2012 Alumni Honour Society Inductees

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 20:05:19 +0000

Introduced in celebration of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's 35th Anniversary in 2002, the Alumni Honour Society recognizes the achievement of successful alumni within the global community. The alumni inducted into this prestigious group have served as role models to our students and the broader ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community through success in their vocation, outstanding community service or superior accomplishment in their avocation.

René Barendregt (BASc '71)

René Barendregt has been a faculty member of the Faculty of Arts & Science at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge since 1982 and took on the role of associate dean in 2001. Dedicated to his profession and respected by his peers, Barendregt's work in the field of physical geography is currently funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada. In addition to his research, Barendregt has served the U of L community as a member of the Board of Governors, the Senate and the General Faculties Council.

Viola Cassis (BA '97)

Viola Cassis started her career in international humanitarian work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where she was instrumental in revising the organization's guidelines on the prevention and response to sexual- and gender-based violence, and helped to develop policies to ensure gender-equitable access to UN refugee interventions. Cassis currently works with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and has been involved in various CIDA programs in Afghanistan. She has made field visits to Kabul and Kandahar to liaise with Canadian Forces, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and other government agencies.

Marilyn Smith (BFA '96) (Multidisciplinary)

Marilyn Smith has more than 30 years of experience in the arts and culture sector and is currently the executive director of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery (SAAG). Since Smith took on this role in 1999, SAAG has increased revenue over 200 per cent, while membership, programming and sponsorship have also increased. Recently Smith oversaw renovations of SAAG and implemented a three-year strategic plan designed to capitalize on the new facilities. Last fall Smith was honoured with the 2011 Rosza Award for Excellence in Arts Management from the Rosza Foundation.

Gayle Strikes With A Gun (BEd '88)

Raised on the Piikani Nation in southern Alberta, Gayle Strikes With A Gun has been a leader in education for 25 years. After completing her bachelor of education, she worked as the project co-ordinator for the Four Worlds development project, an initiative aimed at helping Blood and Peigan women develop the skills and training necessary to prepare them for post-secondary education at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. Over the course of her career, she worked as a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent and acting superintendent in schools across Alberta and in the Northwest Territories. In 2011, Strikes With A Gun was elected the first female chief of the Piikani Nation where she remains committed to helping her people's youth.

Bruce Thurston (BASc '78)

With close to 35 years of experience in business, Bruce Thurston brings a wealth of knowledge and skill to his teaching role in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Faculty of Management. He is also currently the CEO and president at Management Resource Services, a company that provides management consulting and training in leadership
development, organizational change, workforce diversity and staff development. In addition to his professional responsibilities, Thurston has generously served the community by volunteering his time with local organizations including the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce, the Society of Management Accountants of Alberta and the Southern Alberta Art Gallery.

Keith Walker (BASc '79)

As the director of Library Services at Medicine Hat College, Keith Walker is respected for the innovation and passion he brings to his profession. As the first college librarian to serve as president of the Canadian Library Association in the organization's history, Walker successfully led a major review and restructuring that saw the organization's first balanced budget in over a decade and a doubling of memberships. In 2003, Walker received the Community and Technical College Libraries Outstanding Academic Librarian Award and the Industry Canada Award. The following year, he was honoured with the College and Technical Libraries Innovation Achievement Award.

This story first appeared in the June 2012 issue of the Legend. For a look at the entire issue in flipbook format, follow this link.

Fair trade building bridges

trevor.kenney — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:04:50 +0000

Before she came to Lethbridge, Janelle Gerestein had no interest in travelling. Two separate trips to Bolivia have since changed her mind.

Gerestein, who is originally from Brooks, graduated with a bachelor of management degree from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge in 2008. She decided to put her degree to use by helping people in the underdeveloped South American country, where the poverty level hovers around 60 per cent.

"When I started at the U of L, I thought I didn't want to leave Lethbridge; I love it here, I'm a southern Alberta girl," she says. "I couldn't see myself travelling at all. But then once you go, you get a bug. It's an experience."

Janelle Gerestein used her Integrated Management Experience (IME) class to cultivate her interests in fair trade and social responsibility.

Her first Bolivian journey began in September 2008. The Canadian International Development Agency's International Youth Internship Program funded her placement.

"I was working as a fair trade marketing specialist for a micro-credit, non-profit organization doing market research. They wanted to do a pilot project to finance Bolivian agricultural producers to become fair-trade certified and find importers in Canada," Gerestein explains.

"It's the exchange of know-how and capacity building that are huge themes. So we're not just going in there and telling people how to do things; it's sharing skills."

Gerestein is making a second journey to Bolivia, this time with the Centre for International Studies and Co-operation (CECI), a Montreal-based organization, and their Uniterra initiative.

"I'm working with a network of artisan groups. There are six organizations in this network and they include more than 4,000 Bolivian artisans and producers of traditional handicrafts," Gerestein says about her year-long stay.

"You hear the story behind each product and that the artisan is getting a fair price; they're able to support their family and have medical care and food. The goal is to find at least two Canadian importers, improve the organization's web presence and create an online catalogue besides other initiatives."

Gerestein, who speaks some Spanish and wants to learn Portuguese and French, says she doesn't expect to make a permanent move to Bolivia, but would perhaps consider going for a couple of months every year.

"There's still a ton of development work to be done, but I have different career ideas in mind, too. I like to keep my options open and explore."

She is quick to credit the U of L's program as an important contributor to her recent experiences, saying her participation in the Faculty's Integrated Management Experience from 2006-07 was a key factor in her success.

"I started learning about fair trade and social responsibility. I wouldn't even really have known about these opportunities if it wasn't for Dan Kazakoff's class in applied consulting, in which I participated in a marketing project for Ten Thousand Villages. I thought 'I want to go and make a difference and use the marketing background'," Gerestein says, adding it's a great opportunity "even just to share that."

To learn more about the Faculty of Management at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, follow this link.

UNews - Canadian International Development Agency

2012 Alumni Honour Society Inductees

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