Dec 4 |
Militarization and the human right to peace
Keynote speaker: Doug Roche
Workshops and discussion on peace issues, including workshop on missile defence facilitated by VIPIRG's Stacy Chappel. Keynote speaker Doug Roche, former member of parliament and peace activist, spoke about his new book The Human Rights to Peace.
Co-sponsors: Council of Canadians, VIPIRG, Victoria Peace Coalition, World Federalists, Social Responsibility Committee of the Unitarian Church
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Dec 2 |
Crossing the line: A citizen's inquiry on Canada-US relations
VIPIRG's Students Against Missile Defence hosted one of a 10-city series of citizen inquiries organized by the Council of Canadians. The series aimed to raise awareness and collect community perspectives on the corporate lobby's push for the Canadian government to become more aligned with the US in terms of culture, immigration, defence, environmental standards, trade, and health care. The Citizen's Inquiry in Victoria focused on missile defence, the militarization of space, NORAD, and the war in Iraq. The hearings included expert speakers and presentations by community groups and individuals.
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Nov 25 |
Demonstration against Missile Defence Program
With Students Against War, the Council of Canadians, and other Victoria peace and justice groups, members of VIPIRG's Students Against Missile Defence rallied outside MP David Anderson's office to call on him and other MPs to vote against joining the US missile defence program. Students Against War presented Anderson with a petition signed by 2,000 people.
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Nov 22 |
Islamic Sharia court for family law in Ontario?
Speaker: Homa Arjomand
Homa Arjomand, coordinator of the Campaign Against Sharia Court in Canada, spoke about the impact of Sharia on women's rights, and the campaign against Ontario’s proposed Sharia-based court for family law. Ontario already has provision for family court using Rabbinical law and Catholic law. Ms. Arjomand, an Iranian-Canadian activist based in Toronto, is one of the most vocal critics of permitting religion-based family courts in Canada.
Co-sponsors: VIPIRG, Victoria Iranian Canadian Community Centre, UVic Department of Humanities, UVic Women's Centre
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Nov 8 |
Pre-release screening: The Take
In Argentina groups of workers are taking over bankrupt workplaces and running them democratically – without bosses. The Take, a political thriller directed by Avi Lewis and written by Naomi Klein, is one answer to the question posed by both critics and supporters of radical movements worldwide: "We know what you're against, but what are you for?" Proceeds from this special pre-release screening went to local groups working on globalization issues and latin american solidarity (VIPIRG, VIDEA, and the Central America Support Committee.
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Oct 29 |
Women, war, violence, and peace
Speaker: Nana-Fosu Randall
A long-time UN employee, Ms. Randall is now devoting herself to non-governmental organizations, including the Voice of African Mothers (VAM), a group she founded in 2004. VAM stresses the need to help individuals and families work together to build a just, hopeful and sustainable society.
Co-sponsors: VIPIRG, Barnard-Boecker Centre Foundation, Women in Black
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Oct 4 |
Missile defence: Back to the Cold War?
Speaker: Michael Byers
SAMD hosted a presentation by Michael Byers, Academic Director, Lieu Institute for Global Issues, UBC and frequent contributor to the London Review of Books and the Globe and Mail. Byers has been writing and campaigning against missile defence since June 2000.
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Oct 1 |
Getting the news you need:
An internet research workshop
Facilitator: Nedjo Rogers
This hands-on workshop focused on tools and techniques for accessing news and research on the internet on social and environmental issues. Topics covered included basic and advanced search techniques, a review of useful alternative news and information sources, and tips for posting research results to online forums. Facilitator Nedjo Rogers is Learning Technologies Developer at the GroundWorks Learning Centre, where he assists non-profits and activist groups to use and adapt information technologies.
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Sep 30 |
Film screening: Uprooted – Refugees of the Global Economy
VIPIRG's No-One Is Illegal committee organized a screening of Uprooted: Refugees of the Global Economy and facilitated discussion of globalism, human rights, and global politics after the film. Uprooted presents three stories of immigrants who left their homes in Bolivia, Haiti, and the Philippines after global economic powers devastated their countries, only to face new challenges in the United States.
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Sep 27 |
US war resister speaks out
Speaker: Brandon Hughey
At age 18, US war resister Brandon Hughey, originally from Texas, left his Army unit before it shipped out to Iraq. It was, he says, his obligation to leave. "I feel that if a soldier is given an order that he knows to not only be illegal, but immoral as well, then it his responsibility to refuse that order...It is also my belief that if a soldier is refusing an order he knows to be wrong, it is not right for him to face persecution for it." Brandon arrived in Canada in March 2004.
Co-sponsors: War Resisters Support Campaign, VIPIRG
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Sep 21-23 |
Researching for Change
In VIPIRG's annual Researching for Change workshop series, experienced researchers teach the "how to" of community-based research approaches, methods, ethics, and tactics. In 2004 VIPIRG offered 11 workshops:
- Influencing public policy: Examples from applied research
- Social justice research: The CCPA experience
- Digging the dirt
- Government records belong to you: Navigating the tricky waters of the BC government's "FOI" process
- Solid backing
- Women, crack cocaine addiction and the sex trade industry: A standpoint analysis
- From analyst to activist: How scientific research is changing the face of the environmental movement
- Transforming community practice
- Research as a tool for marginalized communities effecting change
- Research as a tool for marine conservation
- Tax shifting: Making prices tell the ecological truth in Canada
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Sep 21 |
The farmer who defied Monsanto
Speaker: Percy Schmeiser
Percy and Louise Schmeiser have farmed their land near Bruno, SK for forty years, growing canola from seeds they developed themselves. In 1998 the giant chemical company, Monsanto, found its GM-altered Canola in a ditch along the Schmeiser fields. Monsanto filed a lawsuit claiming that the farmers had infringed on their patent rights, even though Schmeiser had not bought seed from Monsanto. Percy Schmeiser addressed a packed hall to tell the story of his strugle to save his seeds and farm against corporate power, as well as his experiences on a speaking tour with the Peoples’ Caravan for Food Security in Asia, visiting farmers and social groups in the Phillipines and Cambodia who are concerned with farmers’ rights and the preservation of traditional knowledge.
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Jun 21 |
All-candidates forum on peace and security
Over 80 people attended a forum of federal election candidates to discuss Canadian peace and security issues. The NDP, Green Party and Canada Action Party sent candidates to the forum, while the Liberal candidate withdrew days before the forum and the Conservatives declined to attend.
Co-sponsors: Council of Canadians, VIPIRG
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Jun 12 |
National wake up call on missile defence
VIPIRG joined with groups across the country in demonstrations to keep Canada out of the US missile defence program. Peace activists set off alarm clocks outside of Conservative Campaign headquarters, listened to speakers, and then walked to David Anderson's Liberal campaign office.
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May 11 |
Launch of Democratic Deficit tour
VIPIRG's Students Against Missile Defence helped launch a cross-Canada tour of satirists with PaulMartinTime.ca by strapping a giant replica missile, covered in signatures protesting missile defence, to the top of the tour car to be delivered to Martin in Ottawa.
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Mar 30 |
Small spaces and container gardening
Facilitator: Rebecca Jehn
VIPIRG's Urban Agriculture committee organized a hands-on workshop about gardening in small spaces and container gardening. Participants each went home with a pot of planted salad greens.
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Mar 23 |
Island food security and accessing local food
Speaker: Emily MacNair
Food activist and researcher Emily MacNair presented information on her recent regional food security assessment, addressing food production, food distribution, and hunger and malnutrition. The presentation was followed by a facilitated discussion on accessing healthy, affordable, local food.
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Mar 13-14 |
Permaculture design weekend
Trainers: Geoff Johnson & Chris Wells, Victoria Compost Education Centre
Permaculture is an ecological design system used to develop homes and communities, taking into account basic human needs such as food, water, and energy and weaving landscape elements together in ways that reduce work, eliminate pollution, and sustainably address local needs. It is based on the observation of natural systems, and can be applied on any scale. This workshop, organized by VIPIRG's Urban Agriculture committee, focused on hands-on permaculture skills and aspects of permaculture design.
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Mar 13 |
Activist seminar on immigrant and refugee rights
VIPIRG's No-One Is Illegal Committee organized a day-long series of interactive workshops on immigrant and refugee rights. The series was intended to introduce student and community activists to immigrant and refugee rights and related issues, facilitate networking between local community groups working on immigrant and refugee issues, and provide a view of immigrant and refugee rights as a local issue.
Presenters/facilitators:
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Mar 2 |
Urban agriculture fair
VIPIRG's second annual urban agriculture fair gave student and community members a chance to get to know local food producers and organizations working on food issues. The all-day fair featured a free lunch of local food, speakers, and a market full of information. Speakers included Guy Dauncey on climate change and food, Mary Alice Johnson on the history of the local organic food movement, Jacinda Fairholm on urban agriculture in Cuba, and Geoff Johnson on models of urban agriculture. Tables featured local producers and seed savers (Tugwell Creek Homey Farm, Two Wings Farm, Full Circle Seeds) and local urban agriculture organizations (LifeCycles, the Compost Education Centre, the Habitat Acquisition Trust, SOIL and the Haliburton Community Farm).
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Feb 17 |
A growing revolution: Canada-Cuba partnerships in urban agriculture
Speakers: Jacinda Fairholm & David Goodman
With a population of 2.4 million people in Havana, Cuba, the city is providing for its citizens by growing 54% of its food supply in the city limits. With support from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and LifeCycles' International Progam, the Cuban Association of Agriculture and Forest Technicians (ACTAF) developed a seven-hectare demonstration and training farm in Havana. The farm included a community kitchen program and micro-economic enterprise for urban farmers, community groups and school programs. Jacinda Fairholm, coordinator of the LifeCycles International Program, and David Goodman, CIDA intern, gave a slideshow presentation focusing on successes and challenges of the program.
Co-sponsors: LifeCycles and VIPIRG
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Feb 14 |
Conference: Their war, our resistance
One year since the world said NO to the invasion of Iraq with the largest demonstrations in the world's history, Victoria's Stop the War Committee marked the anniversary with a conference about the “War on Terror” and the global resistance to it. Speakers included:
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Occupation, globalization and the struggle for worker's rights –
David Bacon (US Labor Against the War)
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National missile defense: Martin, Bush and Fortress North
America – Steve Staples (Polaris Institute)
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The Maher Arar case: Racial profiling and the “War on Terror” – Stacy Chappel (VIPIRG No One Is Illegal Committee)
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Mothers against the occupation – Vicky Monk (Military Families Speak Out!), Maha Abdulrahman (Iraqi Family Reunification Project)
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Iraq and the anti-war movement one year later: The world still says no to war –
David Bacon (US Labor Against the War),
Valerie Lannon (Stop the War Committee)
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Feb 3 |
Dirty dozen: US timber giants
To galvanize public opinion to stop American companies from destroying Canada's remaining endangered forests, Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and Forest Action Network (FAN) visited Canadian cities presenting on the local operations of the "Dirty Dozen" US timber giants – including Weyerhaeuser, Georgia Pacific, and International Paper (Weldwood). RAN and FAN presented a history of the companies, RAN/FAN recent markets campaign wins, and case studies of contentious logging sites, then facilitated discussion about what Canadians can do to protect local forests from American companies.
Co-sponsors: Forest Action Network, VIPIRG, Rainforest Action Network
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Jan 29 |
Bad time to be poor: Assessing the BC welfare cuts and the two-year time limits
Speaker: Seth Klein – BC Director, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
Seth reviewed the major changes to BC's welfare policies and their impacts, lessons from the US experience with welfare reform, and the ad hoc community campaign against time-limited welfare.
Co-sponsors: UVic School of Social Work, VIPIRG, BC Association of Social Workers, Association of Family Serving Agencies
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Jan 22 |
The ancient forests of Vancouver Island
Presenter: Ingmar Lee
Film, slideshow and talk by environmental activist Ingmar Lee about East Creek, one of the last intact watersheds on Vancouver Island. Ingmar recently completed a tour of Europe to raise awareness about disappearing old growth forests.
Co-sponsors: VIPIRG, Sierra Club
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