NSAC E-Bulletin

Please forward your submissions to the NSAC E-Bulletin to the newsdesk at (news@nsac.ca). for inclusion in the next edition, which run on Monday and Thursday of each week. Remember you can post notices anytime on the NSAC Forums at http://nsac.ca/forums

NSAC's Marketing and Communications Website Launch

NSAC’s marketing and communications team is working to develop a Marketing and Communications website. The site will provide you access to useful tools and information about NSAC’s marketing, public relations, alumni relations, development and web services. It will also provide you with information on the many marketing and communications services we provide, such as our graphic standards, media and web policies, key messages and more. For the next few weeks, there will be an article in each edition of E-Bulletin that will explain different tools you will find on the new site. If you have any questions about the concepts presented to you over the upcoming weeks, please contact Sarah Morris at 893-6527 or Stephanie Rogers at 893-7247.

Atlantic Environment and Invasive Plants – Who, What, When, Where, Why, and Weeds

- Looking into collaborative possibilities for managing invasive plants
- Atlantic Canada workshop to consider and enhance collaboration for managing invasive plants

Date: September 26-27, 2007
Location: Truro, Nova Scotia (Agritech Park)

Objectives:
(1) Discuss the current situation on the issue of invasive plants (including aquatic plants) in Atlantic Canada
(2) Explore possibilities and opportunities for moving forward collaboratively on the issue of invasive plants.

Confirmed speakers include Gail Wallin, Executive Director of the Invasive Plant Council of British Columbia, and Sean Blaney, Botanist and Assistant Director of the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre. Ms. Wallin will facilitate discussions on topics related to collaboration and provide a Canadian example of a collaborative model, while Mr. Blaney will provide an overview of exotics and invasive plants in the Maritimes.

NSAC Career Fair ‘07

Book Launch at the Glooscap Cultural Centre

On Thursday October 4, 2007 at 7:00 p.m., the Glooscap Cultural Centre is pleased to host the launch of a new book, "The Stone Canoe" written by Peter Sanger and illustrated by Alan Syliboy. There will be a reading by the author as well as a opportunity to visit the centre. Light refreshments will be served. Admission to the centre is free for the occasion, but donations would be appreciated.

The Stone Canoe | Two Lost Mi'kmaq Texts
by Elizabeth Paul & Peter Sanger, with illustrations by Alan Syliboy

October 2007 | Literary Criticism | $29.95 CAN | $26.95 US
1554470439 | 9781554470433 | Trade Paper

This is a story about two stories and their travels through the written record. The written part begins in the mid-nineteenth century, when Silas T. Rand, a Baptist clergyman from Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, took as his task the translation of the Bible into Mi’kmaq – the language of the indigenous communities in the region. In the process of developing his vocabulary, Rand transcribed narratives from Mi’kmaq storytellers. Until recently, it appeared that none of the early transcriptions in the original Mi’kmaq had survived. Then, in 2003, poet and essayist Peter Sanger uncovered two manuscripts among the Rand holdings in the library at Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. At the heart of The Stone Canoe are the two stories, including Rand’s published versions, along with new translations and transliterations by Elizabeth Paul, a Mi'kmaq speaker and teacher of the Eskasoni First Nation. Both are among the earliest examples of indigenous Canadian literature recorded in their original language; the 1847 transcript being perhaps the earliest. Their publication in The Stone Canoe makes a significant contribution to our understanding of Mi’kmaq storytelling and indigenous Canadian literature. The book also includes illustrations by Mi'kmaq artist Alan Sylliboy.

Author Biographies

Elizabeth Paul was born in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. She grew up and presently lives in Eskasoni, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Paul is one of the most prominent and active figures in Mi’kmaq language studies. She received a B. Ed. in Elementary Education from the University of New Brunswick in 1984 and since then has been engaged in formal Mi’kmaq language training as an instructor, language consultant and curriculum developer. She has frequently taught Mi’kmaq at Cape Breton University, St. Francis Xavier University and St. Thomas University.

Peter Sanger has published seven collections of poetry, including Earth Moth (1991) and Arborealis (2005), a collaborative project with photographer Thaddeus Holownia. His recent prose work includes White Salt Mountain: Words in Time (GP, 2005) and Spar: Words in Place (GP, 2002). His most recent publication is a collection of poetry entitled Aiken Drum (GP, 2006). Sanger has been the poetry editor of The Antigonish Review since 1985. He lives in South Maitland, Nova Scotia.

Alan Syliboy was born in Truro, Nova Scotia. His interest in the visual arts developed while he was still a child. Through his grandfather and his grandfather’s friends he learned something of traditional Mi’kmaq craftsmanship. Later, Syliboy's talents as a painter and printmaker were encouraged by the Mi’kmaq art teacher Shirley Bear. Since the mid 1970s Alan Syliboy’s paintings, drawings and design work have been recognized as a unique contribution to Canadian cultural life. In 2002, Syliboy was recipient of The Queen’s Golden Jubilee medal for artistic achievement.

Adult Learner Award

Upcoming Opportunities for Students

October 3rd:
5 p.m. Cox 261 Cuba Agro-Eco Study Tour
6 p.m. Cox 261 opportunities in the United States, Mexico and Norway

October 4th:
6 p.m. Banting Building (Engineering)
INTD2001 Agricultural Systems of Central Europe

October 23rd:
6 p.m. Banting Building (Engineering)
INTD2001 Agricultural Systems of Central Europe

November 7th:
6 p.m. Banting Building (Engineering)
INTD2001 Agricultural Systems of Central Europe

Bring a friend and any questions you may have!
Watch out for other advertisements for:
- fourth year projects in Ethiopia;
- ECON 2000 Environmental Economics in Czech Republic;
- INTD2000 Food Systems in the Tropic in Dominican Republic

For more information, check our website nsac.ca/international or our bulletin boards located in Cox or Haley. Please feel free to contact Mark Mason, International Student and Exchange Coordinator, mmason@nsac.ca.

New Staff Member to Join HR

Work Well Performance Management and Career Development Planning Sessions

On behalf of the Deputy Minister, the Work Well Team is pleased to announce three additional Performance Management and Career Development Planning sessions are being offered by the Resources HR CSU for the Departments of Agriculture and Fisheries and Aquaculture staff. These sessions are aimed at providing the tools to managers and employees to take charge of their own career development.

October 16 - Truro, Riverview Room, Jenkins Hall, NSAC - 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
October 22 - Truro, Riverview Room, Jenkins Hall, NSAC - 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
November 1- Halifax, CSU-Resources Training Room - 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

The sessions are designed to involve all staff and we strongly encourage your attendance if you have not already attended a previous session held in May and June.

Please see click here for an overview of the Career Planning and Performance Measurement Workshop.

If you require additional information please call or e-mail one of the following from the HR Initiatives Subcommittee:
Pam Osborne - 424-5669; osbornpr@gov.ns.ca
Brad Crewe - 893-6578; crewebc@gov.ns.ca
Beth Hingley - 893-6386; hingleba@gov.ns.ca
Grant Spearman - 893-6538; spearmjg@gov.ns.ca

Grand Opening of Hospice Palliative Care

Celebrate the Grand Opening of our new office
Thursday, September 27th
28C Esplanade Street
OPEN HOUSE 12:30-3:00
Ribbon Cutting 1:00

Free Public Lecture On
Hospice Palliative Care
Marigold Cultural Centre @ 7:00 p.m.
The Honourable Senator Sharon Carstairs

LabVIEW Presentation and Workshop

Mr. Vincent Carpentier, regional representative of National Instruments, will be on campus visiting the Department of Engineering this Friday, September 28th.

Mr. Carpentier will be offering a general overview of LabVIEW for teaching and research applications. This “brown-bag” lunch presentation which is open to the campus, will start at 12 noon in Room 30 of Cox Institute. Topics for his presentation will include:

- Introduction to Virtual Instruments concept
- Creating LabVIEW applications
- Data acquisition with LabVIEW
- Data Manipulation, Processing and Storage
- Circuit Simulation and design with MultiSim

For those looking for more detailed usage, a three hour workshop has been planned for 2 p.m., also in Cox Room 30. Mr. Carpentier is also available for one-on-one consultations with faculty or researchers during the morning of the 28th.

For more information, please contact Dr. Alex Martynenko at amartynenko@nsac.ca.

Retirement Reception for Fred Pierce

The Nova Scotia Co-operative Council invites you to a Retirement Reception for Fred Pierce.

Everyone's favourite business development officer is leaving the NSCC. Join us for an "open house" and a chance to give best wishes to the man who has devoted many years to co-operative development in your communities.

There are three locations to choose from, please click here to view the one most convenient for you.

Please RSVP to nscoopcouncil@eastlink.ca or 902-893-8966. All are welcome.

We look forward to seeing all of you there!

Welcome Dr. Hou Weijun

Engineering welcomes Dr. Hou Weijun to their Department as a visiting scientist. He has recently joined Dr. Qamar Zaman’s Precision Agriculture Research Program at NSAC.

Dr. Hou is a Lecturer at the College of Conservancy and Building Engineering, Northeast Agricultural University in China. His expertise is in ArcGIS application for water resources and he has offered GIS courses to undergraduate students at his college in China.

Here at NSAC, Dr. Hou will be working on the application of Geographical Information Systems and Global Positioning Systems in Agriculture.

Hello from Recruitment

In addition to this work, we've been working on our guidance counselor mail-out. This is the second mail-out that we're sending in this cycle of Recruitment. Thanks to our student ambassadors, we are on time and ready to go!

Please don't forget about HSIP and that we've had over 120 students attending within the four days. We need your help in offering one of the most popular events that any of the Atlantic universities host. Ashley will be in contact with you to confirm your participation.

Finally - a report from the road: Craig, Ashley and I have been traveling to the Halifax area with the AARAO tour. We've had a great response from students in the past few years, and the momentum continues. We're heading to the Pictou area next week, as well as Bermuda and St.John's NF.

Until next time,
Monica

CIHR’s Canada Graduate Scholarships Masters Awards

Description:
The Canada Graduate Scholarships Master's Awards administered by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) are intended to provide special recognition and support to students who are pursuing a Master's degree in a health-related field in Canada. These candidates are expected to have an exceptionally high potential for future research achievement and productivity.

Level and Duration of Support:
Awardees will receive an annual stipend of $17,500. The maximum period of support is one year. The award is not renewable.

Eligibility to Apply for an Award:
To be considered eligible to apply for support, you must:
- be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident;
- as of February 1st, you must:
- have completed or be in the last year of a Bachelor's degree; or,
- have been registered for no more than ten months as a full-time student in a Master's program; or,
- have been registered for no more than ten months as a full-time PhD student and were admitted to the PhD program directly from your Bachelor's degree.
- be applying for support to pursue your first graduate degree (i.e., Master's or PhD). All previous studies at the graduate level, regardless of discipline, either course-based or research based, will be included in determining eligibility;
- not have already held an award from SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR or any other federal source to undertake and/or complete a Master's or PhD degree.

Persons with a health professional degree who seek support for Master's or PhD research training are eligible to apply, but should also consult the guidelines for the CIHR Fellowships program. Those eligible for both have the option of applying to either program but not to both in the same year (i.e., September through August). Please note that a person holding a health professional degree would receive a higher stipend only through the CIHR Fellowship program.

Eligibility to Hold an Award:
To be considered eligible to hold support, you must:
- be registered full-time in the first or second year of a Master's or PhD program in which research is a major component (awards will not take effect until after proof of registration is received);
- not have already held, or hold, an award from SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR or any other federal source to undertake and/or complete a Master's or PhD degree.

Location of Tenure:
The award for which support is being sought should be under the supervision of a researcher who holds research funds obtained through a recognized competitive peer review process. These awards must be held at a Canadian institution.

Application Information:
Applications must be completed using CIHR’s on-line forms, signed and submitted in hard copy to the NSAC Research & Graduate Studies Office no later than Friday, January 4, 2008. Application instructions and forms are available at http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/24190.html. Students registered at NSAC for the Fall 2007 Term must apply through NSAC. Students not registered at a Canadian University in the Fall 2007 Term apply directly to CIHR.

Varsity Results

News Conference

You are invited to attend a news conference with Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Minister of the Canadian Wheat Board. Minister Ritz will be announcing federal funding for projects to boost alternative fuel production and organic agriculture on Prince Edward Island and in the Maritimes.

Where: Barnyard Organics
Mark and Sally Bernard
North Freetown Road, Freetown, PEI
Directions from Charlottetown: 36 km west on Hwy 2, turn left on Route 8 (Freetown Road) for 10km, turn right on route 110 (Cairns Road) for one km until intersection, turn left on North Freetown Road. Farm (civic number 1934) is beside Corner Apartments.

When: Friday, September 28, 2007
10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

Garage Sale

Date: This Saturday, September 29
Time: 8 a.m.-noon
Location: 114 Pictou Road

With a new school year beginning, the NSAC Local Committee for World University Services of Canada (WUSC) is pleased to announce that our new WUSC student, John Gilbert Habiyaremye has safely and happily arrived.

To kick off our fundraising for the year, we are hosting our annual garage sale. Come check out lots of great stuff, your support is greatly appreciated!

Proceeds go towards the Student Refugee Program, directly supporting the travel costs of our sponsored refugee student.

NSAC Christmas Cards

We are looking for a cover for this year’s NSAC Christmas card. If anyone has a winter photograph of campus, or of a winter scene that you believe represents NSAC, and would like to see it on the cover of this year’s card, please submit your photo to Melanie MacKay at mmackay@nsac.ca for consideration.

NSAC is a specialized university that cultivates learning and research, focusing on improving and sustaining our environment for the health and well-being of society.