Punishing participation: the rise of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and Academic freedom

Thought I'd post this invitation to a public lecture, as it might be of some interest...

The Special Individualized Programs of the School of Graduate Studies and

the Department of Geography, Planning and Environment are pleased to present:

Punishing participation: The “reputation” of Canadian mining companies, the rise of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and Academic freedom

A talk by Dr. Alain Deneault (Department of Political Science. Université de Montréal)

Wednesday, April 3, 2012, 1:30-2:30 PM

Sir George Williams Campus, Hall Building, Room H 1269

Corporations increasingly use litigation to suppress criticism by citizens.  Known as Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs), these lawsuits also target scholars.  Drawing on the legal sociologies literature and the case of Canadian mining companies, this talk will examine the disciplining effect of SLAPPs on academic freedom and on democracy more broadly. 

McGill's Material Analysis Tool

Here's a project I've been working on with the Design Department of University Services of McGill University. 

"The Materials Analysis Tool (MAT) is a free online ranking system that distills manufacturer information to assist you in the selection of building products that are more cost effective, healthy and environmentally responsible.

MAT was developed at McGill University as a short cut through the mountains of information provided by manufacturers to designers about their products. MAT isn’t a certification for products, but is rather a database of manufacturer information seen through the lens of sustainability and a way for McGill University staff and contractors to choose products that best reflect the values of the University."

Currently manufacturers are adding their products to the database, and we are hoping that in the next few months the project will become fully functional and used by University Services of McGill University as well as the other institutions in the Montreal area.

You can visit the website and check it out for yourself here: http://www.materialanalysis.ca/

Elementary Math: Alberta Oil Sands

I would like someone to explain this for me. From the above fact sheet we learn on the one hand that "almost 136,000 Albertans are employed in Alberta's mining and oil and gas extraction sector."

On the other hand we learn that "about 1,700 First Nations were employed by oil sands explorations - about 10% of the oil sands workforce."

Granted I'm not a mathematician, but based on my calculations 1,700 is 10% of 17,000 and 10% of 136,000 is 13,600.

So which is it - are there only 17,000 people working in this sector - or do First Nations people represent something more like 1.25% of the workforce in this industry?

My rough calculation  of the numbers around First Nations and Metis populations in Alberta suggest that they make up around 10% of the population. Thus, a 10% employment rate in this sector would seem "fair" (despite the fact that the impacts of these projects are arguably disproportionally felt by those living in the relatively remote areas in northern Alberta, frequently First Nations people), so I can see why a 10% employment rate would be a positive number to put forth as say, a goal. But a goal does not a fact make.

Update: I received this link via twitter, on the Labour Market Workforce Stats:  http://woodbuffalo.net/November%202009/upstream-production-oil-san.jpg - it appears that the number of 136,000 posted on the Alberta Oilsands Factsheet may a bit deceiving, as these people might not all be counted as participating in the Oil Sands Workforce, but rather in the entire gas and mining sector (p.s. that's not what the fact sheet is about).

Learning from Dudes: the Lesbian Flowchart

Even flawed logic, is a kind of logic.

Chocolate Tofu Pie and Nut Crust Recipe. You're welcome.

When ever I am going to have dinner at someone's place and there appears to be some skepticism about the potential for supreme deliciousness in vegan cuisine, I bring pie - and, most frequently, chocolate pie. What makes this pie a factual miracle, other than its ability to convert vegan doubters at first sight, is that this pie is additionally both gluten free and really, really easy to make. 


Consider this my gift to you and your entire pot-luck community. I will even give you some little tricks to amplify the beauty and taste factor of this impossibly delicious dessert.  


It starts with an all nut crust. I think pecan or hazelnuts are your best bets, but that's your decision.


Ingredients
2 1/2 cups ground nuts (place them in the blender, put some earplugs on and let 'er rip until they are mostly powder-like)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup maple syrup
4 tablespoons earth balance (the best margarine)


Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degree F (175 degree C)
• Stir together ground nuts and then cinnamon, and then mix in melted butter earth balance and maple syrup. Dump this mix into a 9" deep dish pie pan. I use a pampered chef stoneware pan, and think it's pretty spectacular.   
• Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the pie pan. If it sticks to your fingers, wet your fingers with some water. 
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned. It's really easy to burn a nut crust, so err on the side of caution. Allow this to cool completely before filling.   

Chocolate filling.
Ingredients
600g of soft tofu (I use 2 boxes of sunrise brand soft tofu. I often use one dessert and one plain)
3 tablespoons of maple syrup
300g good quality dark chocolate
Fruit topping (raspberries and/or strawberries work exceptionally well).

Directions

• Start by preparing the fruit, you want it to be ready to go as soon as you pour the filling into the pie crust. Wash it, but make sure it's dry before placing it atop the pie.
• Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. While you are doing this, blend the tofu in a, well, blender. 
• Once the chocolate is melted, add it to the blended tofu, which I would imagine to still be in the blender. Blend the chocolate and tofu together until it's smooth, scrape the sides as needed. 
• Pour chocolate into cooled pie crust, top with fruit and possibly other pretty, yummy things like chocolate shavings and/or coconut flakes (as seen in the above photo).
• Chill in the fridge until serving.  

That's all you need to know. 

Knuckle Tattoos for Academics

Interdisciplinary: stuck in academic ghettos?

Oh hello Etsy!

Chocolate Lab Puppy (this one sold, but there is a new one posted)

I decided to post some of my small sketches on Etsy yesterday. I think a lot of hobby painters get to the point where they do more "warm-up" works than anything else, and I'm certainly no exception. My small apartment has one large room dedicated to my art equipment and it's over flowing with older, smaller works - so I figured I'd try putting them out there in the world. 


For example, last year, for one of my classes I painted 36 8" x 8" puppy paintings. This repetitive painting project was aimed at creating multiple similar, yet unique portraits of a number of the breeds most commonly found to be produced at puppy mills in N. America. 

Puppy Mill Project Installed

Each 8" x 8" painting is produced using a series of stencils and some freehand painting. Each painting is a unique combination of colours – so while they look remarkably similar to one another, they are each their own dog.


A number of these puppies are available on Esty for a tiny $19 - $5 of which will go to the Montreal SPCA, as I feel like those folks have to deal with a lot of unwanted dogs resulting from this kind of cruel, surplus breeding.