Daily News

Posted on May 2: Student groups create circle of compassion

During politically unstable times, differences in faith can create diverse opinions. But at McMaster, these differences brought McMaster Students Against the Occupation, the Jewish Student Association and the Peace Village closer together. These groups met recently to exchange dialogue on how to create an inviting climate and a structure where differences of opinion can be shared. Ecumenical chaplain Carol Wood and Hamilton psychiatrist Joanna Santa Barbara, who teaches in McMaster's peace studies program, facilitated the meeting. "Each one of the students involved in this problem has a compassionate heart," says Santa Barbara. "In a dialogue, there is the possibility that each person's "circle of compassion" can grow a little to include those from the other identity group." Initially, she hopes guidelines will be established so that identity-based groups on campus can act with consideration for the feelings of other groups. "We want a campus where everyone feels respected, included and safe." Creating guidelines for respectful interaction between groups, seeking discussion without tension, creating a new group that could serve as an intermediary, inviting others to the table, seeking historical experts, establishing a joint group that can help groups deal with differences and establishing a student led group to resolve issues were some of the goals established. "The most important idea put forward at the meeting was that despite our political differences, the campus can still be a place of both co-existence and dialogue," says Sina Rahmani, president of the McMaster Students Against the Occupation. "Only through dialogue -- effective dialogue -- can we avoid the creation of an ethnic rift."

Posted on May 1: McMaster hosts Ontario Ecology and Ethology Colloquium

McMaster's Departments of Biology and Psychology are co-hosting this year's Ontario Ecology and Ethology Colloquium (OEEC) May 3-4. The conference is a venue for researchers to present their work in the fields of ecology, animal behaviour, evolution and environmental science. There will be two plenary speakers at the conference, as well as 90 talks and more than 20 posters on display. The plenary speakers are: Paul Hebert Barcoding Life's Diversity Department of Zoology Guelph University Date: Saturday, May 3 Time: 9:20 a.m. Location: Arthur Bourns Building Room 102 Nelson Hairston Role of rapid evolution in trajectories of population cycles in predator-prey systems Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Cornell University Date: Sunday, May 4 Time: 9:20 a.m. Location: Arthur Bourns Building Room 102 Approximately 200 delegates from universities across Southern Ontario will attend the conference. Of these, about two-thirds will be graduate students and one-third will be professors and postdocs, says conference organizer Sigal Balshine, adding a few participants are expected from universities in northern New York State. "The OEEC is a useful venue for graduate students to present their research findings for the first time," says the assistant psychology professor. "The meeting is organized to be both relaxed and friendly. It also provides students with a chance to meet with other graduate students, professors and postdocs in their fields from other nearby universities." McMaster last hosted the conference in 1993. Details of the program and final schedule can be found on the conference Web site http://psych.mcmaster.ca/oeec2003/

Posted on May 1: McMaster cheerleaders crowned Open Series champions

The McMaster University co-ed cheerleading team has been named the Cheerleaders of America (COA) 2003 Grand National Open Series Champion for Co-Ed Divisions 1 and 1A combined. McMaster qualified for the Grand National Championship by placing first in the COA Niagara Falls Open on April 5, 2003. McMaster's score (341.00 out of a possible 400) was then ranked against the top Division 1/1A scores from each of the COA's eight other regional competitions (Alabama, California, Florida, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, and Texas) to determine a Grand National Champion. McMaster also announced a new partnership between the McMaster Co-Ed Cheerleading Team and the National Champion CheerForce Wolfpack from Burlington. For the 2003-2004 season, CheerForce Wolfpack founders, Frank Vurro and Chris Hollingsworth will join Carrie Lillyman as part of the coaching staff at McMaster, replacing Amy Ban and Simone Rose who have retired from coaching at McMaster after long and dedicated careers. The CheerForce Wolfpack will have more than 200 cheerleaders in their organization in 2003, and will provide a development system for the McMaster cheerleading team as well as access to facility space, in their new 5,000-square-foot complex to be opened in June 2003 in Oakville. McMaster placed fourth in the 2002 Canadian University National Championships held November 23, 2002 at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario only 26 points (out of 600) behind the National Champions from The University of Western Ontario.

Posted on May 1: He lives and breathes student life

It was exceptionally quiet in his room. Hours had passed since the last student shoved a ballot into a voting box. After months of campaigning, Neville Boney could do nothing but wait. It wouldn't be long until he would find out if he would assume the very big responsibility of McMaster Students Union (MSU) president at one of the most monumental times in university history -- the year of the double cohort. As 2 a.m. rolled around, Boney had the same sinking feeling he did two years earlier when he lost the 2001/02 MSU presidential election to Sam Minniti. Then the phone rang. "Neville, we have a bit of an issue with tabulating the votes." The feeling sunk deeper. "Maybe you should come in." Silence. "We're just kidding Neville. You won! You won!" Since that unforgettable night, Boney has had barely a second to let it sink in. But he knows he is becoming president at a crucial time in university history, when twice as many high school students are seeking entrance into university. "The double cohort is sort of a big blink in a trend of more students going to university," he says. "We have some huge changes in terms of space and location and we really need to ensure that we don't go off track."

Posted on April 30: Indigenous Studies helps preserve botanical legacy

McMaster's Indigenous Studies Program is partnering with Ontario's Royal Botanical Gardens and Six Nations Polytechnic in an effort to preserve the botanical legacy of the Six Nations people. The one-year Community Leader in Indigenous Ethnobotany project enables a Six Nations member to train, research and document information on the knowledge and uses of plants by indigenous peoples. The three partners, in collaboration with the Six Nations community, will provide assistance and expertise. The Museums Assistance Program of the Federal Department of Canadian Heritage has invested funds to support the work. This project advances Six Nations' goals to address the imminent loss of current and historical knowledge about culturally significant plants, and to develop a leader who can keep this knowledge alive. It will also advance Royal Botanical Gardens' goals to document and conserve plant habitat and species at risk. Leading the project is Pat Hess, a Cayuga from the Six Nations of the Grand River Reserve. She is enrolled in Honours Anthropology at McMaster University, where she also has a Minor in Indigenous Studies. "It is my dream in some small way to be able to help my community; I believe that this is definitely going to be a community-inclusive effort to restore and archive our knowledge for the youth and future generations," she said. Dawn Martin-Hill, director of Indigenous Studies at McMaster University, said the program is a component of the Six Nations community's efforts to preserve indigenous knowledge. "This relationship will benefit our community by identifying and documenting plant life that is vulnerable or extirpated at Six Nations," she said. Royal Botanical Gardens promotes public understanding of the relationship between humanity and nature. Gardens staff will assist with documenting the status of key plant species on the Six Nations reserve, and develop habitat conservation strategies. Cultural information about the plants, such as their various medicinal uses, will be curated by Ms. Hess and will be archived at Six Nations. "All project content will be controlled through extensive community consultations, which will determine ways in which the indigenous knowledge will be stored and preserved," explained Martin-Hill. "We are thankful for Royal Botanical Gardens' support and commitment and we're pleased that Pat Hess has agreed to take on this endeavour of conservation."