Review
News // Events // Student Life
COVER PHOTO
See Labyrinth, pg. 5
FALLING WHISTLES See Whistles, pg. 6
NEW DESIGN DEPARTMENT See Design, pg. 8
Vol. 28 #5 10.22.12
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ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION Sustainability Week comes early, with events all week
Nick Markman • AS Review This week, students will have the opportunity to participate in a series of events geared towards learning about what they can do to work towards a greener future. Several environmental groups at Western are collaborating to put on Sustainability Week, which will feature a different sustainability themed event each day. Nina Olivier, the Associated Students Environmental and Sustainability Programs associate director, said the primary emphasis of the week is education. “We’re not trying to make everyone ride their bike or things like that, but we’d like to educate them about what if they actually did.” In the past, Sustainability Week has taken place at the end of the year, but this year it will take place from Oct. 22-25. “We’re doing it at the start, so students can start thinking about sustainable practices and the environment right off the bat,” Olivier said. The week will feature five different events and will kick off on Monday with “Parking Day,” a sustainability info fair. The info fair will take place from 12-4 p.m., in the C-Parking Lot if weather permits, or in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room if it rains. Olivier said the emphasis is to get students thinking about the environmental implications of driving cars that goes beyond the carbon dioxide they emit. “We also have to reflect on with cars, comes the need for spaces for them,” Olivier said. “I’ve been to Targets and Wal-Marts and their parking lot is two times or three times the size of the actual store.” The goal is to transform the C-Lot into an open park featuring decorations provided by the AS Outback Farm, info-tables and possibly live acoustic music. Olivier said the point is to consider the allocation of land, and think about what Western could use the C-Lot for if it didn’t need the parking spaces. The Office of Sustainability, Western’s Wildlife Conservation Club, Students for Sustainable Water, the AS Environmental Center, the Recycle Center, Students for Sustainable Food and Students for Renewable Energy all plan to have tables at
MONDAY
Parking Day and Info Fair 12-4 p.m. in the C-parking lot or Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room, in case of rain.
the info fair. On Tuesday, Oct. 23, there will be a showing of the film “Fixing the Future, Building Local Jobs, Income & Sustainability”. Seth Vidana, Western’s Campus Sustainability Manager, said the film “highlights Bellingham as a leader in producing a local living economy.” The movie will air in VU 525 at 4 p.m. and will be followed by a discussion. Wednesday will feature two events; the Local Foods Farm to Table Lunch and a keynote broadcast entitled “Preparing Students for a Changing Climate.” Olivier said the lunch will feature food from local farmers and businesses and is the event she is most excited for. “I love that day because, to be honest I think eating is our number one connection to nature,” she said. “It’s what everyone has in common, whether you like the environment or not, you got to eat right?” The lunch will be in the Viking Commons from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and students can either use their meal plans or pay for admission into the dining hall. The broadcast will be in VU 567 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and Vidana said it will be focused on “preparing students for a changing climate.” “It will run the gamut from jobs to education to all sorts of areas,” he said. Thursday, Oct. 25 will feature the week’s biggest event, Western’s 2nd Annual Sustainability Awards. The event is aimed at recognizing different members of the Western community who have made an outstanding effort working towards sustainability. “We’re so pleased that so many different facets of Western that are working on sustainability in their own way,” Vidana said. “We’ve got submissions that have to do with individuals that have taken it upon themselves to go the extra mile in adopting sustainability behaviors, academic teams that are researching sustainable technologies, student groups that are active in encouraging the student community to be engaged in sustainability issues and some specific academic programs as well.” The event will also offer students an opportunity
TUESDAY
Film-Showing VU 525 4 p.m. Showing: “Fixing the Future, Building Local Jobs, Income & Sustainability”
to hear from keynote speaker Alison Gannett, Outside Magazine’s “Green All-Star of the Year.” In a unique and undeniably sustainable twist, Gannett will deliver her keynote speech via Skype. “It goes towards what we’re for,” Olivier explained. “She’s all the way in New York right now and rather than expending all that carbon and fuel to get her clear across the country, we’re going to have her Skype-in.” The Sustainability Awards will take place in the VU MPR from 4-6 p.m., and Vidana said it’s the event he’s most looking forward to. “My hope is that people will attend everything, but we really want people to come see Alison speak and see their fellow students, staff and faculty be recognized for the good work that they’ve done,” he said. Whether they go to every event or just one, Olivier encouraged students to take part in the week’s festivities. “Each event has something for students to really touch on and that’s what I love about this year’s Sustainability Week,” Olivier said. “It doesn’t matter if you miss one or the other, as long as you go to one event there will be a take-home message for something you can do when you get home yourself.” Both Vidana and Olivier stressed that long after the week is over, students can still get involved in working towards a more sustainable campus. Olivier says one of the most important ways students can help out is with their buying power. “Rather than resorting to big-box companies, looking into your local stores here in Bellingham,” she said. She also encouraged students to look into alternative transportation and join one of the many on-campus clubs devoted to sustainability. “Though we face some complex challenges, there are multiple ways for students to do something about those challenges,” Vidana said. “Whether it’s in class, whether it’s what they buy on campus, how they transport themselves to campus, or what they do in their student clubs. There are choices to be made at really every point of the road.”
WEDNESDAY
Local Foods to Farm & Keynote Lunch table will be in the Viking Commons 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., $7-8. Keynote in VU 567 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
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THURSDAY
Sustainability Awards Second annual awards will include a keynote speaker, Alison Gannett. In Viking Union MPR.
October 22, 2012 • 11
EVENTS CALENDAR Monday, Oct. 22
Wednesday, Oct. 24
p. 8
Friday, Oct. 26
Environmental and Sustainablity Film When: 6-8 p.m. p. 10 Where: Fraser Hall
Busted: A Student Guide To Legal Rights When: 7 p.m. Where: AW 204 Price: Free
Tuesday, Oct. 23 Swing Dancing Class Where: YMCA When: 7:30-9 p.m. Price: $59
Price: Free
Costume Ball p. 2 When: 9 p.m. Where: VU Multi-Purpose Room Price: $3-4
Thursday, Oct. 25
Saturday, Oct. 27 Rock Climbing: Vantage, Wash. When: Oct. 27-28 Where: Vanage, Wash. Price: $105
Snowboard Movie Premiere: “Too” Where: Wild Buffalo When: 9 p.m. Price: $5
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Music
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For more events and info. go to as.wwu.edu/events
Monday Oct. 22
Tuesday Oct. 23
Wednesday Oct. 24
Urarider, Lord Dog, Bright Weapons
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Karaoke w/ Amy G
The Listers, The Reds, Tople$$, King of Crows
Meet My Shadow, Thegn, Old Mutt, Ali’s Band
Con Bro Chill, Wishbone $5-7
Acor Project, My Dad Bruce $12-15
Scary Monster & The Super Creeps
Cadence Weapon, Chance Random
$7
$6
Oct. 25
Oct. 26
Oct. 27
Sunday Oct. 28
Fly Moon Royalty, Side Pony
Underground Coffeehouse Wild Buffalo
The Shakedown
Halloween Themed Car Show When: 10 a.m to 2 p.m. Where: Hardware Sales Parking Lot Price: Free
Photo by Cade Schmidt // AS Review Illustration by Spencer Pederson
Cabin Tavern
Glow
Sunday, Oct. 28
Delusion’l Tom Waits $3
Sonido Acuario $4
The Blessed Coast $3
The ‘Wait... What? Comedy Show
Retroid Night
MF Doom night w/ DJ Aaron Apple
Keaton Collective, Black Tommy, The Hoot Hoots
Revenge of the 90’s
Buxton, Chamberlin, Pawnbroker
$5
Boundary Bay Brewery Green Frog
Chrisopher Nunn and The Movie, Jon Dee and the Hobarts
Soul Night w/ DJ Yogoman
Stacey Earle and Lonesome Shack, Mark Stuart Lonebird
Ganges River Band
Curtis Eller’s American Circus
Open Mic Night
12 • as.wwu.edu/asreview
COFFEE, COFFEE, COFEEE
A delicious look at Bellingham’s top coffee houses Lauren Prater • AS Review
Craving a fresh cup of Bellingham’s finest coffee? Or have a sweet tooth for a sugary donut? Although there are an eclectic amount of coffee shops scattered around the beautiful city of Bellingham, there are a few that deserve to be highlighted. I traveled into the heart of downtown Bellingham to visit these three coffee shops myself, and this is what I found. At each of the three locations I enjoyed a cup of one of their unique creations. All I can say is that at the end of my journey my taste buds were jumping for joy in all different directions.
The Black Drop
Avellino
Rocket Donuts
Imagine this, you walk into a coffee shop and you hear one of your favorite songs playing in the distance, you sit down on a soft, welcoming light blue sofa and enjoy a steaming cup of your favorite coffee. As you look around, your eyes are met with beautiful glass vases, mugs and colorful artwork. This is what you will find at The Black Drop. The Black Drop is a homey, funky, place with a welcoming atmosphere. Starting off as a quiet little coffee shop, The Black Drop has grown into the unique, authentic coffee shop that it is today. This individually owned coffee experience is sure to brighten your day. “This will be beautiful,” said the barista as he handed me a steaming cup. Although the name itself is very unique, the taste that met my taste buds on the warm layer of foam was incredible. The Level 10 Fireball is a warm blend of coffee with chipotle powder, resulting in a warm, yet sensational taste. As I finished off the cup of coffee, my mouth was met with an unexpected heat followed by a surprisingly sweet taste; my mouth and tummy were left warm and happy.
If you’re looking for a fun yet classy location, try Avellino. Avellino has been at its current location on Railroad Avenue for almost 15 years, and it’s definitely worthy of being a Bellingham favorite. The owners believe that a coffee shop is the perfect place for an art gallery; therefore, Avellino has become an avid supporter of the local art scene. Avellino is more of a traditional coffee shop with free wi-fi and daily newspapers. The cafe also provides many gluten-free options for those who want to enjoy a special treat. The company believes they are sporting a fair price for an above average product and experience. A caramel, chocolate rush is the only way to describe the creamy deliciousness that I sipped on. With little flakes of chocolate blanketing the creamy foam at the top of the mug, I knew I was in for a treat. It tasted like I had just bitten into a small chocolaty piece of candy, and my taste buds were at a loss for words. The coffee taste was almost non-existent because of how sweet and creamy it was, which I like better. You could tell the cup was hand-crafted to perfection.
Lastly, downtown Bellingham’s Rocket Donuts provides a fun environment to drink coffee and eat tasty donuts. As you walk into the fun-filled cafe, you are greeted with energetic baristas and artful movie memorabilia. The walls of this colorful cafe are covered in everything from movie posters to colorful artwork and even authentic monsters bulging out of the walls. Along with handmade donuts, cinnamon rolls, muffins and quiche, Rocket Donuts is famous for their organic, fair-trade espresso and brewed coffee. They offer gluten-free and vegan donuts, as well. I was handed a cream colored ceramic mug filled to the brim with a thick layer of foam and an artistic drizzle of caramel to decorate the top. As I smelled the warm steam, I was immediately reminded of fall. Hints of pumpkin and caramel spice warmed my nose. After taking a hearty sip, sweet spices and eggnog offered a sweet treat. The last few sips at the bottom of the cup is where all of the flavor is; as I tilt my head back and finish off the last of the drink, my taste buds do cartwheels and handstands.
300 W Champion St. Level 10 Fireball 12oz, $4.46
Pictured: Hot-Mulled Cider, 8oz, $1.63
1329 Railroad Ave. Cafe Rolo Carmel Mocha 8oz, $3.33
Pictured: Cafe Rolo Carmel Mocha, 8 oz
306 W Holly St. Pumpkin Cheesecake Latte 8oz, $2.39
Pictured: Maple-Bacon Baiz and an americano
2 • as.wwu.edu/asreview
The promotional artwork for the AS Women’s Center’s literature and arts journal, Labyrinth, which is currently accepting submissions. Photo by Jake Robertson & Cade Schmidt// AS Review
review
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©2012. Published most Mondays during the school year by the Associated Students of Western Washington University. We are a student-produced, alternative campus weekly covering news and events that are of interest to the Western community. We support all programs, offices and clubs affiliated with the AS. We have a direct connection to the AS board of directors, and although we report on board actions objectively, our relationship should be made clear. Submissions: We welcome reader submissions, including news articles, literary pieces, photography, artwork or anything else physically printable. Email submissions, or send them to the mailing address above. They will be returned as long as you include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Letters: We also welcome letters to the editor. Please limit your letter to 300 words and include your name and phone number. Published letters may have minor edits made to their length or grammar, if necessary. Calendar/Ads: We don’t sell ad space. Sorry. Email as.review@ wwu.edu to have an event listed in the calendar.
NEWS
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‘TIS THE SEASON Election Rundown covers another hot topic: national security
EVENTS
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SUSTAINABILITY This week is filled with events for Environmental & Sustainability week
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NEW DEPARTMENT Design program breaks into its own department
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STUDENT LIFE
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CONCERT RECAP Photos from the Head and the Heart, who played on Oct. 12
FEATURES
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WHISTLES & WAR Western Senior’s internship led her to advocate for peace in the Congo
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BUSTED! Student rights are explained at an event by the Legal Information Center
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SUBMISSIONS Labyrinth, the Women’s Center’s annual publication, looks for student work
EVENTS CALENDAR See what’s happening around Bellingham this week
RESTORATION CLASS Huxley offers a class in Ecological Restoration
COFFEE ADDICTION AS Review looks for the best coffee in Bellingham
THIRD ANNUAL COSTUME BALL
Staff Editor in Chief Assistant Editor Lead Photographer Designer Writers
Megan Thompson Spencer Pederson Cade Schmidt Bradley O’Neal Nick Markman Lauren Prater Lauren Simmons Kylie Wade Todd Wells
Adviser Jeff Bates
Kylie Wade • AS Review
The Associated Students Disability Outreach Center and the AS Social Issues Resource Center are teaming up to host the 3rd Annual Costume Ball. The event is on Friday, Oct. 26 from 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room. Tickets are $3 for Western students and $4 for general admission and are available in advance at the PAC Box Office. Catherine Jorgensen, the Coordinator of the DOC, has attended the event for the past two years, but this year is enjoying her role in organizing the dance. “I’m excited to see students have that first experience of going to the Costume Ball,” Jorgensen said. “I remember very fondly my freshman year going to the dance.” The dance will be catered by University Dining Services and will feature Audio Innovations as the DJ. Costumes are encouraged, but not required. Jorgensen said she believes the dance offers a fun and safe way to celebrate Halloween, especially for underclassmen. “It’s particularly open to freshman because it’s on campus, it’s cheap and they can have their friends from
other schools come,” Jorgensen said. Because the dance is hosted by the DOC, Jorgensen said she is making sure it as accessible as possible. “An important aspect to this dance is that we’re mindful of being very inclusive,” Jorgensen explained. “We’ve talked with the DJ about putting a speaker on the ground to make sure that you can feel the vibrations.” The dance is also tied to an event hosted by the Social Issues Resource Center and the AS Women’s Center called Cultural Appropriation,Exotification, and Sexualize Violence during Halloween, which will be held in Vendor’s Row from 12-4 p.m. on Oct. 24-26. “It’s talking about what kind of costumes you are putting on your body and what they represent” Jorgensen said. “We definitely want to incorporate that with the Costume Ball, just making sure you’re representing yourself well in the costume that you’re choosing.” Jorgensen encouraged anyone interested in volunteering to help decorate for the dance to contact the DOC at AS.disability@wwu.edu.
October 22, 2012 • 3
THE HEAD AND THE HEART
Photos by Cade Schmidt // AS Review
Associated Students Productions Pop Music kicked-off the year with the Head and the Heart, who played on Oct. 12 to a sold-out crowd in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room. Bryan John Appleby and Curtains for You opened; the Head and the Heart’s second show at Western.
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ELECTION RUNDOWN This week: National Security
Lauren Simmons • AS Review The President of the United States, also known as the commander-in-chief, commands and directs the military, and is responsible for military strategy, according to Federalist No. 69, an essay in the Federalist Papers. The United States has about 700 military bases around the world, costing about $100 billion a year to maintaining them all. With the world’s strongest military, the United States has its hands in many different parts of the world for reasons ranging from combat, to peacekeeping, to patrolling, says Evan Fowler, the president of Western’s American Campaign Transparency. Of the roughly two million troops, there are one million abroad and one million at home. In the November, whoever is elected president will be responsible for America’s troops home and abroad, and both President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have different approaches to national security. There are two main purposes for troops abroad: peacekeeping and patrolling the sea lanes, Fowler said. “Generally van owler speaking, we don’t just invade a country,” Fowler explained. “Iraq was kind of an exception, [but] normally we have compelling reasons to be involved. For example – Afghanistan – of the 100,000 NATO troops, around 68,000 are American and the remaining 32,000…are European, so in Afghanistan, we’re in that together.” Afghanistan is the only place where America has active-duty forces, aside from covert matters, Fowler said. The Middle East has a very long and very thick history, said Jered McCardle, associate director for the Associated Students’ Representation and Engagement Programs. That area is the only place in the world that connects three different continents and stands in the middle of so many trade routes. It is always where people have come either for resources or diplomatic reasons, thus The Middle East is always where conflict starts, McCardle said. With that said, even with our presence in The Middle East, we are not at war, McCardle said. The only entity that can declare war is Congress; we have not been at war since 1945. What is happening in The Middle East is a conflict, McCardle said. Under the Obama administration, the military has not been used as a primary tool of national and international matters. With past administrations like the George
Compared to European Parliamentary candidates, prime ministers or industrialized head-of-state, Obama and Romney are crazy war-hawks. They’re ‘finger-on-the-trigger’ ready to go at anytime.
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W. Bush administration, the president was much more “trigger happy,” Fowler said. With the primary difference between those administrations, it can be inferred that the military is not President Obama’s biggest fan; the military tends to like Republicans, Fowler said. Romney’s believes we should more engaged in Syria, where there is a civil war going on with the death tolls being around for 30,000, Fowler said. He also wants to escalate America’s presence in Asia. One of the key points of Romney’s ideas for international relations and security is to increase military spending by $2 trillion over the next ten years – that is the equivalent of about two China military budgets. “Over the last ten years, if you were to combine all of our military spending and then we just stop – completely stop – and if China were to maintain their current expenditures, but never go above that, it would take China 100 years to catch up with us,” Fowler noted. But is all this spending necessary? The answer is complicated. There is a lot of weight on either side of the debate, Fowler said. If one were to add up the rest of the world’s spending – combining them all – it would equal America’s; this ideal is what one side of the debate claims, asking “Is this all necessary?” Then there is the other side proposing “What if we didn’t?” What would happen if our military budget was cut in half, and what would the geo-political scene look like now? The obvious answer is no, Fowler said. America would not have as much authority around the world if it were not for our military. All in all, the answer to this debate can be interpreted as creating a balancing act between fiscal responsibility and austerity. For example, instead of building another tank, maybe we could build a bridge, Fowler said. Even though President Obama and Romney represent different parties and have different views on matters of the military, their traits as American president and presidential nominee hold a commonality. “Between Obama and Romney, both of them, compared to European Parliamentary candidates, prime ministers or industrialized head-of-state, Obama and Romney are crazy war-hawks,” Fowler explained. “They’re ‘finger-on-the-trigger’ ready to go at anytime. That’s a characteristic of American politics for the last 60 years, ever since World War II.”
October 22, 2012 • 5
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Designed by Jake Robertson Photo by Cade Schmidt
LABYRINTH 2013: BODIES IN MOTION Lauren Simmons • AS Review
“It’s our feminist journal,” said Kristy Hathaway, cokordinator for the Associated Students Women’s Center in -regards to Labyrinth, a yearly publication published by dthe Women’s Center. s Labyrinth, comprised of student submissions, is -launched in February, and the AS Women’s Center is ,looking for submissions of art work, stories, memoirs, dphotos and any other kind of publishable expression that will convey this year’s theme and the overall mission -statement of the journal. This year’s theme for Labyrinth is “Bodies in Motion: Identity Expression to Perpetuate Momentum.” Chosen by Anna Ulmer, creative programming director for the -AS Women’s Center and editor of this year’s issue of -Labyrinth, which is a continuation of last year’s theme, -“Beyond the Body,” Hathaway said. e Active since the 1970s, Labyrinth was started as a journal for women and by women, Ulmer said. The publication originally focused on empowerment and provided an opportunity for expression. But now, in 2012, the theme of the journal, which is different every year,
has evolved into not just focusing on the empowerment and expression of women, but to ultimately explore the intersections of identity, Ulmer said. The interweaving of race, gender and sexuality stand as a newer part of Labyrinth that has widened the number of Western students able to contribute. “I definitely feel like it has become more inclusive,” Hathaway added. “It’s not just about women or females – anyone can submit to it.” Anyone can submit to the publication and any gender-identity can speak on any gender-identity issue, Ulmer explained. The magazine always tries to find an interesting balance of incorporating new view points, while remaining respectful to the initial reasons why the publication came to be decades ago. “We’re trying to help Labyrinth grow, instead of trying to change Labyrinth,” Ulmer said. Aside from the opportunity to share a perspective, opinion or personal experience in Labyrinth, students should submit work to be published because the journal celebrates creativity and allows others to see the talents
of their peers. If someone is not an art student or do not write a lot, but do it a hobby, submitting something is a way to get involved and try something new, Hathaway said. With that said, this year Ulmer has offered two deadlines for submissions. The first deadline, December 14, is a primary deadline for feedback. People who take advantage of this deadline will be able to receive feedback from Ulmer, as well as use her as a resource to help develop their pieces. This deadline is suggested to new submitters and those who may not be as confident in their submission, Ulmer said. The final deadline is Jan. 1 for all submissions. All submissions will be emailed to: AS.WC.Creative. Programming@wwu.edu. If interested in submitting artwork, the following needs to be included in the email: name of piece, dimensions of the piece, a brief artist statement about how their piece relates to the theme and the medium of the piece. The only stipulation for artwork is that it needs to be able to fit in the Viking Union Gallery, Ulmer said.
6 • as.wwu.edu/asreview
WHISTLES FOR PEACE IN THE CONGO Senior Ashley Hogrebe’s internship with Falling Whistles creates passion for peace, justice
October 22, 2012 • 7
Kylie Wade • AS Review
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hat does the world’s deadliest war look like? It is not fought from control rooms and it does not involve missiles or nuclear warheads. It is fought by child soldiers, abducted from their homes and forced to the frontlines of battle. They are not armed with tanks, guns or even knives. No, in the deadliest war in the world, the youngest and weakest soldiers are sent to the frontlines to die – armed only with a whistle. This is the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The International Rescue Committee estimates that since 1998, almost 6 million people died in a brutal war for control over resources. In 2011, the American Journal of Public Health found that every hour in the war-torn Congo, 48 women are raped. More than 1.8 million people are displaced, ripped away from their farms and their lives. Why? A battle for commodities specifically the minerals tin, tantalum and tungsten, which are all critical components of consumer electronics. Some people hear about situations like the one in the Congo and feel defeated. Others, like Western senior Ashley Hogrebe, feel a driving sense of motivation to work towards change. After graduating high school, Hogrebe chose not to go immediately to college, but to spend some time working for a cause she was passionate about. After some searching, she landed at Falling Whistles, an organization dedicated to bringing peace to the Congo. Falling Whistles was founded by Sean Carasso, who stumbled across the situation in the Congo while volunteering with TOMS Shoes and was instantly moved to work towards stopping the atrocities he discovered there and healing the devastated region. Hogrebe explained that while in the Congo, Carasso encountered a group of former child soldiers that were incarcerated as prisoners of war. The boys told Carasso about the war they had been fighting in and explained that children who were too small to carry a gun were sent to the frontlines of battle armed with only whistles, tasked with drawing out the enemy and acting as a human blockade once they were shot down. “Sean obviously was freaking out with this information,” Hogrebe said. Hogrebe said Carasso immediately began to call friends and family, and push the United Nations for support. His efforts got the boys released from the war camp, but he was not content to stop there. “He learned that he was in the midst of the world’s deadliest war and that it’s mostly over conflict minerals and the things that are going into our laptops and cell phones,” Hogrebe explained. Hogrebe said Carasso returned to Los Angeles with a mission of spreading the word. “He was just screaming at people at parties, like getting on top of tables and yelling ‘kids are dying, kids are dying, we’ve gotta do something about this!’ His friend, Marcus, bought a vintage whistle off of eBay and put it on his neck and said, ‘you know, remember why you’re fighting and keep those boys alive in your heart.’ When he wore the whistle he didn’t have to yell anymore because people would ask, ‘Why are you wearing the whistle? What is that thing?’ He got a chance to elevate conversation. And that’s how Falling Whistles was born.” The goals of the organization are two-fold. First, they want to raise awareness about the issue, create a consumer base that will speak up and demand that their cell phones and computers are not made using minerals that come from the Congo. “We are directly affecting this war and indirectly funding it,” Hogrebe said. “Those minerals are going into our laptops and our cell phones and therefore we are connected to this in some way. I definitely think when there’s enough demand for something, change is possible, we just have to speak up.” The organization’s other goal is to provide immediate relief by funding programs in the Congo that are striving to help the people affected by the war. “We believe that the answers for the problems in Congo are not going to come
“FIND SOMETHING
they’re going to come from the pictured an intern as someone whose people who have known the war primary role is to get coffee. Instead, and felt the war. So we partner Carasso immersed her into helping with Congolese visionaries.” run the organization. Falling Whistles helps to fund “It’s amazing how much respect programs including independent I was given as an intern,” she said. radio stations, children’s rehabilita“Sean would sit there and say ‘Ashtion centers and women’s vocaley, what do you think? What is your tional centers. opinion on this?’ I’m like ‘are you To afford both it’s educaasking me right now? I am not fit to tional outreach programs and the answer these questions.’” programs in the Congo, Falling She said she rose to his challenges Whistles sells whistles online and however, developing a shipping in retail stores across the world. system and volunteer program for the “We sell our whistles to stores organization. She also began to feel that then become our partners in like she had found a community that peace,” said Laura Schmalstieg, she truly belonged in. head of retail for Falling Whistles. “When I got there I realized that “We expect these stores to really those are the kind of people that I use their space as a hub to educate want to be surrounded by for the rest their customers and let them know of my life,” Hogrebe said. “Those are what’s going on in Congo and rethe kind of people that are innovative ally stand shoulder-to-shoulder to and they’re not afraid to do everyus in solidarity to end this deadliest thing and fail and then try again and if war of our time.” you fail then we’re going to try again. Today, the organization has It was really great to be a part of that.” grown into a formidable band of Conflicted between her passion people fighting for peace. Schmalfor Falling Whistles and a desire to get stieg said there is a coalition of over a college degree, Hogrebe took some 55,000 people that wear a whistle time off to attend a school in Utah. everyday. However, she said she couldn’t stay But Hogrebe’s involvement away and shortly after she left, she rewith the organization began back turned to Falling Whistles to serve as when Falling Whistles was just the intern coordinator and recruiter. getting started, and it began with a That was when Carasso threw the whirlwind. biggest challenge yet at her. “I applied on a whim and then Schmalstieg, who was an intern two weeks later I was on a plane under Hogrebe at the time, said she to Los Angeles. It was crazy,” she remembers Hogrebe getting excited said. “Sean took us in and was like when she heard Falling Whistles was ‘this is what we do.’ Hearing the planning a nationwide tour. story straight from Sean’s mouth is “Ashley loves lists, it’s her favorjust an experience entirely of itself. ite thing,” Schmalstieg said. “So she Then they do this thing called the went up to Sean and say, ‘This is what ‘impossible task’. I had never been we should do for tour, like a, b, c, d, to Los Angeles before and we were e.’ And he would say, ‘Great, go do right in the dirty arts district. We them.’ She said, ‘Sean, I’m 19. I have Senior Ashley Hogrebe wears her whistle from her internship with Falling Whistles. were in this weird warehouse filled no clue what I’m doing.’ And he goes, Photo by Cade Schmidt // AS Review with all these random musicians ‘Well, that’s fine. I believe in you and I and there were rat infestations. They were like ‘Alright, we just moved in and we need know you can do this. So run with it.’” you guys to re-vamp the space. You have a day and $50 to do it.’” Hogrebe smiles recounting the memory. “Sean gave me the keys to an R.V. as a Hogrebe and other interns got on bikes and rode through downtown Los Angeles, 19-year-old girl and said ‘Go run a tour.’ I still can’t believe that happened.” trying to figure out how to make it happen. In an R.V. named Harvey, Hogrebe and five other Falling Whistles staff members “That’s something that is one of Falling Whistles core values, default to action,” travelled to 33 cities in two and a half months, speaking to colleges, high schools, Hogrebe explained. “You just don’t think, you just go and create.” churches, retail stores and anyone else who would listen.
that makes you feel
ALIVE” - Ashley Hogrebe
doing’ to this full-blown leader that took charge and allowed us to have an incredibly successful tour for Falling Whistles for peace in Congo,” Schmalstieg said. The tour’s goal was education, to spread awareness and get people talking. “We spoke all over,” Hogrebe said. “Nothing was off-limits for us. We’d be at a church in Nashville and then a week later we’d be at a nightclub with strippers in New Jersey. Because the message of peace truly is universal. Anyone really can get behind it. I was amazed when these go-go dancers at the top of this bar would be like, ‘We believe in you guys so much, like we’re so excited.’” After almost three months on the road, Hogrebe wrapped up her tour and began to contemplate what would come next for her. She made the decision to go to college and pursue her degree, and arrived at Western to major in journalism. However, she said she still tries to keep updated on Falling Whistles and she proudly wears her whistle around Bellingham. “When you wear a whistle, people ask you about it all the time,” Hogrebe said. “Is it a rape whistle, is it a dog whistle, do you put your weed in there? Its like, ‘No, but let me tell you about it.’ It gives you this avenue to speak up about something because not everyone is like Sean and will get on a table screaming about peace in Congo. I’m definitely not. But when someone asks me about it, I’m like, ‘Yes, I can finally talk about it.’” Hogrebe said she still feels passionate about working for peace in Congo and plans on returning to similar work once she is finished with school. “I’m definitely interested in being in that kind of environment, like the very innovative, social entrepreneurship, all of that,” she explained. “I don’t know if it’ll be with Falling Whistles again but, I don’t know, I love the road so much that if they ever needed a body to go on the road, I’d go in a heartbeat.” Hogrebe said it’s been difficult to adjust to college life after being so deeply involved in something so different from the university atmosphere. “It’s hard to go from being surrounded by innovators and people who believe you can change the world to coming back to school and just like seeing people so immersed in college life, like what parties you’re going to go to and all those things. It’s hard,” she said. Schmalstieg said she admires Hogrebe for making the decision to attend college. “Once you’ve seen a lot of those things, the last thing you want to do almost is be put back in a classroom,” Schmalstieg said. “It’s just really neat to watch her grow even more through this process and come back to school fully prepared to know exactly what she wants to do and what she wants to get out of an experience like college. I just think people should take her as a role model.” Hogrebe says she can’t help but want to tell people about Falling Whistles and everything she has learned from being involved with the organization. “I want to shake it into every single person that there is so much outside of college,” Hogrebe said. For students who want to help with Falling Whistles’ cause in some way, Hogrebe says the first step is education. She recommends the book “King Leopold’s Ghost” by Adam Hochschild for a better understanding of what is happening in the Congo. Students can also go to FallingWhistles.com or The Enough Project to learn more. “Strive to be an educated advocate,” Hogrebe said. “Read about Congo. Buy a whistle because the money goes to our programs on the ground and helps people.” Beyond that, she encourages students to get involved in whatever matters most to them. “Find your passion. Find your Falling Whistles. My passion is Congo and peace in Congo, but its definitely okay if that’s not someone else’s. I’m not saying that you must demand peace in Congo, if you feel strongly about something then you should go out and make noise and make your voice heard, whether its peace in Congo, saving puppies or whatever it is. Find something that makes you feel alive.”
8 • as.wwu.edu/asreview
BUSTED!
Associated Legal Information Center educates students on their rights Nick Markman • AS Review Looking in your rear-view mirror or out the window at a friend’s party, you see the flashing red and blue lights of a police car. Shortly after, there is an assertive knocking at the front door, a flashlight or high beams shining brightly in your face, and the iconic uniform and badge of an officer with a not-so-happy look on their face. Anyone familiar with this scene knows how intimidating and scary an encounter with the police can be, but what they might not know are the legal rights they are entitled to and can assert during such situations. The Associated Students Legal Information Center will host “Busted: A Student Guide to Legal Rights” on Monday, Oct. 22nd from 7–9 p.m. in Academic West 204. The event is free for all students. Two Bellingham attorneys will facilitate a 30-minute presentation regarding commonly overlooked legal rights and provide students with the information needed to assert them. The remainder of the event will consist of a question and answer period. Attorney Sean McKee will present at the event and said he hopes to provide a general overview on certain legal rights that are applicable to students including
those associated with DUIs, MIPs and possession of marijuana. “It’s not my goal to tell people how to break the law, but if they’re faced with this kind of thing, it’s confusing and I think it would be good to know what the possible consequences are,” McKee said. McKee said that one of the biggest mistakes students make during police encounters is not exercising the right to remain silent. He said that people can always choose not to answer a police officer’s questions, and that doing so usually makes it easier on all parties if a case goes to trial and ensures that an individual doesn’t incriminate themselves. “People don’t understand how to exercise the right to remain silent,” McKee said. “A lot of times when faced with questions they don’t want to answer, people will lie. Lying to an officer is a new crime.” Not only is lying to an officer a crime, McKee said, it is a false statement charge, which is an impeachable offense in court. This mean that during trial, in which your criminal history is usually kept out, impeachable offenses such as theft, false statement and forgery charges
are allowed to be used against you. The Legal Information Center Coordinator, Rachel Cochran said that while this event will teach students on how to best avoid negative legal situation, there is a large emphasis on respecting police. “If you’re respectful, the cop can come to court and say that you were really good. If you are disrespectful, they’re going to have no interest in acting in your interest,” Cochran said. “It’s just really important to respect the police. They have a really dangerous and unsafe job.” McKee said that most criminal trials are settled in pre-trial processes through negotiations with the prosecuting attorney, who works hand-in-hand with the police. If you are rude and disrespectful to an officer, he said, it will paint a negative picture in court and the chances of getting a good deal are greatly diminished. “It may not help you hugely, but being rude to an officer is definitely going to hurt,” McKee said. “There are ways to do everything that you want to do politely, respectfully and you can absolutely assert all your rights without having to curse at anybody or make it an ugly situation.”
DID YOU KNOW ? IF YOU ARE under the legal limit for
21
convicted of posession of MARIJUANA
alcohol to operate
a motor vehicle is .02
A DUI you have a valid prescription
for a year
for taking many types of prescription medication
your financial aid
UNDER 18 will suspend your drivers license
Physical Control
a form of DUI in which you are not driving,
charged with
YOU can lose a conviction of an MIP
Designed by Bradley O’Neal
YOU CAN BE
for medical marijuana even if
as prescribed by your doctor EVEN IF YOU BLOW UNDER THE LEGAL LIMIT OF .08
but are intoxicated inside of a vehicle in
which you have control over.
OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE
for interfering with a police officer’s work. A police officer can get a search warrant in under
5MINUTES the phone
OVER
Portable Breathalyzer, the YOU the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus or
CAN “eye test,” and the Voluntary Field
REFUSE
Sobriety Tests if you are suspected of DUI.
This info was compiled from McKee Law Firm, PLLC and Mytrafficman.net’s brochure “A Student’s Guide to Legal Rights” and through an interview with Sean McKee.
October 22, 2012 • 9
REDESIGNING DESIGN
Program seperates from the Department of Art Nick Markman • AS Review In 1965, Western Washington University’s Department of Technology was granted $490,000 from the Ford Foundation to establish a Visual Communication Education program, known today as the Design program. Since then, the program has undergone many transformations, merging with the Department of Art in 1993 and establishing its own major. On Friday, Oct 12th the Board of Trustees approved the program’s application to become its own department. The Department of Design Chair Elsi Vassdal-Ellis said that the Design program had been discussing the possibility of department status for over six years. Up until the Board declared Design its own department, the program was housed within the Department of Fine arts. “Design is not a fine art; it’s not a performing art. It comes out of an art background, but it’s a professional program,” Vassdal-Ellis said. “There are greater needs for design professionals that are separate and distinct from the fine arts studio.” The Department of Design has reconstructed its curriculum as well as the degrees offered. Current seniors of the Design program were required to undergo a portfo-
lio review process during their junior year; that separated them into one of three concentrations: graphic design, production design or new media. The new department is doing away with those concentrations to provide a more integrated educational experience. The department offers two, revamped degrees in design. Students can either pursue a 62-credit Bachelor of Arts degree with a required minor, or a 115-credit Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Vassdal-Ellis said that although the department eliminated the three concentrations, the new curriculum provides students an additional course in both graphic design and new media. Both degrees require taking courses in graphic design, visual communication, typography and digital media design. “In reality, they’re short one class if you’re to look at having a specialization and that’s where the minor comes in,” Vassdal-Ellis said. “It allows them to tailor some of their experiences that they’re more interested in by completing a minor.” Senior graphic design major Lacey Nagel said that she is excited about the recent change to the Department of Design because it will create a necessary identity separation between art and design.
“Art is really an expression of what the artist wants to do. It’s just kind of what makes the artist happy and their style. With design, you have a client and they have a very specific need so you always have to change things from your original ideas,” Nagel said. “We’re not here to make things pretty, we’re here to make things work.” Vassdal-Ellis said that while the design minor is currently only available to art majors, she hopes that through hiring more full-time faculty, the department can open its doors to non-majors wishing to minor. She said that in the future, the department would like to move its entrance portfolio requirement until after the completion of the 200-level foundations courses so that those applicants who were not admitted to the major would still receive a minor in design. “I think one of the biggest things that students have to accept is this profession continually changes. It’s driven by current fads and trends,” Vassdal-Ellis said. “There will always be something called good design, but if you’re not willing to embrace the changes in technology, the changes in social norms that would affect the kind of work that you do, then you ought to find something else pretty quick.”
STUDENTS IN ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION Western class offers hands-on environmental learning
Todd Wells • AS Review Within Western there are numerous ways in which students may pursue hands-on experiential learning. One popular class, modeled around volunteer projects on campus, is Topics in Ecological Restoration. In 2007, Dr. Jim Helfield, an associate professor at the Department of Environmental Sciences at Huxley College, was teaching a class on ecological restoration. He remembers how in the first year of teaching the class there was less hands on experience. “The students gave a lot of presentations and wrote papers evaluating restoration projects,” he recalls. At the same time, Dr. John Tuxill, an associate professor at Fairhaven College, was teaching a very similar class for Fairhaven students. “Dr. Tuxill and I realized we were both teaching restoration courses at the same time and that we both wanted to accomplish similar things, so we decide to just join forces,” said Helfield. In 2008 that is exactly what they did. Now, every fall term Helfield and Tuxill bring students from Fairhaven and Huxley together to undergo and learn from their own restoration projects. The restoration projects are centered here on Western’s campus so that students may easily access the project sites. In past years students have removed invasive species such as English Ivy and Holly from the Sehome
Hill Arboretum, replanted native species along Bootsucker Creek, and worked to restore wetlands throughout the AS Outback Farm. “Primary objectives for the students are to understand the basic concepts of ecological restoration,” said Tuxill. “[Students] get experience in actually designing, carrying out and evaluating [their] own project. That’s hand-on learning.” Another major part of the class is working with existing organizations to collectively understand project objectives and develop methods for success. “The projects that students are doing, it’s of interest of somebody else on campus, whether it’s the Outback, whether it’s facilities, whether it’s the Arboretum. There are people involved in managing all those areas, and they are very interested in what the students are working on. That’s pretty unique,” Tuxill said. When students are not working on their group projects they are evaluating other ecological restoration projects. Helfield has been able to share with the class his personal experience from a salmon habitat restoration project that he worked on for three years in Sweden. Additionally, the class will be taking two-field trips this fall. One will be to a salmon habitat restoration project on the South Fork of the Nooksack River and the other will be to Whatcom Creek.
“When I was in college the focus was really more on limiting degradation, limiting the destruction,” Helfield remembers. “I think it’s only in recent times that we’ve seen more emphasis and more technological ability to actually fix the things that have been messed up.” “If you’re a practitioner of ecological restoration, this is a pretty good place to be and a pretty good time to be here,” he said. “There is all sorts of similar work going on throughout Whatcom County, throughout Washington State. So you are gaining skills that are directly applicable to work and a career that you can go into,” explained Tuxill. Helfield has had numerous students go on to work for the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Agency. In-fact he recalls, “I’ve had at least two students tell me that they got their job directly because they were able to take this class.” Topics in Ecological Restoration define hands-on learning. It is an opportunity for students with different interests and skills to put their talents together and improve the environment they inhabit. In Tuxill’s words, “It’s a great experience. It’s a way to actually leave something very tangible behind once you graduate. It’s an accomplishment that you can come back to, check out and see how it’s doing two years, five years, ten years later.”