Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs (SACPA)

Canada has a long and sometimes forgotten history of accepting refugees dating back to its founding. This history connects with present-day refugee approaches and challenges that are in contrast with the emerging policies and attitudes south of our border and in many other countries. It is not only Canada’s reliance on a provision in the 1976 Immigration Act that allows for groups of individuals to privately sponsor refugees that makes Canada a possible model for other countries, but our distinction as an accepting and supportive home for refugees. Refugees to Canada indeed come from war-torn, discriminatory and poor countries throughout the world. Canada resettled 60,000 refugees from places like Vietnam and Cambodia between 1979 and 1980, for example, including about 34,000 who were privately sponsored. Nearly 300,000 refugees have resettled in Canada since the late 1970s.That extraordinary effort helped Canada win the 1986 UNHCR’s Nansen Refugee Award in recognition of the collective work of the governm

As police services struggle to address addictions and spin-off crime, it has become clear the days of a law and order-only approach are over. Crime and disorder are the effect, not the cause and while the concept of harm reduction may seem contrary to the fundamental principles of law enforcement, the reality is we cannot arrest our way out of this situation. There will always be a need for traditional proactive and reactive policing, but it’s important for the public to understand that only about 20 per cent of the incidents police deal with are actually criminal in nature. The vast majority of calls for service – roughly 80 per cent – are non-criminal matters that arise from social issues such as addictions, substance abuse and mental illness, and an endless cycle of arrest, detention and release does little to address these root causes or change the behaviour. Over the past two years, the significant increase in fatal overdoses as a result of the abuse of fentanyl and other street drugs has been declar

As police services struggle to address addictions and spin-off crime, it has become clear the days of a law and order-only approach are over. Crime and disorder are the effect, not the cause and while the concept of harm reduction may seem contrary to the fundamental principles of law enforcement, the reality is we cannot arrest our way out of this situation. There will always be a need for traditional proactive and reactive policing, but it’s important for the public to understand that only about 20 per cent of the incidents police deal with are actually criminal in nature. The vast majority of calls for service – roughly 80 per cent – are non-criminal matters that arise from social issues such as addictions, substance abuse and mental illness, and an endless cycle of arrest, detention and release does little to address these root causes or change the behaviour. Over the past two years, the significant increase in fatal overdoses as a result of the abuse of fentanyl and other street drugs has been declar

A number of factors contributed to the creation of Canada’s first public community college here in Lethbridge. A growing population, the prosperity of post-war southern Alberta with the size and wealth of the City, and the lack of post-secondary educational opportunities in the southern part of the province all factored into the formation of Lethbridge Junior College as it opened in 1957 with 38 students enrolled for classes in space leased at Lethbridge Collegiate Institute high school. When the first classes got underway, the College Board began searching for a permanent campus site and in the end settled on 80 acres of land south of the City with the first buildings ready in 1962. Unique in many ways, the College campus offered and housed both university and non-university courses in the same place in those early years. When the University of Lethbridge was established in 1967, it was initially housed at the College, but moved to their newly built west Lethbridge campus in 1972. Lethbridge Junior Coll

A number of factors contributed to the creation of Canada’s first public community college here in Lethbridge. A growing population, the prosperity of post-war southern Alberta with the size and wealth of the City, and the lack of post-secondary educational opportunities in the southern part of the province all factored into the formation of Lethbridge Junior College as it opened in 1957 with 38 students enrolled for classes in space leased at Lethbridge Collegiate Institute high school. When the first classes got underway, the College Board began searching for a permanent campus site and in the end settled on 80 acres of land south of the City with the first buildings ready in 1962. Unique in many ways, the College campus offered and housed both university and non-university courses in the same place in those early years. When the University of Lethbridge was established in 1967, it was initially housed at the College, but moved to their newly built west Lethbridge campus in 1972. Lethbridge Junior Coll

From its humble beginning at Lethbridge College in 1967 with 825 undergraduate students, the University of Lethbridge is now home to over 8400 students, including graduate students, at its campuses in Lethbridge and Calgary. The growth has been fairly steady – almost 4300 students at its 25th anniversary – but heavily driven by students from afar, particularly Calgary. Founded on the principals of a liberal education, U of L still aspires to that ideal and recently just approved a new School of Liberal Education. However, it may be a delicate balance to increasingly demonstrate research power while remaining committed to the undergraduate student. It can be said that U of L is now a global institution, with students from more than 80 countries and U of L students furthering their studies at institutions in all corners of the world. 50 years in the life of an institution arguably represents adolescence and preparing for the next generations will mean providing students at all levels with high quality resear

From its humble beginning at Lethbridge College in 1967 with 825 undergraduate students, the University of Lethbridge is now home to over 8400 students, including graduate students, at its campuses in Lethbridge and Calgary. The growth has been fairly steady – almost 4300 students at its 25th anniversary – but heavily driven by students from afar, particularly Calgary. Founded on the principals of a liberal education, U of L still aspires to that ideal and recently just approved a new School of Liberal Education. However, it may be a delicate balance to increasingly demonstrate research power while remaining committed to the undergraduate student. It can be said that U of L is now a global institution, with students from more than 80 countries and U of L students furthering their studies at institutions in all corners of the world. 50 years in the life of an institution arguably represents adolescence and preparing for the next generations will mean providing students at all levels with high quality resear

As the Syrian conflict enters its seventh year, almost half a million Syrians have been killed in the fighting, more than a million injured and nearly half the country's prewar population of 25 million have been displaced from their homes. What became known as the “Arab Spring” in 2011, toppled presidents of Tunisian, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and is ongoing. Peaceful protests also erupted in Syria, but the Syrian government, led by President Bashar al-Assad, responded to the protests by killing hundreds of demonstrators and imprisoning many more. In July 2011, defectors from the military announced the formation of the “Free Syrian Army”, a rebel group aiming to overthrow the government, and Syria began to slide into civil war. Since the Free Syrian Army formed, many new rebel groups have joined the fighting in Syria, including ISIL, Jabhat Fateh al Sham, Iran-backed Hezbollah, and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dominated by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG). Arguable, foreign involvement has playe

As the Syrian conflict enters its seventh year, almost half a million Syrians have been killed in the fighting, more than a million injured and nearly half the country's prewar population of 25 million have been displaced from their homes. What became known as the “Arab Spring” in 2011, toppled presidents of Tunisian, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and is ongoing. Peaceful protests also erupted in Syria, but the Syrian government, led by President Bashar al-Assad, responded to the protests by killing hundreds of demonstrators and imprisoning many more. In July 2011, defectors from the military announced the formation of the “Free Syrian Army”, a rebel group aiming to overthrow the government, and Syria began to slide into civil war. Since the Free Syrian Army formed, many new rebel groups have joined the fighting in Syria, including ISIL, Jabhat Fateh al Sham, Iran-backed Hezbollah, and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dominated by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG). Arguable, foreign involvement has playe

Former MP and federal Conservative cabinet minister Jason Kenney became the new leader of Alberta's Progressive Conservative (PC) Party on March 18, 2017. Kenney ran on a platform to unite Alberta conservatives by dissolving the PC Party and creating a single right-wing party under a new constitution combining with the Wildrose Party of Alberta. Wildrose Leader Brian Jean has roughly the same goal as Kenney but may differ on how to get there. Jean envisions his party being the foundation of a united conservative movement. The Wildrose Party has even registered the name it alone can use to rebrand itself. The Conservative Party of Alberta. Several of the PC Party leadership candidates running against Kenney became disenchanted with the process during the race and withdrew. Recently, Alberta’s PC party president Katherine O'Neill resigned her post, further fueling apparent discontent within that party. The speaker will untangle the intricate web of the politics surrounding this possible right-wing merger in

Former MP and federal Conservative cabinet minister Jason Kenney became the new leader of Alberta's Progressive Conservative (PC) Party on March 18, 2017. Kenney ran on a platform to unite Alberta conservatives by dissolving the PC Party and creating a single right-wing party under a new constitution combining with the Wildrose Party of Alberta. Wildrose Leader Brian Jean has roughly the same goal as Kenney but may differ on how to get there. Jean envisions his party being the foundation of a united conservative movement. The Wildrose Party has even registered the name it alone can use to rebrand itself. The Conservative Party of Alberta. Several of the PC Party leadership candidates running against Kenney became disenchanted with the process during the race and withdrew. Recently, Alberta’s PC party president Katherine O'Neill resigned her post, further fueling apparent discontent within that party. The speaker will untangle the intricate web of the politics surrounding this possible right-wing merger in

Our city and communities continue to welcome newcomer youth from around the world. These young people embody unique barriers and strengths, and bring their experiences to the systems that operate in our community. To support the healthy development and active participation of newcomer youth, we must listen to the stories of youth’s experiences and hopes for their new lives and examine our work and actions as a community. Newcomer youth bring with them a variety of strengths including incredible resilience, unique skills and interests, as well as being emergent multilinguals. They often correspondingly face barriers and challenges including racism, limited education or employment opportunities, and working with service providers who are not sufficiently educated or responsive to newcomer youth’s needs. The speakers will highlight the lived experience of newcomer youth, and the action and development of community services which aims to meet their needs. Speakers: Douhouk Dabbas & Kristina Larkin

Our city and communities continue to welcome newcomer youth from around the world. These young people embody unique barriers and strengths, and bring their experiences to the systems that operate in our community. To support the healthy development and active participation of newcomer youth, we must listen to the stories of youth’s experiences and hopes for their new lives and examine our work and actions as a community. Newcomer youth bring with them a variety of strengths including incredible resilience, unique skills and interests, as well as being emergent multilinguals. They often correspondingly face barriers and challenges including racism, limited education or employment opportunities, and working with service providers who are not sufficiently educated or responsive to newcomer youth’s needs. The speakers will highlight the lived experience of newcomer youth, and the action and development of community services which aims to meet their needs. Speakers: Douhouk Dabbas & Kristina Larkin

In the ever-changing landscape of Canadian agriculture, efficiency is the new buzzword. If cattle feeding efficiency can be increased by about five per cent, Alberta livestock producers can save approx. $100 million a year, even if only one-third of them adopt those efficiency improvements. With about three billion people moving into the middle class in emerging economies like China and India, the demand for meat is likely to increase substantially over the next decades. Canada is one of five or six countries that have the ability to provide this food in a safe, affordable, nutritious, and environmentally sustainable manner. Canadian producers have always done quite well increasing efficiency in their production practices. From 1977 to 2007 for example, producing the same amount of beef required 70% of the animals, 81% of the feed, 88% of the water and 67% of the land. For those who want to count carbon, that resulted in a 16 per cent decrease in the carbon footprint of beef animals. Through genomics and “

In the ever-changing landscape of Canadian agriculture, efficiency is the new buzzword. If cattle feeding efficiency can be increased by about five per cent, Alberta livestock producers can save approx. $100 million a year, even if only one-third of them adopt those efficiency improvements. With about three billion people moving into the middle class in emerging economies like China and India, the demand for meat is likely to increase substantially over the next decades. Canada is one of five or six countries that have the ability to provide this food in a safe, affordable, nutritious, and environmentally sustainable manner. Canadian producers have always done quite well increasing efficiency in their production practices. From 1977 to 2007 for example, producing the same amount of beef required 70% of the animals, 81% of the feed, 88% of the water and 67% of the land. For those who want to count carbon, that resulted in a 16 per cent decrease in the carbon footprint of beef animals. Through genomics and “

The Alberta NDP government’s 2017 budget was presented on March 16 and projects a $10.3 billion deficit this year on revenue of $45 billion. While the budget will see Alberta go further into the red, despite its implementation of a carbon levy, it also promises hospital spending, new schools and other infrastructure along with more money for seniors and social services. Opposition leaders have loudly been calling for the government to curb pending, saying that the cost of a growing debt load will handicap future generations unfairly. However, Alberta's population is still growing despite the economic downturn caused by low oil/gas prices. Cutting services and deferring capital projects could hurt the economy short term and may jeopardize future prosperity. The budget sets aside $4.5 billion over four years for infrastructure project and $100 million to help First Nations reserves get reliable access to clean drinking water Education spending is on the rise and cutting school fees for parents to the tun

The Alberta NDP government’s 2017 budget was presented on March 16 and projects a $10.3 billion deficit this year on revenue of $45 billion. While the budget will see Alberta go further into the red, despite its implementation of a carbon levy, it also promises hospital spending, new schools and other infrastructure along with more money for seniors and social services. Opposition leaders have loudly been calling for the government to curb pending, saying that the cost of a growing debt load will handicap future generations unfairly. However, Alberta's population is still growing despite the economic downturn caused by low oil/gas prices. Cutting services and deferring capital projects could hurt the economy short term and may jeopardize future prosperity. The budget sets aside $4.5 billion over four years for infrastructure project and $100 million to help First Nations reserves get reliable access to clean drinking water Education spending is on the rise and cutting school fees for parents to the tun

Bill 6, the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act: How’s it Working? On December 10, 2015, the Government of Alberta passed Bill 6, the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act. Bill 6, much of it implemented on Jan 1, 2016, has generated considerable controversy in the Province.  Bill 6 repeals the exemptions for farm and ranch workers that are found in a range of legislation. Generally speaking, Bill 6 affects four aspects of the employment relationship: general working conditions, the right to organize, worker safety, and WCB coverage for non-family workers by repealing earlier exemptions. As a result of the controversy generated by Bill 6, the Government of Alberta amended Bill 6 to allow owners, family members and neighbours to work on farms and ranches without being subject to all of the rules and restrictions as other workers. Specifically, the parts of Bill 6 pertaining to OHS regulations and workers compensation were amended to exclude paid farm and ranch owners and their fam

Bill 6, the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act: How’s it Working? On December 10, 2015, the Government of Alberta passed Bill 6, the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act. Bill 6, much of it implemented on Jan 1, 2016, has generated considerable controversy in the Province.  Bill 6 repeals the exemptions for farm and ranch workers that are found in a range of legislation. Generally speaking, Bill 6 affects four aspects of the employment relationship: general working conditions, the right to organize, worker safety, and WCB coverage for non-family workers by repealing earlier exemptions. As a result of the controversy generated by Bill 6, the Government of Alberta amended Bill 6 to allow owners, family members and neighbours to work on farms and ranches without being subject to all of the rules and restrictions as other workers. Specifically, the parts of Bill 6 pertaining to OHS regulations and workers compensation were amended to exclude paid farm and ranch owners and their fam

In many cultures, worldwide, more than two genders are recognized. In such places, individuals exist that are perceived as being neither men, nor women. Instead, such individuals are recognized as “third” genders. The speaker works in two such cultures. Since 2003, he has conducted research in the south Pacific island nation of Samoa, where feminine same-sex attracted males are recognized as a third gender, known locally as fa’afafine. Since 2015, he has worked in the Istmo region of Oaxaca, Mexico, where feminine same-sex attracted males are recognized as a third gender, known locally by the indigenous Zapotec as muxes. The speaker will describe his research in both these cultures that illuminate the role third gender males play within the family. Speaker: Dr. Paul Vasey Dr. Vasey is a Professor and a Board of Governors Research Chair at the University of Lethbridge. His research has been funded by all three of the Canadian tri-council agencies (NSERC, SSHRC & CIHR) in addition to local, prov