The Gateway Magazine - January 2020

JANUARY 2020

Published since November 21, 1910 Circulation 3,500 ISSN 0845-356X Suite 3-04 8900 114 St. NW University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2J7

Editor-in-Chief Andrew McWhinney

News Editor Adam Lachacz

Managing Editor Christine McManus

Arts & Culture Editor Ashlynn Chand

Art Director Peter Elima

Opinion Editor Payton Ferguson

Photo Editor Helen Zhang

Staff Reporter Khadra Ahmed

Online Editor Advertising ads@gateway.ualberta.ca Tina Tai Website www.gtwy.ca

Director of Finance & Administration Piero Fiorini

Webmaster Hugh Bagan Director of Marketing & Outreach Pia Co

Contributors Michael Abenojar Katherine DeCoste Faramarz Jabbari-Zadeh Kaia MacLeod Bree Meiklejohn Kathy Milanowski Vivian Poon Manpreet Singh Carla Soriano David Spak Jack Stewardson Harmon Tamura Kate Turner Cover Manpreet Singh

Copyright All materials appearing in The Gateway bear copyright of their creator(s) and may not be used without written consent.

Volunteer Want to write, draw, or shoot photos for us?

To get involved visit gtwy.ca/volunteer for more information.

GSJS The Gateway is published by the Gateway Student Journalism Society (GSJS), a student-run, autonomous, apolitical not-for-profit organization, operated in accordance with the Societies Act of Alberta.

Printing Printed in Canada at Capital Colour, on FSC‰ certified uncoated paper.

ILLUSTRATION MICHAEL ABENOJAR “TWENTY-NINETEEN IS CANCELLED”

DEAR READER, Welcome back! It’s a new semester, year, and decade. January is often viewed as a time to make positive changes in one’s life, usually in the form of New Year’s resolutions. Maybe you’d like to stop procrastinating so much, so this semester isn’t a repeat of last year (and the year before that). Maybe you’d like to donate to the food bank more often, or make an effort to support local clothing businesses over large brands. Or maybe it’s something fun, like getting a new pet or exploring the city and campus.

While this issue is unthemed, the month of January seemed to prompt an exploration of change and stability in our contributors this month. Reevaluating your goals is great, but so is committing to pursuing them. Personal change is important, but so is accepting and taking care of your current self.

No matter what kind of mindset you’re bringing into 2020, we hope this issue helps you turn the page and get off to a good start. g Happy New Year,

Christine McManus Managing Editor

Peter Elima Art Director

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C C CONTENTS C T N S S NOTES NOTES 4

ACADEMIA TO AIRWAVES

Read about a multitalented U of A science professor who’s taking her knowledge to the radio.

6 MEMORY LANE Look back on the campus that once was.

8 AN UNLIKELY FRIENDSHIP Explore one of our longest cross-species partnerships: the cat-human bond.

REQUIRED REQUIRED READING READING 10 THE FIRST DAY OF THE YEAR Ponder why we often wait to change.

12 BREAKING THE CYCLE Learn about why we put things off, and what we can do about it.

14 GAME ON See which Edmonton board game cafe you should visit next.

THE THE STUDIO STUDIO 22 follower Do not come with prying hands and eyes.

FEATURES FEATURES 18 TAKING OFF THE LAYERS Discover how cheaply produced clothing affects you, others, and the planet.

24 HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT Unearth the hidden struggles of student homelessness and food insecurity.

DIVERSIONS DIVERSIONS 32 HOROSCOPES New decade, new you? Find out what 2020 has in store.

34 CROSSWORD Some things about January never change.

Test your knowledge of winter here!

36 COMIC Round Midnight: A Fat-Tire Vegabond Adventure

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orah Hunt (Kachur) wears many hats.

Having completed her BSc and PhD in molecular genetics, she is now a contract lecturer at the U of A where she teaches a variety of introductory biology and immunology courses. Hunt is also an MCAT instructor for Prep101 and a syndicated science columnist for CBC Radio One. In the past, she was a host on Science in Seconds, an educational blog and video channel, and What a Waste, a summer radio program on CBC that explored the relationship between science and waste.

I spoke to Hunt about her role as an educator and communicator as well as important issues in science.

Why did you decide to become a biology lecturer?

When I was [at] graduate school at the U of A, I loved being a TA and teaching more than anything, but I didn’t know that you could be a [professional] biology lecturer at the time.

A friend of mine, with whom I did my PhD, was talking [to] someone who happened to be a faculty member at MacEwan and found out that MacEwan needed a faculty lecturer.

She put my name forward and that’s how I started being a professional university instructor. Quite shortly after that, I started working at the U of A as well because I put my name forward to my old contacts at graduate school and they happened to have a Genetics 270 class available. So, it kind of fell into my lap. I never really decided that’s what I wanted to do, but I just thought it would be fun. I wasn’t sure how long it was going to last and now it’s been 10 years!

I know that you started a blog/video channel called Science in Seconds and you also hosted a show on CBC Radio called What a Waste. What have these experiences taught you about how to be an effective science communicator?

I did an intensive workshop about science communication at the Banff Centre of the Arts a while ago and that led me to start thinking about reaching beyond the

classroom. Selfishly, [I started doing them] because I wanted to talk about more than just cell biology all day. I wanted to know more about the universe, I wanted to know more about quantum physics. I wanted to read about it, learn it, and digest it and then use my communication skills and my desire to teach to bring that forward [to the public].

I still work for CBC as a science columnist where every week I do digestible little chunks of science news. It’s really changed my teaching because I’ve moved from delivering material to telling stories. Now, stories don’t mean “here’s a funny story about what I did last weekend”, but a story like “this is how the cell evolves,” so it’s more of a connected story and I think that comes from my science communication background.

Speaking of your columns, you wrote a column back in September 2018 about women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) called Breaking the Barbie Myth. Could you talk about the main points of that piece and why these high paying research STEM jobs are predominantly filled with men?

The reality is that there are lots of initiatives to get girls into STEM from eight years old and onwards. The attrition really starts in high school where it’s seen as unique for a girl to be strong in STEM, particularly for engineering, physics, and math. With biology, it’s very women dominated; usually, 55-65 per cent of my incoming class are women [and] the highest mark in every class I teach is almost without fail a woman. Most of the old boys club were hired in the 60s and 70s and as they retire out of those positions, the positions are becoming filled with a more diverse, inclusive group. Women are still being seen as an anomaly [when they] end up in the sciences and that’s because of society, family, friends, and teachers. So, it’s really a complicated issue but it starts with high school classrooms and teachers dissuading or seeming surprised when female students do well.

RWAVES

Broadly speaking, what do you think is one of the most important problems or issues in science and how can we take steps to deal with it?

I think the biggest issue is a distrust of science and I think that comes from a lack of understanding the scientific method. If there’s one goal I have every week on the radio, it would be educating people about the scientific method. Now it could be about disparate topics, but I love talking about surprises in science because I think it helps the public and my audience understand that science is not goal directed. I think that it reminds them that this is just a hypothesis and that we can never prove anything in science. Once the public understands the somewhat randomness of science and the surprise, it helps scientists seem a lot more human — they don’t know everything and that’s the whole point of science. I think people want to understand science, but as soon as the scientists become poor communicators, there’s a disconnect and we start to see the rise of populism and those kinds of movements through the political sphere.

Making science more humble and human I think is the biggest step.

What would be your advice for budding scientists?

Don’t worry about finding your passion.

Often university and science [are] about finding what you don’t want to do and you’ll eventually land in something that you do want. I think so many people are focused on trying to find what they want — their calling, their meaning, their passion. I love teaching, but I actually got into my PhD in genetics through a clerical error. In my second year of university, I applied to the U of A [from MacEwan] and I had put microbiology as my major and genetics as my minor. When I got my acceptance letter back, it had genetics as my major and microbiology as my minor.

I went back to the administration building and told them that I think there had been a mistake. They pulled out my file and said, “yes you’re right. We swapped your major and minor. You need to reapply to switch and it’s going to be $60.” I didn’t have 60 bucks to spend on someone else’s mistake, so I stayed in genetics. That’s how I ended up with something I love to do and it ended up changing the course of my life. g

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MEMORY LANE

ATHABASCA OLD HALL ARTS BUILDING

The University of Alberta is an old and storied place of learning, with a history as rich as the land it was built on. It’s been a long journey from 45 students in one building to over 40, 000 students across five campuses, but 111 years later the U of A is one of the top five universities in Canada. Let’s take a walk through some of the oldest buildings on the North Campus to find out how we got to where we are today.

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While Athabasca Hall wasn’t the first building to ever host official University of Alberta classes — that title belongs to Queen Alexandra Elementary School in Strathcona — it was the first finished building on what is now North Campus. Completed in 1911, it housed classrooms, students, and even a dining hall, and is the University’s only pre-World War I building. Athabasca Hall no longer serves as a residence, nor houses any classrooms, but still stands proudly beside Pembina Hall and Assiniboia Hall as a piece of U of A history.

The Arts Building, known to students as the Old Arts Building, was first completed in 1915.

The grand addition and then-modern architecture helped steer the university toward becoming the modern, respected institution it is today. Some lectures still take place in the building, and Convocation Hall inside hostsmost of the music program’s mainstage concerts. Old Arts is a staple building on campus whose beauty and history contribute greatly to the atmosphere of student life at the university.

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ST. STEPHEN DENTISTRY & TRIFFO COLLEGE PHARMACY HALL CENTRE

St. Stephen’s, which was actually completed the same year as Athabasca Hall, was the first building to be officially occupied on the modern-day university grounds. However, it was only after a merger between two smaller theological colleges that it was officially titled St. Stephen’s College. It served as a residence and classroom to begin with, and still grants degrees in theology to this day. Unlike St. Joseph’s College, which also grants theological degrees, St. Stephens no longer houses students, but remains a stalwart reminder of the University of Alberta’s history.

The Dentistry & Pharmacy Centre is currently undergoing some construction, which every old building must face eventually. Completed in 1922, the former Medical Building has gone through many changes, as the name change suggests. The current construction is set to be completed in 2022, the same year the building will celebrate its centennial anniversary.

Built in a time of prosperity for the university, the building was meant to compliment Old Arts, which it still does nicely in spite of the renovations.

Originally known as the South Laboratories Building, Triffo Hall now houses many of the graduate student resource centres. When it was built in 1915 it served as laboratories, as the former name suggests, but the labs began to fall into disuse as more faculties constructed their own buildings. With an increasing number of graduate students, it quickly became necessary to establish a Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, which was a hole in the caulking Triffo Hall easily and promptly filled.

The oldest buildings on campus house not only their classrooms and offices, but also some of the university’s most important memories. It was only through development, trial and error, and years of improvement that the University of Alberta became what it is today. From the oldest tile in Athabasca Hall to the newest computer in CCIS, each stone and piece of equipment is a part of the journey. I don’t know which buildings will still be up in 2100, but right now the best we can do is observe the past through these old, beautiful buildings. g

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I K ATHY M TE XT ASHLYNN CHAND ILLUSTR ATION

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SKI LANOW

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hen I was in my second year of my undergraduate degree, I decided to get a pet. I went to various shelters looking at many different cats and kittens of all colours and ages. For me, it was important that whichever cat I adopted was suitable to live with me and had the right personality. I kept going back to the Edmonton Humane Society to see one particular kitten: a grey one with stripes and a white belly. She was often alone in her cage and whenever another kitten did enter her space, she would get attacked. I picked her up and she instantly started to purr and lick me — a complete departure from all the other kittens I saw in those couple of months. It would usually take some time for them to warm up to me or they were indifferent to my presence. I’ve had her for two and a half years now and her name is Kida.

In my opinion, Kida and I were meant to be (however, I may be delusional). Nevertheless, this got me thinking about the history of human’s relationship with cats.

According to an article by National Geographic, cats lived alongside humans for centuries before domestication. The household cat actually comes from two major cat lineages. One of these ancestors spread from southwest Asia into Europe as early as 4400 B.C. Mice and rats were attracted to crops and human agriculture; as a result, cats followed the rodent population, which meant they frequented human civilization often.

The second lineage consists of African cats from Egypt that migrated at the beginning of 1500 B.C. into the Mediterranean and the Old World. These cats had a certain level of sociability and tameness that humans desired. As a way to control the rodent population on travel and sea routes humans brought along these Egyptian cats. Funnily enough, cats haven’t evolved much from their forefathers — genetically, that is.

However, the usefulness of cats as rodent control may be over-exaggerated. In an interview done by The Cut, journalist and author of The Lion in the Living Room: How Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World, Abigail Tucker, stated that “cats are uniquely ill-suited for domestication.” This is because humans first set out to domesticate animals that can be easily confined and eat a variety of things, like pigs or goats. Meanwhile, cats can only eat meat that humans eat and don’t like confinement. Unlike dogs and cattle, cats don’t have social hierarchies and don’t have lead animals — we can control dogs and cattle by acting like an alpha dog or the lead steer, but this doesn’t work on cats.

Additionally, cats are great hunters, but they rarely follow instructions well enough. Tucker gives the Rabbit Suppression Act of 1884 in colonial Australia as evidence of cats’ inability to control the rabbit population and, consequently, the reason why they’re horrible for pest control. In this event, both the British and the Australians released house cats to deal with hoards of rabbits at the same time. Instead of killing off the rabbits, the cats started killing off small, local animals, because, well, rabbits breed like rabbits and there were too many to kill.

Cats just ended up killing more convenient and easy prey.

So why do we even own cats? For Tucker, she believes that humans kept cats mainly because they remind us of human babies — a small nose, large head, and big eyes are all cute characteristics humans are attracted towards.

Although Tucker diminishes the social and emotional aspects of human-cat bonds as being detrimental and leading to more social isolation, I personally disagree. In a society where we value long workdays and constant productivity, we are already isolated and we lack the energy or time to socialize with others. Contrary to popular opinion, cats, both wild and domestic, need love and affection.

There’s been a fair amount of research on felines and their feelings for humans. For example, a study conducted in 2007 looked at the attachment between owners and cats. A cat was placed in a room and experienced being alone, being with a stranger and being with their owner. They found that cats would explore their surroundings when their owner was in the room, indicating that the cat was more comfortable in the presence of their owner. The cats spent more time head-butting following, and playing with their owners than with the stranger. While with the stranger, cats were more alert and would normally sit by the door waiting for their owners. As a result, there is likely some form of attachment between a cat and their owner.

Although everyone’s experience with cats is different and each cat is different, we can agree they make a difference in all of our lives. I think now we, as a community, aren’t so concerned with a cat’s hunting abilities, but more so the joy they can bring. Regardless of Kida’s lack of ability to kill animals properly, I still value her for how much comfort and love she brings me. Kida has made a tremendous difference in my life, she’s always so happy when I come home and it always brightens up my day! g

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REQUIRED READING

The First D of the Year he first day was October 15. In the year 1582, Catholic Pope Gregory XIII introduced the humbly named Gregorian calendar in order to improve upon the seasonal shift that was experienced under the Julian calendar system.

While almost identical to the previous system, the introduction of the Gregorian calendar created a ten-day difference between the two. To account for this, Pope Gregory advanced the month of October from the fourth to the fifteenth, making October 15 the first accurate day by modern standards.

But what is accurate time keeping anyways? The orbit of Earth doesn’t abide by a calendar and each sunrise doesn’t come with a name attributed to Hellenistic gods. These are human traditions. Although they are respected and often appreciated for giving order to our sluggish cyclonic solar system which governs the seasons and the sunsets of our planet, they can sometimes be constraining. We often wait until Monday to get a start on something pressing in their lives, and put off life goals until next year. We wait for Monday or the first of the month or New Year’s Day before we even try to remedy something

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we see wrong in our lives. Why is that? Where does this human tendency to live by the rule of periodic benchmarks come from?

I attempted to find an answer to this question at the Hanson Lifestyle and Fitness Centre on campus. One of the most widespread New Year’s resolutions is to get into shape.

This is where numerous university students go every year in order to realize this dream.

Krystle Johner and Devon Kippen, supervisor and assistant supervisor of the center, see all these students in their everyday life and therefore have a unique view of this annual tradition.

January 1 is a time of new beginnings for a wide variety of people. It’s the first sentence in a new chapter, the dawn of a new era, or simply the start of something new. But for people who live, work, and learn on campus, January takes a back seat to September. Krystle says that as a rush period, if September isn’t greater than January it is certainly its equal. She attributes this mainly to students settling into new routines as the school year fires back up again. As Krystle puts it, September is, “a new school year, a fresh start.”

Regardless of which month takes on the

role of the year’s beginning, the question remains: why do the benchmarks of the year hold such weight in regards to our actions?

According to Devon, it’s a matter of community. When it’s January or September, two commonly perceived beginnings of the year, or even on a smaller scale when it’s the first of the month or a Monday, everyone is getting back into the swing of things. When everyone else is trying to make change in their lives and everyone is putting themselves out there, the individual feels less alone in their endeavors.

Taking on big change in our lives is easier when we do it as a community, but why does the community choose the Mondays and the firsts instead of any other time of the week or month? As Krystle says, “we’re creatures of habit.” She posits that when the individual has an inkling of a desire to make some kind of change, a few days in between the formation of that desire and the execution gives them some time to warm up to it. Krystle suggests that the individual thinks, “if it’s Friday going into the weekend, I’ll start on Monday.”.

After all, motivation has inertia and for some people it can take quite a bit of time to get

REQUIRED READING

Day ar the ball rolling and make meaningful change.

The problem that comes with this method of growing is every major change in one’s life comes with a wind up time tacked on. Taking a few days to mentally and emotionally prepare to take the reins of your life may provide a much needed warm up period, but couldn’t those days be put to better use? “[If] we just tried to change one thing the minute we decided we wanted to,” Krystle suggests, “[those changes] would add up over time and consistency in those little changes would bring us closer to [our] goal.”

This idea of taking on incremental change often rather than significant change in rhythm with the week, month, or year seems like it should be more popular. Being able to make changes on one’s own schedule rather than the calendar’s increases agency. More often than not, people love to be able to do what they want. Plus, as Krystle said, the consistency in these changes make up a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. While big changes take time to initiate and are often difficult to undertake, small changes can easily be integrated into daily life. And yet, the greater majority of people opt to make huge

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changes on the clock’s schedule. Every year, people make ambitious New Year's resolutions. Every month, the first is their new beginning, and whatever one decides they want to get done during the weekend can always wait for Monday. Why is that?

The answer lies less in the effectiveness of small, spontaneous change versus large, planned change and more in the perception of the two. Working at the Hanson Fitness and Lifestyle Centre, Devon sees a lot of what patrons can’t. “When we haven’t seen [patrons] for a week we notice changes that they don’t,” says Devon. She goes on to say that knowing people who work at the gym you frequent can help keep morale up. While you may not be aware of the strides you are taking toward better health, gym staff are because they have an outside view of your situation. Feeling like you’re going nowhere is a universal doubt that anyone trying to get anywhere will eventually face and that very doubt is why most endeavors to grow and change focus on ambitious, and often realistically unattainable, goals. Even if committing to losing 50 pounds in a month is ultimately doomed to fail, it feels better than commit-

ting to lose five pounds in a month because it seems more meaningful in the moment.

The Hanson Fitness and Lifestyle Centre has many resources to help combat those feelings, such as personal trainers and the Viva uAlberta website, so that those incremental changes and growths don’t feel so meaningless in the present.

The year may begin for some on January 1, others maybe September 1, and perhaps for a tiny minority October 15. Choosing for these times to be our new beginnings, whether for the sake of being part of the community or just to provide a chance to warm up to the start of a new era, may come naturally but it’s far from being the wisest way to enact change in your life. Real growth comes from taking the reins of your life in hand and choosing to have faith in the incremental changes that can be made on your own schedule. According to Krystle, “Any movement is good movement.” Seizing this freedom challenges one to focus on the bigger picture and resist the temptation to make ambitious yet ultimately meaningless resolutions. Rome wasn’t built in a day and your life doesn’t change by the whims of the calendar. g

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REQUIRED READING

TEXT VIVIAN POON VISUALS PETER ELIMA

HOW TO STOP PROCRASTINATING Let me set the stage for you.

You’re in class, and your professor gives you an assignment. You look at the due date and note that there’s quite a bit of time between today and your due date. You spend the next few days, perhaps even weeks, not thinking about the assignment. You hang out with your friends, play video games, watch a few episodes on Netflix, or do literally any activity that is not your assignment. As the assignment due date looms closer, you start thinking about it a lot more. However, it’s not enough to get you concerned. Yet. You tell yourself that you have a couple of days left. You have time. When do you start working on your assignment, you don’t really feel like it. Maybe you’ll watch another episode of Friends. After that, you’ll text a few friends. And then maybe you’ll watch one YouTube video. Or five. The next thing you know, time has flown by and a day has passed.

Not to worry though, you’ll work on it tomorrow, or the day after that.

Before you know it, you’re pulling an all nighter in the library. You’ve got your tea, your energy drinks, your coffee — whatever it is that will keep you awake. As every minute passes, you pray that you’ll finish your essay in time. Exhaustion sets in, but you mentally slap yourself awake and keep going. If you do finish your assignment on time, you feel like you’ve accomplished the impossible. You feel a sense of relief. You promise yourself that you’ve learned your lesson this time, and you will not repeat past mistakes. That is, until your professor hands you your next assignment, and the whole cycle starts again.

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Sound familiar?

Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Almost everyone suffers from procrastination and wants to find a way to put an end to it.

So why do we procrastinate?

Sometimes procrastination is caused by anxiety. As students, we want to do well in school. We want to get good grades, impress our professors, and get into grad school or graduate as soon as possible to find a job. We not only want to get assignments done, but we also want to get it done right. However, this fear of not doing well kicks in the fight or flight instinct. While you don’t necessarily feel a strong urge to physically run away from the assignment, you do have the urge to scroll on Instagram or Facebook for a couple of hours instead of working.

Some students feel an adrenaline rush when they leave their assignment until the very last minute. They feel like they work best in a crisis, using the fear and the stress to fuel them through an all-nighter.

For other students, clutter might be an issue. It’s hard to get assignments done when you’re surrounded by books and papers. External clutter can result in a cluttered and unfocused mind.

There are a plethora of reasons as to why students procrastinate, but the difficulties associated with it remain the same.

Procrastination is a habit that can lead to anxiety and guilt. It creates a cycle of negative emotions that can affect mental health. In addition, the lack of time to work on assignments can also lead to poor grades, ultimately affecting mental health.

REQUIRED READING Constant psychological strain, heavy amounts of caffeine, and having to pull all nighters to finish assignments can take a toll on your health too. Accumulated stress and lack of sleep can lead to poor health or even drastic health effects.

Luckily, there is a bright side. Any habit can be broken, and procrastination is no exception. Sadly, it does take a lot of time and effort to fix. It is well worth it though, in order to end the cycle of anxiety, guilt, and stress. At the very least, your mental and physical health will thank you in the long run. If you’re not quite sure where to start, here are a few tips to get you on the right track.

DO

Try to calm down before working.

Procrastination is often done on impulse. In his lecture entitled Beat Procrastination by Doing Nothing, Dr. Peter M. Vishton states that sitting quietly can help break the impulse to become engaged in avoidance behaviours.

Before you start working, close your eyes for about 15 to 20 minutes. Think about what you need to accomplish.

Take a few deep breaths and calm down. This task alone can help you find the motivation you need to get started.

DO

Visualize the results In his book, Focus: Your Key to More Productivity, Jurgen Wolff suggests that closing your eyes and visualizing the outcome of getting your work done. Engage all five senses. Maybe you can see yourself handing in your work, whether physically in class or electronically on eClass.

You may also visualize yourself getting a good grade.

Imagine hearing your friends ask you to hang out, and you can finally say yes without feeling guilty because your work is done. You’ll probably feel a sense of accomplishment as well. Perhaps to reward yourself, you’ll go to your favourite restaurant and order your favourite dish.

Imagine how good it would taste. Wolff advises to make your visualization as vivid and exciting. That excitement can propel you to start working.

If you have trouble envisioning your future results, you can just remember a time when you finished a difficult assignment. Once again, use all five senses. Transfer those emotions to your present project.

DO

Take large projects and break them up into smaller tasks In his lecture, Dr. Vishton explains the benefits of breaking up large projects into manageable tasks. Each of these tasks should take you no longer than 20 minutes.

Keep track of your progress as you complete them. You can do this by creating a to-do list. Because the pleasure centre of the brain is fueled by accomplishment rather

than the pursuit of the goal, finishing each task will feed into the pleasure centre. Each time you check off your to-do list, you give yourself the motivation to keep going.

DOn’t

Work in a messy space In her book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Overcoming Procrastination, Michelle Tullier argues that a messy environment can be a factor to procrastination. Clutter can literally become an obstacle to getting work done.

After learning this piece of information, you may feel the temptation to clean your work space. Don’t. Instead, Tullier suggests that individuals should plan a chunk of time to declutter their work space. This includes electronically decluttering as well. Get rid of apps you don’t use, consider blocking sites that cause you to procrastinate too much, and limit the number of social networks you belong to. If gaming is becoming a problem for you, avoid playing games on your laptop, and use gaming consoles that work with your TV instead.

DOn’t

Tell yourself that you work better in a crisis Wolff suggests that individuals who enjoy adrenalineinducing activities should go bungee jumping, play high action video games, or participate in some hard exercise.

Do not try and take a chance on your grades by purposefully waiting until the last minute to finish your assignment. It’s not worth it! Great assignments take time, thought, and effort.

DOn’t

Try to be perfect Give yourself permission to do an assignment badly. If you have an essay to write, write a really bad draft. If you have a presentation to create, allow yourself to sound awful. For a perfectionist, this advice is easier said than done. Wolff recommends trying to do smaller, less important tasks imperfectly. That way, you can show yourself that the world will not come to a screeching halt if you do not do something perfectly.

Keep in mind that the best projects are done in drafts.

No one ever gets it right on their first try.

While I can sit here and spew as much advice as I can until I die from exhaustion, YOU are the one who needs to put in the effort. The next time your professor hands you an assignment, you can use all the tips that I have suggested or you can use the ones that speak to you the most. Either way, only you have the power to take control of your own life and break the cycle of procrastination. Good luck. g

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Board game cafes can be the perfect way to spend your afternoon, and the Edmonton scene is filled with them. But which one should you pick? To make that choice a little easier, I decided to rank four board game cafes against one another. I’ll be examining price, proximity, food satisfaction, and staff on a scale of 1-5 (5 being amazing, and 1 being horrible). The location with the highest total will win, and should be considered for your next night out.

To understand my scoring, allow me to paint a picture of the judge, jury and executioner. I’m someone who spends hours playing and ordering food, so I value proximity to campus. I have a few vegetarian friends, and I like knowing they can eat wherever I drag them too. I’m an Masters in Library and Information Studies (MLIS) candidate hoping to become a librarian, so I have opinions about classification systems.

Let the games begin!

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10750 82 AVENUE PROXIMITY 5/5 PRICE 2/5 FOOD 2/5 STAFF 4/5

Hexagon is a quick nine minute bus ride away from the University of Alberta, but the longer you stay the higher the price. Instead of having a flat fee, Hexagon charges $2.50 per person per hour. I will admit that their price is enticing for people spending two hours or less. I am not one of those people. I make a day out of playing board games and would rather not have to stare at a clock to ensure I’m not getting overcharged if we accidentally stay longer than expected.

They organize their games alphabetically. This is better for finding an old favorite rather than browsing to find something new. If you're looking for a specific type of game (like a four-person strategy game) you’ll need to ask the staff who are friendly and very willing to help.

This is the first time in a year that I’ve been here because of the dreaded Grilled Cheese Incident. Last year, when trying out the place for the first time, I thought to myself, what is the easiest food they cannot mess up? A grilled cheese sandwich, of course. When it arrived it looked like a completely normal grilled cheese sandwich, until I bit into it, only to find spinach and tomato.

Now I can understand putting vegetables into most things to make it healthier, but what if I had been allergic to tomatoes? During my most recent trip to Hexagon, I had a London fog, grilled cheese, and a brownie. When the sandwich arrived it clearly had tomatoes. This time the sandwich was cut in half, making it easy to see the vegetables. Upon further inspection, the glass case that shows sample food at the front does say the sandwich has tomatoes and spinach in it. I still wish their chalkboard menu or staff members mentioned it, since those details are easy to miss. However, the sandwich was better than expected, the London fog was sublime and the brownie was a sugary dessert like any other. Sadly, they don’t have an online menu, which can make it difficult to plan events with anyone who has dietary restrictions.

→ BOARD N BREW ----------------

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9929 103 STREET PROXIMITY 5/5 PRICE 4/5 FOOD 4/5 STAFF 4/5

I was surprised to find it also takes nine minutes to get to Board N Brew. They have a flat $7 fee, but what sets them apart are their buttons. Upon entering the establishment, each table is given a button that can summon a staff member, in case anyone wants to order food or have a game explained. This means that the servers won’t come by continuously asking if everything is alright, and you won’t need to flag someone down: you get to summon them!

Board N Brew is well set up with large tables and booths, as well as the ability to book private rooms for special events. Board N Brew also has an online menu, and their website has a video that shows the entire layout. Their organization system consists of stickers that denote number of players and difficulty, that are organized alphabetically. This makes browsing for a new game easier, as you can see the difficulty level before taking the game off the shelf. As expected, their staff are friendly.

They learn their games well, to better help customers.

The have a stamp reward system that works like this: seven visits shown on the stamp card will earn you a free entry. For food I had their popcorn chicken, which came with a thai dipping sauce, and a chocolate milkshake (with a compostable straw). It was a good board game food, easy to eat and not too greasy. For vegetarians, they have a couple of options for meals: a vegetarian calzone and a Beyond Meat burger.

REQUIRED READING

→ TABLE TOP ------------

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10235 124 STREET PROXIMITY 3/5 PRICE 4/5 FOOD 2/5 STAFF 4/5

Table Top is a 22-minute transit ride away from campus. Right off the bat, it offers a lot of space. Upon walking in, you’re greeted then given a table to accommodate the number of people with you. The space is large and filled with a range of tables, some big enough for three players and some large enough for eight.

They organize their board games on shelves in ranges of difficulty and style: co-op, puzzles, two-player. This made it easy to find a light game for any number of people. They also use a sticker system to show which shelves the games came from, making clean up easy, and which games are new.

I tried their sausage mac and cheese, a hot chocolate, and a piece of carrot cake.

For the price, you do get a good amount of food. I thought the food was okay, it wasn’t bad but it also wasn’t something to write home about. My friend had the vegetarian version of the same meal, and said it was great! The carrot cake was a good size and contained nuts. When ordering food, you need to go up to the counter. However, if the place is packed this could be difficult with everyone sitting in close proximity. I think their main food was simply okay; they have good snacks and a wide selection of games and that’s what matters.

In the end, you go to Table Top for their massive collection and great staff. They offer a surprisingly selection of vegetarian options, which is indicated on their menu (online and physical) with a V.

→ GAMERS LODGE ----------------

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10459 124 STREET PROXIMITY 2/5 PRICE 4/5 FOOD 4/5 STAFF 4/5

It takes a 26-minute LRT and bus ride to get to the last board game cafe on this list. It’s the farthest away, but worth a visit. It markets itself as the coziest board game cafe, and the atmosphere is the most relaxed on the list. Different rectangular tables are evenly spread out with magic card game tournaments in mind.

The Gamers Lodge uses a sticker organization system, that tells you the number of players and difficulty. Their bookcases also tell you number of players and the lower down you go on the shelf the more difficult the games become. It’s a straightforward way to organize board games that allows for easy browsing.

I had a Cheese 3PO (the best grilled cheese sandwich), which came with a side of chips. The food has punny names like a Cuke Skywalker (cucumber sandwich).

Apart from sandwiches they have a hummus bar for when your just feeling peckish. The staff are friendly, and will circulate to get dishes from tables, but if you want to order something new it would be quicker to go to the front instead of waiting for them.

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FINAL THOUGHTS In the end, Board N Brew wins first place in my book. Their use of the button and overall location makes them perfect for a board game session. Each place has its own strengths and weaknesses. If you want the best grilled cheese sandwich and are willing to go the distance, The Gamers Lodge is perfect for you. Table Top has a wide selection of vegetarian options. Hexagon has the cheapest price if you’re only planning on playing for a couple of hours. Since all of these places offer different assets, it’s worth it to try them all. g

A UNIQUE JOB AN UNFORGETTABLE SUMMER

Become a PARLIAMENTARY GUIDE Applications due January 12, 2020 This summer, be part of the action at the Parliament of Canada.

Find out more and apply online at

lop.parl.ca/guides

18 GTWY.CA PHOTO HELEN ZHANG ART DIRECTION PETER ELIMA

TEXT TINA TAI

FEATURES

FEATURES uring my formative pre-teen years of grades 5 to 8 at a Traditional Learning Center school, I was stuck wearing scratchy navy cardigans and plaid green kilts as my school uniform every day.

Oh, and I can’t forget about the knee-high navy socks with shiny black dress shoes. I had no real sense of what fashion is, let alone the opportunity to develop my own style during a time where most children are discovering their own Aesthetic™.

My closet expanded in high school, but it wasn’t until university that I really had the freedom to choose what I wanted to wear. Living away from home and having my first credit cards made it easy to indulge in the guilty pleasure of online shopping. Of course, the financially responsible angel on my shoulder had much more power backing her up (hi, student loans) than her shopaholic demon counterpart. But still, that alluring “check out” button would get clicked every now and then, and a week later, a soft chenille sweater from Forever 21 would appear at my door. It was so softly woven and comfortable that I decided to buy another of the same sweater, in a different colour.

The fiscally minded angel didn’t mind these purchases because I needed some sweaters, and these were less than $15 each.

The shopaholic demon on my right hand controlling the mouse was gleefully satisfied, and retail therapy helped cushion the blow to my mental health caused by slipping grades in first year. Everyone was, fleetingly, happy. My credit card bill was well below the monthly limit, so what’s the harm, right?

Unwittingly, I was taking part in the churning wheel of fast fashion.

“Fast fashion” is a term that has recently risen to prominence amidst an era of pervasive climate anxiety and struggles for gender equality. Fast fashion items are designed and produced quickly — and inexpensively — using mostly synthetic materials and cheap labour. The term also carries connotations of disposability; when the poorly made items need repairs, they’re typically thrown away to landfills because of how affordable and replaceable these clothes are. It’s the antithesis to environmental friendliness and fair working conditions. The fast fashion business model fuels rampant consumerism, encouraging shoppers to continuously spend money to keep up with fashion trends. While it’s quick and cheap for clothing to move from production to the consumers’ closets, these items fall apart and into the trash all too soon.

“If things are made to last then you won’t need to buy it again.”

In addition to generating waste, the a brand carried by New Classics Studios, it’s fast fashion industry is one of the largest important to reduce their carbon footprint environmental polluters in the world. A where they can. In addition to limiting their single T-shirt can take over 2000 litres of unisex fragrances to small batches with water to make; from the growing process cruelty free testing, their packaging is recyto the dyeing and treatments, the amount clable and printing is done locally through a of water used can be more than a person family-owned Edmonton print shop. drinks in three years. Pesticides used to Producing small batches and sourcing treat crops such as cotton can leach into the services locally is in stark contrast with fast soil, destroying the natural ecosystem and fashion practices of overproduction and poisoning farmers. high emissions from worldwide shipping.

In opposition to the practice of chasing Using marketing tactics such as “flash sales” trends and accumulating waste, slow or and new arrivals daily, brands create an sustainable fashion is a movement that has illusion of both exclusivity and never-ending been gradually gaining momentum in the variety. Consumers feel the need to catch last decade. The movement aims to change the best deals and have the best looks, which the environmental and social impact of the is easy enough when the same basic shirt fashion industry so that consumers and comes in a hundred variations and all cost workers both benefit. roughly $7 each.

New Classics Studio is an online retailer Unfortunately, the satisfaction of snagthat is part of the slow fashion movement. ging a cute dress at a sweet deal is often built They sell ethically made products and envion a mountain of pollution and waste. Lau ronmentally conscious clothing, and also aim ruefully points out that “brands like Zara and to educate consumers about what it means H&M have 52 seasons because they push out to be sustainable. Its founder, Alyssa Lau, is a new collection every week, and they just a University of Alberta alumna who started sit on piles of unsold clothes.” With the rise her fashion blog during university and began of social media influencers, the need to stay to work at a women’s boutique. Instead of on top of current trends is more prevalent pursuing graduate studies in biochemistry, than ever. Naive audiences are often conshe launched New Classics Studios after vinced that their current clothes are learning about sustainable fashion. The no longer acceptable and look up to influenconline store became one of Canada’s first ers as examples of what to wear, unaware retailers focused on sustainability. of the truth behind curated candid photos.

For Lau, sustainability isn’t a gold medal “Sometimes influencers will buy clothes achieved by fulfilling a standardized checkjust to take photos,” Lau reveals. “They basilist of environmental friendliness. “Sustaincally give these brands free advertising and ability is an umbrella term,” she says. “A lot then return the clothes after.” of people don’t know how to define it, but for Even brands that have traditionally us, it’s about how a brand makes its clothing enjoyed a higher reputation are resorting to and how its making sure that workers are fast fashion tactics. The annual Victoria’s paid fairly.”

Secret Fashion Show was one of the most Slow fashion is a movement that focuses high profile shows of the industry during on sustainable practices of producing clothes. its run and enjoyed a large fanbase across This entails environmentally friendly ways of genders and ages, with its sister brand PINK sourcing material as well as fair compensamarketed towards young teens. However, tion for workers. Sustainably-focused brands even brands like Victoria’s Secret and PINK create items of higher quality, and often in are complicit in preying on consumers and smaller batches. Many slow fashion brands workers in the fast fashion chain. Once a only use ethically sourced, cruelty free, and lingerie powerhouse that defined beauty, the natural materials in their products. For local brand has been plagued with scandals, such Edmonton artisans like Libertine Fragrance, as excluding transgender women from the

JANUARY 2020 19

FEATURES runway and Jefferey Epstein abusing his connections to Victoria’s Secret to sexually exploit young women.

Much like other trend-based retailers, Victoria’s Secret relies on fast production of items. Former CEO, Sharen Turney, remarked that their lingerie runs on a “speed program,” explaining they had already cut four months out of development time and plan to take out two more. Evidently, this means relying on cheap labour and materials. The drop in product quality, however, is easily masked by glitzy marketing, sexualization of youth, and sales tactics offering huge discounts. Young women are often convinced to consume more of these products, without realizing the underlying harm, in order to retain confidence and beauty. Resisting this urge can be tough, and requires conscious effort. “When you see something for the first time and want to buy it, sleep on it and ask yourself, ‘who made these clothes?’” Lau suggests.

As brands that claim to empower and push women to feel beautiful and confident, it’s darkly ironic how much harm they can bring to women on a global scale. Gender discrimination is yet another dark alley that lurks in the fast fashion empire.

Approximately 80 per cent of garment workers are women, and they are the ones disproportionately feeling the abuse of the industry. When fast fashion became popular in the 90s, garment factories moved from North America to developing countries, such as Bangladesh, India, and China, where labour costs are cheap and willing workers are abundant. When women need a break from the 16-hour days, toxic breathing conditions, and physical abuse — or simply requesting maternity leave — they will often be fired and left to find income elsewhere. Large brands like Victoria’s Secret and PINK can simply claim ignorance of these atrocities because supply chains are so convoluted and difficult to trace.

The social impact of fast fashion worsens when we consider where discarded clothing ends up. Although many consumers believe that they can simply donate unwanted clothes, many cheaply made pieces make their way back to developing countries.

These clothes inevitably end up flooding local markets and pushing out local businesses, or end up in landfills.

So why are slow fashion clothes more costly? The goal of sustainable and slow fashion is not only about using less wasteful and more environmentally conscious ways of producing clothes. It’s also a movement towards equality and fair working conditions for the people who produce materials and make the garments. The higher prices attached to these clothes mean that workers can be paid fairly, and higher quality materials can be used. In the end, consumers still benefit from these costs. “If things are made to last then you won’t need to buy it again.

The cost per wear of one well made, timeless piece is cheaper than something that’s trendbased and disposable,” Lau says.

lthough the detrimental effects of fast fashion seem clear, the morality of practicing sustainable fashion isn’t entirely black and white. Talking to Vlada Blinova and Jane Batcheller, they gave me more insight as to why there is no single answer to achieving sustainability.

Blinova is the collections manager of the Anne Lambert Clothing and Textiles Collection at the U of A. She also teaches undergraduate apparel design courses in the Faculty of Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences (ALES). In her apparel design courses, her students are encouraged to practice sustainability by upcycling — reusing and repurposing — previously used fabrics.

Natural fibers are also favored, as they are more likely to be biodegradable. However,

“Sustainability is not so black and white. Maybe you don’t want to cause harm in one way but it becomes harmful in another way.”

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Blinova cautions against blindly believing that natural fibers are the answer. “A lot of dyes and pesticides used to treat the natural materials can be quite harmful [to humans], it really is a slow poisoning,” she explains.

Natural fibers are generally viewed as more environmentally friendly than synthetic ones. However, even within the gold standard of natural fibers there exists a convoluted hierarchy of sustainability. Cotton, for example, is a popular material for garment making. However, cotton is a notoriously low-yield crop that requires heavy usage of water and pesticides. While it’s a natural material, cotton agriculture is both harmful to humans and the environment.

There are, however, natural fibers that are sustainably grown. Lyocell is a material made from the wood pulp of eucalyptus trees, a plant that grows quickly without pesticides, genetic modification, or heavy irrigation. It’s also biodegradable, which makes it more eco-friendly than other wood pulp based fibers such as rayon and modal.

Even animal products, such as alpaca wool, can be collected in a cruelty-free way and be an eco-friendly alternative to sheep’s wool.

Blinova notes that vegan practices, while they may look appealing, may not always be the most sustainable. Although it may seem more eco-friendly to steer clear of consuming animal products, alternatives can actually create more pollution and harm to ecosystems. “I really respect the Indigenous way of using all parts of an animal, including the skin and fur for clothing,” Blinova says.

“It’s less wasteful and harmful than strictly using non-animal materials.” Alternatives, like faux leather, can require more chemical treatment and processing and these harsh chemicals can, ironically, poison the natural habitats that these animals live in. “That’s why sustainability is not so black and white.

Maybe you don’t want to cause harm in one way but it becomes harmful in another way.”

Unfortunately, my fantasy of a garment industry using only alpaca wool and eucalyptus wood pulp may just have to remain a fantasy. Jane Batcheller, a faculty of ALES lecturer and principal investigator of the Protective Clothing and Equipment Research Facility, dives into why synthetic fibers are unavoidable at times. Petroleum based materials such as polyester release microplastics when washed, contributing to the phenomenon of microplastics appearing in human bodies. However, clothes such as protective wear often need to be made from synthetic materials.

FEATURES “Some natural fibers just aren’t as heat resistant or water resistant as synthetic ones,” Batcheller explains. However, protective clothing is needed at a much lower rate than the mass consumerism of regular clothing.

Both Jane and Vlada agree that the mindset of consumers need to change in order for the industry to move towards more sustainable practices. “There’s research being done on how to make synthetic fibers biodegradable.

That means it returns to the earth as food rather than just falling apart into small pieces,” Batchellor says. “But that shouldn’t give people the pass to keep buying and buying just because you think it will biodegrade.”

Rather than throwing away clothes that have small wear and tear, Blinova suggests learning how to sew and repair clothes. “We need to change our mindsets,” she asserts.

“People used to mend their clothes and take very good care of them by handwashing and spot cleaning. We shouldn’t just throw away clothes and keep buying more.”

hanging the mindset of constant consumerism is crucial to sustainability.

Lau and Blinova both caution against buying more clothes just because a brand claims to be sustainable. Greenwashing is a marketing tactic that creates an illusion of sustainability. H&M, for example, has a Conscious Collection of garments that use at least 50 per cent sustainable materials such as organic cotton or recycled polyester. However, as Lau points out, consumers should question “where are they sourcing the materials? Who’s making these clothes?”

Jenna Bacchus, is a business student at the U of A who is taking a different approach to fashion consumerism. She created Campus Closet, a market place specifically aimed at students to safely buy and sell gently used clothing. Bacchus believes that by creating an avenue for students to buy affordable, second-hand clothes, the carbon footprint of needing to purchase clothing decreases.

“If you’re buying something Zara or PrettyLittleThing, the shipping emissions can be so high. By buying something that’s already here and pre-worn, you’re giving it a second chance and making less waste,” she explains.

Safety and affordability for students is one of the top priorities of Campus Closet. Instead of searching for a completely new item that may be costly, or going to a stranger’s house from Facebook Marketplace, students can exchange items on campus.

Jenna also believes that Campus Closet can help change how students view consumerism. “The goal of Campus Closet is to open your mind to the idea that you don’t need to be buying new things all the time,” she explains.

Echoing the sentiments of Lau, Batcheller, and Blinova, Bacchus urges students to seek education on sustainability. The layers

of sustainable fashion can be arduous to peel off, and there may not be one single answer at the centre of it all. It would be a lie to say that I’m not occasionally tempted to browse the dresses of Fashion Nova or see a pair of shoes and immediately think “I need that.”

However, it’s also dystopically twisted that a shirt can cost less than a cup of coffee.

Practicing sustainable fashion isn’t just a cool new label to attach to ourselves in order to clear our moral conscience. It’s about truly understanding the social and environmental impact of mindless consumerism in the fashion industry. Besides saving money in the long run by investing in timeless, high-quality clothing, practicing slow fashion comes with benefits on a global scale. It can be disappointing, for the average university student, to wade through the choices of slow fashion brands and discover that shirts are no longer less than 20 dollars. But there is a choice for everyone, whether it’s upcycling used materials, shopping second hand, or simply buying less; it’s better to do something than to stay comfortably complicit in the abuse of the environment and other human beings. With so many avenues of sustainability to go down, from supporting fair trade to choosing ethically grown fibers, escaping the fast fashion empire is a journey that we all have a responsibility to take. g

JANUARY 2020 21

THE STUDIO

follower

TEXT KATHERINE DECOSTE ILLUSTRATION CARLA SORIANO

22 GTWY.CA

THE STUDIO

don’t come for me snow the soft air we can see but don’t camera inside me obscured eyes and quivering knees please don’t come for me in this frozen bright afternoon hoarfrost dripping don’t slit me and put me on ice or examine me when you find me don’t label me only rabbit footprints on the white lawn only firs heavy with shimmer flat grey sky sun sliding through like water i let my body freeze here i hunt for shade and strip naked i watch my nipples harden feel my cheeks go red and numb hot tingle across my skin do not come for me i am not waiting for you i am not waiting to be freed i am not waiting out the next long impenetrable winter i am not searching for light in the next stretching darkness

do not pull me back from the edge of the water do not cradle me thaw me i make a church here both tomb and altar do not lay me flat across the sacrificial stone: this much i can (must) do alone only let the music of barn owls and rattling twigs play through the still air only let me watch the horizon go blue don’t draw your black knife or sharpen it on leather don’t cut me you are not here with me you are another space from me do me no favour do not come to rescue do not come to open do not come with prying hands i do not want your sorrow or your guilt don’t come for me alone and unhidden among all the bare trees i will break myself i will lay me bare i am soil stone and air g

JANUARY 2020 23

HHHIDDENN IIN IN PLAIN LL N SSIGHT HT

EXPLORING HOMELESSNESS AND FOOD INSECURITY ON CAMPUS

TEXT KATE TURNER PHOTO MANPREET SINGH

FEATURES

CLOSE YOUR EYES. PICTURE SOMEONE WHO’S HOMELESS. SOMEONE WHO ’ DOESN T HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT OR ACCESS TO HEALTHY FOOD. NOW OPEN YOUR EYES. Was that person going to classes and labs, hanging out in the Students’ Union Building or the library, and participating in clubs and activities? Odds are when you think about someone who’s homeless, or food insecure, a university student isn’t the first person who comes to mind. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a problem on our campus, and in our community.

According to research done in 2018 by Dr. Eric Weissman, a researcher from the University of New Brunswick, an estimated 70,000 post-secondary students in Canada experience homelessness each year. For a comparison, the total number of undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Alberta is approximately 40,000.

To get a better understanding of what this issue looks like in Edmonton and at the University of Alberta, I spoke with different organizations and groups to break down what homelessness and food insecurity looks like around us, both on and off campus.

or students like me who spend a lot of their time on-campus, the experiences of the Edmonton community can sometimes seem like a whole different world. To get some wider context, I wanted to speak to someone in the wider community and get a better perspective on food insecurity in the city.

The Edmonton Food Bank (EFB) has been serving the Edmonton community since 1981. Carly Kincaid Williams, the special events and communications coordinator, said every month on average, the food bank supports 20,000 people.

That number, she added, has been increasing. “[The number of people we help] grows, unfortunately, and it has a

26 GTWY.CA

lot to do with the economy... when people lose their jobs, they need to come here,” she said.

Regarding the student population, the EFB supports a lot of families, she added, and so a breakdown of the specific number of youth (those up to 24 years old) they serve is hard to say.

“The food bank has a hamper program, which can serve both individuals and families. People can call the food bank, get set up with what their needs are, and be helped in the best way they can,” Kincaid Williams said. The hampers can be picked up at locations throughout the city, she added, which reduces any accessibility issues clients might have, and makes it more convenient.

The food bank also works with many different organizations, providing food for the people these organizations help, and allowing them to provide their own supports, Kincaid Williams added. They also have a program called Beyond Food, where other organizations help clients learn or develop skills, such as learning computer skills, resume building or getting their General Education Development certificate (GED).

“We work with those other organizations so that they do what they do best, and we don’t need to actually do those programs,” she said.

She described the partnerships with different organizations as a “tool,” adding that the programs of other organizations provide skills that will help clients get a step up.

“If we can help people and help them in a way that they may not have to use the food bank, or maybe not have to use it as often, that’s a huge thing,” she said.

A lot of the reasons for food insecurity in Edmonton have to do with people losing their jobs, Kincaid Williams said, or not working

as much. For youth, she added, it might be to do with struggles getting their first job or work enough hours. They also serve a lot of LGBTQ youth. It’s a “tough go,” she said, and some youth end up struggling and having to use the food bank.

However, happy stories come out of the food bank too. The EFB has a lot of people who come back and volunteer, or donate, once they don’t need the support anymore. “[The stories help you to know] you’re doing it for the right reasons, and it helps people, so it’s wonderful,” she added.

As our interview wrapped up, I asked Kincaid Williams about what can be done in the broader community to raise awareness or reduce stigma. She brought up the shame sometimes thought to be associated with food bank usage. There’s no shame in using the food bank, she emphasised, because people don’t know if someone else you know has used it too.

“It could be anybody, because the people that use the food bank are just normal people,” she concluded.

t’s often said that the university is a city within a city, mostly because of its large population. There are also lots of campus-specific versions of services that exist in the community, such as the university health center and pharmacy. That also means our campus “city” experiences some of the same challenges the wider Edmonton community faces. When faced with student homelessness and food insecurity, different campus organizations are addressing the challenge.

One organization responding to campus food insecurity is the Campus Food Bank (CFB).

Madi Corry, the program manager of the Campus Food Bank, said in the 2018/19 academic year, the food bank served just over 2500 individuals and made just over 1500 hampers. The hamper program can be accessed by students, staff and alumni up to five years after they have graduated, as long as their OneCard is still valid. The program is supplemental, meant to cover some of the basics and reduce their overall grocery bill, Corry said.

There are no limits on the number of hampers each person is eligible for, Corry added, explaining that some students only use the program once in their entire degree, and some will continue using it to supplement throughout their degree.

“We recognize that students are engaging in capacity building just by being in school, so hopefully in the future they may not ever need another food bank,” she said. “We don’t have any limits,” she added.

“If you’re in need of the support, and you’re part of our community, we can help you.”

“THE PEOPLE THAT USE THE FOOD BANK ”ARE JUST NORMAL PEOPLE. The CFB also runs no-cost cooking classes called Campus Kitchens, aimed at reducing isolation around cooking and eating and giving students more food knowledge. Grocery buses also run a few times per month, taking students to grocery stores away from

JANUARY 2020 27

MADI CORRY

FEATURES campus that are less expensive, and also have more variety, allowing international students to eat something that reminds them of home.

Corry explained that it’s important to have a food bank on campus, mentioning that with the population of the University of Alberta, it’s like living in a small town, and being supported in the university community can mean a lot to students.

“Students might be more comfortable accessing them because they’re in their safe space,” she said, “especially students who aren’t as familiar with Edmonton and just know campus.”

I asked Corry why food insecurity is a problem on university campuses, and she talked about the stressors present in the life of a university student, such as paying tuition, rent, and other costs.

Students are also in a precarious situation because of constantly working on school work and maybe not having the time for a job, she said. For people who are also supporting a family, Corry added, there is the challenge of balancing the costs of school and family life.

When asked about ways to decrease food bank usage, Corry explained they would like as many people accessing the food bank as need it, because students are in a “transitory state of capacity building.” She added that while it can be concerning to hear that food bank usage is increasing, they do like to know people are accessing their service who need it.

Research on different Canadian campuses, Corry told me, shows that an estimated 20-40 per cent of students are food insecure.

However, the food bank is not seeing those kinds of numbers translated into users.

“We’re not seeing that percentage with our 2500 individuals that we’re serving, that doesn’t equal to that percentage of our full campus populations, so we know there’s other people out there, we just haven’t managed to connect with them yet,” she said.

Awareness mostly comes from friends telling each other about the service, she added, as well as seeing their sign outside their location. However, she said, professors sharing in class can also reduce the stigma of food insecurity and get people talking about food insecurity.

“It can tell students in their class... that there’s a service available for them and also normalizes that we should be talking about when we’re not comfortable using food or don’t have access to food...so that people don’t feel like they need to be ashamed or hiding, or just living with the fact that they aren’t able to meet their food needs,” she said.

A few floors up from the CFB on the fifth floor of the Students’ Union Building is the Office of the Dean of Students (DoS), and through the glass doors is where I met Sarah Wolgemuth, assistant dean of students (student life), and Kevin Friese, assistant dean of students (health and wellness). They are co-chairs of a committee that looks at student homelessness.

Three years ago, when the committee was struck, they knew they were on the right track, Wolgemuth said, because different stakeholders and partners wanted to have the conversation about student homelessness.

“When you have a good idea, you know it’s a good idea because everybody is eager to get behind it,” she said. “Normally when you ask them to join a committee, they’re like ‘oh another committee,’ and this one was a group of pretty passionate people who were seeing similar things.”

In their jobs, Friese said, they regularly come into contact with individuals who are in “precarious” situations, such as not having

“IT CAN BE A HUGE UNDERTAKING FOR SOMEBODY TO HAVE THE COURAGE TO EVEN STEP UP AND” ASK FOR ASSISTANCE. a place to stay, facing food insecurity or financial issues. They were seeing a growing number of situations where these conditions were resulting in student homelessness.

The university has had a safehouse emergency housing program for ten years, but the service is based on short-term emergency use, usually up to two weeks, Wolgemuth told me. Friese added that for the past five years, they had been seeing between three and 25 students each year who needs some kind of short-term housing. But, they started seeing more students for different reasons where the two week emergency housing wasn’t enough to address their issue, and they needed more mid-range housing support.

When the committee started, Wolgemuth added, they didn’t have a lot of data, except for safehouse usage, and data of what some of the other service providers, such as the Campus Food Bank, were seeing. They thought about starting a survey to see what the problem of student homelessness on campus looked like, but ran into the issue of the varied definition of homelessness, she added.

They decided not to do a survey three years ago, but are now working with a researcher from the University of New Brunswick to develop a homelessness survey for the community. The anonymous data from the survey will also contribute to the creation of a national database on post-secondary homelessness, he added. “[With this database] we can start to educate and learn more about this at a national level with other institutions and share and develop best practices together,” he said.

In fall 2018, the committee began piloting a medium-term housing option, Friese said, as well as making sure they had support for other forms of precarity, such as food security, financial needs, safety, and career support. Since the pilot started, he added, three students have used the program.

To qualify, individuals must be students, and experience a personal safety risk, Wolgemuth said. The categories of personal safety risk breakdown to domestic violence, intolerable living conditions, such as a fire or flood where insurance isn’t covering a place to stay, or financial destitution. As a part of of intake, she added, part of a student’s responsibility is doing follow up with a social worker to address the issues that led them to need emergency housing.

Wolgemuth and Friese also talked about hidden homelessness: people who don’t have a fixed address or their own place, who might be couch surfing, sleeping in their car, or living in a lab or office, for example. While students might feel safe and pretty resourceful sleeping on a friend's couch, Wolgemuth pointed out that those situations can sometimes change suddenly, and students don’t always have a safety net.

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FEATURES “We’re here to support students, we know those sorts of changes, it’s impossible not to have an impact on your mental health and well-being, and therefore likely your academics,” she said. “So [we are] wanting to support students as holistically as we can.”

Wolgemuth shared an overheard conversation, where two students were discussing how long it would take for someone to notice if you were living on campus. If you were a graduate student with an office or a lab, you can shower in Van Vliet and get a locker on campus.

What came out of the story was the shame or embarrassment associated with living on-campus or the need to hide it, Wolgemuth said.

As a society, we tend to look down on homeless people, Friese said, and the media doesn’t usually portray them in a positive light.

There’s a stigma attached to identifying, and because of that, individuals think about how it will be received and judged, he added.

“It can be a huge undertaking for somebody to have the courage to even step up and ask for assistance,” he said.

Another issue is the concern of power differentials, he added. For example, international students might be afraid to identify as homeless, or in a precarious situation. They’re afraid they would get in trouble, kicked out of school or have troubles with their visas, none of which would happen in reality, Friese said.

Overall, the approach of the committee is holistic, using different campus partners to solve the housing aspect, as well as other areas, such as finances, careers support or food security.

“I think society as a whole is coming to the realization that homelessness isn’t just about housing, it’s not just about getting someone shelter. That we have to recognize that physical wellbeing, safety, mental health, all go hand in hand and that there’s a series of factors,” Friese said.

“IN OUR CITY WITHIN A CITY, HAVING RESOURCES TO SUPPORT OUR FRIENDS, PEERS AND CO-WORKERS CAN MEAN A LOT” TO STUDENTS. A group of U of A students are also working on addressing the issue of youth homelessness. Helping Hands for Homeless Youth (HHHY) is a student-led club started in 2014 that specifically addresses youth homelessness. Sidath Wijayasiri, president of HHHY, said there are groups on campus that serve the homeless population in general, but they are the only one that specifically deals with youth.

“We aren’t a very big student group, but we’re probably the only student group that deals directly with youth homelessness,” he said.

HHHY is made up of eight executives, as well as general members who help out at events. Their group mostly does fundraising events, such as samosa, chai and bake sales, in support of Youth Empowerment and Support Services (YESS), he explained.

YESS is an emergency shelter, as well as providing temporary housing and individual support for youth 15-24 years old. Their aim,

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as stated on their website, is “to walk beside traumatized youth as they heal through relationships.” They also work with partners to prevent and divert out homelessness.

HHHY’s biggest annual event is the Street Store, Wijayasiri said.

They collect clothing throughout the year, mostly from Lister Center and other residences, and in April, they display them in a store-like environment where youth from YESS and other youth organizations can choose clothes and get some toiletries.

Last year, the group also started volunteering with the Old Strathcona Youth Society, a youth resource center on Whyte Avenue. They volunteer in their collective kitchen, where they help prepare food served to youth on Saturdays.

Homeless youth are a different group from adults experiencing homelessness, which has different causes, Wijayasiri said, and it’s important to address.

“A lot of these youth, since they’ve been exposed to a lot of hardship from a young age, it’s important that we tackle this problem and help them get back up on their feet before they start experiencing instability into later in adulthood,” he said.

He added that a lot of people seem to view youth as a burden, and that we have a bad image of youth. However, having worked with homeless youth, he said, some of them are “really nice.”

“People are afraid of youth, I’d say, more so than other groups of homeless people,” he added, “but having worked with them directly, I’ve gotten to build meaningful relationships with them, and they’re just like you and me.”

ooking back on the conversations I had, the one thing that seemed to come up consistently was stigma. Whether it was about identifying as being homeless, or the perception of homeless youth, or using the food bank, the judgement of others seems to be an important factor in how people respond to their situation.

Helping and supporting people that live in our community, especially on-campus, is an important way to make people feel like they are supported where they are. In our city within a city, having resources to support our friends, peers and co-workers can mean a lot to students.

Homelessness or food insecurity are issues that impact students from diverse backgrounds and for various reasons. Odds are most of us know someone who has had one of these experiences or is currently facing these challenges.

Addressing these issues on campus starts with being a safe-space for friends to reach out and open up about their situation.

I thought Kevin Friese summed it up well.

“I hope that [students] recognize that it’s not up to an individual to go in alone. We as a community are here to support each other, and the best thing we can do is check in with each other and ask if someone needs assistance and help, and to approach that from a place of compassion and not being judgemental.”

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HOROSCOPES TEXT BREE MEIKLEJOHN VISUALS PETER ELIMA

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

Spend some time mourning the loss of the past decade if you need. Then, look forward to what this one has to offer: climate change.

It’s the Roaring Twenties again! Let’s listen to jazz, wear flapper dress, use old slang, and watch the crime rate dramatically increase as prohibition is implemented all while waiting for the devastating economic collapse looming on the horizon. Wait —

2000s babies turn 20 this year. Yes, you’re old.

One semester down, and now it’s time to start all over. It might seem daunting, but you’ve got this! Don’t give up.

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LEO

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SCORPIO

Counselling and therapy services at school are there to help. Pop in for a session; you may be surprised at how helpful it is.

If last semester didn’t go so well, now’s your chance to try again.

Remember to keep up with your assignments and readings… starting tomorrow.

Remember to recycle all those cans and bottles from your Great Gatsby themed New Years party.

New year, new you! It’s tempting to throw out those resolutions after the first few slip ups, but don’t be discouraged. Baby steps, friends.

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

No matter what the situation is or how bad things seem, it can be made better with Lizzo.

Because it’s the 20s again, try to ignore the looming threat of world war and bring back 1920s slang.

So you better know your onions (know what’s going on), drink some noodle juice (tea) and butt me! (give me a cigarette)

In honour of the new decade, make sure that everything you say ends with the phrase “old sport.” Also, never drive a yellow car.

Edmonton is such a beautiful city, so try exploring a part of it you haven’t been in yet. You may be pleasantly surprised at what hidden gems you find. g

GET YOUR TICKETS ONLINE

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uOFa student account manager Student Account Manager provides students access to their free tickets for Golden Bears & Pandas regular season conference events as well as their University of Alberta student pricing for conference playoff events. Students will be able to redeem and manage their tickets on their mobile device.

login with your uOFa email everything you need to know at

betheroar.ca @bearsandpandas

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DIVERSIONS

CROSSWORD TEXT & PUZZLE DAVID SPAK ACROSS

DOWN

2. A winter sport. I don’t need to give you a better clue for this one, it’s the first one you thought of.

3. What snow becomes on the warmer days.

7. What you might feel if one of your classes turns out to be a bad choice. Also, what you might feel about your choice to go to a university in Edmonton depending on how cold it gets.

8. Open toed footwear you will see people wearing in the winter for reasons unknown.

11. The worst way to get across a patch of ice.

12. Like a shovel, but faster and worse for the environment.

13 The sport that combines the three classic activities: falling on ice, angrily throwing heavy objects, and housework.

14. What your fingers might be if you’re on your phone too long at the bus stop on a cold day.

15. Makes a chilly day cold and a cold day hell.

Student Admission: $10 ($8 Matinée) Metro Cinema is a community-based non-profit society devoted to the exhibition and promotion of Canadian, international, and independent film and video. metrocinema.org Customer Appreciation Night January 13 Our annual celebration of you, our customers!

We’vr brought back two favourites for one more night. Free admission.

Films: Booksmart @ 7PM, Midsommar: Director’s Cut @ 9:15PM

Kiki’s Delivery Service January 18 & 22 A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.

Jan 18 @ 1PM - English dubbed Jan 22 @ 2PM - Japanese with subtitles

Juice

January 23 @ 9:30PM 4 Harlem teens, Q, Bishop, Raheem and Steel, find out an old friend was killed in a shootout at a bar and feel they have no respect, or juice. To get some, they rob a corner grocery store, but things take an unexpected turn. Only they know what happened, but one of them is out for himself.

Metro34 Cinema at the Garneau GTWY.CA 8712-109 Street | metrocinema.org

1. If you drive and don’t park inside, you have to do this to the ice and frost on your car. You don’t want to, but you really should.

4. The best way to get across a patch of ice.

5. Something in your house to keep you warm over winter. Also a great place to store last semester’s assignments.

6. You might love it when this falls out of the sky, but probably not when this word falls out of a conservative talk show host’s mouth.

9. We’re starting to get more of this, but it’s still too dark.

10. What you made when this month started. Also, what you will have forgotten by February.

Find answers on our website, gtwy.ca

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CONDO FOR SALE SPECTACULAR RIVER VALLEY VIEW Desirable 1600 sq.ft. open concept condo selling well below market value.

Prof. reno’d, with 2 U/G parking, LRT nearby, unit has 9ft. ceilings, 2bd/2ba (Master bd. extra large), office, gas fireplace, central vac. and in-suite laundry. All appliances, hardwood floors, basement storage room.

Energy efficient, Green bldg., HRV for each unit (fresh air). 100% owner occupied, NO SMO, and Prof. managed. Concrete walls/floors, car wash, visitor parking.

Amenities: Fitness Rm, guest suite, Party Rm., workshop & more.

For full info contact Darren at

780 488 2231.

Showing by appointment only.

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Just my Luck. The night is winding down just as I saddle up to the bar.. The Bartender pours me a tankard of wobbly-pop as a rowdy punk orders another round.

Cold. It’s always so Damn Cold in this Town. The kind of cold that give polar bears the chills. the Howling Winds and snow are Harsher than sandpaper...

On these kinds of nights the only place a bum like me can get out of the damn cold is by wandering into a watering Hole like this.. ‘Cept they don’t serve water. “Hole”, however is a pretty apt Description.

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A blanket of numb envelopes me as I sip from the tall fizzy glass. It’s this damn Cold. It puts the whole world to sleep!! No Dames to Mack on, no Asses to kick, no Geeks to run down.

If Only I could get a Piece of Action...

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Hey, Big-bike-boy!!

Better Be watchin’ your back. I need you for somethin’...

Dead or Alive!!

Jack Stewardson Presents: “Round Midnight” A Fat-Tire Vegabond adventure @koolestman 36 GTWY.CA

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January 03 Pandas Hockey vs Saskatchewan 7:00pm 04 Pandas Hockey vs Saskatchewan 2:00pm 10 Pandas Basketball vs UBCO 6:00pm 10 Pandas Hockey vs Mount Royal 7:00pm 10 Bears Basketball vs UBCO 8:00pm 11 Pandas Basketball vs UBCO 5:00pm 11 Bears Basketball vs UBCO 7:00pm 11 Bears Hockey vs Mount Royal 7:00pm 17 Bears Hockey vs Lethbridge 7:00pm 18 Pandas Basketball vs MacEwan 5:00pm 18 Bears Basketball vs MacEwan 7:00pm 18 Bears Hockey vs Lethbridge 7:00pm 24 Bears Volleyball vs Manitoba 6:00pm 24 Bears Hockey vs Calgary 7:00pm 24 Pandas Volleyball vs Manitoba 7:30pm 25 Pandas Volleyball vs Manitoba 5:00pm 25 Bears Volleyball vs Manitoba 6:30pm 25 Pandas Hockey vs Calgary 7:00pm 30 Pandas Basketball vs Calgary 6:00pm 30 Bears Basketball vs Calgary 8:00pm 31 Bears Volleyball vs Calgary 6:00pm 31 Pandas Hockey vs Regina 7:00pm 31 Pandas Volleyball vs Calgary 7:30pm

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01 Pandas Hockey vs Regina 2:00pm 01 Pandas Volleyball vs Calgary 5:00pm 01 Bears Volleyball vs Calgary 6:30pm 07 Pandas Basketball vs Saskatchewan 6:00pm 07 Bears Hockey vs Manitoba 7:00pm 07 Bears Basketball vs Saskatchewan 8:00pm 08 Pandas Basketball vs Saskatchewan 5:00pm 08 Bears Basketball vs Saskatchewan 7:00pm 08 Bears Hockey vs Manitoba 7:00pm 14 Pandas Volleyball vs Regina 7:30pm 15 Pandas Volleyball vs Regina 5:00pm

BeTheRoar winter semester home games

BIG we’ll print

and cheap*

*want a wall-sized poster of Jeff Goldbum without breaking the bank? We got you.

Lower Level SUB subprint.ca Open Monday–Friday: 9am—5pm