Health and Human Rights Conference 2010

This weekend on March 5th and 6th, the students of the University of Toronto International Health Program (UTIHP) hosted the Health and Human Rights Conference at the J.J.R. MacLeod Auditorium. Gathering a smorgasbord of scholars, professionals, thought-leaders, and concerned and socially-conscious youth, the HHRights Conference was a two day affair that sought to tackle the crucial but highly problematic issue of international aid and development. Asking hard questions about the current impact of aid, its current flaws, and potential solutions, the event generated truly thought-provoking and insightful discussions and conversations. Some highlights include:

1. Opening performance of "Broken Land - A Song for Haiti" by JC and Karim. I have no idea who these guys are (fellow U of T students, I presume) but what a way to start the conference! A soulful performance with equally riveting lyrics that set the mood for the rest of the evening. Have a listen to the song here...

2. Opening Keynote presented by George Roter Engineers without Borders Co-founder and Co-CEO George Roter kick started the event by sharing his experiences during his time in various African countries, drawing the link between the rather abstract theme of aid and development to its human connection. After all, as he said, the conference is "about these human beings living in extraordinarily challenging conditions who want to see change for the better". With a brief history of the development of aid and highlighting specific thought starters, George set the context for the conference reminding the audience that "we need to go beyond the idea of charity and start thinking about [aid] as opportunity, as partnership".

Read more on blogUT...

O Canada, Our Home and Native Land!

What can I possibly say that could even remotely capture the feeling that was the 2010 Olympic games? For seventeen days, this entire nation, the entire world, was glued to their TVs reveling in all the competition and the excitement. For seventeen days, Canada demonstrated to the world its incredible hospitality, the amazing talent of its athletes, and the absolute spirit of this great nation. For seventeen days, it was as if all the citizens of Canada were as one. We celebrated together when Bilodeau won that first gold on Canadian soil. We mourned with Joannie Rochette after hearing about her loss and cheered her on as she courageously took the ice. We drank with Jon Montgomery as he marched the streets of Vancouver. Our hearts went a flutter watching the heavenly Virtue and Moir. We randomly burst into song, belting out our national anthem night after night. We rejoiced and wept together every time our athletes won (or lost). We groaned, moaned, and collectively cussed when Parise scored that wretched goal in the last few seconds of last night's game. And of course, we screamed, drank, celebrated and paraded down the streets together when Sid the Kid won us that glorious hockey gold! It has been riveting. Electrifying. Straight-up magical. Never before have I ever felt so proud to be Canadian and I can't even count the number of times I've gotten misty eyed because of all this pride welling up inside of me! With a total of 14 gold medals, not only have our athletes set a personal best for our nation, they've set a record that the entire world has yet to beat! It's been an amazing ride and regardless of whether you were watching the games from Vancouver, the local pub, or just your own living room, the feeling of euphoria has been undeniable and unstoppable.

And so, if I may indulge myself for one last time (everyone shout it with me now)...CA-NA-DA! CA-NA-DA! CA-NA-DA!

Original blog post here on blogUT.

Thank You!

I just wanted to thank everyone again who came out last night for jhr's #tweet4rights. I realize that there were many discincentives to attend what with the less than optimal weather and the much anticipated hockey game on. But the fact that you still came out really means a lot and shows a lot. I hope you all enjoyed the evening and learned something new about our organization and our effort to raise and spread human rights awareness all across the globe. It's a huge goal that will require an incredible amount of work but we hope you will join us in making it a reality. Create and share media pieces that highlight human rights related issues through the various social media outlets whether it is Twitter, Facebook, or your blog! And don't forget the core elements of PANEL that you all learned last night, which you can review here. 

We'll be posting photos and the presentation material within the next week so I'll be sure to keep you all updated on that.

And on behalf of jhr, once again, thank you all so very, very much!

Take 5 - CIUT 89.5 FM

Tune in to 'Take 5' on CIUT 89.5FM this morning at around 8 o'clock where, as a lead up to Friday's #tweet4rights event, I'll be talking about how we can use social media as a tool to raise and spread human rights awareness. It'll be my first ever radio interview so here's hoping I do the topic justice!