UNews - ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge

Passing along thanks to Postdocs

m.williams — Mon, 26 Sep 2016 16:23:59 +0000

As their numbers at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge continue to grow, postdoctoral fellows took the time last week to hold the first ever Postdoc Appreciation Day. The U of L Postdoctoral Association (ULPA) was formed about a year ago and boasts a membership of around 45.

President of ULPA, Senthilkumar Kailasam

“Postdocs have finished their PhD and then they go for training for three to four years. They are one of the important cogs in the wheel of research for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ,” says Senthilkumar Kailasam, president of ULPA. “What we’re trying to do on this Postdoc Appreciation Day is to recognize their contributions and to increase awareness among community members.”

Post-doctoral fellows conduct research and some also have teaching duties. The majority are international postdocs and the association hopes to help recruit the brightest minds to the U of L. Kailasam is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and part of the Alberta RNA Research and Training Institute. After completing his PhD in computational biology in India, he wanted to work in RNA research and Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden’s lab was the best place to do that work. Wieden and Dr. Ute Kothe encouraged him to form ULPA and he’s grateful for their support.

The Destination Project; Building careers from cooperative education placements

m.williams — Fri, 29 Jul 2016 22:18:48 +0000

Building the cutting-edge home for future generations of scientists isn’t the only thing the Destination Project is helping to develop. Nicole Meurs (BMgt ’16) and student Nick Gabbin are two budding project managers who say their cooperative education placement with the Destination Project has helped build confidence and given them a glimpse into their future career paths with real-world experience.

Destination Project Program Director Brian Sullivan overlooks plans with Project Coordinator Nicole Meurs and cooperative education placement student, Nick Gabbin.

“Getting to see how your skills from the classroom transition into the workplace is something I am so thankful I had the opportunity to experience. My placement allowed me to take on real responsibilities for the project, but I also felt supported by the entire project team because I was working and learning in a teaching environment too,” says Meurs.

When Meurs’ cooperative education placement came to an end in December, Destination Program Manager, Brian Sullivan hired her as a full-time project coordinator for the term of the build, something Sullivan says was a great thrill for him and the rest of the project team.

“When you see students grow and develop their skills throughout their placement, it brings a real sense of pride and joy because you’ve helped them along on their career path and it’s always nice when you can offer them their first job too,” smiles Sullivan.

For Gabbin, his placement will finish up in December and he is hopeful to also earn a spot on the Destination Project team. Gabbin says the experience he’s gained working in a cooperative education placement is invaluable and something he’d never expected to get as a 23-year-old student.

“Being able to experience responsibility on a job as big as this is just incredible and not just in terms of the work. Learning how to manage relationships and communicate with a team under the leadership of folks like Brian who have been at this for years is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” says Gabbin.

Sullivan believes the students he’s hired over his 30 years at the U of L have all showed a dedication to their placement positions and attributes their success to how their ability to think independently and have the responsibility to get the job done.

“A co-op placement teaches you how to be part of a team and how to transition from student to worker. It’s a unique opportunity that we’re able to offer and for those that get to work on this job in particular, it’s especially unique,” says Sullivan.

With construction ramping up as the Fall semester approaches, both Meurs and Gabbin are excited to see how their peers will engage with the rapidly changing landscape on campus and the possibilities it will allow for future co-op students.

“Markin Hall was my home while I was a management student and I can’t imagine what my education would have looked like without it so by working on this project, I am just giving back to future students who are going to make amazing discoveries in the building I helped to construct,” said Meurs.

You can watch the construction of the Destination Project come together before your eyes thanks in part to the efforts of Gabbin. His first task working on the Destination Project was to set up live web cameras that continuously stream. Be sure to check out the progression of the build at destinationproject.ca.

Home sweet home?

trevor.kenney — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 22:30:57 +0000

That's why an interdisciplinary group of researchers at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge has teamed up to study the NIMBY phenomenon, its impact on home renters and homebuyers in Lethbridge, and ultimately, how to combat the problem.

Kim Smith* (*Kim Smith is a pseudonym) is well acquainted with racism, especially when it comes to the Not In My Backyard (NIMBY) phenomenon. For most of her adult life, the long-time Lethbridge resident has encountered landlords who wouldn't rent to her because she is First Nations. Those who would accept her were often slumlords that didn't maintain their properties or respect their tenants.

Smith's story isn't uncommon. Dr. Yale Belanger, a professor of Native American Studies at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, says NIMBY is happening in Lethbridge. That's why he's working with his U of L colleagues, Dr. Jo-Anne Fiske (Women's Studies) and Dr. David Gregory (Health Sciences), to study the phenomenon.

(L-R) Drs. Jo-Anne Fiske, Yale Belanger and David Gregory.

The team has interviewed dozens of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in Lethbridge to better understand how NIMBY works, its impact on First Nations people and what can be done to eradicate the problem.

"Wherever people feel there might be social changes or impacts on the value of their home, or encounter people with whom they're not familiar, you'll find NIMBY," explains Fiske.

For victims, NIMBY means more than struggling to find a place to live.

"The sense of exclusion, marginalization and discrimination has a major impact on a citizen's well-being," she says.

The effects of the phenomenon are harsh, and as Gregory notes, this kind of discrimination has psychological consequences.

"It undermines one's self-worth and self-value," he says.

NIMBY has a long history in Lethbridge. Belanger, who's trained as a political historian and is the project's principal investigator, points out that until the 1860s and '70s, many Americans came to the Lethbridge area thinking they could set up homesteads, farms and ranches free of any interaction with First Nations people.

"They brought with them the notion that native people were a scourge of the frontier," says Belanger. "Not everyone exercised those ideas outright, but because they were in place, there was a strong disconnect between the first white settlers and the First Nations people."

Over time, the area's First Nations people were forced onto reserves by the government, further dividing people. Even after the government stopped monitoring and controlling their movements, most of them continued to stay on the reserve, only coming into town to do errands.

The first urbanization of Aboriginal people in Lethbridge happened in the 1970s. Now 40 years later, there are about 5,000 Aboriginal people living in the city. After close to a century of segregation, two groups that have traditionally had little interaction are now living next door to each other, explains Belanger. In many cases, frustrations have reached a boiling point, resulting in some residents being openly hostile to their First Nations neighbours.

But Belanger is quick to point out that the First Nations people weren't the only ones to be openly marginalized in Lethbridge. Around 1911, for example, a town council proclamation led to the consolidation of the Chinese business owners working in Lethbridge onto Second Ave. South where Chinatown is located today.

This "history of ghettoization," as Belanger puts it, is alive and well today with NIMBY. The discrimination comes in many variations and degrees. During interviews with the researchers, some people openly admitted that they didn't want Aboriginal people living next to them, but in many cases, prejudice was far subtler.

"Some people actually considered themselves supportive of First Nations groups, even though they didn't want them living nearby," says Belanger. "The stereotypes are entrenched, and people may not realize they're projecting a racist or discriminatory attitude," says Belanger.

Fiske agrees.

"Attitudes run deep," she says, and often these attitudes are rooted in fear. In the case of a native women's transition centre slated to be built in Lethbridge's Stafford area a couple of years ago, protesters expressed concern for neighbourhood safety, operating under the assumption "that native women posed a threat to the city," says Fiske.

She and the other researchers are actively working to bring their research to the community in the hopes of stimulating social change. In the last year or so, they've presented their work at academic conferences, community groups and city council.

While NIMBY is a phenomenon many Aboriginal people experience, there's been precious little research on it. In fact, urban Aboriginal people are often overlooked by researchers.

"In Canada, the majority of research with respect to First Nations people focuses on reserves," says Gregory. "But, with increasing numbers of Aboriginal people moving to the cities, there's a misalignment."

He'd like to see more work on urban Aboriginal people and is working with his two colleagues to establish the Regional Centre for Urban Aboriginal Research.

"We have been networking with the local First Nations and Aboriginal communities in an effort to establish working relationships to enhance the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's research capital within the local urban context," Gregory explains.

In addition to doing work with, about and for Aboriginal people, the research centre would bring together researchers from different disciplines, much like the NIMBY project.

"It's more comprehensive, with multiple perspectives coming to bear on a phenomenon," he says.

All of the researchers stress that the research isn't about pointing fingers at Lethbridge's citizens and painting the city as a racist place.

"We've all chosen Lethbridge; it's our home. It's not simply a research project – we're pursuing this research for the betterment of the community," says Belanger.

For more information on the Regional Centre for Urban Aboriginal Research, visit: www.urbanaboriginalresearch.com

For a look at the full issue of SAM in a flipbook format, follow this link.

UNews - ��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge

Passing along thanks to Postdocs

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The Destination Project; Building careers from cooperative education placements

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Home sweet home?

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UNews - ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge