Whether deliberately dumped or accidentally dropped, litter can have devastating consequences for wildlife. Rivers, lakes, streams, storm drains, and beaches are all connected, so litter along one shoreline can be transported far away from where it began.

A local iteration of the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup along Windsor’s riverfront gives members of the community a chance to break this cycle on Saturday, March 23.

Almost 50 volunteers have signed up to participate, but there is room for plenty more, reports sociology professor Tanya Basok, the University’s environmental sustainability advocate. She organized the effort to coincide with World Water Day.

Volunteers will gather in the Windsor Sculpture Park at the foot of California Avenue at 11 a.m. The cleanup will extend from the Ambassador Bridge to Campbell Avenue until 1 p.m. Register as a participant on the event website.

Fourth-year nursing students in clinical placements with the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit have been sharing what they learned with the campus community this week, through displays and presentations in the Toldo Health Education Building.

The health fair, mounted by 16 students in instructor Mary Cole’s class “Community Health Nursing,” will wrap up with a final session Thursday morning in the building’s lobby.

Prof. Cole said the exhibits have been popular with students, faculty, and staff stopping in.

“We have received a lot of great comments,” she said. “These students are knowledgeable, creative, and adaptable.”

Several of the students said they were inspired to pursue careers in public health or health promotion.

Student Kelly Tran served her term in the health unit’s oral health department, observing dental screenings and administering vision tests to kindergarten students.

“The clinical placement prepares you for the real world,” she said. “You get the experience of meeting with clients — you’re applying your knowledge.”

Her group’s booth, “The Tooth about You and Eye,” is one of six displayed for the fair. Others offer information on cannabis, smoking cessation, prevention of sexually transmitted infections, the use of naloxone to counteract opioid overdose, and nutrition recommendations from Canada’s Food Guide.

“They’re presenting really current evidence-based research,” Cole said.

And, she noted, the students incorporated interactive elements to engage attendees.

Her student, Andres Novoa, said the exercise helped to develop his presentation skills.

“You learn that you have to be vocal, and you have to make it entertaining as well,” he said.

University of Windsor received an incentive rebate of $60,809 from Enbridge Gas, operating as Union Gas, on behalf of its Demand Side Management Program. This incentive rebate was given to the University in support of its energy efficiency projects.

In 2018, the University installed natural gas efficient technologies that included condensing tankless water heaters, condensing boilers for space heating, and energy recovery ventilators in its new downtown School of Creative Arts.

The University also took part in a campus-wide energy feasibility study that was conducted by co-op students through Facility Services and, as a result, Enbridge Gas will continue to work with the University of Windsor to implement further energy efficiency measures such as roof insulation and air handling upgrades as well as steam/hot water insulation.

Panellists with first-hand experience of the challenges of online research will discuss how they responded to these problems effectively and ethically during the two-jour workshop “Online Research: Challenges and Ethical Solutions,” Thursday, March 21, at 1 p.m. in the Oak Room, Vanier Hall.

Representatives from the research software company Qualtrics will present on its survey platform, and along with officials from the Research Ethics Board and Information Technology Services, will answer questions on supports available to help researchers find success with online projects.

To register, email Joan.Craig@uwindsor.ca.

Universities Canada praised the federal government’s support for lifelong and work-integrated learning, skills development, international study, and ensuring more people benefit from a university education, saying in a statement that the budget unveiled Tuesday will help Canadians thrive in the labour markets of today and tomorrow.

The organization highlighted:

• a commitment to help students enter the workforce through 40,000 proposed new work placements per year by 2023-24;
• an investment of $147.9 million over five years for an international education strategy to promote Canada as a leading study destination;
• $114 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, and $26.5 million per year ongoing in the federal granting councils’ Canada Graduate Scholarship program;
• expanded paid parental leave for students and postdoctoral fellows, which will further improve equity and inclusion in university research; and
• modernization of the Canada Student Loan program to better respond to the needs of vulnerable students.

“The government is taking the right steps to help Canadians build the skills and capacity they need to reach their potential in our shifting global economy,” said Universities Canada chair Mike Mahon, president of the University of Lethbridge. “Connecting more students with employers in the private sector and civil society during their studies will pay dividends for all for years to come.”

The 2019 federal budget is available on the Government of Canada website.

See the Universities Canada media release on its website.

An auction for students considering careers in law to spend time with legal professionals raised $1,500 for a social service agency offering confidential intervention for families experiencing domestic violence.

The Pre-Law Student Society hosted its seventh annual “Bid on a Lawyer” gala on Feb. 1. Winners of a silent auction got the chance to see what a day in the life of a legal professional is really like. The proceeds benefited Hiatus House.

The club’s president, Gail O’Neil, says its membership is a diverse group of students who aspire to become lawyers. It hosts events through the year to educate undergraduates on the law school admissions process and careers in the legal field.

The University of Windsor’s Making-it-Awkward Committee is hosting its third annual symposium, “Real Talk: A Discussion of Systemic Oppression Faced by Racial Minorities,” on Friday, March 22, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the School of Social Work, in Windsor Hall at 167 Ferry St.

The event is aimed at educating the community by facilitating a discussion around the systemic oppression faced by racial minorities in today’s society. It will feature an ethnically diverse panel discussion featuring speakers from Indigenous, Black, South Asian, East Asian, Arab, and Caucasian communities. Local community vendors and performances by University of Windsor students will also take place.

“The purpose of this event is to showcase how multiple intersecting identities have a significant impact an individual’s lived experience,” said Lacy Carty, a Windsor Law student and co-organizer of the event. “By introducing the concept of intersectionality, we hope to have a more comprehensive discussion on systemic oppression that is inclusive of the diverse Windsor-Essex community.”

This year’s symposium will feature panellists from several organizations, including Ravyn Wngz, Black Lives Matter Toronto; Beverly Jacobs, Windsor Law professor and former president of the Native Women’s Association of Canada; Fatima Ahmed and Tiffany Gooch, Windsor Law student activists.

Admission is free, but attendees are asked to register on Eventbrite. For more information, visit Windsor Law’s website.

—Rachelle Prince