The University of Prince Edward Island extends its condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of honorary degree recipient James (Jim) Palmer. Palmer, who was granted an honorary doctor of laws degree in 1998 from UPEI, passed away on August 27 at the age of 84 at his home in Calgary.

Originally from Prince Edward Island, Palmer and his family have a long record of public service on PEI-his direct ancestors include two PEI premiers, several judges, and a Father of Confederation. That commitment to public service and public policy is demonstrated through the Palmer Conference, a conference committed to public sector leadership and named in honour of the Palmer family. He and his wife Barbara provided continuous support for the conference, UPEI, and the province that they always called 'home.' The Palmers have a summer residence in Keppoch, Prince Edward Island.

Jim Palmer was an individual who had a combined successful legal and business career, as well as a lifelong interest in public policy and Canadian institutions of governance. After completing his law degree at Dalhousie University in 1952, the fifth-generation lawyer moved to Calgary where he is remembered for law, business, education, public service, and philanthropy.

The University of Prince Edward Island extends its condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of honorary degree recipient James (Jim) Palmer. Palmer, who was granted an honorary doctor of laws degree in 1998 from UPEI, passed away on August 27 at the age of 84 at his home in Calgary.
Originally from Prince Edward Island, Palmer and his family have a long record of public service on PEI—his direct ancestors include two PEI premiers, several judges, and a Father of Confederation. That commitment to public service and public policy is demonstrated through the Palmer Conference, a conference committed to public sector leadership and named in honour of the Palmer family. He and his wife Barbara provided continuous support for the conference, UPEI, and the province that they always called “home.” The Palmers have a summer residence in Keppoch, Prince Edward Island.
Jim Palmer was an individual who had a combined successful legal and business career, as well as a lifelong interest in public policy and Canadian institutions of governance. After completing his law degree at Dalhousie University in 1952, the fifth-generation lawyer moved to Calgary where he is remembered for law, business, education, public service, and philanthropy.

UPEI congratulates fifth-year student Suzanne Nicholson who conquered the Northumberland Strait on Sunday, August 18. The UPEI swim team member created the fundraiser in hopes of raising $10,000 for the team—and she exceeded that goal!
After raising close to $11,000, Suzanne set out at 7:45 am for the 13+ km swim which took her about 5.5 hours to complete.
“Well, I must say, I'm glad it’s over with,” said Nicholson. “Before my swim, I was really excited and just ready to get in and swim. Throughout, the swim was a different story, though. The water was a lot rougher than I expected and the current was a lot stronger. It was frustrating at times, but once I hit the beach, I was so happy it was over with.”
Nicholson joins a rather exclusive list of elite swimmers who have dared to take on the Strait.
Congratulations, Suzanne... UPEI is so proud!!

The Climate Research Lab at the University of Prince Edward Island is offering a new and valuable tool for researchers who require climate projections for anywhere on the planet. The lab has downloaded raw data from 40 global climate models and translated, analyzed, verified, and converted it into a usable dataset for researchers.
“This is the world’s most advanced science, and will be part of next year’s Fifth Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),” said Dr. Adam Fenech, director of the Climate Research Lab. “If researchers require projections that are monthly, seasonal, or annual over the next century, we can provide them.”
Dr. Fenech has worked extensively in the area of climate change since the IPCC First Assessment Report in 1988. He has edited seven books on climate change, most recently on climate impacts and adaptation science. Dr. Fenech has worked at Harvard University researching the history of the science/policy interfaces of climate change. He has represented Canada at international climate negotiating sessions, written climate policy speeches for Canadian environment ministers, and authored Canadian reports on climate change to the United Nations. Dr. Fenech has taught at the University of Toronto as well as the Smithsonian Institution for over 15 years, and lectures regularly at universities across Canada and around the world. He is presently the director of UPEI’s own Climate Research Lab that conducts, facilitates, and hosts research and science on the vulnerability, impacts and adaptation to past and future climate change. As part of the IPCC, he was co-recipient of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.
Researchers can get in touch with Dr. Fenech at climate@upei.ca. Follow along with the research of the UPEI Climate Research Lab at upei.ca/climate.
For information:
Dave Atkinson, Research Communications Officer, UPEI
(902)620-5117, datkinson@upei.ca

The UPEI Alumni Association presented its annual Distinguished Alumni and Inspiring Young Alumni Awards on Friday, July 26 as part of this year’s summer reunion weekend.
The Honourable J. Armand DesRoches, SDU’63 and J. Paul S. Young, BSc’02, BScR’07, MBA’12 are this year’s recipients. DesRoches will be presented with this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award, which commemorates a graduate for their outstanding contributions to knowledge, the arts, the community, and the university or humanity. Young will be presented with the Inspiring Young Alumni Award, which honours a graduate, under the age of 40, who has shown outstanding determination in achieving success at a young age.
Upon graduation from St. Dunstan’s University, DesRoches went on to receive his LLB degree from Dalhousie University. He was admitted to the bars of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, and practiced law in Summerside before joining the Canadian Armed Forces. During his 22-year career as a Canadian Forces legal officer, DesRoches was at various times: the legal advisor to the Commander of 1 Combat Group in Calgary, stationed in Germany where he provided legal advice to a number of units in Europe, and chief legal advisor to the Commander of Maritime Command in Halifax. DesRoches also held the position of military trial judge for 10 years, three of which he was the chief military judge for the Canadian Forces.
In 1991, DesRoches retired from the Canadian Forces as deputy judge advocate general with the rank of navy captain and was appointed to the trial division of the Supreme Court of the province. During his time there, he rendered numerous decisions that had a lasting impact on PEI, including moving electoral boundaries to provide fairer distribution of voters among electoral districts and establishing a French school in the Summerside area.
DesRoches retired from the Bench in 2004, and in 2005, joined Stewart McKelvey as counsel. In 2007, he was named a member of the Pensions Appeal Board, the third level of appeal under the Canada Pension Plan. DesRoches has been married to Judie for 45 years, has four daughters, and nine grandchildren.
Paul Young couldn’t get enough of UPEI. In 2002, he obtained his bachelor of science degree, majoring in chemistry and physics. Then, with aspirations to enter a career in healthcare, Young entered the radiography program offered by UPEI and the QEH and graduated in 2004. He completed a second undergraduate degree from UPEI in applied sciences, and most recently, in 2012, Young graduated with his master of business administration from UPEI.
In 2005, Young received his advanced diploma in MRI and spectroscopy from Winnipeg’s Red River College and The National Institute for Biodiagnostics. He then moved to Ottawa to begin his healthcare career.
Through relentless hard work, dedication, and determination, Young quickly became known and respected within his field. After having worked with several hospitals and private clinics, he landed a highly sought after job as clinical lead instructor at The Ottawa Hospital, the second-largest teaching hospital in Canada. He was the youngest technologist ever hired for the position. By 2007, Young had expanded his experience to encompass four provinces and 10 hospitals and private clinics, and had become one of the most sought-after technologists in his field.
In 2008, Young and his family moved back to PEI where he became the youngest manager at the Diagnostic Imaging Services department for the Prince County Hospital. He was recently appointed to a new role with Health PEI, and is now the manager of the primary care network for West Prince. Young lives in Summerside with his wife Erika and daughter Brielle.
“The UPEI Alumni Association is proud to award Armand and Paul with this year’s Distinguished Alumni and Inspiring Young Alumni Awards,” said Alumni Association President Bruce Davison. “It’s individuals like them that make us proud to call ourselves UPEI alumni. On behalf of the Association, we send our congratulations to Armand and Paul.”
For a full summer reunion weekend schedule, visit http://remember.upei.ca/events/summer-reunion-weekend-2013

The University of Prince Edward Island welcomed hundreds of new students and their families during this weekend's welcome events including International Welcome Day, UPEI's Welcome Day, and the kick-off to UPEI Student Union's O-Week.

International Welcome Day on Friday, August 30, gave students from outside of Canada the opportunity to experience student life at UPEI, get to know the campus and surrounding areas, and help students transition to life in Canada.

UPEI's second annual Welcome Day took place on Saturday, August 31, allowing students to 'one-stop-shop' all things UPEI as they toured around campus, paid for their tuition and other fees, picked up their ID cards and meal plans, registered for courses, and much more.

'Welcome Day is an opportunity for students to come together, meet their peers, professors, UPEI staff and faculty, and get all of their UPEI questions answered,' said Manager of Student Affairs Treena Smith. 'By getting familiarized with campus before classes begin, students alleviate their stress and uncertainty. It's an exciting day for all involved.'

This year parents were able to alleviate some of their stress too at sessions that were offered to provide university life information and tips for parents on how to support their university student. A couple of the sessions were specifically geared to parents with students living in residence.

The UPEI Student Union was also on site at Welcome Day with an information booth to answer questions on the upcoming orientation week events. Orientation Week, or O-Week, starts Saturday night with PlayFair-a popular campus attraction during university orientation weeks that introduces a non-threatening way for students to meet each other. O-Week takes place August 31-September 7 with a variety of activities including a barbecue, a pancake breakfast, guest speaker Drew Dudley, The O-Mazing Race, Shine Day, and more.

Many UPEI students look forward to Shine Day and with approximately $5,000 in online donations to date, are hoping to reach this year's goal of $33,000. UPEI has been taking part in Shinerama-Canada's largest post-secondary fundraiser for cystic fibrosis research and treatment-since 1977 and is known for its successful Shinerama campaigns. In 2010, UPEI raised $26,000; in 2011 it raised $32,000; and in 2012, raised $30,000.

UPEI staff, faculty, and the Student Union welcome new students as they transition to university life. These welcome events give students the chance to meet new friends, and familiarize themselves with campus before classes even begin.

UPEI Women's Basketball announced recently that a new community basketball tournament-the first annual Subway Panther Pride 3v3 basketball tournament-will take place on Sunday, September 29 at UPEI's Chi-Wan Young Sports Centre and Colonel Gray High School. The tournament will raise funds for the UPEI Women's Basketball program in support of their exhibition game schedule and athletic financial awards.

'I'm very interested in the overall development of the sport of basketball on Prince Edward Island,' said UPEI Women's Basketball Head Coach Greg Gould. 'I believe that getting youth into the game at a young age is the key to developing Island talent who will later be able to compete at the varsity level.'

The tournament will feature five divisions for both males and females-grades 4-6, 7-9, 10-12, an open recreation division, and an open competitive masters division. Registration is $60.00 per team with teams of three to four players.

Program supporter and tournament organizer Chris Huggan added, 'Not only will this tournament provide another opportunity to play basketball, we hope it will promote the sport and build a stronger sense of spirit and pride in the Island and Panther basketball communities.'

For more information or to register, contact UPEI Panther Central at panthercentral@upei.ca, (902) 368-6308; visit Courtside Sneakers or contact organizer Chris Huggan at clhuggan@edu.pe.ca or (902) 368-6860 ext. 250. Early Registration: Players who register by September 15 will receive a tournament T-shirt and a $5.00 Subway gift card.

UPEI's Winter's Tales Authors' Reading Series kicks off the 2013 season with the talented Susan Glickman and Julie Bruck, who will read on Thursday, September 26, at 7:30 pm in the Faculty Lounge, UPEI Main Building. Bruck won the 2012 Governor General's Award for poetry, and Glickman is a talented poet, fiction writer, and young adult novelist.

Their reading is sponsored by the UPEI English Department with funding from the Canada Council for the Arts and League of Canadian Poets. A reception and book signing will follow. Admission is free.

The UPEI women's rugby team had a very successful exhibition weekend hosted by StFX in Truro on Saturday August 31. UPEI came out on top in their first game against Acadia University's second team winning 17-7. They then went on to play against Dalhousie University's club team, winning 53-0. In their final matchup, the girls took on the host team, losing their battle 63-0.

It was a great opportunity for our very young team to work out some of the kinks and get used to playing with each other. The team relied heavily on returning players Kayla Weatherbie, Rebecca Chapman, and Danielle Lacey. Over half of this year's team is made up of first year players, and they certainly made some major contributions; Holly Jones, Megan Thorpe, and Holly Hartlen were very dynamic, especially on the offence.

'This is going to be a growing year for the team and I'm looking forward to watching them grow with each game,' said Head Coach Shannon Atkins.

UPEI plays their first regular season game on Saturday, September 7 at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The UPEI Department of Music is pleased to announce their 2013-14 concert season. This year's series offers an exciting blend of faculty, local, regional, and national artists and several international guests. Highlights include the winner of the 2013 Eckhardt-Gramatté National Competition, pianist Everett Hopfner; the eclectic music of Diomira with accordion, piano, and percussion; the virtuoso guitar playing of Eduardo Menozzi Costa; and an evening of superlative jazz with the Mike Murley Septet.

The season opens on Sunday, September 8 at 7:30 pm in UPEI's Dr. Steel Recital Hall with Duo :nota bene: featuring violinist Eva Steinschaden and pianist Alexander Vavtar. The two musicians, both graduates of the Mozarteum University, have concentrated primarily on music of the Viennese Classical School.

In 1999, the duo was the only Austrian ensemble to be accepted into the master class of the Trio di Trieste. Since then, they have worked with the world-famous musicians of the Trio di Trieste at the Scuola Superiore di Musica da Camera del Trio di Trieste in Duino/Italy. To date, they have recorded six CDs, all under the Viennese Extraplatte label. Since its inception in 1996, the Duo :nota bene: has performed over 400 concerts in more than 35 countries. In September 2013, the duo will make its first concert tour in Canada, performing in Toronto, Antigonish, St. John's and Charlottetown.

The duo's program at UPEI will feature works by Mozart, Schubert, Kreisler, and Nussbichler. The concert tour is made possible with the support of the Austrian Cultural Forum Ottawa.

On Sunday, September 22 at 7:30pm the recital series continues at the Dr. Steel Recital Hall with 'A CORNUCOPIA OF MUSIC' featuring David Parker, horn; Frances Gray, piano; and Morgan Saulnier, flute.

Tickets for both recitals are $15 (adults) and $10 (seniors/students) and can be purchased at the Dr. Steel Recital Hall the night of the performance, or in advance as part of a Season Pass which includes 12 concerts and is now available at a 30 per cent discounted rate.

The complete schedule for the 2013-2014 Concert Series can be found at www.music.upei.ca/recital-series

For more information, or to purchase a pass, contact Susan Stensch at 566-0507 or music@upei.ca.