“We have been extremely concerned”: Candidates criticize SCSU election process Ukraine is in a dire position, trapped between two imperialist powers CUPE 3902 units implement strike mandate against U of T
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“We have been extremely concerned”: Candidates criticize SCSU election process
Spoiled ballots, CRO hiring, and demerit point appeals among top issues
significant concerns for me that certain procedures within the EPC were not being followed” wrote Sindhu.
On March 7, the Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU) posted the unofficial election results of the 2025–2026 SCSU general election, with the RISE UTSC slate sweeping all executive positions.
Following the announcement, candidates raised concerns on how the union conducted the election, claiming that it did not follow its Elections Procedure Code (EPC) and Bylaws. They also flagged the results listing over 700 spoiled ballots — numbers not reported in previous years.
The Varsity spoke with the SCSU executive candidates, as well as the SCSU Chief Returning Officer (CRO) and the Elections and Referenda Committee (ERC), to better understand the election process.
CRO hiring
Following the election results, several candidates from the INSPIRE UTSC slate flagged inconsistencies in how the union followed its EPC and Bylaws.
In an interview with The Varsity , current SCSU president and INSPIRE UTSC leader Hunain Sindhu voiced concerns about how the elections were handled.
“We have been extremely concerned about the elections procedure as well as the voting process that took place this past elections period… because a lot of steps in the [EPC] that have been outlined by [the] SCSU, that were updated last year by the CRO, were not followed,” said Sindhu.
In an email to The Varsity , the CRO wrote that “[the] EPC was not updated last year; the CRO only made recommendations, with no formal revisions made by the previous ERC.”
The CRO requested anonymity due to not having prior knowledge on media coverage before accepting the position.
According to the SCSU EPC, the CRO is hired by the ERC after a public job posting on the SCSU website. However, Sindhu noted that the union skipped this process.
In an email to The Varsity , SCSU’s VicePresident, (VP) Operations and ERC member Jena Bah wrote that “While the ERC did not directly hire the CRO, the committee had no objections to the CRO’s appointment, especially given their previous experience as CRO for the 2024 Fall By-elections and last spring’s SCSU Elections, as well as their availability.”
She added that the CRO’s employment agreement was signed by her, Sindhu, and the CRO.
Sindhu confirmed with The Varsity that he signed the CRO contract “as the President is responsible for signing all SCSU employees’ contracts.” However, he later became concerned after realizing that the SCSU never published a job posting and that there was no mention of a posting during the February BOD meeting.
This board package is not yet public on the SCSU website.
“This was the first incident that raised
“Sole adjudicator”
INSPIRE
UTSC’s VP Academic and University Affairs candidate Heba Reeyaz also expressed concerns about the election process in an interview with The Varsity
“I think one of my major concerns is how ambiguous the EPC actually is and how much discretion is given to the CRO in order to decide what would be fit to be okay and what would not be,” said Reeyaz. “It becomes frustrating to figure out whether the election procedures were being followed fairly or not.”
The EPC writes that all campaign rule violations are directed to the CRO, who is the “sole adjudicator of these matters.” Allocating demerit points is also “at the sole discretion of the CRO.”
In response, Bah wrote that “While we acknowledge that some aspects of the EPC may be vague, the ERC has consistently operated within the established framework. It is important to note that the CRO’s discretion has been respected in previous election cycles.”
“The ERC is committed to providing recommendations to ensure that both the EPC and the CRO’s discretionary powers are properly enforced and respected,” she added.
In a March 10 email obtained by The Varsity , the CRO informed all candidates that they were aware some had contacted student media, including The Varsity and UTSC’s student publication The Underground , regarding the elections.
The CRO wrote that they “encourage everyone to share their experiences and perspectives on the election process,” but that “[any] form of slander or unsubstantiated accusations regarding the SCSU 2025 General Elections — including statements directed at myself, the [Deputy Returning Officers] (DRO), polling clerks, the Elections and Referendum Committee, the Elections and Appeals Committee, or other candidates — is strictly prohibited.”
“The language and the wording of the email by the CRO to the candidates was a bit concerning,” said Sindhu. “Especially because candidates who may have approached The Varsity had no intent of spreading slander or misinformation, but we’re just trying to highlight and shed light on the fact that proper election procedures were not followed.”
In response, Bah wrote that “the email from the CRO was sent to remind all candidates of the expectations for fair play during the election process.”
“Allegations were made against both candidates and election officials throughout the entire election process. The CRO’s email aimed to reinforce the importance of professionalism and fairness while the election is still ongoing, particularly regarding unverified claims shared by candidates or their supporters.”
The union will decide whether to ratify the election results at its March 21 Board of
Directors (BOD) meeting. Sindhu added that he wants to leave it to the board to consider the concerns and determine whether to approve the results.
“I hope that the [BOD] can make an informed decision for themselves, where they look at all of the facts, and they look at the procedures that were followed and not followed,” said Sindhu.
What does ‘spoiled’ mean?
In this year’s election cycle, there were a total of 712 spoiled ballots: 683 across the six executive positions and 29 in the contested BOD elections.
Candidates raised concerns regarding the high number of spoiled ballots, but the union has not clarified how many spoiled ballots fall into each category.
According to the CRO, ballots may be considered spoiled due to unclear markings or drawings, multiple selections or no selection, intentional abstentions — such as by writing “abstain” or crossing out both candidates’ names. Ballots can also be spoiled because of missing signatures and initials from polling clerks due to human error.
Sindhu raised concerns about the polling clerk training, noting that applications were only released during the All Candidates Meeting, “less than a week and a half before the voting period.” SCSU never publicly revealed the date of the All Candidates Meeting.
He added that it becomes “very concerning” when only approximately 1,500 students vote and around 700 ballots are spoiled, with five out of the six executive positions each seeing more than 100 spoiled ballots.
“It is really concerning as it can impact the outcome of the elections, because voter turnout was not great. A 10 per cent voter turnout is not sufficient for a democratic election,” said Sindhu.
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t the voters’ fault or the candidates’ fault, because most of the spoiled ballots were because of the negligence of the polling clerks.”
Bah wrote in an email to The Varsity that, “out of 15 polling clerks, 10 were hired in the fall and invited to return, while 5 were hired in late February by the CRO and [DROs].”
“These clerks underwent multiple training sessions, which all polling clerks attended before the start of the voting period. Throughout the election, polling clerks were reminded of the proper voting procedures.”
Lalise Shifara — leader of the RISE slate and the elected SCSU president in the unofficial results — said in an interview with The Varsity that while the absence of spoiled ballot numbers in the previous years raises questions, “I do appreciate that [the number of spoiled ballots] was posted [this year], because it shows that there is a level of transparency for students.”
In both the 2023 and 2024 Spring General Elections, the number of spoiled ballots was not reported in the election results. The SCSU elections archive only goes back to 2023.
In an email to The Varsity , the CRO acknowledged that, “This omission was an
oversight and for the sake of transparency, this information should have been reported, as was the practice prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Moving forward, the SCSU will ensure that all election results adhere to a consistent reporting standard, which will be documented in both the CRO Report and the updated Elections Procedure Code.”
The CRO also noted that “the number of spoiled ballots this year is consistent with last year’s figures, and no concerns have been raised by the Elections team regarding this matter,” adding that the issue is not new and has previously been reported by The Varsity in 2020.
They clarified, “Upon review, the majority of spoiled ballots were due to students choosing to abstain, not due to the polling clerks’ signatures or initials.”
In an email to The Varsity , Bah added that the number of spoiled ballots could also reflect “a general dissatisfaction with the election process itself. Many students expressed frustration, which likely contributed to higher abstention rates.”
During the candidates’ campaigning period, many UTSC students took to Reddit to express concerns about the number of posters candidates put up around campus and how much paper was being wasted. Candidates made promises during the SCSU debate to recycle them and make notebooks through a program by the UTSC Print Hub.
A student raised concerns over these false promises and both slates found alternative methods of recycling.
Duel of demerits in a day Candidates also discussed their thoughts on the demerit points and appeals process.
Reeyaz — who currently works as a coordinator for the SCSU Academic Support Centre (ASC) — received 15 demerit points for being in the ASC space to set up before an event.
She said that she was informed the night before voting began that she was not permitted to be in the office space or work during the elections period. However, because the event had been planned in advance, she notified the CRO that she would be in the space at a specific time during the event.
Reeyaz explained that she was penalized for entering the space 15 minutes early to set up.
“Proper communication regarding the fact that I wasn’t supposed to be in the space well in advance, the implications of that violation, and the number of demerit points awarded for that violation well in advance would have been helpful for me to make the decision,” she said.
“However, that communication wasn’t in place.”
Reeyaz also mentioned a lack of communication in the appeals process. After submitting an appeal, she received an email at 10:11 am on March 7 stating that she would be invited to a meeting with the Elections Appeals Committee (EAC) on the same day at 1:00 pm to discuss it.
However, she said that no invitation was sent, and although she received a phone call later that day, was unable to answer due to
religious commitments. At 4:08 pm, she was informed by Bah that the EAC decided to uphold the 15 demerit points.
In an email shared with The Varsity , Bah wrote to Reeyaz that “it is important to note that confirming your attendance or informing me of your unavailability due to Jummah Prayer was required. Assuming that no response was necessary was not an acceptable course of action.”
The Varsity confirmed that Bah’s email to Reeyaz at 10:11 am did not require her to confirm her attendance to the EAC meeting.
“This matter will not be revisited. As previously stated, the EAC has made its final decision, and I will not be engaging in further discussion on this issue,” wrote Bah.
Bah wrote to The Varsity that “[Reeyaz] was invited by the EAC to appeal her demerit points however she did not respond to our email invitation.”
“Unfortunately, this was the only opportunity within the 48 hour timeframe to hold the appeals meeting, and a decision was made to uphold the demerit points that were appointed based on the clear evidence at that time,” wrote Bah.
On the other hand, Shifara said that RISE UTSC had no complaints about the process and that candidates received multiple email reminders from the CRO about election rules.
“When candidates on our team did receive demerit points, the email from the CRO that was sent out to those candidates provided a very clear explanation of where, when, how, and why they received those points, along with the number of points that [were]
allocated to each candidate… [It] followed the allocation of demerit point guidelines in the EPC,” said Shifara.
Appeals process confusion
According to the EPC, when the CRO issues demerit point notices, candidates must be notified within 48 hours of the rule violations that resulted in demerit points, unless the complaint is time sensitive — in which case the decision must be communicated in 24 hours.
Bah wrote to The Varsity that candidates have 48 hours to appeal the CRO’s decision to the ERC. If candidates are also unsatisfied with the ERC’s decision, they may appeal to the EAC within 24 hours. The EAC’s decision is final.
However, the EPC does not indicate how long candidates are allotted to appeal the CRO’s decision to the ERC.
It states that, after candidates make an appeal to the ERC, they have 48 hours to appeal the ERC’s decision to the Chair of the ERC. While the code lists that the EAC must convene within 72 hours of receiving an appeal, it does not indicate how complaints are brought to the EAC.
Total demerit points
The SCSU updated the number of demerit points assigned to each candidate on its website.
In total, INSPIRE UTSC candidates received 68 demerit points, with Reeyaz making up 22 demerit points. RISE UTSC candidates received 42 demerit points, with VP External Fawzia Elhag and Political Science BOD candidate Hanna Naghibzadeh both receiving nine demerit points each.
“Refusal then and now”: IJV U of T hosts panel with Israeli military refusers Panel talks to
Damola Omole Associate News Editor
On March 12, Independent Jewish Voices (IJV) U of T and IJV Toronto and York Region hosted a panel discussion at Friends House called “Refusal then and now: Refusing complicity, resisting repression, reframing solidarity.”
While IJV U of T is not a U of T-recognized group, the event was moderated by awardwinning journalist and U of T alumna Samira Mohyeddin and featured Tal Mitnick and Einat Gerlitz — two young Israelis who were jailed for refusing to serve in Israel’s military — along with UTSC history Professor Natalie Rothman and legal academic, journalist, and U of T alumna Azeezah Kanji.
“One who refuses”
The panel began with a statement from Rothman, who shared that she too, was a refuser of Israeli military service in the 1990s. However, she noted that unlike Mitnick and Gerlitz, she “paid very little price for [her] refusal to serve.”
Rothman discussed what she calls “coresistance” and how it differs from other forms of protest like military refusal or conscientious objection, which is the refusal to perform a legal obligation or action due to deeply held moral or religious beliefs.
Co-resistance, according to Rothman, is “a term that really unlocks… some very critical questions about ‘what are we resisting to? What is the past that we’re analyzing and understanding? How are we resisting?’” Instead of the responsibility being on an individual and their act of participation, co-resistance critiques the systems and institutions of oppression that mandate participation.
She described the concept of conscientious objection as “misleading” because “it can falsely maintain [a] distinction between ethical and political grounds for refusing conscription.”
She also criticized the concept of refusal as being too “individualized” saying that people often refuse to be affected by institutions that they do not want to be part of, but neglect critiquing the very institution’s legitimacy.
The discussion then shifted to the two Israeli military “refuseniks,” as they were referred to during the panel.
The term refusenik or отказник, means “one who refuses,” traces back to the Soviet Unionera in Russia, when Jewish Soviet citizens who were denied the freedom to leave the country were called refuseniks. The term is now being used by pro-Palestine advocates to refer to Jewish individuals who choose not to serve in the military.
Mitnick and Gerlitz discussed their similar experiences as refuseniks. Mitnick talked about the societal isolation that comes with refusing military service in Israel, “The refusal leaves a stain for your whole life. I find myself kind of avoiding any contact with people that I don’t know, that I don’t really need.”
“I remember getting in a taxi and starting [a conversation] with a taxi driver, knowing the
first thing they’ll ask is, ‘What are you doing? Are you working? Are you in the military?’ And ‘oh, why didn’t you go to the military?’” explained Mitnick.
He made headlines in 2024 as the first conscientious objector to be jailed in Israel since the October 7 Hamas-led attack. Later in his speech, Mitnick focused on the social challenges of refusing military service, mentioning various hardships he’s faced, including attacks on social media and rejection from family members.
Gerlitz discussed his refusal within a broader context, saying “I sat in prison [and] it was tough at times, but it’s nothing like the conditions that Palestinians [endure] in military prisons,” referring to the numerous accounts of Palestinian prisoners being subjected to torture in Israeli prisons.
Having spent a total of 87 days in prison,
Gerlitz is now a spokesperson for Mesarvot, a network of Israeli youth dedicated to supporting Jewish individuals who refuse to serve in the military.
Independent Jewish Voices speak Jessica Elkaim — a PhD candidate in U of T’s department of English and spokesperson for IJV U of T — wrote in an email to The Varsity that “meeting Einat and Tal was emotional but affirmed the importance that we hear their voices in the diaspora — not at the expense of Palestinian voices, but so that we may build a stronger international coalition in solidarity with Palestinians.”
She continued, “My hope with this event is that it inspires more folks here and there to refuse our present reality, in a multitude of ways, so we can work together towards an anti-colonial future.”
Junia Alsinawi Varsity Contributor
Against the backdrop of an inconsistent US tariff policy and ongoing annexation threats, Canadian and US officials discussed the ongoing trade war in a high-stakes meeting on March 13.
The Varsity spoke to students and faculty to see how the tariffs have affected them and their thoughts on the US–Canada meeting.
Tariffs and counter-tariffs timeline
On March 4, US President Donald Trump imposed a 25 per cent tariff on most Canadian goods. Trump justified this move by claiming that the tariffs would force Canada to address the issues of illegal immigration and fentanyl flowing into the US.
The tariff went into effect but was modified on March 5, when Trump granted a one-month exemption for Canadian goods essential to the US “Big 3” automakers — Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis — due to worries that the trade war could crush domestic car manufacturing.
As a retaliatory measure, Ottawa announced a 25 per cent counter-tariff on $30 billion worth of goods coming from the US.
On March 10, the Ontario government announced another 25 per cent surcharge on all electricity exports to the US. In response, Trump threatened to raise the tariff rate on steel and aluminum from 25 to 50 per cent, but later reversed course after Canada confirmed it wouldn’t proceed with its electricity tariff.
However, on March 13, Canadian officials retaliated with an additional set of countertariffs targeting $29.8 billion worth of US goods.
Meanwhile, the US stock market went into freefall this week, suggesting a lack of confidence in a president who’s been called a “master negotiator” by his Secretary of Energy Chris Wright.
As things currently stand, America’s 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum are in effect and 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian imports are scheduled to go into effect on April 2.
Despite this, Canadians are uncertain about Canada’s economic future due to Trump’s unpredictable leadership style. The CBC questioned in a video on Trump’s tariff threats whether the chaotic roll-out “[is] a lack of planning or an intentional strategy?”
Melissa Arasin — a fourth-year PhD candidate in curriculum, teaching, and learning at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education and a dual citizen with the US and Canada — wrote in an email to The Varsity, “I worry about further retaliatory responses from a leader who seems to delight in creating chaos and doing
harm, and has been largely unchecked in doing so.”
Second-year economics student Christian Pasquali thought that Trump was “doing this at least in part for his own entertainment,” in an email to The Varsity
Pasquali wrote that while he is usually a critic of former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford, he approved of this retaliation, and that he thinks both leaders are “doing a very good job in fighting the trade war.”
In an email to The Varsity, U of T Associate Professor of Economics Joseph Steinberg — who had previously expressed concerns with the US–Canada tariffs in January — reiterated his position.
“These measures are counterproductive and primarily harm Canadians rather than Americans.”
Calling retaliatory tariffs “taxes on Canadian consumers,” Steinberg explained that these effects will be felt strongly by Canadians, “given Canada’s small size and greater reliance on trade [with the US].”
Instead of retaliation, “Canada needs to be aggressive [in] seeking new trade partners outside of North America,” Steinberg contended. “We should be reducing trade barriers, not raising them!”
Conscious consumers
As part of the larger nationwide “buy Canadian” trend, U of T students say the tariffs have made them more conscious consumers.
“The last few meals I bought on campus were from Canadian producers rather than American ones,” Pasquali wrote. “I personally believe that it is very important for Canadians to support Canadian businesses to make up for their lost revenue from American consumers.”
Arasin wrote that she is “making a conscious effort to support Canadian businesses by buying Canadian products and shopping as local as [she] can.” She added, “I’m also boycotting [US] companies that don’t share my values.”
In a separate email to The Varsity , Steinberg noted two benefits of this newfound economic consciousness: “This boosts the fortunes of Canadian companies that are seeing reduced exports to the US and helps consumers avoid paying the retaliatory tariffs we have levied on imports.”
Still, he added that these “substitution patterns,” while helping to mitigate the costs of tariffs, do not remove the costs entirely.
Inextricably linked to Trump’s tariffs are his repeated threats to annex Canada, claiming that the country will be added as the 51st state. In the March 13 meeting in the Oval Office, Trump said that Canada “only works as a state” and would become “a great and cherished state — keeping O Canada the national anthem.”
While this threat was initially perceived as a joke, Canadian officials and citizens are beginning to take Trump’s threat against Canada’s sovereignty more seriously. Talking to the BBC, Canada’s Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said she’s taking the threat “very seriously,” adding that “this is not a joke anymore.”
For students like Arasin, the escalating tariffs and rhetoric seem like calculated moves to weaken Canada’s autonomy. “I’m afraid tensions will only escalate,” Arasin wrote. “It’s hard for Canada to call the [US] an ally when the goals of the current administration might include an attempt to economically devastate the country in preparation for an eventual attempted takeover.”
Amid the onslaught of the US’ actions, Arasin notes to both Canadian and US citizens caught in the crossfire, “We are not enemies, but we sure are being made to be at our own expense.”
Mandate comes after months of stalled negotiations for new collective agreements
Rubin Beshi Business & Labor Editor
Members of five CUPE 3902 units voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike mandate against U of T, St. Michael’s College, and Victoria College. The two colleges are federated, and operate independently from the university.
Voting began during a CUPE 3902 unit membership meeting on March 5 and closed on March 7. The vote follows months of stalled negotiations between the units and the university over signing new collective agreements. In an email to The Varsity, CUPE 3902 President Eriks Bredovskis wrote that since the fall, negotiations have focused on “fair pay, more opportunities for advancement and job security, increases to benefits and protections, and respect for all” — with little progress.
The strike mandate allows each unit’s Executive Committee to call a strike if the university fails to reach an agreement, giving the units’ bargaining teams considerable negotiating power.
“Our members are sending a strong message of worker unity and organization to U of T,” wrote Bredovskis.
Who are the players?
CUPE 3902 represents around 10,000 members, including the university’s sessional lecturers, postdoctoral researchers, and teaching assistants (TAs). This year, five of CUPE 3902’s seven units are at the bargaining table, each pushing for its own set of proposals. These units represent a diverse range of academic workers across U of T and its federated
colleges.
Unit 2 includes writing instructors, undergraduate peer tutors, TAs, and course instructors at Victoria College. Unit 3 covers U of T employees hired for teaching, tutoring, or marking on contracts of less than one year, including sessional lecturers and music professionals. Unit 4 represents writing instructors, TAs, and course instructors at St. Michael’s College.
Unit 6 consists of workers in the International Foundations Program and the International Summer Academy at New College. Lastly, Unit 7 represents graduate assistants at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.
Together, these five units represent around 2,000 workers. All units are collectively demanding that the university provide “wage increases to keep up with the substantial cost-of-living increases in the GTA,” especially after the repeal of Bill 124 in February 2024 — which imposed a one per cent cap on wage increases for public sector workers in Ontario.
The units’ key bargaining proposals on compensation include wage parity for undergraduate tutors in Unit 2 in comparison with other units, compensation for course development and preparation time in Units 3 and 4, and a wage increase for Unit 6, whose pay has risen by less than one per cent in over a decade. Unit 7 is pushing for higher take-home pay — earnings after tax — and more paid work opportunities outside funding packages, which provides financial support to students.
The units voted in favour of the strike mandate with the following approximate percentages: 95 per cent, 87 per cent, 75 per cent, 86 per cent, and 99 per cent, respectively.
Founders and investors celebrate Entrepreneurship Week
Roy Associate Business & Labour Editor
The TrueBlue Expo held on March 6 was the final event of U of T’s annual Entrepreneurship Week. This event brought together students, startups, and campus programs for a day packed with energy, pitching, and meaningful discussion.
Hosted at the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus, the day was all about showcasing U of T’s growing startup scene, giving student founders a chance to share what they’re building, meet new people, and make connections. The Varsity interviewed some of the startups at the event to learn about their journey and entrepreneurial ventures.
Tiny tech, big impact
The Desjardins Startup Prize is U of T’s annual pitch competition held in March, where teams present their business idea to a panel of judges to receive funding. Finalists pitch their ideas to investor judges during Entrepreneurship Week.
NanoMorphix was the first place winner of this year’s $15,000 Desjardins Startup Prize in the earlystage category, which is the period when a startup is developing their idea into a product or service. The startup was founded by a team of U of T PhD students and postdoctoral researchers whose research created coatings using nano-reinforcements that can be applied to surfaces like bullet-proof glass to make them tougher, longer-lasting, and even self-healing. These coatings contain tiny capsules filled with a special liquid. When the surface gets scratched or cracked, the capsules break open, releasing the liquid, which then hardens to repair the damage. The material would be especially useful in defense and industrial settings.
In an interview with The Varsity, NanoMorphix employee Anthony Tuccitto said that their product isn’t just stronger — it’s also about ten times cheaper
March 18, 2025
varsity.ca/category/business biz@thevarsity.ca
The lowdown
All five units filed notices to bargain with the university between August 28, 2024, and October 18, 2024, which is the first step in beginning the negotiation process for collective agreement renewals.
This was followed by initial bargaining meetings between the units’ teams and the university: Unit 3 on January 13, Unit 7 on January 21, Unit 2 on February 7, Unit 4 on March 7, and Unit 6 has a meeting scheduled for March 17.
On February 6, all five units collectively requested a conciliation officer from the Ontario Ministry of Labour, due to delays in negotiations. Conciliation involves a neutral third party assisting both sides in reaching an agreement when both parties are unable to reach an agreement themselves. The request was approved, and the officers are now working with the units and university to facilitate a tentative agreement.
“[Conciliation] does turn up the temperature in negotiations when one party takes steps toward a strike … [it] can really incentivize the parties to come together to work out their issues,” Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resource PhD candidate and Unit 3 member Jennifer Harmer wrote to The Varsity in an email.
Enacting a strike mandate is another important step when dealing with stalled negotiations. “The university prefers it when our members are disconnected from each other and apathetic about the bargaining process… [a strike mandate] puts our Bargaining Committees in a more powerful position to make critical gains at the bargaining table,” Bredovskis wrote.
If conciliation does not result in agreements between the two parties, the Ministry of Labour will file a “noboard” report — meaning a conciliation board will not be appointed. This can lead to the units requesting a notice from the Ministry to begin a 17-day countdown toward entering a legal strike or “lockout” position — the suspension of work.
“There is a high likelihood that this stage will move quickly and the Ministry will approve the request, if no agreement can be made,” Harmer wrote.
Aerospace meets energy innovation
LUNR Corp is a Canadian aerospace startup aiming to launch the first-ever Canadian-made rocket from Canadian soil. Founded just over a year ago, the company emerged due to a clear gap in the industry; Canadian satellites must launch on foreign rockets due to a lack of domestic infrastructure.
What’s next Negotiations between the units and the university are ongoing — for example, Unit 4 has recently completed meetings on March 7, 12 and 14, and Unit 6 has meetings scheduled for April 4, 16, 17 and 22–25 in addition to their March dates. These developments follow last year’s agreement for Units 1 and 5, which secured expanded healthcare benefits and across-the-board pay increases for Unit 5’s postdoctoral fellows.
As of writing, Units 2, 3, and 7 have not disclosed their next meeting dates.
CUPE 3902’s website contains proposal trackers for each unit’s proposals, with updates on the university’s responses. The vast majority of demands are still under consultation, with the remainder roughly split between those agreed upon and those rejected.
In the meantime, the union is circulating a petition among unit members, urging the university and its federated colleges to agree to the proposals the bargaining teams have tabled.
Harmer called into question how far unit members will be willing to go. “[Workers] may not be interested in a prolonged strike at this time… there is a lot of economic uncertainty with the trade dispute ongoing with the [United States],” she wrote.
When asked whether he anticipated new agreements being signed with the university before a strike, Bredovskis explained that it depends on how negotiations proceed, as the units are now working with a conciliation officer. “We are hopeful in reaching tentative agreements before any strike deadline, but it depends on whether the University of Toronto is ready to move on their proposals, too,” he wrote.
When asked the same question, a spokesperson from the university wrote to The Varsity that “Labour relations are addressed directly with the relevant labour unions in the normal course, including through the collective bargaining process. The university has no further comment regarding ongoing collective bargaining at this time.”
secure seed funding, which is the initial capital a startup raises to develop its business idea and begin early operations.
than other similar materials currently available.
NanoMorphix is now working on patenting its transparent armor and exploring new uses, like turning the coating into durable phone screen protectors.
Indoor gardens with a purpose JustVertical is on a mission to change the way we grow and access food. Patrick Ladly-Fredeen, a U of T Rotman alumni, is the company’s head of sales.
In an interview with The Varsity, Ladly-Fredeen said that the idea started eight years ago when one of the company’s co-founders was researching in northern Canada and looked to create a portable, indoor growing system for food. The company then created ‘vertical gardens,’ which use hydroponic systems to let people grow fresh herbs, leafy greens, and other vegetables indoors. Instead of using soil or sunlight, the plants grow using water and LED lights that mimic natural sunlight.
According to Ladly, what sets JustVertical apart from other tech startups is their efficient system. Its website states that its system uses 95 per cent less water than traditional gardening, grows larger and healthier plants than other hydroponic systems, and takes up less space.
The company has grown significantly and now has its own manufacturing facility, patented products, and new gardens installed in homes, schools, and offices across Canada and the US. These systems are also present on the U of T campus — the indoor Garden & Seed Library at the Gerstein Science Information Centre was created by JustVertical. It has also partnered with institutions like Seneca College on research projects to improve JustVertical’s systems by increasing the garden’s crop yield and the nutritional content of the food it produces.
As Patrick puts it, “We want to change the food ecosystem in North America. If we’re in people’s homes, we’re already bigger than any farm.”
As Canada is currently the only G7 nation without direct access to space, LUNR Corp’s website stated that it aims to help the country achieve sovereign launch capability. With a diverse group of students and engineers specializing in aerospace, automation, and electronics, LUNR Corp is working toward its first test of newly developed rocket engines by this fall.
While challenges like Canada’s lack of launch regulations present obstacles, the team explained to The Varsity in an interview that they remain driven to bring sovereign space access to Canada, and serve potential clients like telecommunication companies who currently rely on foreign launch sites to get their satellites into space.
How does U of T support its startups?
Across its three campuses, U of T offers 12 startup incubators and accelerators, which are programs that help student and alumni entrepreneurs from all disciplines turn their ideas into successful ventures. These accelerators provide resources like mentorship, workspace, funding opportunities, and networking events to support students and startups at different stages. Each of the three campuses has its own accelerator tailored to different industries and types of ventures.
The Hatchery, an accelerator out of the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, focuses on helping build a team of co-founders, launch the startup, and
Hatchery member and third year strategic management and political science student Maria Lin told The Varsity in an interview that the accelerator primarily focuses on team projects, offering resources to refine press statements and connect participants with industry mentors. Their ‘NEST’ program is open to all U of T students regardless of their campus, program, or level of study. The program focuses on helping students during brainstorming processes and has contributed to the successful launch of over 100 startups.
At UTSC, The Bridge is the Department of Management’s incubator, focused on providing student entrepreneurs with fundamental business tools through the New Venture Program (NVP). Consisting of both hands-on mentorship from management professors and curated training modules, NVP enables students to balance the process of building their startup with their schoolwork.
Campus accelerators like the NVP require applications and are currently recruiting new cohorts of students on rolling admissions.
Celestine Nema — UTSC’s program coordinator for Entrepreneurship and Work-Integrated Learning — told The Varsity in an interview that “our staff and our faculty are basically providing resources for students to feel like they have a lot of support. This includes, for example, identifying a challenge they have that we can take off their plate.”
ICUBE UTM provides programs, workshops and resources — such as “Co-Working Space,” which equips entrepreneurs with high speed internet and a space to collaborate with other innovators.
March 18, 2025
thevarsity.ca/category/opinion opinion@thevarsity.ca
Oleksii Varlamov International Affairs Columnist
Content warning: This article discusses war and invasion and mentions Nazism.
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale military invasion of Ukraine. Three years later, it had become the bloodiest conflict on European soil since the end of World War II.
Sources have a wide range of estimates, but since 2022, Russian military casualties have been estimated between 167,100 and 234,600, while Ukrainian military casualties range from 43,000 to over 70,000.
By the start of 2025, Ukraine had recorded over 12,000 civilian casualties with over 3.7 million internally displaced, while Russia had recorded 388 civilian casualties by 2025. According to a US congressional document, Russian troops outnumber Ukrainian troops by nearly three to one.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine came eight years after the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Vladimir Putin framed the invasion under the pretext of “denazification.” This claim draws on Russia’s historical role in defeating Nazism during World War II and attempts to link the current Ukrainian government to nationalist groups that collaborated with Nazi occupiers in the fight for Ukrainian independence from the Soviet Union.
Upon Ukraine’s resistance, international states began supplying military aid. If support is measured monetarily — which I believe must be in times of war — no country has provided more assistance than the US. By the end of 2024, US aid reached 114.12 billion euros, nearly seven times the 17.26 billion euros provided by Germany, the secondlargest contributor.
Over the past three years, the West’s support for
Ukraine has fluctuated but has generally remained strong.
With Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency, however, I already see a seismic shift in American policy on Ukraine. I argue that this change, involving pressuring Ukraine to relinquish access to valuable natural resources, aims to make Ukraine functionally dependent on the US.
Ukraine’s history has been defined by a struggle for independence and a self-determined national identity. Where Russia has historically posed the most immediate threat to Ukrainian sovereignty, I see America’s foreign policy as another attempt by a global power to exert control over Ukraine, albeit through different means.
Dispute at the Oval Office
The February 28 White House meeting exemplifies the US’ shift in policy about Ukrainian aid. The meeting involved Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump, and US Vice-President JD Vance, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio with the purpose of potentially signing a deal that would grant the US significant access to Ukraine’s natural resource deposits. The scale of this deal is unimaginable.
As The Telegraph described, the deal will be a “US economic colonisation of Ukraine, in legal perpetuity.”
The meeting was a disaster. In a small room filled with American press, Trump and his team took turns humiliating Zelenskyy, chastising him for — among other things — not wearing a suit and not expressing enough gratitude for US support. Rubio later also criticized Zelenskyy for being “antagonistic,” questioning whether he truly wanted a peace agreement.
Under the Biden administration, US aid to Ukraine peaked, though it never reached levels
that could decisively shift the war’s outcome. In my opinion, the stalemate benefits the US. As Russia pours resources into the war, it faces not only financial strain but also a devastating demographic toll from casualties among its population of men. By spending just a fraction of its military budget, the US is able to isolate Russia on a global scale.
Later in 2024, as Trump campaigned for reelection, he promised to end the war in Ukraine. Once in office, I’ve witnessed him and other conservative pundits beginning to craft a compelling narrative.
It seems to me like today’s US rhetoric suggests that Ukrainian resistance is a lost cause. It’s also clear from Vance’s and Rubio’s comments toward Zelenskyy that they believe Ukraine has been ungrateful and that Ukraine should accept whatever deal is offered, given the invasion’s deteriorating conditions.
These conditions are particularly exemplified by the Kursk region of Russia, which Ukrainian forces occupied in August 2024 in a flash offensive to use as a bargaining chip come negotiation time but have since continued to suffer continued territorial and personal losses to Russia.
Next steps for Ukraine
If the resource deal is signed, America’s economic dominance over Ukraine could easily extend into policy-making, granting the US significant influence over Ukraine’s political landscape. To me, the stranglehold the US will have over Ukraine’s economy could be incomparable to the influence of a straightforward military occupation.
In my mind, Ukraine is trapped. It either continues a war it is likely to lose without US support, leading to further demographic devastation and worsening the already dire internal displacement crisis, or it gives up so much control of its economy to the US that it would be hard to meaningfully call Ukraine independent.
With the exception of an unprecedented increase
UTSG’s lack of weather consideration put commuter students at risk
accessible commute, but the reality is that a significant portion of students rely on long and unpredictable transit routes to get to class.
On February 13, Toronto experienced an intense snowstorm. Sidewalks were unwalkable, and transit was in chaos — as a result, students trying to get to class were left scrambling.
The day after the storm, I visited a local walk-in clinic and saw the impact firsthand. Several people in the waiting room were suffering from ankle and foot injuries caused by slipping on the ice. Despite these treacherous conditions, UTSG remained fully open, while UTM shut down completely and UTSC cancelled morning classes.
I believe this decision left thousands of commuter students, many traveling from across the GTA, in a difficult position. Either they risked their safety to get to class, or they stayed home and hoped their professors would be understanding — an uncertainty that is often a gamble in my experience. Why did UTSG remain fully open while other campuses received partial or full closures? I think this decision highlights a fundamental problem: the university’s failure to prioritize commuter students’ safety.
Commuter students are being left behind I assume that UTSG chose to remain open during the storm because of its public transportation access downtown, but that does not mean all students have the same ability to navigate Toronto safely. I believe the university operates under the assumption that everyone has a smooth and
It seems to me like the university fails to acknowledge how extreme weather can disproportionately impact students who live farther away or have mobility challenges. If over 55 per cent of U of T students are commuters, then why does the administration assume that most students can simply walk to class from their campus residence?
The burden of safety should not be on students
The university’s Planning & Policy section on the Vice-President & Provost’s website states that when campuses remain open in bad weather, students should “discuss alternate arrangements” with their instructors if they feel unsafe traveling to class. I think this policy unfairly shifts responsibility onto students rather than addressing the systemic issue: if conditions are dangerous enough to cause commute issues, why are UTSG students expected to figure things out on their own?
This approach also assumes that professors will be flexible with commuting issues, but in reality, some instructors are more accommodating than others.
Crystal Butler — a second-year master’s student at the Munk School of Global Affairs — noted in an interview with The Varsity that, “I can’t say for certain that, given TTC delays, that my professor would be so forgiving as the onus
in financial support and material donations from Europe, there does not seem to be a third alternative where Ukraine does not emerge from the situation as the definitive loser.
I have no ‘advice’ for my fellow Ukrainians or the Ukrainian government that doesn’t amount to hoping for a biblical miracle. During phone conversations with my grandmother, who lives in Kharkiv — just a 30-minute drive from the Russian border and only about a 30-second flight time for Russian missiles — the war is hardly mentioned. There truly is not much one can say. If anything, perhaps there is some value in simply being aware of the situation’s dire nature.
I do feel that I am in a good position to offer recommendations to those whose lives have not been affected by war. See your family as much as you can, tell your friends you love them, and hold on to everything dearly. Every moment is precious beyond measure, and one never knows how much they have until it is ripped away.
There is no greater evil than one which lies in the hearts of men, but nowhere else does one find such a true and beautiful love for life and all those in it. What stands out most to me from my communication with friends and family still in Ukraine is their passion for life itself and how strongly they encourage me to seize every moment to the greatest extent I can. For those of us lucky enough not to bear the burdens of war, take every day as a gift.
As a child, my nanny would tell me stories of her own childhood, how vividly she remembers hiding under an umbrella during the Nazi bombing of Kharkiv because she was terrified of the sounds of explosions. I’d like to conclude with a translation of a message she sent me in May 2024 while she was spending time at her home in the village: “Live a full life. Embrace every day in its entirety, leave nothing for later. Look how everything can change, where nothing depends on you.”
Oleksii Varlamov is a third-year student at St. Michael’s College studying philosophy. He is the secretary of the Philosophy Course Union and an International Affairs columnist for The Varsity’s Opinion section.
would have likely been on me to leave earlier to meet the necessary time for the assessment.”
Fourth-year computer science and economics student Percy Phan echoed this concern. These issues can be difficult, particularly for large lecture-based courses. Phan explained, “In my experience, professors often have strict policies about assessments, and there is less flexibility for rescheduling exams due to non-medical issues.”
If a professor penalized a student for missing an exam due to unsafe transit conditions, would the administration step in? I doubt it. At least from my own experience, the administration wouldn’t, since it is university policy not to call off classes or exams without an announcement from the U of T administration. But it shouldn’t take a serious injury or illness for students to be granted basic flexibility.
What needs to change?
I think U of T needs to fundamentally rethink how it approaches its extreme weather policies, particularly for UTSG’s commuter population. While I’m not saying UTSG should have been completely shut down on February 13, I do believe students should have been given more options and accommodations.
I also believe the university needs to redefine what ‘adverse weather conditions’ means. Commuter students and their specific challenges
— unreliable transit, unshoveled sidewalks, and increased safety risks — should be factored into the university’s policies.
Finally, I think there should be a mandatory policy requiring professors to accommodate students in extreme weather. The current policy leaves too much to individual professors' discretion, which can create inequities between students who have flexible professors and those who don’t. The university must make it clear that no student should have to risk their safety to meet an arbitrary attendance requirement.
I love that U of T is an academically rigorous institution, but rigor should not come at the expense of student safety. It’s not about shutting down the campus every time it snows, it’s about making sure students aren’t penalized if they can’t safely attend class.
Until U of T recognizes that weather affects students differently depending on where they live, the same cycle will continue: commuter students will be left stranded, stressed, and scrambling to prove they deserve accommodations they should have been given from the start.
Mishaal Sabir is a fourth-year student at University College studying political science, criminology and socio-legal studies, and Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations.
The CBC
Ayesha Siddiqui
What’s New in News
Columnist
a
role in
The CBC isn’t perfect — but can Canada afford to lose it?
In 2024, former editor-in-chief of The Walrus, Jessica Johnson, conducted a nationwide survey titled “Do We Need the CBC?” to explore how Canadians view the current media landscape and where CBC fits into it. The survey reflects broader discussions about the role of Canadian news media, sparked by Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre’s pledge to defund the CBC if elected as Canada’s next prime minister.
Personally, while I feel that the CBC is not without its flaws, defunding is not the answer since it plays a core part in Canadian media. However, the CBC needs to reform its coverage to fit the country’s diverse demographic — only then will Canadians be able to see its full potential.
Further, I believe the group whose opinions have been most consistently overlooked in these conversations is also the one most affected by the potential defunding of the CBC — the Canadian public. To bridge this gap between the public and the government, Johnson and her team ask the pressing question: How do Canadians truly feel about the CBC?
Necessity over perfection
I recently sat down with Johnson — who also teaches ENG394 ‘Literary Journalism,’ offered as a special topics course in 2024-2025 — to discuss the findings of her survey.
In other countries, public service broadcasts like the UK’s BBC and Germany’s ARD receive funding that is nearly nine to ten times higher than what the CBC receives from Canada. This disparity manifests in various ways in Canadian broadcasts.
On a smaller scale, less funding often results in lower production quality in broadcast shows. On a larger scale, the lack of funding could impact the breadth of subject matter that a news outlet is able to cover, especially in areas like diverse perspectives and languages.
The concern over whether Canadians need the CBC doesn’t seem to be a controversial debate among the public. Johnson’s research found that 78 per cent of Canadians want the CBC to continue operating, while 57 per cent would like to either maintain or increase its funding.
While findings on exactly what direction the CBC should take are less clear, the statistics demonstrate that the CBC still remains important to the majority of Canadians. Evidently, despite its shortcomings, people still turn to the CBC for its coverage and accessibility.
However, many survey respondents were divided on CBC’s integrity, with opinions nearly evenly split on whether it is biased or unbiased. I personally believe the CBC is biased — such as in its coverage of Gaza and its censorship of Palestinian perspectives, and its whitewashing of Israeli crimes. They even reassigned former CBC journalist Molly Schuman to another project after she pitched a way to fairly represent two genocide scholars with opposing views on Israel and Palestine. Still, I don’t support calls to defund it.
While I do believe that there must be robust calls for public broadcasters to strive for neutrality, defunding every public broadcaster with imperfections would result in them all disappearing. As Johnson’s survey shows, even if Canadians aren’t united on what they want from the CBC, they are united in their desire for it to continue.
More than just news
If the CBC were merely a news source, there might be more room for debate. Rather than debating its need based on its shortcomings and low funding, we should consider its role in the lives of Canadians. Eliminating the CBC would also mean losing something whose loss would be much more detrimental — a distinctly Canadian news outlet.
As part of its mandate, the CBC stated that its programming aims to “contribute to a shared national consciousness and identity,” “be predominantly and distinctly Canadian,” and “Reflect the multiracial and multicultural nature of Canada.”
I believe there are a number of shared experiences among Canadians that ignite a sense of collective nationhood. From reporting on stories like updates on mercury pollution in Grassy Narrows First Nation, to Canadians creating murals on snowdrifts, the CBC is a symbol of Canada’s ability to tell its own stories, for its people.
In a public sphere that is largely dominated by US news — a superiority which is reflected even in the pervasiveness of American films in Canadian theatres — I believe it is more crucial than ever to keep Canadian media alive.
It is also important to consider the role the CBC plays in the life of the average Canadian. A recent CBC report from February highlights how Canadians rely on the CBC during periods of shared struggle or anticipation.
Through February 1–3, 4.5 million Canadians tuned into the CBC News Network, awaiting news on US tariffs, making it the most-watched Canadian news network during this period. Additionally, the CBC’s 2021-2022 annual report highlighted record-breaking numbers for digital and television
Academic accommodations are disabling success, not leveling the playing field
The subtle costs and consequences of using academic accommodations
Annette Kim Varsity Contributor
In the 2018–2019 academic year, nearly 5,000 students at U of T were registered with Accessibility Services (AS) for having a disability. I can only imagine this number has grown with increased awareness and through breaking down social stigma in recent years.
AS supports students experiencing disabilityrelated challenges with their learning by providing different kinds of academic accommodations. These accommodations can include note-taking services, alternate formats for textbooks and course material, a reduced course load, ergonomic furniture in classrooms, and disability-related extensions for assignments.
Accessibility is a matter of utmost importance at U of T — or so our course syllabi tell us. But just how accessible is U of T in reality?
Educational institutions often see academic accommodations as evening out the academic playing field by offering students with disabilities the same opportunities to thrive as students without disabilities or abled students.
However, I believe that the barriers to receiving accommodations from AS, as well as the costs that come with using them, harm students in the long run and that this reflects an inherently ableist education system. I think academic accommodations work as band-aid solutions: they patch the symptoms that stem from systemic issues but fail to address the deeply-rooted ableist attitudes that characterize academic ‘success’ and limit the potential of U of T students.
Uncovering the hidden costs of academic accommodations
U of T claims to offer equal education, yet subjects students with disabilities to the same standards as abled students through the normalization of academic timelines and strict expectations. Academic accommodations have given students
like myself some flexibility to succeed in school, but they often come at a cost that ultimately perpetuates inequalities between abled and disabled students.
The process of receiving accommodations from AS is a lengthy one. Long waiting times and hefty amounts of paperwork have impeded my process of acquiring accommodations. Beyond a cost of time, there are a host of other barriers that students with disabilities face at U of T.
Barriers that I’ve faced range from peer discrimination, unsolicited advice from faculty, and exclusion from valuable opportunities due to preconceptions of my inability to keep up with the academic rigor that U of T is notorious for.
Academic institutions see students with disabilities as physically unable to keep up with the demands of academia and therefore exclude them from more rigorous opportunities like independent research, fieldwork, and internships.
Studying on ‘crip time’
Alison Kafer is the author of the 2013 novel Feminist, Queer, Crip and an associate professor of feminist studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Her novel coined the term ‘crip time’ to describe a flexible and accommodating approach to life and academia for those with disabilities.
Studying on crip time means defying expectations of what a ‘typical’ education looks like — taking the necessary time to complete academic tasks rather than conforming to standards that are exclusively designed for abled individuals. This approach to education might look like being granted extra time on assessments, taking fewer courses per term than the ‘typical’ course load entails, or taking on extra years of study.
Yet, when students with disabilities fail to satisfy the expectations of these typical academic expectations and instead choose to study on crip time, we are often met with harsh social repercussions.
As a disabled student taking a crip time
viewership on national Election Day.
As Canada’s top source for breaking news, it is clear that eradicating the CBC could be incredibly destructive to how Canadians consume their news.
A call for reform:
what should the CBC look like?
In a world where arguably few things unite all Canadians, I believe the CBC serves as a rare source of national cohesion. Without it, I wonder if any other outlet could offer comprehensive coverage of both big and small Canadian affairs in their entirety.
The CBC doesn’t always get it right, but I believe it has the potential to. If there’s no definitive way to define what it means to be Canadian, then the CBC serves to reflect the many identities that shape it. So, the answer isn’t to eliminate the CBC but to push for reform. Namely, its representational coverage could be stronger. It must continue asking consumers what they truly want — whether that’s less biased reporting, more diverse perspectives, or greater multilingual coverage.
Perhaps the question we should be asking is not “Do we need the CBC?” Rather, the CBC should concern itself with what role it can play in creating a platform that recognises the increasingly diverse ways there are to be Canadian.
Ayesha Siddiqui is a third-year student at Woodsworth College studying history and English. She is an associate editor for the Trinity Times and The Woodsworth Review, director of Humans of the Ummah for the Muslim Student’s Association, journal editor-in-chief for The Future of History, and a columnist for the What’s New in News column of The Varsity’s Opinion section.
approach to my education, I’m aiming to complete my studies within five to six years on a reduced course load. I can attest to the fact that taking longer than four years to earn a bachelor’s degree still raises eyebrows.
I have received, and still receive, many confused looks from family, classmates, and professors. They routinely ask why I’m taking so long to complete my studies, especially when nothing ‘looks’ wrong with me. I am not necessarily a person with visible, physical disabilities. Similarly, nearly 90 per cent of students registered with AS have non-visible or non-evident disabilities.
I am not so bothered by this social judgment or questions of the legitimacy of my learning choices. What I am bothered by are the tangible costs of taking longer to earn my degree, which abled students are not often subject to.
The double-edged sword of flexibility I will spend an extra $40,000 on residence fees for the two extra years I’ll spend living on campus. On top of that, my reduced course load means I won’t have a sufficient number of credits by the end of the term to apply for my program of study (PoST) despite completing the necessary prerequisite courses. My first-year status may extend to the following academic year until I earn the additional credit that is required to move forward, while my peers are able to gain admission to their specific PoST.
As a result, I’ve already been denied admission for several PoST, including the international relations, political science, and criminology and sociolegal programs — key fields through which access to academic, professional, and employment opportunities would likely be obtained.
While academic accommodations are meant to facilitate equal academic participation, I will still be labeled as ‘behind’ my peers at the end of the
year — when in reality, I am studying at my own sustainable pace. This is a key example of the repercussions that I and countless others face for studying on crip time.
The irony of ableist educational systems is that their efforts to level the playing field for disabled students merely offer surface-level relief to the greater underlying problem. The normalization of expecting students to earn their bachelor’s degree within a four-year period — and the social and monetary costs that arise when students deviate from this path — is a prime example of how ableist ideals are deeply and detrimentally ingrained in educational systems.
Bandaids for the symptoms, not the cause I’ve truly enjoyed my time at U of T, so while I’d like to envision myself pursuing graduate-level studies here, I cannot ignore the emotional toll of navigating an exclusionary system that I am sure will continue beyond my undergraduate years. While a university education should open doors for future academic and professional opportunities, ableist practices upheld by ableist systems result in a paradox where disabled students are robbed of their time, money, and consideration for those future opportunities that accommodations seek to equalize in the first place.
Despite my rejections from programs of study — that I am certain would have helped me advocate for other marginalized groups — it remains my hope to bring disability awareness to the forefront of educational institutions and to create room at the table for students like me at U of T and beyond.
Annette Kim is a first-year student at Trinity College studying humanities. She is a member of the Accessibility Services Student Advisory Committee and an executive member of the Trinity College Dramatic Society.
Amy Mann Varsity Contributor
Growing up, Shana Rosenberg lit candles every Friday to commemorate the beginning of Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest. It was a time for her to spend with family, even when life got busy, always finding the time to light them.
Having moved into residence in her first-year at U of T, Rosenberg was determined to keep Shabbat as a part of her new life on campus.
After her don — the student leader in her residence — told her she couldn’t light candles in her dormitory due to residence guidelines, she took to celebrating Shabbat outside. Huddling around the steps of Old Vic, Rosenberg and a few friends lit candles, until the next Friday when security requested them to stop.
Eventually, she and her friends were able to arrange something with the Office of the Dean of Students; they could use a private dining room in Burwash Dining Hall and occasionally Alumni Hall every Friday evening as well as on certain Jewish holidays to light candles. They now finally had a warm space to come together and celebrate Shabbat.
Second-year urban planning student Katrina Eilender began lighting candles with Rosenberg in their first-year, 2023. “It became a three-person club that basically existed in name only,” she explained.
“But [we thought] ‘What if we actually turned this into a real club?’… Slowly, it grew.”
Taking initiative
Shabbat is a Jewish day of rest which begins Friday evening and ends Saturday evening. The celebration of Shabbat on Friday at sunset traditionally involves sharing a meal with family and friends. The candles that were once lit during Shabbat merely as sources of light are today lit in commemoration of a tradition of spending time with loved ones.
In practicing Shabbat, celebrants preserve a space in time away from the chaos of everyday life, dedicated to being present and connecting with others. “If everything is getting paved over and urbanized and turned into suburban sprawl, with parking lots everywhere, Shabbat is a park,” said Eilender, co-president of the Victoria College Shabbat club alongside Rosenberg, in an interview with The Varsity. “It’s like a preservative green space — you can’t pave over that time with anything. You have to keep it to just exist and be a human.”
In a world where many of us find ourselves spending so much of our lives online, it is essential to have a moment where you can remember what it is to be in touch with your surroundings, with fellow
people, and with yourself as a human being separate from technology.
In Judaism, Shabbat is a foretaste of eternity on Earth; it is supposed to be a moment of rest and peace and a glimpse into the state to come after death. Shabbat is meant as a time to be in the presence of God and each other, a moment without work and worries. It is also about taking time to spend with friends and family.
As the club began to quickly expand, Jewish and non-Jewish students came each week to share pizza with friends. It grew to include celebrations of Jewish holidays and “Lunch and Learns,” during which professors of Jewish studies spoke about everything from the history of Shabbat to translations of scripture.
“If you [want] Shabbat distilled down to a sentence: for six days a week, you do the things you need to do [to] keep sustaining life [and] on Shabbat, you do the things that make life worth living,” explained Eilender.
In the fall of 2024, Eilender proposed to Rosenberg to host interfaith Shabbat dinners with other faith and religious groups on campus. They also reached out to student groups such as the Muslim Students’ Association and the Queer Muslim Network to co-host events. Eilender saw sharing religious traditions and engaging in theological discussions as ways to bridge communities and build more understanding between people from different faiths and traditions.
She wanted to create an inclusive space where people could practice and discuss faith no matter where they are on the religiosity spectrum. The club would also be a space where visitors and members would be able to experience faith apart from a political or ideological context.
“We wanted a place that was just more about community… that was more about being together, teaching and learning about the culture and the religion and getting a break,” she said.
Eilender was also motivated by her own curiosity. “I have Christian friends, I have Muslim friends, and the conversations that we have are always really interesting,” said Eilender. So she thought, “What if we could scale that up a little bit?”
On February 7, I attended the first official interfaith Shabbat the club hosted, funded by the
Hart House Good Ideas Fund. People filtered into a private room in the Burwash Dining Hall as the sun began to set. When it was time to light the candles, the tables were filled with an intermingling of undergraduate students, older students returning to divinity school, a Buddhist divinity school student, an atheist, two PhD students in Jewish studies, and a Christian minister and professor at Emmanuel College.
After lighting the candles, a blessing of the bread, a serving of food and drinks, and songs, the discussion portion of the evening began.
Attendees took turns reading passages from texts by Jewish theologians, discussing the importance of rest and rejuvenation across religions. For example, Muslims celebrate ‘Friday Prayer or Jum’ah, a day dedicated to formal prayer at the mosque. Many Christians celebrate Sunday as the day of rest, where they pray, take communion, and connect with others at church.
As we discussed Shabbat as a foretaste of eternity, a student remarked that they used to want to convert others to their religion, believing it was for the other’s spiritual benefit — it would guarantee them a spot in Heaven. However, they have since realized that, despite being a member of a religion, they have no say in what qualifies as faith or where someone gets to spend their afterlife — only God knows.
They paused as if unsure of themselves. Others at the table nodded, muttering assent. This student reminded me how faith can be a way to sublimate the fear we feel in uncertain circumstances — such as what comes after death.
The next reading was from a book called The Sabbath: Its Meaning for Modern Man by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. A famous quote of Heschel’s spoke to this sentiment of uncertainty: “Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time.”
Shabbat is a reminder of our paralyzing smallness, mortality, and the limits to our knowledge and understanding of the world, ourselves, and each other. It compels us to sit with the inglorious aspects of our humanity.
In doing so, it grounds us, providing a glimpse of what it means to be present.
A new era of interfaith discussion
Few things in history are without precedent, but interfaith dialogue comes close.
Though informal interfaith exchanges took place earlier, the origins of the interreligious movement are often traced to the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago — widely regarded as “the first formal gathering of representatives of Eastern and Western spiritual traditions.”
This movement’s foundation was distinct from other moments of religious tolerance in history because it recognized that different religions can hold legitimate claims to truth. Its broader adoption in the late twentieth century is closely tied to the rise of multicultural and secular societies.
Interfaith initiatives still carry a certain strangeness. While working on this article, a friend asked me if I think interfaith initiatives can be logically coherent. After all, if someone seriously believes in their religion, does it make sense to accept that others can also hold legitimate claims to truth? There is something agnostic about interfaith practice, as if participation implies uncertainty about one’s own beliefs.
There are many ways people have tried to make sense of interreligious practice. In the Hebrew Bible’s book of Isaiah, it is famously written, “There is no other God but me.” The obvious reading of this sentence warns against polytheism and, perhaps, interreligious dialogue. Yet some have seen it differently: if there is only one God, why must he warn against worshipping others?
Still, there is something wishful about interfaith initiatives. At times, I imagine religious texts as puppets, with us as the ventriloquists, trying to make them speak the language of modern values and concerns.
At the Shabbat club’s Lunch and Learn, English and Jewish Studies Professor Andrea Most elaborated on this theory, noting that one of the first words used for God in the Hebrew Bible, “Elohim,” is plural.
She suggested that this plural form could point to a jealous, rather than singular God, one desperately trying to assert his dominance over others. In other words, although the Abrahamic God wants his followers to only worship him, the text does not discount the existence of many other gods.
These speculations may seem like a stretch, but they underscore the importance of reconciling interreligious thought, not only for many theologians but also for religious individuals.
Judith Newman, professor of Hebrew Bible at Emmanuel College and early Judaism at the Department for the Study of Religion, shared that she was “raised in the Episcopal Church” — a branch of the Protestant denomination of Christianity called Anglicanism. Her father even taught the Old Testament at an Episcopal seminary, preparing students to become ministers.
After completing her undergraduate degree, she spent a year abroad at a kibbutz — socialist, communal living spaces in Israel, meaning “gathering” in Hebrew — a left-wing commune founded by members of the Dutch Reformed Church. The kibbutz was established to improve Jewish-Christian relations following the Holocaust.
“I realized during that year… there’s so much I did not know about other faiths,” said Professor Newman.
Later, she became involved in interfaith exchanges in New York with Jewish seminaries. “I’ve always been a questioner [of faith] anyway, so, I appreciate parts of Judaism, just like I appreciate parts of Christianity — [though there are]
some parts I don’t appreciate as much.”
Just as there are commonalities between religions, there are also incommensurate differences — such as the belief that Jesus is the Christ, which is considered heretical in both Judaism and Islam. For Professor Newman, there are profound incompatibilities between religions that someone mature in their faith must accept.
In the pursuit of interreligious cooperation and tolerance, it’s easy to collapse these complex traditions. However, faith involves much more than the Ten Commandments or a few selected slogans about caring for strangers and neighbours.
How open you can become without ignoring the complexity of a tradition is a tricky line to tread. At what point do so many core beliefs get compromised that the tradition ceases to be recognizable? Many religious communities in Canada’s pluralistic culture have grappled with this question.
“It was just a few years ago,” Newman recalled, “that… one of the clergy [in the United Church] just didn’t accept God — so, [she] was an atheist… The question was, is that repudiating the faith or not?… They decided, in fact, it was.”
The clergy member was ultimately removed in a 19–4 vote by the United Church of Canada committee tasked with reviewing the case. The decision came after months of reports and hearings.
While this decision was controversial within
Shabbat is a reminder of our paralyzing smallness, mortality, and the limits to our knowledge and understanding of the world, ourselves, and each other.
the United Church, Newman remarked that it likely wouldn’t have been in most other religious communities, where religious essentialism — the belief that a religion is made up of fundamental, immutable qualities — is normalized.
Perhaps interfaith dialogue is tolerable and even desirable to many faith communities today in a way it would not have been in past centuries. Participants are no longer seeking a singular idea of truth or morality in religion, but rather connection, identity, and direction.
Connection in the digital age
Humans and human connections in this generation are heavily dependent on technology, which plays a significant role in our lives. Many religious celebrations, however, emphasize the importance of human connection without technology or another crutch, where people connect simply by virtue of being human.
Although essential to modern society, technology can distract us from real connections. At the dinner, participants discussed the perils of depending on phones, noting how they make it difficult to focus and detract from time spent with friends and family.
It may seem strange to look to religious texts for guidance on how to relate to one another in the digital era. However, there is no denying that the modern, digital, and globalized world is still divisive — whether politically, culturally, or socially. This divisiveness has made maintaining community strength increasingly difficult, yet it has also made it more important than ever.
It is no surprise, then, that many are turning to religious practices to escape the fragmentation of the modern world. Gen Z, in particular, has seen a rise in interest in religion and theology for this very reason. Religious spaces and discourse offer an outlet for many to explore this need for community.
As long as we keep talking
All the conversations that surrounded me at the interfaith Shabbat dinner made me wonder, amazed: are we seriously looking to find wisdom on how to exist as human beings in the digital era from a thousand-year-old text?
But, perhaps, that is not the point.
Perhaps people seek interfaith dialogue not for knowledge but as a structure and entry point to talk about modern struggles. Faith, then, is not a source of truth; it’s a source for conversation.
The Centre for Inquiry Canada conducted a study in January that suggested that the percentage of Canadians who identify as irreligious increased from 16.5 per cent in 2001 to 34.6 per cent in 2021.
As Canadians have become less religious over the past few decades, places like Toronto now embody both religious diversity and marginality. Divinity schools — graduate programs in religion and theology — like Emmanuel College have responded to this new reality by expanding their programs to include options such as Buddhism and interfaith initiatives.
Data from a 2023–2024 study by the Pew Research Center suggests the decades-long decline in religious observance in North America may be leveling off. As religious communities adjust to their new marginality, they’ve withdrawn the boundaries of what is permissible and who can claim membership.
The people I met at the dinner were not there to search for answers in the texts about how we should live but to find ways to live now. God is an abstraction — but it is through the constant act of reinterpretation that people and communities create meaning from religious tradition. This may be their power.
Interfaith conversations can be a way of grappling with fundamental tensions with traditions — including what it means to be queer and religious, as well as generational divides and sexual politics.
As people in Canada become more secular, Eilender pointed out that other religious groups also experience marginalization. She gestured in the air, saying, “The world is heading in a bleak direction.”
But when we come together with the desire to learn from one another and contribute something important, “you can find that we all [end] up in the same place,” as Eilender put it.
However irreconcilable each of our beliefs may be, “We have similar fears.”
A brave new world, just like the old one
Yasha Haider
Varsity Contributor
Canada said YES!
The Maple Dominion celebrates its decision to tie the knot with the South, giving birth to the United Oil Plant of America — a colossal Great Red, White, and Blue North under President Donald Trump. The two former countries are now one nation, their shelves stocked with nothing but American products. Recent public polls reveal that long-standing Canadians remain hesitant about divorcing from their American brethren, mostly because ‘divorce’ bears the three letters of evil: D-E-I.
As a part of a new emphasis on diversity, businesses are packing more White in the workplace than the typical Maple Dominion February. Complaints from long-standing “pure” citizens are rising, as some feel sidelined by the extraterrestrials claiming the coveted cashier position at Tim Hortons. Numerous companies, including LCBO, Cineplex, Swiss Chalet, and Joe Fresh, have pledged to create new opportunities
March 18, 2025
thevarsity.ca/category/arts-culture arts@thevarsity.ca
for the disadvantaged Caucasian men and women who built this nation from scratch.
‘Man’ and ‘woman’ are terms now seldom acknowledged, with the recent uptick in disregarding birth certificates. Not only do new executive orders streamline identifiability so that gender is acknowledged the ‘right’ way, but the pronoun itself is now redundant.
Passports across the country will now reflect the incontestable “fact” that Americans cannot switch genders the way John Cena switched on Cody Rhodes. Official media publications are anticipated to follow suit. The vocabulary of future generations will entail a simple, simplistic language that doesn’t see person, colour or sex, and will refrain from acknowledging things in general. Things distract from real problems, and that’s what the left wants.
These initiatives have been met with widespread praise, even reaching as far as Prince Edward Island — the American one, of course. Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow spoke at a conference on Thursday, announcing the decision to reverse updated branding on city streets and institutions, restoring Toronto’s standing with trans-Atlantic job
opportunists.
Chow said, “Canada has a history of strong working relationships with minorities that shouldn’t hide behind clumsily named street signs and buildings. Discrediting these individuals disserves this nation’s history.”
Tariffs are out, taxes are in. The Maple Dominion concluded a prolonged trade war that saw Canadians disrupting local businesses and households that were reliant on their energy products. It has since relieved America of such taxation, resumed electricity exports to Arizona and Nevada, and is eager to redistribute those expenses to its working and middle class, simultaneously removing difficult monetary barriers for fledgling
After almost five years, CHLORINE shows no sign of stopping
Milena Pappalardo
Short-Form Video Editor
University is the time in your life when you’ll probably have at least one friend who’s in a band. Maybe they last a few months or a couple of years; they may play a couple of gigs at a local dive bar or a birthday party. That’s certainly how CHLORINE the indie-rock band formed by a group of Toronto classmates, got their start.
After almost five years, CHLORINE shows no sign of stopping. The band has been steadily producing singles with an alternative rock, punk, and emo-pop sound; a full-length album is on the horizon.
While CHLORINE might embody the classic archetype of an indie band — a raucous group of young guys, constantly quipping about inside jokes and Weezer — the band isn’t just here to goof off. The talent and musical knowledge they possessed percolated from their boyish banter during our interview; they even broke into a flawless improvised cappella when prompted.
CHLORINE has five members: lead singer and rhythm guitarist Radin Vahid; lead guitarist and backup vocalist Ryan Chan; keyboardist Johnny McCrae; bassist Jacob Badali; and drummer Aristides Love.
Two members of CHLORINE are current U of T students: Vahid is a fourth-year student at Rotman School of Management, and McCrae is a thirdyear student in chemical engineering. The rest of the group is also composed of university students and recent graduates. The Varsity sat down with CHLORINE to discuss what it’s like being full-time students and part-time budding rockstars.
The Varsity (TV): What are the origins of CHLORINE — what’s your backstory?
Radin Vahid: We got bit by a radioactive band. [Laughter.] So I met Jacob in the third grade, Ryan and Aristides in the seventh and eighth grades, and Johnny in the 10th grade. When the pandemic hit, I was really getting into guitar, and then Jacob and Ryan picked it up, too. Johnny is a classically trained pianist, and Aristides had already been playing drums before we started. We had this talent show at school, and I was like, ‘Oh, let me get a group of people, we’ll do Oasis’ Wonderwall. That was big for me at the time. So then I convinced Jacob to buy a bass. I knew Aristides played drums, and Ryan played guitar,
so we formed a band. The name came because we were all working as lifeguards at the time.
So we decided to do a show in Aristides’ backyard that summer to send everyone off to university. We learned a bunch of covers of songs that we liked, stuff that we probably wouldn’t play again, like Green Day and Weezer. From there, we made three original songs, one of them being our song “Electric Chair,” which was just released, which is insane.
TV: Who writes your songs?
RV: We all write songs — not all of us write lyrics, but everyone writes songs. Writing a drum part is just as important as writing a guitar part, it’s all still writing. So, I think we’re definitely all songwriters.
TV: What was it like finding and looking for a producer, going from a backyard band to now?
RV: Well, it took us years to get our current producer. Our first EP was with a different producer — at that time, we just wanted to make something for as cheap as we could. Our first producer was like, ‘I have a rate, but I also like to help the scene and I just want to see you guys get this shit out. So I’ll give you a hell of a reduced rate.’ We went in there and banged out our four songs, and they’re very listenable. Still, maybe not as high quality as the stuff we’re putting out now.
Aristides Love: It was the perfect start for us because we needed to start somewhere that was low commitment.
Jacob Badali: We had much time because I was away in Kingston, and I didn’t know what other people were doing.
RV: We had to do all [of our EP] in one summer.
AL: Later on, our current producer found us — he saw a video of us from the Rivoli, and then he reached out to us and gave us a whole doc with notes.
RV: And, wow, he showed us that he cared a lot, and to this day, we’re still with him because he cares. He’s got a lot of great songwriting knowledge.
TV: Who would you say your biggest musical influences are?
JB: Depends on who you ask. The music we make references bands like Kings of Leon, The Strokes, Pixies, and Cage the Elephant
RV: Those are great; these are the bands we want to sound like, but I don’t think those are the
bands we take inspiration from.
TV: Can you tell us about the first show you’ve ever done together and the last show you’ve done? What has that growth been like?
AL: Going into first-year of university, there was nothing said like, ‘Oh, we’re in a band together.’ We just kind of let our first year happen. Then — I remember this vividly — I was studying for my second-semester math exam, and I was so fed up with studying because it was April and the sun was coming out. I was like, ‘Fuck this.’ We did such a sick show last year. Why are we gonna stop now? I went on this website where you can book spaces, just some random first link, and I saw an opening to play at this shop called Taco Taco.
TV: Did you sell out your show?
RV: We did sell out. That’s called a crowd. We were shocked. We sold 200 tickets to our firstever show. It was a phenomenal experience. We sounded terrible. The mix was awful. We played fine, but played way too long a setlist.
Ryan Chan: The odds were so stacked against us. We get there, they don’t even have a public address system really. They handed us this dusty mixing board and told us, ‘Here you go.’
RV: However, energy alone, some people felt that it was one of the best shows they came to. It probably sounded not great, but we brought so much energy to that stage that it didn’t matter.
RC: Everybody who came was also pushing the energy.
AL: I think Johnny said it best: ‘I thought I was in the Rogers Centre when I was in Taco Taco.’
JB: Our last show was in Kingston. I’m very glad it happened because I went to Queens University, where I’d seen the music scene in Kingston, and I knew there was so much hunger for people to see live music, but there weren’t always bands to fill those spots. So one of my friends reached out to me from a band called Carnelian, and he was like, ‘Oh, we’re gonna set the show in January. We want you guys to play with us.’ And we were like, ‘Hell yeah, let’s take it.’ It was on a Wednesday, but we still sold like 420 tickets.
RC: Queens students know how to go hard on a Wednesday.
TV: You could not get a U of T crowd out like that.
RV: No, they’re too busy studying.
megacorporations and private businesses.
On the ice, players from the original Canada hockey team were absorbed into America’s own, leading to the States’ first-ever 3–1 win against Ukraine last night. Just a month ago, Canadians disavowed the “Star-Spangled Banner,” Molson in hand. Today, the Maple Dominion prefers Budweiser, as fists are pumped and stadium mobs salute like the historically democratic Romans, showing a real triumph of the will. The addition of Nunavut drew positive responses from Wyoming residents, thankful they no longer reside in the most boring part of the country. Even a week in, Church, province, and state are proving to be the future people aspired for.
RC: We even did some stage antics
AL: One of my friends crowd-surfed!
RV: When it’s going that well, nothing matters anymore.
JB: Johnny was running from one side of the stage to the other!
TV: Do you feel like rock stars?
RV: For the few hours before and after the show.
RC: Then I clock into my day job. It’s definitely a surreal feeling, just playing shows. Doesn’t matter what venue, just the act of performing along with the setup, the booking, the planning, actually physically moving gear back and forth, coiling wires — lots of coiling.
AL: There’s so much background work that doesn’t get seen that makes it all worth it on stage.
TV: You all study business, synthetic biology, or chemical engineering; you’re all STEM students! Would you say your artsy side comes out in your band?
AL: Oh, 100 per cent.
RV: I think the STEM and business side comes out in school, but the artsy side is the main focus.
TV: Does CHLORINE have fangirls?
RV: We have actual fans. Which is shocking; people we don’t know find us. Our last song did better in the UK than it did in Canada. We have people come to the shows that we don’t know at all, but know the words to the songs, and for that, we’re so grateful.
JB: Shout out to my little cousins, my parents, and my brothers.
RV: Yeah, our families are really supportive, specifically Johnny’s. Johnny’s extended family comes to everything.
TV: What’s next for CHLORINE?
AL: We’ve been talking about [what comes next] a lot these past few months. The overall goal is to turn the side project into the main project, slowly.
RV: Don’t tell our bosses.
AL: We’re trying to find a new sound. We’re working on a new consistent sound. [Our goal is to put] together an eight-to-10 song proper album set to be released at the end of this year or early next year; with the goal of having a big release concert with a bunch of connections and people from different labels and people from radio, people from the music industry, to pitch ourselves to them.
TV: And what’s this new sound gonna sound like?
CHLORINE: [Starts singing and beatboxing.]
This interview has been edited this interview for length and clarity.
Sulaiman Hashim Khan & Evelyn Karma Maguire
Theatre Columnist, Varsity Contributor
Content Warning: This article mentions death and homophobic and transphobic violence.
As February melted into March, the annual Hart House Drama Festival launched us into spring once again. Each year, the stage hosts several one-act plays written, directed, and performed by members of the U of T community. This year, we saw 11 shows take place over the course of a few nights, leading up to an awards ceremony adjudicated by dramaturge Marjorie Chan.
Despite the competitive nature of the festival, audience members, actors, directors, writers, and technical production members alike showcased their camaraderie, proving the festival is less about competition and more about showcasing the love of the theatre that seems alive and well at U of T.
Night one
The first night started strong with Trinity College Dramatic Society’s The Three Merry Murderers which was truly an instance of the doctrine that it asserts — a satirical play on the idea of authorial self-insertion and pretentious writing by way of purposefully pretentious writing.
The show began with a band of travelling players tasked with committing regicide and ended with the tragedians throwing tomatoes at each other on stage. With its Monty Python-esque scenarios and tight dialogue written in iambic pentameter, The Three Merry Murderers successfully pulled off an absurdist Shakespearean farce. Although “Nobody speaks in iambic pentameter!” — as was exclaimed in this fourth-wall-breaking moment — the show set the tone for the next few nights. Writer-director Birch Norman’s merit award for Impressive Creation in Iambic came well deserved.
UTSC Drama Society’s Cornelia Sheik (Née Van der Beek) came next. The play centred on the journey of a newly-expectant New York socialite in an intercultural marriage, as she set out to explore
her cultural identity before the birth of her child. With a situational-comedy tone, Cornelia Sheik (Née Van der Beek) infused the production with lively humour while delving into themes of heritage and belonging. Amina Niyazov’s performance as the eponymous Cornelia echoed the brilliance of sitcom stars, doing great justice to Feroz Khan’s cohesive and resonant writing.
If there was an award for ‘most laughs’ at the festival, UofT Improv’s UofT Improv Presents: The 6th Annual McGill Drama Festival would have won by a landslide. The show kicked off with a convincing portrayal of a McGill student, setting the stage for the audience to choose between two out of six potential premises. Books & Brutalism:
A Robarts Love Story and Pride and Prejudice and Projectiles were the winning selections, and the crowd eagerly followed the troupe’s off-therails escapades. These included a timeless love story between an aspiring student actor and the immortal “Protector of Robarts Library,” as well as courting rituals involving jettisoned hats and miscellaneous objects.
From beach castaways and bad dinner dates to asthmatic exorcisms, UTSC Improv’s (UTSCI) UTSCI Night Live kicked off night two with another impressive display of the U of T community’s comedic talent. UTSCI’s strengths lay in their ability to skillfully incorporate props and effects — elements that more spontaneous improv cannot always predict. The pre-written sketches — reminiscent of the SNL moniker they adopted for performance — allowed for voiceover, lighting cues, and even choreographed candygram dance numbers. Some of the biggest laughs of the night came from these clever staging choices.
Worthy of the standing ovation it received, Angela Zhang’s performance in St. Michael’s College Troubadours’ Faith, written and directed by Emily Beaubien, was undeniably the highlight of Drama Fest. Taking the form of a one-sided conversation with God, Zhang skillfully expressed a wide range of emotions, delivering a nearly hourlong soliloquy with little to no downtime. Truly
impressive.
Presented as a reinterpretation of Euripedes’ The Bacchae, Avi Kleinman’s Five Minutes Between Lion and Man — from the Victoria College Drama Society — swept the awards ceremony, even sparking a noticeable uptick in Google searches for the classic tragedy the week of the festival. The play skillfully explored society’s tendency to turn a blind eye to the ongoing violence against queer and transgendered people. However, the writing occasionally veered into selfindulgence, sacrificing clarity and storytelling for odd stylistic choices and forced allusion.
Grace Elizabeth Huestis delivered a formidable performance as Agave, confidently prancing around the stage and engaging in a verbal duel with her scene-mate, Ciarán McCausland, who brought a real feline quality to his movements and vocal cadence. Huestis took home the prestigious Donald Sutherland Award for Best Performance.
A near one-man show, Four Letter J-Name saw UTM’s Phynn Saunders explore the deep crevices of a broken heart. The play took shape as a monologue from the perspective of an ostensibly irreverent young person dealing with their partner’s death. The writing effectively honoured the serious subject matter of its premise, balancing it with crass comedy fuelled by unapologetic expletives — earning Saunders the Outstanding Accomplishment as Writer/Performer merit award. No audience-insulting bathos here. Bringing us another exploration of death and its complexities, Lauralee Leonhardt wrote and starred in Wake Up. While Leonhardt’s performance was strong, the stiff and robotic line delivery of others on stage diminished their fluidity. Director and set designer Mads Carrick earned the Robert Gill Award for Best Direction. A simple four-sided camping tent effectively transformed each scene upon rotation, keeping the stage elegant and furthering the liminal, dream-like setting.
Winner of the President’s Award for Best Production and easily the most grounded and wellthought-out play of the festival, Emily Paterson’s
Laura Duoer Gu
Varsity Contributor
Content warning: This article includes graphic descriptions of the Russia-Ukraine war.
On February 28, just four days after the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy hosted a virtual reality (VR) exhibition called Living the War and a lecture by Johns Hopkins University Professor Eugene Finkel on his recently published book, Intent to Destroy: Russia’s TwoHundred-Year Quest to Dominate Ukraine.
VR exhibition
The VR exhibition took place in the lounge next to the Campbell Conference Facility. The exhibition had two sets of chairs and VR headsets set up for people to experience a 10-minute VR video created and produced by the non-governmental organization The Game Changers, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The Game Changers, the independent Ukrainian team behind the VR video, prides itself on their mission to “provide immersive experiences to people from all over the world. Helping them feel events [in Ukraine] and understand their consequences better,” through a combination of “empathy and technology to help Ukraine and the Free World fight tyranny and disorder.”
From my position in Canada, far outside the orbit of the conflict, the Russia-Ukraine war has
always felt distant to me, existing only in news reports. But given our constant exposure to reports of bombings and war crimes in the news, it’s unfortunately easy to grow desensitized to the egregious nature of the violence presented to us. So, walking into the exhibition, I thought I knew what to expect.
However, looking into the Russia-Ukraine war through the VR headset challenged my expectations. Through the headset, a prompt urged me to experience the war firsthand through all five senses. I glimpsed corpses and battlegrounds, and I heard air raid alarms and the cries of babies. It’s painful to try to empathize with grief and terror of such magnitude.
The exhibition ended with a call to action for distant spectators to empathize and politically engage, despite the physical distance between the rest of the world and Ukraine. While the war in Ukraine may be geographically bounded, the outcome of this war hurts our shared human principles around sovereignty and staterecognition, setting precedents that impact the global order.
It raises a foreboding question: what will become of our world if we don’t act?
Ukrainian identity
Following the exhibition, we moved inside the Campbell Conference Facility, where Professor Finkel presented the key arguments from Intent to Destroy. Finkel’s book explores the history of Russia’s violence against Ukraine by examining the origins and rationale behind
Russia’s aggression, which argues that Ukraine’s democratic values pose a direct threat to Russia’s regime.
The book posits that Russia’s “obsession” with Ukraine stems primarily from the Russian perception of Ukrainian identity. Both nations trace their origins to Kyivan Rus, an east slavic federation from the ninth century, with the Russian establishment viewing itself as the rightful heir to the medieval state, justifying its dominance over Ukraine and claim on Kyiv. This belief, further reinforced by historical geographical terminology, rhetorically frames Russians as “Great Russians,” Belarusians as “White Russians,” and Ukrainians as “Little Russians,” constructing them as subordinate.
Additionally, Russian narratives have long dismissed the Ukrainian language as merely a dialect, a tradition of propaganda Professor Finkel traces as far back as Tsar Nicholas II’s rule more than 200 years ago. He identifies its popularization in the mid-nineteenth century in reaction to the Polish independence movement, which aimed at maintaining control over Ukraine and Belarus.
Finkel also argued that the obsession also stems from Ukraine’s threat to Russia’s national and, more importantly, regime security.
Russia is wary of democratic ideas from Ukraine spreading to its own people, potentially inspiring them to demand the same rights as their “little Russian brothers” in Ukraine, thereby threatening the regime’s long-standing autocratic rule.
To prevent this, Russian governments have
Butch/Femme brought us back to mid-twentieth century Toronto with a conversation between a jilted young woman and her ex-partner, who unexpectedly shows up at her door one evening. Paterson’s writing compellingly commanded the dialogue, allowing Tessa Kramer and Annabelle Gillis to work symbiotically and tell a story much bigger than the living room where the play unfolds. While many other representations of sapphic love in the festival felt passive and seemed to take queer acceptance for granted, Butch/Femme addressed some of the realities that members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community still face.
Night four
881 Drama Club’s Exchanged Souls 错位余 生 explored the inner workings of a relationship through the soul-swapping of Ji Xiaoxing and Shen Shu, examining what happens when the person you love is violently torn from you. Writer and director Yixin Duan, who earned an award of merit for Outstanding Concept & Script, kept the audience constantly guessing what would happen next for the characters’ souls.
The play also addressed a problem pointed out by adjudicator Marjorie Chen; “Why are theatres not as diverse as the city?” Exchanged Souls 错 位余生 featured dialogue exclusively in Chinese, with English subtitles provided in the backdrop, offering an answer to how a multilingual city can be represented in a single production and highlighting the direction future Toronto theatre should take.
Tying together themes of identity, selfacceptance, self-exploration and love seen throughout the festival, UC Follies’ To the Promised Land closed Drama Fest with a dystopia worthy of epic lore. With vignettes of the past interwoven with present-day interview-style narrations, the characters realize searching for ‘the promised land’ ultimately means the assimilation of language and identity. The rebellion against this assimilation confronts the conflicting realities of identity intertwined with language. The world presented on stage earned July Yanchun Hu an award of merit for Complex World Building, but its richness sometimes overshadowed the narrative and characters, making the story harder to follow.
And so concludes another memorable year at the Hart House Drama Festival. Drama Fest brings U of T’s creative community together to share meaningful stories and artistic expression. Here’s to another 80 years of drama!
historically sought to divide Ukraine’s diverse population, isolating and repressing certain groups while elevating others to ensure loyalty to Moscow. However, by 2022, Ukraine’s national identity had grown strong enough that the Kremlin’s effort to divide and repress failed, forcing Russia to resort to force and invasion.
When reading news about Ukraine, I often feel powerless and hopeless. What can we do to stop the bombings? Most of us don’t know, and so we may do nothing.
However, breaking down the origins of why Russia is willing to fight this war makes the prospect of advocating for peace feel more actionable. With an understanding of Russia’s rationale, at least our understanding of the root of the issue can become clearer: Ukraine’s democratic values are seen as a direct threat to Russia’s regime.
There is a solution to this — war is not inevitable. Professor Finkel argued that Russia’s obsession with Ukraine is a choice. The supposed threat to Russia’s regime would disappear if Russia acknowledged Ukrainians and Russians as distinct peoples.
This would challenge Russians’ long-held narratives of Ukraine, but such shifts are possible. Of course, this is a drastic and optimistic simplification — much easier said than done. Professor Finkel also noted that changing longheld perceptions of the masses requires action from the top down, and such changes take time to sink in.
Nevertheless, the narratives fueling aggression are constructs afterall — deeply entrenched, but ultimately manufactured by a government intent on redefining Ukrainian identity as what it is not. Like all constructs, this too can and should be dismantled.
March 18, 2025
thevarsity.ca/category/science science@thevarsity.ca
Laurent Daunt Varsity Contributor
From matcha to chamomile to chai, tea has been a beloved beverage for centuries. Effortlessly brewed and enjoyed worldwide, tea has earned its place as the world’s second most popular drink, succeeded only by water. All true types of teas are brewed from the leaves of a singular plant, Camellia sinensis, but many other varieties include combinations of dried flowers, spices, and even fruit.
For thousands of years, tea leaves have undergone unique fermentation processes that have shaped tea’s diverse flavours, colours, and healthful properties that we savour every day.
From Japan’s ceremonial matcha traditions to the comforting and warm embrace of chai, each type of tea offers distinct advantages for both body and mind.
Matcha: A green powerhouse
A finely ground green tea, matcha has become a staple beverage among health enthusiasts with its striking green hue and nutrient-rich profile. Unlike other types of green tea, matcha is consumed in a powdered form, which allows you to ingest the whole leaf rather than just an infusion from steeping it in water. Matcha powder is made from steamed and dried tea leaves that are ground into a fine powder.
Originally used in Japanese tea ceremonies, matcha’s unique preparation provides a concentrated dose of antioxidants, which have been linked to improved heart health, weight management, and cognitive function. Matcha also boasts anti-inflammatory properties,
enhances immune function, and supports mental clarity and metabolism.
Whether you’re looking for an energy boost without the crash of coffee or desire to improve your overall health, matcha is an excellent and natural alternative for your mornings. With its earthy taste, vibrant colour, and a powerhouse of health benefits, it truly earns its reputation as a supercharged green tea.
Chamomile: A relaxation elixir
Chamomile is one of the most ancient herbal remedies and is revered for its soothing properties. While chamomile is available in various forms, its most beloved version is the tea we sip to unwind and find calm. Millions of people enjoy chamomile tea each day, making it a perfect option for those looking to relax.
Often consumed before bed, chamomile is recognized for its ability to improve sleep quality, treat insomnia, and induce a sense of calm in the body. These effects may be due to flavonoids, a chemical that binds to benzodiazepine receptors in the brain.
While it is derived from the Asteraceae (daisy) family, scientists are still unsure which specific compound is responsible for chamomile’s sedative effects. Beyond relaxation, research suggests that chamomile boosts immunity and helps fight off infections, including colds.
If you’re looking to wind down after a long day or give your immune system a natural boost, chamomile tea remains a timeless go-to.
Chai: A spiced energizer
Chai is made differently in every household, but the base recipe involves black tea — fully
Jeanine Varney Architecture Correspondent
Recent restoration projects have revealed new dimensions to old Gothic cathedrals. This has been most clearly seen by the world through the restoration process of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, which was damaged after a fire in 2019.
The restoration was completed last December, revealing a freshly cleaned interior of the cathedral that showed a cream-coloured stone that was much different from the earlier perception of the interior of the Notre Dame as dark and shadowy.
This restoration — as well as similar restorations in Gothic cathedrals around Europe — makes us wonder about the atmosphere of cathedrals and the science behind their restoration.
Reviving Gothic architecture: Techniques
Since the start of the modern historical conservation movement and the widespread
increase in building restoration, one of its focuses has been on revitalizing Gothic cathedrals.
Restoration methods have advanced in modern times with technology. Lasers, sandblasting, and high-pressure water sprays can be used to restore old stone more easily than past methods.
Each new method has different advantages, but there are still some limitations. The largest limitation of using laser ablation to clean stone is that the lasers cause yellow discoloration in the stonework. The lasers work by heating the layer of grime so quickly that it burns away, which sometimes leaves behind a yellow tint on the stone. However, this can be reduced by adjusting the lasers themselves.
By changing the pulse duration, some laser modes cause less yellowing in the stone but take longer and ultimately result in a less complete job of cleaning the stone. Lasers with shorter duration pulses — and less expended energy — cleaned more efficiently than lasers with longer duration
oxidized tea leaves — brewed in milk, spices, and sweetener. What makes chai extra special is its ability to boost both focus and energy.
Thanks to its L-theanine content — a unique amino acid found in only black teas — chai helps improve mental focus and provides sustained energy without the jitters commonly associated with most caffeinated beverages.
Beyond its stimulating effects, chai also offers impressive physical health benefits. The spices commonly used — particularly cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom — are known for their chemoprotective and antitumor properties. This means that the tea both protects healthy tissues from the side effects caused by anticancer drugs and also prevents cancer or abnormal cell growth.
pulses and also caused more yellowing. Lasers with longer pulse sequences and more expended energy cleaned less efficiently and had less yellowing.
Micro-sandblasting, which blasts the surface with sand to remove dirt and buildup, can be abrasive to the surfaces of near-millennia-old stone. While laser techniques are not as optimal for preserving the colour of the stone, micro sandblasting can affect the surface texture of the stone. When compared to micro-sandblasting techniques, laser treatment sometimes did not fully remove certain patinas or oxidized coatings, hiding the underlying painted colour in the stone. Another technique to revitalize Gothic buildings is photocatalytic nanoparticles. These nanoparticles are tiny particles of inorganic compounds like titanium dioxide, which have been used in environmental science because they have the ability to degrade pollutants, like those on the surface of old stone cathedrals. When these nanoparticles are incorporated into a gel, they can also repel water from the surface of the stone, which helps to preserve the quality of the stone.
One of the best methods for cleaning stone is also the simplest and the oldest: high-pressure water. Using hot, pressurized water with a precleaning treatment of sodium hydroxide and Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid — a medicinal acid used for treating heavy metal toxicity — has been found to thoroughly clean and reduce black crusts in some cathedrals and was used in the restoration of the Cathedral de Valladolid in Spain.
These crusts are commonly caused by air pollution. A blend of new and traditional techniques has emerged for cleaning the centuries of grime off of Gothic architecture, with new technological methods used alongside time-tested methods of pressurized water and sandblasting.
Finding polychromy on old stone
What is revealed with the restoration of Gothic architecture is a newfound appreciation for the many colours that these buildings were painted with. Many parts of Gothic cathedrals — especially statues and carvings — displayed a technique called polychromy, or the practice of using multiple colours to decorate a building.
So, whether you’re in need of an energy boost, a healthful drink, or simply a warm and flavourful treat, chai serves as the perfect option to support both the body and mind.
The dregs Tea is more than just a comforting drink, it’s a centuries-old tradition. Whether you’re sipping matcha for an energy boost, chamomile to unwind, or chai for a spicy pick-me-up, each blend has its own unique experience and properties. No matter your preference, there’s a tea for every occasion.
So the next time you reach for your cup, you can feel good knowing you’re not only enjoying a comforting drink but also sharing potential health benefits.
Polychromy was often added using stone paints, but over the centuries, much of the paint has worn away. This left formerly polychromic surfaces white or their natural stone colour, which dulled over centuries of usage to the drab greys we associate with Gothic architecture today. New imaging and investigation techniques have been able to detect traces of paint on the walls of Gothic buildings, rewriting our understanding of the true colour of many parts of cathedrals.
This development is not unprecedented; Greek and Roman statues went through a similar revision. Ancient Greek and Roman statues were once thought to be unpainted and white, inspiring many neoclassical forms, like Canova’s Venus Victrix, to adopt a bright white exterior.
However, further investigation found that the ancient statues actually had polychromy, as they were painted in a variety of colours. Over centuries, the paint had worn off, giving a sleek white look to the statues that were held up as an ideal of ancient beauty.
These new developments in the understanding of the art and architecture of Gothic cathedrals are interesting because they have the potential to change how we think about the architecture that surrounds us and the techniques that can be used to preserve it.
UTSG is full of examples of neo-Gothic architecture, including spaces like Hart House and Trinity College. These Gothic-inspired buildings were often built with darker and unpainted stone. Even without using paint, one look at Hart House shows you that polychromy can be used by varying the types of stone in a building, even if they were left unpainted due to a misunderstanding of what Gothic architecture actually looked like. The recent restorations of Gothic cathedrals in Europe and the discovery of their vibrant polychromy beginnings highlight the differences between the neo-Gothic buildings familiar to us and the buildings they were inspired by. It challenges our perceptions of what Gothic architecture originally was and whether we seek to duplicate the original or forge our own Gothic style. Next time you’re walking through UTSG, see if you can spot the polychromatic faces of our neoGothic home!
Ungku Zoë Anysa Varsity Contributor
Earlier this year, I went through a major change in my personal life. It disrupted my routine and, unexpectedly, my relationship with food. I lost my appetite for cooking, baking, and even grocery shopping for myself — something the recent snowstorms certainly didn’t help with.
I still enjoyed eating, but instead of spending time in the kitchen, I found myself relying more on takeout or dining out with friends. Although it felt easier, I realized, over time, that by stepping away from cooking, I was also stepping away from one of my most reliable coping mechanisms for stress.
After about a month, I reminded myself that I plan to live at least another 70 years, and to do that, I needed to build healthy eating habits while I was young. If I wanted to feel like myself again, I had to reconnect with cooking — not just as a necessity but as an act of self-care.
The joy of cooking for others
There’s a unique kind of joy in cooking for more than just yourself. Sharing a homemade meal with loved ones creates connections and fosters community.
In January, I spent a night on a Mennonite farm in Pennsylvania. The person I was travelling with and I had never met the family we were staying with, but one thing felt familiar: helping out in the kitchen.
We peeled carrots and chopped potatoes: they had grown in the soil of their farm — a farm that feeds their 80-member community year-round. Before our meal, we expressed gratitude for the chicken raised by our host’s friends down the road. Knowing where our food came from added a layer of mindfulness to both the cooking and eating process, making the experience even more special. It reminded me of the joy of sharing thoughtfully prepared meals — a feeling I try to recreate in my own gatherings.
During the summer, I love inviting friends over for rooftop dinners, where we share food and laughter as the sun sets around us. My roommate once told me it smelled like “Christmas in the kitchen” when I baked an orange cranberry loaf in July. This year, I’m especially excited to grow my own vegetables, deepening my connection to the meals I
prepare. Food has always been a way to unite people, and there’s something deeply satisfying about watching loved ones enjoying a meal I’ve made.
The fine balance between science and art Beyond its social benefits, cooking also offers a personal escape — a way to be fully present in the moment. When I’m in the kitchen, I lose track of time and become completely absorbed in the creative and scientific process.
As a chemistry student, I find that cooking and baking feel very similar to working in a lab. Both require precision — measuring ingredients, following steps, and understanding how different elements interact. For instance, the bitterness of a food may indicate that too much of a basic ingredient — something that accepts hydrogen ions — has been added. This could be balanced out by adding something acidic — something that donates hydrogen ions.
Making bread, alcohol, or even kimchi involves a fermentation reaction where microorganisms like bacteria or yeast break down carbohydrates and release carbon dioxide, alcohol, and acids. Even the distinct crispy texture of toast is caused by heating the granules of starch to lose water, causing a firmer, crispier texture. The right balance of acidity and alkalinity, the reaction between yeast and sugar, the way temperature affects textures — it’s all chemistry in the kitchen.
Through my time in the kitchen, I have learned the hard way that small changes make a big difference. One time, I accidentally added too much baking soda to a batch of cookies, and they turned out bitter instead of sweet. Alkyl, or basic materials — like baking soda — typically have a bitter taste, while acids, like those in lemons, taste sour.
Baking soda is a basic compound. This means that when it mixes with other acidic substances, it creates carbon dioxide gas, forming air bubbles that help cake batters rise, giving baked goods their deliciously fluffy and light texture. Who knew an extra half teaspoon of powder could have such an impact? But, just like in science, mistakes in the kitchen are opportunities to learn.
While precision is important, cooking is also an art — a space for experimentation and selfexpression.
Our experience of flavour is actually a combination of both taste and smell. While our taste buds can only detect a handful of basic tastes, our sense of smell allows us to perceive a much wider variety of flavours. Our perception of flavour is linked to our own experiences. To determine what specific flavour a food is, our brains recall what scent is associated with what taste, which is why having a cold affects our sense of taste. Vanilla doesn’t strongly register as any of our typical tastes on the tongue, yet it is one of the most easily recognizable flavours because of its scent.
Another important factor in how we experience flavour is the Maillard reaction, also known as the browning reaction. This chemical process is what gives cooked foods their distinct taste and aroma.
The Maillard reaction is a type of redox reaction, which means it involves the exchange of electrons between molecules. It begins when an amino group reacts — a nitrogen atom bonded to two hydrogen atoms — with a sugar component called a carbonyl group — a carbon and oxygen connected with a double bond. This reaction sets off a chain of changes that produce the rich flavours and golden-brown colours we associate with foods like grilled meat, toasted bread, and roasted coffee.
The science of cooking has garnered much attention over the years. Cooking is an essential life skill. As our ancestors traversed the land’s dangerous terrain hundreds of thousands of years ago, knowing which plants or berries were poisonous and which were nutritious was a life-and-death situation.
And speaking of the past, the introduction of fire and heat as a tool to make ingredients more safe and flavourful to eat was a game-
changer for early humans. The control of heat meant that early human tribes didn’t have to be nomadic anymore, subject to the whims of the Sun’s heat. Using fire to cook also meant that the tough tissues of difficult-todigest animals could be easily digested once cooked, allowing our ancestors to receive the necessary nutrition without falling ill.
But what about today?
As a society, we increasingly rely on industrialized food sources, which affect the quality of food in our diet by diluting the nutritional density of certain ingredients, such as fruits and vegetables. While research in cooking has focused on how it can utilize fresh, non-industrialized ingredients to whip up delicious meals, less attention has been placed on the psychological and social health benefits of cooking.
However, a study on well-being and cooking behaviour has linked cooking and baking to mindfulness, showing that engaging in these activities — especially with our loved ones — can reduce anxiety and improve overall mental well-being. It links cooking to Martin Seligman’s model of well-being, a model describing the key elements that are necessary to flourish mentally, including positive emotion, relationships, meaning, and achievement. The study concluded that cooking contributed to increasing all of these components.
Finding my way back
I am falling back in love with being in the kitchen every day. I remind myself that making meals is not just about sustenance — it is a way to care for myself and carve out a moment of peace in my day. Whether I am baking banana bread from overripe bananas or throwing together my signature fried rice from day-old rice, each minute spent back in the kitchen is now a small victory, a step toward feeling like myself again.
Cymatics: The secret shapes of sound Different frequencies produce different shapes in materials, bringing matter to life with sound
Siriah Subit
Varsity Contributor
Imagine a world where sound becomes visible. In a room full of conversation, we would see soundwaves flowing from person to person, bouncing off walls, and being absorbed by furniture and walls.
Cymatics is the scientific study of how sounds affect their physical surroundings — such as sand or water — to create beautiful geometric shapes. Deriving from the Greek word “kyma,” meaning wave, cymatics is much more than a visual spectacle in the sometimes mind-bending yet infinitely interesting world of physics. Understanding cymatics can help us gain more knowledge about the physics of sound and how it is utilized in modern technology, art, and music.
The language of vibrations: how does sound work?
Sound is a type of energy that travels in longitudinal waves, where vibrating particles in a physical medium, such as sand, air, or water, move back and forth. This movement makes particles around the wave vibrate. As these waves travel through the air, they create highpressure and low-pressure areas, causing air
particles to bunch together in some places and spread out in others. Our ears sense pressure waves as they pass through the auditory canal, making our sensitive eardrums vibrate.
The modern study of sound began in the seventeenth century when polymaths like Galileo Galilei established relationships between frequencies and pitch, such as how an increase in frequency leads to a higher sound pitch. After Galileo’s studies, interest in acoustics exploded. As experimental methods and technologies evolved, scientists began to understand that hearing sounds meant the particles in the air were moving, either through expansion or compression.
A sound’s frequency is the number of vibrations measured per second, expressed in hertz (Hz). It determines pitch, with higher frequencies producing higher pitches. Even before the advent of modern sound science, humans could interpret sound based on its loudness and pitch.
Humans can comfortably hear sound waves between 20 and 20,000 Hz, which is known as the audio frequency spectrum. Our mammal friends — such as bats, dolphins, and even dogs — can hear higher frequency sounds that are beyond our hearing range. For example, dog whistles use ultrasonic pitches that dogs
can hear easily but are too high for humans to detect.
Exploring cymatics through Chladni patterns
But where do cymatics come into all of this?
A sound’s ‘loudness’ is determined by its amplitude — how “tall” the wave is. Each material has a natural frequency at which it prefers to vibrate. If a material receives a sound wave with the same frequency as its natural frequency, it will amplify the sound. Cymatics demonstrates how resonance amplifies a material’s vibrations at its natural frequency, resulting in the formation of distinct visual patterns.
One of the most famous experiments to visualize how sound waves affect a medium — air, sand, or water — is the Chladni plate. German physicist Ernst Chladni laid the foundation for contemporary cymatics when he discovered that sound vibrations created geometric patterns on a vibrating metal plate. He did this by sprinkling sand onto the plate and drawing a violin bow along its edge. The vibrations from the sounds cause the sand to be displaced from the regions of high vibration and to settle in areas of low vibration, forming symmetrical patterns that visually represent the frequency of the sound.
From soundwaves to innovation
Cymatics is not just about the beauty of physics — it also has practical applications across various industries.
In audio technology, the principles of vibration and resonance are used to improve speakers and soundproofing materials. Sound engineers study the behaviour of sound waves to optimize acoustics in concert halls and recording studios.
In the medical field, cymatics plays a role in imaging, with ultrasound machines using wave patterns to create images of internal organs and structures. Additionally, recent research has highlighted the positive effects of sound vibration therapies. Sound healing and frequency therapy use specific sound frequencies to promote relaxation and harmony. Cymatics offers a unique way of visualizing sound, bridging the gap between physics and art. As scientists and engineers continue to explore how sound waves create patterns in different media, new applications are emerging in fields like acoustics, medicine, and technology. From the mesmerizing designs on Chladni plates to the development of modern audio systems, cymatics reveals that sound is not just something we hear — it’s a force that shapes and enhances the world around us.
March 18, 2025
thevarsity.ca/section/sports sports@thevarsity.ca
Jake Takeuchi Sports Editor
The Varsity Blues women’s ice hockey team secured their league-leading 20th McCaw Cup banner on March 15, winning 3–2 in a hardfought battle against the Waterloo Warriors. This was the Blues’ fifth Ontario University Athletics (OUA) provincial playoff final in six years.
For the Blues, the playoff was an opportunity for redemption after the Warriors prevented the Blues from securing a back-to-back championship in overtime during last season’s final at the Varsity Arena.
The Blues were perfect in the playoff tournament leading up to the final, sweeping the Ottawa Gee-Gees in the quarterfinals before dispatching the Guelph Gryphons in a semi-final sweep. On the other side of the bracket, the Warriors were also undefeated until they lost to the Blues, despite being led by star players such as OUA Player of the Year Carly Orth. This set up an exciting rematch between two highflying teams.
What happened?
The Blues were dominant from puck drop, with forward Sophie Grawbarger scoring on a tipin from forward Katy McKenna’s point shot 14 seconds into the game. This early goal set the
tone for the rest of the game, as the first period points were all for the Blues.
Midway into the first period, forward Taylor Delahey tucked away a smooth passing play with forward Aili McKeown off the rush to double the lead. Persistent forechecking by forwards Christina Alexiou and Abby Howland kept the Warriors pinned for the period, as the Blues played a game full of energy to keep the score at 2–0 going into the second.
The second period was a battle of the special teams, with both competitors picking up a combined 20 minutes of penalties during the period. The clean and composed Blues game frustrated the Warriors as they struggled on the breakout.
Despite numerous opportunities on the power play, the Blues could not find another way through OUA Goaltender of the Year Kara Mark.
Not to be outdone on the other end of the ice, Blues rookie goaltender Lyla McKinnon — who led all goalies in the playoffs with a remarkable .953 save percentage — stood on her head as the momentum of the game swung to the other end of the rink, making heroic save after heroic save to keep the team in the game.
Defence Emma Potter and McKeown put themselves on the line on the penalty kill to keep the score 2–0 despite great chances for
both teams. With under two minutes left in the second period, forward Emma Irwin converted on a five-on-three power play to keep the pressure on the Warriors.
The third period began with a fire burning under the Warriors, with last year’s champions refusing to go down without a fight. Despite the Blues’ valiant defense, the OUA’s highestscoring team gained a point three minutes into the period to set up a nervous end to the game. However, McKinnon and her defensive core kept back the subsequent Warriors onslaught with grit.
Despite being heavily outshot, the Blues rallied to show their experience and defensive stability throughout the third period — nullifying chance after chance to score for the opposing team. The Warriors added another goal when they pulled their goalie with 40 seconds left in
the game, taking the score to 3-2. Ultimately, it was not enough as the Blues secured their third McCaw Cup since 2020. McKinnon rightfully claimed the Finals MVP with her magnificent 26-save performances as the Blues staked their claim as Ontario’s best.
What’s next?
The Blues will now look forward to the U SPORTS National Championship back in Waterloo, which will run from March 20–23. Coach Vicky Sunohara’s team will look to best last year’s result, when the Blues secured a silver medal in a hard-fought game against the Concordia Stingers. The Blues have not secured the national title since 2001, but a perfect playoff tournament, a high seed, and a cohesive team identity puts the team in an excellent position to make waves at nationals.
Nora Zolfaghari Associate Senior Copy-Editor
Professor John Zilcosky from the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures and the Centre for Comparative Literature argues combat sports acted as a pressure valve in Ancient Greek society.
Combat sports had a twofold purpose: to exhaust the athlete and, in doing so, fortify society.
Combat sports in Ancient Greece
Gamified combat, or combat sports, have existed in communities recreationally for longer than our historical records can prove. In times of war, they were used as a training method, allowing those who won their duels to gain hero status. Tactics for war eventually changed, with battles being fought less as one-on-one, removing the possibility for the fame and glory warriors were once promised.
With nowhere to quench their need for glory or to release their pent-up aggression, this posed a dangerous threat to the civility of Ancient Greek life. Around the same time, battle tactics began to change, combat sports became more popular in Ancient Greek society as a casual pastime.
Instead of being internally frustrated ticking time bombs, combat sports took conscription-age young men to palaestrae — training grounds for combat sports — to exhaust themselves, form a sense of camaraderie with their peers, and compete for battle glory, erecting statues in their honour.
Combat sports were first performed at the professional level in the ancient Greek Olympics. Events that were featured were wrestling, boxing, and pankration: a combination of the two former sports with no real rules.
More commonly, everyday people participated in lower-level combat sports, including figures like Socrates, whose fighting abilities are often overlooked. While Olympians were professional athletes with sponsors, casual fighters were still able to let out any pent-up frustration and gain battle-glory, exhausting and placating them to act in a civil manner in everyday life.
Does the pressure valve theory still hold up?
Combat sports are just as popular today as ever, and we borrow many of our current combat practices from the Greeks: a sense of honour in battle and a definitive ranking of winners and losers.
In non-professional levels, many forms of combat sport have made their way around the world, we can see this with the opening of clubs for Brazilian jiu jitsu, judo, or anything else one’s heart might desire. Combat sports still act as a pressure valve in a similar way in Ancient Greece — athletes are exhausted, but they also are able to compete in a space with mutual respect, maintaining the Ancient Greek idea of “arete” or excellence, a pillar in combat sports.
On the professional level, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is more similar to what might have been practiced in Ancient Greece. While violent, the level of this combat is analogous to that of Ancient Greek athletes. Practitioners were just as willing to injure themselves — sometimes even die — for glory in their sport.
Other outlets such as the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and celebrity boxing matches have taken on a life of their own, with much more spectacle. Combat sports today have mutated into different forms, just as everything does when it gains life in mass media and on the internet. It is televised and sensational, often an extension of internet engagement itself — whether it’s complex lore additions or publicized feuds.
With fanship, the internet has completely changed the way we engage with combat sports. Many fan interactions and arguments on combat sports have moved online, which, according to Zilcosky, “might not… be fully satisfying because it’s all so remote.” WWE matches are often fixed, an aspect which is completely at odds with the Ancient Greek tradition.
With all of these perversions of combat sport, can this new form of ‘combat sport’ still uphold the pressure valve theory?
Both the WWE and the UFC have deeply ingrained political connotations. UFC CEO Dana White spoke at the Republican National Convention last year, while President Donald Trump made
multiple WWE appearances before his presidency. However, UFC matches have a dimension of reality that WWE fights lack, which “goes against Trump's desire to control the political world,” Professor Zilcosky points out.
“The fact that the fight is real means that you can’t control the outcome,” which is directly oppositional to Trump’s presidential model.
On the other hand, the “WWE is a form of… soap opera,” argues Professor Zilcosky. “Because you can’t also say the melodrama of good and evil… is… not necessarily dangerous, but it opens itself up to the possibility of… the manipulation of human emotion: easily deciding who is good, who is evil, who’s on my side, [and who’s] the enemy.”
He continues, “When it happens at WWE, it seems harmless, but if that model of the world is transported and transferred into politics, where the enemy becomes evil, then… you want not just to defeat him, but shut him down and not let him
speak… it becomes extremely dangerous.”
He concludes that the WWE in itself is not politically dangerous, but that it’s “open to political manipulation… [where Trump has] transferred a WWE model to famous campaign events where he tries to rile up his crowds.”
“I do see dangers in WWE that I do not see in, say, UFC.”
Being used as a political device, the WWE and similarly perverse combat sporting events rile up their audiences in a way that breeds aggression and contrarianism. In this way, the pressure valve theory — although functional on some levels — fails to account for celebrity boxing matches.
The KSI versus Logan Paul boxing matches bred some intensely aggressive middle schoolers. Although WWE is not necessarily reflective of the future of combat sports, it still marks an important distinction where the pressure valve theory folds in on itself.
Ashley Thorpe Varsity Contributor
After another lengthy off-season, the highly anticipated 2025 Major League Baseball (MLB) season is fast approaching. Toronto Blue Jays fans and players alike feel a combination of excitement and uncertainty after the lacklustre 2024 season. Several key players face high expectations they need to meet, especially franchise stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, who both enter the final year of their contracts this season.
Franchise favourites
One of the most encouraging stories coming out of spring training is Bo Bichette’s resurgence. After struggling early last season, Bichette fractured his right middle finger, which cut his season short. Now, he looks primed for a big comeback.
After observing Bichette’s at-bats, seasoned MLB reporter Keegan Matheson said in an interview with The Varsity that coming into the new season, Bichette is “quickly going to remind people of how good a player he is.” This is great news for fans, who typically count on Bichette to deliver a significant portion of the team’s home runs each season.
Alejandro Kirk also stood out this spring after some inconsistent seasons at the plate. Matheson said Kirk arrived at camp in “very good shape” and has made clear improvements in his offensive abilities.
The front office made a controversial decision during last season’s trade deadline, sending fanfavourite catcher Danny Jansen to the Boston Red Sox. However, Matheson described Kirk as
a “wonderful catcher” and “great defender,” so we will see if the Blue Jays are in good hands behind the plate.
Blue Jays fans can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing they still have a talented everyday catcher to rely on.
Off-season reinforcements
The Blue Jays made their biggest off-season splash by signing future Hall of Fame pitcher Max Scherzer — a move that helped the team regain confidence after struggles to convince players to sign on.
After missing out on signing huge names for the team, like Roki Sasaki and Juan Soto, the front office was thankfully able to secure Scherzer. Matheson vividly described Scherzer’s presence on the team, saying, “While money is always the driving factor of anything, he didn’t come to Toronto to hang out. He’s got better places to be. So he’s extremely serious about winning and about what it takes to get ready for a season.”
Scherzer’s influence on both young players and veterans would be a stand-out feature of his role in the team. Matheson emphasized that “you don’t want to do something stupid if Max Scherzer’s standing next to you, because he’s a really serious dude.” Along with his commanding presence, Scherzer can back up his notoriety on the pitch, posting an impressive 2.00 ERA with 14 strikeouts across three starts in spring training.
Among those following Schrezer is Cy Young finalist Alek Manoah. Manoah’s struggles have been followed closely by fans and the front office, as injuries and regression turned him from an ace into a question mark over the past two seasons.
harmony, respect, and camaraderie through Japanese martial arts
Isabella Reny Deputy Senior Copy-Editor
Entering U of T at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic was incredibly stressful. I wasn’t just moving out of my home and into a student residence away from my family — I was leaving behind my high school friends and the community I had built, only to come to a new, academically rigorous institution. You know the story.
U of T has a reputation for being a lonely place. The Varsity has previously reported on the school’s association with loneliness and you’ve likely seen a range of posts online warning prospective students about the isolation they might experience at U of T.
In many ways, this was my experience too when I first arrived. Then, when I entered my second year, I finally had the chance to attend the UTSG club fair. It was here that I first discovered Naginata, a martial art that quickly became my way of connecting with others and carving out my own space within the larger university community.
What is Naginata?
Naginata is a traditional Japanese martial art that involves using a long spear — the naginata — to strike opponents and perform choreographed routines. The martial art dates back to around the seventh century in Japan, but gradually fell out of practice by the 1500s.
According to the All Japan Naginata Federation, “By the Edo period, when the naginata was hardly ever used in combat, it became the representative weapon of samurai women. They would engage in training in order to polish the virtues of Harmony, Order, Chastity and Moderation. The training would also develop the etiquette, style and personalities of the trainees.”
In the middle of 2024, Manoah disappeared from the team after undergoing Tommy John surgery — a procedure to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow. However, Matheson sees a reason for optimism. He noted that Manoah “looks a lot better” and that the surgery can be “an opportunity to step back and fully restart.”
The Blue Jays hope that Manoah will return later this season after rebuilding his strength. Matheson observed that Manoah “seems very happy” and appears “to be in a really good place mentally,” which is exactly what fans and the organization are hoping to see heading into the new season.
What’s next?
After the Blue Jays’ last-place finish in the AL East in 2024, fans feel discouraged and are wondering if the team has what it takes to win their third World Series title.
When asked if the opportunity to win is still possible, Matheson said, “This year, no matter what, they've got to go all in. Because if this is — and it probably is — [Guerrero Jr.’s and Bichette’s] last year in Toronto, you gotta do everything possible.”
Blue Jays General Manager Ross Atkins has no room for error or time to sit back and relax.
Matheson isn’t that optimistic if the Blue Jays can’t find a way to renegotiate with Guerrero Jr. and Bichette, saying that “I don’t think they’re exactly the World Series favourite right now, but beyond this season, I think the window can slam shut extremely quickly, and that could even happen in July at the trade deadline if things don’t go well.”
This isn't what anyone wants to hear, but it reflects the reality of the team’s situation if they fail to pull together wins.
Matheson’s ideal goal is to find “a way to bridge a gap to the next era of Blue Jays baseball.” This era ideally still includes Guerrero Jr., Bichette, or even both, but the team must consider all possibilities for the future.
The road ahead for the Blue Jays won’t be easy. This upcoming season carries high stakes, and the team must push to return to playoff form and find success before time runs out. The 2025 season will reveal a lot about their future — if the Blue Jays want to compete, they need to take action now.
Naginata became closely associated with women, with many practitioners in Japan being women. However, the federation emphasizes that today “Naginata can be enjoyed by men or women, from the youngest preschooler to the oldest senior citizen.”
During the Meiji Restoration — a nineteenthcentury period in Japan when imperial rule was restored, leading to rapid industrialization and Westernization — martial arts like Naginata became less a symbol of status and culture and more a technique to be trained.
Naginata practice is divided into two types: engi and shiai. Engi are non-contact forms that demonstrate techniques — referred to as waza — of slashing and blocking. On the other hand, shiai is full-contact sparring, where practitioners engage in direct competition. In both forms, the focus is not merely on defeating your opponent, but on “etiquette, form, and respect for others while helping the practitioner to improve balance, concentration, coordination, strength and spirit” — as described by the U of T Naginata Club (UTNC).
While many martial arts emphasize strength and skill, Naginata focuses on developing one’s technique and collaborating with others. Taylor Haw — co-captain of the UTNC and a fourth-year student studying art history as well as history and philosophy of science and technology — highlighted in an email to The Varsity that Naginata “has allowed [her] to accept failure or imperfection.”
“I have become more comfortable with not being good at something after only learning it once and being kinder to myself,” she said. “I’ve come to enjoy the learning process more than striving for proficiency immediately.”
Community building
UTSG’s club fair introduced me to the U of T Naginata Club. The trial session — hosted in
the Hart House Gymnasium — introduced me to the sport, the UTNC members, and the wider Naginata community.
Emma Cheung — co-captain of the UTNC and a third-year student pursuing a bachelor’s of information — joined for similar reasons. In an email to The Varsity, she shared that she “developed strong leadership and social skills from constantly going to practice.”
“I’ve also had great experiences from being a member of UTNC [that] I wouldn’t otherwise have had,” she said. “The skills I’ve learned help make my university experience feel meaningful, while the experiences have given me amazing memories that let me enjoy my undergraduate journey that much more.”
My time with the UTNC has taught me to value communication and camaraderie in sports. The process of improving alongside my teammates has been incredibly valuable. To truly progress in the sport, you must learn to trust the feedback from your teammates and instructors. Naginata is known for its blunt, open feedback, but this honesty stems from a genuine desire for each member to reach their full potential.
Tomas Almonte, UTNC’s current instructor and one of the club’s first members, shared in an email to The Varsity that he stayed with the sport because “the people I’ve met and the
experiences shared over the years were unique and memorable and helped me develop into the person I am today. The positive experiences I enjoyed as a student largely contribute to why I continue to stay and help new members enjoy and find their own place within the community.”
Naginata as a sport is incredibly difficult to practice alone. Engi requires two people — an attacker, called a shikake, and a defender, called an ooji — while shiai requires a competitor. In both forms, you need a partner you can trust to give proper feedback. In Canadian dojos — schools of martial arts — it’s common to practice with every member, regardless of skill, rank, or dojo affiliation. This fosters a strong sense of community among practitioners.
U of T is a large school with an incredibly diverse community and a wealth of resources. While this can lead to isolation, it also brings great opportunities; few schools can boast such a wide range of clubs and communities.
Now that I’m graduating, I’ve made plans to venture away from my community again. However, I don’t think I’ll forget the lessons I’ve learned and the memories I made as a part of UTNC. It’s important to remember that the communities you find never truly leave you, these experiences and lessons become a part of who you are.
