“A healthy ‘food Island’ for all? Food insecurity and healthy public policy: a call to action” will be held 7:00 pm, March 13 in the Wanda Wyatt Lecture Theatre in UPEI’s K.C. Irving Chemistry Centre. All are welcome.

The panel will discuss the current state of food insecurity in PEI, its impact on one’s health and well-being, what current actions the government is taking to address food insecurity, and future actions needed to address this growing problem. The panel includes:

Dr. Valerie Tarasuk, Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Toronto is the keynote speaker. 

Dr. David Sabapathy, Deputy Chief Health Officer, Department of Health and Wellness, Government of PEI. 

Jennifer Burgess, Department of Family and Human Services. 

Dr. Colleen Walton, Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Human Sciences, University of Prince Edward Island.

The panel is organized by a group of UPEI senior Foods and Nutrition students, under the supervision of Dr. Jennifer Taylor. The event is supported by the Saint Dunstan’s University Institute for Christianity and Culture. For more information, contact Dr. Jennifer Taylor, jtaylor@upei.ca, or 902-566-0475.

The next Island Studies Lecture is Tuesday, March 14, at 7:00 pm in the Faculty Lounge of UPEI’s SDU Main Building. Dr. Peter Buker will speak about scale and governance, including its effects on small islands such as Prince Edward Island.

The relation between a political jurisdiction’s scale and how well (or poorly) its government performs is seldom addressed in scholarly literature or in practice. However, scale does affect governance. This lecture addresses the question: how do size factors of population and geography relate to accountability and responsibility to efficiency and effectiveness? Citing political theory, public administration, economics, and social “small-scale” literature, and taking into account technological advances, Dr. Buker will focus on how scale applies to governance. The implications, especially for small island jurisdictions such as Prince Edward Island, are many. For example, the case for and against Maritime Union can be explored by looking at the tension between small governing systems supporting reciprocal relations between their citizens and their government and large governing systems supporting one-way command relations.

Dr. Peter Buker is chair of General Studies at Yorkville University. He has a widely varied academic background in economics, politics, and community economic development, and considers scale to be one of the most important single factors affecting our experience as citizens. Admission to the lecture is free. All are welcome to attend. For more information, please contact Laurie at iis@upei.ca or (902) 894-2881.

Let's start our mornings together in prayer this Lent!

Join us at the Chaplaincy Centre beginning Thursday, March 9 for:

Rosary - Tuesdays at 8:00 am
Adoration - Thursdays at 8:00 am
Stations of the Cross - Friday at 8:00 am

If you have any questions, please contact Sister Sue Kidd, UPEI Chaplain, at sukidd@upei.ca.

The UPEI community is invited to complete this short survey for Mental Health Week 2017. Once completed, enter your email for a chance to win a $50 gift card to the UPEI Bookstore!

We are pleased to invite applications for the 2017 Student as Scholar Grant competition. Student as Scholar grants are intended to support instructors developing particular inquiry-based learning experiences in undergraduate courses at the University of Prince Edward Island. Funds can be requested for the purchase of resources, supplies, and equipment or to defray other costs related to the development and implementation of research-based projects that engage students in the context of a “for credit” course. Funds may not be used to supplement a faculty member’s personal research agenda. All faculty and term instructors are eligible to apply. Although requests may be up to $5,000, applicants should be aware that the full amount will only be awarded under exceptional circumstances.

Completed applications are to be sent to the Faculty Development Office at fdo@upei.ca on or before April 28th at 4:00 pm. If you would like an application form, please email Gerald at fdo@upei.ca. 

The UPEI Music Department Recital Series 2016-2017 is pleased to present a senior recitals in the Dr. Steel Recital Hall, UPEI Campus, admission is free.

Thursday, March 9 at 7:30 PM featuring Johanna Vessey, clarinet, in collaboration with Frances McBurnie, piano; Karen Graves, violin. Johanna is a student in the studio of Dr. Karem J. Simon, this recital is presented in fulfilment of the requirements for UPEI Music 436.

Johanna will be performing works by Muczynski, Khachaturian, Brahms and Sutermeister.

All are welcome to attend!

Dr. Alana Cattapan will give a public talk entitled "Hands Clean: On Purity and Power in Biomedical Research," as the keynote speaker for the "Difficult Dialogues 3" student conference, taking place this weekend at UPEI.

Dr. Cattapan is a CIHR postdoctoral fellow in the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University and an incoming Assistant Professor at the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy at the University of Saskatchewan. She received her doctorate in Political Science from York University, focusing on Canadian politics, gender, reproductive health, and public policy. A longtime feminist researcher and activist, she studies women’s participation in health policy making, identifying links between the state, the commercialization of the body, biotechnologies, and reproductive labour. She is also collaborating on research initiatives related to gender, law, and public policy including projects on gender and public engagement, the regulation of reproductive technologies, and the engagement of commercial actors in Canadian public policy making.

This event is accessible, free, and everyone is welcome! Join us Friday, March 10, 4:30pm, in Main 213.

After the unfortunate postponing of this conference in February, because of a snowstorm, Difficult Dialogues 3 is rescheduled! Everyone is welcome to join us Friday, March 10 and Saturday, March 11 for this conference featuring students from UPEI and around the Maritimes.

The conference begins Friday at 1:00 pm with a number of panel sessions, the keynote speaker (Dr. Alana Cattapan, Dalhousie, ""Hands Clean: On Purity and Power in Biomedical Research" )is at 4:30pm, a "mic drop/open mic event" is at 6:00pm (in the Main Building Faculty Lounge). The conference continues Saturday, starting at 9:00am, with a number of sessions continuing throughout the day. Meeting and social space is in Main 520, all sessions are in Main 213.

Everyone is welcome, all events are mobility accessible, and everything is free!

For more information, visit our website or Facebook page.

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) is currently underway for first and fourth-year students. NSSE collects information annually at hundreds of four-year colleges and universities about first-year and senior students' participation in programs and activities that institutions provide for their learning and personal development.

Six UPEI students have already won $100 by completing the NSSE survey. However, if eligible students have not responded to the survey or have started and not finished the survey—it is not too late to do so and to be included in the next early bird prize draw which is scheduled to take place on March 10 and the final grand prize in mid-April.

First and fourth-year students should check their UPEI email account for an email from NSSE to complete the online survey today!

Please join us Thursday, March 9  from 2:30-3:30 in the SDU Main Building Faculty Lounge for the presentation of the 2016 Janet Pottie Murray Award for Educational Leadership.

This 2017 recipient is Dr. Andrew Carrothers of the Faculty of Business. Please come out and help us congratulate Dr. Carrothers on this honour, refreshments will of course be provided.

All are welcome!

Dr. Benjamin Lefebvre, Ryerson University, will present, “No Matter Where We Wander: L.M. Montgomery Writes Prince Edward Island in Ontario", on Thursday, March 9 at 6:30 pm in the Wanda Wyatt Lecture Theatre (Rm.104), K.C. Irving Chemistry Centre.

Dr. Lefebvre is one of three short-listed candidates for the inaugural Chair in L.M. Montgomery Studies and Communication, Leadership, and Culture.

All are welcome!

On Monday, March 13, 3:00 pm to 3:50 pm, Dr. Andrew Godbout, School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences (SMCS) will give a public presentation on building a speed skating robot in MCDH, Rm. 246.

Abstract:
The Microsoft Kinect camera simplifies a number of computer vision tasks, which makes it an enticing addition to many computer vision projects. However, there is a drawback, namely, the camera has extremely limited range. In this presentation Dr.Godbout will discuss a project involving tracking speed skating athletes with a Kinect camera. Because of the range limitations of the camera, an autonomous mobile platform (or extremely loosely: a speed skating robot) was required to host the camera and keep it within a few metres of the athletes while they were skating. Dr. Godbout will share some field notes and discuss the end result of the design and implementation of this autonomous mobile platform.

All are welcome!

Dr. Gobinda Saha, an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UNB and Director of the Nanocomposites and Mechanics Lab, will give a talk at 1:00 pm on Wednesday, March 8, in Rm. 212 of the School of Sustainable Design Engineering. Details are below. All are welcome!

The presentation will discuss the industrial challenges facing structural and non-structural materials in technology-intensive, high-end applications such as energy and environment, industrial manufacturing, aerospace and defence, automotive, and bio-resources. In doing so, the highlights of Dr. Gobinda Saha's research and innovation work in the Nanocomposites and Mechanics Laboratory at the University of New Brunswick in design, synthesis, manufacturing, testing/characterization and applications of ceramic-metallic (cermet) nanocomposite particles and high pressure cold spray coatings will be presented. The talk will further continue into the other major research area in design and pultrusion manufacturing of biocomposites reinforced with biochar nanoparticles in conventional GFRP composites for structural applications.

After the unfortunate postponing of this conference in February, because of a snowstorm, Difficult Dialogues 3 is rescheduled! Everyone is welcome to join us Friday, March 10 and Saturday, March 11 for this conference featuring students from UPEI and around the Maritimes.

The conference begins Friday at 1:00 pm with a number of panel sessions, the keynote speaker (Dr. Alana Cattapan, Dalhousie, ""Hands Clean: On Purity and Power in Biomedical Research" )is at 4:30pm, a "mic drop/open mic event" is at 6:00pm (in the Main Building Faculty Lounge). The conference continues Saturday, starting at 9:00am, with a number of sessions continuing throughout the day. Meeting and social space is in Main 520, all sessions are in Main 213.

Everyone is welcome, all events are mobility accessible, and everything is free!

For more information, visit our website or Facebook page.

Chartwells is conducting a small survey and invites you to take 5 minutes and respond.
 

UPEI Blood Drive will take place in the Chi-Wan Young Sports Centre on March 16, 11:00 am - 3:00 pm. Appointments can be made by setting up a profile or downloading the Giveblood App.  Walk-ins will be accepted too!

Eligibility questions may be answerd by calling 1-888-2-DONATE (1-888-236-6283). Donors must be at least 17 years of age and identification is required. It is highly recommended that donors be well hydrated and that they eat a sufficient meal prior to donating.
 

Jordan Stevenson, MSc student, will present a seminar on Wednesday, March 08, 2017 at 12:30 pm. Jordan Stevenson's presentation is entitled "Pharmaceutical Process Chemistry: Synthesis of Lansoprazole".  The seminar will be held in the Regis and Joan Duffy Research Centre, Lecture Theatre, Room 212. 

All are welcome!

The UPEI Music Department Recital Series 2016-2017 is pleased to present a senior recitals in the Dr. Steel Recital Hall, UPEI Campus, admission is free.

Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at 7:30 pm will feature Emily Proude, saxophone, in collaboration with Frances McBurnie, piano. Emily Proude is a student in the studio of Dr. Nicole Strum, this recital is presented in fulfilment of the requirements for UPEI Music 436.

Emily will be performing works by Dubois, Bach, Bonneau, Tanaka and Creston.

All are welcome to attend!

The School of Nursing would like to welcome the campus community to the public presentation for Margie Burns' thesis examination. Margie will present her thesis entitled "Anticipating the Awakening: The Lived Experience of Families of Patients Undergoing Targeted Temperature Management after Cardiac Arrest" at 10:00 am on Wednesday, March 15 in HSB Rm. 103.

Join UPEI’s Environmental Studies program for a public symposium on carbon pricing. “Putting a Price on Carbon: A PEI Perspective” will take place Tuesday, March 7 at 7:00 pm in the Alex H. MacKinnon Auditorium (room 242) of UPEI’s Don and Marion McDougall Hall. The speakers for the evening include Dr. Rémi Morin Chassé, an environmental economist and Assistant Professor of Economics at UPEI; and Erin Flanagan, Director of the federal policy program for the Pembina Institute.

All are welcome!