New State Order | Arbitrage Magazine by Arbitrage Magazine

J ANUARY2013| VOL . 4| NO. 1

EDITOR’S NOTE

Luis Fernando Arce Co-Editor-in-Chief Arbitrage Magazine

To the ARB Community, The 21st century is a very special time and place to be a part of. The world today finds itself in the grips of a new cultural, economic and political world order that’s putting the very definition of «democracy» under the lens. In this issue of the Arbitrage, we delve into the state in which democracy finds itself under this New World Order by exploring the trends that are making waves now and rippling into the future. We explore questions such as whether getting a university degree even

matters anymore? How are students affecting the labour market in this economy? And what are 21 of the most common communication mistakes that may be holding your career back? In an age that’s defined by constant change and innovation, we’re also pressed to analyze the possible effects on our climate and our societies. We’ve worked hard on this issue to explore matters such as the way the technological revolution is changing our lives, and why so much business travel may be noxious to

your heath. But we’re also asking the tough questions, such as why the Canadian federal government is choosing to close the Experimental Lakes Area. We’re covering the controversial issues, such as the massive protests opposing major pipeline deals in Canada, or the effects that human enterprise continues to have on the world’s climate. And of course, we’re going after the information that our business-oriented readers are after, such as how mergers and acquisitions are shaping

our banking industry today? The world is changing dramatically and we have the privilege of being the generation that will come through it ... that will make history. On behalf of the ARB staff, I invite you to flip through our pages to catch a glimpse of that change before it’s too late ... to realize what the State of Democracy is today in the New World Order.

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TO BLACK 3145RETURN TUESDAY

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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS SHAPING BANKING INDUSTRY

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UNMUZZLEDSCIENCE! Scientists Unite to Save the Experimental Lakes Area in Northern Ontario

by : fernando arce

WARRIOR UP: NORTHERN GATEWAY PROJECT

M January 2013

TABLE OF CONTENTS design: sophie qi

photography : dan campo

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STUDENT RESOURCES

07 The human tornado

21 Students affect labor

09 Animals at marineland 11 5 Highly anticipated bookto-movie adaptions

UNMUZZLED SCIENCE

13 Business travel bad for your personal life

23 21 Communication mistake

FINANCE & ECONMICS

27 Social lending

15 Technological revolution

INFOGRAPHICS

17 Why bloggin is new billboard

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

19 Greatest insult to ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

22 Earning college degree

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY changing lives

market

humanity

29 Occupy wall street

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The Human

Tornado

WRITTEN BY: OXANA TSIRELMAN, ONLINE EDITOR

A cry for change in the way we treat our earth

PHOTOGRAPHY: TAL GERTIN AND MEGAN KAMOCKI DESIGN: MARIE DOMINIQUE SIOJO

The day after tomorrow might be closer than we think. That’s a terrifying thought, I know, but that doesn’t stop it from being the truth. Everything you do affects the environment, directly and indirectly. This raises an important question: why are we doing this? What could possibly be more important than the earth, the source of life itself, the very thing that sustains us all? That’s what I’m going to find out. We’re consumers. You might even call us the tornadoes because we destroy everything in our path. Offices use up a large volume of paper, which only kills trees: the main source of clear pure oxygen we have. In 1997, British Columbia timber scout Grant Hadwin cut off a 300 old legendary Sitka spruce tree with a chainsaw in a

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

so called environmental protest! Not only was this tree a tourist attraction and a scientific fascination, it was also sacred to the Haida people and it was loved by local loggers. What is it exactly that makes us do these things? Power? Greed? The desire for control? The time will come where we will be punished for our crimes against nature. When that day comes, we will be sorry for the damage that we caused, but it will be too late. A large part of me knows that we deserve it. The growth of home based businesses has a bigger impact than we realize. In fact, online editorial EditorialToday. com asserts that “Industries have grown up around home based business products and services and long time

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industries have changed their formats to embrace these ever-increasing home-based entrepreneurs.” The agricultural and tourism industry is also being affected by our crimes against nature. The agriculture industry is especially important to our lives; where do you think our food comes from?

What is it exactly that makes us do these things? Power? Greed? The desire for control? “Climate change is at the core of what we are as a business, and if we

are not dealing with and addressing these issues, then we are sleeping,” adds Spier sustainable development director Tanner Methvin. Spier also set in place environmental goals to deal with the climate change. More time must be focused on energy, water and biodiversity. These efforts must then transcend towards a bigger goal. It is also noteworthy that environmental goals are not separate from financial goals. Methvin determines that “Business needs to regear how it functions. Spier has identified its role locally and globally, and is determined to build innovative models of how business and development can succeed in harmony with our ecology and society.”

Who do we think we are to damage the Earth? We’re playing God with our lives! We’re playing God with the lives of all the living and non living entities that roam this planet! If we keep this up, we’re going to lose everything. Actions have consequences. Whatever WE do, there are consequences for it, and we pay the price. Someway, someday, everything will come out. We will see exactly what affects our actions have on the world around us. I’m crying out because I see the first wave hitting us, metaphorically speaking. Eventually we will be all blood and ashes if we continue to be destructive.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

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Animals Neglected at Marineland Workers turn a blind eye to poor conditions

Writtten By: Oxana Tsirelman, Online Editor Photography By: Caleb Chu Design By: Katherine Chu Marineland, located in Niagara Falls, is one of the most publicized amusement parks in North America today. The conditions in its facilities have sparked a nationwide controversy that touches the heart of every animal owner in the country. It certainly touches mine, which is why I feel it is my civic duty to report this.

says a former senior trainer at Marineland, Phil Demers. He even quit his job due to his overwhelming guilt and feelings of helplessness for the animals. Former Marineland employees reported that walruses were kept in solitary waterless cages. Zeus, one of the walruses, was often alone in his cage because of understafﬁng.

A former supervisor in Marineland reports that “it got so bad that I didn’t even have to test the water when I arrived in the morning. I could tell just by looking at how sick the animals were. If you don’t look at them, there’s no problem. What hurt me most is those animals in those pools. They can’t go anywhere. They can’t get out. They’re stuck.”

Some possible solutions to this problem include investing money towards improving conditions in the park, or possibly relocating these animals altogether. “There are some issues that we need to follow up on,” says Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Inspector DesRoches states that “any concerns the OSPCA would have, we would give Marineland a timeline to rectify. The removal of

“The animals were in hell,”

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

animals is always possible.” On Thursday, the Gomez family decided to pay a visit to Marineland, in spite of Kassandra Gomez’ reservations in light of the controversy. “I personally only came for my little brother. I didn’t exactly want to come because of everything that was going on,” said Kassandra Gomez. “I personally didn’t tell anyone I was coming here. I just said I’m going to Niagara Falls,” added Samantha Gomez. But that’s not all. Last weekend countless people stood outside Marineland protesting against this injustice after several former park employees reported that animals were being neglected. One of the ways in which the animal’s neglect can be seen is that they are forced to be in poor water, which causes

skin and eye problems. In fact, the Gomez family saw an animal in distress with their own eyes, while workers seemed to not even take notice. “We went into the area, I guess where the retired mammals are and we did notice that one mammal was completely blind and when we got there his ﬁn was actually bleeding,” said Samantha. With several eye witness accounts and inspector reports, it is clear that these animals are in need of serious help. If you are as outraged as I am, or know of any further evidence against Marineland, take a stand against this terrible neglect and contact OSPCA today.

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Summer 2012 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA careers. education. ideas.

all of it.

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5 Highly Anticipated Book-to-Movie Adaptations written by : roxanne de souza , staff writer

design: sarah sia

1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Stephen Chbosky Release Date: September 28, 2012

2. Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell Release Date: October 26, 2012

The story often likened to Salinger’s coming-of-age classic The Catcher in the Rye, Chbosky tells of 15-year-old Charlie (Logan Lerman) as he struggles with being an introvert, growing up and falling in love. Emma “Hermione Granger” Watson plays his free-spirited love interest, and Ezra Miller plays the flamboyant best friend. Released earlier this year, lovers of the book claim that Perks authentically portrays Chbosky’s cult classic.

David Mitchell’s critically acclaimed novel Cloud Atlas depicts a scenario in which individual actions have profound ramifications over space and time. Cloud Atlas tells several separate yet interconnected stories that range from the 19th century to a dystopian future. The film adaptation starring Tom Hanks and Halle Berry has received positive reviews, and promises to be one of the most complex and thought-‐provoking movies this year.

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

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3. Team of Rivals – Doris Kearns Goodwin Release Date: November 16, 2012

4. Life of Pi – Yann Martel Release Date: November 21, 2012

5. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey – J.R.R. Tolkien Release Date: December 14, 2012

Concisely entitled Lincoln, this film is partially based on Goodwin’s book, which provides a historical account of Abraham Lincoln and his Cabinet members. Starring Oscar winner Daniel Day Lewis as the title character and up-and-comer Joseph Gordon Levitt (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises), the film portrays the American president’s struggle with the American Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation. The Steven Spielberg film is already generating Oscar buzz as a much-‐ anticipated political thriller.

Canadian author Yann Martel uses magical realism to tell the story of 16- ‐ year-‐old Indian boy Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel. Pi’s family eventually decides to leave the zoo they own in Pondicherry due to political unrest, departing for Canada by boat with their animals. After a shipwreck, Pi is eventually left on a lifeboat with a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra and a Bengal tiger. The film depicts his survival on the boat, as well as the overarching themes of survival and spirituality through his journey. Directed by Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain), and starring Suraj Sharma as Pi, the film is expected to be a critical success.

Peter Jackson takes his audience back to Tolkien’s Middle Earth in the beloved prequel to The Lord of the Rings. In The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins accompanies a band of dwarves to reclaim their treasure from the Lonely Mountain now occupied by the dragon Smaug. The tale recounts Bilbo’s adventures and misadventures with trolls, goblins and wood elves, and reintroduces classic characters including Gandalf the Wizard and Gollum. Despite the anticipation of Tolkien fans, Jackson has been criticized for separating the book into three separate films.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

CULTURE

Business Travel is Bad for Your Personal Life

Being away from home increases your tendency to engage in “bad behaviours” Business travel is becoming increasingly unpopular, recent findings show, with the majority of Americans holding a negative view of it. According to a survey conducted by virtual services company ON24, a full year is spent on business travel over the course of a career averaging 40 years in duration, and that year spent on travel supposedly takes a toll on a traveller’s personal life. The survey that questioned more than 2000 American adults found that 94% of Americans believe that people who were away from home to attend business conventions and

trade shows were more likely to engage in such “bad behaviours” as drinking too much alcohol, eating fattening foods and cheating on a spouse. Other negative consequences of too much time spent away on business that those surveyed found particularly striking were: -

heightened stress (with 75% of respondents citing this) failed relationship or marriage (70%) health problems (63%) rebellious children (54%)

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

overspending (54%) straying from an exercise routine (43%) going to bed late (42%) using illicit drugs (31%)

Furthermore, 85% of Americans feel that their work life impinges on their personal life, with the main distraction culprits being business emails and phone calls outside of work hours, greater employer demands in a poor economy, working overtime or on weekends and long hours in general. Denise Persson, ON24’s Chief Marketing Officer, said, “These

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85% of Americans feel that their work life impinges on their personal life results illustrate that Americans believe their work-life balance is out of whack, and that fuels their growing dislike for business travel, their resentment and their desire for control of their own lives and how they spend their time.” ON24 also gathered a number of accounts of incredibly bad experiences of business travel, and had respondents rank these events according to how outrageous they found them. The most outrageous stories involved checking into a hotel room and finding a large man, naked and asleep, on the bed; receiving an

unsolicited delivery of illicit drugs to your hotel room; and getting food poisoning from a food counter at an airport. While the survey only looked at attitudes about travelling for business, and only skims over what actually happens on these workvacations, it still holds merit as a barometer of an important workforce trend. Clearly, business travel is no picnic; it may be better to go on a proper vacation rather than leave town for work reasons. Apart from that, there are alternative solutions to the business travel problem. Individuals can attend events from the comfort of their own home or office via webcasting technology; this not only brings the probability of “bad behaviour” down to 0%, it also saves time and expensse, and reduces one’s carbon footprint. With employers still suffering from blows

dealt to their companies by the bad economy, one can safely say that fewer business trips are being taken these days than in years prior. And as the above findings show, this is probably a good thing.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

How the

Technological Revolution

is Changing Our Lives Written by Oxana Tsirelman, Online Editor photography : louis philippe design: eman faiz

Technological advancements affect almost every area of our lives today but what does the future have in store? The technological revolution has infiltrated virtually every realm of the world in just a few short years. Computers for instance became free; free bits, free communications, free content. But it doesn’t stop there. The possibilities are endless. The question is, “How will this technology be used?” Technology will always penetrate every realm of people’s lives, work, interactions and the ways in which they are entertained. In fact, some of the ways that technology infiltrates our lives is through “greater organization and simplification of the massive amounts of information; greater connection of consumers through social media; use of technology by large companies to create competitive advantage; and the launch (again) of Internet TV.”

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

But those are just a few overwhelming developments; there are more goodies to come! This year, a trillion free searches will be conducted, 200 billion minutes of free internet phone calls will be made by Skype and billions of video streams will cloud us! As much as this technological revolution presently affects us, they pale in comparison to what the future has in store for us. “About 1.5 billion people have Internet access, about 5 billion people don’t. There are 300 million people with broadband, but this represents only 20% of those with Internet access. Thus, only a small fraction of the world’s population is taking advantage of technology’s capabilities. Much growth potential remains” indicates Harvard Business School. Let me give you another concrete example of how our rapidly growing technology is leaking into our lives and psyche: the iPad.

“For starters, it’s my morning and mid-day news reader. It’s where I get my news, weather and market updates. Throughout the day, I get my emails through either my phone, iPad or PC – whichever is most convenient at the moment. Occasionally, I peruse through Word or PDF documents on the iPad. I find it better than going through the file on a PC sometimes. I’m not sure what it is… but I think it has something to do with the touch features for navigation, zoom, and page flips — which I don’t have on the PC (no the touch pad on my Macbook Pro still doesn’t quite cut it)” says addicted user Kahuna. What is it about technology that penetrates us to the point where we’ll always have its remnants in us? I’ll tell you: the limitless avenues of communication, the freedom from marginalization, the option of having faceless identities. Ladies and gentlemen, I can go on for hours listing.

But, with this kind of freedom comes responsibility. That’s why you can’t go in this being ignorant. Ignorance is a disease, it must be destroyed! The only way to annihilate ignorance is by employing knowledge and information. Without those two things, the consequences will be deadly. This is not only in relation to the fast emerging technologies, but it is a general rule of thumb. Apathy and ignorance destroys us all, and like it or not, we have to face the truth, no matter how much it hurts. It’s better to feel the pain now than to be sorry later, trust me, I know. We have to be aware of everything that’s going on in this world, especially if it has to do with technology. After all, we are citizens of planet Earth, and therefore it’s our responsibility to be aware of everything that’s happening, no matter how bad. So let’s face it now, together.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

WHY BLOGGING IS THE NEW BILLBOARD Branding as blogging; blogging as branding By Amy Ellen Soden, Staff Writer The idea of a blog in itself is a forward-thinking mode of communicating in today’s business landscape. With 70 million worldwide WordPress blogs, 69.4 million Tumblr users and 4 out every 5 Internet users visiting blogs during their web browsing sessions, it’s clear that the blogosphere is representative of a massive base for brands and consumers. If 36% of social media users post brand-related content and 99% of bloggers read other blogs, then there’s certainly a place for e-branding via blogging within the digital landscape as posters become readers and readers become posters. People who use social platforms tend to be engaged in others’ work and are keen to connect – a powerful insight for all businesses to remember. A blog really can become a brand or vice versa with elements of fluidity and flexibility changing the nature of business communications that used to be static and very much set in stone.

ILLUSTRATION: JULIE BARKUN

An Image Speaks a Thousand Words Think about it this way; Pinterest has earned a steady following and solidified its brand through an imagebased sharing platform, and yet its company blog is a marketing staple of their website. Sharing user stories, providing tips and tricks for personalizing their Pinterest experiences, and taking the time to interview creative professionals from all walks

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

of life are just a few of the ways that Pinterest has leveraged “the blog.” The company’s value statement on the blog homepage says it all: “Here you will find stories about the latest happenings at Pinterest, and how you’ve turned your inspirations and dreams into reality.” That story-telling touch is what sets the social network apart from competitors. Pinterest’s commitment to “bring[ing] you pinterviews with interesting people, information about new launches and pinteresting trends to help you discover the things you love” is extremely user-focused and actively persuasive. Even for a brand like Pinterest, a picture may speak a thousand words, and yet they still take the time to craft their blog as an effective branding and marketing tool. Writing the Brand Southwest Airlines, not unlike Pinterest, demonstrates how blogging is for all businesses, in any industry. So what do a picture-based social media platform and an American airline have in common? Their blogs rock -- plain and simple. Southwest imbued a handcrafted company blog with humor, wit and an easy tone that nobody could resist. People started talking about the blog, people started reading the blog, people started talking about Southwest Airlines, easy. The blog couldn’t be clearer about its stance on user engagement: “You are the ‘other half’ of this

blog, and our Team can’t wait to communicate with you, so get busy posting.” Their blog emphasizes employees’ commitment to always “try[ing] to Live the Southwest Way by displaying the Warrior Spirit, acting with a Servant’s Heart, and embracing a Fun-LUVing Attitude” that is mirrored across their blog posts and company brand. Southwest decided that their industry didn’t need to determine their brand or how they marketed it, and they’ve very much succeeded in breaking that barrier that so many businesses still face. Consumer Commerce to Brand Blogging The takeaways are simple: blogging has re-shaped what brands look like by inviting collaboration from the masses, and opened up a web 2.0 platform for advertising at no cost to the companies for those who often know best – the consumers. In the right hands, this conceptualization of brands and advertising could go a long way. The simple act of storytelling, whether it’s for a consumer brand, a tech company, or a not-for-profit, elicits a response that is as tangible as it is invaluable. So the blog is here to stay, and businesses can brand and re-brand indefinitely. The brands that have blogs understand the answer to one critical question that all business owners should ask themselves: Why not tell a story about what you do and ask your viewer how that story ends?

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careers. education. ideas. all of it.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Slavery: The Greatest

WRITTEN BY : CAITLIN MCKAY, STAFF WRITER

PHOTOGRAPHY : CALEB CHU

INSULT TO HUMANITY

DESIGN: KATHERINE CHU

Why there are still 27 million slaves in the world

Slavery is one of the greatest insults to human rights. It degrades the very essence of what it means to be a human being. A slave is often not considered to be a person, but merely a commodity. There are more slaves in the world now than there were at the height of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. A shocking statistic, considering the global society has established a standard of human rights that is theoretically universal. Human trafficking reveals a considerable lapse in human rights and the notion of equality. Victims of human trafﬁcking include some of the most vulnerable members of society. They are vulnerable because they are the most desperate.

“It’s often people who are desperate and who are looking for a promise of a better life... often these people are impoverished. Someone has capitalized on their eagerness or desperation,” says Petra Bosma, the communications coordinator for International Justice Mission (IJM) Canada. IJM works internationally to strengthen local law enforcement and prevent trafﬁcking. “Generally, slaves are distinguished by their vulnerability. A person can be made vulnerable by their gender, wealth, level of education, nationality, age, or other factors, depending on what country or society they are coming from,” says Karen Stauss, director of programs

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

“You sell drugs once but you can sell a person over and over. It’s horrible. So devastating and you can break a person to the point where they can’t escape so they resign to the fact that they will be sold over and over.”

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

at Free the Slaves, in an email. “Poverty is one of the most common factors ,among victims. To put it into perspective, a poor, underage female in a foreign city is incredibly vulnerable to trafﬁcking.” There are two main forms of slavery: forced labour and sex slavery. According to the United Nations, forced labour makes up 18 percent of the industry and sex slavery makes up 79 percent. Debt bondage is a common type of forced labour. It occurs when a victim needs a loan to pay off bills or buy food, and a slave owner lends them money in return for labour. In reality, victims are trapped. They will work for years and years but never be able to pay off the loan. Sex slavery is forced prostitution. Women, girls, and sometimes boys will be locked in brothels to serve customers with their bodies. Needless to say, the physical and psychological repercussions of being forced to have sex repeatedly is unimaginable. Slavery is not just ‘out there’ in some third world country. It is not someone else’s problem. Even in a developed nation like the United States, there are an estimated 10,000 slaves. According to Free the Slaves, there are 27 million slaves today; 27 million stories of desperation, abuse, and exploitation. The international scope of this issue makes it all the more challenging to combat. It is a war – and a big one – for humanity and for real equality. Every slave is a reminder that the human race has not entirely progressed beyond the barbaric slave trades of the 18th century. William

Wilberforce, the man responsible for abolishing the slave trade, would not look upon this world favourably. The problem is, trafficking is an incredibly profitable business. In fact, it is the third most profitable venture for organized crime. Interpol estimates that it generates $32 billion a year. Traffickers make those profits off of the desperation and poverty of others. “You sell drugs once but you can sell a person over and over. It’s horrible. So devastating and you can break a person to the point where they can’t escape, so they resign to the fact that they will be sold over and over,” says Bosma. Essentially, until a slave dies, they are an unlimited resource for their owner. “It’s all about money. [Traffickers] talk to each other and ...they get together and talk about how they want to make money. They teach each other techniques,” explains Joy Smith, M.P., who has been a champion of anti-trafficking legislation in Canada. “The technique is to get her away from her peers, get her away from the community. They want to isolate the victim.” The average age of a girl in Canada who will enter prostitution is between 12 and 14 years old. Smith says traffickers will target young, pretty, virgin girls to get the highest price. “Youth are easily manipulated and easily impressionable. They target the youth because they are beautiful and easy to control,” says Smith.

The number of convicted traffickers is increasing, but remains low. Thanks to new legislation in Canada, this $280,000 a year business has indeed shrunk, but lack of awareness is still a major obstacle to finding the solution. “It’s been going on for years and years,” says Smith, “it’s been under the public radar screen because I think people don’t recognize it for what it is.” Catching traffickers is difficult because they can move across borders while law officials cannot. But there is something that can be done. Education, awareness, cooperation and the enforcement of laws are all proven methods to reduce trafficking. “You can educate the communities who are being preyed upon by traffickers. Outreach programs, education and then robust law enforcement and a response… a law enforcement that is adequately resourced and trained to respond. It needs to be holistic, everyone needs to be involved in this,” explains Bosma. ”If [traffickers] find out their crimes won’t pay, the likelihood that they would be deterred is higher. It’s the enforcement of the law that should contribute to determent of the traffickers.” The very existence of slavery suggests that some people are more equal than others. Human rights should not be dependent on age, location or economic status. That’s why it is called The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But seeing as how slavery is still a reality, are these rights truly universal?

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

STUDENT CO.

How Students can affect the Labour market How to make yourself stand out and be noticed By Amy Ellen Soden, Staff Writer The unemployment rate in Canada remains steady at 7.3%, we’ve heard this stat repeated over and over again in 2012, but what’s interesting is the significance this single statistic has for the younger generation and student demographic of the Canadian population. 7.3% of our national population constitute avid job seekers, qualified applicants, and creative entrepreneurs… so why are 7.3% of us unemployed? One single percentage indicates how it has become increasingly important for students and young professionals to find new avenues to employment and career success given our current economic climate. It’s not enough anymore to fire off a few resumes and hope for the best. Combatting a saturated job market means smart, forward-thinking, and ingenuity-driven approaches to career success for even the best of the up-andcomers. “The bathtub analogy.” It is useful to understand the nature of the labour market in order to appreciate why unemployment rates seem to escalate quickly and decline so slowly. A recent MacLean’s article on the labour market recovery aptly describes how employment rates are determined by inflows and outflows: “hires represent the flows of workers employment, and separations are the

flows out of employment.” To put it simply, separations subtracted from hires determines our employment rate. The analogy of a bathtub filling up with water (new hires) while simultaneously emptying down a drain (released employees) is a useful staple for describing this process. If the bathtub keeps filling up with water but none is released down the drain, then there are no outflows and saturated inflows. This is what we’ve been seeing in the Canadian job market. The good news? Our unemployment rate is remaining fairly stable, job security expectancy is on the rise, and wage increases are expected in the coming fiscal year. The long story short is that we’re recovering and we’re recovering nicely. Heavy and wordy jargon – so what does it all mean? And why does this matter to Canadian students? It’s important to be aware of the environment that awaits students upon graduation. The labour market can take quick turns, which is why it has become a necessity to develop unique skill sets and to emphasize standout abilities. “Make your move.” Edmonton, Alberta currently has a 4.5% unemployment rate (the third lowest in Canada); Edmonton’s job market saw an increase of 3,500 jobs in July and August of this year alone. Booming

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

industries currently include fishing, forestry, oil & gas, mining, business, support services and health care. Edmonton is a close 3rd to Regina, Saskatchewan’s 4.2% and Kelowna, BC’s 4.1% unemployment rates, suggesting that similar industries are seeing job market success in those cities as well. So we’ve identified which cities have the lowest unemployment stats, and which industries seem to remain successful, but that’s just one way of looking at it. The point isn’t that Canadians don’t have to up and move to Edmonton to find a good job, or that students must relocate to the above cities out of necessity. It might be more useful to look at those stats from an optimistic perspective – noticing that there are opportunities for growth and improvement in the Canadian job market. If you want to live in Montreal, Toronto, or Calgary, it seems like opportunities abound there as well among some intense competition. It’s all about perspective and knowing what you have to offer. Two of the best ways for students and young professionals to endure the changing nature of such an economic climate are as follows: be awesome (find what makes you different and what it is you do well), and be flexible (be willing to move for work, seek out new and booming industries,

and expect the unexpected). Opportunities for growth and expansion abound if students seek out new modes of entering the job market – forming a creative roadmap for career entry may mean moving, it may mean examining new entry points to a chosen career via a different industry, or it may simply mean starting small and working towards something bigger. All the while, it remains critical to have a foundation of understanding relevant to labour markets, employment rates, and how those factors can affect us in the months and years to come. Stay current and stay confident – generation Y has a lot to offer the Canadian job market. Savvy students are breathing life into recovering cities both on the east coast and out west. It’s up to us to play a pivotal role in the changing face of the Canadian economic climate to the best of our ability.

STUDENT CO.

Earning a College Degree — Does it Matter? How far can it take you?

By Max Oser, Contributing Writer

Photography Shelbi Noble

In this tough economy, where jobs are becoming harder and harder to find, there is talk about whether or not it is worth it to earn a college degree. Many people wonder if going into debt for a degree, only to have a hard time finding employment and paying back student loans, is worth it. Is it?

applicant for a job had a degree. But, now that’s not always the case, which means that the degree on your resume can give you an edge over other applicants.

Earning your degree takes sacrifice. As a student, you’ll sacrifice time and money to enroll in classes. If you are already in the work force, you’ll likely face unique challenges while you earn your degree. You may have to work part time or you may be able to attend night classes after work. However, even in a tough economy all those sacrifices are worth it in the end. SET YOURSELF APART FROM THE COMPETITION Only a few years ago, almost every

Design Melissa Thanakone

Your degree and any other training and special qualifications you earn will help you stand out when an employer has several resumes to sift through. Earning your degree also means you are probably more qualified for a job. Employers like candidates that are ready to hit the ground running and won’t require extra training. Your degree will attract employers looking for candidates who have strong skills they can bring to the table right away. CAREER ADVANCEMENT Right now it may not seem like earning a degree will be extremely beneficial. However, a few years into your career,

when the economy picks up again your degree will do more than help you land a job. Never forget, people with degrees usually earn more money and are more likely to earn promotions. A degree can also help you change careers altogether. If you find that you don’t have a passion for your career, or just want to try something new, a degree can help you do it. Many people earn a degree in a broad area, and then create a niche career for themselves as they gain experience. Regardless of what you may think, earning your college degree is still a priceless opportunity. When you earn your degree, you are opening new doors that will help you land that first job and be successful throughout your entire career.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

STUDENT CO.

Don’t hold yourself back 21 Communication Mistakes

That Could Be Holding Your Career Back courtesy of onlinecollege.org

DESIGN: JULIANA SAUVÉ

Communication is an essential part of being human, helping us establish relationships, express needs and wants, and live together in society. In the modern world, it’s also an essential skill to hone to get ahead in the business world. While most of us can hold a conversation, present information, and get along with coworkers reasonably well, there are other finer points of communication that may just be influencing your success at work, sometimes without you even being aware that they’re doing it. The words you choose, the methods you choose to communicate, and when you choose to interact with others can all shape how your coworkers and your boss views you as an employee, and not always forthe better. Read on to learn about some common communication mistakes many make in the office, so you can avoid making them yourself in the future.

1 N ot asking for help when you need it Some people think that asking for help at work makes you look weak, or worse, incompetent. Yet none of us knows everything there is to know and everyone needs help from time to time with a project or a task, so there is no shame in admitting that you need a little guidance or support to get the job done. If you are given a project or assignment that you don’t know how to do, ask for resources, examples, or a firmer outline of what’s expected. That way, everyone is on the same page, you get help, and the end product is of a higher quality, helping everyone in the long run.

2 Avoiding

communicating expectations clearly

Whether you’re an executive, a

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manager, or just a team leader, one of the biggest and most harmful communication mistakes you can make is not communicating your expectations clearly to your employees. You may be trying not to come off as strict or inflexible, but you aren’t doing anyone any favors by being vague about what you want. Employees and coworkers cannot meet or exceed expectations when they don’t know what they are, so be clear, concise, and open about what you want. Others will respect you for it, and you’ll be more well-regarded in the office.

3 Hiding behind email Electronic communications provide a way to avoid face-to-face confrontation, but that’s rarely a good thing. When problems arise, little good can come of sending off an email to deal with them. It’s easy

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to misinterpret an email and the tone, and poor wording can often cause more problems than it solves. If you have an issue with someone or something, address it in person. Things are much more likely to be resolved, miscommunications will be minimized, and you’ll look like a much more straightforward person.

4 Taking too long to

get to the point

When it comes to business communications, whether meetings, emails, or reports, less is generally more. Beating around the bush or burying important information in lengthy expositions won’t win you any favor around the office. Focus on what’s most important, and leave out the rest. If people want more information, they’ll ask, and they’ll certainly appreciate not having their time wasted.

5 Not asking for

clarification

Not sure what you’re supposed to be doing? Instead of bumbling through the best you can to avoid being seen as incompetent, just ask. Not doing so just creates more work for everyone and makes you look much worse than if you’d just asked for clarification in the first place. As we’ve already discussed, not everyone is great about being clear with expectations, so sometimes the best route to success at work is just to cut to the chase and ask rather than waiting for instructions.

probably want to hear all the nitty gritty details of your progress, while a higher up will only want a brief overview of what you’ve accomplished. Cater your discussions to the highest level person in attendance, then add details as needed.

7 Using language that betrays uncertainty One of the biggest career killers is something that many people don’t even realize that they’re doing. Using phrases like “I think,” “I might,” or “I hope to” makes it sound like you’re not sure of your ability to get something done. Instead of hedging, be assertive by committing to getting something done by a date or in a certain way. It might be uncomfortable, but it makes you appear much more confident and able in your work. Just make sure you deliver more often than not.

8 Being unnecessarily

negative

It’s seen as cool to be negative or critical about things, but it can also grate on the nerves of your coworkers. Instead of making you sound smart or analytical (or even

cool), it just makes you appear negative and unsupportive. That isn’t to say you shouldn’t voice your concerns if you have them, but this kind of approach can get you labeled as being difficult to work with, and no one wants that. Instead of being a buzzkill, highlight what’s good about ideas and be constructive, not harsh, with your criticism.

9 Always agreeing with everything On the flipside, you don’t want to be too agreeable, either. In fact, it might be even worse than being overly negative to always throw yourself with enthusiasm behind every idea, project, or deadline, no matter how feasible it may or may not be. It’s great to be optimistic, but you also have to be realistic and balance positivity with honesty. If not, you could be signing on to projects that simply aren’t possible, damaging your credibility when you can’t deliver the results you promised.

10 Not watching your

body language

Sometimes your body speaks even when you aren’t and if you’re not

6 Not knowing your

audience

People you work with all hold different jobs with different levels of seniority. As a result, not everyone needs the same information at the same depth. When communicating to different groups, it’s essential to tailor your approach to the needs of that audience. For instance, those working closely with you on a project January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

STUDENT CO.

careful it can undermine your efforts to get ahead at work. In fact, researchers at the Kellogg School of Management and the Stanford Graduate School of Business found that having a powerful posture produces behavioral changes in both the individual and those around them. If you present yourself through nonverbal communication as someone who is in charge and confident, you’re much more likely to get ahead. Other body language keys to getting ahead? Eye contact, looking interested in what’s going on by standing up straight or leaning forward when seated, and using hand gestures and facial expressions to convey your point when speaking.

11 Forgetting to get

feedback

Communication is a two-way street, something that those in management and leadership positions sometimes forget. You may want to achieve a certain goal or work with a certain idea in mind, but if you fail to get feedback from others who are working on the project, you could be wasting time and money. Make sure that others know that you welcome and appreciate feedback, and use their expertise to improve the quality of your work. This kind of openness will earn you respect and it will also most likely get you better results.

13 Not keeping others

in the loop

While you don’t need to update others about everything you do (save that for at home on Facebook), you do need to ensure that those who are leading a project or working directly with you know what’s going on. If there are issues, shoot them an email. At the end of the week or the workday, send updates to your boss. Forgoing this essential element of office communication can leave everyone confused and may cause issues if things are done twice or not until the last minute or if problems aren’t addressed early on.

14 U sing questions instead of statements Unless you’re directly asking someone a question, don’t phrase your communications in the form of a question. It might sound obvious, but

12 Using too many

buzzwords

Even in a business environment where jargon is pretty common, using too many buzzwords can cause the meaning of what you’re trying to say to get lost as people try to figure out just what it is, in fact, that you’re saying. There’s no reason to make your discussions or presentations obtuse to all but the most in- theknow insiders in your industry. Keep things clear, concise, and without all the unnecessary babble that business buzzwords provide.

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many people looking for validation of their ideas or trying not to appear too pushy phrase them as questions rather than statements when presenting them to others. If you want to appear in control and capable, voice your concerns and thoughts as statements, not questions. Save questions for when you need more information about a topic.

15 Minimizing your efforts When someone compliments your work or tells you you did a great job, what is your response? It’s not uncommon for people, especially women, both inside and outside of the office to downplay their achievements, the effort they put into a project, or the pride they have in what they’ve accomplished. This isn’t the best way to get ahead at work, however. Instead of minimizing what you do, simply say you’re happy with how things turned out. Or just say thank you and move on.

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16 Apologizing when it isn’t necessary

18 Talking too much and listening too little

Sometimes things go wrong. Sometimes those mishaps are the results of your actions, directly or indirectly. Sometimes they’re not. If you find yourself ready to apologize for something, think for a minute if it’s really something that requires an apology and then decide whether it’s something that you personally need to apologize for. Instead, ask what you can do to keep a problem from happening again. You’re not only avoiding been seen as at fault for something that isn’t your fault, you’ll also been seen as proactive, confident, and responsible.

We’ve all met the kind of person who just goes on and on without letting anyone else get a word in edgewise. While most of us aren’t guilty of taking it to that extreme, you may still be talking too much, at least at work. It’s important to listen to the concerns, ideas, and input of others, whether you’re just working together or managing. If you’re always talking, there isn’t room for that. So make a concentrated effort to allow others to take over the conversation once in a while.

17 Forgetting to

proofread

In this day and age, it’s pretty darn easy to make sure that your written communications aren’t riddled with spelling and grammar errors, yet many neglect to take even the simple step of checking these before sending out an email or printing out a report. Business communications should always be proofread. Always. Important ones should be proofread more than once. It takes more time, yes, but it also prevents you from looking careless, incompetent, and uneducated.

19 Multitasking while communicating If you can’t be bothered to give someone your full attention, why should they do the same for you? Whether you’re writing an email, talking on the phone, or sitting in a meeting, it’s essential to give the speaker your full attention. It not only reduces communication mishaps, but also makes you look like a genuinely caring, interested party, which is often what clients, coworkers, and bosses like to see when they’re looking for promotable talent. Also, it’s just plain rude to split your attention when talking to someone.

20 Being afraid to

advocate for yourself

You can’t expect someone else to stick up for you in the office if you’re not willing to do it yourself. If you want to get ahead, you have to be willing to advocate for your own interests, strengths, abilities, and work. Many people find this nerve-wracking, but it’s a necessary part of getting ahead, getting paid what you deserve, and being respected in the office.

21 Using weak words Are you undermining your credibility in the language you choose to use in the office? You just might be if you are using what experts call “weak words.” This can mean saying that you “feel” or “think” something instead of “knowing” or that you “just” have something to say instead of that you have something to say. Don’t downplay your thoughts and abilities like that. Leave out the extraneous words and you’ll quickly give yourself the appearance of greater confidence in the office.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

FINANCE & ECONOMICS

INITIATIVES FOR STRUGGLING ENTREPRENEURS LOSING STEAM Micro-loan initiatives in Canadian community developemtns have a long way to grow

By Caitlin McLachlan, Staff Writer

Design by Sophie Qi

As an entrepreneur with a brilliant business plan, suppliers lined up and a dazzling marketing strategy, it should be easy to find an investor with that first few thousand dollars to get business going. Unfortunately, you’re an immigrant, a single mother or a youth in Toronto’s West end. You’ve also got no credit and no collateral. In a country standing on the precipice of another economic downturn large financial institutions won’t even consider you for the seed money you need. It is this scenario and many others like it that are the driving force behind Canadian social lending initiatives.

non-governmental organizations (NGO). Often these two sources work within a partnership to provide community development services. Qualifying for micro-credit with most organizations requires an appearance before a panel of investors, a solid business plan and a demonstration of need, skills and commitment. One example of a successful non-profit/ financial cooperative partnership is the Youth Micro-Loan Initiative.

Most micro-credit Initiatives in Canada focus on providing lowincome individuals, marginalized youth and immigrants with business training programs and seed money to start up a local venture. Many community-based lending programs partner with large organizations and community-based stakeholders to provide funding, resources and mentorship.

Qualifying for micro-credit with most organizations requires an appearance before a panel of investors, a solid business plan and a demonstration of need, skills and commitment.

Although Service Canada does provide some micro-lending programs through their subsidiary, Western Economic Diversification Canada, most sources of micro-credit are available through financial cooperatives and non-profit,

In 2010, the Toronto Community Foundation par tnered w ith Alterna Savings to implement a business training program aimed at marginalized youth. In a 2011

Fast Facts

2 Financial Cooperatives

Financial organizations owned by their members.

1 Non-governmental Organizations 3 Qualified Borrowers Although no legal definition in Canada, commonly known as a nonprofit group operating independently of the government.

Candidates for micro-lending programs who have appeared before a panel of investors with a solid business plan and a demonstration

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presentation given by Susan Henry and Jean Barrett of Alterna Savings, 61 per cent of participants in the organization’s microfinance programs have experienced “financial stability” and 33 per cent experienced “better nutrition.” Notably, these are two aspects of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada’s definition of financial security. However, since the success of its 6 graduates in 2011, there has been no mention of the Youth Micro-Loan Initiative becoming a fixed program. Social lending in North America has its roots in micro-credit and microfinance pioneered by Bangladeshi banker and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Muhammad Yunus. Yunus determined that micro-credit would alleviate poverty, empower women and create economic growth. Today, critics argue that the “neoliberal model of micro-financing” does little to address conditions that created poverty in the first place.

of need, skills and commitment to the program.

4 Micro-Credit

Small loans with low interest intended for use in small business ventures. It is awarded to people without credit or collateral, typically living at or below poverty levels.

THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT Over the last few years the world has seen dramatic changes in almost every sphere of life. This change seems to be revolutionary, and at its heart is a bunch of pissed-off people in the grips of a global economic meltdown. The Occupy Movement has been a vital part of the entire thing, giving a voice to the general discontent of many. But who is the Occupy Movement? Where did it come from? Where is it today?

Protestor Statistics and Demographics

AGE

{ 81.2% Latin

ETHNICITY

Caucasian

{

age 25 - 44

age < 24

44.5%

6.8% African-American

1.5%

Asian

2.8%

23.5%

}

GENDER college education

60%

Male

61% In terms of Independent personal politics

70%

Female

37.5%

Democrats

27.3%

Republican

2.5%

employed full-time

52%

Its Birth (a brief timeline): July 13

began on June 9, 2011 Adbusters registers domain name OccupyWallStreet.org

Adbusters calls for 20,000 protestors to gather on September 17

September 19 Roseanne Barr becomes first (of many) celebrities to endorse the

September 17 Some 1,000 protestors gather in downtown Manhattan.

September 20 “Police start arresting mask-wearing protesters, using an arcane law dating back to 1845 that bans masked gatherings unless part of "a masquerade party or like entertainment."

September 28 “Transport Workers Union Local 100 becomes the first big union to support Occupy Wall Street via a member vote.”

October 18 “Wave of protests spreads worldwide, from Europe to the Americas to Asia.”

October 1 “Mass arrests push the protests to the front page of newspapers and the top of TV news broadcasts. OWS-inspired protests start in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.”… October 3 “The protests have spreadnationwide, including Boston, Memphis, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Hawaii, and Portland, Maine.”

TRENDS

Return To

BLACK TUESDAY

Surviving the Great Depression WRITTEN BY: CHANTELLE WARK, STAFF WRITER PHOTOGRAPHY: DOROTHEA LANGE

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

DESIGN: MARK QUIMOYOG

TRENDS

The people of today are caught up in a world where we think only of the now, and mostly of ourselves. We gripe about the most menial of things, while forgetting about how fortunate we really are. Sure, the aftermath of the recession in 2008 is still taking its toll on Canada, but at least we still have a fighting chance at putting some well-earned money in the bank. Sometimes, we do what we must to make ourselves more marketable, and to gain that much needed experience that will allow us to move forward in our lives. Personally, volunteering and job placement agencies are the required routes at the moment. It may not be particularly preferable, but sometimes volunteering or temping is necessary.

In retrospect, the situations caused by the recession could have been much worse. Today, we’re surviving relatively easily. But 83 years ago, those living in Canada and the United States weren’t quite as fortunate.

The Beginning Who knew that the decade known as the Roaring Twenties would come to an abrupt halt on October 29, 1929? But during the ’20s, everyone from the wealthy to the average citizen was putting their money and faith in the stock market, which was producing stellar results at the time. According to the Canada History website, an investing opportunity known as “buying on margin” allowed investors to put down as little as 10

percent on a stock’s purchase. The buyer would have no need to worry about the remainder of the payment unless the stockbroker made a margin call. As prices and stocks were doing well, very few of these calls were made until autumn 1929. A swing throughout the stocks in September 1929 led to much nervousness and anxiety within the stock market world. Come October 24, on what would later be known as Black Thursday, the margin calls that had been few quickly became many. Brokers started to seek the remainders of their funds in order to cover their own positions, but the calls made were too many too late. The next week, Black Tuesday was born.

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TRENDS My great-grandmother Jean Lowden was barely sixteen-years-old when the stock markets came crashing down. A few months earlier, having finished high school, she had spent the summer of 1929 living in the United States with one of her sisters. Had her mother not insisted that she return home to Canada after the summer was over, GreatGram’s survival story could have been very different. Now 99-yearsold, her Great Depression experience educates more than any textbook or historian ever could.

No Place to Call Home Many people during the Depression were evicted from their homes because they couldn’t afford to pay their mortgages. In his piece “Unemployment and Relief in Ontario,” H. M. Cassidy reported, “Hundreds of men in Toronto had no place of abode, and slept out of doors.”Great-Gram’s mother didn’t have herself a steady home during the depression either. Instead, she would rotate taking up residence with each of her grown children.

In Unemployment and Relief in Ontario, H. M. Cassidy Hundreds of men in Toronto had no place of abode, and slept out of doors. Sitting down to speak with her, I learned just how fortunate my greatgrandmother had been, along with how grateful she was toward her boss. When asked how her family fared, with a shrug of the shoulders, she replied that they had managed. Her dad had been admitted into the Ontario Hospital due to health complications, while her mother worked any job she could get. As for Great-Gram, she was lucky enough to have a job where she worked four weeks on and two weeks off. ”There was two girls in the office, and so you did both jobs when you were working, and when you were off, the other girl did your job too,” she described. “You just worked harder.” As many of Canada’s citizens were pining for a means of bringing in a bit of money, Great-Gram was more than happy to work that little bit harder during the weeks her co- worker was off. PHOTOGRAPHY: DOROTHEA LANGE

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My great-grandmother was quite fortunate, though, as she had herself a place to reside. She used to board with her older sister, Vanessa, with whom she had been quite close. During the weeks Great-Gram had an income, Vanessa would charge a small rent. “The weeks I wasn’t working, she didn’t charge me,” recalled Great-Gram. “ Yes, I got help along the way.” Undoubtedly the money for board was welcomed. Although she probably doesn’t realize it, GreatGram did her share of, “helping along the way” as well. During the Great Depression, many people evicted from their homes took to living in empty railcars, along with makeshift shanties. The housing complaints people have today, such as a lack of space, size or preferable location, suddenly seem pretty petty in comparison to this.

A Bunch of Baloney My great- grandmother now resides in a retirement residence, so interacting with other residents is a regular occurrence for me. One of

TRENDS the other residents who is a friend of Great-Gram’s, Joan, was also a child of the Depression. As such, she had a distinct memory that she wanted to share. Joan had asked Great-Gram if she remembered getting blue coupons in the mail. Great-Gram, cursing her memory, said that she couldn’t remember. Joan went on to describe how families would receive blue coupons, or what we know as food stamps, for meat. She remembered waiting in lines that seemed to go on for miles on end, just to use your stamps to pick up some meat. Her father would always use the coupons to purchase baloney, since it was the cheapest, and therefore he could get more. “He’d always fry it,” said Joan of her father prepping meals of baloney. “I hated it that way the most.”

Nowadays, Joan refuses to eat baloney as she had more than her fill of it during the Depression. She claims she’ll only eat if now if it’s the kind with garlic. Even then, she would really have to really think about it.

The End of the Depression with the Beginning of the War… The argument has been made that the advent of the Second World War is what helped to bring about the end of the Great Depression. After all, men were needed to enlist in the military, while many women went to work in munitions factories, became nurses, or trained as home guards, should Canada need to be defended while the men were at war. People had an income again, something that had eluding residents for so long; however, the war also brought about more food rationing, along with pricing controls. Because of this, the question has sometimes

been raised of when the Great Depression truly came to an end. Although there is no right or wrong answer, my great-grandmother sides with the advent of Second World War theory: people were working steadily again, and that was the main thing. For her, that was enough.

Return to the Present The recent recession has certainly taken its toll on our nation, but Great-Gram’s Depression education has really helped to put things into perspective. Sure, finding steady work is proving difficult, especially with many of the available opportunities being far from preferable, but at least there are still potential jobs. We still have our homes, as well as the bulk of our dignity. Most important, though, we don’t have to live off baloney!

PHOTOGRAPHY: M.L. COHEN

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

TRENDS

UNMUZZLEDSCIENCE! Scientists Unite to Save the Experimental Lakes Area in Northern Ontario by : fernando arce

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

design: sophie qi

photography : dan campo

TRENDS A large group of scientists, students and concerned individuals congregated on October 24, 2012 to remove what they are calling a “muzzle” that Canada’s Conservative Government has forcibly tried to fit on them as if they were rabid, noisy beasts. It was a two-and-a-half-hour public event titled: Unmuzzled: the Urgent Need for the Vocal Aquatic Scientist in Today’s Political Climate in Canada – held in a small room on the 4th floor of the Ramsey Wright Building at the University of Toronto. The event revolved around the decision by Harper’s Conservative cronies to cut off federal funding to

the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA) and have it shut down by March 2013. This would – among many other serious repercussions – displace at least 17 federal scientists, all of whom “were told they’d lose their jobs if they alerted the media,” said Diane Orihel, PhD candidate at the University of Alberta and one of the organizers of the Coalition to Save ELA. From Harper’s point of view, however – under the guise of Fiscal Responsibility – the move will save the government an annual $2 million. But for 73% of Canadians, including 60% of conservative voters, the decision is considered irresponsible – to use some of the mildest terms I’ve heard.

Moreover, cutting funding to the ELA is only one more br ick the Conservatives have removed from the democratic tower Canadians have so proudly boasted. Among other programs that are either already closed or on their way down the crapper, are: The Marine Pollution Prevention Program; The Kluane Research Center; The Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL); and 48 out 62 Department of Fisheries and Oceans habitat offices which review and regulate industrial projects. They are also closing the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, which has produced over 30 0 0

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

TRENDS regulatory screenings under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act; industrial developments in Canada w ill no longer require these screenings. So far, at least 300 biologists have received “affected letters.” These changes have been brought about by the last two omnibus bills introduced by this government. The latest one — Bill C-38, which passed this last spring despite staunch opposition from political parties, private groups, NGOs and the general public — has gutted virtually all independent bodies of review and assessment. In other areas, it has change d the wording or made definitions vague and obscure. Laura Bowman, an attorney practicing environmental law at Iler Campbell LPP — “Ontario’s go-to Counsel for progressive organizations of all types and sizes” — explained one such instant in regards to the Fisheries Act. Dak de Kerckhove, a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto and the moderator at the event also helped clarify some of it through an e-mail a couple of days after. The act was introduced in the late 1860s and since then it has seen many amendments. One of these was Subsection 35 (1), which is the heavyweight in terms of aquatic law and therefore affects the ELA directly. Since 1986 — when the section was added — the Federal Regulatory Process has been looking for something called HADD on proposed projects’ environmental impact assessments — a “type of impact to fish habitat which requires a special permit to develop issued by the minister,” wrote Kerckhove. If the project was found to pose a “Harmful Alteration, Disruption or Destruction of fish habitat,” then the proponent would have to offer some sort of “compensation plan to replace the impacted habitat or devise a fur ther strateg y to avoid or effectively minimize the impacts” in

order to receive the permit. In other words, if the habitat or the fish were threatened with any contamination or disruption at all, compensation or replanning would be in place. Thanks to Bill C-38 — which it is important to remember was introduced as a Budget Bill — a “proponent only needs a permit if it can be demonstrated that the development will negatively impact a fishery” — i.e. cause “serious harm” to it, to quote the document itself. But “a fishery is hard to define,” continued Kerckhove. “And negative impacts to fisheries are extremely hard to predict. So there is a lot of wiggle room to argue in a court of law that no one can positively say that the development actually impacted anything.”

Harper has managed to “roll back environmental legislation about 50 years” “In order to be required to apply for a permit,” clarified Bowman, “there would need to be evidence of serious harm under the Act, which in my view would have to b e s omething catastrophic, like the collapse of one of the fisheries listed in [it].” A former scientist at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), Otto Langer, shared the outrage when he told the The Telegram in March of this year that “the lack of mention of ‘h a bit at’… a n d t h e n u m b e r o f subjective and ambiguous words inserted into this major amendment will make any enforcement of this new law very difficult.” Even Bowman, a successful attorney, shared with a scoff of disbelief that she had trouble understanding the new

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wording in the Act. Subsection 36 (3) was another example, which prohibits the dumping of deleterious substances in waterways. This too saw changes under Bill C-38. Under the former law it was nearly impossible to get approvals to dump anything outside of existing regulations allowing for pulp, paper and municipal sewage, explained Bowman in a telephone call a few days after the event. The new law gives the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Department — Keith Ashfield — the ability to exempt different waterways, which would mean that “you can’t be convicted for their pollution,” said Bowman. These are the types of “new tools” that Mr. Ashfield had referred to when he replied to an open letter sent by Nature Alberta’s President, Ted Hindmarch, who had addressed Mr. Harper regarding the amendments, and who had also referred to Mr. Ashfield. In his reply — which can be read here — Ashfield mentions that “the amended Fisheries Act will provide flexibility and establish new to ols to author ize dep osit s of deleterious substances.” Thus far, Bowman explained, the new version of the Fisheries Act does not require a scientific basis to exempt water ways “unless the Cabinet regulations add this requirement.” Dr. Ken Minns, a retired Research Scientist at Fisheries and Oceans Canada and another speaker at the event, opined that with both the omnibus bills (the former in 2009), Harper has managed to “roll back environmental legislation about 50 years.”

THE EXPERIMENTAL LAKES AREA The point of this event — and of the hundreds of Press Releases, Press Conferences and Interviews Orihel has given in the last five months since she

TRENDS found out the ELA was closing — is to bring attention to its importance. The Experimental Lakes Area is an outdoor ecosystem created in 1968 and located about 50 km east of Kenora, in northern Ontario, and it consists of 58 lakes ranging from one to 84 hectares in size. It is a one-of-akind system that has served scientists throughout the world, producing over 50 “whole-ecosystem-experiments” which, among other milestones, have provided insights regarding the effects of acid rain, mercur y pollution, gre enhouse gas fluxes from hydroelectric reservoirs and climate change; have helped develop policy both nationally and internationally to combat harmful algae blooms and improve regulations on air pollutants; and has been vital for research affecting drinkable water. It also operates a comprehensive meteorological station — a measurement site of Environment C a n a d a’s C a n a d i a n A i r a n d Precipitation Monitoring Network. In the Saveela.org website, it is stated that it has furthermore produced 735 peer-reviewed scientific articles, 126 graduate theses, 102 book chapters and synthesis papers, 185 data reports and several books. ELA scientists, moreover, “have been recipients of numerous international water awards, including the Stockholm Water Prize, the International Tyler Prize for Environmental Science and the Gerhard Herzberg Gold Medal for Science and Engineering.” And Harper wants to shut it all down to save $2 million annually — “pocket lint for the government,” said Orihel passionately as she rubbed her index finger and thumb together. For her, everything began on May 17th of this year, when she was made aware that the 17 federal scientists working at the ELA had received “affected letters” letting them know that their services were no longer required as the ELA’s work was no “longer aligned

with the DFO’s mandate.” The letters also contained instructions telling them that they “couldn’t communicate to the rest of the department or the media,” she stated. But Orihel’s immediate reaction was to make noise. She wrote her first Press Release and effectively launched herself into the on-going campaign. For the last five months she has become the “hub of information” for the rest of the scientists, because none of them can talk. Someone in the audience asked why the scientists weren’t speaking up anyway, since the ELA is so important. But things are not so white and black. As Dr. Minns explained, federal scientists — just as members of political parties — must initially swear an oath not to publicly contradict or go against Party lines. Many of these scientists are also the main bread-winners in their family, if not sole parents, so when the decision boils down to “speaking out” vs. losing their main source of income, things move into a hazy, grey area. But Orihel has been doing a bang-up job.

she has organized public events like the one on October 24th. In other words, she has been making a lot of noise and getting a lot of people to hear her…except for the Conservatives, who continue to shoot down all her propositions, including the one to transfer the ELA to Environment Canada. They suggest that the ELA be taken over by Universities instead. Dr. Norman Yan, Professor of Biology at York University, voiced the science community’s unequivocal response to that proposition when he said that “universities are simply not well positioned to take over the ELA,” being as under-resourced as they already are. Moreover, “ELA is public science,” said Orihel. “And it has to remain under government for it to be in the public’s best interest.” Indeed. Water, according to Dr. Yan, is paramount to Canadians. So much so, in fact, that apparently 45% — 55% of them are willing to pay more for it as long as it means that it is clean, he argued. He furthermore cited a 2009

Even Bowman, a successful attorney, shared with a scoff of disbelief that she had trouble understanding the new wording in the Act In the last five months she has collected dozens of support letters from various interest groups, NGOs, and individuals; her petitions, with over 25,000 signatures from regular citizens and heavy-hitters in science circles, have been tabled in Parliament over 50 times; she has produced so many press releases and conferences and interviews that there have been more than 400 articles written in the mass media about it, which continue to repor t that even 60 % of conservative voters oppose Harper’s decisions regarding the ELA; she has organized Breakfast Meetings with Opposition MPs to rile up support; and

Nanos Research chart that showed Canada halfway down the Environmental Impact Index — worse than all of Europe and almost hand in hand with Brazil and many other under-developed nations. “Canadians don’t want this,” said Dr. Yan. And “as a scientist, it’s embarrassing to be Canadian, because we know we’re not doing well.” Tony Mass, Freshwater Director at the World Wild-life Federation, also denounced the government’s move “away from a precautionary approach to a more reactive stance.” What else could the transferring of the authority

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

TRENDS of independent review and assessment bodies to the federal government be called other than reactionary? Today’s science, Mass feared, “stands to be relegated, at best, to one voice among many.”

The event began with someone posing the question of whether scientists are supposed to enroll in any type of advocacy or lobbying, or if they were to only stick to finding the facts…to going from A, to B, to C? Well, to begin, should the ELA close, the 17 scientists were told that they would be presented with “reasonable job offers” in other departments. Dr. Yan sarcastically recalled one of the offers proposed to a Freshwater Ecologist as a Meteorologist, and the room burst out in laughter. So certainly there is something very personal to advocate for — their jobs!

But by the end of the discussion it had become as evident as the g o v e r n m e n t ’s a t t a c k o n t h e environment that there was indeed something bigger to advocate for. By that point, Orihel had already warned us, before telling her story, that as a scientist she wasn’t used to speaking of feelings and believes and emotions; that she was used to looking for the facts only. Well the facts were laid out on the table, and the scientists decided that the only logical step was to remove the muzzle that the government continues to try to impose on them: to advocate for Facts, as it were.

Before campaigning Orihel knew nothing of Facebook, had never watched a video on Youtube, and had certainly never “tweeted.” By the time the Victoria’s Day long weekend was over — the weekend immediately

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following the terrible news on May 17th — she had already launched her Social Media Campaign. She then began to engage the traditional media; wrote open letters; petitioned the government; engaged opposition parties; and organized public events. Orihel will continue to make as much noise as she possibly can, aided by the team of thousands of Renegade Scientists around the world and Individuals that have too much to say to just bend over quietly. The event concluded in very high and hopeful spirits. “It’s about standing up for what is right,” Orihel beamed. “The point is to never give up!”

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careers. education. ideas. all of it.

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How M&A is Shaping the

Banking Industry

written by : alexandria chun , online editor

designer : summer zhang

In 1995, there were many banks operating in the United States, thirtyseven of which were well-known firms. By 2009, only four of the thirty-seven remained. Where did all those banks go? How did such an extensive network condense into just four institutions? Through the power of mergers and acquisitions. If you look at the major banks on Wall Street and Bay Street – Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, RBC, CIBC — a majority of them developed as a result of mergers and acquisitions. As their smaller predecessors clumped together, they integrated their pools of resources and products to form some of the most powerful financial institutions we see today. So what is mergers and acquisitions, or M&A? As the name suggests, it’s the business of combining companies. Although the purpose of both these

processes is to join two entities, they do have slightly different procedures. An acquisition involves the purchase of most, if not all, of a target company. The acquirer owns all the old shares of its target. A merger, on the other hand, is when both companies surrender their stock, and issue a new one under the name of the new company. A true “merger of equals” is not common, however, since acquirers often seek to buy companies smaller than themselves. If a company wants an existing product or service, they might find acquiring another company easier and more cost-effective than expanding its own. For example, it’s a lot faster and cheaper for you to go out and buy a light bulb than try to make one yourself (unless you already have all the tools and know-how to make light bulbs).

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

M&A deals are also made in different directions. Let’s say you own a lemonade stand. A horizontal merger could be made between you and another lemonade stand down the street. You could merge with a lemonade stand in a different neighborhood to extend your market reach, or you could merge with a vendor who makes iced tea to extend your product line. If you were to buy the lemon farm that supplies your lemons, you would be making a vertical merger, where a company acquires its supplier. Your lemonade business could also buy an unrelated business, such as a hat-maker. This is called a conglomeration. Motives for deal-making range from practical to trivial. RBC improved its presence in Ontario and Manitoba by acquiring Traders Bank and Northern Grown Bank. BMO increased its service line by purchasing RBC’s

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photography : shelbi noble

credit and debit processing systems. To take advantage of a failing bank, JPMorgan Chase acquired Bear Stearns at a low price. These are all good, practical reasons. Other motives include: an increased market share, synergy, increased buying power, hiring new talent, and reducing tax liabilities. Ultimately, all these motives are based on increasing shareholder value, and in turn, increasing revenue. Occasionally, mergers are doomed by poor intentions. A company might hastily acquire other companies to create a monopoly, or a CEO might pursue unsound M&A deals simply because it will give them a nicer bonus. The resulting deals are often not well executed, and cost more resources than they procure. Synergy is a very important concept in M&A. Apart from just being a cool

word, it encompasses all the benefits of merging with another company. If done properly, a deal can increase cost efficienc y by reducing overlapping staff or departments, increasing purchasing power, and acquiring new technology. Synergy is a goal of successful deal-making.

enough. And if Company A approaches Company B with too low of an offer, it might create hostility. A deal can also fail after the merger with post-integration problems such as conflicting corporate culture, technological differences, and brand dilution.

So if Company A wants to acquire Company B, they must first look at the pros and cons of the deal. Pros, a s m e ntio n e d ab ove, in clu d e di ve r s if i c at i o n, g e o g r a p hi c al extension, larger market share, access to different technologies, reduction of financial risk, and the added incentive of a potential rise in value.

It’s also a good idea to check the target’s books for misleading assets. Companies must avoid the mistake Bank of America made when they acquired Merrill Lynch. They had saved the failing firm only to find larger-than-expected losses on Merrill’s balance sheet. Executing thorough due diligence lets you know exactly what you’re buying.

Cons can be found by valuation. Company A must evaluate how much they think Company B is worth. The deal can fail before it even starts if Company A doesn’t understand their target’s business and operations well

Once the target is valued, the deal proceeds in stages. The first stage is buying the target’s stock. The acquirer can purchase up to 5 percent of the target’s stock before they must declare their intentions to the

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

TRENDS Securities and Exchange Commission. Now that the acquirer has a substantial stake in its target, they can make an initial offer called the tender offer. Now the ball is in the target’s court. At this stage of the deal, they can do a few things, depending how they feel about the offer. If they approve, the deal can go forward. If they don’t approve, they can try to negotiate a better offer, issue new shares, or find another buyer. By issuing new shares to all existing shareholders (expect the acquirer) at a discount price, the target reduces, or dilutes, the acquirer’s position in their company. Deals also have to be run past regulators to check if the new company will create a monopoly situation and diminish competition. These scenarios have a great impact o n m a r ke t d i v e r s it y, a n d a r e particularly disadvantageous to consumers because competition leads to better consumer deals. Regulation turned out to be especially important after the financial crisis of 2008. Deals throughout the 1990s and early 2000s gave rise to giant financial institutions that were deemed “too big to fail.” In 2008, banks like Bank of America and Citigroup had to be bailed out by the US government because t h e i r fai l u r e w o u l d h av e h a d widespread economic consequences. Canada did not have these problems thanks partly to the government’s rejection of large bank mergers. In 1998, Bank of Montreal and TD were set to merge with RBC and CIBC, respectively. Paul Martin, the Finance Minister at the time, disallowed this because, among other reasons, it would have drastically reduced competition between Canadian banks and flexibility for customers. Since 2008, M&A in the financial sector has declined substantially in volume and value because big deals aren’t happening like they used to. PwC

reports that deal volume in the banking sector has decreased by 24 percent between 2010 and 2011. Many factors contribute to this decline, including stricter regulations, the European Sovereign debt crisis, and volatility in the markets. So where does banking M&A look like it’s heading in the next few years? That depends on which banks you’re looking at. Reports by both Merrill DataSite and Deloitte suggest that M&A activity is going to increase in small and mid-size institutions as they try to keep up with rising regulatory requirements. At

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA January 2013

their current size, smaller banks do not have enough capital to viably deal with increased operational costs and capital requirements. The reports also indicate that these increases, along with improved credit quality, will greatly encourage deal-making amongst smaller banks. M&A activity between larger banks, on the other hand, is expected to decrease. Gordon Nixon, CEO of RBC, s t ate d t hat b e c au s e of s t r ic t requirements on reserve capital, the massive deals between banks that predate the financial crisis of 2008 are in the past. Big banks are now looking

TRENDS capital requirements and regular stress tests to help prevent a financial crisis similar to the one in 2008. Lehon and Mizra believe that “[t]his has made banks think strategically about how they manage liquidity pools and which businesses are core versus non-core f r o m a c a p i t a l a n d li q u i d i t y perspective.” Another key factor in the slowdown of banking M&A activity is the European Sovereign debt crisis. A PwC report found that European banks are b e g i n ni n g t o d i v e s t n o n - co r e businesses in order to recapitalize and generate enough cash to help sustain themselves during the debt crisis. Although actual European M&A activity is unlikely to add to deal volumes, divestitures will create opportunities for acquisitions by other firms.

photography : tal gertin

for ways to “fill in some of the holes that [the banks] have in some of [their] global platforms.” In fact, RBC is in the process of expanding its global wealth management business, which has been one of its ”holes.” “That may sound less exciting than what you might have seen from 2000 to 2008, where you saw much bolder and more aggressive transactions,” said Mr. Nixon, “but clearly in today’s environment that’s not going to be something I think you’re going to see in the future.” Indeed, others agree with Mr. Nixon’s

outlook regarding the effect of regulations. Ivan Lehon and Omar Mizra at Ernest and Young Capital Advisors point out that the Dodd-Frank Act and Basel III are two regulations with the most influence on M&A activity in the United States. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, signed in 2010, aims to end “too big to fail” situations and protect taxpayers’ money from being used for bailouts. Basel III is part three of a global regulatory standard on banks set by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. This regulation includes

A third factor, volatility, is playing an interesting role in M&A activity. The volatility of the global markets is creating opportunities, even in such an unsteady time. A report by Amer ican Appraisal found that although high profile deals are being rejected to due uncertain economic conditions, these uncertain conditions may create other opportunities for smaller M&A deals. Large companies are beginning to divest their non-core businesses and streamline in response to market volatility, increasing the availability of high-quality targets at reasonable costs. That said, volatility is also preventing deals from closing due to lack of investor confidence. So it could have a dual effect on M&A activity. Although this article focuses on the banking sector, M&A happens across all industries. It’s a major component of business that helps drive growth and increase efficiency. Although today’s global economic conditions are not suitable for the level of M&A activ ity seen in the past, new opportunities are still constantly emerging — and it’s up to deal-makers to find them.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.CA

INTERNATIONAL TRENDS AFFAIRS

WARRIOR UP: Thousands Protest Northern Gateway Pipeline in Victoria written by: megan gartrell

photography: megan kamocki

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013

design: lily li

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS TRENDS

The Northern Gateway pipeline project is no stranger to controversy, and on October 22, 2012 thousands of protestors gathered on the lawn of Victoria B.C.’s legislative building to send a clear message to Prime Minister Stephen Harper and B.C. Premier Christy Clark: “Our coast is not for sale.” Greenpeace International co-founder, Rex Weyler informed me via email, “I was pleased [with the turnout.]” “The crowd was flowing in and out all day, so it is difficult to estimate numbers, but it seemed to me, at its peak, about 4000,” he said. “The ferry from Vancouver had to cut off foot-passengers. Even more impressive were both the diversity of the crowd and the coalition of First Nations, unions, environmental groups, and general public. The event felt like a great wave of public interest to protect the B.C. marine environments and our coastal economies.” Despite chill winds and rain there was an undeniably positive energy. Raised high were banners proclaiming: “There is no Planet B,” and “People speak louder than money.” Amongst

the pulse of native drums, many faces had the eerie appearance of weeping oil after being painted with black tears. During the First Nations procession march, men and women donned in traditional regalia carried a massive paper salmon of red and green mounted on sticks up the stairs of Parliament and pressed the salmon’s mouth to the doors. Many Canadians believe this is a tipping point – a moment in history when the public has the responsibility and opportunity to re-envision the world. Chief Karen Ogen of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation, one of many to step up to the microphone, said, “this decision over whether the pipeline is built will be made by the will of the people.” The rally was organized by the Defend our Coast coalition, which is made up of various environmental groups and First Nations communities. In attendance were representatives from the Wilderness Committee, Tanker Free BC, Greenpeace International, and Forest Ethics; Chiefs from Coastal First Nations; and unions such as the Communications, Energy and Paperworks Union of Canada; CUPE; and the BC Teachers Federation.

The day began with many prominent speakers and performers and the crowd responded in unison: “We are with you.” During his moving speech, Chief Rueben George of the Tsleil Waututh First Nation said: It is apparent from the size of this crowd that we are winning. When we come together our spirits collide and we become stronger. We cannot put a price on our air, our water, and our land. We say no. We want to make a difference for our children and our children’s children. The owners of Enbridge and Kinder Morgan are too blind by greed to see, so we are going to do it for their children too. Be a pebble thrown in the pond and ripple out our message. Chief Martin Louie of the Nadleh Whut’en First Nation said, “We are not selling our future for any amount of money. It’s time to warrior up.” Many of the protestors attended training the Sunday prior to the protest in anticipation of civil disobedience that could result in arrest. The first wave of action was a visual message

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM

INTERNATIONAL TRENDS AFFAIRS to Harper and Clark. Protestors willing to risk arrest pounded into the ground a 235-metre long black cloth banner. The length represented how long an oil tanker is and the colour symbolic of death and oil. The banner stretched across the lawn and blockaded Wharf Street. But despite the fact it is illegal to drive anything into the Parliament lawn, no arrests were made. But that does not mean protestors are not prepared to “warrior up.” Weyler explained: We’ll go all the way, to arrests, blockades, and beyond. The only concession in the battle to save our coast, save the Earth from global heating, and restore ecological balance would be to initiate a national energy policy that provides a transition from our current fossil fuel economy and resource plunder economy to a renewable energy and resource preservation economy. We have been asking for this dialogue for decades. Environmentalists say the government must move away from carbon fuels and focus on clean energy. The Northern Gateway Pipeline As Enbridge’s website explains, The Northern Gateway Pipeline is a proposal to construct twin petroleum pipelines along the 1,170 kilometres between Brudenheim (located just north of the city of Edmonton) and Kitimat, B.C. One pipeline would carry 525,000 barrels per day of Alberta tar sands crude oil to a new oil tanker port at Kitimat. The other would carry condensate – a lighter petroleum product used to dilute bitumen –for use in transporting the tar sands crude oil. Opponents of the project fear the environmental impact of a pipeline leak or the damage to the coastline from a tanker spill. For most of the protestors at the rally it is not a

question of if there will be a spill but when. One of the issues raised was the route. If constructed, the Northern Gateway pipeline must cross the rugged, mountainous terrain of the Northern Rockies and the Coastal Mountains of B.C. Metal pipelines age and corrode over time, making them susceptible to ruptures. Pipelines are at risk of breakage due to natural events such as landslides or rockslides both of which pose dangers in this proposed route. Another issue regarding the proposed route is the some 1,000 streams and rivers the pipeline would cross, including the sensitive salmonspawning habitat in the upper Fraser, Skeena, and Kitimat watersheds. It would also cross the territories of more than 50 First Nations groups. Defend our Coast’s website currently states that the Northern Gateway Pipeline is opposed by nine of the Coastal First Nations as well as many of the island First Nations along the pipeline route. In March 2010, the Coastal First Nations signed the Fraser River Declaration stating that, “tar sands oil will not be allowed to transit our traditional lands and waters.” A Joint Review Panel (J.R.P.) led by the National Energy Board and Canadian Environmental Agency will review Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway Project. The J.R.P. is a quasijudicial process that will involve hearings in communities along the pipeline route and on the B.C. coast. The three panel members – Sheila Leggett, Hans Matthews and Kenneth Bateman – have until the end of the year to complete a report. When asked if he felt the panel fairly represents the needs of the First Nations communities, Weyler answered: No. The system is designed and operated to bias the decisions in favor of industry. The tar sands itself

ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COM January 2013Summer 2012

may be the most destructive single industrial enterprise in the history of human civilization, and the carbon alone in the tar sands, if exploited and released, will send Earth’s atmosphere into runaway global heating, so a fair environmental review would not remotely approve the pipelines that will allow this crisis to unfold. Clearly the First Nations have not been fairly heard, since both the Yinka Dene Alliance, Coastal First Nations, and individual First Nations – totaling some 161 Nations – have signed or supported the Fraser River Declaration. This alone should end the discussion. The First Nations have clearly spoken as a unified voice. Benefits to B.C. As their website states, Enbridge’s reasons for the pipeline are to facilitate access to new markets for Canadian tar sands oil. Currently, the majority of tar sands oil is shipped south to U.S. markets. Enbridge explains 3,000 jobs will be created for B.C. during the construction phase as well as 60 long-term employment opportunities. The project, according to Enbridge, will create a lasting legacy of local investment, tax revenue, and jobs for the North, over and above the tremendous benefits created by access to new and growing markets for Canadian natural resources. Enbridge is also offering Aboriginal people a 10% share in a $5.5 billion dollar project. That is about $280 million in net income over the next 30 years. Enbridge maintains the $6 billion pipeline will bring in $81 billion in revenue over three decades. But Enbridge has not been oblivious to the response of the public. In a recent Vancouver Sun article, Enbridge explained it plans to launch a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign in British Columbia in response to the stiff opposition.

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“You are going to see a much higher visibility for Enbridge over the next few days. In newspapers, in television and online,” said Paul Stanway, manager of Northern Gateway communications for Enbridge. “It’s become quite apparent that the debate has become a province-wide issue.” The ad campaign’s purpose is to direct people to the project’s website, www.northerngateway.ca, where the company has posted information and blogs on topics from economic benefits to environmental safeguards. The campaign is to begin this week with full-page ads in major B.C. daily newspapers and 30-second television ads with the slogan: “It’s more than a pipeline. It’s a path to our future.” Enbridge Rally Not Yet Out of Fuel If anything the increase of media coverage for both sides, those for and against the Northern Gateway pipeline project and the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion project, will give citizens the opportunity to learn more. For those wanting to aid the province and coast fight pipeline expansion, Weyler has some advice:

First off: inform one’s self. Learn about the impact of carbon in the atmosphere and oceans. Learn about the frequency and devastation of oil spills in all pipelines and oil ports. Learn about renewable energy. Secondly: practice conservation. Buy less stuff, use less energy, and learn to live better lives by living more simply. Also, support the groups who are fighting this battle every day: The Wilderness Committee, Tanker Free BC, Greenpeace, and others. Support the First Nations. And finally, speak out in one’s own community, in newspapers, on radio, in public meetings, in schools. Let one’s voice be heard. The protest in Victoria is not the final chapter for the Defend our Coast coalition. Organizers hope this will help gain the momentum needed to force politicians and rule-makers to listen. They are vowing to keep up the pressure until the pipeline plans are scrapped. The next step was another day of action on Wednesday October 24, 2012. More than 60 anti-pipeline demonstrations at MLA’s headquarters of both the Liberal and NDP parties have thus far taken place across the

province. And a group of more than 100 marched from UBC to Christy Clark’s West Point Grey constituency office. Along with the desire to stop Enbridge from building the proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline was the cry to stop the doubling of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline, which stretches 1,150 kilometres between Edmonton and terminals in the Vancouver area and Washington State. It carries heavy and light crude oil, as well as refined products such as gasoline and diesel. The day of action was widespread: from Kelowna to Kamloops to Fort St. James and Bella Bella, British Columbians came out in droves to remind their politicians who they are elected to represent. Back in Victoria, the banner has been taken down and the Legislative building’s front lawn picturesqueness has resumed. But if anything has resonated from the day of action, it is the people’s collective voice as well as the fact that the Northern Gateway pipeline project and other pipeline expansions are not issues Canadians are willing to stay quiet over.

January 2013 ARBITRAGEMAGAZINE.COMs

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