September 29, 2015

SEPTEMBER 29, 2015 | VOLUME XCVII | ISSUE VII RAPPATACK SINCE 1918

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P / 04

P / 10

P / 11

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NEWS

CULTURE

OPINIONS

SPORTS

Some find the AMS exam database redundant

UBC Theatre adapts Anne Brontë’s Wildfell Hall

Op-ed: Divestment is a conversation worth having

Football falls to Saskatchewan 45-29

THE UBYSSEY

IS THIS HOW WE SHOULD TALK ABOUT

CONSENT? PAGE 8

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// PAGE 2

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

YOUR GUIDE TO UBC EVENTS & PEOPLE

EVENTS

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OUR CAMPUS

OCT 1 - 3 SKATE COMP & BBQ 1 P.M. @ UBC SKATEPARK

Hosted by UBC Skate and The Calendar, BBQ and music will be provided. Bring your friends and have a great time.

FREE

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC/THE UBYSSEY

Columbia University Professor Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the Nobel Prize, poses for a portrait in the Liu Institute for Global Studies where he is teaching a Friday seminar on inequality as part of the institute’s Lind Initiative.

OCT 3 KOERNER’S HOUSE PARTY 8 P.M. @ KOERNER’S PUB For the 19+ crowd, come by for a good night featuring

PRESALE $5, ADVANCED $10

Famed economist Joseph Stiglitz talks scumbags and school setbacks Arno Rosenfeld Features Editor

OCT 3 - 4 DAY OF THE LONG BOAT 8 A.M. @ UBC REC

Join 3,000 of your fellow students in paddling through the shores of Jericho Beach. It’ll be very fun.

PRICES VARY

ON THE COVER PHOTO/ART BY Aiken Lao

INSPIRED BY Wired

Want to see your events listed here?

Email your event listings to ourcampus@ubyssey.ca

U THE UBYSSEY

SEPTEMBER 29, 2015 | VOLUME XCVII| ISSUE VII

STAFF

EDITORIAL

Opinions + Blog Editor Coordinating Editor Jack Hauen Will McDonald coordinating@ubyssey.ca opinions@ubyssey.ca

BUSINESS

CONTACT

Business Manager Fernie Pereira fpereira@ubyssey.ca

Editorial Office: SUB 2208 604.822.2301 Business Office: SUB 2209 ADVERTISING 604.822.2301 INQUIRIES 604.822.2301

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Culture Editor Olivia Law culture@ubyssey.ca Sports + Rec Editor Koby Michaels sports@ubyssey.ca Video Producer Tim Hoggan video@ubyssey.ca Photo Editor Kosta Prodanovic photo@ubyssey.ca

LEGAL The Ubyssey is the official student newspaper of the University of British Columbia. It is published every Tuesday by The Ubyssey Publications Society. We are an autonomous, democratically run student organization and all students are encouraged to participate.

Editorials are chosen and written by the Ubyssey staff. They are the expressed opinion of the staff, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Ubyssey Publications Society or the University of British Columbia. All editorial content appearing in The Ubyssey is the property of The Ubyssey Publications Society. Stories, opinions, photographs and artwork contained herein cannot be reproduced

Before the interview starts, Joseph Stiglitz wants to know how often The Ubyssey comes out. He sees the video equipment being set up and wants to know what the viewership of our videos is.

The Nobel Prize-winning economist is known for having a big ego, but his interest in this newspaper’s audience may have more to do with what has become a sort of mission for him over the last several years — getting out his message on the perils of economic inequality.

He’s written over 10 books and frequently speaks at conferences, publishes op-eds responding to current issues like climate change and American political events, and appears on shows like Real Talk with Bill Maher and The Daily Show with John Stewart.

Stiglitz is here to teach a Friday seminar this term as part of the Liu Institute for Global Studies’ Lind Initiative which is bringing a series academic celebrities to campus.

Stiglitz, a professor at Columbia University in New York City, will be teaching his research and work concerning inequality.

Inequality, Stiglitz argues, is nothing short of a crisis imperiling our societies and driving down our economies. But the man is not a doomsday prophet and sees hope.

Inequality has risen to the fore of the political debate, especially in the United States, with first the Occupy protests and now with the rise of progressive politicians like Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.

“Fifty years ago, nobody paid any attention,” Stiglitz notes. “It’s actually worse. There were some economists who thought it was really poisonous to talk about inequality.”

Now it’s inequality itself that is seen by many as poisonous. As the dogma of supply-side economics promoted by Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher fade from prominence, there is more room for Stiglitz to win people over.

He sees the university as a prime place to promote his message.

“The wealth of knowledge we’ve accumulated over the last 100 years ... nobody has the time do [read] all of it,” Stiglitz said. “It’s an important role for universities and university professors to distill it and to say, ‘Here is how you can put all of this together.’”

That formulation can have a tremendous impact on the worldview of graduates. To counteract this, Stiglitz studied economics at Cambridge, MIT and the University of Chicago — three programs known for spanning the political spectrum from left to right.

“I was always very worried about others shaping my thinking,” Stiglitz said. “I was aware that there was that possibility and I always fought against it.”

In the end, Stiglitz fell somewhere between the dirty reds of the old Soviet Union and the capitalist swine of the United States who prey on the soft innards of the proletariat.

Stiglitz himself never went through a Randian phase, but says he’s read her work and was disappointed on every level. “I thought, ‘How could this become a bestseller and it’s written so badly.’

But I thought also that the ideas were very, very shoddy,” he told The Ubyssey. “I think it may be testimony to the inadequacies in our educational system that so many people who seem to be well educated don’t understand what’s wrong with these ideas.”

As for his own ideas, Stiglitz believes in equal opportunity and doesn’t entirely write off the American Dream’s potential. But he says the current economic system — the set of regulations, taxation, monetary and financial policies — quash that potential.

“I tell my students there’s one important decision that you have to make in your life and that is choosing the right parents,” he said, pointing to the opportunities missed by people based on the conditions in which they grow up.

To help equalize this imbalance, he wants to see higher education available to everyone. While that may require a more comprehensive reform of the educational system, a minimum tuition should not stand in the way.

“No system that’s exclusionary should be acceptable,” Stiglitz argued. “In the context of Canada right now, in the context of the United States, unambiguously we need to keep tuition — if we have tuition — at a low enough level that it doesn’t discourage anybody.”

Stiglitz is also in the unique position having worked within and against the system advising presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama and working for the World Bank. However, he also has stridently attacked White House and international economic policies.

“I think there are things you can do within the system,” he said, pointing to laws and policies that affect the masses. “I feel good about both the things I’ve been able to push and the things I’ve been able to stop when I’ve been within the system.”

Still, Stiglitz acknowledges the system is broken. Over the summer, he protested outside a meeting room where international monetary policy leaders were deciding on interest rate policy — a room he’d been a regular in in years previous.

Despite his criticism of the free market, Stiglitz is adamant about one thing. After examining a Ubyssey editor’s new plastic five-dollar bill, the world-renowned economist lamented that counterfeiting — a perfect example of what Stiglitz calls society’s increasingly anti-social behaviour — has necessitated the shift from paper money.

But might counterfeiting be a solution to economic inequality and a way to level the playing field?

As Stiglitz descends the stairs following the end of the interview, he pauses to observe, “Unfortunately, the Robin Hoods … they’re disproportionately scumbags.”

A longer version is available online. U

// NEWS

EDITORS EMMA PARTRIDGE + MOIRA WARBURTON

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

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UNIVERSITY //

Langara and UBC sign Aboriginal Transfer Partnership Agreement Emma Partridge News Editor

UBC and Langara College have signed the Aboriginal Transfer Partnership Agreement between the two institutions.

The partnership clarifies what is needed for aboriginal students to transfer from Langara to UBC. According to Kristen Harvey, Associate Director of Strategic Aboriginal Enrolment Services for UBC, this agreement “helps us meet our goals of creating pathways to UBC for aboriginal students.”

“It’s a way to encourage aboriginal students entering Langara to begin thinking very early on in their studies about whether they would like to work towards a degree at UBC,” said Linc Kesler, Director and Senior Advisor to the President on Aboriginal Affairs. “The way it does that is to define very clearly a way in which they can transfer ... and then also provide some additional financial incentives.”

The partnership grew out of a pilot program that began in 2012 according to Harvey. Only arts participated in the pilot. Since then, six UBC faculties have joined the effort to create a pathway to UBC for aboriginal transfer students.

“This particular transfer partnership I think really speaks to those who chose to start their education somewhere else in a smaller institution,” said Acting President Martha Piper in a speech at the signing last Friday “Linc [Kesler] and I were speaking about the special relationship that I think Langara and UBC have experienced over time and I think this agreement … represents what those kind of relationships can yield.”

According to Kesler, discussions over the last 18 months have pushed the initiative further after the pilot’s success up until when the agreement finally was signed.

“I think the reason people are quite committed to this program or willing to join it is that the ... success [rate] of students who transfer [from] Langara ... [to] UBC is very high,” said Kesler. “They

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC / THE UBYSSEY

UBC and Langara signed an agreement to encourage Langara’s aboriginal students to begin thinking about a UBC degree early on.

have a success rate equivalent to students who’ve been at UBC for their entire career.”

Each faculty sets their own requirements for guaranteed admission to programs at UBC. The faculties who are involved at present are Arts, Science, Sauder, Applied Science and Land and Food Systems.

When asked whether all faculties would eventually participate in the partnership, Harvey said, “What we’re trying to do is create a framework that faculties can opt into if they wish.

It’s not the only pathway to UBC and so some may chose … other strategies.”

According to Clayton Munro, Dean of Student Services at Langara, this is the first partnership of its kind at the college.

“We have a lot of students.

From what I understand, more students than any other college [go] to UBC in terms of transferring. It certainly makes a lot of sense for our two institutions to work really closely together,” said Munro.

When asked what needs the partnership is aiming to fulfill that may not currently be met,

Kesler spoke of the financial aid that is guaranteed for students who meet specific admission requirements as “always fulfilling a need no matter how much we arrange.”

Kesler also noted that a highly important part of this partnership is promoting accessible transfers to UBC early on in the careers of Langara aboriginal students.

“There are students who’re coming to other institutions such as Langara, which is one that many aboriginal students in the city choose ... when they’re trying out post-secondary education,” said Kesler. “The problem is that if they’re not thinking about it, they can spend a couple of years at Langara and then begin to think about transferring and realize they have not taken the courses that would make transferring possible.”

Munro agreed that transferring to UBC can be “daunting” for any student, so while this pathway does create access what the agreement also speaks to is academic success by helping students feel “as welcomed and ready as possible.” U

Canada’s Largest International University and Student Travel Expo

TUESDAY

OCT 6 VANCOUVER VANCOUVER CONVENTION CENTRE 2 pm - 6 pm SEMINARS start at 1 pm

www.studyandgoabroad.com

By Levin C. Handy (per http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cwpbh.04326) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

You don’t have to sit in school to stand among greatness. › Thomas Edison: Relentless Inventiveness Failure is no biggie. Just ask Edison. If he stopped at failure, he would never have moved on to invent a little thing called the light bulb. So if you’ve failed a class somewhere else, or have a scheduling conflict, come on over. You can catch up with our world-recognized online courses, then move on to bigger successes. Talk about a light bulb moment.

open. online. everywhere. go.athabascau.ca/online-courses

4 | News |

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

PHILANTHROPY //

Nature’s Path donation to help fund constuction of new building at UBC Farms

Nature’s Path Cofounders Arran and Ratana Stephens just donated $2 million to the UBC Farm. Several years ago when the UBC Farm was at risk of being turned into condos, the Stephens’ were part of the community that saved the farm.

The donation, which is a personal gift from the Stephens’, is their commitment to helping further the farm’s vision of providing an example for sustainable agriculture as well as doing research on organic farming methods.

The $2 million will go towards the construction of a building on the farm that will have offices, classrooms and labs from several faculties including Science, Land and Food Systems and Forestry.

“Sixty classes come out here a year from UBC,” said Hannah Wittman, UBC Professor and Academic Director of the Centre for

Sustainable Food Systems. “We have no classroom, we have no laboratory, we have no space for teaching to happen.”

Additionally, the AMS Brewery, which was passed as part of last January’s referendum, will be inside the new building on the farm.

It has been difficult for the research that the farm is doing about organic farming to happen efficiently without the infrastructure.

According to Wittman, a large problem for farmers is lack of access to knowledge about organic farming methods. The UBC Farm strives to be an example for sustainable agriculture both through its actual practices and the hands-on teaching it provides to UBC students and the greater community of Vancouver.

“We need to increase the scope of our research as well as share our solutions on a regional and global level,” said Wittman. Having a building would “beef up the

academic instruction as well as the research.”

“We’re really excited to discover what a large group of committed scientists, farmers and students there are at UBC who are invested in sustainable food research and share our vision for an organic future,” said Justine Sanford, the marketing and communications specialist at Nature’s Path. “The UBC Farm is really giving a voice to organic agriculture in academia.”

Nature’s Path is a Vancouverbased organic food company that markets itself as a sustainable and environmentally responsible food producer.

“We’re always looking for ways to advance the cause of people and the planet,” said Sanford. The Stephens’ donation is an important resource to help the farm achieve its full potential for inspiring a more environmentally conscious and responsible food industry. U

Public Open House

Library Garden - October 1 and October 8 UBC is undertaking a process to redesign the public green space between Memorial Road and Agricultural Road, in front of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. This central location will bring together students, faculty, staff, residents, and visitors and will house the new Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre.

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Date: Thursday, October 8, 2015 Time: 11:00am – 2:00pm Place: Main Lobby, Robert H. Lee Alumni Centre, 6163 University Blvd Aquatic Centre

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Date: Thursday, October 1, 2015 Time: 11:00am – 2:00pm Place: 2nd Floor Foyer, The Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, 1961 East Mall

Walter Gage Road

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UBC Life

AMS Nest Brock Hall

East Mall

Buchanan

Library Garden

Chemistry

West Mall

University Boulevard

Agricultural Rd

Memorial Rd

Crescent Rd

Main Mall Koerner Library

The introduction of the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre to Library Garden provides a unique opportunity to re-envision one of the largest outdoor public spaces on campus.

Please join us at the public open houses to learn more and to tell us what is important to you about the space and what opportunities you see for its future.

Irving K. Barber Learning Centre

Exam database in operation but lacking in content

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC / THE UBYSSEY

The money will help the farm continue their research on organic farming methods.

Sivan Spector Contributor

AMS //

Can’t attend in person? Online consultation will run from September 28 - October 12. Visit planning.ubc.ca to learn more.

For additional information, contact: Gabrielle Armstrong, Senior Manager, Consultation, at gabrielle.armstrong@ubc.ca or 604-822-9984.

This notice contains important information which may affect you. Please ask someone to translate it for you.

ILLUSTRATION JULIAN YU / THE UBYSSEY

Professors haven’t been too impressed with the database.

Adam Waitzer Contributor

Last year, UBC saw the creation of an online archive for old exams, but the website still lacks content.

The database is a collaborative effort between the AMS and the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology (CTLT). According to AMS Associate VP Academic Daniel Munro, the CTLT handles the technical aspects while the AMS oversees the general strategy and publicity of the project.

In its current state, the database is sparsely populated by a handful of exams. Munro attributed the website’s slow development to several issues.

“First, using the database takes extra time for faculty who are already very busy using Connect and other course websites,” said Munro. “Second, many faculty who already provide extensive exam prep material to their students do so through Connect and we often hear them saying that this database is redundant.”

Having already spent approximately $80,000 on this resource, the AMS hope to convince professors of the benefits of using the database.

“Content in the database can be available to the broader community … both in and outside a course,” said Munro. “Most importantly, pointing students to a resource that is specific to exam prep content is a way to open conversations with students about assessment practices and expectations.”

According to Munro, the AMS plans to move forward by focusing on more “detailed, one-onone conversations with professors” as opposed to sending out

mass emails.

Richard Anstee, a math professor at UBC, echoed AMS concerns. The new database is particularly redundant with regards to the math department, according to Anstee.

“Our department uploads a huge number of exams on our website. It has a relatively large array of past exams … as early as 2004 - 2005 ­— which is very comprehensive. I’m very pleased with what math has done,” said Anstee.

However, the problem with the database goes beyond professors’ reluctance to work with yet another website. According to Anstee, “Nobody really knows about the new database.”

The structure of an exam archive has existed for years despite the recent facelift.

In the paper age, print copies of UBC exams were on file and available to students at Brock Hall. This database was then digitized and moved to UBC Library’s cIRcle repository — somewhere along the way, the files were lost.

“Nobody seems to know how to access them anymore … the university or the AMS lost them.

Given the past history of this university initiative, we would loath to give up control of it for fear that it would be lost,” said Anstee. “I can see some merit in [a universal database], but we already do it in a different way.

Why would we upload?”

Evidently, UBC professors’ lukewarm responses to the database is not simply a product of ignorance and apathy, but mistrust as well. Although student support for the database has been strong, the AMS will need to help faculty see its advantages before real progress is made. U

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

| NEWS | 5

IT //

CONSTRUCTION //

Root cause of Connect slowdowns unknown

Engineering Student Centre opened its doors last Thursday Sarah Nabila Contributor

FILE PHOTO ASHER ISBRUCKER/THE UBYSSEY

Everyone’s favourite homework buddy has been acting up again.

Sophie Sutcliffe Contributor

It can seem as though Connect is never working when you need it to. Problems with the site have been as disruptive as ever as UBC Connect completely shut down on September 14 and has been experiencing intermittent distributions since then.

According to Chief Information Officer for UBC Jennifer Burns, solving the problems is not that simple.

“We have a lot of control over network, over firewalls, over servers and the other infrastructure components that the application rests on,” said Burns. “But when we start to get into the actual software code or how the application runs, then that is something that Blackboard [Learn, the service provider], has to address.”

According to the Academic Director for the Centre of Teaching, Learning and Technology Simon Bates, an applications team has been able to mitigate issues and decrease problems although they have yet to find the root cause.

“It’s not immediately apparent what specifically is causing the slowdowns. We’ve made a number of changes to try to address the symptoms, but we realize we’re not able at this point to detect the cause,” confirmed Burns.

For some students though,

the dissatisfaction with Connect is not just about the recent service delays.

“Connect is garbage. It’s just not a very good user interface.

I found it really difficult to learn,” said Tessa Grogan, a second-year arts student. “And for some reason, I hadn’t even heard of it before I came to UBC. So the first time I ever had an assignment, I came to class and my friend asked if I did the homework and I said, ‘What homework?’”

However, UBC may not be using the system that much longer. According to Bates, UBC has a licence with Blackboard Learn up until 2019. “We are actively beginning to think about what happens after that license period expires.”

Bates said that the complex mechanisms involved in running, hosting and supporting a system makes the process of switching to a new system a slower one.

But by the end of the next calendar year he said that “the university will have to take a decision on what they’re going to do beyond the end of that licensing period.”

In the meantime, Burns suggests avoiding “the really peak high periods [such as the] start of class and 8 p.m. at night … Even if the system [is] not having any issues, those are still difficult times and they may normally see lots of load, so it’s a good idea to try to plan around that.” U

After years of hard work, the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) and the Faculty of Applied Sciences officially opened the new Cheeze on Thursday.

The Engineering Student Centre (ESC) totals 10,000 square feet — four to five times bigger than the old Cheeze according to Scott Pidzarko, EUS VP Administration. Pidzarko also noted that this is the first time in years that EUS executives will have offices.

“We used to have our offices in the attic of the old Cheeze.

It wasn’t really accessible for students, but now students would be able to come by and chat with us,” said Pidzarko.

Some of the special architectural features include wooden beams and trusses which were made of recycled materials from the old Cheeze — the building has an LEED gold certification for sustainability.

Overall, it took eight years to develop and build the ESC. A referendum on constructing the new building was passed in 2007.

Architectural firms were consulted from 2008 to 2009 and in 2014 construction of the new building began.

“It’s kind of cool. We finally get to see this eight year project [pay off ] ... we can’t wait to see as many students as possible [take]

An eight year process has culminated in the new Cheeze.

advantage of this building,” said Alan Ehrenholz, the president of EUS. Unlike the old Cheeze, the ESC will not be mostly controlled by students. After lengthy negations with the Board of Governors, “Our governance agreed that it’s going to be 50 per cent controlled by the faculty and 50 per cent by the EUS and students,” said Ehrenholz.

“In the past, buildings had been built for student societies that were run or governed by their faculties and we did not really want the Faculty of Applied Science to be controlling our student space,” said Pidzarko.

PHOTO COURTESY EUS

The final budget was estimated close to $5.2 million. However, it slightly exceeded the initial budgets of $4.9 to $5 million due to some delay during construction.

The main costs were covered almost 50-50 by either students and sponsorship or donation.

Both Ehrenholz and Pidzarko agreed that the ESC space does a good job of representing engineering student life.

“I think the big part of engineering is work hard and play hard. This space offers the opportunity for students to study in quiet and safe environment as well as be social and have fun,” said Pidzarko. U

// CULTURE

EDITOR OLIVIA LAW

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

WRITING //

Granville Island a literary paradise

Authors at Writers Fest are taking inspiration from lifetime experiences.

Keagan Perlette Contributor

The Vancouver Writers Fest is the biggest event of the year for the city’s literary scene. Each fall, the festival transforms Granville Island into a literary paradise — a place where authors from every genre can intermingle and readers can get up close and personal with their favourite writers.

Yet again, the festival features over one hundred authors — local, Canadian, and international — who will be presenting and reading their work throughout the week.

Among these authors are UBC Creative Writing professors Sheryda Warrener and John Vaillant.

Warrener will be reading from

her second book of poetry, Floating is Everything, for the Pure Poetry event. It is her first year reading at Writers Fest, but she has been an eager attendee for many years.

Warrener was abroad in Stockholm, Sweden when she began the collection of poetry that became Floating is Everything.

“We had this really lovely apartment that had lots of beautiful light,” she said. “I was sitting at the kitchen table looking at that light looking out that window and so a lot of … the book came from that.”

A new challenge for Warrener in this poetry collection was mastering a long narrative poem about a cosmonaut.

“The real person who it’s based off of is the person who has been

THE TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL Based on the novel by Anne Brontë

October 1—17, 2015 Frederic Wood Theatre Tickets: theatrefilm.ubc.ca

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AMS //

FilmSoc audiences grow tenfold

FILE ILLUSTRATION INDIANA JOEL / THE UBYSSEY

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC / THE UBYSSEY

Film Soc President Turner Stuart poses for a photo in The Norm.

in space the longest ever, which is 438 days. I put myself in his body and I put him at the table in Sweden.”

John Vaillant is primarily a non-fiction writer and journalist who also pushed himself out of his comfort zone in his most recent book, The Jaguar’s Children, which was released this past January.

Vaillant’s first two novels are works of non-fiction, but The Jaguar’s Children is Vaillant’s debut piece of fiction.

Like Warrener, Vaillant also found inspiration as an expat living in Oaxaca, Mexico for a year.

The Jaguar’s Children is a literary thriller that follows Hector, a Zapotec escaping Mexico in the empty tank of a water truck. He and the other illegal migrants are abandoned in the middle of the desert by the smugglers, with no way out of the sealed water tank.

“I was really moved and impressed by what I was seeing down in the south of the country,” he said of his inspiration for the book. “I’d been reading [fiction] that got me thinking about how [stories like that] might apply to Mexico and, truly, this voice just came into my head very clearly — the voice of Hector.”

For both writers, the festival serves as a hub for Vancouver’s diverse writing community.

“You have all of these people that you [might] never have access to, and you can see them read and you can go up afterwards and tell them that you loved their work,” said Warrener. “I think community is essential, no matter however you find that community” The festival is a place for the writers and readers of Vancouver to come together and support each other’s work.

“We need to support each other,” said Vaillant. “People aren’t doing it for the money so … you get closer to a kind of purity there.

I like being around people like that, [people] who are committed at that level and … I think it’s a privilege to spend time with people like that.” U

Bailey Ramsay Copy Editor

With unlimited free movies all year for members, the UBC Film Society has been able to breathe some new life into the old SUB. Only five dollars for membership, students can now see a wide selection of their favourite films. Movies are screened twice nightly Wednesday to Sunday.

“It’s honestly such a motivator.

I find that a lot of the time I feel I haven’t seen enough movies and I’ve fallen out of the habit. It’s so inexpensive, it’s right here,” said first-year student Aidan Welsford.

Once a second-run theatre, the film society has transitioned this year to showing a selection of handpicked films tailored to the desires of students. The campus cinema has a large variety of programming balancing many genres of movies from art house and cult film to classics and student favourites.

“Everyone loves Wes Anderson.

Everyone loves [Quentin] Tarantino – but we’re all too young to have seen those films in theatres. When else are you going to get an opportunity to see Pulp Fiction in a cinema?” said Dionne Copland, Head Programmer for the UBC Film Society.

The most hotly anticipated events produced by the UBC FilmSoc are their monthly beer gardens. While they are 19+ events, tickets are best purchased in advance as they have a history of selling out. Every November for the past 12 years, the film society has featured The Big Lebowski as per tradition to a roaring success.

“It’s a lot of fun because not only do we show the film, but we have an intermission and we usually do some activity … We have a costume contest for The Big Lebowski and the person best dressed like The Dude will win something,” said Copland on the legendary event. “We do White Russians for The Big Lebowski which are very popular … every year the White Russians sell out

first so you have to get your drinks early!”

Tickets are currently on sale for the film society’s upcoming October beer garden, Wet Hot American Summer.

“Since they do a talent show in the movie, our half time activity is going to be a talent show,” she said.

“If anyone has a weird talent, make sure you come out and you can win some prizes!”

Despite the new SUB’s shadow cast over the old SUB, the film society has kept the club spirit alive inside the building.

“We’re really transitioning from being less of a passive attraction to being more of a destination,” said Computer Operations Manager Mackenzie Shopland as he expressed his fondness for the old SUB. “We’re kind of steeped in history here.

You know they like to say that UBC is a place of mind – well a mind has lots of memories and so does this building.”

Not only is The Norm Theatre home to some pretty killer popcorn and comfy seats, but it is also equipped with 16 mm, 35 mm and the highest quality 2K digital projector.

“We’ve got incredible projection capabilities here …

When it comes down to it, we are one of the best equipped independent cinemas in Vancouver,” said Turner Stewart, president of the UBC Film Society.

Interested? The good news is that there are plenty of opportunities to get involved with the film society. Whether you want to just see movies or volunteer at events, the FilmSoc offers a welcoming community for cinephiles who are passionate about film. Many opportunities are available such as video production workshops that are for free for all film society members.

“If you’re even in the slightest bit interested in film society, just come by the cinema 10 to 15 minutes before a movie starts,” said Stewart. “We’ll sign you up and you’re good for the year.” U

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

VIFF //

Nephew: shifting the bonds of familial relationships

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| 7

IMPROV //

All-stars on Granville Island

ILLUSTRATION COURTESY VIIF

VIIF is bringing some of North America’s best improv stars to Granville Island.

Jessie Stirling Contributor

The film intercuts the main storyline with documentary-style interviews.

Lawrence Neal Garcia Contributor

Later this month, a short film written and directed by David Findlay, a recent graduate of the UBC film production program, will have its premiere at the Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF).

The short, titled Nephew, follows a young man (Eric, played

by Noah Cohen) as he decides whether or not to reconnect with an estranged uncle (Yves Jacques) after having seen him at a bus stop for the first time in many years.

The film will screen as part of the “Blood is Thicker” program at VIFF — a compilation of short films that, as its title suggests, will explore the shifting bounds and bonds of familial relationships.

The idea for exploring an avuncular relationship in particular came from Findlay’s own experience of re-encountering his uncle at a funeral two years ago for the first time in over 10 years.

“When I met him, it was really strange because I thought, ‘This guy is a total stranger, but he looks like my dad and he looks like me … I can totally sense the familiarity,’” said Findlay on the experience.

Not long after the meeting, Findlay wrote the script creating a scenario that doubled as a personal fantasy of sorts and a

way of exploring that particular relationship.

“Ultimately I wanted to make a film about family but from a different perspective that I don’t think we’ve seen a lot in movies,” said Findlay. “Where parents obviously have responsibility towards their kids, an uncle or an aunt doesn’t have that … But either way, it’s like a big influence on who we are.”

The film intercuts the main story with documentary-like interviews of two additional characters (played by Louise Portal and Philip Wrangberg) who recall similar relationships in their own lives. Aside from complementing Eric’s own predicament, the interviews also manage to disarm by the virtue of their candor creating a bracing intimacy within the film’s universal themes.

Aside from getting the support of Panavision in order to shoot on 16mm film — an increasingly rare occurrence, especially for younger filmmakers — Findlay and his collaborators also looked to Kickstarter to fund post-production costs. They successfully raised about $6,300, over a $1,000 above their goal.

Both Jacques and Portal are well-known Quebecois actors that Findlay recalls seeing on TV and in films while he was growing up as he was raised in Quebec City himself.

PHOTO COURTESY BLAKE DAVEY

“Being on set, working with these great actors … it felt like my first real filmmaking experience.”

Finlay had always been interested in making movies as well as snowboarding and skiing films when he was in high school. But it wasn’t until he took a film studies class with Mark Harris, a UBC professor who passed away two years ago, that he began to seriously pursue film production.

“Taking his class was like, ‘Oh wow, this is what I want to do,’” said Findlay. “And since first-year university, that’s all I’ve been involved in — producing and making movies.”

Before beginning work on Nephew, Findlay helped produce Light, a short film that premiered at TIFF last year written and directed by Yassmina Karajah (also a producer on Nephew). As Findlay looks forward to the VIFF premiere of Nephew, he is currently working on a script for his first feature film while also preparing for production on Karajah’s next short film.

“After making enough short films, you just have to go in with a mindset of equating success with [the] completion of a project,” said Findlay. “Because if you think success means a bunch of festivals and awards and whatever, it can be pretty tough to find the motivation to do the next thing.”

Nephew screens as part of the “Blood is Thicker” shorts program at VIFF. U

The Vancouver International Improv Festival returns to Granville Island for its 16th year and will feature some of the best improv groups from all over Vancouver, Canada and the United States.

Taking over three stages and offering 40 different shows over the course of a week, this year’s festival is guaranteed to draw big crowds and elicit even bigger laughs. Some of Canada’s best improvisers got their start right here in Vancouver. VIIF is proud to be showcasing tons of local talent including several UBC alumni – two of which are Allie Entwistle and Michael Augustine.

Augustine’s passion for improv was sparked here at UBC when he visited the UBC Improv booth during Clubs Days in 2009.

Augustine had just moved to Vancouver from California and was looking to meet people on campus.

He auditioned and was accepted.

“After I got in I never really did anything else,” he said.

Augustine has been working with VIIF since 2010 and is excited this year to be performing as part of the Vancouver Ensemble — an all-star team comprised of 16 local improvisers. Augustine believes it’s bound to be a fun show simply because of the incredible amount of local talent on one stage.

“It’s a show you just can’t afford to miss,” he said.

Entwistle’s career in improv also began during Clubs Days. She joined UBC Improv in 2010 “because [she] needed a club to join and the improv people looked the most attractive.”

After graduation, she joined the Instant Theatre Company as well as two independent groups — National Anthem and Grad School Improv.

This is Entwistle’s first year with VIIF and she is performing as a member of one of the two International Ensembles, Team Echo. She describes Team Echo as “a group of really talented people from around Canada and the States who do improv together, probably for only one time ever.”

“If you’ve ever wished you could see good comedy right here in Vancouver, this festival is a fantastic opportunity,” said Entwistle. “If you come here you will be blown away at what people can do with improv.”

Promising a week’s worth of mind-blowing displays of improvisation theatre and worldclass comedy, VIIF will leave audiences counting the days until it returns once again to Granville Island.

The 16th Annual Vancouver International Improv Festival runs from October 6 to 10 at Performance Works, The Waterfront Theatre and the Improv Centre on Granville Island. U

UBC Science

KILLAM TEACHING PRIZE

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS Every year UBC Science awards five Killam Teaching Prizes to acknowledge excellence in undergraduate teaching and to promote the importance of science education. This is your chance to recognize a professor, instructor or lecturer in any of the Faculty of Science’s departments and units. Students, alumni or faculty members are welcome to submit nominations, including a brief supporting rationale, to: bchan@science.ubc.ca Please include “Faculty of Science Killam Teaching” in subject line.

DEADLINES October 11 and January 15.

science.ubc.ca/killam

8 | features |

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

Can emojis stop rape?

UBC says their new campaign is a non-gendered and innovative way to grab attention. Critics say its simplicity doesn’t cut it.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

| features | 9

Transitioning away from ‘No Means No,’ universities have been trying to figure out how to raise awareness about the importance of consent.

The Ubyssey reports on how UBC has tried to navigate a minefield of thorny issues with their current campaign featuring the cute smartphone emoticons we all know so well.

BY OLIVIA LAW

Walking around campus, it is impossible to avoid the giant emojis plastered to the ground and walls of bathrooms.

Silence face = no.

Hesitation face = no.

Maybe face = no.

It seems simple, doesn’t it?

The new consent awareness campaign is goofy, oddly lighthearted and perhaps even innovative in it is latest effort to raise campus awareness for the elimination of sexual assaults on campus.

“No Means No,” now worked into the English vernacular on issues of consent, was the first of these efforts pioneered by the Canadian Federation of Students almost 20 years ago.

Of course it is unavoidable that dealing with such a serious issue would lead to mixed reviews for such campaigns as people pick apart how they portray consent.

“No Means No,” for example, has since transformed into “Yes Means Yes.” This emphasizes the need for an unambiguous, affirmative consent to engage in any sexual activity as opposed to putting the onus on one party to say “no.”

In the years since “No Means No” hit campuses, many universities have focused on getting a similar message out in creative ways. The #GetConsent campaign, launched at Dalhousie University in 2014, seeks to open a conversation about the dialogue going on around consent online and in person. Using videos and a social media blitz, #GetConsent inspired other organizations around Canada to use aggressive and innovative method tactics to reach students.

Another recent effort, “Consent is Sexy,” sought to portray sexual assault prevention in a more playful manner and received its own backlash. While the campaign was praised for making consent appealing to young people, it was criticized for not emphasizing that it’s also mandatory. Finding harmony in balancing the positive and the negative aspects of the consent and sexual assault issue is is one that most campaigns have struggled to achieve.

With the emoji campaign, UBC is positioning itself clearly on the positive end of the spectrum by portraying consent in a playful and lighthearted manner. However, they are doing so while watching out for potential pitfalls.

Communications Coordinator Chris Sulymka was one of the instrumental voices in the design of the emoji campaign.

He suggests more thought went into the campaign than meets the eye.

While most awareness-raising campaigns surrounding sexual violence, assault and consent are targeted toward heteronormative couples, the emoji campaign is using the genderless, sexless figures in an attempt to represent everyone in the university community.

“We didn’t want to portray heteronormative imagery. We wanted to be sensitive to diversity, gender neutral and also approachable and clear,” Sulymka said.

The university’s Sexual Assault Prevention Team (SAPT), the group behind the emoji campaign, said their message is that consent should be clear, obvious and it shouldn’t leave any questions to be answered. In short, an “enthusiastic yes” is essential for sex, making out, touching or a presumably sexual “whatever” as the posters put it.

“Our first goal is to make people stop and think – to notice it and to want to learn more,” said Janet Mee, director of Access and Diversity — one of the groups involved with SAPT. “It’s really a campaign about healthy relationships.”

While critics argue the campaign is too simplistic, Mee said the aim is not to convey the entire message through the passive campaign. Instead, it’s to direct students

through to the different resources the university offers.

The floorgraphs and posters around campus stand out through the familiarity of the images and bright colours.

The information provided is simple and directs viewers to Consent is Clear, a university website. Online, visitors are met with, “6 things to know about consent,” and links to other relationship resource websites from UBC. “In addition to being a lot of fun, [it’s] something that students would recognize [and] something that they use a lot of the time. There’s actually some science that supports using emojis as part of the campaign,” Mee added, citing evidence that manipulations of facial figures have an influence on impression-formation and affect cognition in communication.

However, professor Leonora Angeles at UBC’s Institute for Gender, Race and Social Justice suggests the university

We wanted to be sensitive to diversity, approachable and clear.

Our goal is to make people stop and think.

of the happy face – enthusiastic ‘yes’ means you do not consider the nuances under which consent may be given.”

But Sulymka says that binary is exactly the point. “We wanted to get away from the idea that there’s a grey area,” he said. “If it’s not clear that you have consent, then you don’t.”

Carol Bilson, coordinator of the University of Victoria’s Anti Violence Project, agrees that while the emojis are an effective way of raising awareness, it is perhaps less effective than providing upfront information about consent.

“We’re of the mindset that we want to give as much information out front as possible,” she said of UVic’s approach. “At least it’s providing people an access point to seek out that information and I think it’s something to be commended – even if it’s an access point and not necessarily overtly instructional.”

Angeles believes however that, although the campaign is effective in attracting attention because of familiarity of the icons, the weaknesses in the campaign are largely due to its simplicity.

“It could have a weakness precisely because its use is very familiar icon,” she said.

“The icon is so familiar that people might not associate it with a campaign that is really very serious.”

Associating a happy face with a campaign that addresses really serious issues has points that some might see as dangerous.

Ashley Bentley, manager of UBC’s Sexual Assault Support Centre (SASC), emphasized that the emoji campaign encourages students to engage in conversation, follow the strong visual impact of the floorgraphs and posters as well as find the resources available on campus for people affected or impacted by sexual assault.

“Because people don’t go through consent education in high school, it’s something that they might not be bringing with them in terms of their knowledge,” she said. “We need to teach [new students] what consent is and how they can use it within their relationships or hook ups.”

The consent campaign is one component of a multifaceted approach across the whole university in terms of talking about sexual assault and consent. The goal was to focus on consent itself while still also being sensitive and providing support resources.

Angeles argues that the campaign does not dig deep enough into the issues that are prevalent around campus.

“All I know is that effective campaigns should really take a more fresh, original thought provoking angle that could lead to more conversations ... For me, that campaign doesn’t give me that chance,” she said. “I hope this is just phase one of a broader campaign.”

It’s not that the campaign is childish, trivial or even too cute. Yes, it is simple and lighthearted. Yes, it grabs attention. But for those who the campaign is targeting, is the invitation to look more into the details online enough?

Should the information be clear, unavoidable and at the forefront of every poster?

The emoji campaign is extremely serious in its intentions and students are noticing it. The campaign has been picked up by national news outlets and the “yes” faces are all around campus. The images are unavoidable, but is the message getting through?

“I continue encouraging UBC to really keep at it,” said Bilson. “Consent isn’t a monolith. It’ll take many attempts and I applaud their attempt.” U

But Emojis could have a weakness precisely because they’re a familiar icon.

is paying lip service to the need for a universal consent campaign when she says the most important goal is stopping men from assaulting women.

“We know who the target is and who is largely responsible for committing that form of violence in nonconsensual intimate sexual relationships,” she said.

She added that the necessary messaging is made vague through the use of emojis and the simplicity of the posters limit the conversation about consent.

“How does that happy face play out when drugs and alcohol are involved?” she asked. “It doesn’t cover the range of possibilities where consent can be given to whom, to how many [and] under what conditions.”

Acknowledging that perhaps she’s asking too much from a single campaign, Angeles thinks that if SAPT is going to continue in this thread, there must be an iteration to account for a more nuanced take on the hard questions around consent and what it means under various conditions.

For example, while it’s generally accepted among sexual assault prevention professionals that a sober and “enthusiastic yes” must be given prior to intercourse at all times – observers like Angeles question how realistic this is.

“Happy and enthusiastic consent all the time? It’s difficult!” Angeles said. “The happy face, the banality

10 | Culture |

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

THEATRE //

UBC Theatre season opens with The Tenant of Wildfell Hall premiere

Themes of female independence, true love, passion, pain and loss are abound in the Brontë adaptation.

Andrea Gonzalez Contributor

Suspense, intrigue, comedy and passion — these are only a small sliver of what the UBC adaptation of The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is gearing up to serve in its upcoming world premiere this October.

Based on the novel by Anne Brontë, The Tenant of Wildfell

Hall follows Helen Graham, a mysterious and beautiful young woman, as she moves into the small country village of Wildfell to escape her obscure past. Soon, suspicion and rumour surround Helen as she fails to adhere to the strict gender norms and expectations in the traditional religious society in which she is enmeshed.

U

PHOTO COURTESY TIM MATHESON

Adapted by Professor Jacqueline Firkins and directed

by MFA directing alumna Sarah Rogers, the play has been produced through a collaborative and immersive class project.

Francis Winter, fourth-year BFA student who plays Gilbert Markham, delves into the development of The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

Check out our spiffy new digs.

UBYSSEY.CA

“This play was actually really interesting to work on because we began with a workshop to work the script. It is a new script by a member of faculty here at UBC ... [the actors] had a chance to get together before the production of the play had begun to go over it and work with her on it, iron it out and make sure we were all really happy with it,” said Winter.

While honouring Brontë’s intentions with the original novel through themes of female independence, finding true love, passion, pain and loss, the adaptation has been produced to resonate with contemporary audiences.

“The play seems to sort of stretch itself in many different directions trying to fit in that quality of Jane Austen ... into something that has conventional themes about relationship and sacrifice and marriage and abuse in relationships,” said Thomas Elms, returning BFA alumnus playing Arthur Huntington, Helen’s husband. “So for that reason alone, I think that it is different. It lives in the past while reaching out to people in the present.”

There certainly is a dark underbelly that serves as the foundation for the play.

“Something that I found interesting was that the original novel by Anne Brontë is really a social critique of the permissiveness of certain behaviours in the time,” said Winter. “Anne Brontë saw a lot of the obscure side of human behaviour through her brother who was a cad and a drunk while she was working as a governess in the same house as he was the tutor. I think those themes of permissiveness through a lens that values some individuals higher than others really shines through and I think that those are the types of themes that will still resonate with audiences today,” said Winter.

Even with its serious undertones, the show delivers more than a generous dosage of wit and humour from the ongoing banter between the characters to hilarious and relatable family

dynamics.

“Our director Sarah has done a wonderful job of adding a lot of physical comedy elements to that as well that aren’t present in the script which really help to brighten the scenes,” said Winter.

For the actors, the work is challenging and exciting while propelling them to delve deeper into the psyche of their characters.

However, while the production process has offered up a vast pool of learning opportunities for the cast, conflicting visions have posed some obstacles along the way.

Meegin Pye, a fourth-year UBC BFA student plays the independent female heroine Helen Graham.

“I think the process has been challenging and unique just because it isn’t yet a published play. Many people have stakes in this as well as different visions that aren’t always cohesive,” she said. “From an actor’s perspective, negotiating between these visions and trying to make them happen has been a bit challenging because, as well as having our own visions of these characters and how the story happens, it is also the playwright, the director and teachers’.”

Given that the original novel is renowned as one of the world’s first feminist novels, perhaps the most enticing aspect of this production is its emphasis on female independence. According to Winter, one key factor that differentiates this play from others produced by the Department of Theatre and Film are the rigid gender dynamics that predominated the 19th century.

“In this production, the female characters really tell their own stories. They speak for themselves, think for themselves, talk for themselves,” he said.

Elms agrees adding, “Hopefully modern audiences will think that, thank god, we have come leaps and bounds since this time period where a woman’s place is fixed and a man’s place is whatever he chooses it to be.”

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall will be playing from October 1-17 in the Frederic Wood Theatre. U

have a great idea to

build community during UBC’s Centennial?

$1000 Community Grants available to be won.

Apply for a UTown@UBC Community Grant, and you could be awarded up to $1000 to create a fun and inspiring community-building project on campus!

This year we are pleased to celebrate 100 years of UBC with a special Centennial Grant category.

Information available at utown.ubc.ca/grants.

Application deadline is October 21, 2015.

// OPINIONS

EDITOR JACK HAUEN

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

11

OIL //

In response to Alex Chow’s letter on divestment greatest sociopolitical issue of our Harvard and Columbia University time. Divestment is, however, a as places that have come out necessary step towards combating against divestment as a reason climate change. why UBC shouldn’t. NameFurthermore, Chow points dropping respected universities out that “studies have shown that in this instance is a flawed appeal the majority of greenhouse gas to authority. There are over 300 emissions are actually released signatories on an open letter from at the point of Columbia’s consumption. faculty to the The power of diThe solution to administration vestment lies in climate change in favour of is to reduce the divestment. its ability to create amount of fossil Harvard has public discourse. fuels consumed one of the most rather than vocal student Let’s lead that oppose the organizations conversation, not companies who pushing for stifle it.” produce them.” divestment in Chow, like many the continent. other critics of divestment, argues There are students and faculty that the onus is on consumers to at Harvard, NYU, Columbia – change. every institution Chow uses in But the market doesn’t change a vague attempt to strengthen on its own — A precedent needs to a fundamentally flawed and be set. When a huge institution like confused argument – who UBC moves to divest, it pressures are vehemently pushing for people to rethink their habits at divestment. There is a robust the consumer level. When we start debate at those institutions much to invest in sustainable energy and like there is here. make it more accessible to more In regards to UBC, Chow people, only then do we change the cites the AMS referendum last market. Until we put pressure on year saying that “the campaign these companies to change, they’re claims to have ‘overwhelming’ not going to. support from students when, in Chow goes on to point to fact, only 6,786 students voted in prominent institutions like favour out of a population close to

“

FILE PHOTO CARTER BRUNDAGE/ THE UBYSSEY

Warburton and Prodanovic argue that Chow’s arguments were nonsensical.

MOIRA WARBURTON, KOSTA PRODANOVIC Op-ed

We’ve got a few things to say about a letter by Alex Chow that this paper published last week on why divestment is a bad strategy for UBC. Chow writes that “a fossil fuel divestment campaign led

by UBCC350 has convinced a number of students and faculty members that divestment is the answer to the climate crisis.” No one ever said this. No one has ever claimed that divestment will single-handedly solve the

60,000.” That doesn’t mean that 90 per cent of students are against divestment. It means that the vast majority didn’t care enough to voice their opinion (which is a serious — but completely separate — issue).

The power of divestment lies in its ability to create public discourse. Let’s lead that conversation, not stifle it.

Divestment campaigns remove the social license granted to fossil fuel companies by consumers.

Twiddling thumbs and mumbling about supply and demand is a pretty spineless position for a global research institution like UBC to be taking.

Divestment doesn’t claim to save the world. It doesn’t claim to be the only answer to a massive problem. It only claims to be one part of a movement towards the change we so desperately need.

Framing it as anything else is a discredit to the intentions of the movement and to the debate around how to deal with climate change itself.

Kosta Prodanovic is a fourthyear English major and Photo Editor at The Ubyssey. Moira Warburton is a fifth-year political science and News Editor at The Ubyssey. U

MONEY //

Last Words: Death to Perch Forget Bring Back The Gallery, students should be calling to “Take Down the Perch.” While we wholeheartedly support The Gallery and would be happy to see it back, it’s insulting that Perch exists in the first place. It features food far beyond the price range of your average student with offerings such as Twice-Cooked Duck Leg for $18 and Grilled Flank Steak for $24.

The space itself is premium as it is located at the top of the building and having purportedly cost millions to build — nevermind the high operating costs they will undoubtedly incur to keep the pork cheeks and potato confit fresh.

This seems like a business set up

to fail. But if by some miracle the AMS is able to not lose a fortune on the restaurant, the question remains: How does this serve students? There are already plenty of expensive places to eat both on campus and in Vancouver proper.

Rather than imitating the finedining type of restaurants that serve only people who can afford to blow $16 on artisanal cheese, the AMS should be giving students something they can only get from a cheap student pub – a community of friends built around cheap food and drinks.

“Last Words” is The Ubyssey’s weekly, informal editorial column centred on current events at UBC. U

YOU HAVE OPINIONS Let’s hear ‘em. opinion@ubyssey.ca

Perch offers little to everyday students.

ILLUSTRATION ELENA VOLOHOVA / THE UBYSSEY

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// SPORTS+REC

EDITOR KOBY MICHAELS

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

13

FOOTBALL //

UBC opens $3.5 million baseball training facility Bill Situ Contributor

After three months of construction, UBC baseball has officially opened its $3.5 million indoor training facility.

“The players and coaches feel a tremendous sense of pride ... We also feel lucky to have this space to gather as a group and play and practice and get better,” said Chris Pritchett, the newly-hired head coach of UBC baseball.

Located directly beside the current baseball field, the new 12,500 square foot building is air-conditioned and contains four batting cages along with a pitching area. The facility is equipped with vavrious stateof-the-art video cameras and simulators to analyze the batting and pitching performances of players. The design of the facility also allows for a high level of versatility in the drills that can take place inside.

“It’s a highly functional place because the netting is so uniquely drawn up ... You can really get a lot done with a little creativity,” said Pritchett.

Terry McKaig, director of UBC baseball, describes the technology inside the new building as “a video game where you actually get to hit the ball.” He said that in addition to monitoring the progress of the players, the

The $3.5 million facility has four batting cages, video analysis and simulators for players to use.

technology would make baseball practices more engaging.

“You have to have a place that when the [players] come and experience it for the first time, they want to come back because they have something that engaged them and made it so fun,” said McKaig.

Another advantage of this indoor facility is that it will allow for players to train even when

weather conditions are unsuitable for outdoor practice. Since baseball players typically do not get the chance to practice on the field during winter, this facility would maximize the amount of practice time that players get throughout the year.

“We don’t have venues here in Vancouver ... If you can get kids in here hitting way more than they ever have before, they are going

to be better players next summer out on the field,” said McKaig.

The training facility is open not just for the varsity baseball team, but it will offer training sessions for youth programs in the area as well.

The proposal for this facility was the result of a sports review in 2014 that gave hybrid status for UBC. Funding for this facility came from an anonymous donor and

PHOTO VANESSA MINKE-MARTIN / THE UBYSSEY

construction began in May 2015.

An $8 million 1,000-seat stadium is also currently underway for the baseball program.

The baseball took to the field this weekend for their first home game of the season. They took on Thompson River Wolfpack in back-to-back doubleheaders on September 26 and 27, winning all four games 6-1, 12-0, 6-0 and 6-0. U

TRACK AND FIELD //

Laurier Primeau returns to UBC as head track coach

Laurier Primeau was an assistant coach at UBC from 2002 to 2009 and is now taking over the team.

Kenneth Pittman Contributor

For the first time since 1987, both the UBC cross country and track and field teams will have a new head coach — his name is Laurier Primeau.

“UBC is a very attractive place to coach,” Primeau said. “It’s [a] top 30 school in the world and, with the surrounding area, it opens a lot of recruiting opportunities,” he said. He is taking over the top job from legendary Thunderbird

coach, Marek Jedrzejek, who led the programs for over 25 years.

After a quick look at Primeau, you will see a coach who is extremely passionate about his sport.

Primeau has coaching experience from high school through to university including at a national level. However, the road to where he is now has had a lot of bumps along way.

He started as a track athlete in high school where his coach left a long-lasting influence on him. After graduating high school, his former

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC / TH E UBYSSEY

coach suddenly passed away from a brain aneurism.

“I was asked by my high school principal to come back and coach my high school’s track team … what I discovered was that I loved coaching and I was pretty good at it,” said Primeau.

Primeau attended Simon Fraser University for his undergraduate degree. It took him seven years to graduate because he fought two bouts with cancer. He then went on to complete a second degree from Auburn University in Alabama

before returning to Vancouver to complete his schooling at UBC. While here, Primeau ran for the track team at the CIS championships.

Primeau’s first collegiate coaching job was here at UBC where he served as an assistant to the team from 2002-2009. PostUBC, he had the opportunity to be the head coach of the Scottish national team as well as at Trinity Western University.

When he was given the opportunity to return to UBC as the head coach, Primeau was overjoyed to return to where he was given his first coaching opportunity.

Taking over from legendary track coach Jedrzejek, Primeau said he feels a responsibility to “continue his legacy.” He’s thankful to Jedrzejek for giving him his first coaching job at the collegiate level.

Primeau wants to develop good programs here at UBC, but he also understands that — at this school in particular — there is heavy

influence on the student part of the student-athlete.

This past weekend at the Sundodger Cross Country Invitational, the UBC women’s cross country team placed sixth and the men’s team placed seventh. Primeau thought it was a good kick off to the season.

“We were the top NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) school, which is important. But also, the athletes who attended last year saw improvements in their times so we know we are moving in the right direction.”

“I don’t want to put a lot of emphasis on outcome-oriented goals. The goal as a coach is to focus on the process and make sure that the athletes are improving everyday both in the classroom and on the track,” he said.

Primeau’s next chance to watch his team run is the Charles Bowles Cross Country Invitational hosted by Willamette University in Salem, Oregon on October 3. U

14 | SPORTS |

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

FOOTBALL //

RECRUITING //

Thunderbirds disappoint Hockey recruits join new coach Adam Shell against Saskatchewan

The new recruits all have WHL experience and are looking to make an impact.

Matt Langmuir Contributor

PHOTO JEREMY JOHNSON-SILVERS / THE UBYSSEY

Troy Hansen, a first-year linebacker, gets taken down by a Husky.

Soren Elsay Contributor

It may be time to hold off on the parade planning for the UBC Thunderbirds. After a flying start to the year that saw them beat the powerful Laval in the preseason and open up the regular season 2-1, the sixth ranked ‘Birds were dealt a sobering 45-29 defeat at the hand of the visiting Saskatchewan Huskies.

“I hope it wasn’t taking the Saskatchewan program for granted because, as an experienced coach, I know that they are going to come out and play hard and physical,” said Head Coach Blake Nill.

After winning a high-scoring affair last week in Manitoba 51-48, the Thunderbirds’ offence did not come out looking as sharp and the defence looked as vulnerable as ever.

Michael O’Connor threw for 335 yards and scored a touchdown for the T-Birds, but never truly seemed comfortable. The Penn State transfer uncharacteristically missed several throws high, one of which led to an early interception.

After taking their opening possession into the end zone, the Huskies capitalized on the aforementioned O’Connor interception to take an early 14-0 lead. The damage was not done there however.

Facing second down from their own 40 yard line, wide receiver Liam Haime had the ball ripped from his hands by Saskatchewan’s Dylan Kemp who promptly returned it to the house. This stunned the crowd of 2,650 who watched the home side fall into an early 21-0 hole.

After a safety and a Quinn van Gylswyk field goal brought the score to 21-5, Huskies running back Jarvis James scampered in from five yards out for the first of his two touchdowns of the night. The fourth-year tailback would finish the night with 155 yards on 26 carries.

The Thunderbirds’ headed into the half on a high after wide receiver Will Watson scored on a one yard hand off just before the break. The momentum appeared to be swinging back in the home side’s favour. The opening drive of the second half produced a field goal for UBC and cut the score to 28-19.

Needing an answer, Saskatchewan turned to James and

the ground game to stem the tide.

With the crowd back into it, the Huskies embarked on a 75 yard drive that was capped by James’ second score of the game.

Not to be outdone, UBC’s Trivel Pinto returned the ensuing kick 95 yards to the Huskies 10 yard line. O’Connor quickly converted, finding Malcolm Lee on a slant to make the score 35-26 halfway through the third quarter.

However, as they had all night, Saskatchewan found an answer.

Fourth-year quarterback Drew Burko, who had been sharp all night, rolled right and lofted a hopeful ball into the back corner of the end zone looking for Tevin Godfrey. The Huskies receiver made a fantastic, one-handed catch with the UBC corner draped all over him. The highlight-reel score ignited the visitors’ sideline and it began to feel as if this would not be the Thunderbirds’ night.

With 10 minutes remaining, down by 16 and threatening inside the red zone, UBC faced a makeor-break third and seven from the Huskies 11 yard line. O’Connor’s pass fell incomplete and the ‘Birds comeback attempt was cut short.

The loss dropped the T-Birds to 2-2 on the season and the has brought up some serious questions as they prepare to head to the University of Alberta next weekend. The defence, which gave up 48 points to Manitoba last week, was gashed time and time again both on the ground and through the air. They allowed the visitors to rack up over 500 yards.

“We’re going to have to realize that the athletes that we have maybe can not play the kind of defence we’re asking for the entire time,” said Nill.

“We’re going to have to go more of a bend-but-don’t-break type approach.”

Pinning tonight’s loss squarely on one side of the ball would be an inaccurate portrayal of events.

Overall, the team lacked a general crispness to their game and, on both sides of the ball, there were key breakdowns and mistakes that proved too much to overcome. If the T-Birds are to return to their winning ways, Nill knows he is going to need more out of his veteran players. U

The men’s hockey regular season premiere is just around the corner and Head Coach Adam Shell is hoping the new recruits will help bring UBC deep into the playoffs this season. With a total of eight players joining the team — all of whom have Western Hockey League experience — expectations are high for this year’s Thunderbirds.

“Tyler [Kuntz, the previous coach,] did an outstanding job,” said Shell. “This recruiting class is outstanding. The five guys at the back end are all terrific — they really upgraded our talent.”

Josh Connolly is one of those five newly recruited defensemen.

Along with Kyle Becker, they are regarded by Shell as potential allstars. Connolly, the Prince George native, posted a career-high of 45 points for the Kamloops Blazers during the 2013-14 season and

already has a UBC preseason goal to his name.

“I’ve played [in the WHL] for four years. It’s a pretty competitive league,” said Connolly. “The guys here are a lot bigger [and] a lot stronger, but I’ll just take what I learned from [the WHL] and just kind of use it here and hopefully do whatever I can do to help the team win.”

Devan Fafard, Raymond Grewal and Riley Guenther are the other three newly acquired defensemen all of whom Shell believes will be solid Canada West players.

One of the more locally wellknown players to join the squad is centre Joel Hamilton who spent a season and a half with the Vancouver Giants racking up 75 points during his brief tenure with the team.

Hamilton pointed out that his love for the city was the reason he decided to join the Thunderbirds. “[During] my time out here with the Giants, I just really enjoyed

PHOTO KOSTA PRODANOVIC / THE UBYSSEY

the city and living here,” said Hamilton. “I guess I couldn’t really get enough of it and that’s kind of why I wanted to come back here.”

Hamilton hopes his ability to play a 200 foot game will give him the chance to help his team win.

He emphasized his hard work and penalty killing abilities as his main attributes.

The other two forwards in this year’s recruiting class are Austin Vetterl and Chase Clayton who previously played for the Kootenay Ice and Saskatoon Blades respectively.

“All eight of the incoming guys are great people which fit into this mix,” said Shell.

“You’ve got guys who can fit in nicely — a little different role for each of them, but they all bring something different and will all contribute heavily to our lineup.

I’m really lucky to have inherited that recruiting class for sure.” U

Notice of Development Permit Application - DP 15001

Public Open House

Wesbrook Place Lots 27 & 29 Faculty & Staff Rental Housing You are invited to attend an Open House on Thursday, October 8 to view and comment on the proposed faculty & staff rental residential development in consolidated Lots 27 & 29 in Wesbrook Place.

Date: Thursday, October 8, 2015 Time: 4:30 - 6:00PM Place: Wesbrook Village Welcome Centre, 3378 Wesbrook Mall Representatives from the project team and Campus + Community Planning will be available to provide information and respond to inquiries about this project. The public is also invited to attend the upcoming Development Permit Board Meeting for this project.

Date/Time: October 28, 5:00 - 6:30PM Location: Classroom, Tapestry Building 3338 Wesbrook Mall

Can’t attend in person? Online feedback will be accepted from Sept. 23 to Oct. 18. To learn more or to comment on this project, please visit: planning.ubc.ca/vancouver/projects-consultations

This event is wheelchair accessible.

For further information, contact: Karen Russell, Manager, Development Services karen.russell@ubc.ca 604-822-1586

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

| SPORTS | 15

VOLLEYBALL //

What’s next for Perry: life after the Thunderbirds

Register and vote at UBC Ready to vote in the federal election?

From October 5 to 8, Elections Canada offices will be open on campus to provide information, registration and voting for students before the October 19 election day.

Bring ID with your home address.

Register and vot on campus e October 5–8

Ian Perry is spending his post-Thunderbird time coaching and working towards a masters degree.

Henry Allan Contributor

Kyle Donen, head coach of the University of the Fraser Valley volleyball team, tells his players to take their places at the beginning of practice. Everyone in the gym is dressed in the greens, greys, whites and blacks of the Cascades athletic program. Donen explains he’s going to demonstrate forearm passing and calls for his assistant coach, Ian Perry, to stand on the other side of the net. Perry, captain of the UBC volleyball team for the last three seasons, wears a forest green t-shirt, emblazoned with the white UFV logo on his chest. The only thing that looks out of place in the gym are the bright blue Thunderbirds shorts Perry still wears.

Donen throws the ball up high over the net. The players watch Perry as he takes a stance and readies himself to receive the ball — practice begins.

Perry was asked by Donen to help coach the Cascades this season before the two had ever even met. The request was based solely on Perry’s career at UBC during which he lead the team to three straight Canada West final fours, represented Team Canada, was an academic all-Canadian and finished with the second most digs (preventing the ball from hitting the ground) in CIS history (only behind fellow Thunderbird, Blair Bann). But now that Perry’s CIS career has finished, what’s next?

“I never planned on coaching this year — that was totally out of the blue,” said Perry. The plan was to play professionally in Norway.

After the 2014-15 season ended, the UBC coaching staff put Perry in contact with a Norwegian coach who, after watching Perry’s game tapes, offered the libero (a defensive player) spot on his team.

But Perry chose to stay.

“It would have been an amazing experience to go over there and play,” said Perry. “But for me, it’s just not a career.” Had he gone pro, Perry would only have played for a few years and have had to work a coaching job on the side to make ends meet. So Perry decided to stay and make headway with a career he would eventually have to fall back on anyway.

Now Perry is working towards becoming a sports psychologist.

He’d previously considered coaching volleyball, but Perry explained that there are no domestic pro-leagues and only a handful of paying jobs at the CIS level making job prospects pretty low. “That’s kind of why I went with the sports psychologist side of it,” said Perry.

As sports psychologists don’t tend to limit themselves to one sport, their potential client lists are enormous. In B.C. alone, there are thousands of high-level athletes competing at the college, university and professional levels.

Branching out to other sports is something Perry is familiar with.

FILE PHOTO GOEFF LISTER / THE UBYSSEY

He was on the Yale Secondary basketball team that took the provincial title in 2008 and played on Yale’s Ultimate team too. During his summers growing up, Perry played soccer and baseball as well as later coached tennis. Add a varsity Thunderbird pedigree and Perry has pretty solid credentials to coach all manners of athletes on the mental side of their games. All that’s missing is a qualification.

To compliment his Bachelor’s of Kinesiology, Perry hopes to enrol in a graduate kinesiology program specializing in sports psychology at UBC next fall.

Between now and then though, Perry plans to travel — right now he’s in Europe with his family and aims to travel again in the spring to Southeast Asia. To help pay for that, Perry works for the City of Surrey’s Roads and Drainage department (another previous summer job) which he juggles with coaching at UFV. But Perry’s playing days aren’t necessarily over. Perry regularly acts as a player in UFV practices and participates in recreation leagues filled with ex-university and college players. Both keep him ready should he want to return to organized volleyball.

“Some of the players who are playing pro are in their 30s, so it’s not like volleyball is a sport you have to be under 25 to play,” said Perry. “If something came up in the future and I really missed [playing], I definitely feel that I could go over and give it a shot.” U

Nearest location: Student Union Building Ballroom 6138 Student Union Blvd.

Hours: 10:00 a.m.– 8:00 p.m.

There are other times, places and ways you can vote. Visit elections.ca or call 1-800-463-6868 (

TTY 1-800-361-8935) for this information and the list of accepted ID.

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