The University of Alberta Make Poverty History student group works to
engage the students, faculty members, and staff about the unbelievable
scale of poverty worldwide. By harnessing this awareness, the group
hopes to generate pressure on the federal government and local
political leaders into taking action to eradicate extreme poverty. The
MPH group is also recruiting other social justice groups on campus to
help run the campaign and to increase its reach exponentially.

Please contact us by using the e-mail link below, directly at mph.uofa@ualberta.ca, or join us on Facebook.

February 19, 2009

Carleton University just recently passed their DFU petition (February 13, 2009)
and they are going to be supporting a Millennium Village with their own
student fees!! $6/year per student will be going toward this!!

Check this story for more background info on the DFU and petition: http://www.charlatan.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=21360&Itemid=152
Or this story to learn about the group behind this: http://www.endextremepoverty.ca/projects.html

We are now planning to try and implement our own petition to support a
Millennium Village!! Along with the major post-secondary schools in
Alberta (University of Calgary, University of Lethbridge, King`s
College, Grant MacEwan, NAIT), we would like to see each school have
their own DFU for a village. It costs roughly $1.5 million over five
years to support a village. The average size of a village is 5,000
people, making the funds required around $60 per person per year, or
$300,000 per village.

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May 29, 2009

We are still in the process of recruiting coordinators to help us organize this year's STAND UP event. We hope to work with the Millennium Campus Network to push North America to its limits with the STAND.

You can contact our volunteer coordinator, Malori Stan, at mgstan@ualberta.ca or over Facebook if you are interested.

Check our Facebook group also (PLEASE don't join unless you have been confirmed as a coordinator). [http://www.facebook.com/board.php?uid=41652647483]

Here is a list of positions still available:

1. NGO's/Social Justice Groups

This coordinator will work to recruit approximately 20 poverty focused Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) and grassroots social justice groups to setup in the NGO tent and be liaison between those groups, the greater social justice community, and the event coordinators.

2. Food/Drink

This coordinator will research food/drink to accommodate the STAND crowd and make them more comfortable during the event. Consult with Capital Health on their sanitary requirements, deal with other groups who may also wish to bring eatables. Ensure that BBQ's are properly run and supplies acquired.

3. Performers

This coordinator will work to find a few (3-5) interesting and inspiring performers to place in between speeches.

4. Academic Groups

This coordinator will work to recruit approximately 10 poverty focused academic groups to setup in the Academic tent and be liaison between those groups and the event coordinators.

5. Digital Displays/Sound

This coordinator will find large electronic displays for outdoor use and to find a good sound system also for outdoor use. In addition, you will also help coordinate the entertainment on the screens such as PowerPoints, live feeds, thank you's or music playlists.

6. University Staff Invitations

This coordinator will invite as many University Staff as possible. Find names of janitors, professors, heads of faculty, deans, etc. until everyone has received an email, visit, phone call or letter inviting (several times if need be) to see if they can make it, or pass on the word.

7. Government Organizations (Tent)

This coordinator will work to recruit approximately 10 poverty focused Governmental Organizations (GO's) to setup in the GO tent and be liaison between those groups, the greater Government community, and the event coordinators.

8. Businesses (Tent)

This coordinator will work to recruit approximately 10 poverty focused or socially responsible businesses to setup in the Businesses tent and be liaison between those groups, the greater business community, and the event coordinators.

9. Political Leaders

This coordinator will work to invite and convince as many politicians (local & federal, incumbents and candidates) to attend the event as possible.

10. Whiteboarding/Chalkboarding

This coordinator will order and use rolls of white wrap to wrap tree trunks in a symbolic whiteband (wrap only once around). Wrap as many trees as possible starting with QUAD and working outwards.

11. Class Canvassing

This coordinator will work to organize volunteers to speak in front of classrooms inviting entire classes to the event and telling them about the scale of poverty in the world and in Canada.

12. Appreciation

This coordinator will work to ensure that everyone who dedicated any amount of time for the event is recognized particularly volunteers and coordinators.

13. Keynote Speakers

This coordinator will work to find three inspiring and relevant speakers for the event and one main keynote speaker to deliver the STAND Pledge.
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NEWS NEWS NEWS:

-STAND 2009 has been officially set for between midnight October 16 - midnight October 18. Our event will be held on Friday October 16.

-It looks like we could choose to start an entirely new Millennium Village somewhere in one of the 12 clusters in Africa if we secure the 1.5 million dollars to support a village over the next 5 years. We're wondering if our proposed referendum implemented fee is strong enough to constitute a guarantee.

-A message has been sent out to the University of Alberta Dean of Students, professors, and upper university management staff about the frustrations with the lack of support from the faculty side when it comes to global citizenship, Make Poverty History, the Millennium Development Goals, and communication between students and staff in general.

-Facilities Management at the University has suddenly declined to help us get the crane into Quad for the pumpkin drop. They do not site any reasons why anymore as we have overcome or found solutions to their concerns up to this point.

-The Constitution has been updated. Pending changes will be agreed upon soon.

-President Indira Samerasekera will be delivering the Poverty Pledge at noon for our STAND event!! This has been a key goal of ours for the last two years and we're excited to have achieved it!!

With the U of A President coming, we have also begun working to get
Dr. Jeffrey Sachs to attend as well to begin promoting the Millennium
Villages for the referendum in March 2010. To encourage him to come we
are discussing:

1. An Honorary Degree for him from the University of Alberta
2. A tour of the Tar Sands
3. A collaboration between our University, the Columbia Earth Institute and
the U of A's Centennial Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies.

Contact with the President to begin working out logistics for the Honorary
degree still need to be solidified, but Greenpeace and other
environmentalists are being contact to see if we can get the tour (to
which Sachs requested of the International Centre who tried to invite
him in previous years).

There is also great hope for the 3rd point as noted here with a Dutch University:

http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2008/1000936/index.html
 

LINKS:

Make Poverty History Edmonton Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2385879527

STAND 2009 Coordinators Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=41652647483

Sign on to our listserv!!

http://www.mailman.srv.ualberta.ca/mailman/listinfo/mph

Upcoming Edmonton (University of Alberta) Events

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