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"Canada and September 11th:
Impact and Responses"
Symposium, September 18, 2002

The purpose of the Symposium: Canada and September 11th Impact and Responses is to discuss and document the broad impact of the events of September 11th, 2001 on Canadian society with special focus on:

The Symposium will bring together diverse leaders and citizens from a variety of backgrounds to comment on, explore, analyse, and articulate the impact of these events for the future of Canada. We hope to enable participation of students in experiential learning events and their impact on their country's culture and communities by providing students in Canadian Studies, Development Studies, Northern Studies and Communications Studies with relevant and current perspectives affecting their culture.

The innovative nature of this symposium arises from its interdisciplinarity and relevance.  Interdisciplinary studies do not just include the various social sciences; it includes partners from civil society organisations, corporations and government working to build bridges.  This symposium incorporates multiple lines of discourse as well as the meaningful involvement of leaders of development agencies, policy makers, scholars, private sector, students and community members, represents such a paradigm shift.  Interdisciplinarity provides a vehicle for critical analysis outside of disciplinary boundaries, ultimately creating a common language of understanding among researchers, communities, policy makers and society as a whole.  This symposium will use interdisciplinarity in the service of understanding effective community responses to dramatic global change.

Speakers

Frederick McDonald is a Woodland Cree artist born in Fort McMurray, Alberta. Until his late teens he lived along the Athabasca River following the traditional Aboriginal way of life; hunting and trapping. After finishing high school, he worked as a pipe fitter in the oil industry for fifteen years. He left this work and his home to travel to different parts of the world when he realized that he needed something else in his life. He then began to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1990, eventually leading to completing a Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Calgary.
Ejike Ohuegbe is the Corporate Diversity Advisor for Shell Canada Limited,  one of the largest integrated petroleum companies in Canada. Shell Canada has its headquarters in Calgary and employs more than 3,700 people across the country.
Andrew Rippin is currently the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Victoria as well as a Professor of History and specialist in Islamic Studies. Dr Rippin has interest in the Qur'an and the history of its interpretation.
Haroon Siddiqui. A highly respected journalist and columnist at The Toronto Star, Haroon Siddiqui writes a twice-weekly column that explores Canada's role in the global village. He has challenged Canadians to rethink outmoded clichés and stereotypes of immigrants and minorities. He has visited more than 40 countries, bringing a worldly perspective to Canadian life. In 2001, York University conferred on him an honorary doctorate.
Trudy Govier is a philosopher, author and popular speaker who lives and works in Calgary, Canada. She is widely known for her dynamic, accessible style of speaking and writing, and her passionate advocacy of reasoned responses to conflict. Govier was a co-organizer, with Carol Prager, of the highly successful conference, Dilemmas of Reconciliation, offered under the auspices of Calgary's Institute for the Humanities in June, 1999.
James Keeley received his BA (Hons.) from the University of Manitoba, and his MA and Ph.D. from Stanford University. He is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science, a Resident Fellow at the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, and Director of the Faculty of Social Sciences Bachelor of Arts program in International Relations at the University of Calgary. His research and teaching interests include nuclear non-proliferation, international regimes, international law and international political economy. 
Janice Eisenhauer is a co-founding member of the Canadian solidarity group, Women for Women in Afghanistan.  W4W Afghan was founded in 1996 and members work towards raising awareness in Canada and supporting human rights for Afghan women. Janice has an Honour's BA Degree in International Development Studies from the University of Calgary. She completed her honour's thesis in 1999, which focused on the empowerment of women in Afghanistan.  Janice has traveled extensively and has a goal of supporting the solidarity efforts of Afghan women through the education and involvement of Canadian women.
David Kilgour, a lawyer by training, is a Member of Parliament for Edmonton Southeast and Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific). A frequent commentator and author, Minister Kilgour has written three books: Uneasy Patriots: Western Canadians in Confederation; Inside Outer Canada; and Betrayal: The Spy Canada Abandoned.