The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) held its third Legislative Council meeting of the Fall on Oct. 14. The meeting’s agenda included a discussion about SSMU’s opposition to McGill’s New Vic Project, a presentation from the Office of Sustainability, and councillor nominations to the SSMU Board of Directors. In[Read More…]
Tag: debate
Online discussion forums are the future of conferences
In light of McGill’s announcement that instruction will continue primarily online during the Winter 2021 semester, students in the Faculty of Arts must prepare for the possibility that most of their conferences will remain remote. This new reality will disappoint those who miss direct face-to-face interaction with their peers. However,[Read More…]
McGill professors debate the effectiveness of fossil fuel divestment
“The research shows that [divestment] does make a difference,” Mikkelson said. “The most comprehensive study [of divestment movements] was done at Oxford, and they looked at other divestment campaigns that didn’t necessarily cripple the industries they were targeting, but what they did do is make a big public impact, and that spurred governments to take action [….] Divestment creates impact by raising awareness, stigmatizing target companies, and influencing legislation.”
Etzion further emphasized the status of divestment as a social rather than economic movement.
“I don’t really perceive [fossil fuel divestment] as a financial tactic,” Etzion said. “It’s about something much bigger than what you invest in, it’s actually a social movement. And the objective of this tactic is to de-legitimize an entire industry. [Universities] are very influential in how the world perceives issues, and [divestment] empowers people to envision a world that is not running on a path to destruction.”
SSMU candidates wrestle with eroded student trust, building closure at debate
Corrine Bulger, U2 Arts, is running on a platform of increasing the number of SSMU community spaces, following through with incumbents’ projects—including creating a SSMU sexual violence policy and improving relations with the Milton-Parc community—and making SSMU governance more accessible by incorporating multimedia.
Tre Mansdoerfer, U2 Engineering, wishes to develop closer relationships with faculty associations and increase their participation and representation in Senate, re-establish students’ trust in SSMU’s governance, and advocate for initiatives including a Fall reading week, improvements in mental health services, and redressing McGill’s Sexual Violence Policy.
Political Science Students’ Association hosts inter-party debate
On Nov. 21, the Political Science Students’ Association held a debate between the McGill chapters of Canadian political parties: Conservative McGill, Liberal McGill, New Democratic Party (NDP) McGill, and Young Greens McGill. Representatives from these groups shared their views on drugs, immigration, Indigenous affairs, climate change, and economic policy. For[Read More…]
PGSS Secretary-General candidates share platforms at debate
On Nov. 2, the McGill Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) hosted a debate for candidates for the office of Secretary-General at Thomson House. Two days before the start of the voting period, which takes place between Nov. 4 and Nov. 11, the four candidates discussed their platforms and the projects they[Read More…]
SSMU Legislative Council deliberates AVEQ affiliation and President Tojiboeva
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Legislative Council convened on Oct. 19 amid debate over a lack of transparency, questions about breaches of confidentiality, and allegations of underhanded politics. Structural projects such as the building closure, the libraries improvement project, and the proposed bike facility were discussed, but the[Read More…]
SSMU Legislative Council in deadlock over AVEQ membership
On Oct. 12, the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Legislative Council held its third meeting of the Fall semester. The majority of the evening was consumed by an extensive debate on SSMU’s potential referendum to join the Association for the Voice of Education in Quebec (AVEQ), a body that[Read More…]
