This conference aims to understand the means by which people come to know, feel, and reflect upon their past. Questions of history, memory, and heritage are all guided by the ethical concerns of the present and by desires regarding the future. The production of alternatives to the dominant narrative might also entail their own forms of exclusion. Contestation arises precisely when the past becomes a resource to remake the contemporary world. But how do we narrate pasts? What counts as “evidence” in such narrations? Whose stories prevail? Which pasts are silenced?

Traces of the past need not refer to archives alone. We also invite papers that would interpret how memory is inscribed on the human body, the landscape, in practices of commemoration, cinema, through nostalgia, and images of utopia or revolution. We encourage scholars to examine how collectives and subjectivities are formed, reformed, and contested through recuperation and retrospection, and how conceptions of past selves engage critically with the world-scale economic projects of colonialism, neocolonialism, and nationalism.

This unique International interdisciplinary conference brings together scholars, students, artists, writers and activists to engage with the conference theme more directly.

website: www.tamilstudiesconference.ca

Joseph T. O’Connell, noted scholar of world religions, passed away suddenly on May 6, 2012 in Lenox Hill Hospital, Manhattan, surrounded by his loving family.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1940, he was educated at Holy Cross College and Harvard University, where he specialized in the religions of South Asia, completing his Ph.D. thesis on Caitanya Vaisnavism.  Joseph taught at St. Michael’s College and the Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto from 1968-2000, and he and his wife Kathleen, a Tagore scholar, made regular research visits to India and Bangladesh.

His distinguished academic career includes teaching appointments at Oxford University, Visva-Bharati University, India, and more recently at the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, where he has been instrumental in the establishment of the  Dept. of World Religions and Culture for the past ten years.

Beyond his multi-faceted scholarly contributions of teaching, writing and curriculum development, Joe’s deep social conscience found scope in his support of various causes involving social and political injustice as they became evident to him.  Locally, he generously donated his time over many years to the Out-of-the-Cold program at St. Peter’s and St. Matthew’s parishes as a member of the steering committee and regular volunteer.

Much cherished husband of Kathleen for forty-seven years, Joseph will be deeply missed by the family he doted on: daughter Deirdre and her husband Christopher Schell, as well as sons Mark O’Connell and Matthew O’Connell with his fiancée Wen-Chih Yu.  ‘Grandpa Joe’ was especially devoted to his grandchildren Charles and Caroline Schell.

Friends and family are welcome to pay their respects during visitation at the Morley Bedford Funeral Home, 159 Eglinton Ave. W.  from 2-4 and 6-8 pm, Sunday, May 13. A Memorial service will take place at St. Basil’s Church, 50 St. Joseph Street on Tuesday, May 15^th at 3:00 pm

In lieu flowers, donations may be made to First Interfaith Out of the Cold (cheques payable to First Interfaith OOTC c/o Cong. Darchei Noam, memo line: Joseph O’Connell) 864 Sheppard Ave. W., Toronto, ON. M3H 2T5 Attention: Carol

The University of Toronto flags were kept at half-mast on all three campuses on Tuesday, May 15 in Professor O’Connell’s memory.

Join us for a special screening of Edwin Boyd, Citizen Gangster,  to be followed by a Q&A moderated by Filmmaker Patricia Rozema with Director & Screenwriter Nathan Morlando (BA 1992), Producer Allison Black (HBA 1998 –Cinema Studies), and Supporting Actor Kevin Durand.

Winner of the Best Canadian First Feature Film at TIFF 2011, EDWIN BOYD CITIZEN GANGSTER is based on the true story of a WWII vet and family man turned bank robber. Frustrated and disillusioned by his post war circumstances, Edwin Boyd (Scott Speedman) is a man torn between the need to provide for his young family and an unfulfilled dream to head to Hollywood to become a star. When he discovers a way to satisfy both needs robbing banks “Hollywood style” his dream for stardom leads him down an unexpected path of gangsterism, danger and tragedy.

Starring: Scott Speedman, Kelly Reilly, Kevin Durand and Brian Cox.  Directed by Nathan Morlando. Produced by Allison Black.

In theatres May 11th.  View movie trailer.

Please RSVP to rsvp.innis@utoronto.ca before May 4th. Limited seating.

On April 4, 2012, Dr. Jaymie Matthews, now an Officer of the Order of Canada and former Mission Scientist for the Canadian Space Agency, returned to his alma mater to re-launch the series as a hallmark event of New College’s 50^th Anniversary celebrations.

Entitled The Rocket Science of Sustainability, his lecture explored the implications of recently discovered planets for scientists trying to understand the impacts of climate change on our own.

“The lecture was by all accounts a major success,” says New College Principal Yves Roberge. “It brought people from all over the city, from such a wide range of professions and interests, to New College to consider a new perspective on a topic is relevant to all of us.”

It was exactly this that motivated Dr. Matthews.

“I was driven by the potential of the Bronowski Lectures to reach out beyond the University and draw in people that otherwise might not be involved in this level of discussion. I wanted people walking away discussing things that they hadn’t known before or wouldn’t have thought of,” he says.

Also weighing in on the subject as a surprise guest speaker was Dorion Sagan, the son of Carl Sagan and Dr. Lynn Margulis. Dorion is himself a highly esteemed science writer, essayist and theorist who has authored and co-authored some 24 books on topics ranging from culture and evolution to the history and philosophy of science.

Dr. Matthews and Mr. Sagan both spoke passionately about the role of science in social discourse.

“Our job [as scientists] is to make the public aware of what we find so that they can decide how society should respond,” says Dr. Matthews. “The social responsibility rests on all of our shoulders, but scientists play an important role in raising awareness of these issues so that people can make informed decisions.”

When asked if he had looked to the inaugural lecture for inspiration, Matthews was quick to reply that it would be disingenuous not to acknowledge Carl Sagan’s contribution to the series and the path that it has followed since. “I had wanted to make more direct connections to the original lecture and the book [Dragons of Eden] that came out of it; but when I found out that Dorion was going to be there… I couldn’t make a more direct connection than that.”

In his time at New College, when Matthews wasn’t in the lecture hall, he was extremely active in student life, having sat on the Student Council (NCSC), the Residence Council (NCRC) and worked as a DJ at Roscoes, a pub in Wetmore Hall that has since closed. “When I came here, nobody knew me,” he remembers. “I was still me, but nobody had any expectations for who I was. So all the things that I liked to do, that I was good at, but that just didn’t fit into the role that I had fallen into [growing up in Chatham, Ontario] I was able to explore here.”

Matthews also credits his experience with the New College Residence Council for his later work with the Canadian Space Agency’s Microvariability & Oscillations of STars (MOST) project. “It gave me a real sense of priorities,” he says. There was one occasion he recalls in particular when the administration requested that the Council organize academic events to compliment the usual social events. “So we planned a library tour on a Sunday morning figuring that no one would come” he says with a laugh.  When he showed up however, without having prepared at all, “there were 50 people lining up for the tour. It was a good reminder to me that when you’re in a position of authority, you’re responsible to serving everybody. Not just those who share your interests.”

This ethos also served him well in re-launching the Jacob Bronowski Memorial Lecture Series. With a mandate of using an accessible, interdisciplinary approach to explore the social consequences of scientific inquiry and enterprise as it affects us today, the series has featured such prominent speakers as David Suzuki, Richard Dawkins and Stephen Jay Gould.

According to Professor Roberge, the choice of this year’s lecturer was obvious. “Not only is Jaymie is a highly regarded astrophysicist, but he is also a New College alumnnus who actually attended the first lecture and then became a specialist in a field directly related to the first lecture. “The College is a place where connections are made, in research and among our students,” he says, “but rarely do they come together so perfectly as they did at this lecture.”

Left to right: Professor Andrew Baines (former principal of New College), Professor Yves Roberge (Principal of New College), Sally Walker (Registrar and Assistant Principal of New College), Jaymie Matthews, Dorion Sagan and Colin Swift (president, New College Alumni Council)

For a history of the Jacob Bronowski Memorial Lecture Series, see here:

For a full recording of the 2012 Jacob Bronowski Memorial Lecture, with Dr. Jaymie Matthews speaking on The Rocket Science of Sustainability see here:

Photos by Frances Beatty

Article by Philip Cox

This trip gave students the opportunity to travel to the regions they were studying and to view the diplomatic work being done within the organizations they had discussed in their coursework. Upon returning to Toronto, participants wrote a research essay based on their experience, which was then shared with the larger University population at a symposium held in April.

A central feature of the trip was the opportunity for students to exchange ideas with senior practitioners about the African Union and the United Nations, where  a great deal of time was devoted to lively discussions and frank exchanges of views between students and senior officials at the African Union and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

“I enjoyed the meetings and speaking with representatives of the very organizations we discussed in lecture,” says 3^rd year African Studies student Lili Nkunzimana. “Being on the ground, talking to people, and interacting with them brought context to ideas and theories that were brought up in our lectures.”

One of the leaders that met with the students was United States Ambassador to the African Union Michael Beatle, who spoke with students about topics such as election monitoring, democratic governance, the United States economic policies toward Africa, gender and women’s rights.

“This trip is part of broader efforts by the African studies program to train students to understand Africa as both an intellectual arena and as a living space,” says Dr. Thomas Tieku, a professor of African Studies who organized the trip through the International Course Module (ICM) program.

“Ethiopia offered one of the best sites not only to illustrate some of the key concepts and abstract ideas we discussed in class, but it also provided a perfect area to contextualize many of the seemingly trivial but quotidian concerns that occupy the lives of Africans,” Dr. Tieku stated.

The ICM program is an initiative launched by the Faculty of Arts & Science to enhance the Faculty’s commitment to incorporate an intensive international experience into the framework of existing undergraduate courses. Funding for the trip was provided by the ICM and the Principal’s Innovation Fund at New College.

“This was an incredible opportunity for our students,” says Professor Dickson Eyoh, Director of the African Studies program. “Our courses provide students with a global focus, and initiatives like this show them that they literally are not confined by national borders. Experiences like this are irreplaceable.”

Photos of our students in Addis Ababa can be found on our Facebook page

You can also find official updates of their visits on the websites of the Delegation of the European Union to the African Union, the United States Mission to the African Union, and The Peace and Security Department of the Commission of the African Union.

by Whitney McKnight

Recognized by the University of Toronto Student Union (UTSU) as the 2011-2012 “Outstanding Academic Union,” this student-run organization started with a mandate to support students from New College’s Equity Studies program and has since evolved to work with individuals and community groups looking to incorporate anti-oppressive and equity-related theories into their existing frameworks.

One example of the ESSU’s work is Disability Studies Week, which explores and celebrates disability arts, culture and politics through a series of events designed to approach disability in new and creative ways that reveal the richness and diversity of the Disability community.

The group’s signature event, which was selected as one of NOW Magazine’s weekly Big 3 Can’t-Miss Events, is the annual Decolonizing Our Minds (D.O.M.) conference that is held in conjunction with the Women and Gender Studies Student Union, the Caribbean Studies Student Union and the Black Student Association at the University of Toronto.

The purpose of the conference “was to explore and discover the potential that art and creativity offers in individual and communal travels through resistance, in the continual process of decolonizing our minds, bodies, experiences and realities” according to 2011/12 ESSU President Monica Espaillat Lizardo.

Along with a number of creative and musical performances, this year’s D.O.M. conference featured keynote speaker Lee Maracle, an award-winning poet, novelist, performance storyteller and keeper/mythmaker among the Stó:lō people. Maracle is one of the most prolific aboriginal authors in Canada and a recognized authority on issues pertaining to Aboriginal people and literature.

“Maracle spoke specifically about the rare opportunity offered to those doing decolonizing work in Toronto where there is such a diverse population,” said Lizardo. Discussions were organized according to the themes of Resistance & Non-Violence, and Resistance Through Hip Hop, with a student, professor, and/or a community member on each panel.

“The D.O.M. conference links student unions, community groups, artists and scholars in a shared project of activist scholarship,” notes New College Vice Principal June Larkin. “The conference has become a signature event at the College and a public expression of the social justice work that defines us.”

Members of the ESSU pose with New College Vice Principal June Larkin

Photos by Ify Ekoh

Article by Philip Cox

Left to right: Cameron McBurney, Arnold Jung, Jamal Alsaady,  Julie Guindon, Meghan Hoefs, Craig Kielburger, Meg Bearor, Sally Moy, Laura Fraser & Kevin Lunianga

“The CCSL truly exceeded all of my expectations,” said 4^th year Commerce student Jamal Alsaady. “I learned about several things such as equity, importance of followership, and how to more effectively deal with people, but mainly I learned that there’s much more to be learnt!”

The initiative was organized by New College’s Office of Residence and Student Life and supported in a partnership with the Office of the Principal and the New College Student Council. Students were invited to apply for the conference in early October and seven fortunate delegates representing the interests, organizations, and clubs of New College were selected to represent the University of Toronto at the event.

The conference theme, Leadership Without Borders, challenged participants to think about how leadership could vary in definition from each individual person to the next. The weekend was organized into four streams: Health and Wellness, Community Engagement and Service Learning, Emerging Leadership, and Refining Leadership.

Delegates at the conference were allowed to follow their personal interests by choosing from 33 student-led and seven professional-led concurrent sessions, four of which were delivered by the New College delegation. This included 2^nd year Cognitive Sciences student Arnold Jung, who spoke on the topic of Electing Leaders based on his experience working with the New College Residence Council; and 2^nd year African Studies student Kevin Lunianga, who spoke about Diversity, Equity and Anti-Oppression as it applies to student leadership.

One of the take-home lessons that resonated with 4^th year student Meghan Hoefs was “the importance of perseverance in the face of obstacles, and moving towards achieving your goals. Passion is at the centre of a great leader. Finding that passion and allowing it to fuel action and inspire others is important. Sometimes it is also important to remind yourself ‘why you do what you do’, and refocus when you lose sight of this passion. Listening to others, especially those you lead is a critical part of good leadership.”

Upon their return to Toronto, the group was excited to share their experience with fellow New College students in hopes of impacting and encouraging student leadership in the place they call home. Using the model of the CCSL, they created a day-long leadership conference at New College titled Building NEW Leadership.

The March conference provided a mix of 14 concurrent session options and two keynote speakers, including Tom Pistore, a Senior Director at Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment Ltd., and Linzi Manicom, New College’s Service Learning Program Coordinator. Students were also fortunate to attend a presentation given by Camille deLacy, one of the keynote speakers at the CCSL who attended the conference from Alberta.

New College students immensely enjoyed the event and it is clear that the message of student leadership has trickled down into other areas of the College and impacted a whole new crop of leaders, including members of the incoming NCSC and the Orientation Week Co-Chairs.  The organizing committee hopes to make Building NEW Leadership an annual New College event and is currently making plans for its future and how to continue to use the experience at CCSL to inspire students and continue to lead without borders.

by Julie Guindon