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Students for sustainability campus tour
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
The following speakers will be participating in BC stops of the Students for Sustainability Campus Tour.
Mr. Stephen Lewis
United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa
Stephen Lewis is a Canadian politician, broadcaster and diplomat. He is
currently Social Science Scholar-in-Residence at McMaster University, having
recently completed his term as United Nations special envoy for HIV/AIDS in
Africa.
In his role as Special Envoy, he worked to draw attention to the HIV/AIDS
crisis and to convince leaders and the public of their responsibility to respond.
He has been widely praised for his effectiveness in this role. He delivered the
annual Massey Lectures in 2005 which have been published in book form
under the title ‘Race Against Time’.
!The book consists of five lectures that depict the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa, critically examining the
international community’s passivity as a contributing factor. In 2005 he adapted his Massey Lectures in a book
titled “Race Against Time”, where he describes the disjuncture between what the international community
promises and their actions in responding to the pandemic in Africa. He recently expanded on the scope of his
lectures to include the effects of global warming, such as increases in Malaria carrying mosquitoes, and other
tropical diseases, on those most vulnerable, citizens of developing countries. Mr. Lewis currently heads the
Stephen Lewis Foundation, a charitable organization that helps people affected and infected by HIV/AIDS in
Africa.
Date(s): UBC–Point Grey (Vancouver), October 29.
Severn Suzuki
Founder, The SkyFish Project & Director, The David Suzuki Foundation
!
Severn Suzuki is an environmental activist, speaker, television host and
author. She has spoken around the world about environmental issues, urging
listeners to define their values, act with the future in mind, and take individual
responsibility.
Severn Suzuki attended the Earth Summit in Rio De Janeiro, in 1992, after
raising money with members of the Environmental Children’s Organization,
a group she founded. In early 2002, Suzuki helped launch an Internet-based
think tank called The Skyfish Project.
As a member of Kofi Annan’s Special Advisory Panel, she and members of the
Skyfish Project brought their first project, a pledge called the “Recognition of Responsibility,” to the UN
World Summit in Johannesburg in August 2002.
Date(s): UBC–Okanagan (Kelowna), October 28; UBC–Point Grey (Vancouver), October 29; University of
Victoria (Victoria), October 30.
Students for sustainability campus tour
Brendan Brazier
Best Selling Author, The Thrive Diet, Creator of VEGA Nutritional Products
Brendan Brazier is one of only a few professional athletes in the world whose diet is 100 percent plantbased. He’s a professional Ironman triathlete, bestselling author on performance nutrition, and the
creator of an award-winning line of whole food nutritional products called VEGA. He is also a two-time
Canadian 50km Ultra Marathon Champion.
Nominated in 2006 for the Manning Innovation Award, Canada’s most prestigious award for innovation,
Brendan was shortlisted for the formulation of Vega. In 2006, Brendan also was invited to address US
Congress on Capitol Hill, where he spoke of the significant social and economic benefits that could
be achieved by improving personal health through better diet. The focus of his speech was to draw
attention to the role that food plays in the prevention of most chronic diseases currently plaguing North
Americans.
In 2007 Brendan returned to Capital Hill to lobby against the Farm Bill and was named one of the most
25 Fascinating Vegetarians by VegNewsmagazine
Brendan has become a renowned speaker and sought-after presenter throughout North America,
helping individuals and businesses thrive by sharing his dietary stress-busting program, The Thrive Diet.
Date(s): UBC–Okanagan (Kelowna), October 28; UBC–Point Grey (Vancouver), October 29; University of
Victoria (Victoria), October 30.
Yasmin Gow
Founder, Practice Bliss, Yoga Instructor
Yasmin was introduced to yoga, meditation and holistic healing as a child. Trained in traditional ashtanga
yoga and by senior Iyengar instructors, she has taught yoga on four continents, instructed professional
athletes, created two yoga CDs and owns Om West, a Montreal studio. Forever fascinated by natural
miracles and by life’s daily custodial dances, Yasmin is also a passionate environmentalist, writer and
filmmaker with a degree in communications and journalism.
Date(s): UBC–Okanagan (Kelowna), October 28; UBC–Point Grey (Vancouver), October 29; University of
Victoria (Victoria), October 30.
Students for sustainability campus tour
the goals
The goals of the campaign are to:
¨¨ Mobilise Canadian students to take action in the fight to combat climate
change.
¨¨ Lobby the Federal government to take concrete steps to:
hh increase federal funding for public transit to improve accessibility and
service, and adopt initiatives to encourage its use;
hh meet our Kyoto commitments and re-establish Canada as an
international leader in post-Kyoto climate negotiations;
hh adopt official sustainability standards for new public
buildings andrequire energy audits and energy
efficient standards (such as Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design) for all public buildings;
hh invest in the study and implementation of
renewable energy to reduce Canada’s reliance
on non-renewable carbon-intensive energy
sources;
hh commit to funding sustainable initiatives on
university and college campuses; and
hh adopt measures to minimize the impacts of
climate change on people and ecosystems here
and abroad.
¨¨ Highlight the ways in which students can reduce their
carbon footprint at home and on their campuses.