What does water have to do with Indigenous rights?

The war on Earth is a lot of things: it’s fracking, deforestation, mining, pipelines, and the ever-increasing cost of space itself in British Columbia, specifically Metro Vancouver. I could go on to talk about the raging wildfires that decimated roughly 4,260 square kilometres of British Columbia forest in the summer of 2017 or the ever-increasing list of endangered species. Violence against the Earth is not conventional, immediate, or overt but systemic and socialized, as well as government-sanctioned. All of this is immense and crucial not just to our survival on Earth but our ability to thrive. 

Photo via The National Observer

It’s easy to separate social injustice from environmental injustice. After all, what does water have to do with Indigenous rights? A lot, it turns out. Studies show that 400 out of 618 First Nations in Canada had water problems between 2004 and 2014. The 1876 Indian Act severely restricted Indigenous agency over their land, especially for women, and the effects have carried on until the present.

It is the impact of environmental injustice on Indigenous women that is so often left out of the conversation. In fact, violence against Indigenous women is often not even considered an environmental issue. In their latest update, the RCMP estimates the current number of missing and murdered Indigenous women to be 1,181 since 1980, making Indigenous women six times more likely to be victims of homicide than non-Indigenous women. Indigenous rights activists, however, dispute the RCMP’s claim. It is difficult to know the real number as the RCMP does not systematically track data

Photo via CBC

Why are Indigenous women at an increased risk of violence? The short but storied answer is Canada’s legacy of colonialism. Statistics Canada estimates that 80 percent of Indigenous reserves have median incomes below the low-income measure, with women falling at the lowest pay grade. Poverty makes women more vulnerable to the consequences of natural and human-created disasters like earthquakes and oil spills because they do not have the means to relocate or seek medical care. Given that women are often the sole caretakers of children, and responsible for the collection of both food and water, the aftermath is almost impossible to recover from for some. Often, women are forced into homelessness or occupations that put them at a higher risk of violence. A Globe and Mail study found that at least 18 Indigenous women were victims of convicted serial killers since 1980, most notably pig farmer Robert Pickton. Some of his victims have yet to be identified or located. In addition, Amnesty International notes that, with increased presence of non-Indigenous workers on Indigenous land, there is increased violence against women and girls. Where the land is exploited, women are exploited.

Melina Laboucan-Massimo, a female Indigenous activist.
Photo via Yes Magazine

Despite Canada touting its position as equal and fair for all, there is little to no incentive or space for female climate leaders, especially Indigenous. Among the honourees of Canada’s Clean 50 award in 2017, 43 were men and 7 were women (it is also notable that Clean 50’s slogan is “Outstanding Contributors to Clean Capitalism”). Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, the net worth of which is currently estimated at $143.9 billion, was awarded the United Nation’s highest environmental accolade, “Champion of the Earth,” in 2015. From Al Gore to Elon Musk, the face of sustainability is primarily male, white, and rich. Capitalism rewards production, not conservation.

It will no longer serve to avoid the truth, which is that human wellbeing must be included in the definition of a sustainable planet. Right now, it is limited to LED lights and solar panels. We have forgotten how to sustain human life. The climate crisis we face now is a reverberation of hundreds of years of stealing land, exploiting people, and taking more resources than can regenerate, borne from profiting from the Earth over respecting those who live here. Placing the fate of the planet in the hands of the rich, white, and male determines what the future of sustainability will look like: $100, 000 cars and the number of missing and murdered Indigenous women growing every year.

It is impossible to have justice for the planet until there is justice for women, who currently make up just over half of the worldwide population. If we cannot treat the women who create and define our society as sacred, how will we treat the Earth as such?

-- Tia (KSA Sustainability Specialist) 

Life on Campus

The Provincial budget was presented on February 20th and it was a really exciting day for everyone at the KSA who works on campaigns. We have been pushing for more student housing since 2016 and this year the government announced $450 million for on campus housing in the province! This is huge, and it means that institutions across BC can now propose housing projects and borrow money directly from the government to build them.

This is really exciting, and we can’t wait to see where housing ends up being built. So, just in case we get housing here, here are some tips from the pros, or at least from some people I know who have lived on campus before:

1. Open your door. If you stay in your room with the door closed, you’ll miss out on the best part of residence, the lifelong friendships with all the people on your floor. Casual interactions with everyone wandering by are a great, no pressure, way to meet people, get invited to things, and signal that you want to chat.

2.  If you share a shower, bring flip-flops. Also if you have never had a roommate before, mentally prepare yourself for sharing a shower with a bunch of people.

3.  On the subject of roommates, set rules with roommates up front. It might seem weird to do at first, but if you never tell your roommates that you hate being the only person to take out the trash then you will resent them for months, and they will be surprised when you finally explode. It’s way easier to be able to say ‘Hey, I think it’s your turn this week’ because you already decided to share that task.

4. Bring a fan (and a space heater if you’re allowed). There is a very low chance that the temperature the building happens to be is the temperature that you want it to be.

5. Go to the orientation. You meet a whole bunch of people right at the beginning, and go into the year with so many new friends. Also you almost definitely get free food (to the right you will see me, eating all of the free food at our welcome week).

6. Staying on campus late and just hanging out without a set activity in mind is a super good way to get involved with things that are going on at your campus. Several people in our office said they entered campus life because they lived on campus, and described it as the best part of their university experience (pro tip, you don’t have to actually live on campus to do this).

7. Plan something for your first weekend. Lots of people visit home the first or second weekend, and if you stay on campus without any plans it can be quiet and feel a little lonely. Find some other people who are sticking around, or explore the neighbourhood around campus.

8.  Late night fire alarms. This is an experience that is pretty well universal, I have heard from people at UBC and Uvic where fire alarms get pulled as a practical joke (at 3am on a Wednesday… not cool) or SFU where the fire alarms get set off in old buildings because of the steam from showers (also at 3am..whyyy) and basically everywhere that there is residence because people think they can get away with smoking in their rooms. Because residence buildings are so densely filled, firefighters have to respond to a fire alarm immediately, even if they need to leave an actual fire to do this.

9. Expect some level of nonsense. One of our staff knows someone who lived on campus at Uvic, this was back when the campus was covered in bunnies. Her dorm was on the ground floor, and one night someone dropped a bunny into her window. Chaos ensued while the little bunny jumped around looking for an escape route, and the bunny, while alarmed, was fine. This exact thing will not happen to you, but you can probably expect to leave with at least one good story.

We don’t know if KPU will be one of the institutions that gets to build new housing, but just for fun, let us know what your ideal student housing situation would be in the comments.

Thanks for reading

Nicki

10 Things That Are Unique & Cool About BC

10 Things that are unique and cool about BC

BC is a pretty awesome province, we have a beautiful coastline, some very majestic mountains, and this one place where you can get all you can eat poutine. We also have a bunch of fairly interesting things that make this province different, so today we are bringing you a list of 10 of the things that are unique about BC. Enjoy!

1) According to one report BC is the healthiest province in Canada, with a life expectancy of 82.2 years. We have low rates of obesity, drinking, and smoking, and the highest percentage of people who do physical activity in their leisure time. I think that means everyone has to stop making fun of our yoga pants now.

2) BC has had some weird laws. Between 1947 and 1986 you were not allowed to sell stoves within Vancouver city limits on a Wednesday. To be clear, you could sell stoves anywhere you wanted the other six days of the week, and outside city limits anarchy reigned and you could sell a stove on any day of the week.

3) BC has the longest running movie theatre in all of Canada. Powell River’s Patricia Theatre opened in 1913, and has been showing films ever since. It makes sense that film is important here, BC is second only to LA in TV production, so British Columbians are more likely than most to recognize that one place that was in a scene in that show that one time… you know the one.

4) BC is responsible for Botox. The cosmetic treatment involving injections that alter the shape of your face or lips was invented in Vancouver in the year 2000.

5) We are the only province in Canada without needs-based grants for students. In every other Province the provincial government looks at your household income and gives low and middle income students a portion of student loans as a non-repayable grant. We are currently working with other universities on the Grants Now campaign to get a comprehensive system of needs-based grants in BC, and catch up with the rest of the country. If this is the kind of thing you think is important, email campaigns@kusa.ca to find out how to get involved in the campaigns we run.

6) We are the home of the man with the longest beard. The Guiness world record holder is named Sarwan Singh, and he and his 2.33 meter long beard live in Surrey. For reference, Shaquille O'Neal is only 2.2 meters tall.

7) We basically invented speed-writing here (speed writing, it turns out, is a thing). The now international, 3-day novel contest in which writers attempt to complete a novel in 72 hours started in Vancouver in 1977. It started in a bar, so I am gonna go out on a limb and say someone made an overly optimistic wager about their writing skills one night after having a few too many local brews. But it continues to this day. You can find out all about how to sign up here.  

8) BC has been a leading adopter of Open Educational Resources, which are basically freely accessible textbooks, which you can usually find online. BC has the only program where you can get a whole degree without paying for a single textbook! It’s called the Zed Cred program, and was launched right here at KPU.

9) Oak Bay has some very specific laws about pets. Pet parrots must be confined to your property. If your Parrot is found trespassing, they can be impounded by the city, which will cost you $6 a day. You will also be fined if you fail to keep your bees away from your neighbours pond. I am sensing that that last one is the result of a specific incident involving an angry pond owner, but I could be wrong, this might be a common problem in Oak Bay.

10) Last but not least, you might expect California rolls, named after an American state and now a staple in every sushi restaurant, to come from California, but we get to take credit for that one to! California rolls were invented in BC, and kicked off the trend of turning rolls inside out to hide the seaweed from North Americans who weren’t used to eating it yet.

The 5 Best & Weirdest Places To Eat In Victoria

So I get to do a lot of really cool stuff at work. One of the really awesome things about doing work that involves government is being able to go to Victoria. We recently went there with a bunch of fantastic students from across the province to meet with government for several days and talk about student issues. It was a really engaging and fulfilling trip and don’t get me wrong, politics is important, but today we are here to talk about the 5 best places to eat in Victoria.

Floyds

Victoria is the self-proclaimed brunch capital of Canada, so it only makes sense to start with a brunch place. Floyds has a quirky diner vibe, with booths, a collection of Marilyn Monroe decorations, vintage posters on all the walls, and a massive fish tank. Their fun breakfast thing is called the Mahoney, it’s $14 and you get whatever the kitchen feels like cooking for you (so this isn’t for those with dietary restrictions). The best part is that you can flip a coin for it. If you win the meal is free, but if you lose then you pay double.

Tapa Bar

The Tapa Bar is a really great place to go with a bunch of people because you can order seven different dishes and it’s normal. If you play your cards right you can end up with half of the menu on your table. It’s tucked away in a little alley right downtown (which is called Trounce alley, and that is adorable) and has warm decor and a great atmosphere. There are good vegetarian and gluten free options, and a great selection of drinks.

The Bent Mast

The Bent Mast is actually more of a pub than a restaurant, and if I’m being honest, it is actually a house. Well, it is a pub/restaurant that is run out of a house that was built in the 1880s. This sounds weird (because it is weird) but stay with me, it is a legitimate establishment and it is really cute. They serve brunch, craft beer, burgers, and occasionally have live music. It’s a little strange at first, but then you start to feel right at home. Obviously it is supposed to be haunted.

The Drake

The Drake is really trendy but also really comfortable, with couches and nice rugs, and it’s right downtown. It’s really laid back, like everything in Victoria. There is a good beer selection, and really interesting food. We went there on our first night in town and I got kimchi grilled cheese. I didn’t know you were allowed to put both of those things into the same sandwich, but oh man was it delicious.

The Mint

To get to the Mint you have to walk down a dark and kind of sketchy flight of stairs, but it is so worth it once you’re there. The food is really good. We booked a room there for our government social and we hung out with Melanie Mark, the Minister for Advanced Education, and enjoyed the delicious combination of West Coast and Himalayan cuisine that they serve.

If you are interested in going to Victoria, meeting with MLAs and promoting students issues like mental health funding or student loan interest rates (and maybe getting a chance to visit one or two of the places on this list) then you should get involved with the advocacy work we are doing at the KSA. A great way to do this is to join the External Affairs committee here:  http://www.kusa.ca/committees.html

A Note About Mental Health.

October is Mental Health month. Mental health is something we want to talk about, not just in October, but every month and every day. While the month of October comes to a close, we want to continue to have conversations, provide resources and improve services related to mental health. As the KSA's Policy & Political Affairs Coordinator, Nicki has spent the last month hosting workshops and supporting our A More Mindful U Mental Health campaign. From this month, she has a few words about fall, mental health and the ways you can be supported on campus...

So if the recent turn towards terrible weather is any indication, we are definitely getting into fall. This means a lot of things: Pumpkin spice lattes *insert joke about being basic*, cosy sweater weather, and Thanksgiving. But it also means shorter, darker days, probably midterms and all the stress that comes with that. It can be a tough time. October is also mental health month which means that we will do what we can to be here for you through the good (pumpkin flavoured everything) as well as the bad (anxiety, seasonal affective disorder etc).

Talking about mental health is important and if you can reach out to someone, even just to share stories, that has the potential to help both of you. But sometimes talking isn’t enough, and you will need some more specific medical or professional help. We want to make sure that everyone is getting the kind of help they need, so we are going to take a moment to talk about all the different resources you have access to.

If you are having some trouble dealing with anything, you are definitely not alone. 1 in 5 Canadians will experience a mental illness throughout their life, but so many people don’t receive the help they need. If you think you might need help there are so many places to go to, and almost all of them are free. If you don’t know where to start, all KPU students now have access to MyWellness where you can take a free and completely confidential mental health assessment. The site also features a bunch of other resources including online counselling.

If you want to see a specialist, you can make an appointment with KPU counselling here. If you just need to talk, you can also drop by Peer Support and talk to a student to get one-on-one support and referrals to other resources. There are so many other resources available online here and here ranging from referrals to apps that will help deal with anxiety. There are also more specific things like Active KSA, where you can go on hikes with other students and make sure you’re exercising regularly, that aren’t listed as mental health resources but that will help you take care of yourself.

Seek out these programs, talk about them to your friends to make sure that everyone knows what to do when they need mental health services. We have also been writing letters to the government to ask for targeted funding for mental health services on campus. If you think there should be consistent and reliable funding for counselling then sign the letter here: http://www.kusa.ca/currentcampaigns.html

Make sure that you’re taking care of yourself this fall

-Nicki

How Many Slices

So by now many of you will have heard about the statement made earlier in the year by Australian property investor and huge millionaire Tim Gurner criticizing the ‘poor purchasing decisions made by millennials that have resulted in a decline in homeownership’. The guy thinks we can’t afford houses cause we buy avocado toast. People were appropriately sarcastic in responding.

I have several thoughts:

1. Avocado toast is great, and if it makes you happy you should keep eating it. Don’t let wealthy Australians tell you how to live your life.

2. The median price for a home in Metro Vancouver was $1,400,000 (175,000 Avocado toasts, assuming an avocado toast costs $8) in 2016. If you skipped having avocado toast every day in order to save for a down payment, it would take a little bit more than 95 years. Paying for an entire home would take 657 years of not buying a slice of avocado toast each day. While I do eat the occasional piece of avocado toast, I think it’s possible that there are other issues at play here.

3. Homeownership is so far out of the question and really I just want to be able to rent somewhere that isn’t an asbestos infused basement shared with 8 other people.

It’s super easy to present the housing crisis as being about lazy or irresponsible millennials who feel entitled to own a home. But young people are working harder than ever (today students in BC actually work 180% more hours than students in 1975 did), and are in even more debt. Homeownership is getting less realistic for young people than a fairy godmother appearing to grant you three wishes. But despite this, the real housing crisis isn’t about homeownership, it’s in the rental market.

Finding a place to rent in Vancouver (and much of British Columbia) is an ordeal. Everyone knows someone who has a horror story about struggling to find a place on craigslist that isn’t mouldy, overcrowded, or underground, or showing up to see a place that looks half-decent and finding 100 other people there, damage deposit in hand, competing against you for it.

Every year there are fewer and fewer units available, and the rent is steadily increasing. Between 2015 and 2016, the average rent in the region went up 6.4% to $1,223. An even more recent study put the average rent for a 1 bedroom unit in metro Vancouver at $1990 (248 Avocado toasts, for those of you keeping track). Prices are getting out of hand, and vacancy rates (the percentage of units that are available to be rented) are dropping dangerously low.

A healthy vacancy rate is around 3%. The vacancy rate in Metro Vancouver hit 0.7% in 2016. This was worse in Surrey where rates dropped from 1.9% to 0.4% between 2015 and 2016. What this means is that there is almost nowhere to live, and so landlords can charge waaaay too much. 248 Avocado toasts a month guys. CMHC recommends that you spend 30% of your monthly income on rent. Different sources estimate that students earn on average $13,000- $20,000 a year, which means a recommended $325-$500 a month on rent. This is only 40-62 slices of avocado toast.

To make prices lower we need more rental units. Developers could build these by themselves, or municipalities could require that a portion of any new buildings are rental units. The government could also change some regulations and let universities borrow money to build on-campus housing for students. There is huge demand for student housing and so if institutions like KPU were allowed to borrow money and build residences, the debt would be paid off easily through residence fees. We have been asking the government to let post-secondary institutions borrow money to build housing and if you’d like to sign a letter to ask them too, you can do that here.

In the meantime, the best of luck navigating the rental market and enjoy your avocado toast.

-Nicki