Call for Papers

Praxis of Resistance: Communities of Inclusion and Exclusion

The Fourth Annual Conference of the Toronto Group for the Study of
International, Transnational, and Comparative Law

January 2011

The Toronto Group

The Toronto Group for the Study of International, Transnational, and Comparative Law is pleased to announce its fourth annual graduate student conference. The principal aim of the Toronto Group’s annual conference is to facilitate collaborative discussion among graduate students and junior faculty members engaged in critical and transformative inquiries into law and legal scholarship in international contexts.

Past conferences have focused on testing the boundaries between international, transnational and comparative law, on exploring the relationship between law and international political and economic structures, and on developing critical historicized reflections on international law and legal scholarship.

2011 Keynote Speakers: Nathaniel Berman & Balakrishnan Rajagopal
Conference Dates: January 28-29, 2011

2011 Conference Theme:

This year’s conference will take the concept of global “social movements” as its starting point. We seek papers that examine the relationship between legal scholarship, strategic/pragmatic legal action, social movements, and diverse tactics of resistance/mobilization from multiple perspectives and spaces. Conference papers should conceptualize legal praxis (methods, analytic frameworks, key literatures and conversations in international/transnational and comparative law) as it relates to social movements and their efforts to resist or transform international legal arrangements.

While the conference’s objective is to facilitate engagement with issues arising from these and related areas of international legal scholarship, submissions from graduate students in other disciplines of law or disciplines other than law are encouraged.

Cilck here for more information.

The following appeared in the Wednesday, August 04, 2010 edition of Y-File:
Ever wonder what species of exotic trees and flowers are hidden in the wooded ravine and riverbank of York’s Glendon campus? This Sunday, rain or shine, get an up-close-and-personal look at some of the hidden gems when members of the Toronto Field Naturalists (TFN) lead a free walking tour of the campus.

Stick around long enough and you could also have tea with Lorna Marsden, York president emerita, in her Glendon office – one of the historic principal rooms in the Glendon Hall manor.

The tour will begin at the TTC bus stop at the southeast corner of Bayview and Lawrence avenues at 2pm on Sunday, Aug. 8. It is expected to last two hours.

Right: The ravine on the Glendon campus

York alumnus and historian John Court (BA ’63) and Nancy Dengler, a Toronto botanist, University of Toronto professor emerita and member of the TFN’s board of directors, will take participants on a tour through Glendon’s natural and human history. It will include features of the landscape that date to pre-European settlement, the pioneer farm era, the Glendon Hall Wood family estate and the early development of York’s Glendon College.

Glendon abuts the west branch of the Don River, the spot where the site’s original owners, Edward Rogers Wood and his family, built an estate in the 1920s named Glendon Hall. The Wood property was a suburban country estate with a landmark manor house and 84 acres of gardens, parkland and nature sites.

“Glendon has an exceptional collection of trees dating back to the 1920s,” says Dengler, who confesses to visiting the campus often.

It was the Wood family who were responsible for establishing this international collection of exotic trees and flowers in the 1920s and 1930s. “Then when the property was willed to the University of Toronto for use as a botanical garden, a whole series of trees were planted in the 1950s that are kind of special for this part of the world,” says Dengler. When York took over the property, the trees were valued and preserved during the design of the campus, leaving dawn redwoods, what Dengler calls “relics from the time of the dinosaur”, for all to enjoy. Even better, she says, than those found in High Park. “The campus at Glendon is quite special.”

In addition to the attention to the trees, plants and flowers, Court will regale walk participants with the history of the place from the pioneer farming era and when the Wood family built their estate on the property to today.

The walk will coover the natural forest found on the terrace lands of the campus, ravine slope and Don River floodplain, including Lawrence’s Bush – the woodlot right inside Glendon's entrance gate which is populated with beech, sugar maple, white pine and basswood.

The TFN suggests bringing a wide-brimmed hat, socks, hiking boots or running shoes, and long sleeves and pants to protect from mosquitoes, poison ivy, thistles and ticks. Depending on the weather forecast, rainwear or sunglasses and sunscreen may be necessary, along with some insect repellent. It’s also a good idea to bring a camera, binoculars, a Thermos or flask and a snack.

Children are welcome when accompanied by an adult, but pets are not.

For more information, visit the Toronto Field Naturalists Web site.

The following appeared in the Thursday, July 15, 2010 edition of Y-File:
York University Transportation Services teamed up with Smart Commute – North Toronto, Vaughan last month to promote Pollution Probe’s Clean Air Commute campaign and the results are in. York University Clean Air Commuters prevented 8,157,569 grams or just over eight tonnes of pollutants from entering the atmosphere.

In all, 237 York students, staff and faculty took part to make sure the week was a hit. Anita Milne, circulation coordinator in Glendon's Leslie Frost Library, was this year's winner of the Raleigh bicycle.

Participants got involved by trying an alternative method of commuting to campus for one week, June 14 to 18. People walked, biked, took transit, carpooled or tuned up their vehicles.

At York, the number of people participating in this year's Clean Air Commute was significantly more than the 130 people who took part in the 2009 challenge. All together, Clean Air Commuters in the Greater Toronto Area prevented 539.37 tonnes of pollutants from entering the atmosphere.

For more information about this event and others like it, visit the Smart Commute – North Toronto, Vaughan Web site.

TO: Business and Sustainability, Ethics and CSR Students

Re: Sustainability Concentration Courses for 2010-11 and Program Updates

The following document outlines the courses that are planned at the Schulich School of Business that fall under the Sustainability concentration for the upcoming 2010-11 session. Additional courses may be available at the Faculty of Environmental Studies and Osgoode Hall Law School; students wishing to take those courses should consult the appropriate Faculty’s website.

We hope this document will aid in course selection. Please note that the list is subject to change.
Some of you will have just graduated so of course you will not need the course information but you may well be interested in future events and speakers. We would like to keep in touch and know what you get up to and where you end up working, so please keep in touch.

In other news:

We are once again planning to hold a welcome event for students, faculty and staff in the Centre of Excellence in Responsible Business on September 28, 2010 (11:30 - 1:30 PM). SSB W132. This will be an informal time for students, staff and faculty to meet one another and learn about what is going on at the School with our programs. Further information will be circulated closer to the event.

Plans are underway for this year's Responsible Business Dialogue Series (formerly the Sustainability Speakers Series). We are happy to announce that the following speakers are already confirmed:
· Oct 12, 11:30 - 1:00 pm, SSB W132 - Olaf Weber, University of Waterloo
· Nov 2, 11:30 - 1:00 pm, SSB S127 - Ron Dembo - zerofootprint

We welcome your feedback and suggestions for future speakers.

Please note that as of July 1 st Dirk Matten, Hewlett Packard Professor of CSR, will assume the role of Centre Director.

If you have any questions or feedback please contact us at COERB@schulich.yorku.ca 

Enjoy your summer,

Bryan Husted,
Erivan K Haub Professor of Business and Sustainability
Director, Centre of Excellence in Responsible Business

Nancy Sutherland,
Associate Director Haub Program and SEA

The following appeared in the Thursday, June 10, 2010 edition of Y-File:
Clean Air Commute for 2010 has now ended. Submit your Clean Air Commute diary card to transportation services by June 23 to enter to win a prize.

Are you up to the challenge? Can you make the changes necessary to contribute nothing to pollution? York's Parking & Transportation Services has teamed up with Pollution Probe to participate in this year's Clean Air Commute.

From June 14 to 18, you can help reduce smog and stop climate change by trying something new – a greener way of commuting to work. All those who participate will be entered into a draw for a nine-day tour of Costa Rica, one of two $1,000 shopping sprees or even a bike.

Choose your mode of commuting, click here to sign up and create an account for your online diary card, and track the amount of emissions you reduce this week. Hard copies of the diary card are also available from the Parking & Transportation Services Office at 222 William Small Centre. Submit your diary card by June 30 for your chance to win!
It only takes a few small changes to your daily routine and, even if you only clean air commute for one day, you're still participating and can win a prize for your efforts. You can even take part just by checking the air in your tires – anything that helps reduce emissions helps clean the air!

You can participate by:

walking, biking, in-line skating, or running to work;
taking public transit;
carpooling;
tuning up your car;
driving an electric or natural gas vehicle;
or by driving a scooter or motorcycle.

For more information, e-mail transit@yorku.ca.

Sierra Youth Coalition is looking for participants to join its Sustainable Campuses initiative. Join to access tools and expertise, and to collaborate with other youth leaders on building sustainable campuses. Contact Laura at national@syc-cjs.org or read more...

The following appeared in the Friday, April 16, 2010 edition of Y-File:

Simple steps mean a lot when it comes to climate change.

During the month of March, students in eight undergraduate residences on Keele campus and two on the Glendon campus took many simple steps as part of a collective effort to reduce their personal energy consumption.

The students were competing in York University’s second annual Res Race to Zero challenge, which saw students in the 10 residences work together to reduce their personal carbon footprint, and in turn, that of their residence. Led by 9 residence environmental ambassadors, the 2,500 students competed against each other and tried, in true competitive spirit, to bring home a personal best with respect to energy saved.

Right: Residence Environmental
Ambassadors leading the Res Race to
Zero challenge are, clockwise from
the bottom, Farrahnaz Bulsara,
Madeline Neff, Adellah Chimbindi,
Jason Vuu, Yulia Lobacheva, James
Marzotto and Ives Spritzer

“I’m sure the students must have been living in the dark or studying by candlelight,” joked Helen Psathas, York’s senior manager of environmental design & sustainability.

After crunching the numbers, Psathas revealed that the energy saved by month’s end amounted to 31,029 kilowatt hours (kWh), or enough energy to power the 13-floor Vanier Residence for one month. The measurement of energy consumption during the challenge for each residence building included the average kilowatt usage per person by residence as compared with last year's Res Race to Zero student competitors. The final tally equals a decrease across the University of 5.40 per cent or a reduction of 8.89 kWh per person over March 2009.

On Friday, April 9, Psathas and York Vice-President Students Rob Tiffin visited Winters Residence to award the first prize to not one, but two residences. The students of Winters Residence and Bethune Residence on the Keele campus achieved the most significant reductions in energy consumption.

"It is really delightful to be here today," said Psathas. "Two years ago, we started Res Race to Zero and the real story is about the collective efforts of York students. Last year's winner Calumet Residence had very good results and we were sure the students were living in the dark, so you can imagine my delight when the results surpassed last year's totals. All of the undergrad residences did very well."

"Let me just add my personal congratulations to Bethune and Winters," said Tiffin. "A survey done [recently] by the Rockefeller Institute that looked at green initiatives across North America and York received a B+, which was the highest mark.

"Four years ago, York established a Sustainability Council and that has grown into the President's Advisory Committee on Sustainability, so sustainability very much on the minds of all of us at York University. Congratulations to you all, well done!" said Tiffin.

On hand to receive the awards were Bethune Residence environmental ambassador Lani Etzkorn and Winters Residence green don Coni Davila. The $2,000 award will be split between the two winning residences. Students living in Bethune Residence achieved a reduction of 17.82 kWh per person over statistics from one year ago, while students living in Winters Residence achieved a reduction of 14.70 kWh per person over the same period one year ago.

Above: Res Race to Zero challenge winners receive their plaques
from York VP Students Rob Tiffin. From left, Lani Etzkorn,Bethune 
Residence environmental ambassador; Rob Tiffin; and Coni Davila,
Winters Residence green don.

The decision was made to share the prize due to unforeseen circumstances – a three-day power outage in Bethune. Winning residences are considering options such as low-flow showerheads, which will be funded by the $2,000 prize.

For the first time, residences on York's Glendon campus participated in the challenge and demonstrated their energy reduction efforts from Week 1 to Week 4. Hilliard Residence, which has 215 rooms, saw a weekly consumption per person drop by 1.31 kWh and the 189-room Wood Residence by 2.25 kWh per person. This data will serve as a benchmark for next year's competition.

Res Race to Zero complements York's Energy Management Program, a five-year plan to reduce energy consumption by 25 per cent. For more information and to view the competition’s statistics, visit Yorkwise, the event sponsor, or the Res Race to Zero Web site.

The following appeared in the Thursday, April 22, 2010 edition of Y-File:

It's Earth Day and York University is launching Zero Waste, a new campaign to reduce the amount of trash produced by the University that goes into landfill. Comprised of two initiatives, Zero Waste is designed to help the University recycle more of its waste and stop harmful cleaning chemicals from entering the environment.

Above: A concept of what York's waste disposal trucks will look like once Zero Waste is fully implemented

Each year in North America, more than 6.2 billion pounds of cleaning chemicals and 36 billion plastic garbage can liners are consumed. Many of these are manufactured using petroleum products and have an enduring negative impact on the biosphere.

Zero Waste is York’s effort to reduce its institutional footprint. The campaign builds on two successful pilots that were launched in the York Research Tower last August, in which building occupants managed their own recycling and trash disposal, and "green" cleaning products were introduced. (See YFile, Aug. 13, 2009.)

Starting Monday, June 7, custodial staff will no longer service office waste and recycling bins. Instead York community members will tote their own trash and recycling to communal tri-bins (three-sectioned recycling bins) located in common areas. Each kitchenette will also be equipped with a small green bin for organics.

Currently, recycled materials at York’s Keele campus account for 59 per cent of the institution’s total waste, and the goal for Zero Waste is to reach 65 per cent by 2013. “This equals more than 200 metric tonnes of diverted waste over a year, which is comparable to stopping 10 large transport trucks fully loaded with waste from heading off to the landfill,” says Bob Smith, director of custodial, grounds and Glendon Facilities Services for Campus Services & Business Operations (CSBO).

Zero Waste relies on University community members taking responsibility for the recyclables and waste that they generate during the day. To make the campaign work, the tri-bin and green cleaning initiative launched in the research tower will expand to all of the 90 buildings on the Keele campus. That means giving up individual office garbage collection in favour of communal tri-bins; using kitchenette organic collection bins (which will be inspected daily and serviced as required) for lunch leftovers; and the roll-out across the University of green cleaning products.

With the start of Zero Waste, those black desk-side waste bins in offices and work areas will no longer be outfitted with a plastic liner. Everyone will be encouraged to take their unused drinks, soggy tea bags and leftover sandwiches to the common kitchens. Organic waste will go into kitchen collectors or to outside digesters. This initiative alone will save more than 30,000 plastic bags from going into the landfill, says Smith.

Zero Waste has numerous benefits for both the University and the environment. The program not only saves money, it also frees custodial staff from emptying thousands of individual desk-side garbage and recycling containers. The time saved will then be redirected to dusting and cleaning work surfaces, carpets, kitchenettes and bathrooms – a win-win for air quality, health and the environment.

“Every time you use a tri-bin properly you save the University money,” says Smith. “If we all participate in the Zero Waste initiative, our custodial employees will spend more time cleaning, which will lead to improved air quality in your work environment.”

Under the green cleaning program, custodial staff will use Green Seal products such as vacuums with HEPA filtration technology and GEL Cell batteries, which have a longer life and reduced off gassing for better air quality. They will also use the same environmentally responsible cleaning products that are used to keep the research tower spotless. These products are much less corrosive, with fewer airborne (volatile) contaminants, compared to traditional formulations such as bleach. The enzymes they contain continue to destroy unwanted germs for a longer period of time, which translates into a cleaner environment and reduced product usage.

You can help the program reach its goal by doing the following:

- Dispose of your organics into the NEW organic bin located in all kitchenettes.
- Do not put organics in your office waste bin.
- Keep in mind that your office garbage will no longer be collected, and empty your office recycling and waste bins into centrally located tri-bins.

You can also help the University be successful by making sure that all of your waste is placed in the appropriate tri-bin section:

- newspaper and office paper (not including used paper coffee cups or plates) will go into one section of the tri-bin;
- cans, bottles and other minor plastics, including plastic forks, plastic bags and bottles that have been emptied of any liquid, will go into another section of the tri-bin;
- wrappers and packaging that are soiled with food waste or not recyclable should go into the waste section of the tri-bin;
- all organic waste goes into a separate kitchennette bin or digester.

A waste-less lunch that makes use of reusable containers and a coffee mug will go a long way to reducing trips to the tri-bins and kitchenettes. Everyone is also encouraged to take advantage of York's other recycling options.

By printing on both sides of the paper and reusing office paper for note taking, York community members have also been doing their part to reduce their use of some of the 4.5 billion pounds of paper products created from 30 million trees.