November 23, 2016 Issue by On the Record News (Formerly the Ryersonian)

Men’s hockey team takes on Movember page 13

Rye grad makes periods easy page 11

yersonian R WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2016

ryersonian.ca Volume 71 Number 10

Produced by the Ryerson School of Journalism

Rye’s robot ringleader ROBERT FOREMAN RYERSONIAN

ACCESSIBILITY

pages 8-9

#Ableism at Ryerson

Students address chalk messages at the SLC SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

What’s online Text goesout here. Xxxxx xxx xx xfor x. Xxxxx xxxxx Xxxxx Check Ryersonian.ca stories on the xxx xx x x. Xxxxx xxxxx Xxxxx xxx xx x x. Xxxxx xxxxx nationalxxxxx day of kindness, futurexxxxx of the open Xxxxxxx Xxxxx xxx xx xthe x. Xxxxx Xxxxxxx web,Xxxxx and meet the engineering gradxxxxx who xxxxx xxx xx x x.Rye Xxxxx xxxxx Xxxxxxx won $500,000 to launch his business. Xxxxx xxx xx x x. Xxxxx xxxxx Xxxxx

Like many of Frauke Zeller’s students, Lauren Dwyer did not expect to work with robots when she entered Ryerson’s professional communications program. Now a graduate, Dwyer explained, “I came from Newfoundland, fresh out of a psychology undergrad and decided to take communications. So as you can see, none of this points towards robots.” But after working with Zeller, robotics has become a significant part of her life. “Now I can’t imagine life without (robotics) and that’s what I plan on doing with my career.” While Zeller is known to her students as a mentor who pushes the boundaries of traditional learning, many people know

her best for one of her projects, HitchBOT. The famous hitchhiking robot that travelled across Canada with countless strangers along the Trans-Canada Highway, was her creation. But HitchBOT isn’t the only robot project she’s been involved with. A robot capable of critiquing artwork, named my kulturBOT 3.0, as well as the early framework for a robot that can help humans deal with anxiety, are two other Ryerson robots that Zeller has had a hand in. Like her students, she found her passion for robotics through her studies. She received her PhD from Kassel University, Germany, in English linguistics and computational philology. Please see ROBOTS, page 2

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News

Rye students spread warmth this winter page 7 Wednesday, November 23, 2016

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Rye’s own Iron Woman Ryerson professor Frauke Zeller is known by her students for her innovative lectures, but is known by the rest of the world for her famous robots ROBOTS cont’d... Her thesis focused on human-robot interaction. “It seemed to be a natural fit with the robots,” Zeller said. “I was already really interested in technology and I found robots very interesting – like everyone – and I chose it as my PhD topic.” Robotic interaction and linguistics in a basic sense can be explained as communicating with a robot through the senses that are programmed into it. That includes what the robot hears, sees or touches. When Zeller finished her PhD in 2005, she came to Canada after receiving one of Europe’s most distinguished individual research grants, the Marie Curie Fellowship from the European Commission. During her fellowship she was

COURTESY FRAUKE ZELLER

Frauke Zeller and her creation, HitchBOT, which became a viral hit when it set out on a hitchhiking mission across the country.

introduced to David Harris Smith, an assistant professor at McMaster University. The two have since collaborated on many projects including Virtual Hamilton HitchBOT and my kulturBOT 3.0. Working on my kulturBOT was their first project together. “It was a fairly DIY kind of thing,” Smith said. As a robot built on a floor sweeper with a mounted camera and a projector, it was able to roam around an art gallery and take pictures of the artwork, posting them to Twitter with captions quoting The Manifesto of Futurism, written by Italian art theorist and poet Filippo Marianettie. They also collaborated on the Virtual Hamilton Project, an urban planning tool where users can create plans within a virtual

world. This helped Zeller build a framework for the Participatory Campus Planning project at Ryerson. It is the same concept, with the added technology of an interactive table and wall display to help navigate the virtual campus. And amongst all of these projects, was HitchBOT. The robot was created to find out, “can robots trust human beings?” It became an online hit, and gained over 35,000 followers on Twitter during its three-week journey across the country. Dwyer said that when she found out that Zeller was the creator of HitchBOT, she would do anything to work with her. “I had followed HitchBOT from the start and had a total fan-girl

moment (when I found out),” she said. It was Dwyer’s major research project that Zeller helped to turn into a theoretical model for a companion robot that could help people with anxiety. The robot is meant to help identify and manage anxiety in human behaviour. Zeller said that this project was a perfect example of what she loves about the students she works with at Ryerson. “I’m lucky that there was a student that was very talented and wanted to learn additional skills from me, but at the same time her knowledge is continuously very important,” she said. And Zeller is capable of more than just introducing her students to robotics. She also pushes them

to succeed after graduation. “The next step will be to try to get funding and get (Dwyer) into a PhD program. That’s what she said she wants to do as her next step in advancing this project and I’m supporting her with that.” Working with students like Dwyer is what has kept Zeller at Ryerson for years. She said that the innovative, go-getter attitude of the students that come out of Ryerson is what makes it such a great place for her to work. “I’ve found a home for my projects, for my interdisciplinary work, and really great colleagues, great students. Yeah, I’m very happy here,” said Zeller. @RobertForemann

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Wednesday, November 23, 2016

A home away from home

MICHAL STOLARCZYK | RYERSONIAN

International exchange students have few choices when it comes to finding housing in Toronto. From left to right: Only Backpacker’s Inn, Neill Wycik, and a rental house in Etobicoke. MICHAL STOLARCZYK RYERSONIAN

Stu McManis, a fashion student from the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia, was excited when he found out he was going on exchange to Ryerson. There was only one problem. He didn’t have a place to stay. This is a situation many exchange students find themselves in when they decide to go to Ryerson. The university does not offer any housing to these students, only recommendations. So for the most part, they are left out in the cold to find their own place to call home. For McManis, this quest started shortly after he received a welcome package from Ryerson. A note in the package said, “It is your responsibility to arrange your own living accommodations while at Ryerson. Your exchange co-ordinator and Ryerson International cannot find accommodations for you, but can offer advice

on locations and resources.” A lot of the options were out of the question because they were unfurnished. So, he started to investigate other options. He called Housing and Residence Life at Ryerson. That’s when he learned just how stunted his choices were. “Two housing units are off limits, they’re only for firstyears. And there was another one, but it was special too. So it was no dice,” he said. After some Googling, McManis got himself onto the wait-list for Neill Wycik. The apartment seemed ideal. It sat right on Ryerson’s campus, had private rooms and the building had a tendency to be where exchange students gathered. But after talking to some peers, he thought twice. The reviews he heard from his peers sounded like tenant horror stories. Bedbug-infested furniture and filthy rooms were among the tales he heard from

previous Ryerson exchange students at his own school in Sydney. He took their word and decided he would take his chances on finding his own place. Martin Chochinov, his

the semester in Toronto can be both a stressful and a near-impossible ordeal. Chochinov had sent many email blasts to the domestic student body about helping potential exchange students find housing, but without much success. But this didn’t dissuade McManis from trying to do it Hostels his own way. $850-$900 per month He arrived two weeks + utilities and cleaning service included before orientation to get a feel - less security and privacy for the city. He decided to stay at a hostel called Only BackNeill Wycik packer’s Inn. There he would $550 per month learn about the experience of + closest to Ryerson, with more privacy house shopping as a student in - cleaning and volunteering mandatory Toronto. “Not having your own place Renting is stressful enough, but then $825 per month having your own little bunk + most freedom in choosing where to live bed, having to keep every- longer commute times thing tidy, everything locked up because you can’t trust anyexchange co-ordinator at Ryer- body,” said McManis. son, advised against this. He said Even though he knew the it is good to be on the list for Neill right websites to use, findWycik because finding houses for ing a place was difficult for him

Rating the options

because the four-month lease he needed wasn’t too appealing to most landlords. In one case, he went to meet with a landlord for a place near St. George subway station. He was willing to pay more than the asking price for the place, but was turned down because he wasn’t willing to pay for a whole year’s lease. Luckily, another landlord agreed to a short lease for $850 per month. So he signed on, with the only catch being that the apartment is in Etobicoke, a 30-minute commute from campus. McManis now lives with his 52-year-old retired Swiss roommate. While it’s not ideal, he looks forward to spending the rest of the semester with the peace of mind of knowing he has a place to call home.

@miczyk

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ENVIRONMENT

Designing condos for the future ALEX TSUI RYERSONIAN

Students from Ryerson University, Seneca College and the University of Toronto have come together to build an environmentally sustainable condominium. The team is called ECOstudios. The condo is called the solarBLOCK and is designed for urban living. It works by drawing energy from the city’s energy grid, but on a yearly basis it will give just as much energy back, making it a “net-zero” building. The condo is also going to be built out of as much organic material as possible to minimize its carbon footprint. The goal is to build the house

on the Living City Campus at Kortright, located in Woodbridge. The participants involved in this project range from undergraduate to graduate students. These students volunteered for the project for the chance to network with companies and get experience building a sustainable home for the first time, said Umberto Berardi, a professor for the graduate building science program at Ryerson University. Faculty members from all three universities are playing a supervisory and advisory role. Berardi was recruited into the project based on his prior experience in a competition for netzero housing that takes place in China every year called the Solar

COURTESY ECOSTUDIOS

An illustrated design concept of the solarBLOCK condo building.

Decathlon. The project was originally started by a group of U of T students who wanted to compete in the decathlon, and started recruiting volunteers to participate in the competition. Eventually the group of students and faculty realized that the Solar Decathlon would be too expensive and complicated to participate in. It would involve building the house in Toronto, taking it apart, shipping it to China, building the house in China, taking that apart after the competition and sending it back to Toronto

to get rebuilt for research and development. As a result of this realization the group changed its name from Team Toronto to ECOstudios. As of right now, not everything in the design of the house is set in stone. But Berardi says the idea is to design low-rise commercial buildings with resident space on top to increase population density living in a small space. The project aims to reduce the land space required with suburban homes and to encourage making the most of available land while still making it an attractive city space to live in. The condos are to be five storeys tall with commercial space taking up the first floor and the other four floors dedicated to the condos. One condo would consist of two floors. A lot of the technology for this building is still in its research and development phase. The house’s technology will focus on energy conservation using both hardware and software. The condo will have solar panel roofing similar to the one unveiled by Elon Musk in October. In the solarBLOCK, the excess thermal energy will be put to use by pumping the cold air in the house through an air duct that lies between the solar panels and the house’s interior frame. The air will be further warmed by the hot water heating system, similar to the way a refrigerator keeps the cold in but reversed, said Alan Fung, professor of mechanical engineering at Ryerson, and a

supervisor of the project. The hot water heating, air conditioning system and thermal heating system will all be combined into one system. According to ECOstudios this system will be controlled by a software that will make them work together and reduce the energy consumed. The walls of the house will also have material stuck between the drywall and the frame that retains heat. The material would absorb the heat in the daytime and at night, when it is cold, the heat would slowly leak out of the walls, the floors and the ceiling — warming the home. Another way the house is conserving energy is by storing it. There will be a lithium-ion battery in the house and a charging station for an electric vehicle. When the house is generating more energy than it needs, it will store the energy in those two places. All of these systems will be managed by a smart software program that is in its development phase right now. The system has been tested at another smart home in the Living City Campus. “The challenge is raising enough money to build the house and creating the right partnerships within the industry to make sure the house is going to happen,” said Berardi. @AlxTsui

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Open letter calls for indigenous liberation Student group is calling out the university, says ‘racism is alive and well at Ryerson’ DANIELLE LEE RYERSONIAN

A group of students called Indigenous Students Rising sent Ryerson an open letter last week, calling for the university’s support for the indigenous and black populations. “Every day, as students, we are faced with sideways glances every time we open our mouths to stand up for ourselves and our communities, and with the isolating feeling of having to always be the ones to speak up,” the letter says. “We have witnessed these acts against our black and indigenous faculty as well. Racism is alive and thriving at Ryerson University.” The letter was sent to Ryerson president Mohamed Lachemi, the university, the office of equity diversity and inclusion, the Faculty of Community Services and the Ryerson school of social work on Nov. 15. The Black Liberation Collective

pledged its support for the letter and said it stands in solidarity with Indigenous Students Rising. On their Facebook page, they said that, “Black liberation will not come without indigenous liberation.” Some of the changes the open letter calls for are: an increase in the hiring of indigenous faculty and staff, as well as an increase of hiring anti-black racism scholars. They are also asking for solidarity and allyship training workshops, land acknowledgements at the beginning of every semester, discussions of micro-aggression in the classroom, extra funding for indigenous and black students in the school of social work and a concrete approach to examining privilege and allyship in the social work curriculum. Meeting with Lachemi is an expectation the Indigenous Students Rising said it had when the letter was sent. “It is our hope that this

meeting will offer the office of the president an opportunity to show what concrete and immediate changes they are committing to. Further, it is an opportunity to get on paper some integral short- and long-term goals,” Indigenous Students Rising said via email. Lachemi has responded to the letter and extended an invitation to meet with Indigenous Students Rising. “I received the letter. I take those issues very seriously,” said Lachemi. “I’m very committed to this. It’s a sincere invitation to talk about issues.” Indigenous Students Rising has not yet arranged a time to meet with the university. @leemdanielle

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Globe at a glance: news brief ALEXANDRA CHRONOPOULOS SAMRAWEET YOHANNES RYERSONIAN

More Merkel German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced this week that she will run for a fourth term in office in the 2017 election. Merkel, who first took ofice in 2005, is the longest serving and most experienced leader of the western world. With the recent election of Donald Trump and the rise of right-wing politics in Europe, Merkel is also considered one of the last defenders of western pluralism. Not a Walk in the Park Earlier this week, South Korean

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President Park Geun-hye was formally prosecuted following ivestigation by state officials of corruption allegations. Last month, it was revealed that Park’s friend, Choi Soon-sil was abusing her relationship with Park for classified information and donations for her various charities. Choi has been charged with abuse of power, coercion, attempted coercion and fraud. Fake News Buzz A BuzzFeed News analysis released last week shows that the top fake election news stories generated more engagement on Facebook than top election news from 19 major news outlets combined, including the New York Times,

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Ryerson listens, if you use the right app ANNA EVANS RYERSONIAN

Brennan McEachran, a Ryerson graduate student, wanted to create a way to make his school a better place by aggregating the

input of his fellow students. So, he created Soapbox. Since then, it has been integrated as one of Ryerson’s many platforms for students to provide feedback and share ideas. But they are questioning how

effective this tool really is. “I’ve never heard of it,” says second-year creative industries student Angie Song. Another criticism is that some students have a hard time finding the tool, even though the social

forum is accessible to students through the my.ryerson.ca portal. Despite those concerns, president Mohamed Lachemi calls the program a DMZ success and refers to it as a “good tool to connect students to get their

feedback, get their ideas and how we can work together.” @evans_ak

AMIRA ZUBAIRI

hand-made donations that we had to go out and do it again because the response was just amazing,” said Syed. “Now as students, we’re bringing this to the Toronto area.” Ryerson students partaking in the Warm Hearts initiative are also partnering with students from other post-secondary schools across the GTA, such as the University of Toronto, to help raise money and donations to create the care packages. “I have friends in each of the universities that I delegate tasks to so they are responsible for reaching out to their campus newsletters and for putting up posters,” said Syed. On Ryerson’s campus, Copeman and Syed are turning to more creative ways to attract students and donors to the campaign. “I have been offering paywhat-you-want photo shoots for people, with all proceeds going to our fund,” said Copeman. “People donate to Warm Hearts, and they get nice pictures of themselves in return.” While the campaign was initially meant to close on Nov. 28, Syed and his team have extended it. They plan to host a fundraising dinner on Dec. 6, with keynote speaker Desmond Cole, a writer for both the Torontoist and the Toronto Star. Syed said Warm Hearts will begin distributing its care packages in February. He says that while the Ryerson Students’ Union, Ted Rogers Students’ Society and Enactus Ryerson are helping Warm Hearts with outreach, he hopes more people will spread the word to keep the homeless warm this winter.

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As it gets colder outside, a group of Ryerson students is preparing to help keep Toronto’s homeless warm this winter. First-year business management students Razi-Ul-Haque Syed and Benjamin Copeman recently kickstarted Warm Hearts, a student-led initiative that is raising funds to create winter survival kits for Toronto’s homeless community. “I believe that no matter where someone is in life, no one deserves to go cold,” said Copeman. “As students living day-to-day life in Toronto’s downtown core, it is important that we recognize our privileges that other people might not have and take some time to give back to the city around us.” The Warm Hearts team is currently working towards raising $10,000 through a GoFundMe campaign. The money raised will be used to make approximately 250 winter survival care packages, each of which will consist of one hat, one scarf, one pair of gloves, two pairs of socks and a special note from Warm Hearts. These will be distributed within homeless shelters and hot soup kitchens around the GTA. Funds will also be used to help the charity create posters, which will invite students and faculty from universities and colleges across the GTA to support Warm Hearts. Syed says he was inspired to launch Warm Hearts after taking part in a similar successful initiative in Thunder Bay, where the local Muslim community raised money to buy 100 scarves and donate them to low income neighbourhoods. “We got (so much) money and

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Wednesday, November 23, 2016

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R yers

Ryerson’s #ableism

The writing is on the wall for Ryerson students who identify with disabilities, as they reconcile with t JACQUELINE MCKAY RYERSONIAN

Fed up with the elevators in the SLC, Kimberlee Collins walks one of her students with a visual impairment down the stairs. Collins reads aloud to her student the messages written in chalk on the stairwell walls on the west side of the building. One of them shocks her. “There is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs.” Collins took a photo of it and posted it to the Ryerson disabilities studies’ Twitter page, with the hashtag “ableism.” These chalk messages are on every landing in both the west and east staircases of the SLC. They are created by the SLC student engagement and leadership (SEAL) team, who are most notably the students in yellow T-shirts. The messaging is intended to be encouraging and meant to motivate students who can take the stairs to do so. But there are many students who cannot. And to those students, the statements are hurtful. “Totally, totally offended by it,” said Mara Howard, a third-year social work student and a RyeACCESS co-ordinator who identifies with an invisible disability, “I was already having a shitty day, and I was already struggling to go up the stairs, because I couldn’t wait for the elevator, and that’s when I saw it.” Ableism is a set of practices and values that discriminates against people who identify with a developmental, emotional, physical or psychiatric disability, in favour of people who are not disabled. Ableism promotes non-disabled people as “normal” resulting in public and private places and services being built to accommodate non-disabled people. According to Howard, these chalk messages are promoting ableism language. Phrases like the one referred to by Howard are written by the SLC student staff.

“I think all our messaging should always take into consideration all users and be inclusive,” said Susan Machado, building officer at SLC. “So we’ll definitely change them.” According to Machado the ableist messaging has since been taken down. “I think the message that really I have for everyone, is to be very intentional when it comes to inclusion,” said Denise O’Neil Green, assistant vice-president, vice-provost of equity, diversity and inclusion. Green explains that often times we use language without considering its connotation and the messages it sends out. According to Amanda Lin, a fourth-year disability studies student who identifies with both physical and invisible disabilities, people are becoming more aware of ableism language, much like they are of gendered related language at Ryerson. But it is a lot more difficult to point out. “You know it feels icky when someone says something that doesn’t feel right, but you don’t know what to title it because it is not as easy as to point out as things like racism or bigotry,” said Lin. Recently the SLC has gone under public scrutiny for its failure to create practical accessible spaces for people with disabilities. The Toronto Star published an article with the lead image of David Lepofsky, chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), standing on the SLC “hangout stairs” in the lobby of the building, saying that these stairs exclude people with disabilities from hanging out there. These statements are just one example of the SLC’s exclusion of people with disabilities, much like the chalk writings on the wall. “That statement painted on the wall gives the impression that you’re not welcome here and that you’re lazy,” said Michelle Woolfery, a third-year equity and diversity studies student who is blind. “It’s just not a very nice thing to say in general.” According to Woolfery, this kind of language promotes “stair culture,” which is the idea that if you aren’t taking the stairs, it’s

‘The climb is tough, but the view from the top is worth it,’ reads one of the chalk messages on the stair landings i

because you lack the motivation to do so. “From just an esthetics perspective, the first thing that you see when you walk into the SLC is stairs, everywhere,” said Woolfery. “Well that’s not a very inviting atmosphere for someone who can’t use stairs.” But it’s not all bad. The SLC SEAL team has been trained to help make the SLC more accessible by assisting those who need help to get on the elevators, as well as asking people to

move their bags out of pathways so those with mobility devices can get through. Woolfery says this has been really helpful. One of the things Woolfery would like to see done is for the SLC to develop a formal system for students who identify with a disability to voice their accessibility concerns. Kajan Vigneswaran is a fourth-year business management student and RyeACCESS co-ordinator who uses an electric

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Wednesday, November 23, 2016

m culture

their school’s approach to their accommodation

SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

‘If Rocky can take the stairs...’ reads a chalk message on the wall of the SLC.

SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

‘It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you don’t stop,’ reads another chalk message.

SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

in the SLC.

wheelchair. He and Woolfery were two people in a student engagement working group that were consulted on accessibility issues in the SLC. But Woolfery hopes that this type of communication continues beyond this project. “I just wish they (the SLC) would start that process and continue to listen to the feedback that they are getting,” said Woolfery.

This story is part of an investigative series on accessibility at Ryerson. A micro-website containing all stories on accessibility will launch as part of the Ryersonian website at the beginning of December.

@mckayjacqueline

SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

‘By taking the stairs you are doing cardio! #UnexpectedLegDay’ reads a chalk message.

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Arts & Life

FCAD student masters industry ryersonian.ca Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Feminist theatre company AMANDA GILMORE RYERSONIAN

There is now an all-womyn theatre company in Toronto. HERstory Counts is a theatre company that produces plays, which are written and performed by diverse female-identified womyn. Female-identified means any person who identifies themselves as a womyn. Jennifer Neales, the founder of HERstory Counts says, this company is not only new, it’s necessary. “HERstory Counts became the necessary thing that had to happen because so many female artists I knew, were watching Toronto theatre … that were not from the voice of a womyn or a diverse female,” said Neales. HERstory Counts spells woman with a y, rather than the traditional way. “Using a Y is due to the etymology of the word womAn: the word is derived from wyfman, the combination of wyf (wife) and man,” says Neales. Other members of the HERstory Counts company think there needs to be more diversity on stage, especially among womyn. Current third-year theatre production student Jenna Borsato

agrees. She joined this company because she wanted to bring more diversity to the Toronto stage. “There’s a lack of representation in theatre and lack of diversity. It’s primarily white females in the theatre, which I think is a poor representation. It isn’t accurate of all womyn in the world,” said Borsato. So Borsato joined this company to make a platform for womyn of all ages, ethnicities and sizes. Neales said that most shows on main stages in Toronto are stories being directed and written by men. “That’s a specific lens to see the world through. It’s important to have diversity of perspective.” The first production for the company, called SILENCED, will have seven diverse womyn performing autobiographical 10-minute monologues. Each performance will tell a personal story or stories of the performer’s experience of being silenced. Some will be told in a poetry format, others with the use of sound, and some as more of an interactive experience. The company and the production of SILENCED hopes to break down preconceived perceptions about female relationships, said Borsato. “There is a preconceived notion that womyn should hate

COURTESY MAYA FINDLAY

Jenna Borsato, Jennifer Neales and Evangelia Kambites are the creators of HERstory Counts.

each other. It’s important to see that womyn will support you and love you and care for you,” said Borsato. And that is what HERstory Counts and SILENCED does, she continued. HERstory Counts is a platform for all womyn identities to perform their stories on stage. But the company is hoping to branch out and accept other plays that are written by womyn. It is not determined when this will happen. But when it does, who will play the male characters, if there are any? “I really want to focus on having a female creative team and producing team. But, we are not opposed in having men help at all. We will see if the play involves a man ... I think it depends on the piece,” said Borsato. Neales has a bit more to say on the topic.

“I can see us accepting scripts that also accept male roles,” she said. If those roles are played by males then they will have to be men who identify as feminists. “Ideally, the men we audition will come recommended by other womyn directors and casting agents.” Looking into the future of the company, Borsato said it will speak for all womyn and all people from marginalized groups, including people with disabilities. She is hoping to bring more people with disabilities to the stage. She said that people in wheelchairs are barely seen on stage and that there are many deaf actors who are not seen on stage but they are great at what they do. She wants to make sure that all voices get a platform to express their talent. Neale and Borsato created this company with their friend

Evangelia Kambites. But Borsato is not the only Ryerson student involved with the SILENCED production. Third-year theatre production student Maya Findlay is the assistant stage manager of the production. And Caitlin Cooke, a Ryerson grad, is the stage manager. Neales says this company and SILENCED is their way of making social change. “If the only way is to do it through our art then that’s what we will do.” SILENCED will hit The Red Sandcastle Theatre stage from Dec. 8-11. Tickets will be available at the door the day of the show or in advance at the brown paper tickets website. (www.brownpapertickets.com) @GilmoreAmanda

R yersonian

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Arts & Life 11 4

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Making tampons timely KELSEY ADAMS RYERSONIAN

Easy is not a word typically associated with menstruation. Ryerson alumna Alyssa Bertram is out to change that. Bertram, a graduate of the psychology program, launched her company, which is called easy., in June. It’s a subscription service that delivers organic feminine hygiene products and fair trade chocolate bars to clients every three months. Bertram hated the inconvenience of buying tampons at the drugstore and wished for a favourable alternative, which led

to the idea for her company. When she started planning her subscription service, she was going to use regular tampons. But during the research process, she learned that the products she was using were toxic, bleached and made of synthetic fibres rather than real cotton. “I was like, ‘How do I not know this and I’m sure that if I don’t then many other women don’t either.’ “So I switched to an organic brand and it became my mission to let people know there’s this danger,” Bertram said. The brand she uses for easy. is Organyc, one of two organic feminine hygiene products sold

KELSEY ADAMS | RYERSONIAN

Organyc is a tri-monthy subscription tampon company made by Ryerson alumna Alyssa Bertram.

in Canada. After finding this out Bertram became a member of the Society for Menstrual Cycle Research and learned that tampons are labelled as medical devices, which is a legal loophole that exempts companies from disclosing what ingredients are used in them.

“So, you know what’s in your shirt, you know what’s in the food you eat but you don’t know what’s in this thing that’s sitting in the most permeable part of the body for hours at a time, which is scary,” she said. Five per cent of each purchase is donated to the ZanaAfrica

Foundation, a non-profit that provides girls in East Africa with tampons, pads and access to sexual health education. The organization helps them stay in school and employs local people to create the products in Kenya. Bertram is also using the company to tackle the shame that exists around menstruation. Recently, her “No Shame” ad campaign was heralded on The Huffington Post and in the Marketing Magazine website for its critique of period shame society places on women. The purpose of the campaign is to “imagine what society would be like if there was no shame at all around menstruation and it was just treated as a natural thing. “The whole idea is to stop making it this secluded, siloed thing,” said Bertram. Rather than seeing menstruation as a gendered experience the campaign hopes to spark questioning about where period shame stems from. The campaign is on display in over 100 men’s and women’s washrooms across the city. @kelseyxadams

Alyssa Bertram is using these promotional posters to try to end the shame associated with menstruation.

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Sports

For more Sports head to ryersonian.ca Wednesday, November 23, 2016

VOLLEYBALL

Busiest man on campus Volleyball coach Dustin Reid talks about coaching both the men’s and women’s teams HAILEY SALVIAN RYERSONIAN

Volleyball head coach Dustin Reid has put himself in what some would call an unusual situation. For a second-consecutive seasons, Reid will be behind the bench for both the men’s and women’s volleyball teams. After coaching the women for eight years, Reid took the reins of the men’s team as well after its former coach took a leave of absence. Under Reid’s guidance both teams posted their most succesful seasons to date. And while his schedule may be hectic, his love of the game makes it so he never truly works. Q: Can you tell me a little bit about last year and your decision to take over the men’s team when you were already coaching the women’s team? It happened in late August, so there wasn’t a lot of time to prepare for what was really to come. Our men’s coach took a medical leave which sort of put an opportunity there, and what I understood about the opportunity is it would enable us to hire full-time assistant coaches for each program. If it weren’t for that, I don’t think I would have been able to take more responsibility nor would I have looked forward to it. The athletes on both teams were really quite outstanding and patient, and definitely tried to make the best of the situation. And that made our job as coaches

a lot easier. Q: How did things change for you with both teams? With the women’s team, I knew the players well, I knew our opponents well, we didn’t change a lot. But obviously on the men’s side, to get to know the players and opponents on a deeper level, and the way the schedule was going to work and how to negotiate the season, that took time. On both sides we had some ups and downs through the year, more than I was used to having. But if I can lump both sides into one, we found a way to play our best volleyball at the most important time. Ultimately that gave us a chance to do well in the playoffs and have a pretty good result. Moving into this season we’ve been much more prepared about what the responsibilities and roles would be, and also much more knowledgeable about what the teams are, and the players on them. Q: A lot of coaches get spread pretty thin just having one team, and you have two. How do you juggle both and find that success? I think first of all it’s really important to define what it means to do both, because to me it’s not not double the work. I think it’s easy to paint a picture of how crazy it must be, but that’s not the reality. The areas where it’s not forgiving are the pre-season, where the teams don’t tend to be in the same place when they compete.

COURTESY ALEX D’ADDESE

Dustin Reid on the sidelines with Lucas Coleman of the men’s volleyball team.

So either you make a choice of being with one or the other, or the tougher one is when you’re trying to be in two places in a given weekend. I think the amount of training time during the week is the other real challenge. The increased hours in the gymnasium, and what it means to my schedule, I guess. The time that I leave in the evenings is later than it ever was before. And that has an impact, especially over a long period of time. But I feel supported by the coaches we have, I feel the players are very understanding, I feel that the department here has

been very supportive. The resources that they’ve given our teams have helped us overcome those challenges. Q: Why did you decide to do this again? I know it’s not double the work, but taking on both teams, why did you do that again? I like having a job, and I don’t see it as a huge sacrifice, I don’t see it as something that I have to give up. I see it as players that I know well, and I want to give them the best opportunity to have good experience here, and I enjoy working with the staff that we have. It’s a unique challenge, and

to be honest, when you combine the subtle differences in the games from male to female, and the types of relationships that you have with the players, and the types of dynamics that you have in practice, I find that actually sort of plays off of each other and keeps things fresh.

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Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Rams men’s hockey grow their Mos ROBERT FOREMAN RYERSONIAN

The Movember campaign aims to increase early cancer detection, diagnosis and effective treatments, ultimately reducing the number of preventable

deaths. While they raise money, there is also a natural competition to see who can grow the best moustache.

“If it was last year, that’d be (former head coach) Graham Wise for sure,” said Barrick. “But we’ll have to see at the end of the month.”

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NIGHT WOMEN’S

THURS. NOV. 24 VS YORK 7:15 PM

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$4 BEER THURS. NIGHT Swipe & Win! Your Ryerson OneCard is Your Ticket into the Game! @ryersonrams

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Members of the men’s hockey team before their Movember launch game versus York.

#WeRRams

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H O C K E Y

The Ryerson Rams men’s hockey players have been working on and off the ice this month, both competing in games and raising money for the annual Movember campaign. For the second year in a row, their campaign is being spearheaded by netminder Brodie Barrick, who was recently named a Devon Lord Brooks scholar for his athletic, academic and community achievements. After leading the team past its goal of $1,000 last year, Barrick says he wants to “set the bar a little higher and raise about $1,500.” With a week to go in November, he is well on his way to meeting – and possibly surpassing – his goal, raising $1,350 thus far. The annual campaign happens in November, with participants making donations and growing out their moustaches to raise awareness of men’s health issues, like prostate and testicular cancers and men’s suicide. Barrick said that a lot of his teammates have signed on to the team’s Movember donation site and have been making an effort to get contributions from family and friends. But, they have a couple other tricks up their sleeves to help bring

in the funds. “Last home game, we sold raffle tickets for two Toronto Raptors tickets against the Golden State Warriors so we made a good chunk of change doing that,” he said. They raised $330 to be exact. The team is also planning a fundraising event at a local bar. This is an event that they do annually, where 100 per cent of donations at the door are given to the Movember campaign. In past years, they have been able to raise nearly $1,000 from that event alone. Ryerson defenceman Alex Basso said that organizing the pub night is something the team hopes they can do to help support Barrick’s efforts. “Just trying to get that event for him, that’s my biggest helping point,” said Basso. “The rest of it is all him. He’s just been doing an amazing job … he’s a good guy.” Part of what drive’s Barrick’s motivation is his own personal experience. “My uncle actually has been diagnosed with cancer for a long time. He’s been battling,” said Barrick. “The way I see my two young cousins every day knowing their father could die and having a positive attitude about it really makes this worthwhile.”

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Editorial

Read more Opinions and Editorials online ryersonian.ca Wednesday, November 23, 2016

EDITORIAL

Respecting the rights of interns The discussion surrounding unpaid internships is no stranger to controversy. In February, the federal government proposed changes to the Canadian Labour Code that would allow for four-month unpaid internships in federally regulated sectors like banking and telecommunications. Also in June, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne set a goal of funding more placements so that every student completes at least one experiential learning opportunity during high school, and another in post-secondary. But the government’s push towards more internships has been met with backlash. While internships, at their core, are meant to benefit the student rather than the employer, many interns feel overworked and undercompensated. By law, interns are still entitled to minimum wage, unless earning credits for a school program, or if the internship follows very specific requirements outlined by the Ministry of Labour. But because interns often go undocumented, there are no concrete figures on the number of unpaid internships in Canada. However, a new guide suggests an estimated 300,000 unpaid internships violate employment

standards every year, and another 200,000 interns work for free as a way to earn credit for their post-secondary program. The Canadian Intern Rights Guide, which launched last week at Ryerson, is the first of its kind. The guide, written by the Canadian Intern Association, is meant to help both interns and employers better understand the legalities of internships, which can be a very tricky topic. As an intern, it’s easy to feel powerless at the hand of your employer, so knowing your rights can be the best defence against exploitation. The guide explains that there are a few things interns can do when dealing with a crooked employer. If an internship has been misclassified, there is a way to claim back wages. This process differs between provinces, but if successful, the employer must pay minimum wage for all hours worked during an internship. In other cases, reporting exploitative employers to program instructors helps prevent future interns from facing wrongdoing. Internships aren’t for everybody, but whether you’re for or against unpaid work, respecting the rights of interns is something we should all sign up for.

CARLO ZANETTE AND JOSH KOLM | RYERSONIAN

OPINION

Movember: more than 'staches

HAILEY SALVIAN RYERSONIAN

With the abundance of moustaches and beards around the city, surely people must know that Movember is upon us. Every year when November rolls around you see a lot of people having fun with the campaign, trying (and maybe failing) to grow handlebars or a Monopoly man 'stache. But sometimes you can’t help but wonder if they have raised any money. So, I moustache (pun intended) everyone an important question — is it OK to just grow a Mo’ and not donate to the cause? Men around the world are

facing a health crisis that is often not talked about. Gender stereotypes that paint men as “tough” make it difficult for them to come forward and speak about the physical and mental illnesses they may have in their lifetime. The Movember Foundation, which is the creator and leader of the month-long campaign, seeks to raise awareness for a variety of men’s health issues, like prostate and testicular cancers and men’s suicide. Their goal: “to change the face of men’s health.” According to the Movember Foundation, 99 per cent of participants talked to someone about their health and 75 per cent of people became more aware of the health issues they face. So yes, if you look at the awareness part of the campaign, growing a moustache is a totally viable way to take part. But still, there is so much more to the campaign than one’s ability to grow facial hair. Like raising money, for example.

According to the Movember Foundation, testicular cancer is the most common cancer in young Canadians (ages 15-29). Also, one in five Canadians will experience a mental health issue each year, and three of four deaths by suicide are men. Movember funds help finance innovations in early cancer detection, diagnosis, and effective treatments to ultimately reduce the number of preventable deaths. In over a decade, the campaign has raised over $100 million globally and $24 million in Canada. It’s like the ALS Bucket Challenge. Sure, you can make a video and get lots of social media shares and raise awareness, but ideally you should donate to the cause. Raising awareness is great, and I love seeing people have fun with charity campaigns. But to me, it’s much better to grow your ‘Mo and hand over the dough. @hailey_salvian

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Voices

Read more Voices online ryersonian.ca Wednesday, November 23, 2016

How accessible is Ryerson? ‘Accessibility always seems to be an afterthought’ RICHA SYAL RYERSONIAN

When it comes to building new spaces on campus, accessibility always seems to be an afterthought. Ryerson has been taking steps to make the campus more accessible for people with disabilities, but exactly how accessible is our campus for those with mobility impairments? I requested an access tour to find out for myself. I met Heather Willis, the accessibility co-ordinator at Ryerson who leads the tours, at the front entrance of the SLC. Willis is in a wheelchair, so in a way, she also exposed me to the physical relationship she has with the campus. As someone who doesn’t identify with a disability, my intention in taking the tour was to gain an awareness of how accessible Ryerson is for students and staff with mobility impairments. The answer, I realized after the 90-minute tour, is complicated. The main purpose of the tour is to provide information about barrier-free routes of access. The most common route shows you how to get from the SLC to the Sally Horsfall Eaton Centre while staying indoors as much as possible. This route, Heather pointed out as we began, took her a couple of years to figure out. We started by taking the outdoor elevator on the side of the SLC building up to the main entrance. At first thought, I wondered why we didn’t just take the ramp up to the building. But when you look at the number of students sitting outside with their

feet on the ramp, it became clear that the elevator is just easier. Not to mention that the ramp is quite long and tirelessly winds back and forth. The first thing Willis highlighted were the accessible washrooms. In the SLC there are two types: the gendered cubicles, and the single accessible washrooms for those who need more space. As we crossed into the library building, she mentioned that there are also accessible washrooms in this building, but she likes to point out to students that there are better ones elsewhere. It was at this point that I started to realize how exclusive building designs can be for those with mobility impairments. How often do I need to think about which washroom would be more accommodating? It’s something that people who don’t use

a mobility device often take for granted. We then moved along the long ramp connecting to Kerr Hall — undoubtedly the most confusing building for those who need to navigate it without using the stairs. As we turned the corner, Willis said something that has really stuck with me. “The age of a building reflects the level of accessibility.” Kerr Hall was built in the 1960s — back then, accessibility wasn’t a priority. In fact, it wasn’t even a necessity. Willis and I spoke about how the assumption back then was that people with disabilities weren’t capable of going to school, and therefore didn’t need to be accommodated. Thankfully, the attitudes around people with disabilities

have since changed, but the priority for accessibility still lags behind. In 2005, the Ontario government committed to developing five accessibility standards under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). These standards became amendments to Ontario’s Building Code, and new buildings and major renovations must adhere to them. But on Ryerson’s campus, that’s not what I see. Accessibility is viewed as an add-on feature. For example: • The SLC was built in 2015, and has since added a number of accessibility features based on feedback from students and staff. The building faced criticism after David Lepofsky, AODA Alliance chair and disability advocate, noted that the large “hangout

SAMRAWEET YOHANNES | RYERSONIAN

The Ryersonian’s Richa Syal recently went on a guided campus accessibility tour that is offered at Ryerson.

steps” can’t be used by people in wheelchairs. • The only fully accessible washroom in the RCC has a ceiling lift, adult change table and a L-shaped bar instead of the standard angled bar. But the ceiling lift was built for a particular student’s need. • The new ServiceHub, which opened in August 2015, was built with the information counter too high for people in wheelchairs. A section had to be lowered afterwards. • The soup counter at the new Hub Cafe had to be lowered because it was difficult for wheelchair users to pour their own soup. The list could go on, and this is exactly the problem. Accessibility needs within these buildings are reactive responses; they are changes made after the fact. These changes need to be proactive approaches from the beginning. We ended the tour in Jorgenson Hall, and I felt like we had crossed all kinds of terrain. There’s the new smooth pavement on Gerrard Street, but also the narrow pathway entering the library lower grounds. Barrier-free routes are the goal, but it’s a slow process to strip away the poor design of prior decades. Willis manoeuvres through it all with ease. But that’s a testament to her being adaptive when building design hasn’t always been. And, like she told me at the beginning of the tour, it took her years to figure it out.

R yersonian

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Campus Connection

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Events Nov. 24

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Attract Employers on Magnet: Workshop for Graduate Students

When I started at the pool company, I was really looking at how I could improve the product. It’s built into my mentality to look for improvements.

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Ryers on womens’ hockey vs. York

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Nov. 25

Through the Scotiabank Changemakers program, we hope that students will gain important hands-on experience.

Sing Away Your Stress

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We’re excited to see the program launch and hopefully see many international startups expand into India.

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Managing Editor Video Alex Tsui

Last week, the Centre for Free Expression hosted a panel at Ryerson University, where media experts explored how the advent of smartphones, along with sites like Facebook and Google, have narrowed the open web. The panel, moderated by CBC Ideas host Paul Kennedy, addressed what happens when social media giants grow in popularity and what this means for public access to news and information. See the full story online.

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