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McGill Recommendations, Student Life

Why you should join a club in your first year

by Bianca Tri on

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Whether it’s your first year or your last, clubs are an integral part of student life at McGill. A cursory glance at someone’s laptop in the library can reveal their extracurricular alliances from publication clubs to environmental groups. With the buzz of Activities Night fading away into the rearview and hundreds of club listservs pestering you with general meeting details, you may start to wonder: “Should I join a club this semester?” Going straight to the biggest source of club recruitment on campus can reveal exactly why joining a club can make or break your first year of university. First, a basic rundown:

What is a club and what kinds of clubs are out there?

The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) has over 250 official student-run clubs registered. Clubs are generally interest groups and can be sorted into ten categories: Athletic and recreational sports; charity and environment; community outreach and volunteering; fine art, dance, and performance; health and wellness; language and publications; leisure activity and hobby; networking and leadership development; political and social activism; and religion and culture. There are also 17 student-run services and 11 independent student groups.

How do I join a club?

The best way to find out is to reach out to a club directly! Getting in touch with a club through their website, social media, or by email can make you aware of whether there is a membership fee, an online channel to join, a tryout, or other parameters to start your club journey. 

What will clubs expect from me?

There are usually two levels of membership in a club: General members and executives. General members are typically expected to attend club meetings and events. Executive members have more specific roles such as President, Finance, or Design, and manage the club’s day-to-day activities. However, this structure varies—for example, services are composed of executive members and the people they provide for are the McGill community. As such, you don’t need to sign up for anything to use services like WALKSAFE. 

The tasks associated with each role vary between clubs, so it’s best to review each club constitution on the SSMU website to know more.

Why should I join a club?

In deciding whether or not to join a club, the choice comes down to your available time and personal goals.

Brianna Luo, U3 Science, stresses how athletic clubs can offer a low-pressure alternative to sports that require tryouts and competition. 

“[A] lot of sports have tryouts but the McGill Climbing Club doesn’t, and I think that McGill clubs are so welcoming and it’s fun to be around people who have similar passions and even to learn a new passion,” she said in an interview with The Tribune.

Clubs can also help when you want to explore something that the university may not offer, as Lachi Ezeokafor, U3 Arts, mentioned in an interview with The Tribune. 

“You should join a club in your first year to expand your horizons, and get away from studying, because life is about doing what you enjoy. Arts clubs like Dsign Lab give students a creative outlet especially because there’s no fine arts faculty at McGill.”

Culture clubs are also known for bringing together people who want to connect over their shared experiences. 

Dominique-Louise Magleo, U3 Arts, shared her thoughts with The Tribune. 

“[Clubs] will give you a sense of community,” she said. However, Magleo cautions first years against pledging your time to too many associations. 

“Some people sign up for everything but don’t go to any of the meetings. You have to truly put effort into a club,” she added.

Learning new skills, sharing your passion, and meeting new people are the main highlights of joining clubs. Balancing the time commitment with other responsibilities may be a challenge for incoming students, but it’s a challenge that many club-goers recommend. The world of extracurriculars cannot wait for you to dive in!

McGill Recommendations, Student Life

Comparing prices at go-to student grocery stores

by Ella Paulin on

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With rising prices and an increasing cost of living, many students are keeping a close eye on grocery prices, but comparing deals across stores can be time-consuming and tedious. Luckily, we’ve done some of the work for you! The Tribune visited Metro, Provigo, and Segal’s to compare prices for 12 staple grocery items—ranging across produce, dairy, meat, and dry goods. All of the prices listed are sticker prices, not taking into account sales or two-for-one deals. 

ProvigoMetroSegal’s
Pasta (900 g)3.793.792.29
Bread (sliced white bread)3.995.394.99
Cheerios family size7.999.295.99
Butter (250 g)6.495.885.79
Eggs (dozen large eggs)4.234.154.10
Chicken Breast (per kg)8.0816.5122.95
Oranges (individual)0.641.980.69
Grapes (per lb)4.993.992.99
Apples (per lb)2.792.791.79
Potatoes (per lb)2.491.991.00
Canned Tuna (140 g can)3.291.991.99
Soy Sauce (591 ml bottle)8.2912.499.98
Total57.7870.2464.55
Sticker prices as of Sept. 13, 2024

Metro

Total price: $70.24 CAD ($63.21 CAD with the student discount)

3575 Avenue du Parc Suite 5100

The Avenue du Parc Metro, tucked away in the basement of Les Galeries du Parc, is conveniently located for many students living in the McGill Ghetto—especially for first-year students living in New Residence Hall, which is connected via an elevator. Overall, Metro’s prices for the items we looked at were higher than those at Segal’s and about even with those at Provigo. For example, both Provigo and Metro had 900g of pasta for $3.79 CAD and apples for $2.79 CAD/lb. However, Metro has a 10 per cent student discount on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays for purchases of over $50.00 CAD, which helps make its prices more competitive with those of the other stores. 

Provigo

Total price: $57.78 CAD ($52.00 CAD with student discount)

3421 Avenue du Parc

Like Metro, the Provigo on Avenue du Parc has a student points reward system; however, it’s slightly more complicated to use. At Provigo, you need to have a PC Optimum card that was registered using your student ID. If you check out using that card on Mondays, you can get 10 per cent of your purchase in PC Optimum points, which you can then spend on future purchases. 

While Provigo’s prices across the board are higher than Segal’s, the total price for the goods we surveyed is significantly lower due to the lower price of chicken. While Segal’s is known for its cheap produce and dry goods, their meat selection is smaller and more expensive than Provigo’s. The latter had the cheapest prices for chicken of any of the stores, coming in at just $8.80 CAD/kg for boneless chicken breasts. Provigo also had the cheapest and widest selection of sliced breads, and competitive prices for eggs and oranges compared with Segal’s. 

Segal’s

Total price: $64.55 CAD

4001 Boulevard Saint-Laurent

Segal’s is slightly further away from campus and is closed on Sundays, but its low prices keep students coming back. If possible, try to avoid shopping there at peak times, as the aisles can get pretty crowded. Segal’s easily beats the other two stores for produce prices—with $0.69 CAD for an orange, $2.99 CAD/lb for grapes, and just $1.00 CAD/lb for potatoes. Segal’s also had the cheapest prices for staples like butter, eggs, and cereal, although the prices for butter and eggs were relatively similar across all three stores.

Behind the Bench, Sports

American sports go global

by Matias Plasencia Sanchez on

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American sports have leapt beyond borders, turning the world into their playground. At the forefront of this transition is the National Football League (NFL). In 2005, the NFL organized its first overseas game when the Arizona Cardinals faced off against the San Francisco 49ers at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The game brought over 103,000 fans in attendance—one of the largest crowds to watch a regular-season game in NFL history. 

In 2007, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the inauguration of the NFL International Series, which entailed regular season games played overseas every year. The goal was to increase the popularity of the sport outside of the U.S. by hosting games throughout Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. Increased social media usage has led the NFL to continue to grow in popularity, with searches for “NFL shop Europe” increasing 240 per cent outside of the U.S. over the past year.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has been playing seasonal games overseas for decades before the NFL. The first international game featuring an NBA team occurred in 1979 when the Washington Wizards, formerly the Washington Bullets, faced off against Maccabi Tel Aviv in Tel Aviv. While the NBA continued to host games abroad, their popularity did not surge until 1992 when Team USA won gold at the Barcelona Olympics. Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson—three of the greatest players in NBA history—teamed up for the first time to make up what is now known as the “dream team” of basketball. This team represented the skill of the NBA and introduced the league in Europe, increasing NBA viewership abroad.

Games played outside of the U.S. and Canada have the potential to earn sports associations tremendous amounts of money. Both leagues already rake in incredible sums each year, with the NBA making roughly $10.6 billion USD in revenue in the 2022-2023 season and the NFL making about $13 billion USD in 2023. Despite these high numbers, these leagues still hope for more. While the NFL’s International Series has yet to bring in substantial revenues, the league plans that it will pay off in the long run. Countries hosting these games may also reap long-term economic benefits, as some reports estimate each host city will have a turnover of around $40 million USD and has the potential to increase tourism.

Having American teams play regular season games overseas is not without its impacts. There are clear environmental drawbacks to hosting games abroad. For example, hosting international games contributes to more amounts of carbon dioxide emissions due to increased travel distances from teams, coaches, and spectators. During regular season games, the NFL contributes an average of 20.8 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide per game, making it the sport with the largest carbon footprint in major U.S. sports leagues. In comparison, the NBA emits the third largest carbon footprint:  13.7 metric tonnes per game. The NFL’s greater emissions are attributed to the larger distances between NFL venues in the U.S., compared to other major U.S. sports leagues with closer venues.  

Although both the NFL and the NBA have taken some steps to address these issues such as the NBA and NFL Green Initiatives. In addition to this, the NBA is focusing on reducing flight miles to games within the U.S., reducing travel miles by 11 per cent, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 39 per cent from the 2022-2023 season. These initiatives to reducing domestic mileage do not make up for the steep environmental impact that overseas games result in.

The globalization of American sports, particularly the NFL and the NBA, has brought significant financial benefits and increased international popularity, but these gains come at an environmental cost. As these leagues continue to expand their global reach, they must balance their economic ambitions with a greater commitment to environmental sustainability.

McGill, News

Protestors and Concordia University security clash at SPHR rally

by Shani Laskin on

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A student rally in support of Palestine resulted in tense interactions between protestors and Concordia University security on Sept. 12. The rally was organized in conjunction between chapters of Students for Palestine’s Honour and Resistance (SPHR) at McGill and Concordia—formerly known as Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights—and Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) Montreal. It began in front of the Arts Building at McGill and proceeded to various buildings at Concordia where it was met by tens of security officers.

At 1 p.m., nearly 100 protestors met and engaged in call-and-response chants to condemn Israel’s siege on Gaza and McGill’s response to student mobilization in recent months. Some slogans explicitly called out McGill President Deep Saini with protestors chanting, “Deep Saini, pick a side: justice or genocide.”

In a speech made to attendees, Alex*, a representative of SPHR at McGill, said the rally was a response to a call to action from National Students for Justice in Palestine which included picketing classes on campus. 

“We are here to remind Saini, [McGill Deputy Provost Fabrice] Labeau, and [McGill Interim Deputy Provost Angela] Campbell that there will be no business or classes as usual during a genocide,” Alex told the crowd. “The student movement has emerged out of this summer, stronger, more united, and more resilient. So to our administration, we tell you, remember, the power is with us […] and until we achieve full liberation and victory, long live the student intifada.”

Around 1:40 p.m., the group began making their way to Concordia’s Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Integrated Complex. There, tensions between protestors and Concordia University security guards bubbled as protestors continued chanting against the blockaded doors. 

After about 15 minutes, as the group moved to the Henry F. Hall Building, a group of security guards ran past to intercept them. Protestors began to run to get ahead of the security officers. Inside the building, chants of “cops off campus” echoed through the lobby as protestors tried to get past the security officer who blocked the escalators. Some protestors climbed over the escalator railing, forcing the guard to give in and ushering a wave of protestors to the second floor.

Protestors remained in the building for about 10 minutes, before going back outside to unveil a large banner which read “Dear McGill, you repress the students. This is how we respond: long live the student intifada.” Around 2:45 p.m., organizers dispersed the rally.

(Shani Laskin / The Tribune)

In a statement to The Tribune, Independent Jewish Voices McGill (IJV) condemned the continuous on-site police presence at pro-Palestine protests.

“Last Thursday, members of Concordia security called the police immediately on discovery of a picket that was disrupting class, and worked in tandem with the SPVM upon their arrival,” IJV wrote. “This continues a pattern of collaboration and militarization on our campuses that deeply endangers the student body. Universities like McGill and Concordia have claimed to care about creating ‘safe’ spaces for students, while simultaneously inviting police brutality onto campus.”

After McGill ordered the dismantling of the Palestine Solidarity Encampment in July, Saini wrote that the Board of Governors (BoG) Committee on Sustainability and Social Responsibility (CSSR) would “explore the question of divestment from direct investments in companies that derive a dominant portion of their direct revenues from the production of military weapons, regardless of the countries in which they operate.” To this end, McGill Secretary-General Edyta Rogowska sent an email on Sept. 11 with a webform for students and staff to offer their opinions on the question of divestment. The CSSR is expected to present their findings to the BoG in December 2024.

“McGill is moving forward on a range of measures that reflect our community’s challenges over the last year,” McGill’s Media Relations Office wrote to The Tribune. “All submissions will be read and carefully considered by the Board of Governors’ Committee on Sustainability and Social Responsibility and treated in the strictest confidence.” 

For some organizers on campus, this step is too little, too late.

“The email that was sent out […] is redundant after a year of students making their demands heard clearly,” Alex said in an interview with The Tribune. “Our demand for divestment is simple and achievable through already established processes. McGill could divest tomorrow if they chose to.”

*Alex’s name has been changed to preserve their anonymity.

Editorial, Opinion

Canada and McGill must confront their roles in eco-racism against Indigenous peoples 

by The Tribune Editorial Board on

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As the climate crisis steadily worsens in Canada, so do the livelihoods and environments of Indigenous peoples who bear the disproportionate brunt of its effects. Climate change is eroding both access to resources and foundations of Indigenous tradition, ritual, and history. These impacts on Indigenous communities are not incidental. They stem directly from systemic eco-racism, perpetuated by blatant disregard for Indigenous ownership of land and self-determination, as well as Canada’s prioritization of fossil fuel companies, infrastructure projects, and large public institutions such as McGill.

McGill prides itself on its cutting-edge sustainability models and practices, such as its carbon offset program, green roof agriculture, and an online sustainability module. The latest and most ostentatious claim to sustainability is McGill’s New Vic Project—an $870 million CAD renovation of the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) to extend McGill’s STEM and research facilities. McGill claims that this new infrastructure will be a hub for sustainability systems.

There is clear irony in a so-called “sustainability” project being built on stolen Indigenous land; these two realities cannot coexist. The RVH is built not only on unceded traditional Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) territory, but was also the site of violent, unethical psychiatric experiments conducted on Indigenous peoples as part of the MKULTRA project through McGill’s Allan Memorial Institute. The Mohawk Mothers are still in the midst of a legal battle with McGill to stop construction on the RVH site due to the possibility of unmarked graves on the land. However, despite its violent past and blatant disregard for the Indigenous history of the land, McGill stated just two weeks ago that the New Vic Project will move forward. 

Performative activism on the part of both McGill and Canada propagates the invisibility of the Indigenous lived experience of eco-racism. These perfunctory gestures are a convenient substitute for the complete paradigm shift required to move in the direction of eco-justice. In its Frequently Asked Questions page for the New Vic Project, McGill states that it is working towards “Indigenous physical representation” in the building’s design, mentioning the Mohawk Mothers’ legal battle without addressing the necessity for rethinking the project altogether.

The New Vic Project is just one of innumerable instances of eco-racism against Indigenous communities which are rendered invisible by Canadian institutions. The Aamjiwnaang First Nation people spoke out in April about the carcinogenic benzene poisoning on their land from the INEOS Styrolution chemical plant in Sarnia, Ontario. The company called the omissions a “concern,” but have no concrete plans to terminate or rectify their operations. Such acts of environmental racism treat Indigenous spaces as worthless and a waste of lucrative land, thus devaluing Indigenous culture itself. 

Eco-racism against Indigenous communities in Canada exposes the true extent of the climate crisis, which manifests as cultural and psychological crises in addition to purely environmental ones for the groups who are most affected. The dispossession of land, inability to honour ancestral history, and restrictions from essential natural resources are factors of the environmental crisis felt exclusively by Indigenous communities. However, the colonial attitude that deems Indigenous land and life as expendable also systematically excludes the acute environmental crises experienced by Indigenous peoples from the concept of the “climate emergency.”

Both McGill and Canada boast progressive efforts towards sustainability. However, no system of “sustainability” is—per McGill’s statement—“benefitting all of humanity” if it ignores the foundational ties that Indigenous peoples have to their land and resources, much of which is unceded and occupied by others.
The history of eco-violence and racism against Indigenous peoples at the hands of both McGill and Canada are insurmountable, and thus there are innumerable steps to be taken towards eco-justice. The federal government must aid in relocating Indigenous people who have experienced adverse effects from infrastructure, chemical poisoning, and other pollutants on their land. All projects and initiatives must be conducted hand-in-hand with Indigenous peoples and in line with their priorities. Indigenous sovereignty must be acknowledged and codified. There must be a pervasive awareness that these eco-violences are not just events in a racist, colonial past, but palpable and ongoing today.

Science & Technology

Telemedicine: A path to modernize healthcare for seniors

by K. Coco Zhang on

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The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the economy, society, and healthcare system. While this crisis has presented the healthcare delivery system with unprecedented challenges, it has catalyzed the rapid adoption of telemedicine—remote clinical services. 

Telemedicine allows patients to chat with healthcare professionals about their physical and mental health or receive a diagnosis via video or phone consultations. Although it has the potential to improve healthcare access and quality, its use may present unique challenges for older adults. 

In a recently published paper, Dr. Vladimir Khanassov, assistant professor in McGill’s Department of Family Medicine and Director of the Care of the Elderly Training Program, and his team investigated potential advantages and barriers to telemedicine use in primary care for older adults. They also proposed recommendations to improve older adults’ experiences with telemedicine.

“Unlike younger generations, it is often difficult for older adults to use technology, so my objective was to identify the barriers for the elderly patients to access telemedicine for issues that would sometimes require hours of wait in the emergency room, but when they have access to telemedicine, their problems should be solved in five to ten minutes,” Khanassov said in an interview with The Tribune.

Khanassov’s team found that most older adults preferred phone calls over video sessions for ease of use. Nonetheless, telephone consultations have several disadvantages.

Telephone consultations are restricted to verbal communication, meaning the physicians cannot observe the patient’s body language, facial expressions, and environment. This lack of visual contact can cause essential details to be overlooked and potentially result in diagnostic errors. 

However, telemedicine has certain limitations regardless of whether it is conducted over the phone or video.

“For example, it is difficult to treat abdominal pain in telemedicine because you have to touch the belly,” Khanassov said.

The study also highlighted miscommunication-related concerns due to language or hearing barriers.

“Language barrier is a significant challenge to telephone consultations because healthcare professionals cannot explain everything over the phone,” Khanassov said. “Elderly patients often have hearing problems, which make telephone consultations difficult. When they cannot fully understand questions, they cannot see the body language of the healthcare professional or make any visual contact.”

Furthermore, telephone consultations may be inconvenient for older adults with limited literacy or cognitive impairment, as they may struggle to effectively express their medical condition over the phone. 

Older adults also often encounter technical challenges associated with video consultations, such as internet connection problems, difficulties in handling video devices, and video quality issues.

“When you do a video call, there is usually a privacy statement that patients need to accept. The elderly patients sometimes do not see the button that they have to click to accept, so they cannot access video consultations, and that would create an obstacle,” Khanassov said.

Despite these disadvantages, patients interviewed in the study expressed several advantages associated with telemedicine, including maintaining continuity of care, saving time, reducing exposure to potential high-risk environments, and improving the patient-physician relationship. 

Not only does telemedicine benefit older patients, but it also helps improve the work efficiency of healthcare professionals.

“For nurses, telemedicine helps them to complete tasks more quickly. For example, they can assess the blood pressure over the phone because patients will take the blood pressure, write it down, and report it to the nurses who will then assess the numbers. This process would be more time-consuming if the consultation was in-person,” Khanassov said.

Khanassov also emphasized the importance of supporting older adults in navigating telemedicine platforms and highlighted future directions for telemedicine research.

“This study allows us to see that elderly patients appreciate telemedicine and would like to have access to telemedicine, so we just need to adjust the technology for them,” Khanassov said. “Based on the study, we most likely need to do more randomized, controlled trials to look at the difference in clinical outcomes of certain conditions for telemedicine versus in-person visits, such as the number of emergency visits and admissions.”

Student Life

Balancing your health and studies

by Yasmine Mkaddam on

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With the countless deadlines and exams progressively piling on your responsibilities, it can be difficult to maintain a healthy mind and body. These tricks and habits can help you balance your time and take on this new semester with confidence.

Taking care of your body

For your own success and comfort, it is crucial to maintain a healthy routine. It’s easy to lose track of eating, exercising, and sleeping during the semester, but trying to persevere through your studies while being malnourished, dehydrated, and sleep-deprived can make it even harder to succeed in your studies. 

It can be hard to stay on top of grocery shopping and cooking when the semester gets busy, but eating well brings up your energy levels and helps you feel your best. While access to healthy food is a luxury for many, the IRCGM offers services to find food banks close to you and groups like Food not Bombs offer balanced meals for anyone who needs them. On campus, Midnight Kitchen provides weekly vegan and nut-free meals to students in need each week. Also take a moment to check out The Cheap Sheet, a booklet created yearly by McGill Student Services, which lists affordable, reduced-price, and sometimes free options for goods like groceries, textbooks, and clothes. 

Keeping an eye on high-sugar drinks and caffeine intake is also important for your body’s well-being. These drinks are dehydrating and a large consumption can eventually create health issues such as diabetes, heart disease, and more. Opting for hydrating beverages with vitamins and electrolytes will give you more energy and help you carry yourself through the day. 

Giving your body rest by sleeping six to nine hours a night enhances your energy, mood, concentration, and your long-term memory. Taking a power nap of 20 to 30 minutes per day can also help you recover your energy during the day without the grogginess that can come with a longer midday nap.

Managing your mental health 

With summer giving way to the long Canadian winter, it can be hard to keep up your energy levels and positivity. To help maintain your spirits during the cold winter months, try to spend your personal time engaged in activities you enjoy. If you’re looking for new ways to get out of your home, McGill has countless social clubs and Montréal offers plenty of fun activities that can boost your serotonin. That said, accepting the low-motivation and low-energy days as well as acknowledging that your body and mind deserve care is a step that must not be overlooked. 

For students with mental illnesses or declining mental health, seeking support through therapy and healthy coping mechanisms is critical. The McGill Student Wellness Hub offers one-on-one appointments or online counsellors. 

Keeping track of your commitments

As lectures, labs, and assignments start to pile up, it’s easy to get lost in a sea of deadlines. Monitoring your responsibilities with a calendar and using a reminders app can help you be more productive and up-to-date. To-do lists can also help, although it’s worth spending some time to determine what method of keeping track of tasks best suits your personality and needs. 

Setting yourself attainable and realistic goals will help you maintain consistency in your projects and create a routine you can keep up with. It’s also important to keep an eye on what activities are making it more difficult to meet your goals. For instance, social media can suck up hours of your time without you realizing it: Tracking your screen time can help you learn how much time you’re spending on these platforms and how it’s impacting your life. Multitasking is a better option—like using your screen time or putting your music on blast while working out.

Science & Technology

From mountains to oceans: Climate change and ecosystem dynamics

by Jenna Durante on

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As the planet warms, natural dynamics are in constant flux, adjusting to the new environmental pressures imposed by climate change. From the depths of the oceans to the highest mountain peaks, the shift in species’ habitat ranges driven by changing temperatures and other climate factors is dramatically altering ecosystems across the globe. The movement of species impacts not just survival; it affects profound changes in biodiversity, ecosystems, and human livelihood. 

Jake Lawlor, a PhD candidate in biology at McGill, explores the effects of these changes in a recently published paper in Nature Reviews Earth and Environment. He highlights that a species’ range is the geographical area where it naturally exists, thrives, and reproduces. As climate change alters temperatures, precipitation patterns, and ecosystems, species shift their ranges to find suitable habitats. 

However, climate change does not affect all species in the same ways or to the same degree. 

“Some things that we think might affect species range shifts are what we call species traits; characteristics of the species and how they live and how they move that might allow them to keep up with temperature or not,” Lawlor said in an interview with The Tribune.

Many species shift at different speeds due to various factors like dispersal ability, competition for land, and resource availability. For instance, wind-dispersed plants can rapidly move to new areas, while marine invertebrates with limited mobility struggle to keep up with changing temperatures. Additionally, species interactions complicate these movements. Butterflies migrating up mountains may find their progress halted if their host plants cannot move upward quickly enough. 

“There’s some non-temperature factors, precipitation patterns, or humidity, or the number of hours of daylight as you go up latitude, that set limits on species,” Lawlor explained. “The hard thing about this is there’s a lot of variables that probably matter, and it’s kind of hard picking apart in specific cases, why a species isn’t shifting when we think it should.” 

The impacts of these range shifts are significant and multifaceted. On the one hand, they can help maintain biodiversity by allowing species to find new habitats. On the other hand, they have the potential to destabilize existing natural and human systems.

For example, species suited to warmer conditions will replace cold-adapted species, a phenomenon known as thermophilization. This disruption can upset ecological balances as seen with the expansion of the barren-forming urchin in Australia, which has devastated kelp forests, shifting mangrove species and altering coastal ecosystems. 

Lawlor also highlighted the effects range shifts have on human environments, altering human relationships with species. 

“Most of the relationships that humans have with species in general, whether it’s harvest species, medicinal species, resource species or economic species, […] were built under the assumption that species are going to stay where they are,” Lawlor explained. 

For example, fishers along the Atlantic coast of the US and Canada are facing the need to travel farther to catch the same species they once collected closer to shore. This shift requires adjustments in fishing practices, gear, and markets to account for the changing distribution of target species. 

Similarly, conservation strategies such as national parks and marine protected areas, originally designed to protect species within fixed boundaries, may become less effective as species move beyond these areas. Consequently, conservation plans need to be flexible to continue supporting biodiversity effectively.

Lawlor emphasized the importance of observing and adapting to these changes. 

“I think we should look around and observe the species that are with us here now,” Lawlor said. “For example, even the trees up and down the streets of Montréal have thermal tolerance ranges as well. So as the Earth keeps warming, all the species around us are going to change, and all the ways that we interact with our environments are going to change too.”

Science & Technology

Empowering perfectionist students with personalized support

by Lana Liquard on

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Perfectionism in students has become an epidemic. In today’s high-pressure society, younger generations are increasingly striving for unattainable standards, often at the expense of their mental health. Anxiety and depression are rising among students, especially in competitive academic environments like McGill University. 

David Dunkley, Associate Professor in McGill’s Department of Psychiatry and Department of Psychology and Senior Researcher at the Lady Davis Institute, recently published a paper in the American Psychological Association that sheds light on how targeted interventions may provide a lifeline for perfectionistic students. 

At the core of this study is the Perfectionism Coping Processes Model (PCPM), developed by Dunkley and his team to help participants better understand their daily emotional experiences. The novel intervention is the explanatory feedback intervention (EFI), which is a therapy session in which students receive personalized feedback based on their daily emotional experience. This intervention aims to support students with higher self-critical perfectionism. 

The goal is to increase self-awareness surrounding daily mood fluctuations and provide students with the best targets to handle high-stress situations. The structured feedback process helps individuals identify emotional patterns that lead to distress, empowering them to shift from avoidance strategies to more constructive coping mechanisms. 

Empowerment was one of the study’s key outcomes, with participants reporting feeling more informed, optimistic, and in control. Beyond feeling empowered, the intervention additionally improved participants’ coping skills. Specifically, it increased coping self-efficacy and encouraged problem-focused coping by actively addressing problems rather than avoiding them. A significant reduction in depressive and anxious symptoms was also observed, particularly because the intervention helped participants engage with their mental health more proactively. 

“[EFI] is an individualized intervention,” Dunkley said in an interview with The Tribune. “Often, interventions are one-size-fits-all. Self-help books [are] just giving people modules, things to work on, lots of which doesn’t apply to them.” 

The study highlights how tailored interventions, like the EFI, offer a more effective solution for perfectionistic individuals who might not benefit from generic approaches. 

“Streamlining interventions is critical, [as] perfectionistic people have negative help-seeking attitudes and don’t tolerate interventions they don’t need,” Dunkley said. 

The power of this research lies in its advocacy for individuals to become their own agents in addressing their mental health support. 

“Let’s try to see how the person can help themselves, because they need to do that anyway,” Dunkley emphasized. 

This approach differs from more traditional treatments like medication, by focusing on teaching patients how to navigate their daily lives and improve their mood gradually.

In addition, the study has significant clinical implications. EFI provides students with individualized feedback, helping them gain a deeper understanding of themselves, demystifying their mental health needs. 

As one of the study’s key strengths, EFI “fast-tracks” treatment. Therapists often need several sessions to begin understanding a patient’s needs, especially if that patient is introverted. With the EFI, therapists can cover in one session what would normally be covered in multiple. 

“If [the patient] already has something that shows them what they need to work on and explains it in a way that’s more constructive and destigmatizing, then hopefully they will be more open to and better informed to seek treatment,” Dunkley said. 

Looking ahead, Dunkley and his team hope this type of intervention will become available to McGill students through the Student Wellness Hub. 

Dunkley is launching a follow-up study in September, incorporating a new model, the Perfectionism and Emotion Regulation Processes Model (PERPM) with the PCPM framework, focusing on emotional regulation in perfectionism.

Ultimately, this study shows how a single-session intervention like EFI can significantly impact  students struggling with perfectionism. This intervention is broadly applicable and has the potential to benefit anyone facing similar challenges. 

By helping individuals understand their mental health in a personalized and empowering way, this research opens the door to more effective, streamlined mental health treatments that could transform how we approach perfectionism and other mental health challenges students face.

McGill, News

Law faculty union suspends its strike on Friday, resumes on Monday

by Ghazal Azizi on

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The Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) has been periodically on strike since April 24, 2024. The union, which represents tenured and tenure-track professors at the Faculty of Law, received its certification in November 2022, after a year-long legal battle with McGill at Quebec’s Tribunal administratif du travail (TAT). After more than a year at the bargaining table, McGill and AMPL have yet to arrive at a collective agreement (CA) and the university continues to challenge the union’s certification with an appeal case at the TAT. 

On Sept. 12, AMPL announced that it had suspended its strike to extend “an olive branch” to the university and would return to work on the condition that McGill drop its judicial review of AMPL’s certification by Sunday, Sept. 15. Since the university has decided to maintain its case against the union, AMPL has resumed its strike, effective Sept. 16. 

In August, the university filed a request for arbitration, which Minister of Labour Jean Boulet granted, appointing Maître Jean Allard. After the appointment of an arbitrator, each side must choose an assessor—an advisor who works with the arbitrator—and have a pre-meeting with Allard. If the arbitrator concludes that there is no possibility of a resolution, then Allard would order interest arbitration—a formal court process at which point any ongoing strike must end. However, the union believes that McGill’s request for arbitration is driven by an intent to de-accredit the union. 

“The wheels of justice turn very slowly,” AMPL Vice President Kirsten Anker said in an interview with The Tribune. “If McGill was hoping to use arbitration as a shortcut to ending the strike without making any concessions to us, that plan is not going to happen […], which, of course, means that the semester will be at risk by that stage.”

According to Anker, when the university failed to attend a scheduled negotiation meeting during the summer, AMPL offered to forego a strike and accept arbitration on the CA’s monetary issues if McGill ended its judicial review case. AMPL believes the university’s ongoing challenge to its certification is an attempt to drain the union’s funds and morale rather than overturning the TAT’s decision, given they find McGill’s chances of winning the appeal to be low.  

“There are different ways to win in a legal battle and this is what we think the judicial review campaign is about, to either win outright on the law or continue with appeals and challenges […] that would exhaust us,” Anker said.

In solidarity with AMPL, representatives from the Canadian Association of University Teachers, the Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill, and Concordia University Professional Employees Union attended and spoke at the union’s rally on Sept. 11 in front of the James Administration Building. At the rally, AMPL Secretary Richard Janda reissued the union’s offer from the summer. 

“We accept arbitration on all monetary matters so [they] are off the table if you accept our existence. Accept our existence, stop this proceeding before the courts and let’s put into a collective agreement all the non-monetary matters we’ve agreed upon,” Janda said in his speech. “This isn’t about money, folks [….] This is about governance. This is about trying to make the university again a collegial institution.” 

The union says “the humanitarian suspension” of its strike, which they announced the day after the rally, arose as a goodwill gesture that the union is open to returning to work and as an attempt to draw attention to its offer.

“We reissued the offer on the understanding that if it’s not accepted by noon on Sunday, then we’ll go back on strike,” Anker said. “So it’s partly […] adjusted towards the administration. It’s also adjusted towards students because in particular, there are some time-sensitive processes [such as] getting forms in for graduate students, contracts for research assistants and setting them up with work.”

Shortly after the clock struck noon, on Sunday, Sept.15, AMPL announced through their social media channels that its strike’s hiatus had expired, given the university had disregarded the union’s offer. 

“The things that we cared about were refused,” Anker said. “So they did not agree to abandon their judicial review. The only thing that they did offer was to have an expedited […] schedule with the arbitrator.”

In an earlier statement to The Tribune on Sept.13, the McGill Media Relations Office (MRO) expressed content with AMPL’s decision to suspend its strike and said the university is eager to discuss the union’s concerns in the presence of the arbitrator. However, in response to The Tribune’s request for an explanation on why the university had yet to drop its judicial review case against AMPL, the MRO restated the university’s ongoing stance that a single-faculty union is too small of a bargaining unit. 

“McGill counts more than 1,700 professors whose appointment, tenure, salary, sabbatical leaves, and retirement are subject to the same regulations. If subsets as small as 42 or so professors, as in AMPL’s case, unionize and negotiate collective agreements, we could see over a dozen new unions join McGill’s current 16,” the MRO wrote in an email. 

“Labour relations at McGill would become unmanageably complex, cumbersome, and costly. […] Challenging the description of AMPL’s bargaining unit is not about opposing the unionization of professors. It is about protecting the future of McGill as an equitable and unionized employer,” the MRO continued.

The MRO also stressed McGill’s efforts to mitigate the strike’s effects on the student body and named some of its measures to ensure law students can complete their fall semesters. 

“The Dean of Law […] has been holding weekly Zoom sessions so that he and the Associate Dean (Academic) can take live questions from students and receive their concerns,” the MRO wrote. “Public information and measures we’ve taken are also posted on a dedicated webpage. Other measures taken included working with the Registrar’s office on ways to extend the add/drop period, allowing for late payment of fees without penalty, and providing optional sessions offered by the Dean and alumni.”

Anker told The Tribune that Provost and Executive Vice-President (Academic), Christopher Manfredi is now the negotiation lead on McGill’s end. To Anker, this is a hopeful sign that a resolution may be on the horizon.

She also reiterated that in any strike or labour dispute, third parties are the most affected. 

“Strikes are inconvenient,” Anker said. “That is the only power lever that unions have against their employers, and there are always third parties who are affected. And we feel that, and we know that it’s just [about] the minimization.” 

Anker touched on the community’s concerns that the union’s strike has had impacts on incoming and returning law students. She stressed that AMPL’s negotiations with McGill will pave the way for other faculty unions.. 

“Students don’t necessarily understand the full picture of this yet, if they’re just focusing on the narrow […] legal arguments,” Anker said. “You can lose a litigation, but win in a broader strategic sense, and getting parties to spend money and time and energy on something is part of the strategy.”

“If [students think] that it’s going to stop at the lower level court, perhaps they’ve misunderstood what the project is here, because it’s not going to stop there on the McGill side. [….] And if, by any chance, we fall on a judge who doesn’t understand labour law, or [one who] sympathizes with McGill, then that’s the end of our union movement,” Anker continued. “Framing [the strike] as […] inconveniencing students […] as if it’s some minor thing […] misrepresents what’s at stake here.”

A previous version of this article mis-attributed a quote about the union’s reissued offer to McGill to AMPL Secretary Richard Janda. In fact, the speaker was AMPL Vice President Kirsten Anker. The Tribune regrets this error.

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