Official issue 4

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

Featuring interviews with Dr. Leo Groarke, Stephen Stohn, and a History of Traill for our retrospective Issue

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Page 3: Upcomming Federal Election

Pages 8-9: Interviews

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We apologize for the misprint in Issue 3, and are reprinting Ancient Spirit Rising for Pegi Eyers’ book launch. Sorry Pegi!

Additionally, we are continuing a conversation about Trent University’s history and current state of affairs, along with our election Issue- Stay tuned!

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A Student Voter’s Guide It’s already October and the federal election is coming up!

The federal election this October is fast approaching, and with it, comes the opportunity for those of us of age to cast our ballot for the leaders of our country for the next four years. For many of us at Trent, this will be the first time we will be able to vote in the federal election, and for others, it will have been a few years since the last election. You may have heard that there have been some changes to the requirements and policies regarding voting this year that will complicate the process. Whether or not you have been actively following the election process, are unfamiliar with it, or just plain rusty, this article will provide you with all the information you need to know about how you can vote this year,oww H where and when you can do it, and what you will need to bring with you for when you get there.

How to Vote Before you decide how or when you will vote, you will have to read over your Voter Information Card. This will have been mailed to your home address by October 1, and it will hold important information regarding where you will need to go to vote on election day – October 19!

All of us should have some image of what voting on election day will be like, lining up to get your ballot and making your mark behind the privacy booth.

For most, this will be how we cast our vote but there will be a handful of options available to voters this year, including the advanced poll dates, through the mail, and in-person at an Elections Canada office.

If you have no problem making it to the riding of your home address for October 19, then all the information you need will be found on your Voter Information Card.

On your card, it will state what number your voting booth will be and the address of the building where you will be voting. For example, booth number nine of the Northumberland-Peterborough South electoral district is located in the Campbellford public high school.

Hours of voting this year have slightly changed, with booths open for voting at 9:30AM, and the doors will be locked at 9:30PM. All buildings rented by Elections Canada will have directions posted on the walls, guaranteed to be accessible, and an information officer will be present to direct you and answer any questions you may have on the day.

Should the normal election date prove to be too hard to work around, or if you will be home between October 9 to the 12, then the next option to consider is the advanced poll.

Your information card will also tell you the location of the advance polls for your voting district, and all of the advance polls will be open on the same days regardless of your electoral district.

The hours for voting on advanced polls will be slightly different than the main day, opening at noon and closing at 8pm.

The third option available to you is to vote by mail, and for those of us unable to travel several hours to get home to vote, this may be the best choice. In order to vote by mail, you must first apply to be accepted for this service, and once accepted, you will receive your special ballot kit that you must mail back. A special ballot kit is essentially a single ballot with its own pair of envelopes to protect the confidentiality of your vote. The application to vote by mail can be found on the Elections Canada website (www. elections.ca) but you can also apply in-person at any Elections Canada office. Should this not work for you, you can also apply over the phone toll-free at 1-800-463-6868 from 7AM to midnight. The deadline to apply for mail voting is October 13 and your ballot must reach Elections Canada

by October 19. It is very important to note that if you apply for this service and are accepted, you MUST vote this way and will be unable to do so at the advanced polls or the main election day, so be sure that you will be unable to vote on those days before applying.

If none of theseareoptions work of age to vote, nor do you need to prove

If these options still do not make the vote accessible to you, there is still a fourth chance left. You may vote in-person at an Elections Canada office and this will also be done with a special ballot kit. The local elections office for Peterborough is the Erskine building, found at 770 Erskine Avenue. Here, you will fill in the riding you are registered to vote in so that your vote will count for where you are registered, even if you visit an office in a different riding. As with voting by mail, the deadline to vote at your closest elections office is October 13 by 6PM. The regular office hours are Monday to Friday 9AM to 9PM, Saturday 9AM to 6PM, and Sunday noon to 4PM. Just the same as the special ballot used in voting by mail, if you choose to vote by this special ballot, you will be unable to vote at the advanced polls or the main day.

Regardless of how you choose to vote, you should make sure that you go over what ID you will need to bring with you to the booth. Contrary to rumours of increased difficulty in voting this year, you should find that you have a great many choices in the documentation you can bring. You will not need to prove that you

that you are a citizen. The two key things elections staff will check for is to confirm your name, and to confirm your address. It is recommended that you read the extensive list of potential documents on the elections website, but here, I will hope to show you just how easy it will be to vote. Following recent revisions, your first option is to bring either your driver’s license or your provincial ID card, as these provide a photo, your name, and your current address.

Should you not have one of these, you can still bring in two pieces of ID that both have your name and at least one of them has your address. This could be your debit card and utility bill, a health card and your lease agreement, or even a blood donor card and a firearms license. Additionally, voters will be able to use electronic-based documents, such as an e-statement, either printed or even on your phone. Should you be unable to provide proof of address, you are still able to have another voter who knows you from your riding, such as one of your parents, to vouch for you and make an oath of residence, though they may only do this for one person.

Special thanks to Clayton Russell for writing this article encouraging students to vote and how to get about registering in Peterborough if your current riding is somewhere else. Keep an eye out for our election coverage next Issue!

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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CampusNews Event series supports teaching at Trent

By Zachary Cox

Throughout the 2015-2016 fall and winter terms, Trent University’s Centre for Teaching and Learning will be offering an array of sessions aimed at further enhancing teaching at Trent. With more than 35 interactive sessions scheduled throughout the year and over 70 hours of content, the Professional Learning Events will provide educators with an opportunity to share experiences in collaborative learning environments.

The Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is dedicated to fostering innovative teaching methods and providing teachers with the resources and skills required to create dynamic learning spaces. “We want the CTL to be viewed as the hub of where teaching is celebrated, where innovative teaching practices are developed,” said Robyne Hanley-Dafoe, the Educational Developer for the Centre.

The Professional Learning Events are designed to uphold this mission.

“We want to improve the ability for people to be able to access resources,” said Hanley-Dafoe, continuing, “We want to promote active and collaborative learning, we want to enhance the student learning experience and what it feels like to be a student in a classroom at Trent, we want to make sure our Trent faculty continue to be leaders of responsive, active and collaborative teaching and learning opportunities, and we want to make sure [that] we are inspiring and rewarding excellence in teaching.”

The sessions are divided into five categories depending on the nature of their content and they span a wide array of topics. Various session formats are used, but each is interactive and designed

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to engage the attendees, a key element according to Teaching Awards Coordinator, Adam Guzkowski.

“There are conversations going on about active learning and they are going on in a space that is engaged in active learning,” Guzkowski explained. “I think the way that the practice and the philosophy are integrated in the sessions themselves is an important part of what’s being done.”

Philosophy Professor and Chair of the Department, Byron Stoyles, who will be facilitating one of the sessions, agrees with Guzkowski, stating, “I hope to get something out of this, too — it’s a genuine sharing of ideas.”

Events that fall under the Teaching and Learning Skills heading are designed to promote knowledge mobilization through focus on specific instructional skills.

Here, the session list includes Moving from Classroom Management to Student Engagement, which focuses on strategies for creating learning environments that encourage cognitive investment, active participation, and emotional commitment.

Student Learning Experience sessions focus on the implementation of instructional strategies that directly impact student learning. One session called “Easing the Bumps: An Instructor’s Role in Facilitating Student Success in Transitioning to University” will include a discussion about some of the best practices to foster student independence and confidence, even in large first-year classes. Another session, “Incorporating Indigenous Knowledge into Student Learning”, seeks to incorporate indigenous teachings and knowledge systems into the classroom environment.

The other event categories are Curricu-

lum and Course Design, Connecting Campus Communities, and “Ed Tech,” the last of which is a partnership series between the Centre for Teaching and Learning and Information Technology which deals with the use of educational technology both in and out of the classroom.

The broad range of topics should offer fresh inspiration that teachers of any discipline will be able to bring to their classrooms, but the offered sessions don’t end there! The Spotlight Series is a set of themed discussions revolving around an important note in the world of teaching.

This year, three presentations will be focused on the theme of teaching sensitive and controversial topics.

On September 23, sociology professor Momin Rahman reflected on the difficulties that surround presentations on issues of sexuality, gender, violence, and exploitation and encouraged discussion on useful guidelines for such topics. In November, Stoyles will share some of his strategies for helping students engage with subject matter that they may find controversial, upsetting, or even offensive. In December, another sociology professor Gillian Balfour discusses means to bring students together to actively engage in provocative topics such as sexual violence, addiction, racism, and mental illness.

“I think it’s really helpful to share our strategies because most of us have been in situations where teaching these subjects has not gone well and, I suspect, most of us have been in situations where teaching these topics has gone extremely well,” Stoyles observed. “Sharing information really helps. It makes us better at what we do and helps the students by allowing us a more comfortable environment to address the issues.”

For his session, Stoyles hopes to encourage others to “walk students through hard issues.”

“I think there are really positive ways to do that,” Stoyles stated. “The overall message is that nothing should be off the table in terms of what we discuss in our classrooms.”

If inclined to attend one – or more – of the sessions, please be sure to register in advance. You can find out more about the CTL and find a complete schedule of the Professional Learning Events with descriptions and registration links at this website link: trentu.ca/teaching/events.

“At the end of the day, CTL views this opportunity as a privilege that we get to work with all of these people and bring them all together to have these rich discussions. […] We know it creates a positive learning culture but it also creates an amazing experience for our students,” said Hanley-Dafoe. “We’re providing an opportunity to [celebrate and support] teaching.”

This is a series of discussions that is very much in line with Trent’s identity, remarked Hanley-Dafoe. “Trent is renowned for its quality of teaching and its quality of education and for staying at the forefront of education that is unparalleled.

Because of the nature of our seminars, our tutorials, our labs, and the interaction that we have with our students, we have opportunities to push our teaching practice father than probably most other institutions, just because of the very nature of what Trent was established on.”

Guzkowski echoed this, saying that the Professional Learning Events were structured around “an institutional vision about engaging, active, collaborative teaching and learning.”

comic by Ad Astra comix

national

Grassy Narrows: a cause for concern in Northern Ontario

By Jordan Porter

If you are familiar with Northern Ontario, this story may hit close to home for you as something you have grown up hearing about. Grassy Narrows, or the Asubpeeschoseewagong First Nations, are an indigenous tribe whom reside in Northern Ontario, close to Kenora. With a population of approximately one thousand, the Grassy Narrows First Nations enjoy almost forty square kilometers of serene and flourishing forestland, lakes, and rivers. However, in recent years, the land that the Grassy Narrows hold so dear is being threatened by an Ontario government approval that is subjecting some of this land to clear-cut logging. This type of government intrusion is nothing new to the people of Grassy Narrows. In the early 1960’s, Dryden Pulp Mill, a paper manufacturer, held residence on the land that the people of Grassy call home. This unwanted visitor was not only infringing on land dedicated to the Native Reserve under federal treaty 3 which dates back to the late 19th century, but the mill was also releasing what was soon to be discovered as extremely toxic, and harmful quantities of mercury in the surrounding lakes and rivers of Grassy Narrows causing the community to be stricken with illness.

The ultimate plan for the Ontario government is to successfully clear part of this land in order to build schools, open up the possibility of mining, and hydro damming among other potential industry. Regardless, the tribe is not giving in lightly.

Thanks to some helpful intel of a Kenora

based Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officer, I learned that in mid July of 2006, the tribe reportedly staged a protest in the form of an impromptu roadblock. They blocked the Trans Canada Highway before highway 671, which leads to Grassy Narrows in the attempt to deny entry to any clearing machinery. My question is, who can blame them? This peaceful protest is one of many demonstrations from the Grassy Narrows tribe and their supporters; support that has been gaining momentum for over a decade and have caught the eye of organizations such as Rainforest Action Network, other Native communities, and a variety of individuals driven by social, and ecological justice from across North America.

The case of Grassy Narrows is also a unique one when looking at it through a legal scope. The residents of Grassy are actively organizing a lawsuit against the On-

tario government under the pretenses of violating their Charter Rights. More specifically, they are citing discrimination in a situation arising from an “environmental degradation”. If successful, this will be the first of such cases to be won in a court of law, and will set a precedent in future trial proceedings. What the people of Grassy Narrows are concerned about is the frightening, and total disregard for human safety displayed by the Ontario government. In a recent interview with the CBC, Patricia Sellers comments on how water purity testing has confirmed that lakes and rivers in this area are showing higher than normal readings for mercury from the perspective of both natural standards, as well as government standards for safety. This is not something unknown to the Ontario government. In the late 70’s, early 80’s, there were a total of eight proposals submitted to the Ontario government, which contained plans to clean up the tainted water after the desistance of the Dryden Pulp Mill that started it all. Each of these eight proposals remained unexecuted and our government ultimately forgot the pursuit for a cleaner Grassy Narrows.

The primary concern for the people of Grassy Narrows is the protection of their own health. The aboriginals of this tribe have witnessed the effects of mercury poisoning for decades at the expense of their friends and loved ones. Mercury poisoning afflicts humans in the form of damage to the brain, kidneys, heart, lungs, and immune system. The effects are extremely serious and in some cases lead to death.

A number of scientific studies have been conducted in an effort to gauge just how serious pollution in the area is. One study concluded that, when testing fish in these aquatic systems, it was found that in some cases, when regarding infants or small children, these fish held fatal doses of mercury if consumed. To this day there are people with ongoing afflictions from the contaminated water even years after the closing of

the Dryden Pulp Mill. Knowing the repercussions of clear-cutting, the natives of Grassy Narrows want to protect not only their environment but their people as well.

I got in touch with Trent University’s Professor of Environmental Science, Doug Evans on the subject. Prof. Evans specializes in toxicology of aquatic systems, as well as the pollution patterns of the same. I spoke with Prof. Evans to gain a better perspective on what the people of Grassy Narrows may stand to face if the Ontario government follows through with the plans proposed and if these issues warrant cause for concern.

“This is a really hard question to answer unless you really understand the geochemistry of the [aquatic] system. For example, if you clear-cut a piece of land, you may get an increased load of erosion sediments running into the aquatic system, this could actually be a positive thing in the sense that it may bury the existing mercury sediment. However on the other hand, if you clear-cut, you’re presumably going to have a lot of organic material going into the systems and could change the geochemistry of the water which could create some sort of chemical imbalance such as lowering the PH in the water or something like that which may actually enhance the amount of mercury you would find in fish, so it’s a really difficult situation.”

The people of Grassy Narrows continue to fight for their human rights, and rights as citizens of this land. There are clear laws that require consent for any government entity to make any changes to reserve land.

These requirements were not met and the people of Grassy Narrows are now standing up.

As a result of this, they have gained support from a number of individuals, as well as activist groups. To further your knowledge on the efforts of the Grassy Narrows First Nations, or to get involved yourself, please visit their website located below.

Stay informed! Know your rights.

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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National “The collective political conscience stirs as election time approaches for Canadians. As a hallmark of this opportunity to exercise our democratic rights, Prime Minister Stephen Harper dropped into Peterborough for a rally as part of his campaign, as well as in support of local Federal Conservative candidate Michael Skinner on September 21.”

By D

According to local news sources, Harper did not address any issues regarding the economy, the controversial Bill C-51, Bill C-24.

Nor did he care to talk about former Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro.

Del Mastro was found guilty of falsifying election documents and exceeding the election spending limit.

He chose instead to focus on issues of fiscal conservatism including less social spending and cutting back on pension funds as well as employment insurance.

Prime Minister Harper also refused to take any questions.

Harper’s commitment to fiscal conservatism and target demographic became clear to the unwitting observer as an army of Mercedes, Audis, Rangers, Bentleys, and an assortment of other highend cars rolled out of parking lot.

Manned by upper-class white

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men. They were met with a small but vocal group of protesters who compensated for the rally’s lack of dialogue on hard-hitting social issues with chants and posters.

The protest signs ranged from issues of shutting down women’s shelters and resources, the use of unsanctioned pipelines on in-

digenous land, the treatment of refugees, the blatant lack of concern regarding missing and murdered indigenous women.

The silencing of scientists on climate change, and the lack of a conservative presence at Toronto’s Pride week this year were also subjects of protest.

The contrast between the Conservative supporters and protesters was palpable.

“I was stopped about halfway between the protesters and the entrance to the rally,” commented one protester, Evan Nelson.

“I was told that the event was private and that I would not be allowed inside despite the fact that I had registered online.

I asked why I was being refused and one of the security guards gestured to my appearance and said, ‘What do you think?’ in a sarcastic tone.”

The protesting group displayed much more diversity in terms of ethnicity, gender, ability, and age.

This juxtaposition between normative identities and minorities that span and intersect a wide range of identities speaks to the tension that was felt at the event.

While protesters were vocal in the opposition of specific bills, policies, and values of the current Conservative government, the Conservative reporters stepping out of the (apparently exclusive) rally retorted with obscene hand gestures and personal jabs towards the appearances of the protesters.

This event was a particularly salient reminder as to what the Conservative government’s priorities are, and who they stand for.

It was made clear that it was not women, poor people, racialized minorities, the aging, the unemployed, students, or the LGBTQ+ community.

If a society is only as strong as its most at-risk and marginalized members, Canada will have to watch out in the case of another Conservative government.

Campus history

Sadleir House: a history

By Caitlin P. Jones Sadleir House is a student and community facility located at 751 George St North, It’s the largest house on the block between Barnardo and Parkhill, and also has its own bus stop. Sadleir House is owned by the P.R. Community & Student Association, and operated by a Board of Directors, that’s made up of more students and community members, as well as a group of dedicated alumni and student staff. Sadleir House is funded largely by a levy from each full-time undergraduate students at Trent, as well as community donations. Because of this we like to remind students that Sadleir House is your house, and because of its policies, it can only be what the community makes it.

Sadleir House has a rich and unique history, and is an integral part to understanding how Trent University has crafted its identity. Sadleir House was one of the first buildings purchased during the founding of Trent University. Founding President Thomas H.B. Symons purchased 751 George Street North alongside 300 London Street (now Scott House) to establish the university’s downtown campuses. Ron Thom, Master Architect, designed Sadleir House’s link, which is a

mid-century modern addition that was used to bridge the main house and the renovated coach house. This bridging of Victorian and modern designs is largely representative of how Trent was originally envisioned.

Professor Symons’s vision was an institution that followed the college system that allowed community to flourish between faculty and students in shared academic and living spaces. In the initial press release announcing the development of the downtown colleges, Professor Symons said that he saw the downtown colleges as a permanent part of the university, despite the plans to move forward with the development on Nassau (now Symons) campus. He believed that even in the early 1960s, residential living spaces were lacking for university students, and these downtown colleges-as well as the twelve planned for Nassau--would always been needed.

Sadleir House, initially named Peter Robinson House, stood as the lively centre of Peter Robinson College for 37 years. The Peter Robinson campus grew to include Abbott House (754 Water St), East Lodge (748 George St), Reade House (741 George St), Stratton House (740 Water St), The Cottage (733 George St), North House (755 George St), Denne House, and

the townhouses. PRC’s community was incredibly vibrant, and its pub The Jolly Hangman was home to a thriving music scene. Many alumni fondly look back on days in the dining hall at events like Jazz Goes to College. Despite the love that student and faculty had for PRC it wasn’t destined to live on permanently in its initial form.

In 1999, the Board of Governors made the controversial decision to close, and sell, Peter Robinson and Catherine Parr Traill Colleges. This decision was challenged by the university Senate, and met with outrage from the community. Three PRC faculty members filed a judical review, that was not successful in blocking the sale of Peter Robinson College. In 2002 Peter Robinson College was sold to the Moloney Project Development Group, the Townhouses were leased back to Trent for four years following. In March 2003 students voted to create a levy for a “non-profit, cultural and educational student facility,” and less than a year later the P.R. Community & Student Association was incorporated, and then became the owners of 751 George Street North.

Eleven and a half years later, Sadleir House is still standing and looking better than ever. Sadleir House

boasts a beautiful Senior Common Room that has a large amount of natural light, and is open for use during all hours of operation. Sadleir House has free wireless internet access throughout, a coffee machine, a free lending library, three rentable spaces, and offices for various student and community offices. It’s hard to really encompass all of the things that can be done at Sadleir House, because the nature of the activities ebb and flow with the interests of students. Currently, the Jolly Hangman has been revived with weekly Thursday night pub nights in the dining hall that can be booked at no cost, there is a variation of private yoga, bellydance, burlesque, and tai chi classes. Arthur, Absynthe, the Annual, OPIRG, and the Peterborough Student Co-operative--just to name a few--are all located throughout Sadleir House.

If none of those things draw you in, the architecture should draw you in. Sadleir House stands as a great representation of Victorian architecture, midcentury modern architecture, and the great things students can create when they set out to make a change.

So, stop by! We’d love to meet you. If you’d like to stay in touch, find us on Twitter, or Facebook, or check out our website at sadleirhouse.ca.

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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Interview A word with Stephen Stohn: the man behind Arthur and Trent Radio Guess what? It's Arthur's 50th birthday this year, so we had to do something special. What could be more special then speaking to the man who conceived Arthur in the magical year of 1966. We had a chat with the one and only Stephen Stohn while he was in Toronto, filming Degrassi the Next Generation. Stephen laid the corner-stohn's of Trent Radio and Arthur Newspaper fifty years ago. Since then, he has gone on to produce the teen drama series Degrassi. Until 2009, Stohn was the executive producer of The Juno Awards, and was also a director and Chair of the Canadian Acadamy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Here, Stohn discusses his early years at Trent, and his thoughts on modern journalism.

By Yumna Leghari How did you come about becoming editor of Arthur and starting the paper?

When I started, my friend, Jeffrey O’Brien, and I joined the newspaper. When we started in 1966 and there was already a literary newspaper called The Sword. It started the year that I first went to Trent and by the way, back in those days, I was supposed to go to Champlain College but Champlain wasn’t completed when it was supposed to be completed.

We were living downtown near Rubidge Hall and somehow decided it would be a good idea because I was interested in media; moreso on the recording and music side. I thought, “Well, a newspaper is media!”

So, my friend Jeffrey and I volunteered to be part of the newspaper. At the time, they were starting a weekly paper that didn’t have a name. You may well know the story that every week, they gave it a new name like the Sentorian and the Trent Trumpet.

How it was done in those days was that people had to type on a typewriter onto Gestetner paper. They had to type into this paper that was really wax paper and when the keys hit the paper, it would make a hole in the wax. Then, you would wrap the wax cylinder around the Gestetner machine, put ink through it, and crank the crank. So, Jeffrey and I were responsible for cranking the crank! It was fun and a lot of people didn’t really know about the newspaper.

One night, it was one o’clock in the morning at Peter Robinson College. The typing had been done but we still didn’t know what the name of the newspaper was. Everyone had sort of left by that time, so it was up to Jeffrey and me to come up with a name.

That’s when I just said, Arthur. The more senior students who had been there before went over to the more illustrious publication, The Sword, which was more literary and formal, and I was left being the editor-in-chief. We had the time of our lives trying to figure out what a newspaper was and what we were doing. Of course, we knew nothing.

We’ve been pouring over the early archives from the mid- to late 1960’s, and we would say compared to now, the direction of Arthur’s voice has shifted. In those days, it was dripping in humour and satire.

In some of the articles would be poking fun at the administration. Is this something you hoped would continue?

Certainly. I would say we didn’t know what we were doing and that reflects me *laughs*. It wasn’t like this was a long-term plan. It is thrilling in so many ways.

Who would have believed that a newspaper called Arthur would still be here nearly 50 years later? Yes, we did have fun. I remember our first April Fool’s issue with the headline, “No Way for Trent’s System”. I wrote that.

We had so much fun doing little things like that.

We were just trying to tell people what was going on at the university, which was very small at the time.

We were not trying to be the Washington Post and have a view on life. We were trying to engage people and create a vehicle for the exchange of information.

It was over the summertime of that first year that we

stayed on campus, met the Peterborough Examiner, and learned what offset printing was. We did our first offset issue and were so proud of ourselves. We could actually have pictures!

We joined the Canadian University press and made up little cards saying that we were press.

Of course, it never did us any good but it made us feel better. I think the Examiner took pity on us and printed those for free. I noticed a few years after my editorship when I was working on the radio station that different people sort of took the Examiner and it started to become quite political and took a hard left-turn.

We noticed in the older issues that there was a writer that went by “Stu Butts, Bu Stutts, Boob Slutts” and we just want to know who they were as they are a mysterious entity?

Stu Butts is a real person. He also had a good sense of humour. I think he was a year older than me, so he may have been part of The Sword. We used to play bridge together – back in those days, bridge was a thing.

We didn’t have the internet so you’d sit in the coffee area at Rubidge Hall and play bridge all day and skip your classes. Stu was the head of one of the paper’s departments. We liked to give our paper departments, like Sports, as if we were a big paper.

What program were you enrolled in at Trent?

I started in 1966 with a double major in Economics and Philosophy. You might say that for someone who’s a lawyer and a television producer now, those don’t sound quite right, but to me, those are quite perfect.

How do you feel about this being Arthur’s 50th year?

Well, the fact that both the radio station and Arthur have carried on isn’t too surprising. We were there in the early days and somebody had to start these institutions and it just happened to be that we were there at the right time and had the enthusiasm. So, that’s one side – that it’s not unexpected that the newspaper and radio station are carrying on.

But, on the other side, it is a genuine thrill that when I’ve gone back to Trent and met people like yourselves who are working on Arthur, and to think that it was 50 years ago... you know, I’m still inside of me. I’m still an 18-year-old on one of my better days.

On my worst days, I’m like a 12-year-old boy. So, I think, how could that be? Because I’m only 18! I’m thoroughly grateful to have just been there at the right time and to have been given the encouragement.

Are you aware of what went on at Trent during the Bonnie Patterson era? The closure of Peter Robinson?

There’s no Peter Robinson College anymore?

No, there isn’t. When this happened, students protested in the form of a peaceful sitin. The police had the students forcefully removed and expelled from the University.

My Lord! The protests that were organized back in the ‘60s was at a time when there were a lot of protests [happening] across Canada regarding administration and demanding more say in what courses were offered. There were rumours of war and we were on the brink of the Vietnam war. It was very much the students versus the institution.

We had learned that Tom Symons was being asked to go into politics and had been invited to Ottawa.

So, our protest was that we didn’t want him to leave.

We had signs like, “No, no, you can’t go.” It was a proadministration demonstration so it was the last thing from students getting expelled. We loved the administration back in the day.

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Do you think that the Humanities are an integral part of Trent?

but we’ve got some local and broad-based online journalistic sources.”

My hero back in the day was Tom Symons and we had dinner together, and it was such a pleasure seeing him. His whole philosophy was about the idea of being a renaissance person and immersing yourself in all of the subjects. The driving mantra of Trent University is so much based on the interdisciplinary approach and not just focusing on one area. You bring different brain patterns to different subjects which invigorates them and you as you learn.

Can went

What do you think regarding the future of print?

You could say the print world is disintegrating.

I think with everything that we do, we have to distinguish between “the medium is the message,” if we think about it in terms of McLuhan. I subscribe to the New York Times. My eyes aren’t the greatest in the world and I probably couldn’t read the print edition without glasses. I read the New York Times every morning and I appreciate all the journalism that they do. I read the New York Times but for me, it isn’t in print edition. I think that it is inevitable, not to say that print or television should die, but TV, as we know it, is ending. People are moving over to streaming services. To me, the contact keeps getting better and better. Will books die? No. I mean, people are always going to have physical copies, but at the same time, I can’t remember the last time I read a print copy of a book. I have hundreds of books on my Kindle.

You know, you ask, “is it the end of print?” but I almost want to deflect the question and say, “What does this do to journalism?” if we’re talking about newspapers. I think we’re in a period where the online advertising rates are finding it very difficult for newspapers even [published] online to survive. This is true in the television world as well. I have no doubt that this disruption that’s happening will find a settling point. If you look at Vice or Buzzfeed, they are different from traditional newspapers. They are making a good foray into real journalism and content production.

We love Vice. It’s a space that gives hope to aspiring journalists, hope that there is work out there.

My hope is that when we look back in 10 years time, that we can look back and say, “You know, what a nice eco-system we have. It’s not as broad as it was before

you tell us about how you about starting Trent Radio?

When the Bata Library was being built, Peter Northrop had a recording studio in there with a fourtrack tape machine and a sound booth and it was meant for use in the language lab. But we worked with him and thought, “Couldn’t we use it to produce a radio program?” Radio was really big back in this day. It was the beginnings of stations like Chum FM. Stations were playing pop music and were sort of emblematic of a generational shift.

Then, FM radio was coming on-board and playing entire albums and getting much deeper into music.

What we were able to do was record four hours into large tape reels and broadcast on Sunday evenings downtown [from] what was then called Chex FM. They were rival stations and played us. It was a way for them to have community content on the station. We undertook a university-wide survey of what people would want on the station. When I look back, I smile because it’s completely statistically invalid. What we did was ask how many of you would like to hear Jazz, or Classical, etc.? If 17% liked Jazz, 17% of the show was Jazz. This was in 1968.

Editors’ Note:* Champlain College will be hosting Stephen Stohn as our Alumni in Residence from October 13-18 to participate in workshops and seminars with Trent students. Stohn’s first community engagement event will start with an event on Thursday, October 15 where he will be a featured panelist at Through a Canadian Lens: The Current and Future Landscape of Television and Film, a free event taking place at 7PM in Bagnani Hall at Traill College.

There will also be a drop-in event for members of the public and students to meet with Mr. Stohn at Black Honey from 2PM to 4PM on Friday, October 16.

interview

Trent University, our past and future Part 1 of 2

sity and that should give us some space.

Dr. Groarke, you’ve been at Trent On the faculty side, we wanted for about a year now, how are you some replacements. So, in agreefinding it? ance with the Trent University Faculty Association (TUFA), every two Wonderful. I think Trent is a people that went, a new position wonderful place. Like every would be created. Essentially, if 19 university these days, we have some people left we would create 10 new challenges, particularly on the positions to replace those people. budget front. Mostly, I’m just very Ideally, we would like to have 20, excited to be here. but in these circumstances that isn’t I believe that Trent has a great possible. future.

Despite the difficult problems we face with the budget, there are posiSpeaking of the budget, how are we tive changes happening at Trent doing? Things always seem so dire which are very exciting. when we discuss budgets.

What sort of positive changes can To put things in context, one we look forward to seeing at Trent? needs to understand the place in which universities are in now. We are optomistic about enrollThe province, which is the mainly ment this year. We have had funds universities, has a deficit significantly higher interest in Trent and is determined to eliminate it. at our presence at the Ontario UniIt wants by 2017 to accomplish versities Fair. We stood out with a that, and in order to do so public display that brought the beauty of the spending needs to be cut. So campus to the fair in a large- scale funding to universities have been way. The Government counts frozen, and to some extent, cut enrollment on November 1st, and it in the last three years. Funding looks like our numbers are going to per student has also gone down, be better than we expected. Along as well there are fewer students with new program development, going to university in comparison we are postive about Trent’s future. to the past. So, the funding that we get from the province is stat- Last year, editor Matt Rappolt ic, or even being reduced. At the inquired about the changes within same time, the cost of running the the colleges. Now that a year has University goes up every year. passed, do you have a better understanding of the college system and It’s a difficult situation for the re-structuring they have faced?

Universities in general. I know that even the University of Toronto and Yes! One of my hobbies during the other mammoth insitutions are go- last year has been to study Trent’s ing through similar issues. history. And what a fascinating history! There’s lots of controversy UOT highlights the pension prob- and different point of view. lems that almost all of us have.

On the college issue, there’s a couUniversities have very good ple of things. The most important pensions, and that of course, is a thing to say is that this year, I am good thing. However, the pension bringing someone in to do a review funds that we have at the moment, of Traill College. as well as the ones UFT has are Traill College is an interesting and not sufficient to cover their pen- special, it is the one college that resion commitments. In Toronto, tains the character of the original they have almost a billion dollar colleges at Trent University. It has a liability on their pension fund, and Principal, cultural aspects and very managing those pension funds is much of a community atmosphere. one of the issues we all deal with.

Now, there are also some challenges with Traill College. Some of them On the subject of pensions, I heard are deferred maintenance, as well as there has been success eliminating the budget that does not work. our deficit with an early retirement So, this year there will be a reincentive at Trent. Could you speak view of Traill College. I am bringto this Early Retirement Package? ing in Chris Tindale for the review.

He used to be the Senior Tutor at When this package was offered, Traill College, as well he and I have around 45 faculty members opt- published together. So I know him ed for it. They recieved a buyout, well, but I also wanted to bring which included a one- year salary someone in that understands. pay for that buyout. Once this goes The review will be conthrough, we will have significantly ducted in the second term. reduced the budget of the UniverI want to do this in a way where

A conversation with Dr. Leo Groarke

By Zara Syed

everybody, whether it be Alumni, or students or faculty a chance to talk about Traill College.

and I did stop that from happening.

Traill is a special case and needs to be treated as such.

One could argue that due to their not being fiscal supports in place, such as endowments, the structure of Trent has been set up to be unsustaible.

Do you think that, in a way, Trent was set up to fail because structurally we were meant to be a small university?

That’s a very deep comment. Yes, in a way Trent was set up to be like Oxford and other high- end liberal arts collges in the United States. The major difference, however, between Trent and Cambridge or Yale or Harvard is endowments.

What happened was that we have a university that aspires to be like those private colleges, but it depends on public funding. When you depend on that public funding, in order to make the budget work, you have to do essentially what the Government tells you to do.

When what the Government has told you to do for a long time is expand enrollment, it’s unfortunate but understandable that we don’t have deep endowments in place.

You’re asking the right questions, and it is a very complex matter. If you want to have a conventional college you need to have undergraduate students who live there, ideally for four years. That is the traditional model, and it is an interdisciplinary model; the faculty need to be engaged in that model.

Typically, a faculty member runs the college and there are social events and dinners to ensure that interaction.

Now, lots of that doesn’t go on at Trent anymore. When you talk about the Symons campus, there are complexities here.

One of which is that there has been a gravitation towards departments rather than Colleges. Traill is the experiment to see if that College model can still work

How do you feel about the restructuring of the Colleges that has tak- Every year it seems we almost have to re-tell our history. It is en place? interesting that Trent was itself I would say that the changes made an experiment, and now we are to the Colleges occured before I experimenting all over agin to see came to Trent. That it is a totally where Traill might lead us. different model, having student service professionals in those colleges. To some extent, it’s probably a good What I would say for the moment thing if universities continue to is that I’m not going to change experiment!

They should be places where we something that was changed one year before I came here. Time will try different things. tell if it works or doesn’t work, and some time in the future that can be *Leo and I ended up having so much fun that the interview ended up reviewed.

Actually, some people wanted the being almost two hours long! Stay tuned same thing done to Traill College, for Part 2 in our next Issue...

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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Catharine Parr Traill

A brief history of Traill College

Catharine Parr Traill

“There is no question of the success of the furnishing of Catharine Parr Traill House. The result is delightful, gracious, homelike, yet entirely

functional. Members of the College are especially appreciative of the colours and textures of the drapes and rugs, and of the use of wood, especially in the tables of the dining hall, library, and seminar room. The ceiling lighting fixtures are unusually attractive, and the lamps are graceful as well as sturdy… the total effect is entirely suited to a women’s college.

By Michael Eamon, Principal of Trail College

Peterborough, the Rome of the Kawarthas, was built atop seven hills. Traill College is fortuitously perched upon one of these iconic, glacial drumlins. From Kerr House (1853) to Bagnani Hall (2010), there are over three centuries of built heritage at the College.

Yet, the history of human occupation of the area extends beyond the memory of the Anishinabe whose ancestors used the nearby great portage from Chemong Lake. In 1818, immigrants from the Cumberland region of England formed the Smith Town settlement nearby.

After the arrival of 2500 Irish in 1825, ushered by Peter Robinson, his eponymous borough grew quickly and the region’s wealthy soon made the drumlin their home. Yet for Traill College, history started with Scott House.

Originally built in 1882, the Victorian structure has seen many inhabitants, including the Peterborough industrialist, mayor, and Senator George Cox. By the mid-20th century, the once stately manor at 300 London Street had been converted into apartments and was starting to look its age.

It was this building that Trent’s founders chose for the site of the university’s first women’s college.

Master planning architect Ron Thom, leading a talented group that included young architect Bill Lett Sr. and others, set to work designing mid-century modern additions and furniture for the College. In September 1964, following a thorough renovation, the well-appointed residence building opened, with a seminar room, dining hall, an apartment for principal Fry, and room for 20 students.

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Traill, along with Peter Robinson, formed the backbone of Trent’s college system downtown. While Trent is often called the “Oxford on the Otonabee,” founding president Tom Symons actually had England’s Durham University more in mind for the planning of the university.

Durham University’s colleges can be found both in the city centre and on the outskirts of the medieval English city.

Like Durham (and unlike Cambridge and Oxford’s system of autonomous, affiliated colleges), Trent’s colleges were federated with the larger university. As such, many functions were administered centrally, such as the hiring of faculty or the granting of degrees.

Following the collegiate model, Traill had its own principal, dons, senior tutor, dining hall, library, junior common room for students, and senior common room for faculty. This helped form a (very Canadian) dual identity, where students could feel an affinity for both their college community and for Trent University.

Today, people often forget that Traill College was originally intended for women only. Its namesake, Catharine Parr Traill (1802-1899) was a 19th-century author and early naturalist who lived in the Peterborough region.

Traill was the perfect example of someone who bridged the gap between the arts and sciences and of an articulate, intelligent woman who lived in an era dominated by masculine words and actions.

Indeed, as a press release from 1966 announced, all of the College’s original buildings were named after prominent women “of the Peterborough and Trent Valley who are noted for historic, artistic, or literary reasons.” As the

College expanded, the original Traill House was renamed after Jeanette Scott and was soon accompanied by Isabella Valancy Crawford House (300 London Street), Anne Langton House (554 Reid Street), and Frances Stewart House (292 London Street).

In mid-20th century Canada, higher education had been a masculine domain. The founders of Trent purposefully wanted to encourage women to become part of the university; not by creating a spaces of isolation, but rather by fostering a place where an alternative, feminine voice could be nurtured.

Although Traill has been fully co-education since the early 1970s, it remains a space for alternative discourse. Today, it is often seen as a counter-space, familiarly Trent, yet different. It is a place that values scholarship, but also offers a safe refuge or oasis from the tribulations of academic life.

During the first decade of its existence, the student population at Trent doubled each year. At the same time that an ambitious construction project was undertaken at the Nassau Mills campus, Traill College was also rapidly expanding along London Street.

By the end of 1965, additions had been completed that would allow for 93 students to live in residence, facilitate dining for 175 people, and offer new offices for 11 Fellows of the College. Members of the College that could not live in residence were nonetheless expected to eat their meals in the dining hall and attend all collegiate events and functions.

And why wouldn’t they? The College offered a unique and dynamic learning space that women at Trent could call their own.

By the end of 1968, Rubidge Street (that had originally cut through the middle of the College) was closed which allowed

”

- Letter from Principal Marion Fry, Traill College, c. 1964

for the completion of Katherine Wallis Hall (Ron Thom’s only brick structure at the university). With the opening of Wallis Hall, the College now had even more classrooms, offices, an additional 100 residential spaces for students, and its iconic student hangout, The Trend.

Upon her death, Lillian Pearce Kerr’s property at 299 Dublin Street became part of the College and was officially named Kerr House in 1971. Built in 1853, it is the oldest structure at Traill. Beneath its golden bricks (part of an 1870 extension) can be found the original and unique stackedplank structure. The ground floor of the building became the College library (that moved from its original location in Langton House).

In 1972, Thomas Nind, the second president of the university, moved his office into the second floor of Kerr House.

Nind believed in the importance of the downtown colleges and the physical link they forged with the Peterborough community. Several works of art created by his wife, Jean, still hang in the college that, for a time, was at the nerve centre for the university.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that Traill College has witnessed more change than any of the remaining Trent colleges. In 1983, the university started leasing Bradburn House, a former private residence, orphanage, and nursing home. The building was purchased by the university in 1991 and it was used as residence, for academic skills and counselling, and has a maintenance shop.

In 2008, it was announced that the College would become dedicated to the university’s growing number of graduate students. As part of this new chapter, the university sold off Bradburn and Langton houses and the parking lot south of London Street.

Wallis Hall underwent a major transformation, adding a central elevator and converting the majority of its residence rooms into graduate student offices. Funds from the bequest of the beloved Gilbert and Stewart Bagnani led to the construction of the College’s premier lecture space, Bagnani Hall, and its memorial Bagnani Room that opened in 2010.

Many students hold a deep love for Traill and, while proud to have gone to Trent, consider themselves Traillites first.

This list includes screenwriters, politicians, scientists, professors, and a Nobel Prize laureate, Dr. James Orbinski.

Currently, there are 575 graduate students affiliated with the College and an additional 30 upper-year undergraduates who have decided to join the Traill community. In many ways, Traill is a microcosm of the entire university. Its successes are shared by Trent, as are its shortcomings.

This winter, President Leo Groarke will ask for an external review of the College where the Trent community can voice their opinions about the role that the Traill should have in the university’s future.

In just 50 years, the College has amassed a rich history of scholarship, community engagement, and student activism.

If Traill is special to you, this is the year to make your sentiments known. If you have yet to experience Traill, then there is no time like the present to see it for yourself!

Volume 50 | Issue 4 |october 5, 2015

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campus

Tracing the evolution of Trent’s educational vision and practices over the last 50 years

By Ugyen Wangmo

Trent University is currently undergoing a pragmatic evolution from its original vision of liberal arts and science-oriented education it was built on, 50 years ago.

As much as Trent tried to resist the change, it still had to conform to the realities of 21st century as driven by the financial and social pressures over the years.

“The education model broke down for Trent as it grew, and more students started appearing,” said Chair of Biology Department, Professor Brad White, who has experienced two other Ontario universities undergo the same changes during his more than 30 years as a professor.

He said that the original vision of Trent was based on small student enrollment with a small number of students per faculty member.

During the ‘80s and ‘90s more students started appearing, specifically in sciences.

The biological sciences became the area where Trent generated revenue and used those revenues to support programs that didn’t have as many students. And in those programs the original model held.

According to him, humanities in particular maintained that original model at the expense of what has been called the cash cows: the big programs such as the life sciences that did not receive much resource, but generated the revenues.

“It is not a philosophical change

at Trent, but it is a reality of lower resources per student,” he said.

The only way Trent has survived, according to him, is through the introduction of professional programs such as Forensics, Nursing, and Education. If it wasn’t for them, Trent would not have even any Humanities because those departments do not have enough students to support themselves, he said.

“Really from my perspective it is business decisions, it is not just having visions of a particular educational philosophy,” Says Professor White adding that it depends on what the provincial government gives the university.

He is of view that the intention of students going to university has changed, which is now geared more towards career than education. This perspective is from his early days in UK. When he went to university, no one he knew ever had gone to university, with only about eight percent of the population pursuing a university education. But in the current society more than 50 percent go to a university.

Further, now the educational experience in the university is much broader and that breadth has led to more of those individuals looking at the university as a career path, which is obviously what professional schools are for.

Besides, as the college system became more university oriented more of the students in general coming to university had that same goal; they had a view in mind as to

what their career would be.

Trent has become part college and part University to some extent. For instance, the Nursing degree was a Fleming diploma, but after province required all nurses to get a degree, it became a university driven degree, but with Fleming College faculty as a part of it. Then there are certain areas (restoration ecology, wildlife biology) where students do two or three years at Fleming College then come to Trent.

Professor White said it is partly because since Peterborough is a small community there is a lot of cooperation between the university and the college, but it is also a part of the continent-wide trend to

“It is not really a vision, it is a business, and about how you manage your resources” - Professor Brad White bring the more career applied side of colleges to the more academic side of the university.

A number of things had been going on in the last 50 years, in terms of demographics, as well as the students’ view of what a university is.

At the end of the day the students are the customers. The more the students pays the more the students rightly should get what they are paying for.

Associate Professor of the Sociology department, Jim Conley, a senior professor at Trent, said that the original vision emphasized undergraduate education on teaching.

But by some time in the ‘80s the interest of the faculty and the pressures on faculties towards research had shifted, especially as there started to be a bit of turnover from the original generation of faulty towards newer people. That, according to him, shifted the emphasis away from teaching towards the research aspect of things.

Trent was already changing by

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the ‘90s, and it was around the time of the double cohort they started to get this pressure to document the kinds of skills students were getting, he said.

It was not necessarily teaching anything that was different, except that they were documenting what they were doing. It was not just teaching the kind of knowledge to be a good citizen and to think critically about the world, but that they were also getting skills. Part of the response was the change in job market for graduates, he added.

Still, Trent pushed back rather hard until the years of Bonnie Patterson when the professional schools started in, says Professor

Conley. And it was hard to resist for a little university like Trent that so depended on government funding for revenue, with the government pushing in the direction of becoming more skills-oriented.

Liberal arts and science education, according to him, doesn’t teach such skills. Even if it does teach skills, that is not the main focus. The skills are softer and take the students a while to get the returns.

He feels that the addition of professional programs has not markedly changed Trent, since they have developed in ways that fit in, by and large, with the existing liberal arts and science orientation of the university.

Provost and Vice-President, Academic, Gary Boire, says “The original Trent vision was an educational institution that was focused on learning inside and outside the classroom, and on creating an environment that emphasized teaching and student interaction with faculty,” and it held true throughout the decades.

campus Books on aging launched to celebrate the Centre for Aging

By Ugyen Wangmo

Two books on aging written by two professors at the Trent Centre for Aging and Society (TCAS) was the highlight as the TCAS opened their new space at Trent University’s Blackburn Hall to the public and the community on September 24.

“The Grandmothers’ Movement: Solidarity and survival in the time of AIDS” by May Chazan, Women and Gender Studies Professor at Trent University and “Ageing Resource Communities: New Frontiers of Rural Population Change, Community Development and Voluntarism” by Mark Skinner, Geography Professor at Trent University, and Neil Hanlon of the University of Northern British Columbia, were both published earlier this year and launched to celebrate the success of the TCAS. “Both the books are good examples of community-based research and

community-based engagement around aging,” said Skinner, who is also the founding director of the TCAS. He added that it was also to show how the two books, in their own very different ways, reflected faculty members’ engagement in the centre and at Trent with other communities around aging issues.

Chazan’s “The Grandmothers’ Movement” tells the story of hope while challenging conventional understandings of the global AIDS response, solidarity, and old age. It is about “the power of older women to alter their own lives through collective action and about the influence of transnational cooperation to affect positive global change,” the synopsis described.

“The Grandmother’s Movement” is a culmination of almost a decade of living and working intimately with older women in South Africa and in Canada, who were working in different ways for social change, commented Chazan. The book celebrates

these women’s lives and a movement they have created besides the critical analysis of what it means to strategically mobilize grandmotherhood as a discourse.

The book captures a particular moment in time, the convergence of a series of events that were taking place in that moment and of a wider context that allowed for people to understand and think about grandmotherhood in certain ways. “In the case of this book, I was in the right place at the right time to capture this movement,” said Chazan.

On the other hand, “Ageing Resource Communities” is a book which aims to advance the field of scholarship on rural ageing by examining the ways in which older people and communities are responding to the complexity of rural population change and the relatively unknown context of aging resource in the early 21st century.

“The reason that we call it a new frontier of aging is that we understand very

well what’s happening in urban and conventional rural places like Peterborough and Peterborough County. What we don’t know very much about is what’s happening in those very small, isolated communities,” Skinner commented.

He also pointed out that the book brings attention to the importance of rural population change, community development, and voluntarism. An interface between the three of these is a main theme in understanding the diverse experiences of responses to rural aging.

The open house also unveiled the photograph titled “Sunrise at Vineyard Haven” by artist Patricia Stamp, a gift by the artist for the TCAS at its new house.

TCAS shared the office in the Environmental Science building for the first two years since its establishment, before moving into their new house at Trent’s former Registrar’s space in Blackburn Hall in the spring.

“Together: An Exhibition on Global Development” visits Trent University

By Adriana Sierra

This Tuesday October 6 and Wednesday October 7, the Student Association for International Development (SAID) invites you to the Aga Khan Foundation’s

“Together: An Exhibition on Global Development.” The exhibition has been making its way all across Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada, with the purpose of sparking a discussion around the processes driving global change and more specifically,

Canada’s role in this practice.

This unique mobile exhibition has been rolling through Eastern Canada in a 53foot, custom vehicle which opens into 1,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. It features powerful photography, film and audio, interactive components, and artifacts related to global dynamics of development and change. The Together Exhibition has been described as an “innovative, interactive, and multi-sensory experience.”

The goal of this exhibition is to attract students and community members from diverse backgrounds and fields of expertise in order to promote a discussion and explore the possibilities of global change through a dynamic and interactive process of knowledge sharing.

The free exhibition will be open to the public of all ages from October 6 to October 7 from 11AM to 7PM. The immense truck will be hard to miss in Bata Library, Parking Lot H. Together Exhibition welcomes you

Meet The Team: Reba Harrison

by Trent Fashion Show

to engage in this discussion, no matter your major, your worldviews, your age, or your background.

In addition to this exhibit, the Aga Khan Foundation, SAID, and the International Development Studies Department invite you to participate in an interactive workshop designed to explore solutions to pressing local and global challenges and to empower you to take action as a global citizen. This workshop will take place on Wednesday, October 6 from 5PM to 7PM at the Champlain College Living Learning Commons. (Refreshments will be served.)

Engaging in these kinds of discussions and attending exhibitions that not only seek to raise awareness on global issues, but to provide practical skills to address them, are truly unique and immensely enlightening.

Make sure to stop by; it will be worth the time!

passed onto me the summer before my second year at Trent as all the former members were graduating. It was a tiny club but I had a vision to grow the group into a well-known charity within the Peterborough and Trent communities.

I have my own online clothing brand called No Regrets Fashion [to which I] apply my feminist ideologies. [I]t is natural that I would want to support a group that brings together artistic individuals who share a love for fashion and support local shelters.

It is also important for me to promote self-love and healthy body imaging through this group.

I see the need for it on campus and within our community and I am just helping to fill a part of it with my team.

What is your favourite memory or favourite part of the Trent Fashion Show group?

What is your major and year?

I’m a fourth year student majoring in Gender & Women’s Studies with a minor in Business Administration.

What is your position in Trent Fashion Show and have long have you be involved?

This is my third year as Director of the Trent Fashion Show and fourth year as a fashion designer within the runway shows.

Why are you a member of the Trent Fashion Show?

The Trent Fashion Show is my baby. Many people think I started it but it was [actually]

I think I speak on behalf of many TFS members when I say that I have met the most amazing friends through this group who I may not have met otherwise. It feels incredible to raise money for our community’s shelters in a way that is fun for many! I don’t think students and shopowners realize how important emergency shelters are. I have been in one and will forever be grateful.

What are your long-term goals after you graduate Trent University?

I plan to not only expand my clothing brand, but also form a new self-sustaining non-governmental organization to help rebuild communities internationally that have been crippled by the garments industry by putting the power back into the hands of community members.

They will compete with nearby sweatshops and support each other by using an ethical business model. I also plan to live with 15 cats. I don’t care much where, as long as there are 15 cats.

Editors Note: Reba Harrison is also an Arthurwriter, and we couldn’t be prouder!

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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community Draw a monster while rockin’ out to 1960’s music

By Troy Bordun

Principal of Catharine Parr Traill College, Dr. Michael Eamon, has expanded Trent University’s Continuing Education classes. Dr. Eamon’s initiative, continuing from successful runs since Spring 2014, is a series of evening classes for lifelong learners.

The classes are open to anyone of any age and education level. Dr. Eamon stresses that this is a “choose your own adventure� type of education.

This Fall, there are 11 courses to pick from. These are thematic courses comprised of six to eight individual classes. Students are encouraged to choose one or all eight classes, with each class functioning as a self-contained unit within the whole. Additionally, class sizes are often small so there is a lot of opportunities for one-on-one learning and interaction with fellow

learners and the instructor(s). “Continuing Education is a great opportunity for life-long learners in the Peterborough community to connect with dynamic, grad student instructors from Trent,� Dr. Eamon observes. “The breadth of courses we are offering this year is a testament to the diverse and engaged group of graduate students we have at Traill College.�

Each instructor is either a specialist in their field or a burgeoning scholar who is fluent in the contemporary landscape of the topic. This Fall’s 11 classes and instructors are: t 1VCMJD 4QFBLJOH BOE 1SFTFOUBUJPOT XJUI &UJZBIP "MPI t 7JTVBM 'VOEBNFOUBMT XJUI $BSMZ #VNCBDDP t *OEJHFOPVT -JUFSBUVSF XJUI 4BNBOUIB ) $VOOJOHIBN t 8SJUJOH 4IPSU 'JMN 4DSJQUT

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The scope of courses allows for a very unique educational expe-

rience. For instance, learn about Dracula with Amy Jane, take the class on writing horror film scripts with Troy, and hone your writing skills with Ursula and Derek.

Or take a seminar with David and learn about Bob Dylan, then, using the vibes from the 60s, take a stilllife drawing class with Carly.

But perhaps history is more your jam: Laura can teach you all about Attila the Hun and Nick will provide various accounts of the search for historical Jesus.

Take as many or as few classes as you like – they are just $20 each!

Classes begin on Tuesday, October 13 and end on Monday, December 7.

For more information, specific dates and times, and registration, please visit https://www.trentu.ca/ continuingeducation/ or email Dr. Michael Eamon at michaeleamon@ trentu.ca.

James Kerr tells Trent Radio’s history in 5 minutes or less

By James Kerr

I think we’re a middle child. The dates are a little confused, but at some point in the late 1960s, a group of clever young students ran around creating student organizations. The same people cobbled together Trent Radio, the Arthur, and what would eventually become the TCSA. So, in a way, I like to think of us as sibling organizations. It’s hard to say who is older and who is younger, but I like to imagine Trent Radio as a middle-child because we seem to have those kinds of problems.

We began in or around 1967 and 1968 as two hours of pre-recorded content on CHEX radio, fulfilling CHEX’s local content requirements.

CHEX (and CORUS Entertainment) has a long history of being tremendously kind to Trent Radio.

We lasted a whole 17 years before they kicked us off for swearing - one of our DJs having quoted the band name: “Fat and Fucked Up�. It was going to happen eventually.

Failure. That’s okay; invest in failure. We said: “Forge ahead!â€?, moved into the audio-visual labs at Bata Library, and expanded our broadcast hours. Of course, that lasted only for a few years until Trent University kicked us out because they needed the space. We vowed: “Forge ahead!â€? and moved into facilities in Lady Eaton College around 19771978‌ of course, that lasted for only around five years until we were kicked out because the university needed space. “Forge ahead!â€?

The pattern continued. In 19841985, we bought a small rundown

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Pictured: John K. Muir

1860s red brick house on the corner of Parkhill and George, right alongside Peter Robinson College (P.R.C.). The idea was that the campus would run the length of the street - Sadleir House, P.R.C., then Trent Radio. That way, we could serve the student community on campus -- just not such a volatile campus. Then the university sold off P.R.C. right next to us. “Forge ahead!�

The next great battle was to secure a stable spot on the dial. It works like this in Canada - the airwaves are public property, stewarded by the Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), and you can pay them a little money to broadcast legally on an ‘unprotected licence’, meaning that anyone could move into town and boot you off the dial, or you could pay them a lot of money for a ‘protected licence’, meaning the CRTC will fight to protect your spot on the dial, if needed. So, we bumped

around a lot with an unprotected license. Through the 1980s and 1990s, you could hear Trent Radio on 101.5FM, then we lost it. “Forge ahead!� Then we were at 96.3FM for a long time, then we lost it. “Forge ahead!� There were others, but to skip ahead, in 1997-1998, we finally became 92.7FM, under a protected license, the frequency with which you can hear us today (and you can also listen from the Internet at trentradio.ca).

When we had to decide on call-letters, we briefly thought of “CFFU�; all call-letters in Canada start with a “C�, but the rest was to stand for “Fat and Fucked Up�.

We eventually settled on “CFFF�, I think mainly because it was more obnoxious to say. I’ve tried to keep individual people out of this article because Trent Radio and its history is the product of so many driving, focused, and creative people, but I’ll make one exception. Our current and long-time General Manager, John K. Muir, interviewed

elsewhere in this paper, was heavily involved with the decisions of this era. He is fond of saying that part of the reasoning to go with “CFFF� was that it could stand for: “Fuck it, Forget it, and Forge ahead�.

Trent Radio is not a radio station - we just have one of those. We are a lot more in the community than a hulking broadcast. We encourage a culture of failure, learning from blunders, adversity, and finding the strength to defend your view under challenge. We discourage a culture of protectionism and encourage individuals to pursue their own singular, selfish artistic goals. Like any middle child, we found friendships among all the fabulous weirdos. And, in all this when someone disagrees, my immediate response is: “Do your own show, then!� And people do. Then programmers argue - they fight about politics, philosophy, art, and everything that’s important to fight about, and all of it goes out on the air. In this, we ride shamelessly on the coattails of the founding principals of Trent University.

If this brief history of Trent Radio has shown anything, it should be that if you meet with failure, if you meet with overwhelming adversity, if you feel yourself constantly shifted from place to place without thought or reason, then just remember: “Fuck it, Forget it, and Forge ahead�.

local tunes

The White Crowleys: shoegazey and psychedelic rock

By Tyler Majer

By the time you are reading this, The White Crowleys will have had one of their biggest weekends ever. They will have opened up for The Growlers, a well know surf-psychedelic rock band from California, as well as headlined the Head of the Trent concert stage. The White Crowleys have a unique sound consisting of My Bloody Valentine-esque shoegaze soundscapes, mixed with Tame Impala-style psychedelia, and just a hint of surf-punk.

A few days prior to this big weekend, I sat down with guitarist Justyn Horlick and drummer Stuart Downie for a chat about the band, to sound, and where they are going next.

How did the band get formed?

J: Okay, so, me and my brother are in the band, so that’s important to know. And then me and Cohen met in probably grade seven or eight. And then we met Stuart in grade ten. That was when we starting jamming together. At first we had, like, no gear. Stuart was really the only one that could actually play, like he was solid at drums. Everyone else was pretty sketchy.

For years, we would just play in his basement – his parent’s basement. And then we finally starting playing shows [together] 2 or 3 years ago.

Is there a town that you prefer? Like Hamilton versus Peterborough?

J: Yeah, Hamilton. We’re probably gonna catch a lot of flack for that.

S: We’re born and raised. Saying that in the Arthur though might get some hate.

J: Our first ever real show was at The Spill. It was wild actually, like, for whatever reason, the bar was packed. I was so nervous that I was, like, “I’m never doing this again, fuck this. I don’t know why we ever left the basement.” But then we did it and it was awesome and we’ve been doing as much as we can ever since.

S: Yeah, that show raised the bar too high because it was packed already. Usually, it’s just like the other bands and their parents, but for some reason it was especially busy that night.

What would you consider your greatest accomplishment?

What is the dynamic of the brothers in the band? Do you guys get on each other’s nerves?

S: I think Fudge (Justyn’s brother, Kaulin) gets on everybody’s nerves. He’s the little brother of the band.

J: Yeah, well, we’re all brothers. We get on each other’s nerves. We all get along really well. I love having Fudge in the band.

All bands have influences, is there any bands that you can nail down as being your main influences?

J: Then you would know our secrets...

What, you don’t want to have White Crowley copiers out there? People listening to these 10 bands you like, and…

S: Oh, you don’t wanna sound like us.

J: Uh, well you know all the classics, obviously. Led Zeppelin and The Beatles and all that. Stereotypical stuff.

S: A big one is Tame Impala…

Like that soundscape sort of psychedelic style vibe? Your Bandcamp says that your music takes you from one place to another. Is that what you look for when you are writing music or does that just happen?

J: Yeah, well, we’ve always wanted to be a psychedelic rock band and now psychedelic rock is cool again, so it kinda just worked out for us.

J: Well, [probably] doing a record. We have a 7” single and going through all the processes of that – but really, this weekend is probably the biggest weekend we’re about to have. We are playing a show at the Horseshoe Tavern with the Growlers, and Babe Rainbow, so like L.A. and Australia. That’s, like, the biggest thing that’s happened to us.

If there was one song that you could play to show everyone what you are all about, what song would that be?

J: There’s probably not one that we can all agree on. I’m gonna say, uh, “L.A. Sunset”.

S: I like “Zodiac Goodbyes”.

J: Yeah, “L.A. Sunset” is pretty funky for the most part and then at the end, there’s a big psychedelic build-up and breakdown.

So, that’s why I think it encompasses us pretty well. But “Zodiac” is, like…

S: It’s heavier than most.

Do you have any idea what the other two would say?

just ridiculous. It’s hilarious; it’s not supposed to be. It’s just visually stunning. We wrote a few songs based on that movie.

For some people, it’s just like a thing to do. Their friends are in other bands and you just kinda wanna ride the wave…

What songs were those?

You guys are giving really good answers.

I can’t get any dirt off you. *laughs*

S: We don’t play the other ones.

J: We did play them but then we kinda stopped. Sometimes, you write songs and throw them away. Also, like, we bring them back into the garage and we kinda work on that. Cohen wasn’t happy with it anymore and he wanted to change the vibe.

S: Sometimes things become overworked.

What does the Peterborough scene have to offer that’s different than other places you’ve played?

S: You always have people coming out that would never see your band. They’re not coming to see you, but like, so many people just come out to see music. There’s so many good bars for that: The Spill, Red Dog... there’s always people in there, or just, like, regulars as well. Even Pig’s on Saturday nights, people just go there.

J: It’s also less cutthroat than other cities, like Toronto or somewhere, where there’s this friendliness... but underlying competitiveness.

That was one of my questions actually. I saw you guys at the Battle of the Bands for the first time last year. Is there competitiveness in Peterborough’s music scene or music scenes in general? Does it change from city to city?

J: It does a bit but we’re guilty of it, too.

Like, we wanna be the best, no doubt.

And whenever we see a band, we wanna go on [right] after. We wanna be just as good. We wanna be better and, uh, I think everyone wants that. We’re not cutthroat.

There’s always a competitiveness; it’s a business. We’re trying to get paid. That’s what it comes down to.

S: In Peterborough, there’s less of that . . .

S & J: You can say we slept with most members of the band Revolver, which was previously mentioned in the Watershed Hour article. It’s pretty much true.

Revolver’s a fake name that they made up for a band that we know very well. Very, very well.

Do you have a favourite venue?

J: In Peterborough? Pig’s Ear. S: We’re gonna get hated for that.

J: Why? Because it’s not actually a music venue?

S: Yeah, well, that and The Spill and shit.

People love that place. You’re almost obligated to say The Spill but Pig’s definitely for us.

J: When we book a show at Pig’s, we book it, like, six months in advance because everyone wants to play Pig’s. They have the one night a week. We’ve always had such good, rowdy, rambunctious crowds.

We have that at The Spill, too, but there’s something about Pig’s. The people there, Andrea and John, are awesome.

Okay, last question, what is your favourite beer?

J: Old Milwaukee Ice. Blue or Red Label?

J: Blue. Blue has an extra 0.5% of alcohol for the same price, which is why we drink it.

S: The other two would hate on us if we didn’t say that beer, especially Cohen.

J: Yeah, we’ve endorsed it in past interviews.

S: Fuck, that’s a hard question.

J: I don’t know, maybe “Fane Jonda”, which is the A-Side off of our single.

What’s the story behind that song? Like, I know who Jane Fonda is, but why her?

S: So, me and the singer Cohen, [we] were getting drunk and we had nothing to do that one night but sit in my basement. We heard about this one movie – I don’t know how, I think Cohen heard about it or something – called Barberella. We tossed that on and it just inspired us. Just because of all the visuals and [the] storyline, it’s

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | october 5, 2015

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Arts

Movie Review: Taps (1981) Every now and again you come across a film from the past and find the familiar faces of actors who have now become superstars.

It’s an interesting peek into their progress as a performer, and it reveals the traits that have stuck with them despite their years of experience.

You discover what makes them human when the camera stops rolling. It’s an intriguing study to observe what an actor has learned and what has always been natural to them.

Taps (1981) is a brilliant example of this rare phenomenon, as not many in Hollywood have had the fortune of such long and fruitful careers.

The film stars a young Sean Penn, an even younger Tom Cruise, and Timothy Hutton. The trio belongs to a group of military cadets who take extreme measures to protect the future of their academy after the property has been sold to local condominium developers.

Their early decisions are based on their loyalty to the academy, its leader (played

by Patton and Dr. Strangelove’s George C. Scott), and their appreciation for what

Hollywood at Home is a weekly column by filmmaker, writer, and critic Keith Hodder that highlights the variety of films and television programs that Netflix has to offer, along with recommendations of what to watch next and his opinions on entertainment. Follow him on Twitter: @KeithHodder. they’ve learned as young men. But with time, and as they fortify themselves in the academy despite pleas from their parents and local authorities, the situation teeters on the brink of disaster. To make matters worse, each of the students differ in age, opinions, and experience, but are far too young to understand the consequences of their decisions and the dangers of the weapons they wield.

Taps is a film that champions the slow build, and takes its time to showcase all the

possible elements – be it external or internal – that threaten to throw the students’ plan off kilter. As with any movie from this time period, there are a few moments that border on the laughable, but that’s the charm of some 1980s films and it rarely interferes with the mood that Taps works to achieve.

Watching Tom Cruise is perhaps this film’s most amusing addition, given that his character is so different from what we’ve come to expect from today’s leading man.

Taps features Cruise at full throttle as he plays an aggressive young man whose anger tends to cloud his judgment, and later sends him into a psychotic and downward spiral. It’s refreshing to see. Penn and Hutton are both strong in their performances as well, but it feels familiar in comparison to what we’ve seen from them thus far.

Taps blurs the line between morals and stubbornness. The kids have something to prove and the film showcases how far they’ll go to do so. In many ways, it is a coming-age-film, making audiences question whether the young soldiers are doing what they feel is right or if they are just trying to show their parents that they’ve grown up and are ready to take on the world. At the end of the day, it’s the final result that matters, the culmination of a sinking ship that’s still firing its cannons in all directions. Though Taps may not be timeless throughout, it is definitely a film worth watching solely for its performances by young actors who went through the Hollywood ringer and survived to tell the tale.

What to watch next: Mission: Impossible 3 (to see Cruise as he is today), The Breakfast Club, The Imitation Game.

Movie Review: It Follows (2015)

By Keith Hodder

Reviews and trailers can ruin some films, and It Follows is a concept that thrives on the interpretations its audience will make.

It’s like Stephen King said: “Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s.” With that said, you should go into It Follows blind. You should make your own interpretation. The following review will ensure that your blindfold is tied tight.

When the film opens it feels like familiar territory. If you’ve watched your fair share of horror films you’ll feel like you’ve been here before. It’s a street in the midst of fall, and in a middle-to-upper class neighborhood. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Michael Myers lumbering down the sidewalk or Freddie emerging from the shadows.

This place feels as though it’s just around the corner from Elm Street. In fact, It Follows seems to take inspiration from a lot of genre films.

The soundtrack in reminiscent of John Carpenter and the unstoppable nature of its antagonist is just as unnerving as Arnold Schwarzeneggar and Robert Patrick’s respective Terminators. The teenage characters are plagued by something that can’t

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It Follows be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until they are dead. It’s both an exciting and horrifying dynamic.

Taking another cue from The Terminator, It Follows knows how to deal with exposition and inform its audience without it feeling blatant or contrived. Any moments of information are often done in moments of duress, with the foe only steps behind and in pursuit. In those ways It Follows is

a chase film as much as it is a horror film.

Restraint is practiced with experience and respect for the audience. The filmmakers know what to show and when to show it – or when to keep you in the dark.

More often than not, modern horror films hand you all the answers and wave the spooky figure in front of your face so much that it loses the shock value that it once possessed. It Follows distances itself from this trend and grants your imagi-

nation with the bone-chilling burden of filling in the blanks.

The performances in this film don’t call attention to themselves for being horrible or fantastic, and that’s ok. You aren’t particularly invested in the characters, but more so the situation that they’ve found themselves in and the questions that it inspires.

It Follows answers a lot of them, but it takes its time without stalling the film’s pace, which is handled with precision and makes every moment count. Nothing seems wasted or lacking.

It Follows will be screened for free by the Trent Film Society on October 7th and at Artspace. Sneak in once the film starts rolling and the dust sparkles in the projector’s glow to avoid potential spoilers from the crowd and the event’s opening introduction. When you leave the theatre, make sure you aren’t being followed.

Arts

Dylan Cree: Taking the serious comically

By Troy Bordun

On September 30th, Traill College hosted a multi-projection installation by filmmaker Dylan Cree. To Conference: Faux in Perpetuity and Of Pornology straddle comedy, documentary, and cultural theory in an effort to bring humor to scholarly research.

During a reception at The Trend, Cree also spoke to a receptive audience and answered questions about his filmmaking process and the contents of his works.

Following the Q&A, I asked Dylan about the event and gained some more clarity as to what his interventions are in the academic pursuit of knowledge.

We’ve promoted To Conference and Of Pornology as mostly critical works. I find them more funny than critical, although there is certainly much of the latter. Do you cross a line in these works, of both criticality and satire? Was the point to get audiences to laugh firstly? Is there a point where humor undermines or overshadows the critique?

I think it’s arguable that a lot of critique is such that it takes itself seriously. There is that affect to it and at the same time it indicates there is something of potency happening. But with laughter, I think - as you’re full aware in having studied Bataille - there is this kind of dispersive feeling that

comes, that breaks organization, breaks the very terms for being organized. At the same time, we have as it were, a repressive structure that tries to suppress what is effectively comical and, I think that your asking [this question] is very much in the center of that organization, of an attempt to make effective. That’s academia.

Undeniably though, you have a distaste of cultural theory, academia, and the type of scholarly investigations of late-20th century French philosophy. Yet you also work from within academia, in the Communication Studies PhD program at Concordia and your MFA from Simon Fraser. Could you say something precise about your relationship to academia, theory, graduate studies?

In a lot of respects that distrust is also academic; it’s a stance within academia, so it’s not outside of it. It’s of it. I think that that’s something to be grappled with, not outside the process, whatever that is.

And I don’t know what is. I think we have extensions of extensions. This standard binary of the academic institution versus the street is highly questionable.

So with that in mind, I would frame my response here with that kind of revisiting of what it is that allows me to speak as I do, and to question as I do. That doesn’t mean that there can’t be more breaches, where

they are, when they are... how it is that we’re able to somehow enter into this negotiation of string-pulling, what releases at a certain point, and builds pressure in others.

You said something in our Q&A about this, but could you say more about the decision to split the film, To Conference, into seven parts? What does this add to the spectator’s experience?

I think that it is disconcerting. We have so many things that prompt a questioning of reading things linearly, but at the same time I think that the spectator – a key word here – is, I hope, always disappointed. In a lot of respects, from one room to the next, although it [the film] is allegedly different [in its seven parts], it is an encounter that is emphasizing in the same way. I think that I am making game of the spectatorial, in terms of making it a spectacle. And I think that that is most solidly executed in this… how should we put it… this dispersive approach to viewing the material.

I’ll lastly ask you something about Of Pornology. The film seems to be hinting at an aporia in the field of porn studies, namely, can we make theoretically conclusive remarks about pornographic scenes and films. Can porn films be studied for their form, their perfomances, their beauty? Is there some direction for studying porn? A large question

of course, but these were the themes I found in this work.

My thought is that: What is it that we take to be a study? That there is an object to study? And that applies to whatever. For porn or pornography, it’s incumbent upon the researcher, the academic, the scholar that engages with the study of porn to also be interrogating how it is they come to study porn - how porn comes to be a genre onto its own, not only in terms of cinema, but in terms of our general experience of media.

But beyond that, we also have questions of a motive, to construct this [porn studies] as a kind of study, to turn it into a subject and, while we’re turning it into a subject, perhaps we’re also attempting – and I think that many porn theorists are well aware of this – to neutralize it, to make it something that is a legitimized process. And I think porn is no different than a lot of other things that have been dealt with in that fashion.

So that to me in a preeminent question: What is it that permits that legitimization, the rendering that is a kind of subjectworthy notion, a form of objectivity... And that I think is something that extends beyond pornography obviously... especially in the line of poststructuralism, it demands that kind of questioning.

Book Review: Ancient Spirit Rising

By Arthur Staff

Drawing on cultural studies and contemporary social justice, the new book Ancient Spirit Rising: Reclaiming Your Roots & Restoring Earth Community by independent scholar and social critic Pegi Eyers (Peterborough) offers strategies for intercultural competency, healing our relationships with Turtle Island First Nations, decolonization, rewilding, restoring an ecocentric worldview, returning to the Old Ways, creating a sustainable future and reclaiming peaceful co-existence in Earth Community.

At an Elders Gathering hosted by Trent Indigenous Studies in 2012, Pegi heard revered Elder James Dumont say that “everyone needs to get back to their own indigenous knowledge (IK).”

Like a lightning bolt from the blue, this simple statement activated a monumental series of questions about her own life and issues in the wider society - questions regarding denial, obfuscation, entitlement, white supremacy, power, identity, boundaries and Settler Colonialism - issues that she felt duty-bound to investigate, and in some cases track down to a final conclusion.

The coming together of Pegi’s experiences, formal studies, relationships with First Nations individuals, knowledge gained on the sidelines of Mississauga Ojibway territory, and new awareness in regard to white privilege and the destructive effects of cultural appropriation have compelled her to examine the ideas in this book.

For those of us with European heritage, core questions continue to arise in discourse on locating our own ancestral traditions, Rejecting Empire (decolonization), and reclaiming authentic roots in Earth Community, and the themes explored in

Ancient Spirit Rising are an attempt to add to this critical conversation. There is nothing more personal than one’s identity, and a major focus on the widespread entitlement of cultural appropriation reveals it to be an extension of racist colonial policies.

Every use of stereotypical images to sell products or act of cultural appropriation through New Age Capitalism proclaims the dominance of the Settler Society in every sphere of cultural life. Ultimately, this attitude of “take-take-take” adds to the erasure of genuine Turtle Island First Nations, who are working toward the recovery of their own traditional culture, sovereignty and self-determination.

Mending our fractured relationship with Turtle Island First Nations first and foremost means relinquishing some aspect of the white perspectivism and privilege we carry as members of the dominant society. Manifesting as bizarre notions about indigenous peoples such as the idea that Canada is somehow a Métis nation; or the invisibility of indigenous peoples to most in the mainstream (including those who profess to be progressive); or the idea supported by academia that we have the right to enter any cultural sphere and datamine, represent and interpret the knowledge found there for everyone else (and even to indigenous peoples themselves); or the reprehensible trend to continue with adopting First Nations pseudo-practices or identities even when cultural appropriation has been fully explained (why give “shamanism” up, when it is just so much fun?); to just plain old-fashioned racism that gets carried from uninformed parent to uniformed progeny in the form of disgusting bigotry and stereotypical slurs – these modern attitudes continue to re-center the Settler and place “whiteness” at the center of the universe.

Even the celebrated “cultural exchange” is not enough, as drawing close to “the oth-

er” for a couple of hours by learning about First Nations in polite non-threatening casual seminars just perpetuates the default of Settler comfort and evades any serious acknowledgement of systemic inequality.

And then there are the neo-liberal universalist white-led colorblind proclamations of “We Are All One” or “All Lives Matter” that sidestep any responsibility or meaningful action that could arise from facing the reality of the role we play in the ongoing oppression of people of colour.

Members of the dominant society continue to be protected at all costs, and we will come up with a thousand different self-important or hostile ways to deflect, sidestep and derail the important conversations we need to be having.

Yet, there is much that we can do to eliminate institutional racism and contribute as allies to the anti-oppression, human rights and land claims struggles of our First Nations neighbours. Learning about and respecting indigenous cultures and lifeways, attending anti-racist training, and understanding white privilege from reading and videos is our first step, and Ancient Spirit Rising suggests a multitude of initiatives to heal the colonizer/colonized divide.

Our generation is the one that needs to fix the FN/Settler relationship, and somehow find alternative and more humble ways to be house guest on Turtle Island this time around.

Ancient Spirit Rising examines the loss of our own vital ethnocultural connection to tribe and place, and why there is a trend to borrow identities from other cultures.

Come back to your roots!

From the wealth of resources available today, an authentic self-identity can be reconstructed from old/new earth-centered societies, using the timeless values of indigenous knowledge (IK) as our model. A weaving of analysis, evocation and prompt-

ings of the heart, Ancient Spirit Rising includes extensive notes and exhaustive references, and is an essential “compendium for change.”

Author, Artist, and Social CritiPegi Eyers is occupied with challenging worldviews, contributing to the paradigm shift and working with the decolonization process in herself and others. A Celtic Animist who sees the world through a spiritual lens, she is a devotee of nature-based culture and all that is sacred to the Earth. Pegi Eyers is an advocate for our interconnection with Earth Community and the recovery of authentic ancestral wisdom and traditions for all people. She lives in the countryside on the outskirts of Nogojiwanong in Mississauga Anishnaabe territory

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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www.trentarthur.ca

Agriculture

Trent Market Garden

By Ugyen Wangmo

The way Trent community eat will see changes this year as the Trent Market Garden proudly furnish the cafeterias across campus with a variety of fresh organic vegetables.

Trent Market Garden (TMG) is a student-run farm, a new initiative which started this year under the guidance of Trent University’s Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Society with support from food service provider, Chartwells.

“It is an important initiative to achieve broader sustainable food movement by encouraging students to critically engage with food system issues, and to enhance their resiliency and food sovereignty at individual level,” says Emma Macdonald, one of the co-manager of TMG. Besides their primary goal being to supply enough fresh organic food on campus, they also aim to become a self-sufficient social enterprise and create meaningful employment opportunities for students, said Macdonald.

TMG is looking forward to provide volunteer positions, or even get students involved through internships associated with classes, added Jonathan Duffy, the other co-manager of TMG. Talking to the Arthur, Mark Murdoch, Director, Trent University Food Services, says, “ It is a synergistic initiative which brings together different groups on campus, namely, Food Services as Trent, Sustainable Agriculture Program, students in that group, and campus food service provider-Chartwells.”

Trent’s Market Garden is unique and different from any other university’s farm because, “ it is grass roots farming,” said Murdoch. TMG is small scale, sustainable, and entirely student managed.

According to Murdoch, TMG has provided tangible fingers in the mud work for students to translate classroom learning into an actual field work. Besides, the students are also earning an income as a result of this because the Chartwells has committed to buy the products at a fair market value. And more importantly they bring fresh organic produce to the table directly from the garden which is grown and produced on Trent’s very own campus, said Murdoch.

He supplement by saying that the proj-

ect is an important demonstration of Trent keeping up with the commitment they had made towards more locally grown food a couple of years back.

With significant donation from Chartswells to put in place the necessary infrastructure to be able to grow food safely, and passionate commitment from students what has made this project a success, says Murdoch.

However they face all the challenges which is associated with farming in ontario which any farm faces. But specifically for TMG it will be to keep continuity of the program. It was explained that there are number of students, today, who are very enthusiastic and energetic, putting in a lot of work into making this successful. But the question of how well they can replicate in the following years to come, and how well the knowledge and skills are transferred over time to continue to get good quality produce, will be a challenge, pointed out Murdoch.

Likewise, the amount of labour, and not having enough volunteers to help are the main challenges they are currently going through, informed Macdonald and Duffy.

But are hopeful that more students will come forward to get involved through the semester.

Even though they have to put in hundreds of hours of unpaid labour, it is a passion project for them and has worked hard for this to happen, and be a part of the course and the program itself. For Macdonald and Duffy, the project is a great learning experience. According to them, working with Trent, planning the project, writing business plan, and grant proposals were all educational, which as a agriculture student one will have to do in a lifetime.

So to ensure its continuity, they feel that first having a paid position will make it a little more secure, and also are looking forward to take in interns to train them for a paid position in the following year, shared the managers.

The Success of the Trent Market Garden’s first harvest season was celebrated on 11 September 2015. The event saw a great support from the Trent family with over 40 attendees, which included President Dr. Leo Groarke, members of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems program, Chartwells executives, and family and friends.

Source: Trent Market Garden’s Instagram

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

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listings: Want your event in the paper? Send yours to listings@trentarthur.ca

classifieds ELECTRIC CITY GARDENS offers a 40% STUDENT DISCOUNT

LOCAL on

all Entrees. Daily changing menu featuring lovingly prepared seasonally-inspired dishes. Can cater to any special dietary requirements (vegan, gluten-free, etc) and culinary cravings. (Advanced notice appreciated for menu alterations).

ECG offers attentive service in an intimate setting.

Find us on Facebook.

L.G.B.T. friendly. LLBO Licensed.

Reservations strongly recommended: 705-749-1909.

Interested in learning to play Guitar, Ukulele or Bass? Take Lessons with Nick Ferrio at Hank to Hendrix Guitar Co. Personalized one-on-one instruction for beginners or intermediate players. Contact: 705-768-7544 or nicholas.ferrio@gmail.com

Clubs & Groups The Student Association for International Development (SAID) presents: The Agha Kan Foundation’s “Together: An ehibition on Global Change” on Oct. 6 & 7 11:00am - 7:00pm, Bata Library Parking Lot HThe exhibition focuses on Canada’s place in driving global change and will feature powerful images, artifacts, and interactive pieces on global development.

Trent Film Society Presents a Free Public Screening of It Follows. A film by David Robert Mitchell.

This is a 2015 modern horror film.

We won’t ruin it too much! Just in time for Halloween. October 7th at Market Hall.

Trent University Native Association: Positions still needing to be filled are: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd year reps, Events coordinator, and Media Coordinator are needed. Nominations start now!

2 nomination are needed from TUNA members for each position! Email tunatuna1969@gmail.com. Elections and speeches will be taking place October 1st at 4:00p.m. We will also be having a potluck.

CNIB needs volunteers! They passionately provides community-based support, knowledge and a national voice to ensure Canadians who are blind or partially sighted have the confidence, skills and opportunities to fully participate in life.

CNIB is looking for volunteers to fill various positions.

If you have an interest in providing one-on-one sighted assistance with reading, organizing, walking, errands, outings and socializing or driving. Make a difference in your own community, be part of a team, share an experience, learn new skills, and develop lasting friendships.For more information contact Filomena Di Ruscio 1-800-563-0887 ext. 5207 or email filomena.diruscio@cnib.ca The Seasoned Spoon:The Seasoned Spoon Café is grateful for the support of Trent students. Refundable levy requests by registered students will be accepted until Friday, October 23rd. We serve delectable, local and organic food Monday-Friday from 8:00-3:30 in Champlain College. For more information about the Spoon and our programs go to www.seasonedspoon.ca Affordable and Delicious Food Together!

Come out and learn the basics of vegetarian cooking on a budget as well planning and sharing meals together. We’ll be discussing eating in season, how to stock your pantry, where to shop, meal planning and flavour matching.

Learn Practical tips for sharing food with roomates or friends in order to reduce waste, cost and time spent on cooking as well as build community. Let’s explore the opportunities and challenges that may arise by breaking bread together. Wednesday October 7. 5:00-7:00p at the Seasoned Spoon Cafe. $5 or PWYC. Honey Wine Making: Learn how to make your own honey wine using 100% local ingredients in this exciting workshop! From its historical and cultural significance, to its nutritional, and even environmental benefits; mead making (or mazing) is seeing a resurgence in

popularity, and you can start making your own “Elixer of the Gods” at up to 18% alcohol, with very little start-up money while supporting farmers, your local economy and your taste buds! Darian Bacon from the Harvest Gathering will lead you through the process step by step and answer any questions you have along the way.There will also be samples and handouts provided. Previous students of Darian’s courses are encourages to bring their stories, experiences and creations. Wednesday October 14. 5:00-7:00pm at Seasoned Spoon Cafe. $5 or PWYC Sauerkraut Workshop: Using traditional recipes and fresh fall produce from the Trent Gardens, this workshop will teach you how to make your own super nutritious and delicious preserves that will last you all winter long. Sauerkraut; a staple for any local food lover’s fridge! Wednesday October 21 from 5:00 - 7:00pm at The Seasoned Spoon.

Volunteer Call-out:Exiting Opportunity! THE SEASONED SPOON IS LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS! It’s that time of year again when Spoon kitchen is firing back up and fresh organic produce is pouring in from the gardens. We need lots of extra help to keep things in check and maintain optimum kitchen flow.

We are seeking out new volunteers with keen interest in food issues, a desire to learn kitchen ninja skills and an inspiration to contribute to community building.

Please email spoonvolunteers@gmail. com if you are interested or for more info.

Peterborough Downtown Farmers’ Market.

Wednesday’s 8:30-2:00pm. Louis St. parking lot (near Charlotte & Aylmer, next to Shopper’s Drug Mart). Every week until Oct. 30.

Follow us on Twitter: @PtboWedMarket. “Kawartha’s own, locally grown.”

Tame: Presented by Public Energy. three dancers navigate a chaotic landscape filled with ambiguity, off-beat humour and colourful perversion. General Admission.

Advanced Tickets available online.

Saturday October 17 at Market Hall.

Arts Xprime Ccomes to The Spill! A high energy Niagra based-based pop-rock outfit is capable of making elegant, punchy pop music of immensely broad appeal. Xprime is creating a buzz in the Canadian music scene.

TOctober 15 at The Spill.

Public Launch Party- Hunter Street Bridge Murial. The Launch Party will take place under the Hunter Street Bridge east arch on Steve Terry Way. Join us for the public unveiling of the first Hunter Street Bridge Mural completed by artist Kirsten McCrea. On site there will be local food vendors, The Publican House Brewery and music from DJ WJ. This event is free and open to all members of the public. This is great time to see the mural up close and meet Kirsten.

The Public Launch Party is a rain or shine event. Saturday, October 3, 2015 from 12 – 4pm. $2 Punk Shows Every Month!

Acoustic Punk show! Wayne Kennedy, James Higgin, KINK, Sheenan D. Jordan, Rich Chris, Mitch Barber.

October 3 at The Garnet. 213 Hunter St. West. Doors at 9:00PM. 19+ The House of Haunt: Peterborough legends No Pussyfooting will be returning to the stage at the Spill and you aren’t going to want to miss this. Television Rd rounds out this stellar lineup. They’ll have their sophomore EP released by then, and they’ll bring their signature haunting style, complete with dazzling vocals and vertigo inducing keyboard! It’s always a helluva party with these folks, don’t miss out! Doors at 8:30 PM. Music at 9:00 PM $10 at the door, or $7 if you show up in costume!

Lightmares at The Spill: Sudbury’s Lightmares will be performing at The Spill on Thursday, Oct.9th along with locals Deergod and SCAM.

street style

Colin Maltby and Larissa Carruthers embrace Fall. Colin’s rocking a casual touque, while Larissa expertlycolour coordinates with some fantastic Autumn tones!

It’s all about the details! The simplest little touch can spruce up any look.

Marilyn Burns is the fabulous Executive Director of Marketing & Communications / Recruitment & Admissions at Trent University. She’s not afraid to don pink pants, and you shouldn’t be either!

Volume 50 | Issue 4 | October 5, 2015

Featuring interviews with Dr. Leo Groarke, Stephen Stohn, and a History of Traill for our retrospective Issue