress relation to our narrative. has been conflated with its Social shifts responding to propaganda. The shift to live technological advancements have feeds, instantaneous updates and made space for new ways of connections has destabilized the viewing our positional relationship relationship we have to the natural to time. cycle of time by recalibrating the The modern shift to ways we view progress. instantaneous updates provided Virilio found that the promise by technological advancements of progress, which at one time placed a premium on convenience served to relieve us from scarcity and normalized speed as an and suffering, has progressed inherent virtue. Through our into a system that feeds our obsession with increased collective neurosis. In the past, efficiency, we’ve conflated speed progress meant survival, machine with progress, creating a system adaptation replaced which demands that we match its strenuous labour regimes, accelerated pace. and communication technologies We’ve moved from scarcity to connected fragmented abundance in content creation. communities. But today's We can generate text instantly. technology's concerned What once required significant with generating abundance. time investment, writing a report, Progress has become less creating a company, designing about what we've achieved but our a logo, creating music, or capacity to keep moving. marketing yourself, can happen Through equating progress in moments. The movement of with acceleration, advancement acceleration didn’t begin out of has become self-justifying; nowhere. The establishment demanding our acceleration of digital audio workstations to self-optimize, that is, less in the '80s transformed the about arriving somewhere and music production process, more so remaining in the race so as and new photo technology not to fall behind.

The new form of progress is harming our self-respect

Progress has become ideological; constantly moving, becoming, improving; our obsession with acceleration tells us that faster is better. Being available to the constant overload of instantaneous media to consume and communicate can make you feel like you’re always on the clock; this is what Virilio refers to as an accelerated reality. We forget when we’re done and what progress looks like. A fear of stagnancy occupies a formlessness produced from the persistent pressure to create yourself, which sustains an environment of fear that both occupies and preoccupies the interactivity of the collective consciousness. Fear thrives on our inability to operate in real space-time; the natural pace we need to metabolize our spatial-temporal experience. Terror cuts to the quick because there is no time to metabolize fear when slowing down is seen as unproductive. Carl Rogers, American psychologist, and one of the founders of humanistic psychology, highlighted the ways society can create conditions of worth which can create a cognitive distance from our actual selves and our ideal versions of ourselves. The rapidly increasing commodification in virtually all spheres of social life can project harmful conditions of worth into the media we consume daily. The propaganda of progress reminds you of everything you have yet to do, what you need without explaining why you need it: a gnawing sense of urgency to stay in the game. We live in a matrix that seeks to push the idea that opportunity fades when it’s left alone. Here are all the things you

could tweak about yourself. Beauty and fashion companies tell you dizzying stories about the kind of body that’s attractive, that attractiveness will bring you joy and fulfillment; you too will live this joyful lifestyle as the bright smiley faces in the advertisements do. Fitness promotes this concept of constantly improving; the new diet and fitness lifestyle you need to eat to be healthier, fitter, and better. You can never be healthy enough, fit enough; progress is a constant, pushed goal. Our shiny screens exaggerate the gaps between you and who you should be—selling a joy that’s said to be outside of you. It seems it’s become easy to measure ourselves against some existential comparative checklist that you couldn’t recite back if you tried. It’s equally as easy to do busy work in a system that convinces you a certain type of work and energy is the key to success, but this isn't true for everyone. There’s an incongruity in the speed of the design and our natural cycle of doing things and in the way we regard time that obscures its meaning through acquainting speed with progress. When we accept conditions of worth that are outside of who we are, when we become obsessed with a movement that isn’t ours, a progress that isn’t real or sustainable to our being this creates a social ecosystem that lives off fear. Real progress requires a level of intuitive guidance; the propaganda of progress neglects to remind us of the importance of slowing down. When we play by its rules, get up and go, keep going—we go against our intuition and wonder why we feel exhausted and yet unsatisfied. It's so easy to ignore our intuition

PHOTO BY JASHAN DUA

in a system that convinces you a certain type of work and energy is the key to success, which frames natural cycles as unproductive or irrelevant. In today's social fabric, the obsession with constant self-improvement has framed progress as no longer something we can arrive at naturally, but something we’re constantly chasing. Modern technology’s role in furthering the momentum of instantaneity in the pursuit of progress has sustained a social environment of fear, where slowing down and operating at our natural cycle to risk becoming stagnant—or even obsolete. We must remind ourselves that just because we can, doesn't mean we should. It takes a lot of self-awareness to detach from the constant rumble of pings, images, and stories to pursue personal objectives that fulfill us. Relating back to time that aligns with our natural cycles urges us to slow down to revere the processes; planting the seed, the ripening and the blooming of our ambitions. The tools of today can generate an abundance of possibilities. There's pleasure in gauging a sense of kinship with the vastness of constant motion that requires us to know ourselves enough to know when it’s time to slow down. If the choices we make happen at lightning speed, rest becomes resistance to the constant pressure to move quickly. In an era obsessed with acceleration, the best thing you can do for yourself is take your time. Erin Evans is a fourth-year Political Studies and Religion student.

Business, Science, & Technology

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA • 7

<BIZ-SCI-TECH>

Health minister warns Canada can no longer rely on the U.S. for health information

Federal officials urge Canadians to rethink where they get health information Katarina Kripovick Business, Science, & Technology Editor As influenza cases continue to rise across the country, the federal government is urging Canadians to be more cautious about where they get their health information. In an interview with the Canadian Press in late 2025, Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel stated that Canada can no longer rely on the United States as a primary source of public health guidance, pointing to political instability and the growing spread of misinformation south of the border. That warning comes amid increasingly controversial health messaging in the United States. Under President Donald Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., oversight of major federal health agencies has drawn sharp backlash from federal health workers, including an open letter condemning what it described as “dangerous and deceitful” statements on health. In November, the U.S.

LEGO to introduce digital “smart bricks” in 2026

sized 2×4 piece packed with technology that can detect motion, orientation and nearby components to create dynamic responses during play. Beneath its familiar plastic exterior sits a miniature custom mixed-signal ASIC chip, which combines both digital and analogue features to seamlessly process real-world signals and produce results, light and motion sensors, an LED array, a tiny speaker and wireless charging capability. Instead of relying on apps or screens, Smart Bricks interact with Smart Minifigures and Smart Tags, small tiles with unique digital IDs that trigger specific lights and sounds depending on their placement or movement. The system uses LEGO’s proprietary Bluetooth-based BrickNet protocol to create a selforganizing network of bricks that requires no setup or external controllers. Tom Donaldson, senior vice-president and head of LEGO’s Creative Play Lab, said in an interview with WIRED magazine, that one of the biggest design challenges was preserving the simplicity that has defined LEGO play for decades. “We didn’t want a power switch on the side, or even a reset button. Just doing that is an incredible challenge— to make sure that it doesn’t

As the company experiments with smarter play, the future of hands-on play is up for debate ANANYA SHARMA Business, Science, & Technology Editor Imagine if LEGO bricks could react as you play— lighting up, making noise, or responding to movement— without a phone or tablet involved. That’s the idea behind LEGO’s new Smart Play platform, unveiled at Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the world’s most influential tech event, on Jan. 5. Since 1932, LEGO’s been a universal shorthand for open-ended, screen-free play—plastic bricks that asked little of children more than imagination and time. As toys across the industry have grown increasingly digital, LEGO has largely held onto that identity, even as it experimented cautiously with apps, robotics, and hybrid kits. At the heart of the Smart Play ecosystem is the Smart Brick, a standard-

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its website to contradict the scientific consensus that vaccines don’t cause autism, leading to widespread criticism from public health experts and further eroding confidence in U.S. health guidance. Michel emphasized the need for Canada to strengthen its own health communication systems and reduce reliance on external sources that may not reflect Canadian data or public health priorities. She identified misinformation, particularly on social media, as a key factor eroding public trust and making it difficult for Canadians to distinguish between evidence-based guidance and opinion or political messaging. Michel noted this pandemic-era misinformation contributed to lower COVID-19 vaccination rates and, in turn, more severe outbreaks. A U.S.-based study estimated that for every one-percentage-point reduction in vaccine hesitancy, up to 45 COVID-19 deaths per million people could have been prevented.

Ottawa calls for stronger Canadian health messaging.

However, the effects of health misinformation have continued well into the post-pandemic period. Earlier this fall, the Pan American Health Organization revoked Canada’s measlesfree status, held since ’98, after outbreaks persisted across several provinces for more than a year. Peter Hotez, an American virologist and co-nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on a low-cost COVID-19 vaccine, has linked the resurgence to declining routine vaccination rates caused by what he has described as an “anti-public-health force” of vaccine misinformation. Research suggests misinformation is widespread—and increasingly problematic. A January 2025

crash in a way that causes problems.” The goal, Donaldson said, was to make Smart Bricks “as simple to use as the OG.” Despite LEGO positioning the Smart Brick as a screen‑free extension of its classic play system, the announcement has sparked debate among fans and play experts. Federico Begher, senior vice-president of the LEGO Group, told IGN magazine that the Smart Brick is “a big part of the future” but stressed that it doesn’t replace the core LEGO experience, describing it as “a complementary evolution” rather than a departure from traditional brick‑based play. Still, some child development advocates and critics worry the technology could shift play toward preset reactions and away from pure imagination. Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, a leading non-profit organization that aims to protect children from commercialism, told The Telegraph that Smart Bricks risk “undermining what was once great about LEGO” by narrowing the ways children engage creatively with their builds. “The best toys are ninety per cent child, 10 per cent toy. They allow children to use their imagination to come up with stories and create their own adventures,” Golin stated in a Fairplay press statement.

report from the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) found that nearly half of Canadians are “highly susceptible” to health misinformation. 31 per cent of respondents reported following health information found online instead of seeking medical care, and an additional 23 per cent experienced a negative health outcome after acting on online health advice. The CMA described misinformation as a “growing issue” with consequences for both individuals and the healthcare system. Queen’s students aren’t immune to this growing public health threat. According to a 2022 study, most young adults obtain health information on social media, where credible

LEGO’s initial Smart Play sets—launching March 1—are built around three Star Wars themes, including a 584-piece Luke’s Red Five X-Wing and a 962piece Throne Room Duel set. In these kits, the Smart Bricks respond to produce

PHOTO BY CLAIRE BAK

sources and misinformation circulate side by side and are increasingly difficult to distinguish. In a dense campus environment, individual choices, such as whether to stay home when sick or get vaccinated, can quickly affect others. As misinformation continues to affect public health long after the height of the pandemic, the minister’s message is straightforward: Canadians need reliable sources of health information they can trust. The CMA recommends prioritizing reputable government websites that follow rigorous, evidence-based standards, including the Public Health Agency of Canada, Health Canada, and provincial and regional public health agencies.

humming engine As LEGO moves deeper into the digital realm with the Smart Brick, the company is walking a fine line between innovation and tradition. Whether the Smart Brick represents the future of creative play or a controversial

shift in LEGO’s identity may ultimately depend on how well the company balances technology with the hands-on, imaginative building that has long defined its brand.

Sports

8 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

SPORTS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

Men’s Volleyball Sweeps in Windsor exhibition

‘It’s important to play clean and trust the process,’ head coach says Noah Cyr Assistant Sports Editor The Men’s Volleyball team continues to step in the right direction to defend their OUA title. From Jan. 2-4, the Gaels travelled to Windsor to play in an exhibition tournament hosted by the Lancers. Joining them at this tournament were the Brock Badgers and University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO) Heat. Head Coach Gabe deGroot explained the thinking behind the planning of the tournament in an interview with The Journal.

“We try to bookend our season with an exhibition tournament at the host facility of the PHOTO SUPPLIED BY ATHLETICS & RECREATION U S p o r t sMen’s volleyball 2025-26 roster. National championship in hopes of team of that caliber and see how opportunity for our obviously being there.” Last you match up against them younger lineup to get some year the team travelled to Brandon, is a positive “said deGroot. touches.” The young guns Saskatchewan at the beginning The Gael prevailed in a prevailed in another five set of the season with the five-set thriller winning 3-2 3-2 victory. “We managed same objective in mind. in a best-on-best matchup. our roster in a way to see how The first game on Jan. 2 Their second match featured our young guys look like and was matched up against the Brock University, which how they’re developing” he said. Heat who are currently 11-1 d e G r o o t said “was a In the third and final and sit at the top of the g o o d matchup against Windsor, Canada West standings. the Gaels won in three “The opportunity to play a straight sets to win 3-0.

Get to know your

‘Practice does pay off, I knew starting so late I was at disadvantage,’ says USports basketball star Noah Cyr Assistant Sports Editor

Being an elite level athlete has its perks, but it’s taken for granted the person on the inside. The Journal sat down with USports womens basketball star Kiyara Letlow, MSc’ 25, to talk about her journey with basketball that led her to Queen’s this season. Born and raised in Toronto, Letlow loved being active and playing sports, and while a stellar basketball player, she found her younger self not on the court. “I did basically every sport, including dance for 10 years, I didn’t really touch a basketball until I was fourteen” Letlow admitted. It wasn’t until early in

high school that she really gave basketball a fair chance. Due to her brother’s commitment to a basketball program in Toronto, he signed her up for the girls team despite pushback, she ultimately agreed to join. Starting at the age of 14, she started much later than most of the other girls around her, and Letlow acknowledged that the transition into a new sport was very hard due to her being shy and lack of developed basketball talent. She credits the friendships she made on her first basketball team contributed to her falling in love with all basketball has to offer. As her basketball game developed, more and more eyes started to identify Letlow as a very good player in the Toronto area. So in grade 11 she made the decision to transfer to a prep school that had been scouting her. Her experience at the school made her realize that she wanted to play basketball at the university

level.

Gael: Kiyara Letlow Letlow

emphasized that she “wanted to stay in Canada because I didn’t feel like I needed to go to the United States.” The decision on where to go for her next chapter wasn’t an easy or quick one according to Letlow. “I went on a bunch of visits, dragging my Mom everywhere, I could tell she was getting sick of it,”

camp.” He doubled down Reflections on the past on this fact saying, “ I think were as ready to execute season with Coach Snyder we at a high level in week one

‘This is a special accomplishment for everybody, not just our football team,’ Coach says about Yates Cup Victory Noah Cyr Assistant Sports Editor It’s been just under two months removed since the Queen’s Men’s football team season came to an end and the excitement from the gridiron continues. A successful season by all accounts, including their first yates cup since 2009 and Mitchell Bowl appearance, where they lost a close battle

with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. Head coach Steve Snyder sat down with The Journal to reflect on the teams triumphant 2025 season. From the start of their season, the Gaels were poised to be one of the top teams in the country, with many returning veteran players, coupling that with what Snyder called “a great summer and great training

deGroot emphasized that these Christmas tournaments are always a bit hard to evaluate because of the month-long break. “Sometimes its more of getting our legs underneath us and getting in good form rather than evaluating how well we matchup, I think it was really good,” deGroot said. When asked about the overall sentiments of the season so far deGroot said that “were right where we want to be.” He continued to say that “we’ve played really well at times, its important to play clean and trust the process.” It’s clear that the goal for this team is to continue to play at a high level in conquest for a national championship. The Gaels Men’s volleyball team sits at the top of OUA Standings with an 8-2 record and sit seventh in USports rankings. They open up the second half of their season on Jan. 9 at the ARC against the Guelph Gryphons.

as we ever have since I’ve been here.” Unfortunately, the hard work didn’t lead to immediate success including a heartbreaking quadruple overtime loss to Western in week one and a week three loss to Laurier both being at home. Snyder emphasized despite the losses “everybody rebounded, we were very resilient.” After the Laurier loss, the team rattled off 4 straight wins including three of them on the road. Snyder acknowledged “they could’ve got distracted with stuff [outside

Letlow said. She decided on her last campus visit, Cape Breton University where she felt she could reach her goals properly. “I appreciated the honesty about my development and where I needed to go” she continued to say that a key part of her decision was a letter that the coach had wrote her, laying out what her life would look like if she went to Cape Breton. “It’s something very personal that I still have to this day.” Her first year in Cape Breton was during COVID-19 where she trained her entire year in Nova Scotia in a competitive environment. Her next four years as an athlete for the Capers was dominant, breaking the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) record for career rebounds (1, 022). Having one more year of eligibility left, she decided to transfer to Queen’s to play and continue her to do her masters in Sport Psychology. “I’ve always been a fan of Queen’s, and everything just seemed to

Marks Synder’s sixth season.

have these little instances where Queen’s came up,” said Letlow. Letlow said that her transition to Queen’s has been great besides trying to find a seat at Stauffer and getting used to the sheer size of campus. It hasn’t stopped her on the court for the Gaels averaging 16.9 points and 11.3 rebounds per game, she’s been an important piece to the undefeated team. In her limited free time away from the court, she enjoys reading and biking, as well as watching movies. A goal of hers after her time at Queen’s is to play professional basketball overseas and experience playing in different countries. She’d also like to thank God, her mom and her brother for being the athlete and person she has become. See Kiyara and the rest of the undefeated Queens Women’s Basketball team at the ARC as they continue their successful season.

PHOTO SUPPLIED BY ATHLETICS & RECREATION

noise], they channelled into what we were doing and put a heck a run together.” The winning streak secured them a playoff spot into the OUA playoffs, with one

game left in the season.

Continued online at www. queensjournal.ca

Diversions

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA • 9

HOROSCOPES

Horoscopes: The new year resolution each sign should make

Find your resolution for the new year and maybe finally act on it THE PSYCHIC SCHOLAR

Every year, we busy ourselves with new resolutions and goals, only to fall short of following through. With 2026 in full swing, this Psychic Scholar highlights the resolutions each zodiac sign should focus on and what they truly need in the new year. Maybe this year, take your New Year’s resolutions seriously and actually act on them.

Libra (Sept. 23 – Oct. 22) Libra, leave overthinking behind this year. It’s never served you well, and it won’t now. Stop dissecting every word and action, just live. You’ve lost too much peace in your own mind. Give yourself the break you deserve.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) 2026 should be your year of letting go, Taurus. You value control, but some of your recent choices don’t align with who you truly are. Maybe it’s time to weigh whether being in control and losing yourself is more important than living freely as your authentic self.

Aries (March 21 – April 19) The pressure of your future often keeps you awake at night, turning bedtime into a sacred space for anxiety and overthinking. In 2026, focus on staying grounded and intentional in your decisions. Everything will work out in the end, just believe.

Gemini (May 21 – June 20) This is the time of year when your ambition is high, but your motivation is low. Let 2026 be the year you slow down and stop crushing yourself with the weight of your own expectations.

Virgo (Aug. 23 – Sept. 22) This year, Virgo, your resolution should be prioritizing yourself. Both your mental and physical health deserve care and rest. Make time to relax and reconnect with the things you love.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) Cancer, allow yourself to open up emotionally. You often build walls for protection, but they end up hurting both you and those trying to connect with you. While alone time is important, your friends and loved ones matter just as much.

Leo (July 23 – Aug. 22) Leo, you’ve been pretending everything’s chill, but this month doesn’t seem to be letting you off that easily. Whether it’s the random situationships or the tenth assignment you have to finish. Put the apps down, step outside, and catch up with your family.

Scorpio (Oct. 23 – Nov. 21) 2026 is the year you set boundaries. Stop allowing people to take advantage of your kindness or walk over you. Protecting your peace may come at a cost, but it will be worth it in the end.

Slaying! ACROSS 1 ***TAB*** 5 Benefit 10 ***VAGUE FEELING*** 14 Basie's _____'Clock Jump 15 Prickly pants 16 Way off 17 What there ought to be 18 Finish with 19 Wrestler John 20 Backtrack 23 Shorthand pro, for short 24 Wildcats of the big 12 Conf. 25 Choreographer Lubovitch 28 One of three brothers in the band 32 Swell! 34 Rainbow shape 37 ***A PARROT?*** 40 "Go away!" 42 Author Calvino 43 Together, in Toulon 44 ***TOURNAME NT, AS AN EXAMPLE*** 47 Corn unit 48 "Waiting for Lefty" playwright 49 Dog-___ 51 ___ Talks 52 Japan's largest active volcano 55 Breaks

Blake Gill

59 ***WORDS OF ENCOURAGEME NT AFTER A PERFORMANCE, OR A HINT TO 1-, 10-, 37-, 44-, 71-, 73ACROSS*** 64 Actor Paul 66 Trojan War epic 67 I could ______ horse 68 Chills and fever 69 Compassion 70 Cozy 71 ***STATE OF MIND*** 72 Predators counterpart 73 ***PERSON OF THE YEAR MAGAZINE*** DOWN 1 Wild hogs 2 Cove 3 Depart 4 Relatively cheap 5 Winning volleyball serves 6 Barn topper 7 "Back in Black" Band 8 "___ the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference": Robert Frost 9 "Peanuts" boy with a blanket 10 Suckers, for short 11 "Trust me, all good here!" 12 Prohibit 13 Taylor Swift has these a-plenty

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53 Cut Corners 54 Edmonton hockey player 56 Olympic speed skater Davis 57 Actor Channing 58 Put on 60 Had too much, briefly 61 To read, in Reims 62 Like most lingerie 63 Ice cream brand 64 Male Sheep 65 Actor Tognazzi

CROSSWORD BY BLAKE GILL

Pisces (Feb. 19 – March 20) You’ve certainly made interesting choices over the break, perhaps ones that now keep you up at night. Your resolution should be to stop and think twice before making decisions that leave you questioning everything after midnight.

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Aquarius (Jan. 20 – Feb 18) Aquarius, this is the year to step back from romance and redirect your energy toward yourself. The time and effort you’ve poured into situationships going nowhere could be better spent on personal growth or picking up a new hobby. Capricorn (Dec. 22 – Jan. 19) The past year wasn’t easy on you, Capricorn. You dealt with a fair share of struggles yet found it difficult to give yourself grace for simply being a human. In the new year, please be gentle with yourself and give space for imperfection; you’re only human.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22 – Dec. 21) This isn’t the time for a messy situationship, especially with deadlines piling up. If you want peace, use that block button and keep it that way. Some people aren’t projects, and “fixing them” isn’t part of your syllabus.

Arts & Culture

10 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

ARTS & CULTURE CFRC launches 2026 Airwave YGK Musicians in Residence Program

Executive director discusses goals and new directions for combined initiative Marijka Vernooy Senior Arts & Culture Editor This year, CFRC 101.9 FM will continue one of its most ambitious programs supporting local musicians. In a press release on Dec. 11, CFRC’s Executive Director Dinah Jansen announced the 2026 launch of its Airwave YGK Musicians-in-Residence Program funded by the City of Kingston and Kingston Arts Council. The program combines CFRC’s Airwave YGK DJ and Musicians-in-Residence programs running 2023-25. Applications closed Dec. 31, with winners to be announced later this month. Jansen conceptualized the program in 2023 after witnessing common needs among local musicians, including lack of rehearsal and recording spaces. “Not everybody has access to a basement or a garage,” Jansen said in an interview with The Journal. “There are very few studios available in Kingston, let alone ones that are affordable. The idea is to

provide local musicians [places] to create music together,” she said. The Airwave YGK Musicians-in-Residence Program provides rehearsal and composing space for musicians while also offering the chance for them to perform live on-air and obtain high-quality video recordings of their work. Musicians can also participate in workshops led by professional musicians, promote their releases with CFRC, and perform at CFRC’s Airwave YGK Matinee Concert at the Broom Factory this fall. Holistically, the program helps local musicians “grow in the community, get to know other musicians in the community, [and] make connections with established community folks,” Jansen said. When considering how to “break in this town,” Jansen said one of the ways is by getting involved with local stations like CFRC, which “cultivates local arts and music, especially amongst our young, emerging talent, including Queen’s students.” However, the program faced

Winners will be announced this January.

PHOTO BY CLAIRE BAK

some difficulties this year due to funding cuts. CFRC received $7,500 in project grants for the 2026 program, down from the $12,000 awarded to the program for 2025. “The difference [is] that we can still run this project, but we can only accommodate so many artists because we have to pay them well,” Jansen said. “They’re creating art. We want to pay them at industry standards.” Jansen’s confident a smaller participant pool “won’t take away from the high-quality work that we have done and will

continue to do.” According to Jansen, five of this year’s nine applicants will be chosen by a jury comprised of two Queen’s student volunteers, “an established local musician,” a representative from the Kingston Music Office, a “local music festival organizer,” and a CFRC staff member. Jansen is on the jury as project administrator but isn’t a voting member. Particularly in 2026, Jansen hopes to expand the multimedia component of the YGK Airwaves program to increase social media content

made by musicians, promoting their work and CFRC’s many services offered to Queen’s students. “We are a radio station first, but we want to continue to branch out using videography,” Jansen said. More broadly, Jansen hopes all Queen’s students explore the opportunities CFRC offers to host radio shows, promote student clubs on-air, participate in live sessions, and more. “We’re here for the students and we are powered by students,” Jansen said.

near the historic Keewatin Steamship. While the settings are familiar, she often adds subtle details that encourage viewers to slow down and look more closely. “Sometimes I add hidden birds and wildlife to my paintings to show what we see in daily life,” she said in an interview with The Journal. Working primarily in acrylic, DeSousa begins each piece with a sketch before building up what she describes as layers of colour. “Layers of colour, vibrant colours, that make you feel happy, makes me feel happy,” she explained. She’s

drawn to acrylic for its quick-drying properties, which allow her to stay immersed in her work. “I enjoy painting with it because it dries quicker, and I can work on a piece layering colours all in one day, so I don’t have to wait.” For DeSousa, the goal isn’t strict realism but a sense of liveliness. “I want it to look lively, not boring. I love to have something that looks alive.” She hopes viewers engage actively with her work, almost like an artistic scavenger hunt. “Sometimes people like to enjoy a painting where it’s interactive, so you take your time to see and look and feel, to take it all in.” Her focus on Kingston is deeply personal. Having spent her entire life in the city after moving there as a baby, painting local sites allows her to access a sense of nostalgia. “The paintings of familiar places allow me to explore my personal memories, like happy moments and personal connections that other subjects may not have,” she said. Many customers are drawn to her work because of their own emotional ties to specific locations. DeSousa said graduating Queen’s students and tourists often purchase her art as a way to remember the city.

“They’re looking for a painting, a print, a card at a familiar spot in Kingston,” she said. “And it’s a happy memory.” In 2022, DeSousa joined Martello Alley Gallery, becoming part of the downtown artist collective. “I thought, I’m going to give it a try and see how it goes, and it went well,” she said. Since then, she has expanded her practice beyond canvases to include jewelry, crochet, prints, pet portraits, magnets, and painted plexiglass sun catchers. She has also become the gallery’s top-selling artist. The community’s response continues to motivate her. “Hearing what people are enjoying in my work really makes me happy and encourages me to continue,” DeSousa said. “It makes me happy that I can put a smile on someone else’s face.” Looking ahead, she plans to continue painting Kingston scenes while branching into more playful subjects. “I will continue to do more Kingston scenes,” she said, “and I’ll be doing a lot more cute animals dressed up.” At the centre of DeSousa’s work remains a simple intention. “I’m trying to bring colour into people’s homes and I’m trying to spread as much happiness as I can.”

Lucy DeSousa paints Kingston full of life

Kingston may be known for its grey limestone, but DeSousa sees the city in every colour Daniel Gill Assistant Arts & Culture Editor If you’ve ever walked through Springer Market Square and thought the space could feel a little brighter, Lucy DeSousa has coloured it for you. From familiar downtown streets to waterfront views, Kingston-based artist Lucy DeSousa finds inspiration in

the everyday corners of the city many residents pass without a second thought. Through bright paintings that emphasize colour and light, her work celebrates Kingston’s familiar landscapes with renewed vibrancy. Much of DeSousa’s work depicts recognizable locations, including the waterfront, Market Square, and areas

Lucy DeSousa with her paintings at Martello Alley Gallery.

PHOTO SUPPLIED BY LUCY DESOUSA

Arts & Culture

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

Matt Thomson spoke at TEDxArgyle St on Aug. 9 2025.

QUEENSJOURNAL.CA • 11

PHOTO SUPPLIED BY MATT THOMSON

Top-performing Canadian TEDx speaker breaks down honest new talk Authenticity is ‘the greatest gift you can give yourself,’ Co-CEO says Marijka Vernooy Senior Arts & Culture Editor In one new TEDx talk, less is more. Canadian Co-CEO of Placemaking 4G Matt Thomson gave his TEDx talk, “Can we find calm in a world of chaos?” at TEDxArgyle St. on Aug. 9. In it, he discusses how society over-emphasizing productivity can lead to

adverse mental health outcomes, and how young people can nourish their mental well-being while striving to create meaning in their lives. In an interview with The Journal, Thomson broke down the development of his talk, and why he believes the topic is increasingly relevant in our fragmented world. For Thomson, developing his talk was a layered process.

Beloved, must-read literature for 2026

Usher in the New Year by tackling that dusty bookshelf Eva Sheahan Features Editor This article discusses sexual violence and may be distressing for some readers. As 2026 begins, making more space and time for reading’s a great resolution. But curling up with a mug of tea and a blanket to binge-read for hours requires the right book. I’m here to help. Last year, I read over 75 novels, and I’ve compiled a list of some of my favourites to prove reading more doesn’t have to be a pipe dream, as each of these books are capable of shaking a reader out of a slump. “Madonna in a Fur Coat”

Sabahattin Ali’s Madonna in a Fur Coat (1943) is a bestselling Turkish novel that centers around a lost young man named Raif, who moves to Berlin in the ’20s and falls in love with a woman in a fur coat whose portrait he sees in a local art exhibition. Raif is isolated, lonely, and sick with love which Ali impressively manages to convey so

“I probably wrote a total of a hundred versions,” he said. “The economy of words in 14 minutes is so important. It’s like writing poetry. It’s art, really.” Through every draft, Thomson knew he wanted to use personal anecdotes to convey what he calls “universal truths.” “From the beginning, there was this concept that I wanted to provide a bit of a journey of my last 30 plus years of life,” Thomson explained. A large portion of the talk uses a story about his grandfather’s apple orchard

tangibly in such a short story. The novel is ultimately a tragic story. Love does exist. Happiness does exist. But it’s fleeting and it’s painful and it’s scary, packed with uncertainty and yearning. As a reader, or rather as a human, there’s nothing scarier than the idea that it’s too late, forced to confront the understanding that beauty like that exists out there—but it’s not yours. The first episode aired on Nov. 28. Madonna in a Fur Coat pushes the reader into a liminal space of hope and hopelessness, exercising the heart, and brain.

to encourage listeners to “find your orchard,” as Thomson put it. Thomson’s self-identified orchard is his organization, Placemaking 4G (P4G), which offers “human centred recruitment services” that bring a more holistic approach to the fast-paced business world. “In many ways, this talk turned into a love letter to this organization I’m very, very lucky to have co-founded,” Thomson said. “There’s no ‘Matt’s TED talk from August’ without P4G.” In his work with people

across different sectors and ages, Thomson has played around with ideas of authenticity and stillness, which he explores in his TEDx talk. While he describes authenticity as “the highest form of vibration,” he admits being authentic requires some work. “Take a look at your day and ask, ‘What’s one thing I can do today that will allow me to be my truest, authentic self?’” Thomson prompted. For him, that’s working out in the mornings with music, instead of an over-stimulating podcast. “Authenticity [and] knowing yourself inform the practices that help you create stillness,” Thomson says. And with stillness, we find calm. But the process of writing and performing his TEDx talk has been a whirlwind for Thomson. As of Nov. 25, 2025, Thomson’s talk was performing in the top 2 per cent of TEDx talks for views and engagements across multiple platforms. When he heard this news, Thomson was at home with his family, describing the feeling as “one of confusion, one of joy, and one of fear.” “There’s a vulnerability hangover to putting yourself out there. And the fact that some people are finding value in this is so cool,” Thomson said. Continued online at www.queensjournal.ca

GRAPHIC BY ARDEN MASON-OURIQUE

‘Heated Rivalry’ update: I’m still at the cottage

Unpacking the rivalry, romance, “Bad Behaviour” and everything in American novelist and essayist between in Crave’s Mary Gaitskill’s debut publication Bad Behaviour (1988) is a new original series short-story collection, each with a unique plot. Gaitskill’s writing is gritty, disturbing, and blunt. She doesn’t shy away from the dark side of the human experience with short stories revolving sex work, affairs, toxic friendships, masochism, drug addiction, and more. She’s openly spoken about her negative experiences with rape and sexual abuse, as she worked as a call girl and stripper at a young age. These stories repurpose themselves in her fiction. Continued online at www.queensjournal.ca

Meghrig Milkon Editor in Chief

Thirty-seven days and a dream made history in Canadian and international television. Heated Rivalry, based on the second book in Canadian author Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series, tells the forbidden love story of Russian hockey player Ilya Rozanav, played by Connor Storrie, and Canadian hockey player Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams. What starts as an intense rivalry between the two athletes

slowly turns into a secret, complicated, romantic relationship, with Jacob Tierney’s direction, gripping from start to finish. Despite its later premiere in the year on Nov. 28 on Crave, a Canadian streaming platform, the show reportedly became the most-watched original series in Bell Media’s Crave history within the first seven days, and secured itself a second season quickly after, announced on Dec. 12. Without decades of hype or towering expectations, Heated Rivalry unexpectedly became dear to my heart and completely overtook my social media feed. With excitement growing with each episode, my newfound love for the show is multilayered, and in a way that no show has ever left me before. For context, I’m an obsessive

show watcher, and no, I don’t just stick to Netflix. If you want proof, ask anyone in the Journal office. I’ve watched a variety of Arabic, Turkish, Spanish, Armenian, Dutch, American, and Canadian shows. Because of that, I’d like to think that I’ve developed a pretty good sense of what it takes to make the perfect show and book adaptation no matter where it’s produced in the world—and Heated Rivalry is exactly that. From the casting of unknown actors rather than A-list celebrities, to the cinematography, dialogue, acting and writing, it’s clear that Tierney and the whole cast poured real love into Reid’s books. Continued online at www.queensjournal.ca

Postscript

12 • QUEENSJOURNAL.CA

FRIDAY, JANUARY 9, 2026

Sarah recalls living without goals in a world where achievements are treated as an obligation and learning that choosing something freely changes how it feels.

Why I’ve never had any goals in life

Slowly learning that wanting something doesn’t mean I owe the world its completion Sarah Adams Editor in Chief

I’ve never had a goal before and let alone achieved one. I’m not a goal-avoidant person. I know what I want to do. I move toward it with consistency, discipline, and care. From the outside, my life often looks like a sequence of achievements; things completed, milestones reached, boxes ticked in the correct order. The problem isn’t that I don’t have direction. The problem is that none of it feels like an accomplishment. Everything I do feels like something that was supposed to be done anyway.

I do feels like “Everything something that was supposed to be done anyway.

This is a difficult thing to explain, because we live in a culture that treats achievement as both evidence of desire and proof of fulfillment. If you accomplish something, the logic goes, you must’ve wanted it, and if you wanted it, you should feel proud. Gratified. Accomplished. But for me, achievement arrives stripped of ceremony. Not as a victory, but as a quiet sense of compliance. As if the work were never optional enough to be celebrated. When other people congratulate me, I feel an odd

dissonance. Not discomfort exactly, but confusion. They see an endpoint; I see a requirement met. They see success; I see inevitability. It’s not false modesty. I don’t secretly think I deserve more praise. I just don’t experience the thing they’re praising as something I achieved over and above expectation. It feels closer to maintenance than triumph. Part of this has to do with how achievement has been framed for as long as I can remember.

has to “Partdoofwiththishow

achievement has been framed for as long as I can remember. From early on, accomplishments weren’t presented as moments of discovery or self-expression, but as responsibilities, some kind of markers for staying on track. You do well in school because that’s what a capable person does. You move forward because standing still isn’t an option. Each step’s less a choice than a continuation of momentum that feels as if it began before you were conscious enough to consent to it. Over time, this produces a strange flattening effect. The distinction between effort and obligation collapses. Working hard doesn’t feel like striving; it feels like meeting a baseline. There’s very little room for pride when success is treated as the minimum requirement for legitimacy. This is why the reminder to “celebrate your wins” often feels hollow to me. Celebration assumes that the win wasn’t guaranteed; that something could’ve gone otherwise. But when achievement’s internalized as duty, failure feels catastrophic

while success feels neutral. One’s a rupture; the other’s merely the absence of one. I think this is what people miss when they interpret this feeling as a lack of ambition. I’m ambitious. I care deeply. I’m disciplined. What I lack isn’t motivation, but permission—the permission to experience my own efforts as discretionary rather than compulsory. The permission to believe that I could’ve chosen differently, and therefore that choosing this mattered. In a culture organized around constant evaluation, it becomes easy to confuse capacity with obligation. If you can do something, you’re expected to. If you do it well, that competence is immediately absorbed into the standard against which you will be judged next time. The bar doesn’t rise because you choose it to; it rises because standing still is interpreted as regression. Achievement becomes self-erasing. The moment you reach it, it disappears behind you. This creates a peculiar emotional situation for me. People around me see progress. I experience continuity. They mark chapters, but I feel as if I’m still on the same page. I’ve noticed that when I describe this to others, they often respond by telling me I’m being too hard on myself, or that I should learn to appreciate how far I’ve come. While well-intentioned, this advice misunderstands the problem. The issue isn’t self-criticism. It’s that the framework I subject my accomplishments to leaves no space for appreciation to land. Gratitude requires contrast. Pride requires contingency. If something was never allowed to be optional, it can’t feel earned in the emotional sense, even if it was earned in every other way.

For a long time, I thought this meant I had a problem with goals. Goals seemed to intensify the sense of obligation, turning the future into a series of tasks that would eventually become retroactively necessary. Once I decided on something, it no longer felt like a desire; rather, it felt like an assignment. And so, I resisted goal-setting, not because I lacked clarity, but because clarity felt like a trap. Naming the goal seemed to strip the process of any remaining freedom. What I’m learning now is that the issue was never the goals themselves, but the moral weight attached to them. I’ve learned to treat goals not as verdicts—proof of seriousness, measures of worth, or evidence that I was doing life correctly—but guides. Under that latter pressure, it makes sense that even success felt heavy. It wasn’t something I was proud of; it was something I was answerable for. Slowly, I’ve been trying to relearn what it means to choose something without immediately converting that choice into a mandate.

I’ve been trying “toSlowly, relearn what it means to choose something without immediately converting that choice into a mandate.

To allow myself to say, “This matters to me,” without silently adding, “and therefore I must succeed at all costs.” This has required separating desire from obligation and recognizing that wanting something doesn’t mean I owe the world its completion. In this reframing, goals become gentler. They stop being declarations of who I must become and start functioning

PHOTO BY JASHAN DUA

as expressions of what I’m interested in pursuing right now. They’re no longer contracts with the future, but orientations toward it. And in that space, something subtle shifts: achievement begins to feel less like compliance and more like participation. I still accomplish things. From the outside, very little has changed. But internally, I’m experimenting with a new question, not “Did I meet the standard?” but “Did I choose this freely enough to feel it belonged to me?” When the answer is yes, the accomplishment lands differently. It carries weight. It feels inhabitable. This doesn’t mean every achievement suddenly feels triumphant. Many still feel quiet, understated, almost ordinary. But they no longer feel imposed. They feel authored. And that distinction matters more than celebration ever did. As we all jump to make our New Year’s resolutions for 2026, I’m left wondering that perhaps not all dissatisfaction with achievement comes from wanting more. Sometimes it comes from wanting ownership. From wanting to experience one’s life not as a syllabus to be completed, but as a sequence of chosen commitments—commitments that could’ve been otherwise. I’m learning that having goals isn’t a betrayal of freedom. Treating them as obligations is. And so, I’m practicing a different posture toward what I do: one that allows me to say, without irony or defensiveness, I didn’t have to do this, but that I wanted to. That is what, finally, makes it feel like an achievement. Want to write a postscript? E-mail journal_postscript@ams.queensu.ca