March 16, 2020

March 16, 2020

THE VARSITY The University of Toronto’s Student Newspaper Since 1880

Vol. CXL, No. 21

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COVID-19 concerns prompts U of T to cancel classes, close gyms, limit library hours

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Compensation for staff to continue, decision on professional faculty courses still up in the air Josie Kao, Kathryn Mannie, Andy Takagi Varsity News Team

Within a matter of days, the university’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak has evolved from discontinuing the requirement of a doctor’s note for absences, to cancelling nearly all in-person classes and closing a number of campus buildings. Since Wednesday, U of T has announced new measures each day to interrupt the transmission of COVID-19 as institutions across the country grapple with how to respond to the pandemic.

Most recently, it was announced that a number of U of T students will no longer be required to write in-person exams for the winter session, including students from the Faculty of Arts & Science, John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design, UTM, and UTSC. Undergraduates from the Faculty of Applied Sciences & Engineering and course-based Master’s of Engineering students will also not have to write in-person exams.

The John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design announced on its website that it has already moved classes online and would be following suit with its exams, reviews, and finals. This is despite the fact that the university has yet to make a final call on whether classes for professional programs will continue, with more information set to be released soon.

Since each professional program “has particular circumstances and accreditation requirements, consultation is ongoing today to determine the appropriate course of action.”

The Dean of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences Melanie Woodin wrote that “many A&S undergraduate students are faced with difficult decisions regarding whether to return home, given the increasing challenges with international travel.”

As such, the faculty decided that students should not be required to return to campus. These sentiments were mirrored in the statements released by the Faculty of Applied Sciences & Engineering, John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture,

Landscape, and Design, and UTSC. On March 14, the university announced in an email to faculty, librarians, and staff that it would be limiting hours for the selected libraries that will remain open, including Robarts Library, Gerstein Library, and libraries at UTM and UTSC. All libraries will be closed on the weekends. “Social distancing measures” will be put in place, and entry will be restricted solely to U of T users for the libraries that stay open.

Later that day, the university also notified students that it would be extending the deadline to credit/no credit (CR/NCR) and drop a course.

The previous deadline for these academic options was March 15. For the Faculty of Arts & Sciences, the new deadline will be April 25.

As of Sunday, all gyms and recreational facilities will be closed until April 3, and child care services will be halted until April 6. Due to the closure of a number of schools and daycares across the province, employees who are unable to secure child care may request to telecommute from home, use personal or vacation days, or access overtime banks. While administrators have asked that these types of requests be approved given the exceptional circumstances, it is ultimately up to university managers, chairs, and department heads to grant them.

U of T has committed to continue compensation for all university staff despite any “event cancellations, programming reductions, government required shutdowns, or any other operational closures for the next three-week period” that may occur. It is unclear if this measure will extend to casual and probationary workers, of which many are students. Further guidelines for human resources representatives and business and payroll officers are set to be released this week.

On March 13, the university announced that it would be cancelling all undergraduate and research-steam masters and doctoral courses

Behind the decision to call off classes and U of T’s COVID-19 strategy

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Department members praise administration, mass conference call preceded cancellation announcement

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effective from today until April 3. During this time, alternative forms of teaching will be provided, including the use of online platforms. It is still uncertain exactly how courses will be completed given these measures, or how exams will be administered.

Some available options for course completion that were detailed in a memo released March 11 include moving lectures online or assigning all students 100 per cent for remaining assignments. More disruptive strategies would require approval under the University Assessment and Grading Practices Policy, such as cancelling an exam, or changing the weighting of an assignment. If other measures are necessary, such as designating a course as CR/NCR for all students, or assigning a letter grade as opposed to a numeric one, instructors would need to consult with the dean’s office.

As courses transition online, the Canadian government has assured international students that this will not affect their eligibility for the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program.

As of March 12, U of T’s international activity will be halted until June 1. Students who are abroad have been asked to contact the Centre for International Experience, and the university announced it is coordinating with those who are currently outside the country to provide support, whether they wish to remain abroad or return early.

On March 11, the university made the nowobsolete decision to no longer require a doctor’s note or medical certificates for students who miss class due to cold or flu-like symptoms, or due to self-isolation.

U of T has directed all members of the community and visitors to self-isolate for 14 days after travel outside of Canada, and to contact Telehealth Ontario or their primary care provider’s offices if experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, which include a fever, dry cough, or difficulty breathing.

On March 13, the University of Toronto announced a mass cancellation of in-person classes across all three campuses, effective from March 16 to April 3 — the last day of classes — moving to alternative forms of delivery of classes, including online. This is applicable to all undergraduate classes and research-based graduate programs, though professional programs decide independently about class structure moving forward.

The decision, as with all major elements of U of T’s COVID-19 strategy, came after consultations with the heads of major U of T faculties, as well as the Provost’s Academic Continuity team. Dean’s offices across various faculties were also informed in advance of the mass notice via conference call. As a result, the announcement did not come as a surprise to various members of the administration, although it may have been startling for some students.

Vice-President & Provost Cheryl Regehr and Vice-President Research & Innovation, and Strategic Initiatives Vivek Goel are leading U of T’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Notably, Goel also serves as a professor at the Institute of Health Policy, Management and

Evaluation at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. The administrative offices to whom The Varsity reached out lauded the two for their management of the COVID-19 response, as well as their determination to make the best decisions for U of T students.

In an email to The Varsity, a member of administration in the Faculty of Music emphasized that due to the urgency and rapidly evolving nature of the situation, internal communication took place with a “very tight turnaround,” but it did indeed take place. “Know that administrative zeal and corporate complexification sometimes seems to leave some constituencies in lag (including students, support staff, part-time teachers, public stakeholders). However, in the present situation, everyone is really trying to do the best we can,” they wrote.

“The university administration has been outstanding in monitoring the COVID-19 situation and advising departments on developments,” a statement from the English department read.

“We were able to advise all instructors on various contingency plans initially as early as last Friday and more fully this Monday.”

A member of the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design noted an underlying sense of solidarity in U of T’s response: “We are all trying to manage a quickly

evolving situation and set of circumstances… We all share the goal of trying to ensure the health and safety of our whole community, while maintaining our responsibilities and commitments to the education and welfare of our students.”

The decision to cancel in-person classes followed a March 9 open letter released by the University of Toronto Faculty Association, directed to the Office of the Vice-President and Provost. The letter urged a special meeting of the Joint Committee for the purpose of discussing a response to the outbreak. The Joint Committee is outlined in Article 12 of the university’s memorandum of agreement with the faculty association as consisting of “not fewer than four (4) representatives of the Association and not fewer than four (4) representatives of the University of Toronto Administration,” and can be convened with a seven days’ written notice. Two days later, on March 11, the Office of the Vice-President and Provost posted a memo mandating that course instructors each develop a strategy for delivering courses, in case in-person classes were no longer possible.

“We will ask instructors to walk toward that plan as slowly as we can and as fast as we need to,” the memo read. That same day, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic.

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U of T recalls all students studying abroad as COVID-19 cases rise globally Students abroad describe lack of communication, short notices from the university Andy Takagi News Editor

On Friday, U of T notified students studying abroad in Germany, Spain, and France that they were being recalled home. This call was expanded on Sunday to all students abroad, asking them to declare an intention to stay or leave their host country by Monday. Students studying abroad have harshly criticized the university’s unclear communications regarding their status.

Students in Europe: Germany, Spain, and France recalled first With COVID-19 cases across Germany, Spain, and France totaling over 15,000 at press time, the university recalled students in those countries first, prior to Sunday’s general recall. In an email sent on Friday, U of T gave students on exchange at institutions in the three countries two options: an early return that includes a withdrawal from the exchange and losing the credit, or early return while maintaining online courses at the host institution. The latter option depends on the availability of online courses at the host institution.

If the institution does not currently have information available, students are instructed to withdraw from courses.

Students affected by the recall and others who remain in countries with a rising number of cases detailed to The Varsity a severe lack of communication and general confusion as the university’s strategy for safety abroad developed.

Sam*, a third-year peace, conflict and justice (PCJ) student on exchange at Sciences Po, described being placed into quarantine twice over

MARCH 16, 2020 the span of three weeks — all with no word from U of T, despite being told by Sciences Po that home institutions were informed of the situation.

“It was terrifying,” Sam wrote to The Varsity.

While Sciences Po sent Sam daily emails, and her friends who were also on exchange received daily updates from their home institutions, U of T never once contacted her while she was in and out of quarantine.

“I had no idea what was going on and what I was supposed to do. I really thought they just didn’t give a fuck,” wrote Sam. “I totally get that they’re humans too… But it just would’ve been nice for them to reach out and take a little bit more responsibility for the students they’re supposedly in charge of.”

As American universities began pulling international students from across Europe at the start of March, Saba Javed, a third-year PCJ student also at Sciences Po saw her classmates going home, with no plans from U of T to recall students at the time.

“While I know that the admin was likely overwhelmed trying to coordinate plans, it was really frustrating to see sent emails to the domestic undergrad student body telling them that they had been keeping in touch with those of us abroad, when the only email we’d received was in February which simply told us to hang tight,” Javed wrote.

“It’s overwhelming to witness how quickly this has escalated - I think on most days we’re all sort of oscillating between treating the day like any other and sitting with the dread of what this will all turn into.”

Students abroad in Singapore: “an administrative clusterfuck” The Varsity also spoke to students in Singapore, where more than 200 cases of COVID-19 have been reported, who felt left in the dark on what they should do moving forward.

Michelle Zhang and Elizabeth Shaw, two PCJ students in Singapore, were left in the dark by the administration that did not recall them until Sunday.

Prior to Sunday’s recall, Zhang wrote “I can appreciate that this pandemic and consequent school cancellation is likely not part of regular risk management and contingency evaluations, and so comes with no administrative precedent.”

However, she told The Varsity that the last time she heard from the Centre for International Experience was in February, without any updates following the recent announcements. “We exchange students are left without any sense of security, agency, or clarity about our current standings or our foreseeable futures,” Zhang wrote.

Proposed changes to clubs policy discussed at University Affairs Board meeting Fee increases passed for Student Life, Kinesiology, and Hart House Hannah Carty Associate News Editor

At a University Affairs Board meeting on March 11, the board discussed several changes to U of T’s clubs recognition policy, along with transcript initiatives. The board also passed ancillary fee increases and U of T’s operating budget.

Campus groups recognition policy U of T Vice-Provost Students Sandy Welsh gave an overview of the proposed changes to the Policy on the Recognition of Campus Groups, which was last revised in 1993. The university has been holding in-person consultations for these changes, and online consultations will be open until March 27. For starters, the term ‘campus groups’ will be changed to ‘student groups,’ to reflect that the available clubs funding and space on campus should go to students and not external groups.

While group membership can still extend beyond current students, the executives of recognized student groups must be registered U of T students, something that was not required under the old

policy. An individual can also cannot serve as the financial signing officer for more than one group.

Another new change requires groups to have the phrase “student group” in their name if they also use “U of T” or “University of Toronto.” The current policy also does not have a minimum number of members required for a group to be recognized.

The proposal sets a minimum of 10 members, though Welsh commented that this number is really a placeholder, and she hopes to get feedback from the community on whether it should change.

Fee increases The Academic Board approved three fee increases for Student Life, Kinesiology and Physical Education, and Hart House. All three increases to student fees passed through the Council on Student Services, of which all five representative student societies are a part.

Student Life is changing its fee structure to separate the Health & Counselling and Student Services. “We’ve prioritized our resources around Health & Counselling,” said David Newman, Executive Director of Student Experience, about the new fee structure.

Fees for Health & Counseling will see a 8.83 per cent sessional increase for full- and parttime students. The Student Services fee will see a 10.64 per cent increase. This means that full-time students at the St. George campus will be paying $81.47 in counselling fees and $98.89 in student services fees beginning next year.

“Quite honestly, the way u of t is dealing with this is an administrative clusterfuck,” wrote Shaw, who also feels frustrated with a lack of communication, having only received three emails from the university, which were ambiguous about whether to stay or leave. “On March 12 they sent that general email to all U of T students saying they’re working closely with students abroad, but we haven’t received any follow up whatsoever.”

Both Zhang and Shaw confirmed that they did not receive any notice of the recall of students in Europe.

Students across the globe recalled Sunday Students studying abroad in every country were notified via email that they were being recalled to Toronto or their home on Sunday.

Should students choose to remain abroad, they would be “putting the completion of academic activity at risk” and the university “may not be able to help with return home at a later date.” Upon their return, students are being asked to self-isolate and follow guidelines by Toronto public health authorities.

Study abroad students are being asked to complete a form prior to March 16 at 11:59 pm Toronto time in order for the university to organize their travel. The university will assist with additional incurred travel costs.

Zhang wrote to The Varsity after receiving the recall notification that she was feeling “very shocked right now and pressured to make a decision fast in the middle of the night.”

She criticized the university’s response, noting that nothing was done when Asia was experiencing the effects of COVID-19 in January, but action is being taken now when the pandemic has reached North America. “This is clearly less about our safety and more about their liability,” wrote Zhang.

U of T’s Safety Abroad Team explained in its email that the recall aligns with advice from the Canadian government to return to Canada as commercial travel becomes more limited.

In order to continue their studies students may either return early and complete their courses online, however, this is dependant on online courses being available from the host institution. Alternatively, if it is not clear online completion of courses is possible, students may return early and the university will connect them with the relevant academic advisor. *Names have been changed for privacy The Varsity has reached out to U of T for comment.

Newman noted that Student Life has hired an Indigenous wellness coordinator, who will be located in the First Nations House. The budget increase is also going toward a “resiliency program” to combat mental health problems through programs that teach coping skills and an increase in counsellors available for low-risk students.

The Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education (KPE) fee, which runs all gyms and sports on campus, will see a 2.3 per cent increase for fulland part-time students at all three campuses. The budget increase will go primarily toward compensation — as KPE is the biggest on-campus employer of students — and annual facility reviews.

The fee for Hart House will also increase by 7.63 per cent for full- and part-time students. Hart House Warden John Monahan noted that the fee increase will go toward performing construction on the Arbor Room, which has previously faced setbacks, and increasing accessibility, particularly through the creation of more accessible washrooms.

Transcript initiatives Enrolment Services also gave a presentation on its transcript initiatives. Students have been able to request electronic transcripts on ACORN since November 2019. The electronic transcripts are available in 30 minutes or less, as opposed to longer waits for printed transcripts.

An Enrolment Services representative noted that the paper transcripts are easier to forge, and as such, their new system is much more secure.

The office is also working on creating a more comprehensive transcript, which could display a student’s co-curricular record along with their academic record and any scholarships or awards that a student has received.

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U of T signs open-access agreement with Karger Publishers

One-year provisional agreement is company’s first openaccess deal in Canada Srivindhya Kolluru Business Editor

U of T Libraries and Karger Publishers entered a “transformative open access agreement” on February 25, which would make more U of T articles available for free to people across the world. The agreement went into effect on January 1, 2020, and is Karger Publishers’ first open-access agreement in Canada. Karger Publishers oversees over 100 journals in health and medicine.

Open access, in the context of academic research, entails making published material free to access for readers. Through this oneyear provisional agreement, U of T-affiliated authors will be able to make their publications through Karger Publishers’ e-journals open access and not have to pay article processing charges (APCs). Certain open-access journals charge APCs, which can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars, once an article has been accepted.

According to Larry Alford, the Chief Librarian at U of T, the deal came at no additional cost to the university.

“U of T sees this as a good deal for them, because it doesn’t cost them more money,” said Leslie Chan, a UTSC professor and advocate for open-access research, in an interview with The Varsity. “In theory, more U of T articles will become openly accessible to anybody around the world.”

But Chan did not praise the agreement on all fronts, noting that it hinders the openaccess movement. “I don’t think it’s a good deal, because I don’t think it’s a fair or equitable deal,” said Chan.

“There’s no transparency, so the publisher can play games whatever way they want,” said Chan. “The negotiating power is all with the publishers, not with the buyers.”

According to Chan, when universities enter open-access agreements that do not publicly disclose the cost, they are agreeing to a system that disadvantages other universities. He said that Karger Publishers could leverage its agreement with U of T, and form deals with other universities, who would be unable to compare the cost or terms of agreement with other institutions. Chan likened U of T’s agreement with Karger Publishers to purchasing a vehicle from a car dealership, but not being able to disclose to anyone how much it was purchased for.

Alford did not respond to a question regarding the nature of U of T’s deal with Karger Publishers, such as whether a nondisclosure agreement was drawn. However, he noted that U of T and peer Canadian universities in the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) partner to negotiate access to journals from legacy publishers such as Elsevier, Springer, WileyBlackwell, and Taylor & Francis.

“This partnership enables Canadian universities to leverage our collective purchasing power to reduce the cost of access to research,” wrote Alford in a statement to The Varsity. “We will continue to work closely with CRKN to negotiate access to journal packages.”

— With f iles from Alex Law

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NEWS

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Petition calls on U of T to divest from fossil fuels, declare a climate emergency University responds with commitment “to playing a leadership role in addressing climate change” Mikaela Toone Associate News Editor

Leap UofT has circulated a petition for the university community calling for U of T to declare a climate emergency and divest from fossil fuels.

This was done in conjunction with other environmental justice organizations on campus, including the Ontario Public Interest Research Group Toronto.

The petition also calls for the university to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030, increase environmental and sustainability education programs, and sign a letter in support of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 13: Quality Education and Climate Action, respectively.

Carmen, a second-year student in biodiversity and conservation biology and diaspora and transnational studies, and a member of Leap UofT, said that the groups chose the route of petitioning because it was an efficient way to diffuse their message to a large audience.

However, Carmen noted that this is only an initial step in their advocacy plans to “get the message out” and go through institutional channels prior to taking more “dramatic” measures.

In response to the petition, a U of T spokesperson wrote to The Varsity that the university is “committed to playing a leadership role in addressing climate change” via research, teaching, and reducing the carbon footprint of campuses.

The spokesperson also pointed to efforts made by the University of Toronto Asset Management Corporation to reduce the endowment and pension fund’s carbon footprint by 40 per cent over the next 10 years.

In the lead up to 2015, a petition from Toronto350.org and student activists encouraged U of T to create a committee to investigate the uni-

versity’s financial investments. The Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC) was created and recommended that U of T divest from firms that ignore the 1.5 degrees Celsius warming threshold, are disseminating misinformation regarding the climate crisis, or from those that get 10 per cent or more of their revenue from non-conventional or aggressive extraction.

In 2016 the university rejected recommendations from PAC and instead took an approach that evaluates firms using environmental, social, and governance factors.

Following the rejection of recommendations by the PAC, President Gertler struck the President’s Advisory Committee on Environment, Climate Change, and Sustainability (CECCS).

CECCS focuses a response to the climate crisis from the perspective of academia, that is curriculum innovation, campus as a living lab, and the university as an agent of change.

Scott Prudham, a professor in the School of Environment, felt that the actions were insufficient: “If, as [the CECCS] argues, U of T needs to be a living lab and an agent of change, then this must go beyond curriculum to the material and energy foundations of the institution.”

Professor Matthew Hoffman, who served on the PAC, noted “our portfolio is higher in carbon emissions than I’d like to see.”

The divestment petition states that U of T has “a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate genuine institutional leadership in the fight against dangerous climate change and in the fight for a socially just climate transition.”

The petition is accepting signatures until April 2, 2020.

UTSU Elections 2020 Candidate profiles PRESIDENT Bryan Liceralde Bryan Liceralde, a fourth-year political science student, is back to run for president of the UTSU. Liceralde — who lost the union’s presidential election last year with 24 per cent of the vote — cited students’ experience of grade deflation and a desire to challenge the provincial government’s postsecondary cuts as his motivations to run this year.

Liceralde wrote to The Varsity that he distinguishes himself as a potential “commuter president from Brampton,” and intends to have “more conversations about pop culture as much as about UTSU policy” at the union. “I’ll also be posting about my mundane rants on music, like why Billie Eillish and The Weekend [sic] are so overrated.”

While Liceralde acknowledges that he lacks student union experience, he emphasizes his activeness at UTSU general meetings this year. He wants to stop holding of Board of Director and All-Candidates Meetings on Sunday, out of respect for students’ faith. If an alternative schedule cannot be decided, he clarified, “then there is always Instagram Live.”

Liceralde also supports the creation of an elective course on student politics, an academic referendum on breadth requirements, and credit/no credit options for two full credits of mandatory program courses.

On finance, he intends to spend $7,500 on a

VICE-PRESIDENT EQUITY Alexandra McLean Alexandra McLean is a first-year social sciences

Day into voting period, UTGSU Council calls off elections Council rules elections illegitimate, cycle to begin again

COURTESY OF BRYAN LICERALDE

student. McLean has previously served as chair of the advocacy committee and a member of the UTSU’s First Year Council. “As a Deaf individual with bilateral cochlear implants, I am extremely passionate about equity-based objectives and hope to dedicate my future career to initiatives that promote access to vital services and resources for all,” wrote McLean of her campaign.

As vice-president equity, McLean would prioritize intersectionality: “While we all go to the same university, we do not experience it in the same way.” Changes she would implement include the creation of a diversity and equity firstyear council that would increase access to campus resources through student life, equity, and accessibility-based initiatives. The council would also plan and promote events, with a focus on equity and diversity. She would also look to implement mental health initiatives within the eXpression Against Oppression campaign.

COURTESY OF ALEXANDRA MCLEAN

Lauren Alexander and Andy Takagi Associate News Editor and News Editor

Only a few hours into the voting period for the 2020 University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU) elections, the General Council has called them off. The council ruled that the elections are illegitimate in a meeting on March 9 due to bylaw violations in the elections code.

The elections cycle will begin again with a new timeline, starting with a nomination period, though none of it has been finalized yet, according to Chief Returning Officer (CRO) Amin Kamaleddin. He wrote to The Varsity in an earlier statement that he and the Elections Committee had not been informed of the context of the meeting, and as such had continued with the elections until they were called off.

During a February meeting of council, disagreements over the ballot format and a vote to change the elections code led the council to suspend its own bylaws, which require a two-week notification to the membership on changes to the election. As pointed out by Chair of the Legal Ad-Hoc Committee Branden Rizzuto, the actions of the meeting made the elections susceptible to an appeal.

At the March 9 meeting of the council, di-

scholarship program for the tuition of a student “who’s made a huge impact on student life.” He also vows to advocate for university-subsidized residence plans, according to income brackets: “If a student’s family makes less than $90k CAD, then they will pay nothing for residence.”

Liceralde also promises to overturn the newly merged position of Vice-President Public and University Affairs and the UTSU’s Got You Services, citing the unhealthiness of the late night time commitment required by staff.

Liceralde said that the UTSU “should maintain a neutral position” on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and he would refuse to fund groups that promote “violence against civilians from either Israel or Palestine.”

rectors brought up numerous violations in the elections code of UTGSU bylaws, including not using a ranked ballot system, not having physical polling stations, and extending the voting period longer than is permitted in the bylaws.

At the meeting, Kamaleddin claimed that the elections committee based their elections code on previous years, which may have also violated UTGSU bylaws. Further, Kamaleddin said the committee did not have enough time to write a “proper elections code,” as this topic was not reached at the Annual General Meeting.

With the elections now restarted, there is a risk that the UTGSU could be without an executive by the May 1 deadline, endangering the funding that the UTGSU gets from the university. In addition, the new elections would take place during the April exam period, which could elicit a lower voter turnout.

In terms of the budget, the restarted elections could mean more expenses for the UTGSU. The now-cancelled election had 17 candidates in the running, with an empty race for finance commissioner and an uncontested external commissioner candidate.

Vibhuti Kacholia Vibhuti Kacholia is a third-year global health, psychology, and women and gender studies student, and is running to be the next vice-president equity of the UTSU. Kacholia has long been a member of the Victoria University Students’ Administrative Council, and has held the roles of councillor, equity co-chair, and vice-president external. She’s running for the UTSU to “take the experience [she] gained at the college level and translate it student wide.”

While Kacholia lauds the UTSU’s recent memorandum of agreement with the Black Students’ Association, she believes that the union lacks transparency — specifically in the equity portfolio. This follows criticisms that have been raised against current Vice-President Equity Michael Junior Samakayi for failing to meet the Board of Directors’ expectations on equity-related campus events.

Kacholia is committed to reaching out to “individuals [who] may not see themselves reflected in student politics” in order to provide spaces for them and hear their voices. As part of her platform, Kacholia hopes to establish an open channel where students can “voice the realities of mental health and accessibility to faculty and staff.” She hopes this will promote understand-

ing between students and faculty regarding the student experience.

Kacholia plans on expanding the eXpression Against Oppression program, which delivers a series of events throughout the year aimed at raising awareness of marginalization on campus. She also proposed reforming the UTSU’s minutes system by releasing shorter summaries so that “students don’t have to read the pages of minutes.”

COURTESY OF VIBHUTI KACHOLIA

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MARCH 16, 2020

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Lauren Alexander, Hannah Carty, Ibnul Chowdhury, Jadine Ngan, Nawa Tahir, Mikaela Toone Varsity Contributors

Muntaka Ahmed Muntaka Ahmed is a third-year student double majoring in immunology and health and disease running for president of the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU). She is currently the executive assistant, clubs of the UTSU; the vice-president finance of the Muslim Students’ Association; and the marketing co-director of the Bangladeshi Students’ Association.

Ahmed wrote to The Varsity that she is running “from a place of wanting to provide meaningful representation” as a visible “Muslim/hijabi woman of colour.” Noting that it can be difficult for students who come from more complex intersections than herself, Ahmed hopes that by running she “provides a step in the right direction” for students who have yet to see themselves represented within leadership positions.

If elected, Ahmed would like to implement more engaging UTSU programing beyond Orientation Week, Frost Week, and the Unity Ball.

In addition, Ahmed believes that the UTSU

needs to improve its consultations with student groups rather than expecting student groups to come to it, emphasizing the need for “a shift from an inherent hierarchical mindset to a more lateral and student-facing one… the UTSU is a team of 38,000 and it’s time we started acting like one.”

Arjun Kaul Arjun Kaul is a fifth-year student studying neuroscience, cell and molecular biology, and English, and he is running for president of the UTSU. Currently, Kaul is the vice-president operations of the UTSU. Reflecting on his past year with the UTSU, Kaul wrote “I think we’ve prioritized the student experience really well.” He plans to continue to expand the UTSU’s services, such as its food bank, tax clinic, and student aid program, if elected.

However, he would have liked to see more decisive action from the UTSU regarding mental health, which Kaul identified as his priority for the coming year. He believes that the UTSU should work to “provide students with a comfortable space to study, exist, and live, both on and off campus.”

Kaul wants to make the UTSU itself more accessible by encouraging students to come to board meetings and allowing them to submit

COURTESY OF ARJUN KAUL

COURTESY OF MUNTAKA AHMED

VICE-PRESIDENT STUDENT LIFE Tasnim Choudhury Tasnim Choudhury is a third-year cell and molecular biology and human biology student running for vice-president student life of the UTSU. Choudhury is currently the vice-president student life at the Muslim Students’ Association (MSA), where she was in charge of the association’s fall orientation “to make sure students do not feel overwhelmed by their new surround-

ings.” If elected to vice-president student life, Choudhury would aim to ease the transition to university by making the UTSU Orientation Week more accessible and equitable.

Choudhury believes that her past experiences at the MSA as the director of special events in her second year, and the vice-president student life this year have prepared her to manage her desired role at the UTSU. In these positions, she has organized events for the Muslim community at U of T, such as the annual MSA formal, farewell dinners, and orientation, with the goal of helping incoming students “embrace the diversity at U of T in terms of clubs and culture.”

She commends the UTSU for its efforts to create better relationships with student clubs this year. However, she thinks that the UTSU could have better handled orientation by making events more accessible.

Choudhury also plans to minimize waste during orientation, and increase the available space so that the events are not too congested. She believes that strong communication between the orientation leaders and volunteers is highly important, and hopes to organize more workshops for students to be better prepared for university life.

COURTESY OF TASNIM CHOUDHURY

VICE-PRESIDENT OPERATIONS Dermot O’Halloran Dermot O’Halloran is a third-year comprehensive studies, jazz student in the Faculty of Music, running for vice-president operations. He currently serves as vice-president professional faculties of the UTSU. O’Halloran is running to create “a UTSU that will increase student engagement, contribute to a positive campus environment, and provide more of the resources that students need.”

The UTSU vice-president operations oversees finances, a team of full-time staff, and UTSUprovided student services. In terms of UTSU finances, O’Halloran’s first priority is accountability. He seeks to clarify the use of UTSU finances “as much as legally possible,” and increase enforcement of the UTSU’s executive timekeeping policy.

Attendance has been a problem for the UTSU’s Board of Directors. If elected, O’Halloran intends to bolster motivation to attend by “foster[ing] a more positive culture between the Board and Executives.” He looks forward to continuing the efforts of current UTSU President Joshua Bowman to create the most “internallyknowledgeable Board… that the UTSU has seen in years.”

Neeharika Hemrajani Neeharika Hemrajani is a second-year history and ethics, society and law student running for the vice-president student life at UTSU. She is currently representing St. Michael’s College on the Board of Directors at the UTSU where she has sat on several committees, including finance, clubs, and campaigns and outreach committees. She noted that she is aware of the isolation that students, especially commuters, face at university. She hopes to shape more of a community across campus.

COURTESY OF NEEHARIKA HEMRAJANI

Highlights of O’Halloran’s platform include increasing the accessibility and clarity of the UTSU’s bylaws and policies, and bolstering outreach. He cited an interest in “establishing class visits to get the UTSU’s message out” and “hosting one town hall every semester to hear students’ concerns.”

He also wrote that he hopes to enhance the health and dental plan, with an emphasis on ensuring “ease of access to mental health resources.”

COURTESY OF DERMOT O’HALLORAN

questions to board meetings ahead of time, as well as not using board reports as the only measure of progress.

He hopes to streamline the UTSU’s move into the Student Commons and create a peer support program run out of the building.

VICE-PRESIDENT PUBLIC AND UNIVERSITY AFFAIRS Tyler Riches Tyler Riches is a second-year student majoring in human geography and minoring in women and gender studies and urban studies, and running for vice-president public and university affairs.

He is currently the University College director for the UTSU. Riches explained that his main motivation for running is that “students are facing an affordability crisis on our campus and in our city.”

His priorities for university advocacy are extending the credit/no credit deadline to the last day of classes and “further consultation and changes” to the controversial university-mandated leave of absence policy, which allows for the university to remove students from studies if they pose a risk to themselves or others. He also wants to work on creating more financial aid opportunities for students in financial need. “The current system does not recognize that tuition is not the only cost that students have to worry about in order to attend University,” wrote Riches.

For Riches’ external policy, he hopes to lobby for a six-month, interest-free grace period for provincial student loans, and for a free tuition

Hemrajani is the president of her house council on residence, which she wrote has given her the experience of community-building. She also worked as a student ambassador for Sephora Collection and Bumble, as well as contributed to The Varsity.

Hemrajani appreciates the UTSU for introducing the First Year Council this year, among other achievements. She wrote that she is “eager to see further collaboration between the Equity and Student Life portfolios” in order to increase the scale of the eXpression Against Oppression events. She believes that UTSU should ensure that clubs receive “communication regarding their funding much quicker.”

She also believes that “that the clubs committee should work to support funding opportunities for [club] specific events rather than by a particular timeline,” in order to make the process for funding requests more accessible.

Hemrajani also called for “greater collaboration between the colleges, faculties and the UTSU to broaden the scope of orientation activities and expand the sense of community to be campus wide from the very beginning.”

“If I could change orientation, I would push for the necessary collaborations between the student groups across all three campuses,” she wrote.

program from low-income students.

As well, he will continue to lobby the TTC for affordable transit options for students.

Riches feels strongly that the UTSU should leave the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS). Although UTSU executives cannot directly contribute to any defederation efforts, Riches wrote, “from the get-go I would support any students looking to organize a petition to call for a referendum on our CFS membership, in any way that I can.”

COURTESY OF TYLER RICHES

Business

March 16, 2020 var.st/business biz@thevarsity.ca

Tata Trusts invests $14 million in U of T’s Mumbai-based research centre Investment signals growing corporate and partnership opportunities between U of T and Indian institutions Megan Brearley Deputy Senior Copy Editor

U of T continues to facilitate research efforts and collaborations in India. It has announced details of its partner Tata Trust’s investment for its research centre in Mumbai, and an entrepreneurship program at a leading academic institution in the country.

In 2018, the university announced plans to establish the centre as part of the School of Cities Alliance in India.

During the February 3 Business Board meeting, Ted Sargent, U of T’s Vice-President International, provided updates on the centre, including a six-year $14 million grant from Tata Trusts, one of India’s oldest philanthropic organizations and U of T’s partner in the venture.

The centre will aim to develop new ways to solve urban problems, with an India-specific focus, and while it does not yet have a physical space, it is expected that one will be open and functional later this year, Sargent explained in an interview with The Varsity. Likewise, hiring for the centre is expected to take place over the next few months.

On March 12, U of T announced that it would be developing an entrepreneurship program with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB).

Centre could open up research, corporate partnerships The centre is affiliated with U of T’s School of Cities, which aims to find innovative ways of approaching urban issues. In addition to its affiliations with the School of Cities and its partnership with Tata Trusts, it hopes to continue to expand its collaborations over time.

Beyond the Tata Trusts grant, the centre will sustain itself through philanthropic support from future partnerships.

“Tata Trusts is a wonderful partner,” said Sargent. “And so the hope is that when U of T… really [has] an impact on the Indian ecosystem of research, of urban innovation, entrepreneurship, over the first six years, that there’ll be the potential to partner further with Tata Trusts.”

He also highlighted the number of innovative corporations in India, and the opportunities for potential partnerships on that front.

Sargent noted that actively working in India means that there will “be opportunities to increase the amount of corporate engagement between U of T, the U of T centre in Mumbai, and Indian corporate partners.”

Research partnership with Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Sargent also spoke of the partnership between the U of T centre in Mumbai and IITB. The university recently announced the establishment of an entrepreneurship program as part of the partnership between IITB and the new U of T centre.

The program will include an exchange program for “budding entrepreneurs,” as well as conferences, workshops, and startup competitions.

Furthermore, the partnership hopes to provide students with opportunities to work at select Indian corporations.

The goal of the new program is to “support research collaborations and develop a strong, two-way innovation talent pipeline,” according to U of T News.

SEOYEON LEE/THE VARSITY

Sargent highlighted the development of smart cities in India as one particular area of interest for this collaboration.

“So India… has undertaken to upgrade a whole list of some of its major population centres to become the smart cities in the future,” said Sargent “And the School of Cities and their partners at IITB will be working with specific cities in India to develop their plans, and to eventually roll [them] out.”

Plans for expansion Beyond the centre itself, Sargent noted that U of T hopes to figure out how the work of staff and students can have a “translational impact” across different parts of the globe. He highlighted that

the model for the Mumbai centre is dependent on both its location and the partnership with Tata Trusts.

“It has a very clearly defined rule that all of its funds need to be spent in India and they need to benefit the Indians directly,” said Sargent. “So we’re building the centre out on that principle.”

He also commented that the model is “Indiaspecific” and any similar centres in the future would depend upon a number of variables, including partnerships and location.

Sargent noted that U of T is pleased with the model that it’s established for the Mumbai centre. “We think it’s a very exciting model and we’re excited to see it play out in the partnership with Tata Trusts.”

Planning and Budget Committee projects $22 million increase in 2020–2021 budget Changes to revenue sources, 2019–2020 enrollment data discussed

Srivindhya Kolluru Business Editor

“Our government funding continues to decline, as a percentage of our budget comes from the provincial government,” said Cheryl Regehr, VicePresident and Provost, at the fourth Planning and Budget Committee (PBC) meeting of 2019–2020.

The meeting addressed the 2020–2021 Budget Report and 2018–2019 enrollment figures.

“The other challenge that we had this year that was unexpected was the 10 per cent tuition cut,” continued Regehr.

She also noted that 22 per cent of U of T’s operating budget came from the provincial government at the February 25 meeting, which is a two per cent decrease from 2018–2019. The PBC, a division of the Governing Council, is responsible for making recommendations on the use of U of T’s resources and funds.

2020–2021 budget accounts for investments in student services, deferred maintenance, capital projects U of T’s budgeted revenue for 2020–2021 is $2.99 billion.

RILLA WANG/THE VARSITY

Eighty-seven per cent of its operating budget comes from tuition and student fees, as well as provincial government funding. The remainder comes from sources such as investments — including real estate — and endowment funds.

This projected budget sees an eight per cent increase from the 2019–2020 budget, due in part to increasing international student tuition and enrollment. Regehr said that while funding cuts from both tuition and provincial government funding were felt across all faculties and departments, professional faculties were hit the hardest.

The 2020–2021 Budget Report outlines key priorities for the university, such as research support, capital project investments, and other institution-wide strategic initiatives.

Of note is that $6 million — around 14 per cent of the university fund (UF) — will be budgeted for health and wellness services and facilities, among other items. The UF is determined by the provost and is used to set aside funds for “academic priorities emerging from discussions during annual budget reviews.”

The $6 million will contribute to redesigning mental health services as per the Presidential & Provostial Task Force on Student Mental Health’s recommendations, such as adding more counselling options and appointing a tri-campus clinical director. In addition, some of the funds will be used to build the Centre for Graduate Mentorship and Supervision to provide additional supports for graduate students.

“We really want to use the budget to foster student success and student well-being,” said Regehr. “And as you all know, this has been a talk of the year in terms of student experience.”

“We also use our reserves for funding mental

health services,” Regehr said. “And so we have set aside $40 million in one-time-only funding to redesign the mental health facilities across our three campuses.”

Other areas of investments are maintaining U of T’s library system, deferred maintenance, and capital projects across all three campuses.

The PBC voted to recommend the 2020–2021 Budget Report and the 2024–2025 Long Range Budget for approval. The Long Range Budget proposes budgetary guidelines for five-year intervals.

U of T surpasses 2019–2020 enrollment targets, sees increased international student enrollment UTSG and UTM exceeded their projected enrollment targets for 2019–2020, while UTSC fell short of their target.

Around 25 per cent of undergraduate and graduate students in 2019–2020 were from countries outside of Canada. Of those, 65 per cent of undergraduate students and 39 per cent of graduate students were from China. Following China, the top countries for both undergraduate and graduate intakes include India, the United States, South Korea, and Iran. At U of T, international student tuition is set to see a 5.3 per cent increase in 2020–2021.

Enrollment is expected to grow at all three campuses by 2024–2025, with UTSC anticipating the largest increase at 11.6 per cent. As a result, capital construction projects are expected to make up a sizable portion of the operating budget to house more student services and facilities, for instance. The estimated cost for these projects is $3.9 billion over the next five years.

The next PBC meeting is on April 1, 2020.

— With files from Nicole Shi

Comment

March 16, 2020 var.st/comment comment@thevarsity.ca

The delayed exam schedule causes financial harm to students Administration is to blame for impact on international and out-of-province students Keely Bastow Varsity Contributor

While U of T’s late exam schedule release — relative to other Ontario universities — makes it difficult for all students to plan their summers, international and out-of-province students suffer an additional financial burden. Many students from the GTA can pay for a GO train home, or ask their parents to drive to Toronto and pick them up, but others from out of town need to book flights and end up paying much more than they should due to this late release date. I should know, because I am one of these students.

Most schools in Canada organize exams the same way: there is a large portion of a month set aside for exams, and a student may sit their exams at any point during this period, depending on their courses. For students in Canada, employers probably understand this and work with their schedules. However, some students go home to countries where employers aren’t familiar with this system. It may be confusing to these employers that a student is not sure when they can start work because they are not sure when they finish school.

If the university is going to use a system that forces students to plan their summers around a series of exam dates, it should release these dates in a timely and efficient manner. As it is, the system exacerbates the difficulty of finding a job from abroad by not equipping students with information they will need to give their employers.

This disorganization on the part of the schedule planners is frustrating because of the extensive time frame they have in which to create the schedule. One could argue that they have a considerable amount of time to plan about a month of exams. Of course, this is a difficult process and there will be organizational conflicts, but the confusion that the current system invokes causes un-

necessary financial stress for students who need to find a flight home.

Why should students, who pay fees that support the university staff making the schedule, have to pay more because that same staff does not release the schedule in a timely manner?

When I looked at prices in October of last semester for my December flight home to Atlanta, Georgia, they were far less than $1,000. When the exam schedule came out in early November, about a month before the start of the exam period, the flights were above $1,000. I ended up paying about $300 more than the price I first looked at. This was just a two-hour flight to Atlanta; I imagine the price difference on a flight to Hong Kong or Bangladesh would be considerably more.

While December is always an expensive time to fly due to the holidays, there is no debate that the earlier a flight is booked, the better. For students who already have extremely high international student fees, saving hundreds of dollars on flights by being able to book a few more weeks in

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XIN YI LIM/THE VARSITY

advance would be greatly appreciated.

U of T has an international student population of almost 21 per cent — many of these students will be flying home at the end of the school year. Knowing this, staff still do not release the schedule much earlier than most other Ontario universities, who have significantly smaller international student populations.

McGill University has a comparable international student population that even exceeds U of T’s, at over 27 per cent. McGill’s exam schedule for April 2020 was released nearly eight and a

Why should students, who pay fees that support the university staff making the schedule, have to pay more because that same staff does not release the schedule in a timely manner?

UTSU executives must be held accountable for shirking their duties

Student union positions are jobs — and they must be completed like any other

UTSU executives received criticism for failing to fulfill position-specific obligations.

NATHAN CHING/THE VARSITY. DESIGN BY DINA DONG

Marta Anielska Varsity Staff

”

During the February board meeting of the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU), University College Director Lina Maragha raised some serious criticisms about the union’s executives. She addressed that many executives had not informed UTSU President Joshua Bowman that they would be working fewer hours over February’s reading week, and claimed that Vice-President Equity Michael Junior Samakayi lacked commitment to events, citing this year’s eXpression Against Oppression (XAO) series as an example.

Following this, Bowman called for a culture shift in the UTSU to make sure that members feel more comfortable criticizing executives, like Maragha had. But the accountability issues that Maragha drew attention to are part of a larger trend that has plagued the UTSU for years. Low student engagement in union politics has enabled an environment that seems to not take accountability seriously, which in turn has fuelled student apathy.

UTSU members are aware of the disconnect between the union and the student body. Just this year, Bowman wrote an op-ed in The Varsity encouraging students to attend the 2019 Annual General Meeting (AGM), which he wrote in part due to a lack of participation in past AGMs. The previous year’s AGM had only been allowed to move ahead on a technicality after failing to reach its 50-member quorum. It’s not surprising that the AGM has been criticized for being filled with ‘insiders’ — people who have power in the UTSU or who are friends with the people in power.

half weeks prior to McGill’s exam period. U of T released its schedule just over five weeks in advance. Both universities are large institutions with sizable international student populations, yet McGill manages to not place the burden of a late release schedule, and the financial concerns that come with that, on its students.

U of T boasts its diversity and inclusivity, and in many ways does well at providing resources for international students, as well as creating a place for them to connect with people from their countries and meet new friends. However, the administration’s faulty organization around the release of the exam schedule is one such instance where it falls short.

If McGill — and global institutions to which U of T consistently compares itself — can provide this much-needed information in a timely manner, why should U of T students who need to fly home in April be stuck booking last-minute flights? All international students who fly home expect to pay a certain amount for flights, but leaving bookings to as late as a month in advance may make the cost notably higher. Students and faculty should not have to expect, or accept, this reality.

Keely Bastow is a third-year Political Science student at Trinity College.

If all this weren’t enough, the UTSU’s elections have some of the lowest voter turnout of all of Canada’s major student unions at just 4.2 per cent. Democracy is built on the assumption that the public pays attention to officials and executives — they have to do what they say they will, because if they don’t, they won’t get elected.

However, if voters aren’t paying attention, politicians can take liberties.

A UTSU board meeting at the beginning of 2019 exposed that many executives, including former UTSU president Anne Boucher, had failed to submit their monthly executive reports.

Boucher had defended herself, saying that she’d had an “intensive week in Ottawa.”

This year, attendance documents revealed that board members were marked present 58 per cent of the time. While this is an improvement from last year, this number is likely unsatisfactory to many people in the student body are likely to be. UTSU executives are paid workers, and students pay a part of those salaries. We expect them to treat their position like any other job, which means showing up and meeting deadlines.

When these things don’t happen, it alienates the electorate and exacerbates their apathy and unwillingness to participate. If things never change, why should they care who is elected to what position? The only way to fix this vicious cycle is to commit to keeping members accountable and emphasize to incoming members that every position is a job, not just a title that looks good on a resume.

Marta Anielska is a first-year Social Sciences student at University College.

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COMMENT

comment@thevarsity.ca

Students reflect on the impact of COVID-19 Self-isolation is a necessary sacrifice for students with weakened immune systems When I was younger, I always enjoyed sick days. Sitting on the couch while one of my parents catered to my every need, I felt like royalty. I didn’t have to think about schoolwork, and the work I missed would often be forgiven. It was truly my favourite experience.

I thought self-isolation would feel the same, but I realize now that I was very wrong.

Thinking back to my sick days as a kid, what I loved wasn’t being home alone; it was not having anything to stress about. I knew that whatever was making me ill would disappear after a day or two, and being stuck at home didn’t hinder my ability to have fun. But all that changes when you’re stuck in a small dorm room with nothing but a laptop, a phone, and a bed. Now I still have schoolwork to stress over, and I don’t have a whole house to myself.

My immune system has never been the strongest and my asthma has worsened over the years. These two factors put me in the high-risk category for COVID-19, and with that in mind, I am now in self-isolation. The consequences of being potentially infected outweigh the consequences of being by myself.

Isolation is lonely; that’s the best way to

“Are you graduating?” I don’t know, am I? I went to a high school that followed the British system, which entailed 13 years of schooling, not 12 like some other systems. However, as I had my eyes set on U of T, I left after grade 12 — meaning that I never experienced a high school graduation. Now, it seems that the possibility of hundreds of students, faculty, and parents sitting in Convocation Hall as I walk across the stage to accept my diplomas is becoming less and less likely.

Will I really never get to experience a graduation, be it from high school or university?

Don’t get me wrong, social distancing is absolutely the preventative measure we should all be implementing in an effort to contain the virus. The university’s recent decision to cancel in-class lectures for undergraduates and research-stream graduate students is the correct one, not because Ontario and Canada are spiraling out of control due to the COVID-19 outbreak, but because it’s preventative measures like this that will hopefully stop the country from being in that position.

As much as I support social distancing and

The university’s lack of planning and communication leaves students with more questions than answers The sudden shock of the movement of classes online is concerning. Just this past week, my political science professors told us that classes were ongoing, but that they have been told by the department to prepare in the case that the university closed. It was a bleak, unwelcome repeat of the feelings of syllabus week, except with a sprinkle of existential dread.

When I mentioned this moment to friends who weren’t in my program, there were some major differences. They said that some professors had already called off in-person classes, while others hadn’t mentioned anything about COVID-19. Some professors were testing out a week of online classes, while others were clearly not keen on having to navigate another technological platform.

There was no guiding point. We were left in the dark.

Are the rules of the syllabus still binding at

put it. You might say that I can still call or FaceTime people, but it really isn’t the same.

Even before I isolated myself, I refused physical contact for weeks. I haven’t been hugged by anyone in what feels like an eternity. I have yet to have a mental breakdown, and I’m not keeping track of how many days I’ve been imprisoned.

With that in mind, my mental health is not doing great. I never realized how much I would miss contact with the outside world.

Food is delivered to my room, but I don’t get to see anyone. No pleasantries, no conversation, just a knock at the door. And yet, I am excited every time because I get to feel like I have a connection to the world.

The worst part about this is that I don’t know when I can go back outside. I’m not waiting for 14 days to see if I have symptoms; rather I am trying to avoid the possibility of getting the virus in the first place. With the spread of COVID-19 accelerating around the world, this self-isolation feels more and more like incarceration.

Only time will tell what will happen, but for now I’ve accepted my sentence.

Jack Rendall is a first-year Social Sciences student at Victoria College.

see the benefits that it has to offer in terms of preventing the spread of COVID-19, I can’t help but admit that I hope the situation will be a much more positive one come June — this girl needs to experience a graduation.

I am the first one to admit that this is a small concern compared to the many real problems that others are facing during this time. I’m fortunate as a humanities student in my final year of undergraduate studies — I’ve already faced most of my pre-graduation hurdles. I simply have to endure one final exam season before tasting the sweet satisfaction that comes with graduating.

But there are definitely final-year students out there in more intense programs who have even more issues to deal with now that U of T has cancelled most in-class lectures in favour of online classes.

I just hope that online participation does not take on a whole new meaning in June when we will be sitting at home with our laptops attending a virtual graduation.

Tasmiyah Randeree is a fourth-year student studying English and History at New College.

times like these? Are we still expected to go to our exams? Wouldn’t that undermine the point of not having class?

The university has advised students to return to their homes before exams if they can.

Libraries and residences will remain open for those who can’t. It has become clear — exams are likely still happening, even if they might be online.

Unsure if the deadline for dropping courses would be — as they later turned out to be — I had to make decisions without knowing exactly what was happening. Should I have remained enrolled or dropped them instead?

Cancelling in-person classes is one thing, but it’s not the only thing on people’s minds right now.

The pandemic has been a looming possibility since late 2019 — enough time to have made better preparations than this.

Joy Zhixin Fan is a third-year International Relations, Public Policy, and Political Science student at St. Michael’s College.

Joshua Bowman, Joy Fan, Ana Pereira, Jack Rendall,Tasmiyah Randeree Varsity Contributors

Op-ed: The university needs to prioritize the well-being of students by listening to them The miscommunication and dissonance created by U of T President Meric Gertler and Vice-President and Provost Cheryl Regehr’s emails regarding the cancellation of in-person classes as a precautionary measure against the spread of COVID-19 leaves students in a position of asking questions and receiving no answers. Regehr’s email noted that classes would resume as normal despite the cancellation of discretionary events.

While the president’s email succeeded in announcing that classes will be moved online — which was in line with the requests being made by students — it failed to mention any tangible plans for final examinations or additional supports for international and outof-province students.

Individual branches of the university, in particular the Faculty of Arts & Science, have taken progressive steps in supporting students and communicating with us in the days since the initial announcement, but there is still a great lack of uniformity in the university’s response to COVID-19 across all faculties and divisions. Perhaps most disheartening was the lack of reference to any student voice in the reasons cited for this decision.

The voices of students, whether they be communicated over social media, emails to professors and departments, or a change.org petition that received over 19,000 signatures, are often ignored in regard to incredibly consequential decisions being made on behalf of our community. This is sadly what we have come to expect at this university. This approach makes it difficult for students to feel valued as members of the community. There seems to be an attitude of ‘get with the program or get out,’ but it’s only applied to students; we are not afforded the same luxury as our ivory tower-based colleagues.

Students care deeply about our education.

We work hard to excel in our classes and have chosen to invest our efforts and resources in the University of Toronto, usually over other universities, to help us prepare for our future careers. As part of that choice, we expect the university to take our needs into consideration when making decisions that affect our studies, even when those decisions are the result of external forces over which the university has no control.

There is a long list of issues posed by the recent decisions made by the University of Toronto administration. But the underlying issue is that students are worried the university is not considering our real circumstances and concerns. We need to ensure that we are proactive in regard to the final examination season, especially in creating an accessible online platform.

There is little to no information about how final assignments will be graded. Ask any student in life sciences; next week was packed to the brim with term tests that will now have to be inevitably postponed as a result of the university’s announcement. Residence buildings are staying open and remaining operational, but students are simultaneously being advised to return home if they can. How should students interpret these seemingly contradictory approaches?

I am not suggesting that these issues are the fault of the university, but rather that an

announcement should have been accompanied with a concrete plan for the programming and services that so many of us are dependent on.

The University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) has been working, based off of the recommendations and concerns we have received from students, to create solutions for the university to consider. The complete shift to online exams could pose a serious accessibility concern for students, and we believe that greater academic leniency is necessary to ensure that students are supported during this time. For instance, the Faculty of Arts & Sciences’ decision to extend the credit/no credit deadline was a step in the right direction, as it gives students time to consider what these changes mean for them. Every professor and instructor needs to be in constant communication with their students. The switch to an online course may take time, but students have anything but that.

The university — Simcoe Hall, faculties, departments, colleges, residence buildings — needs to maintain consistent and transparent communication with its students. Our university is notably decentralized, but we need to create a solution that is tailored to that decentralization and is nuanced to the extent that it meets the specific needs of students.

The UTSU is taking all steps possible to be a leader in the response to COVID-19, especially with consideration to the health and wellness of our employees and the students who depend most on our services. We have taken the necessary steps to move our operations online, and in doing so have guaranteed that all of our employees will still be paid.

All in-person services such as Help Desk, UTSU’s Got You, the Tax Clinic, and town halls will be moved online or postponed until further notice to ensure the well-being of the staff that are at the helm of operating these programs. We are also exploring options to strengthen our food bank so that it will be better equipped to match the needs that could be presented by COVID-19.

We are looking to host the food bank out of the UTSU Building at 12 Hart House Circle, and we would like to predominantly offer non-perishable food items and toiletries. Lastly, we are committed to absorbing the costs of any deposits made by clubs that had to cancel their events due to the recent announcements made by the University of Toronto.

The University of Toronto has the opportunity to be a leader in the response to COVID-19 at postsecondary institutions. If the university places students in a position to have our voices heard with regard to the incoming changes to the final examination period and the remainder of the semester, our lived experiences will only serve to inform and strengthen the university’s response to COVID-19. We are the ones whose personal and academic lives are hanging in the balance, and the university cannot expect to call the shots about a student experience that they don’t understand without us in the room.

Joshua Bowman is a fifth-year Indigenous Studies and Political Science student at St. Michael’s College and current President of the UTSU.

Editorial

March 16, 2020 var.st/comment editorial@thevarsity.ca

The university must commit to equity as it responds to COVID-19 Measures that protect student housing, financial, and accessibility needs must follow cancellation of in-person classes

The university has moved instruction online as a part of measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

MASHAL KHAN/THE VARSITY

The Varsity Editorial Board

Universities across North America have cancelled in-person classes and shifted course instruction to online platforms in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19. U of T has followed this trend for undergraduate and research-stream graduate courses across all three campuses, along with some professional programs.

We support U of T’s ongoing efforts to take the financial, social, and personal ramifications of COVID-19 into consideration. Recent emails from the university to students have acknowledged the importance of keeping residences open and providing students with safe spaces on campus. The Faculty of Arts & Sciences has also delayed the deadline to credit/no credit and drop courses, and parts of U of T have announced that students do not need to return to campus for the examination period in April.

The Varsity is appreciative of these efforts, and encourages the administration to further these to accommodate students whose financial and housing situations have been made more vulnerable by COVID-19.

Emergency planning must remain cognizant of equity concerns As U of T continues to implement its pandemic policy amidst growing concerns from students, faculty, and staff over COVID-19’s potential impact, The Varsity is imploring the university to further implement accommodations for international, out-of-province, and low-income students whose employment, and access to on-campus food and housing remain dependant on the university.

To eliminate this access is harmful to students whose financial and familial situations prevent them from easily relocating. Furthermore, international students, who may face travel restrictions, are disproportionately affected and potentially face high financial and emotional challenges.

Additionally, students who earn income from university-based jobs are at a high risk for unemployment or lost wages in the face of a university shutdown. Thus far, the university has committed to compensating faculty and student staff for missed wages due to operational closures in the next three weeks. Employees await further infor-

mation in the coming week, and The Varsity encourages the university to follow through on financially supporting employees for all lost wages, including shift work.

Students experiencing homelessness who rely on the university for access to basic provisions and access to safe spaces will also likely be without resources, as gyms close and libraries enact limited hours. Furthermore, technology, including wi-fi, will not be easily accessible to all students as classes move toward an online platform.

This is another aspect of contingency planning that must be understood and mediated by the administration.

Students with disabilities must also be considered in pandemic planning, particularly in regards to ways in which accessibility may become limited in the coming weeks. The onus is on Accessibility Services and the university community in general to ensure that students who require accommodation receive it, and are not left behind in the panic of this pandemic.

Indigenous students are additionally vulnerable to the impacts of COVID-19. Self-isolating and relocation may be difficult for all those who reside in Indigenous communities, many of whom are subject to precarious living conditions that stem from ongoing colonialism, in which U of T also plays a role. As Karl Nerenberg wrote in Rabble, Indigenous groups must be considered in government and institutional pandemic planning. Indigenous students who would need to return home as a result of any potential campus closures must be additionally supported by U of T. The Varsity asks U of T to remain cognizant of the specific needs of Indigenous students in this time of crisis.

While the university has not closed any of its campuses, the possibility remains as more and more facilities are shut down each day. The Varsity hopes to highlight some of the potential concerns surrounding campus closure.

Concerns surrounding campus closure As of the fall of 2017, the university employs 21,788 faculty and staff, not accounting for research fellows and teaching assistants. University

planning must continue to consider these employees’ reliance on U of T for income, health and dental benefits, and, in some cases, food and housing.

In the case of campus closure, reimbursement of academic and residential fees are necessary, and financial aid must be robust in its support of students and staff.

U of T’s cancellation of in-person classes is neither extreme nor unexpected. A reduction of large gatherings of people is a basic measure for quelling the spread of COVID-19. However, the continued operations of all three campuses means that staff will necessarily be on campus and required to work.

The Varsity understands how maintaining campus operations will allow vulnerable persons to continue to access necessary campus spaces.

The university’s decision to close gyms and child care centres, and limit library hours will potentially hinder the most vulnerable of our community from accessing these spaces and services.

Residences remain operational, but it is unclear how methods of self-isolation will be put in effect in these spaces where students and staff are in such close physical proximity.

Non-contract operational staff, some of whom are paid by the university through hours worked will still need to choose between potentially losing their source of income or exposing themselves to contaminated spaces.

Students abroad, some of whom are left in confusion after being abruptly pulled from their placements, face unique challenges regarding housing, travel, and academic penalties. The university must do all that it can to ensure that students receive adequate support during this time.

Students who have completed the majority of their academic exchanges should not lose academic credit. These students are already caught in the chaos of last-minute housing and travel arrangements, and The Varsity encourages the university to recognize these credits as legitimate Furthermore, the university must provide instructional staff with the appropriate training to ensure that academic instruction does not suffer in an online format. Instructors may not be prepared for online or alternative instruction, and

clear coordination between faculties and administration will allow instructors to access administrative support regarding any issues that may arise.

While some instructors have prepared online instructional methods, the rapid transition will surely pose problems. In this moment, The Varsity encourages compassion and understanding for both students and faculty as we all adjust to this new online platform.

Moving forward These measures have shown that accommodation is not only possible, but that the university is willing to do so in the case of emergency. While response in a time of crisis is crucial, we question why so many of these accommodations were not accessible in the first place.

Students who require accommodation in lectures have thus far not all been given the option to access their lecture materials through digital platforms. Online teaching is a skill that, if professors had developed it over time, would have proven to make this transition much smoother in times of crisis. This crisis has shown that these accommodations can and should be made — permanently.

Furthermore, the university’s response shows that accommodating for students with medical issues is possible, and that verification of medical illness or injury notes are an expendable cost — the university is able to do without this measure.

The Varsity encourages U of T to consider permanently suspending its doctor’s note requirements in favour of self-reported illness forms, even after COVID-19 preventative measures cease.

Students and community members should practice standard hygiene measures, limit travel, and refrain from unnecessary panic. If you do show symptoms, please follow the advice of medical professionals to keep both yourself and others safe in this time of crisis.

The Varsity’s editorial board is elected by the masthead at the beginning of each semester. For more information about the editorial policy, email editorial@ thevarsity.ca.

10

THE VARSITY

FEATURES

How 24 students came together in 24 hours to advocate for student mental health Writer: Jadine Ngan Illustrator: Fiona Tung

Content warning: mentions of suicide.

One Tuesday morning — March 19, 2019 — Loizza Aquino was jarred out of sleep by a call from an unknown number. Two days prior, a University of Toronto student had died by suicide at the Bahen Centre for Information Technology; by that morning, word had spread. Students had planned protests, and media outlets were vying for coverage.

Aquino picked up the phone. The caller was a CBC representative, requesting her presence in the studio for the radio show Here and Now — they were hoping that she could comment on the student’s death.

Aquino is an award-winning mental health advocate who founded Peace of Mind Canada, a youth-led organization that works to reduce mental health stigma, when she was a high school student.

Though she’s now a third-year student at UTSC, she has been engaged in activism since the age of nine; she has appeared on air with Global News and spoken at over a hundred events and institutions.

She frequently fields media requests, so this particular CBC request was not unusual. However, that Tuesday morning, when she answered the call, was.

Several years prior, when Aquino was 15 and still living in Winnipeg, her best friend Miguel Labossiere had died from suicide. That Tuesday morning would have been the morning of Labossiere’s 22nd birthday.

It was also the morning Aquino decided that the mental health culture at U of T needed to change. Nevertheless, before the calendar year ended, another death on campus would prompt her and a collective of students who felt the same way to come together and form U of Thrive.

— Personal stories like Aquino’s are at the heart of U of Thrive, which brands itself as “a tri-campus student collective dedicated to elevating student voices on mental health.”

“Our goal is different from other mental health movements on campus,” Executive Member Ashwini Selvakumaran noted, highlighting the group’s focus on creating cultural change. “We want to showcase more of the stories students have.” By providing students with a platform to express themselves, they hope to build solidarity and a sense of community through storytelling.

U of Thrive is a movement, Aquino told me, not a club. Selvakumaran agreed, emphasizing the group’s desire to leave a legacy — to see change made and maintained. Its name is a play on the common institutional nickname given to U of T by students: ‘U of Tears.’ To Aquino, U of Thrive challenges the cutthroat competitive culture underlying the school’s mental health crisis.

“We really want to promote the idea [that] you can still take care of yourself — you can still eat your three meals a day and get your seven hours of sleep — and be a successful student,” she said. “A lot of people don’t see how it’s a possibility — and I think that’s the dangerous part.”

The group’s commitment to its work is deeply rooted in individual experiences: Selvakumaran recounted being in a dark place during her first year, and wondering, “Why am I alone, and why isn’t there anyone to help me?” If it’s within her power, she said, she never wants another student to feel that way again.

A heavy frustration with the status quo also plays a central role in what they do.

“You’re paying to go to school,” Aquino pointed out. “I know that education is amazing — it’s an opportunity, and I’m grateful.

But at the same time… I wish I could just go to school; I wish I could just study.”

“I wish I didn’t have to worry about the stigma surrounding mental health that makes me take time out of studying… to demand mental health awareness, to demand mental health conversation, to demand proper and adequate mental health resources.”

The time and effort of coordinating the U of Thrive events and outreach have all cut into the ability of its members to complete their mandatory school work.

“It’s the same situation as [youth climate activist] Greta [Thunberg]: Greta skipped school every Friday to have a strike,” Aquino said. “Why does she have to compromise her education to make a change?

Why are we compromising our GPAs — our futures — because we’re acknowledging the fact that this is just as important, if not more important, than what we’re doing in school?”

“All this isn’t meant to blame U of T,” Aquino clarified. “We have a joint responsibility with them and we want to work with them.”

The university has since created a Presidential & Provostial Task Force on Student Mental Health in March 2019, which has released a report with recommendations for change. These are in the process of being implemented by the university.

However, Aquino quickly realized someone needed to take responsibility to ignite that conversation among students.

She realized that it was up to her to take it a step further.

— The evening of September 28, 2019 was chilly; a layer of clouds hung low over the city. In a few hours, Daniel Caesar was set to take the stage at the Budweiser Centre for a sold-out show on his Case Study 01 tour. Aquino was in her Scarborough bedroom, preparing to head downtown to see him. But then she went online and saw the news: someone had shared a CBC News post on Facebook. Another student had died by suicide in the Bahen Centre the day before.

For Aquino, there was something unsettlingly familiar about the series of student deaths at U of T — four in less than two years. Even though it was across a prolonged period of time, the situation at U of T mirrored her own experiences back home. Later at the concert, she couldn’t help thinking of the month when four students in Winnipeg, including Labossiere, passed away.

“I just remember being so cheesed the whole night… [that] the university couldn’t just create this change on its own and identify the issue on its own. So now us students, we’re having to take time out of the time that we’re using to study… We have to create the systemic change that [the university is] basically either ignoring or not acknowledging or just incapable of identifying.”

“And so I guess that that was a little bit of the frustration, like, ‘holy shit, I really have to do this again. Come on.’ ” In that first moment of anger and exhaustion, Aquino posted an Instagram story: a call to action, for anyone else who was as frustrated as she was. She pressed send. The message was out.

features@thevarsity.ca

At that time, Selvakumaran was in her bedroom as well, scrolling through posts about the suicide. She had just shared a poem she had written on the topic. “Immediately after, I saw [Aquino’s] story and it seemed… like I was meant to see it,” Selvakumaran recounted. “She said, ‘I’m looking to form a new movement. Any student member of the University of Toronto who is as angry at the system as I am, please join me.’ ” Aquino started a group chat, and within half an hour it filled to capacity with fellow students, recounted Selvakumaran. People who barely knew each other coalesced around this new charge. Selvakumaran and Aquino had previously met only once at a United Way photoshoot featuring local women changemakers.

Aquino played basketball with a fellow UTSC student member, and she had met another one at WE Day. Apart from them, Aquino wasn’t acquainted with anyone else who reached out. From there, things moved fast: the group put an Instagram page together, and individual members posted calls to action on their personal social media accounts. Selvakumaran reflected how the next morning, the U of Thrive Instagram had nearly a thousand followers, and CBC reached out to request an interview.

“The most specific thing I remember in that 24 hours was how amazed I was to see the passion that really bonded students together… I am a firm believer that passion is the instigator of purpose,” Selvakumaran said.

“I think it was a bit overwhelming for all members at first,” she admitted.

“24 students formed new ‘UofThrive’ advocacy group in 24 hours”: this was what the CBC subheading read when the article broke. It was a snappy and attractive statement, but the reality was more complicated. Initially, “around 30-something people DM’d me,” Aquino recalled. Twenty-four of them would go on to plan the group’s first event. Since then, the number of active executive members has dwindled to around 10. Even still, the group has sustained their momentum.

— On October 10, 2019, the night of their first event, Aquino remembers gathering her team at Robarts Library and handing them clipboards a mere half hour before the event was set to begin. “It felt like deja vu,” she recalled. She had run a series of four mental health awareness events in grade 10 throughout Manitoba. This one, although miles away and years later, felt all too similar.

“Thrive” took place at Hart House, and it coincided with World Mental Health Day. “We formed [U of Thrive] with the intention to just have this one event,” Aquino said. But the night was a hit, and then she realized how hungry students were to share their stories.

“We decided maybe this is something we should do more often,” she said.

So they did. “Welcome to ‘I Will,’ ” read the slide projected at the front of Innis Town Hall several months later, on February 10. I sat there that night and watched the dimly lit room fill slowly, from front to back. At 7:20 pm, Aquino and fellow U of Thrive member Mohammed Ali stepped into a pool of white light at the front of the auditorium and introduced themselves.

They read out a schedule of speakers and performers, and then they took their seats.

In the next hour, one by one, students — some whom I recognized, most of whom I did not — took the stage. They shared stories of abuse, bullying, and grief — of finding themselves again and falling in love. Some sang songs, some simply got up and spoke.

After most of the speakers had finished, Aquino took the stage to remember Labossiere. She talked about how they were both alike and different — he loved getting in trouble; she hated getting in trouble. He wasn’t very booksmart, and she wasn’t either, but they both wanted to be.

Labossiere was 18 when he died. This

year, it will have been five years since he passed away, and Aquino still remembers the moment she found out about his death with aching clarity. She said that her old basketball coach texted her, and he asked if she had heard from Labossiere recently.

When she said she hadn’t, though she had been with him yesterday, her coach told her that Labossiere had died by suicide.

She said that she remembered sitting there on the couch for the next day. She played back the last moment she had with him. The day before Labossiere had passed away, they were walking out of school together. He was on one side of the road, and she was on the other side. He called her name, and she asked him what he wanted.

They had been fighting for months. He asked if they could talk; she told him she was tired and had to catch the bus, but she’d see him tomorrow. She remembered him asking, “Are you not gonna come cross the street and give me a hug?” She told him she’d give him one tomorrow, and left to catch her bus. A week later, she was standing next to his open casket delivering his eulogy.

She told stories about him to a room full of people who loved him. What she wished most was that he was there to see it.

When she dropped by Labossiere’s house one more time, his parents let her keep a shirt of his. She said that not a day that goes by where she doesn’t think about him.

Aquino’s main goal in this world is to help just one person. To her, when you save one person, you save everyone who loves them. And everybody has a village of people who love them, whether they know it or not.

That night, I watched as students came together to share stories that were heavy and heartbreaking, but also hopeful. I saw a microcosm of what the U of T community could be, if drawn out of its shell.

It humbled me.

— If you or someone you know is in distress, you can call: Canada Suicide Prevention Service phone available 24/7 at 1-833-456-4566 Good 2 Talk Student Helpline at 1-866-9255454 Ontario Mental Health Helpline at 1-866531-2600 Gerstein Centre Crisis Line at 416-9295200 U of T Health & Wellness Centre at 416978-8030.

Warning signs of suicide include: Talking about wanting to die Looking for a way to kill oneself Talking about feeling hopeless or having no purpose Talking about feeling trapped or being in unbearable pain Talking about being a burden to others Increasing use of alcohol or drugs Acting anxious, agitated, or recklessly Sleeping too little or too much Withdrawing or feeling isolated Showing rage or talking about seeking revenge Displaying extreme mood swings The more of these signs a person shows, the greater the risk. If you suspect someone you know may be contemplating suicide, you should talk to them, according to the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention.

Arts & Culture

March 16, 2020 var.st/arts arts@thevarsity.ca

Birds of Prey is the film that will inspire #hotgirlsummer2020

Action, catharsis, femmes fatales, and self-indulgent women IR IS DE NG HE /T R VA TY SI

Angela Feng Comment Editor

Harley Quinn is the spark before the flame — a brief flash of hope that is lost before it becomes tangible. Margot Robbie audaciously embodies this character’s whimsical ferocity, swinging between pining romantic and deviant Powerpuff Girl with ease. Her world is one where structure becomes irrelevant.

Just as the plot zig-zags between tangential backstories and plotlines the likes of a Shakespearean tragedy — in which our hero desperately rescues a bodega breakfast sandwich in peril — Quinn, too, refuses to play by the rules. Her story is anything but straightforward, and she must be understood as the product of the world that made her.

Directed by Cathy Yan and written by Christina Hodson, Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous

“Opulence! You own everything!” — A review of Hart House’s Paris is Burning film screening

An “honest and personal” documentary on ballroom culture Bao Li Ng Varsity Staff

I am frequently late to things. It’s an unlikable quality, and certainly one of my many faults of character, but — and get this on record — on the night of the Paris is Burning screening, I definitely arrived early. Unfortunately, I arrived too early and the event had not even begun.

This gave my sister and me the misguided belief that we had enough time to go outside and smoke a joint before the film started. A halfgram of Lemon Haze later, we were awkwardly manoeuvering between the rows of seats, disturbing those enjoying the already in-progress screening. Tentatively, we took our seats and began watching.

Director Jennie Livingston’s Paris is Burning is a documentary that highlights the New York City ballroom culture of the 1980s, and features some of Harlem’s pioneering gay and transgender performers, including the late Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, Octavia St. Laurent, and Venus and Angie Xtravaganza.

Filmed over the course of seven years, Paris is Burning is composed of interviews with drag ball participants and shows their lives both in and out of drag. Having never seen the film — as I said before, I am consistently late to the party — I didn’t know what to expect.

What struck me most about the film is how honest and personal it felt. It shows the performative aspects of ball culture, the balls, the artists at the top, and in the case of some ball newcomers, bottom of their game. But it also shows the behind-the-scenes work: the reality of creating outfits and putting on makeup, how these artists came to the community, and their nuanced reflections on why and how their world is the way it is.

Consequently, it shows artists that are forced to live lives that are inherently politicized and that exist outside the safety of the mainstream, regardless of whether they would prefer, as Venus Xtravaganza puts it, “a nice home, away from New York,” or “a normal, happy life,” as Octavia St. Laurent describes.

After listening to the panel that occurred directly after the screening, I decided to do a little bit of research of my own. The drag queen Dorian Corey explained that “the fact that you are not an executive is really because of the social standing of life. That’s just a pure thing.

Black people have a hard time getting anywhere.

And those that do are usually straight.” She expands that these harsh realities are created from a world that needs fixing, which is illustrated during Paris is Burning by the presentation of the joy of ball culture. The balls act as a space where these external rules do not exist.

Corey continued, “In a ballroom, you can be anything you want. You’re not really an executive but you’re looking like an executive, and therefore you’re showing the straight world that I can be an executive. If I had the opportunity I could be one.”

The film is not without fault. Albeit a member of the LGBTQ+ community herself, Livingston was a white, Yale-educated woman who was far removed from Harlem’s ball scene. This gives the film a somewhat voyeuristic feeling, and at times it can feel almost like an instructional video for straight, cisgender audiences who have never heard of a drag ball.

However, in the decades since, this stylization can be appreciated less as a tool for a biased mainstream to gawk at an unfamiliar world, and

Emancipation of One Harley Quinn has a specificity that is undeniably indulgent and juvenile. It embraces the preconceived notions of a healthy, functioning friendship between women — mild criticism, shared hair ties, trash-talking boys — and uses these to colour a different kind of femme fatale’s world.

This is not a film that aims to make a splash with its feminist message, which is obvious and only vaguely detailed. The film’s appearance in cinemas and in box offices is a statement unto itself. However well-acted, it’s not a masterpiece, nor is it an intellectually captivating cerebral shock. Birds of Prey is a blockbuster, a popcorn film in the same vein as The Avengers, The Fast and the Furious, and Step Up. It’s a movie about people and things that are impossibly unrealistic, vaguely relevant to our time, and really, really fun.

It’s perfect in its imperfection, poignant in its vacuousness. But finally, it’s a woman-centric film that dares to take creative risks — risks that divorce its creators from the burden of the representation of women. It’s conventional in a way that is frustrating and disappointing, but, like Quinn herself finds in the film, there’s only so much that can be done in Gotham. Within these frameworks, Yan and Hodson work hard to illustrate anarchy and anguish.

This one was for all the little girls who grew up wanting to be spies, assassins, and badass women, but were sidetracked by hair, nails, brows, and beauty. For all the girls who never-

theless had their anger manifest into words that were too biting and too crass for what was expected of women. This is for all the girls who saw their anger replaced by pink, dreamy soundscapes forever lost to structure and profit, but nevertheless rose up in defiance, in retaliation, weaponizing the very tools that were meant to distract them from their own silence.

The punk-pop inspired soundtrack shook my heart right to its core and brought me back to my 15-year-old angst, setting the mood for teenage rebellion. It gives angry teen girls everywhere a glimpse into the virtues of irreverence — a third option in the virgin-versus-whore debate — as these women seem to be having all of the fun. Finally, the movie is opulence in all the right ways.

I’m probably giving Birds of Prey too much credit, but I’ve always loved to turn off my brain and watch gratuitous made-for-the-masses blockbusters. Guiltless fun doesn’t always come easy for women, especially when watching action or comedy films, which so often use over-sexualized and under-developed women characters as punchlines and set décor.

Instead, Birds of Prey takes delight in its comic book origins, crafting larger-than-life characters who remarkably rely on personality and circumstance to entertain their audience. It’s not perfect, but it’s flawed in the same way that we allow maledriven films to be. To quote the always-poignant Quinn, “If you want boys to respect you, show them you’re serious. Shoot something, blow it up!”

instead as a way for LGBTQ+ youth, such as myself, to understand our history and how the community has changed. In this way, I see the film as less of a documentary, and more of a biography — a literal record of the lives of the artists who have passed, and an artifact of the shared heritage of a chosen family.

I’ve found that this heritage is also important to the panelists at the film screening, consisting of drag artists Luna DuBois, ZacKey Lime, and The Ugly One, moderated by Courtney Conquers.

ZacKey Lime chimed in, referring to watching Paris is Burning. “If you’re starting drag it should be mandatory learning.”

With regard to how he got into drag, or his “origin story” as he puts it, ZacKey Lime recalled volunteering at pride and discovering the drag king art form: “I had zero idea this whole community existed. And I was like, ‘oh… that looks really cool.’ And I think I let that simmer in my brain for a few months. And then I just remember being on YouTube, searching drag kings and drag king makeup all night.”

Conversely, fellow panelist Luna DuBois originally began drag “for shits and giggles,” but became progressively more involved in the community, and now works primarily in Toronto’s Church-Wellesley village. Although she’s not an extremely active member of Toronto’s ball community, Luna DuBois has also walked balls, and commented that the scene is still “quite active” and “inclusive,” although she acknowledged that it is more difficult to join if you’re not familiar with the various cultures at hand.

“Vogue is an expression, expressing feeling, emotion [about] telling a story… [Don’t go in] ignorant, and if you are ignorant, you should ask questions.”

The Toronto drag scene is unanimously agreed upon to be a ‘rise and grind’ type of community, as Courtney Conquers calls it. At the panel, The Ugly One commented that they had done 14 numbers and four costume changes just the previous night. This is characteristic of the Toronto-specific “marathon drag” style, in which performers go on in quick succession.

The skill and artistry that goes into drag performance should not be ignored, which is why it

is important to remember that the great artists of Paris is Burning are not the filmmakers behind it, but the subjects themselves. What makes Paris is Burning great isn’t the cinematography or the editing of the film itself; it’s Venus Xtravaganza saying “overgrown orangutan,” Willi Ninja’s perfected vogueing, Pepper LaBeija’s costume design, and Octavia St. Laurent’s model walk.

With that in mind, at its core, Paris is Burning is a film about family. It shows us that a drag ball ‘house’ is a family for those who don’t have a one, or for those whose families have rejected them. As Corey said, “It wasnt a question of a man and a woman and children, which we grew up knowing as a family. It’s a question of a group of human beings in a mutual bond.”

This is what makes Paris is Burning special — the little moments of connectedness that it finds between the injustices of the world. It is a group of friends laughing on a pier in Manhattan, making jokes and running through the night.

It is friends dancing around a boom box, with the rumble of traffic against the sound. It is two girls on the shore, playing chicken with the tide.

Most importantly, it is a group of people loving each other unconditionally, without fail, calling each other sisters and brothers. As the unnamed teen from Paris is Burning said, smiling to the camera in the dead of night, “Oh, that’s my sister. Because she’s gay, too.”

Forget RuPaul — Paris is Burning is the only proper education you need to be a drag queen.

COURTESY OF PARIS IS BURNING

var.st/arts

MARCH 16, 2020

13

Oh, What a Lovely War! in review

War satire: falls short with generic characters; excels with screen, sound, stage Eva Wissting Varsity Theatre Critic

Hart House Theatre’s Oh, What a Lovely War! is an adaptation of a 1963 musical created by Joan Littlewood and her theatre ensemble, the Theatre Workshop. Through World War I, it satirizes the phenomenon of war.

Directed by Autumn Smith, Hart House’s rendition of the musical exists within the narrative frame of a video game. This framing is fun and works well. Our narrator throughout is a huge face floating on a black background on multiple screens, telling both the audience and the characters on stage about the facts and events of the war.

Combining projected film sequences with actors, props, stage set, music, and choreographed numbers can be difficult to work out smoothly, but here the screens really lift the performance as a whole. Projections Designer Ian Garrett and Associate Projections Designer Alexandra Caprara did a wonderful job.

The juxtaposition of projected sequences with other theatrical devices at the beginning of the second act is particularly successful. The screens give us details upon details about lethal gas after lethal gas, and it’s impossible to keep those absurdly cruel facts from creeping in un-

der the skin. At one point, the screen turned black and a big flow of yellowish smoke began to fill the stage, seeping into the auditorium.

Of course, I knew it wasn’t mustard gas, but there was no way I was breathing in that stuff.

There was also too much rambling with both the several projected sequences as well as parts of the acting. In the opening scene, the initial entry of the six avatars and six gamers, with a projected film in the background, was effective and interesting. However, the ensuing passage, where the avatars became representatives of different European nations standing still on six boxes, reciting in various strong European accents, felt much longer than the 10 or 15 minutes that my clock claims that it took.

Broken English is one of the oldest tricks of comedy, and while a strong French accent will never fail to make an anglophone audience laugh, the other accents used on stage didn’t land the same way. When so much of the comedy rests

on this, and so much of this absurd play rests on comic effect rather than narrative, the fun of hearing the German soldiers speak English with a strong German accent does not really work when that passage was just preceded by the same German soldiers singing classical German songs in thick Canadian accents.

The other accents were also not close enough to resemble those of Russia or Serbia. Accents are difficult, but if you pick a play with a first act that rests so heavily on the fun of them, then you need to nail them. And that might mean that you either need bilingual actors or a really good pronunciation coach.

Another challenge for this play is that it has no individual characters for the audience to follow. There are six players who become soldiers within the video game and there are six avatars who embody the different nations.

While the soldiers have individual names, they’re presented all at the same time, so they’re obviously not meant to be heard. And while the avatars represent dif-

ferent nations, each is comical through the same type of pompous attitude, so I quickly forget who said or did what.

Although it rests on the known dramatic arc of World War I, this is a play that is too absurd to give a clear narrative of its own and needs to evoke something else — like humour or emotions — to be engaging. When all the characters are purposely generic, it’s difficult for the play to convey clear emotions. Even the scene of the soldiers laying down their weapons and meeting across the trenches for the Christmas Truce of 1914 left me unusually disengaged.

Taking on a play without individualized characters for the audience to follow, and comic effects based on several accents, certainly is a challenge. What I enjoyed the most, though — apart from the great juxtaposition of screen with sound and stage — was the use of creative new versions of traditional songs.

The most effective moment of the whole play is the very last seconds, when the players take their virtual reality goggles off in relief, and the avatars hiding behind them lean forward to whisper into their ears: “Play again!”

Oh, What a Lovely War! is the final show in Hart House’s 2019-2020 season.

COURTESY OF SCOTT GORMAN/ HART HOUSE THEATRE

Top 10 ways to panic in a time of crisis

Classes have been cancelled! COVID-19 is coming! Do what you need to cope Charlie Jupp-Adams Varsity Contributor

ADITI PUTCHA/ THE VARSITY

With all this craziness surrounding COVID-19, it’s normal to feel anxious, scared, and stressed. That’s why you need to put yourself first. This can help you combat that anxiety, so you can combat the disease while feeling your best!

I’ve compiled a list of tips to help you engage in panic during this worldwide pandemic.

1. Buy the almost $300 Fendi FF Logo Pollution Mask — sold out at a store near you! Various media outlets of questionable credibility suggest wearing masks to prevent the spread of the disease. But the ones the bookstore sold for a markup are ugly. You deserve to look good. The best part? This one is reusable, so you can wear it as you sip out of your metal straw, even after the pandemic.

2. Plan the Europe trip you have always dreamed of. Canadian residents can take advantage of the cheaper-than-usual flights to Europe. Spend this spring exploring the empty European streets, and transport yourself back in time to the Black Death.

3. Buy and drink an expensive bottle of wine.

Forget your worries — life’s about to be too short! I recommend a bottle of Six Sigma Ranch Reserve Tempranillo 2012, which costs $79.40 at the LCBO. Expensive, but put it on your credit card! The stock markets are crashing anyway.

4. Drink water. It’s a necessity on every self-care list, and it’ll help you feel better after the wine.

5. Keep a journal. It’s a good way to reflect on your day, keep track of your goals, and even look back and reminisce. Plus, when society has finally rebuilt itself in 3,000 years, your journal may be the key for future humanoids to understand what brought the extinction of civilization.

6. Get some exercise. Physical activity releases endorphins, which helps you feel better. Be sure to stay at least two metres away from all other

humans if you venture outside. Or, if you live in an area where it’s recommended that you stay indoors, know that you can still stay fit! There are tons of pilates tutorials on YouTube for you to half-ass in your living room.

7. Masturbate. Having sex when there’s a global pandemic is not the best idea, unless you’re willing to get down while wearing hazmat suits.

Masturbation releases endorphins, and helps you get to know your body better. That way, the next time you have sex after the pandemic, it will be even more fulfilling!

8. Screw it, have sex. It’s honestly anti-feminist to try to control women’s sexuality. Stick it to the patriarchy while getting laid. Maybe just have a shower afterward. Not that I’m in a place to tell you what to do. You do you, girl!

9. Text your ex. This could be your last chance to meet up for ‘closure.’

10. Buy out all the toilet paper, hand sanitizer, bread, and milk from Metro. This is self-care.

Put yourself first. Other people can wait for the products to be restocked — it’s not like society is going to run out.

14

THE VARSITY

ARTS & CULTURE

arts@thevarsity.ca

No Time to Die of infectious diseases: a partial Bond retrospective

COURTESY OF EMPIRE DESIGN

A slew of postponements affect even the titular 007 Will Gotlib Varsity Contributor

With the planned April release of No Time to Die, the 25th James Bond film in a series that’s spanned as many actors as it has decades, I was going to write a retrospective of star Daniel Craig’s time as James Bond, but, in light of recent global events — namely the COVID-19 pandemic — this article has developed beyond that idea.

Craig’s been Bond for 14 years, longer than anyone else who’s held the role. In an interview during the runup to 2015’s Spectre, Craig said about doing another Bond film: “I’d rather… slash my wrists,” at least “at the moment.” He went on, “If I did another Bond movie, it would only be for the money.” Needless to say, I was very excited for No Time to Die. So, I was disappointed when on March 4, the movie release was delayed seven months until November, a highly unusual move since the delay was announced so close to release.

But if one thing’s to be taken from Bond’s repeated success since the ’60s, it’s that he never goes out of style — whether we have to wait one

month or eight — so just let’s go ahead anyway.

I’d like to be clear that I have not seen every James Bond movie. I’ve seen the first four with Sean Connery, plus a few random ones in between that become hard to differentiate with the amount of time that has passed since viewing them. I remember watching The Spy Who Loved Me in 10-minute segments on YouTube over my brother’s shoulder when I was really young, although I only really know it was that one because of the submarine car.

For the most part, my impression of Bond’s character has been through the four Daniel Craig films: Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall, and Spectre.

I certainly missed the original 2006 release of Casino Royale — my five-year-old self probably would have been terrified by the loud noises and the various heights from which characters jump.

I’ve seen it a few times since then though and it’s probably my favourite of Craig’s Bond films.

It’s a fantastic reinvention of the character, especially considering the fact that it follows the Pierce Brosnan films, which fall into derivative absurdity. It’s tense, complex, and well-paced, held together by actual character drama and a great cast, particularly Craig and Eva Green. It also has what is unequivocally the best Bond theme song, Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name.”

Quantum of Solace (2008) had also fallen off my radar for a long time — I didn’t watch it until last year, mostly for a sense of completion.

The James Bond franchise is not one to stay consistent, and this is by far the worst of Craig’s set. The film, like its title, is borderline incomprehensible. Casino Royale was commendable in its elevation of an aging series and character in addition to the action shlock, but Quantum rejects all that.

It lacks the same clarity and intelligence in its plot and script, though it may pretend not to.

The editing is also distractingly bad, and ruins most of the ludicrous number of action scenes.

I’m not sure if I saw Skyfall (2012) in theatres — it seems like a movie that I would have highly anticipated after seeing repeated bus ads while outside for elementary school recess, thinking it looked ‘epic.’ I watched Skyfall recently, as a bit of a refresher of an old favourite.

It’s similar to Casino Royale in its play on the expected formula of a Bond film, highlighting the moral messiness of the characters’ work instead of taking joy in espionage high jinks. Roger Deakins’ spectacular cinematography, Thomas Newman’s score, and Sam Mendes’ steady direction also set it a cut above.

The only one of the four that I’m sure I’ve seen in a theatre is 2015’s Spectre, which was also directed by Sam Mendes but is a pretty significant step down. It’s the only one that manages to be boring — for all its faults, there’s a kind of fun to how monumentally stupid Quantum is.

Spectre doubles down on the grim tone, while also straying into some weirdly silly territory; the two don’t play together very well. It’s still technically impressive, and it’d be an exaggeration to say that all or even most elements of the movie are failures. But it just isn’t as absorbing as the best of these movies are. Despite all this, I remember liking it at the time, and it definitely had a strangely strong influence on the ultra-amateur early filmmaking attempts of me and my friends.

Five years later, I was sitting on the phone with the same friend I saw Spectre with as we suffered through errors on the Cineplex website when trying to buy No Time to Die tickets. Two days after that headache in March, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) and Universal Studios announced that

“after careful consideration and thorough evaluation of the global theatrical marketplace, the release of No Time to Die will be postponed until November 2020.”

The announcement does not explicitly name the COVID-19 pandemic currently spreading across the globe as the cause of this shift, but it’s certainly implicit. Sitting in a tightly packed room with hundreds of strangers for three hours is far from the safest thing to do with an infectious disease spreading. Regardless of whether these fears are entirely justified, it’s been morbidly interesting to look at the impacts that such an important global phenomenon has had even on the realms of entertainment.

Disney suspended the Chinese release of its live-action Mulan remake, which will probably lose the company a lot of box office revenue — not that Disney necessarily needs it. Austin’s South by Southwest festival was also cancelled in response to the growing COVID-19 panic, following a trickle of distributors pulling their films.

More studios could feasibly follow MGM’s example and delay their major releases until later in the year, but what happens if things have not changed by November? What happens if they become even worse? It’s a scary thought, and MGM seems to be hedging its bets that the crisis will have somewhat blown over by fall. Amidst all this uncertainty, all we can do is hope that MGM’s right.

On a tangentially related note, if you’d like a bit of stylized global-pandemic anxiety, Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion is on Netflix!

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Science

March 16, 2020 var.st/science science@thevarsity.ca

Visualizing how control methods could slow the exponential spread of COVID-19 U of T model highlights how better interventions can “flatten the curve” of new coronavirus’ infectivity

Tuite and Fisman’s model depicts how COVID-19 could spread in scenarios with and without effective methods for containment.

COURTESY OF ASHLEIGH TUITE AND DAVID FISMAN/UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

Roshni Ravi Varsity Contributor

COVID-19 has quickly spread around the world, impacting patients in over 140 different countries. There are over 162,000 confirmed cases, and more than 6,000 deaths as of March 14.

Meanwhile, Canada has a total of 252 reported cases with one death.

As COVID-19 continues to spread around the world, public health officials have stressed the need for nations to implement controls to contain the virus in order to slow the growth of new cases before hospital systems are overwhelmed.

Effective control relies on improving our understanding of the virus, in terms of its origin, number of cases per country, and transmission potential.

Dr. Ashleigh Tuite and Dr. David Fisman, both faculty members at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health, have developed an interactive model,

explained in a letter to the Annals of Internal Medicine, that visualizes the impact of effective containment.

Understanding COVID-19’s growth model Tuite and Fisman’s model depicts how COVID-19 could spread in scenarios with and without effective methods for containment. Before diving into the findings of the model, it is important to understand its components and how they relate to each other.

The key factor that determines the infectivity of COVID-19 is called the basic reproduction number. This is the number of people that a patient with COVID-19 will successfully infect, in the absence of effective control efforts, according to the model.

The effective reproduction number is the predicted number of people that same patient will infect with effective control efforts such as

quarantines put in place.

The co-authors have developed their model based on several previously published research papers on COVID-19’s infectivity, according to the notes of their model.

Model demonstrates importance of isolation By modeling the spread of COVID-19, Tuite and Fisman wrote that it can “provide helpful insights into the growth of the 2019-nCoV epidemic that are not directly observable in publicly reported data.”

The model gives a visual representation of the concept of “flattening the curve” of COVID19’s spread. The current growth of COVID-19 is exponential, which creates an upward curve on the graph.

Flattening the curve means reducing the rate of COVID-19’s growth, which would avoid a high number of COVID-19 patients from

overwhelming health care systems at once. You can see the curve being flattened by adjusting the interactive model’s slider, reducing the effective reproduction number due to better control methods.

Control methods at U of T have included the cancellation of all undergraduate and researchstream graduate classes.

However, like many models, there are potential limitations to its accuracy. As Tuite and Fisman noted, mild COVID-19 infections may be underrepresented, as they may go unreported.

Tuite and Fisman also largely based the model on China’s epidemic. As the World Health Organization has now declared it a pandemic, the co-authors note that different countries may have different COVID-19 infection rates based on their different control methods.

Women in STEM: Kirti Saxena

U of T engineering student on injuries, challenges, and balancing coursework with wrestling

Saxena has represented Team Canada in wrestling championships.

COURTESY OF KIRTI SAXENA

Javiera Gutierrez Duran Associate Science Editor

Kirti Saxena is a second-year undergraduate student in mechanical engineering, an area where she is able to combine design, mathematics, and science. Outside of academics, Saxena wrestles — a sport she took up at age nine, after her father competed in the sport at the 1980 Olympics.

While she first started as a way to keep fit, her involvement in the sport became more serious by the time she was in grade nine, when she placed first in her category nationwide. She has also represented Team Canada in several international championships.

The importance of focus Having to balance school and wrestling has given her the ability to focus. “Be it wrestling or school, whatever environment I am in, I am able to give

it my all in that moment,” wrote Saxena to The Varsity.

People have questioned her as to why she has decided on studying such a time-consuming discipline while pursuing wrestling. Her answer is that she “[wants] to be able to use [her] academic gift to create things that will make positive change.”

She noted that U of T’s engineering student body has been “an inviting and welcoming community and made the transition smooth.”

On balancing her engineering coursework with wrestling, she wrote: “I have a strict schedule, strict meal plan, and a loving support team that all help me balance everything,” which has helped her persevere through many challenges.

“It all takes a whole team,” she wrote. “This

team includes my family, strength and training coaches, my personal coach (aka my dad), physio and massage therapists, psychologist, nutritionist and accommodating professors.”

Challenges on and off the mat Saxena writes that recovering from an injury was a big challenge for her. “Mentally and physically it’s a hard process and it is something that I am still going through.”

“Being a [woman] in sport is definitely challenging. Being a woman of colour in sport is even more challenging,” she reflected.

She notes that it is difficult to be in what has traditionally been viewed as a male sport. “Being a strong girl intimidates people, a lot of people picture girls to be a certain way and most don’t

expect them to be fighters. Growing up I dealt with a lot of people saying that ‘wrestling is not good for a girl.’ ” The importance of speaking up Saxena cites her sister, who is also one of her coaches, as her mentor. “She has shown me how to be a strong [woman] and always tells me to fight for what I believe is right,” she wrote.

“Without her influence I feel like I would not be as confident in voicing my opinion.”

Her advice for women in STEM is to not be afraid “to voice your thoughts.”

“A lot of people want you to stay quiet. Especially because they cannot handle the thought of a woman knowing more. Let them know you got a voice for a reason.”

16

THE VARSITY

SCIENCE

science@thevarsity.ca

From daphnia to duckweed: a spotlight on EEB Quarterly

A magazine for graduate students to practice science writing, build community Caroline Biel Varsity Staff

Do you ever wonder what daphnia feed on?

Or how scientists catch bats in High Park? Do you wonder how to prepare for fieldwork in the Amazon? Or want to nerd out about the scientific shortcomings of Jurassic Park? If so, you may want to check out EEB Quarterly.

Created by graduate students at the University of Toronto’s Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology (EEB), this magazine features articles on everything from how to survive life as a graduate student, to haikus about someone’s favourite organisms to study.

PhD student Sean Anderson launched the magazine in 2018 with the intention of helping graduate students improve their non-technical science writing. Whereas science students are typically trained to write dense, jargon-infused texts, EEB Quarterly is about writing science in a way that is engaging and understandable to read.

“I admire science writing. I basically just wanted to practice it, and I figured other students would, too. And that was sort of the initial inspiration for the whole thing,” said Anderson, EEB Quarterly’s editor-in-chief, to The Varsity.

The magazine has been a hit with EEB graduate students and faculty. Currently, 12 people sit on the editorial board, and dozens more have contributed their writing, art, and photography.

Brought alive with verve and humour, EEB Quarterly tells the funny and riveting stories behind science. Expect photo essays about fieldwork adventures and misadventures, indepth profiles on study species like daphnia and duckweed, and the odd poem about nature.

Some notable pieces include Christopher Reid’s guide to doing fieldwork in the tropics and Cylita Guy’s fieldwork story of netting bats in High Park. As a bonus, beautiful student photography and artwork pepper the pages of the publication.

EEB Quarterly accepts submissions from all graduate students, and works hard to ensure that it is not competitive. Graduate students face enough competition and rejection in academia, and the magazine’s team does not intend to add to it. Instead, the EEB Quarterly seeks to celebrate the achievements and personalities of students in a friendly environment.

The magazine has evolved into more than just a place to strengthen writing skills, though.

By sharing news and celebrating student achievements, the EEB Quarterly also helps foster a sense of community in the department — especially for a department whose members are scattered across U of T’s three campuses.

The process of creating the magazine is highly collaborative. “It does make you feel like you’re part of this community. Everyone’s kind of in this together,” said Anderson. “A lot of work goes into it by a lot of people. And it wouldn’t be possible at all without people volunteering time. No one actually has a lot of time for this, but they volunteer anyway.”

The magazine is not exclusively for EEB graduate students — in fact, it can also serve as a great resource for undergraduate students.

The magazine is rich in fun research stories — surely a refreshing break from the dense textbooks that litter our desk. In addition, the magazine offers glimpses into the lives of graduate students, which is insightful to those considering a career in academia.

The editors publish the magazine biannually.

The next issue is planned for release this spring.

Sean Anderson is EEB Quarterly’s founder and editor-in-chief.

COURTESY OF SEAN ANDERSON

What’s the carbon footprint of a medical test?

How Canadian physicians can prepare for the impact of the climate crisis on health care Oviya Muralidharan Science Correspondent

The greatest threat to health across the globe is the climate crisis.

This is the position taken by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Canada is, of course, not spared of this fact. The effects of the crisis include damage to the physical and mental health of millions of Canadian patients. This can stem from the spread of Lyme disease, uptick in heat-related deaths after prolonged heat waves, extended pollen season triggering asthma complications, lung damage from wildfires, and psychological harm from flooding and increasing climate anxiety, among other things.

How the climate crisis disproportionately impacts patients in marginalized communities The health impacts of the climate crisis are also disproportionately felt by marginalized communities.

IRIS DENG/ THE VARSITY

The Varsity spoke to Dr. Samantha Green, a board member of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), an assistant professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, and a family physician who works with marginalized communities downtown.

People living in poverty, racialized individuals, and Indigenous peoples are most affected, noted Green. Their vulnerability is a product of historical social conditions, such as economic inequality, racism, colonialism, and systematic oppression.

She explained, “It’s all about whether you have access to resources to, for example, repair your home when it gets flooded or to access foods when there is increasing food insecurity.”

One example from her own practice is that “with heat waves, especially with people living in poverty, it can be hard to cope. You can’t afford an air conditioner… and if you’re socially isolated, or

if there’s mobility issues and you can’t make it to an air conditioned environment, then it’s really hard.”

The impact of the climate crisis on the health care system The climate crisis, however, not only impacts people, but also impacts health care institutions by damaging systems and limiting access to critical resources.

The Varsity spoke to George Kitching, a medical student at Western University, who explained it further.

“After the hurricane in Puerto Rico, there was a shortage in normal saline because that was the major production site… for Canada,” he said.

Kitching explained that it’s difficult to ensure that the health care system is robust against impacts due to the climate crisis, both in Canada and around the world.

The intersection of the climate crisis and medical education Despite the climate crisis being clearly relevant for medical education, “medical schools have not adequately addressed the urgent need for training,” according to a University of Toronto-affiliated article in The Lancet, co-authored by Kitching.

The Canadian Federation of Medical Students created a task force called HEART — standing for the Health and Environment Adaptive Response Task Force — in 2016 in order to help medical students to raise awareness around the issue of environmental impacts on health.

In response to the crisis, as reporting by Kitching and his co-authors, HEART has developed a set of core curricular competencies to be included in curriculum of medical schools across Canada to integrate planetary health education in the undergraduate medical programs.

The task force also conducted a national survey of medical schools, identifying strengths and areas for improvement for planetary health teaching in undergraduate medical programs. It’s the first evaluation of its kind in Canada, and a report of its findings and recommendations was recently published.

Kitching, who is also a member of HEART, explained that the task force “sent it out to deans at most schools. The ask was to meet with students at each school to chart a path forward to address some of the critiques and some of the suggestions that we had in the report… The next step for HEART as a task force is to support local students at each to use the report to push their faculty and deans to incorporate further training.”

However, one of the biggest pushbacks they face is that the medical curriculum is already packed, and to add one thing, another thing must be taken out in return, according to the coauthors.

To tackle this, the report recommends integrating planetary health teaching into existing lectures, for example, by including air pollution with respiratory health teaching. The report also recommends case studies to help focus on the disproportionate impact to marginalized communities.

Thinking about health care and the climate crisis The health care industry both affects, and is affected by, the climate crisis.

A 2018 study concluded that the health care sector in Canada was responsible for 4.6 per cent of the nation’s carbon dioxide equivalents, which is a measure of environmental impact, and estimated that it resulted in 23,000 years of life lost due to illness, disability, or premature death.

The study advocated for health care professionals to adopt more sustainable practices. For example, the National Health Service Centre in the United Kingdom calculates carbon footprints of various health care activities like staff transport and waste disposal.

Health care professionals should also be trained to think more sustainably without compromising patient care, according to the report.

“We need to be learning not only about the efficacy of medications we prescribe [and] also their cost, [but] also their climate costs and environmental costs,” said Green.

var.st/science

17

MARCH 16, 2020

What to do if you get burned U of T researchers publish paper on identifying, treating, preventing burn injuries

Burn injuries can be caused by radiation, heat, cold, friction, electrical, or chemical sources.

SAMANTHA YAO/THE VARSITY

Roshni Ravi Varsity Contributor

Do you recall a time when you were young, maybe around 10 years old, and you wanted to see how hot the stove was, so you touched it? Or the first time you tried to straighten your hair for the school dance and accidentally burned your ear?

We’ve all been there. However, we often downplay the importance of these injuries. Many of us think that proper treatment involves massaging the burn a few times, while others run cold water over the burn for less than 30 seconds and continue with their day.

What you may not realize is that burns are one of the most commonly ignored injuries, with the most severe consequences to our health.

“An estimated 180,000 deaths every year are caused by burns — the vast majority occur in low- and middle- income countries,” according to the World Health Organization.

A University of Toronto-affiliated review summarized the different types of burns and relevant treatment methods.

What do we know about burns?

Burn injuries can be caused by radiation, heat, cold, friction, and electrical or chemical sources, with the most common source being heat. These injuries lead to instantaneous tissue destruction, accompanied by metabolic changes, immune and inflammatory responses, and distributive shock throughout the body.

The impact of the shock can often be overlooked, which can potentially cause multiple organ failures and even death. The assumption is that, once the burn is healed, the injury is resolved. However, burns can lead to long-term changes in quality of life and mental health.

Let’s break down the four degrees of burn injuries categorized by severity, which is defined by the size and depth of the wound.

A first-degree burn is a superficial burn with temporary pain, and some redness. It does not penetrate below the uppermost layer of the skin, called the epidermis.

Second-degree burns are broken down into two categories. The first type is a superficial partialthickness burn which requires wound care and dressing; they can be quite painful, but do not require any type of surgery. The second is a deep partial-thickness burn. Interestingly, this type of burn is less painful than the superficial partial-thickness burn due to its destruction of the pain receptors.

This type of burn will most likely require surgery.

Both of these types of burns will scar; however, a superficial partial-thickness burn can heal with a minor scar or maybe even no scar in some cases.

A third-degree burn is a full thickness burn that penetrates the entire dermis, or skin, destroys pain receptors, and has a strong likelihood of becoming infected if not treated quickly. This type of burn is less painful than a second-degree burn due to the destruction of the receptors. In most cases, treatment for it requires surgery unless the impacted area is very small.

Finally, a fourth-degree burn is a type of burn that we do not hear about often. It goes past the dermis and affects the underlying muscle or bone.

This deep burn can lead to loss of the burned part due to lack of blood flow and excessive damage of the sensory and pain receptors. The flesh can become black due to the burn.

What can you do in the event of a burn?

The first step in cases of burns is to determine the

cause of the burn in order to remove the person from the source, as long as it is safe for you to do so, according to the co-authors. If the source is electrical, ensure the source of the burn is off and no longer active. If chemical, you need to contact your local poison control centre to receive further steps to mitigate your risk.

You then need to flush the site of the injury with cold water to prevent further destruction of the skin. Do not use ice, according to the co-authors, as it can cause further damage to the flesh due to frostbite. Avoid applying home remedies such as toothpaste, lemon, butter, or hydrogen peroxide ointments, which the co-authors note can further worsen tissue damage.

It is always important to contact emergency services in the event of a burn that feels uncontrolled, or greater than a first-degree burn.

Further education on burns There are many measures that can be taken to mitigate the risk of a burn injury. A large part of burn safety involves education.

Dr. Mark Jeschke, the lead author and a physician at U of T’s Institute of Medical Science, explained to The Varsity that education on proper treatment is important, as trauma and burns “really [affect] lives for a long time.”

Methods of prevention include teaching burn safety, which involves advising people to use smoke alarms, have an escape plan from a house, and never leaving a stove unattended, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Prevention methods also include testing bath water for temperature before entering and anchoring ovens and stoves to walls to prevent tipping.

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Sports

March 16, 2020 var.st/sports sports@thevarsity.ca

Several U SPORTS Championships cancelled due to COVID-19

National champion in men’s and women’s hockey, volleyball called off Silas Le Blanc Sports Editor

The U SPORTS national championships for hockey and volleyball were cancelled for the 2019– 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is the first time that the David Johnson University Cup, awarded to the national champion of university men’s hockey, or the Golden Path trophy, awarded to the university women’s hockey national champion, will not be awarded in their respective 58-year and 22-year histories.

The Varsity Blues women’s volleyball team, men’s volleyball team, and women’s hockey teams had qualified for the U SPORTS championship games after the women’s hockey and volleyball teams won the Ontario University Athletics championships, and the volleyball men’s team finished second. However, the women’s hockey team had already been eliminated by Mount Royal University.

The women’s volleyball championship was set to be played in Calgary, and the men’s was set to Underwater rugby offers a unique twist on the traditional game. PETTER F. SCHMEDLING/ CC WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Laura Ashwood Associate Sports Editor

On Friday evenings at the Riverdale Collegiate Institute’s pool, the water may look empty — but a practice is in full swing just beneath the surface.

That’s because at 8:00 pm sharp the Toronto Un-

be played in Winnipeg. As of March 15, there were 39 cases of COVID-19 in Alberta and four in Manitoba.

“Over the past 24 hours, many things have changed in sport across Canada and it’s a really difficult position to be in as these types of important decisions impact so many people,” U SPORTS Chief Sport Officer Lisette JohnsonStapley wrote in a statement. “Our host committees have worked tirelessly for two years on these events and we thank them for their support and the great experience they wanted to provide for the student-athletes, coaches and officials as well as family, friends and fans.”

The men’s and women’s hockey championships were cancelled after Hockey Canada called off all sanctioned activities due to the pandemic. The women’s tournament was being held on Prince Edward Island, where there is currently one case of COVID-19. “As [a] proud partner of Hockey Canada, we understand how difficult a decision this was to make,” Johnson-Stapley stated, regarding the hockey championships. “We under-

stand the disappointment felt by our studentathletes, coaches, officials and wonderful hosts however the decision was made with the best interest of all participants in mind.”

U SPORTS has also stated that it will refund any tickets that people had bought in advance.

Several other professional and collegiate leagues and tournaments have been either suspended or outright cancelled. The NBA, NHL, Major League Soccer, and several European soccer leagues, including the Premier League, have suspended their seasons, with little clarity on future steps. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States has cancelled all winter and spring championships, including March Madness — their profitable men’s volleyball tournament.

The NCAA will, however, grant another year of eligibility to athletes who compete in spring.

There is little indication on how these leagues and tournaments will continue if the status of the pandemic changes, or if any changes to eligibility will be made for U SPORTS athletes who have been affected.

The Varsity has reached out to the Varsity Blues for comment.

Three U SPORTS events that the Varsity Blues were participating in were cancelled.

DINA DONG/THE VARSITY

What the ‘ruck’ is underwater rugby?

How a U of T swimmer rose through the ranks to make the national team

derwater Rugby Club (TURC) gathers to tough it out underwater for a strange and wonderful iteration of an otherwise straightforward sport. Practicing alongside is U of T Varsity swimmer Hannah Hermanson, who teamed up with Toronto Varsity Blues alum Melanie McDonald to join Team Canada at the Underwater Rugby World Championships in July and August of 2019 in Austria.

“I was initially shocked at the opportunity, but knew I couldn’t pass it up,” said Hermanson.

As a Varsity swimmer, she realized that many transferable skills from her main sport could be useful for underwater rugby, including breathholding and kicking underwater. Once she met the coach and some players at the next practice, she knew she was hooked.

“I was immediately intrigued by the uniqueness of the sport, and the opportunity to be a part of

the first women’s team to compete internationally,” she continued.

Underwater rugby isn’t just playing the same rugby underwater, however. The game is played on the floor of a swimming pool. Players throw a ball filled with saltwater that is susceptible to sinking, and there aren’t scrums like regular rugby: teams start at opposite ends of the pool, and dash to the centre to get possession. Points are scored by tossing the ball into the opponent’s basket. However, there is still tackling allowed, but it’s only legal to do so to a player in possession of the ball. As the Toronto club is an inclusive, co-ed space, it can get pretty intense under the surface, but the water softens the blows to make the sport relatively low-impact.

Hermanson quickly fell in love with the unorthodox sport and soon found herself in Austria for the World Championship. “Trust and friendships grew within a very short period of

time, making the whole experience all the more memorable,” she recalled.

“After games, the team would meet at the hotel and watch game footage for future improvement and receive feedback from each other… Walking along the cobblestone streets and eating schnitzel, or exploring the hidden secrets of the city while not competing, completed the surreal experience,” said Hermanson. The team found themselves in 13th place at the end of Canada’s firstever appearance at the competition, and each teammate from across Canada brought home lifelong memories.

For those interested in a break from traditional sport, Hermanson said that “if you love being in the water but also the intensity of land sports, underwater rugby is perfect for you.” The TURC holds regular practices that they announce on their Meetup page for anyone interested; who knows, you may end up on the national team!

How university athletes deal with stressors

KPE Professor Katherine Tamminen on how parents, coaches help athletes to cope Silas Le Blanc Sports Editor

Varsity athletes often have a large amount of stressors to deal with that are different from those of other athletes. They often have to balance school, sport, and other factors in their personal lives. Professor Katherine Tamminen from the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education studies the abilities of adolescents and university aged athletes to deal with stress in sport — and helps them face it in a healthy way.

Tamminen said that parents and coaches can play a huge role in how athletes deal with stress by “helping them learn to cope with [it],” she said in an interview with The Varsity. “And they also influenced the type of stress that they might experience. So parents and coaches might also be a source of stress for athletes… I think it’s a bit of a double-edged sword there.”

Tamminen also emphasizes that this topic is very nuanced, and that there is no one universal answer when it comes to dealing with stress in younger athletes. “There are some strategies that may be more useful in some situations whereas other strategies are going to be more useful in other situations,” she said.

“It really comes down to the type of stressor that

the athlete is facing and then selecting the most appropriate coping strategy to use when dealing with that stressor.”

“If an athlete is having problems with their performance or a skill or something technical, seeking information from their coaches and from their teammates or spending more time working specifically on that skill in practice is likely going to help them to deal with that performance issue,” Tamminen said.

“But if the issue is an ongoing conflict with a teammate or if it’s an issue in a conflict with a coach, or if it’s a stressor from outside of sports that they’re dealing with, like academic demands or they’re dealing with health concerns from a family member, those are going to require different coping strategies.”

However, some athletes deal with things that they have no control over, to which Tamminen recommended dealing with one’s emotions instead of trying to control the situation. She advised “seeking social support or re-appraising the situation and trying to see the positive side of things. Practicing mindfulness.”

She continued, “These can also be very helpful strategies, whereas in situations where they have more control over the stressor, then they might do

things that are more active and problem-oriented.”

She said that athletes may need to spend more time on these problems, and seek out additional information.

When asked what the most important thing she learned in her research was, she highlighted the importance of social support and having people to turn to.

JOSEPH DONATO/ THE VARSITY

“The importance of having either a close friend, a teammate, a coach, a parent, somebody that you can confide in and talk to and turn to is so important. It comes up across every single study that I think I’ve ever done in this area… the importance of that social connectedness that people, that athletes have.”

var.st/sports

MARCH 16, 2020

COVID-19 delays Europa League Round of 16, but predictions must continue!

Sevilla vs. Roma highlight of fixtures, Leverkusen likely to advance with ease İstanbul Başakşehir vs. København Both teams enter this match having achieved mixed results in the group stages, and neither were favourites to progress beyond their Round of 32 ties. Still, İstanbul Başakşehir overturned a 3–1 first leg deficit against Sporting Club de Portugal in remarkable fashion, while København dispatched the Scottish champions Celtic 4–2 on aggregate. Başakşehir have faced far tougher opposition than København, and have thus developed stronger defensive resilience.

København have no real attacking threat — they have scored the fewest goals of the 12 remaining teams that started in the group stage — and they are unlikely to overcome their opponent’s narrow organizational structure. İstanbul Başakşehir win.

Olympiacos vs. Wolves Wolves’ 17-goal haul in the competition proper is more than that of any remaining teams, and they have better players than Olympiacos in virtually every department.

Olympiacos will be buoyed by their victory over Arsenal in the previous round, and have every reason to believe they can cause Wolves trouble. However, with Wolves’ solid defensive line marshalled by Captain Conor Coady, Olympiacos will likely pin their hopes on their top scorer Youssef El-Arabi to create magic. Even then, Wolves’ forwards Diogo Jota and Raúl Jimenez have performed reliably in Europe with nine goals apiece, and will likely prove too much for the Greek side to handle. Wolves through.

Rangers vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen Steven Gerrard deserves plaudits for guiding his unfancied Rangers outfit thus far in the Europa League with some solid, if unspectacular, performances. This is Rangers’ best season in Europe since the 2010– 2011 season, but their progress is likely to come to a grinding halt against the in-form Leverkusen.

Leverkusen finished third in a tough Champions League group containing Juventus and Atlético Madrid, after dismantling Porto in their first Europa League contest, with Lucas Alario and Kai Havertz particularly standing out. The German team tends to dominate possession — they averaged 60 per cent against Porto over two legs — and they make full use of an impressive press.

In recent weeks, Rangers have all but blown their chances of winning the Scottish Premiership with a stunning collapse in mentality that also saw them knocked out of the Scottish Cup, meaning that the Europa League is the last trophy they are still realistically competing for. If they want to progress they will need to be at their organized best and ensure that Alfredo Morelos and Ianis Hagi take full advantage of any chances they can carve out.

However, given Leverkusen’s meticulous matchmanagement and their stronger squad, the German team should win.

VFL Wolfsburg vs. Shakhtar Donetsk On paper, Wolfsburg and Shakhtar look like very evenly matched sides. Wolfsburg Manager Oliver Glasner has turned his defense into a consistently disciplined unit while implementing an intense high press. Shakhtar Manager Luis Castro has likewise set his team up with defensive resilience at times this season, but his team often sit back patiently and hit opponents on the counter-attack. The two contrasting styles of play should have made this an entertaining duel, and success will hinge upon each team’s ability to stick to their game plan and avoid individual errors. Shakhtar to sneak through, courtesy of their more dynamic midfield.

Inter Milan vs. Getafe Inter enter this game with a greater sense of expectation, which they owe to their high expenditure on players this season and Manager Antonio Conte’s

Michael Teoh Varsity Staff

The Europa League Round of 16 — the second tier of European club football below the UEFA Champions League — has been cancelled due to COVID-19.

In both the 2016–2017 and 2018–2019 seasons, I correctly predicted six out of the eight Round of 16 results, however in 2017–2018, my success was

credentials. Inter fans have been itching for a firstplace trophy since the 2010–2011 season, and with the team still in the running for Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and the Europa League, Conte’s men are targeting an ambitious treble. Strikers Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martínez regularly dominate the headlines, but Inter have a number of other impressive players who, on paper, should outmatch their Getafe counterparts.

Getafe have been impressive both domestically and in the Europa League so far this season. They claimed a noteworthy victory against Ajax in the previous round, but have otherwise struggled to impose themselves against stronger teams. With Conte’s tactical astuteness and his host of star players, Inter should be able to book their quarterfinal spot.

Sevilla vs. Roma This matchup is arguably the most exciting of the round, as both Sevilla and Roma are European heavyweights who harbour realistic ambitions of winning the competition. Sevilla have had more impressive results in the competition, but have faced much weaker opposition, so this tie is very open.

Sevilla are adept at managing the ball and retaining possession, while Roma often set up in a compact and organized structure.

Given the similarities in tactics and ability between the two sides, control of the midfield and workrate will have a huge influence in determining which team progresses. Sevilla seem to have the edge in both departments. That said, Roma look unlikely to qualify for the Champions League through their domestic league, meaning that they may view this game as an all-or-nothing to save their season.

In what could be decided by a coin flip, Sevilla to progress.

Frankfurt vs. Basel Even though Frankfurt have fallen off the high standard they set for themselves last season, they have retained many of the tactical fundamentals that made them so successful. Like the other two German teams in the draw, they operate with an intense high press. Their inconsistency this season stems from opposition matching their intense press and barraging their flanks.

Basel do not play this way, nor do they seem capable of maintaining a high-tempo game. That said, they have shown that they are ruthlessly efficient and can capitalize on any errors that Frankfurt may make. Finding a middle ground between pressing Frankfurt enough to force mistakes and maintaining their own system of play will be essential for the Swiss team to get something out of this tie. In what could be a very close affair, Basel to pull off an upset win.

Linzer Athletik-Sport-Klub vs. Manchester United Despite Manchester United’s inconsistent form this season and their at-times startlingly fragile mentality, the January addition of Bruno Fernandes looks to have improved their ability to assert control over the midfield, which will be a big boon to their forwards Mason Greenwood, Anthony Martial, and new boy Odion Ighalo.

Linzer Athletik-Sport-Klub (LASK) have been quietly impressive, however — right wing back Reinhold Ranftl in particular has demonstrated his creative ability with four assists and a goal in the competition. Manchester United’s defense may struggle to cope with LASK’s 3-4-3 formation, particularly given goalkeeper David De Gea’s increasingly shaky performances. To win, United need to play on the front foot and take advantage of the space between LASK’s full-backs — speedy winger Daniel James may be a useful option — while remaining diligent with possession. United to progress.

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a meagre four out of eight. For consistency’s sake, I thought I’d predict what would happen if the tournament didn’t get suspended, or what will happen if it continues in the future. Hopefully these predictions are more accurate than streaming FIFA 20 to decide matches, as some clubs are doing.

Sevilla-Roma and Wolfsburg-Shakhtar Donetsk look like the most tightly contested fixtures of the round. The first legs were played on March 12, and the second were to be played on March 19.

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THE VARSITY

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