Today the Ontario Government agreed set into place its long awaited e-waste collection program. Well I may be exaggerated the long awaited part for some people but for others… At the University the Environmental Law Students Association (ELSA) has taken it upon themselves over the past few years to host and coordinate e-waste drives. Certainly a noble cause since so many people are completely clueless about the deep secrets that electronic waste hides. Let me elaborate briefly. 1- E-waste is not like normal waste; once in the landfill it leaks toxic heavy metals which pollute the groundwater. 2- A good deal of e-waste ends up in China or India where peasants live in giant e-waste landfills. The inhabitants “mine” the precious metals in the computers and electronic components. They are exposed to toxic chemicals as they tear apart the components and burn the plastics for heat. And so forth and so on. So, back to ELSA. Last year on Earth Day ESLA helped to host a massive e-waste drive. ...

Smoking bad, not smoking good. Blah blah blah blah blah blah. I think we have all heard this before; second-hand smoke, poor air quality, lies to the public, impotence, and let’s not forget yellow teeth. But there is one specific aspect of a cigarettes that bug me more than anything and that is litter. My parents were smokers. I would go to school everyday smelling like an ash tray. Before they stopped smoking indoors, the house always had this lovely blue fog about it. But that was their choice you see. I didn’t really much care about if people smoked, but how they smoked. It is easy to see how second-hand smoke has a big impact on others and I think many can agree that this is where the line is drawn. Individuals should not suffer because of another’s personal choices. So the thing that gets me is when people toss their cigarettes on the ground. I know that this seems innocuous compared to some of the other dangers of smoking but I can’t shake it. A couple of years ago I was at a co...

I am not going to talk about the debacle of what happened with the U-pass over the past few days. I think that I have already said enough to the press as it is. But what I am going to talk about is the splintered state of public transportation in the City now and moving forward. 53 Days was a long time to be without transit and the good people of Ottawa didn’t take it sitting down. In fact they walked, carpooled, taxied, did whatever was needed to get where they had to go. The world didn’t stop when the busses did and this brought many people to a very important realization. They say that in order to effectuate change, individuals need to be shaken out of dormancy and indifference. Our everyday lives have a way of making us complaisant. I think that the strike was one of those shakes; one of those rare moments that makes us realize that there is another way. The unfortunate thing about this is that transit could be the big loser. As the members of the campus community realize that ther...

“Can’t someone else do it?” For true Simpsons fans this was a memorable moment in television history. Okay maybe it wasn’t monumental but for environmentalists it was pretty fun. In short, Homer wants to become the sanitation commissioner of Springfield . As he struggles to come up with a slogan he stumbles upon the phrase, “Can’t someone else do it?”, which is likely the most insightful phrase about the human condition when it comes to recycling and waste management. Now I am sitting here on campus and I am having the worst time in the world trying to comprehend how to get people to recycle. I have just come back from my second meeting today about trying to make people recycle more, and I should add that these meetings were initiated by campus community members (not me). There is one monumental truth about recycling, it is hard. John Q. Garbagemaker won’t recycle just because the alternative is bad for the environment, or because our landfills are overflowing, or because it is univers...

So this week was actually super packed so please fasten your seat belts and place your seats in the upright position. We ask that you don’t try to get until we have reached our cruising altitude. Last week the University of Ottawa was fortunate enough to have a visit by Phil Fontaine, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. He delivered a lecture about tolerance and intolerance in a post apology area. I secretly wanted to hear someone mention that the land the University stands on is likely stolen land, but there was no such statement. Nevertheless the occasion was marked by the presence of several MPs, including Justin Trudeau. A little known fact is that the University of Ottawa will be hosting 2 massive conferences this summer. Both the meetings have a firm commitment to be more environmentally friendly, green conference is the jargon of the day. On Friday I hired a new student to work solely on green conferences. It is always amazing how many small things can be done to ma...

So every once and a while I fully intend on having guess writers for this crazy thing called blog. This is the first. Thanks Katherine -By Katherine Sullivan- Afin de conserver un brin d’équilibre mental au centre de ce chaos qu’est la grève des autobus d’Ottawa, j’ai du me trouver un passe-temps agréable, afin de braver les bouchons sur la pont, coincée entre un personnage jasant de ses problèmes de couple sur son blackberry et un groupe de jeunes filles discutant le dernier épisode de Loft Story. La classe, je vous dis. J’ai donc essayé la lecture, mais la nausée me monte rapidement à la gorge, et je ne voudrais pas ruiner le manteau de poil de la dame à mes côtés. Les devoirs? Eh bien, je peux vous assurer que compléter un devoir d’harmonie dans l’autobus ressemble à essayer d’enfiler une aiguille dans le noir. Par la suite, il reste l’option de la musique, qui ne me suffit pas. Texter des amis pendant plus d’une heure? Bonjour la tendinite du pouce! C’est alors qu’en faisant un br...