Friday, January 25, 2019

Warriors Think Pink Campaign a slam dunk

This is an excerpt of an article originally published on the Athletics and Recreation website.

The 11^th annual Think Pink campaign was once again a huge success for the Department of Athletics and Recreation. The annual event held during the month of November is an important fundraising and awareness campaign that touches many across campus who have been affected by breast cancer.

This year the campaign raised over $15,782.26 for the Breast Cancer Cause at the Canadian Cancer Society (formerly the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation), making it an incredible 11-year total of $229,703.29 raised for the cause.

"Our campus really gets behind the Think Pink movement and our students become driving forces behind our fundraising efforts," mentioned marketing, events and outreach manager Jenny Mackay.

"It's not only about the money raised but about the awareness the campaign brings to the cause and I am very proud of our efforts to help advance the research for Breast Cancer. From our students to our staff to the community, everyone seems to rally around Think Pink."

The Think Pink campaign originated from the U SPORTS women's basketball coaches association and expanded to a department wide initiative that runs on a yearly basis. Many schools across Canada have taken on this initiative and have provided thousands of dollars in donations to the CBCF.
 
Throughout the month of November the athletics marketing team put on a series of events to attract students and fans to varsity games and Warrior Recreation programming to help raise money and awareness.  Fans and students were treated to six different varsity games, a 3-on-3 indoor soccer tournament, and many more fundraising initiatives. 

Read the rest of the article on the Athletics website.

Arts professors will talk about the Doomsday Clock

Tick tock. Next Tuesday, experts from the University of Waterloo will be discussing how to rewind the Doomsday Clock, a widely recognized indicator of global threats from nuclear weapons, climate change, and disruptive technologies. 

"In 1947 the Doomsday Clock was established as a universal metaphor to illustrate how close we were to losing control of civilization-destroying technologies developed during and after the Second World War," writes writes Sam Toman in an article featured on Waterloo Stories. "Originally set at seven minutes to midnight, by 1953, the clock had ticked down to two-minutes to midnight as tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States heated up."

"Since 1947 the Doomsday Clock has been set backward and forward 23 times," writes Toman. "Two-minutes to midnight being the grimmest in 1953 and in 2018, and an optimistic seventeen minutes to midnight in 1991."

At a press conference in Washington DC yesterday, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, the group of scientists trusted to set the Doomsday Clock, announced that the clock was holding steady at two minutes to midnight in 2019, calling it "the new abnormal."

Dean of Arts Doug Peers will moderate a panel discussion entitled "Turning Back the Doomsday Clock" with fellow Faculty of Arts scholars including Alexander Lanoszka of Political Science, Andrew McMurry of English Language and Literature, and Kate Henne of Sociology and Legal Studies to understand the real threats and possible actions for turning back the clock.

All are welcome and the event is free to attend. Register on Ticketfi. Learn more on the Faculty of Arts website.

The free event takes place on Tuesday, January 29 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in the theatre of the Kitchener Public Library. Set your watches.

Last call at the Bombshelter and other notes

It's closing time at the Bombshelter, and the pub is going out with a bang this weekend. After nearly 40 years as the University's favourite student-run bar and restaurant, The Bomber will be closing its doors as the Federation of Students evaluates new ways to "revitalize the space and enhance the student experience."

The pub became a permanent fixture in the Campus Centre (the forerunner to today's ever-expanding Student Life Centre) in the mid-1970s, given the utilitarian name "Campus Centre Pub." The Federation of Students began operating the pub in 1976 after a management agreement was inked with the University, and in 1980 the Feds Students' Council passed a resolution naming it the Bombshelter Pub. In keeping with the theme, the adjacent restaurant, formerly the Wild Duck Café, was renamed Ground Zero in 1997 (the space has been occupied by the SLC Tim Hortons since 2004). The pub was immortalized in the pages of Douglas Coupland's 1995 novel Microserfs.

In December 2018, the Federation of Students announced that the Bombshelter in its current form would close and be retooled as a social space for students.

The Feds have invited alumni and friends back to the Bomber for two intimate farewell events on Saturday, January 26, the first from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the second from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Attendees will enjoy classic Bomber snacks, drinks, and live music, and receive a farewell souvenir.

"Join Director Ryan Jacobs and the Print + Retail Solutions team on Monday, January 28 to celebrate the launch of our new brand!" says a note from Print + Retail Solutions. "Catch a glimpse of our new logo and website, enjoy a hot drink courtesy of Food Services, and be the first to check out our brand new clothing lines!"

The event begins in the South Campus Hall concourse at 9:30 a.m. with remarks from President Feridun Hamdullahpur, Project Lead and Strategist of The Build Mike Magnacca, and Director of Print + Retail Solutions Ryan Jacobs. At 9:45 a.m. the logo will be revealed and the ribbon cut, followed by refreshments at 9:50 a.m. "We hope to see you there!" says Print + Retail Solutions.

"Parking Services is moving!" says a note from Parking Services. "As of February 4, you can find us with Key Control in GSC 1112. To help facilitate this move, Parking Services will be closed on Friday, February 1 at noon and reopen at Monday, February 4 at noon.