Champlain Canon- Anne Meneley

Books selected by Dr.Anne Meneley, Chair of the Department of Anthropology and Champlain Fellow

Men in the Sun by Ghassan Kanafan

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-   Ghassan Kanafani was a Palestinian writer and a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. He wrote several works in English and Arabic, including this one which was published in English in 1998. This moving book is a collection of Palestinian stories, and they inspire Dr. Meneley with the depth and courage that Kanafani conveys in his writing. Kanafani was involved in the Anti-Zionist movement for most of his adult life until his brutal assassination in 1972.

Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb

-    This book was written by Camilla Gibb, who is a friend of Dr. Meneley. It details the unique anthropological circumstance of a white Ethiopian Muslim who is exiled in London, England. Through the eyes of the protagonist character Lilly, it conveys an incredible breadth of culture in a beautifully written manner. It also conveys the contrast between genres of writing and the anthropological communication about cultures. This book is taught in an upper-year anthropology course and is much-loved by students.

*The Champlain Canon is a review of various literary works selected by Champlain College Fellows. In the spirit of ‘Continuer Mes Decouvertes/ Continue My Discoveries’ these books inspire Champlainers to expand their intellectual and critical horizons.

Visiting Scholar Milpa Project

On June 15^th 2011, a ‘Fête du Champlain’ was held at the residence of Dr. Michael Allcott, Head of Champlain College, to celebrate the arrival of summer, and the presence of Visiting Scholar Ivan Wadgmar. The event was a "tortillalatada" jointly hosted with friends from Chocosol who are working together with Champlain College on a "milpa" farming/gardening project this summer.

The warm, sunny weather was the perfect accompaniment to freshly made tortillas and lovely dishes provided by guests.  The tortillas were the highlight of the meal, stuffed with fresh beans and spread with two types of fresh guacamole. Amongst the line up of other treats were quinoa salad, rhubarb pie (with creamy ice cream), paratha bread, chocolate-covered strawberries and angelfood cake. All this was washed down with a selection of refreshing drinks. It was a fantastic evening filled with laughter, cheers and Michael Sacco's tales of the Lacandon jungle.

In this photo:  Dr. Mike with Trent student Ben Prowse, Chocolistas Michael Sacco and Gabriela, and Champlain Visiting Scholar Ivan Wagdmar.

In this photo:  Samantha Shaw, Champlain Cabinet President; Dr. Mike and Bielka K. Goldendoodle; Champlainer Jackie Patterson.

The Head of Trent Oak Tree

If you were a part of the Lumberjacks Oak Tree Planting during Head of Trent 2010, you'll be excited to know that the brass plaque commemorating the event is now installed.  This is a somewhat artistic photo of it.  Should you want to have a clearer picture, you'll have to come up to campus and toast it yourself!

All the best!

Champlain Fellow, Dr. Suresh Narine wins top award

Professor Suresh Narine, Champlain Fellow, was named one of Canada's 40 under 40

One year as a Champlain Alumnus

It's been a while since I've posted on this blog but I have been an active follower mustering up every effort to read the numerous posts about life at Champlain College. It has been a year since I finished up at Champlain/Trent. I finished in April and graduation precipitously sneaked up on me. Before I knew it, I was wondering the streets and absorbing the urban life and excitement of Hong Kong.

Being at UBC now, I have joined new communities that I have come to cherish very much. Indeed, I live in a graduate residential community that is made up of dozens of students studying various subjects from engineering and the sciences to law, medicine and history. This community is not simply an academic home for me, but one where I interact with residents and share experiences through socials, sporting activities, theatrical performances and much more.

I write about this experience because my time at Champlain really fostered an appreciation for belonging to something special, that is, a place where residents have time to update each other on their hectic lives and talk about subjects beyond the academy. A place where residents could par-take in a weekend sporting event, social or even a lecture in a field unfamiliar to them.  These are the sorts of events that bring vitality to community and college life. They remind us that universities are not just places of academic pursuits, but places where we form incredible relationships with others and build our capacities as leaders, academics and social beings.

A year has passed since I have moved on from my undergraduate life as a Champlainer. From time to time, I reflect about my time in the concrete jungle. While I am not trying to relive my experiences as a Champlainer at UBC, I reflect about how much one can gain from their respective college and community of friends in their university journeys.

To conclude, for current Champlainers, this is the time in your young lives to enrich your university experience through getting involved in your college and participating in events. Apathy is driven by boredom, self-interest, diminished opportunities and a lack of leadership. You can overcome this by getting involved and promoting your college events to those beyond the university. The sense of belonging and appreciation of community can be highly rewarding and will stick with you for the rest of your life.

Khalil: Champlain Superstar

Noranne Flower was thrilled to present Khalil Ajram with the Marian O'Brian award for extraordinary service to the college at last night's Champlain Grad Dinner.

Khalil also was honoured at last week's Athletics banquet with another outstanding award (named in honour of a leadership Champlain alumnus).  Here's the news, and make sure to congratulate Khalil, a Champlainer of the highest order!

Athletics Banquet: "The Gary Wolff Leadership Award was presented to Khalil Ajram, a varsity rugby player from Newmarket, Ontario. The award is presented each year to a student athlete who has demonstrated determination and leadership through balancing sport, community involvement and academic performance. This award was established by the Trent University Alumni Association in June 2002 to commemorate the service of Gary Wolff, chair of the Board of Governors from 1997 to 2002. Khalil Ajram, a key member of the men’s varsity rugby team since 2008, will graduate from Trent this spring with a degree in Business Administration. As a team leader, Khalil has been in charge of the team’s finances and has organized major team events and fundraisers, including participation in the Movember campaign to support prostate cancer research. Under his leadership, the team raised $1,500 for the cause and Khalil was the top individual fundraiser. He is co-chair of the Trent Varsity Athletic Committee and varsity rep on the Athletics Advisory Committee. Most recently he  helped chair this committee and aided in presenting the budget for the past academic year. In addition to all of these various roles, Khalil is also a mentor and tutor for many of his teammates, helping them succeed in balancing both academic and athletic demands."

The Artist Ai Weiwei