It’s that time of year again, when critics put on their horns and defenders get their panties in a bunch.

While it may only be the beginning of February, the storm is already brewing. The Varsity has already published a few articles about the UTSU, and even has a weekly column dedicated to the upcoming election just for the sole purpose of keeping us updated. Sadly, if last year’s election turnout is any indication, few people care what really happens. Why? Well, we all say U of T has no school spirit. I really hope that this year we can prove that wrong and perhaps get some dialogue going about something that actually concerns all the undergrads on campus. I’m not just saying this to sound corny and important– UTSU elections actually matter!

Before I get down to it, I want to be very clear that right now I have no particular side I’m writing for. Everything I am saying here is meant to be presented in the most critical and objective way possible. If it appears otherwise, please accept my apologies.

Today, I’m writing about the potential opposition slate, Stop The Salaries. Campaigning hasn’t started yet, but even keeping that in mind, I say “potential” because, as of right now, I really don’t see them gaining much momentum. Why? Well…

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Now, I know it’s a little odd to be discussing other universities on a U of T blog, but the recent controversy at the University of Western Ontario has evoked some concerns and questions for me about the U of T image. For those of you who have yet to hear of the changes happening to our notorious rivals, here is an update. This week, University of Western Ontario students were informed by their president, Amit Chakma, that UWO is no more.  Instead, the university has officially changed its name to ‘Western University’. Additionally, the university has released their new ‘visual identity’, changing their symbol from the well-known purple building to a newly designed (darker purple) crest.  The school representatives claim that the name change and the new visual identity was decided upon based on student, faculty, and alumni interviews about the Western image.  It’s assumed that the changes are meant to revive the Western image and create a more marketable institution internationally.

The change has been controversial among the student body at the former UWO. Questions about the necessity of the change, the effectiveness, and financial waste have been points of concern for Western students.  It’s estimated that the new transformation has cost over  $200,000 – money better spent elsewhere, perhaps?

WHO: United Nations Development Program at UofT

WHAT: Their first general meeting

WHEN: Thursday, January 26, 2012 from 3-5pm

WHERE: Hart House South Dining Hall

For more information go to: http://www.facebook.com/events/212639118825261/

This is a case of the more things change, the more they stay the same. In the late 1940s, you could go to the Bank of Nova Scotia on the northeast corner of Spadina and Bloor, and then cross the street to buy some candy. In 2012, you can do the same thing!

Note: The original text has been slightly altered.

What kind of community do you want to live in?

The Green Dot campaign aims to create a community that doesn’t tolerate violence, one that cares about others, and supports a safer campus for everyone.

A Green Dot is any action that reduces the risk of power-based personal violence like sexual assault, partner abuse, and stalking. U of T is the first to implement the Green Dot strategy in Canada, and is supported by many different partners across the three campuses in student health services, campus safety, and beyond. Developed by Dr. Dorothy Edwards at the University of Kentucky, Green Dot is grounded in research that looks at the bystander effect, and why people do not get involved. Green Dot training helps students identify their personal obstacles in becoming an active bystander, and teaches specific skills to help students those obstacles, while staying safe themselves. The three Ds – Direct, Distract, or Delegate – are the skills students learn so that they can help their friends or acquaintances when they see the risk of violence.

The first annual Green Dot week, January 16-20, 2012, will showcase Green Dot and give students a chance to learn more.

Why a Green Dot? We start with the experiences of violence in our students’ lives – the red dots. A student has sex with another student when they are drunk and can’t give consent. A student is abused by a boyfriend or girlfriend, whether gay or straight, or stalked after a breakup. A red dot is an act of power-based personal violence, or choices to tolerate‚ justify, or perpetuate violence. The solution is the green dot – the individual choices that people make to do something – anything – to help others and make our community safer. A reactive green dot is pulling a friend out of a high-risk situation; a proactive green dot is striking up a conversation with a friend about how much this issue matters to you. What’s your Green Dot going to be?

To learn more about Green Dot and upcoming events, visit www.greendot.utoronto.ca.

If there’s one thing we should learn on campus, it’s to learn about our campus. I daresay Path, our friendly neighborhood map, would agree. I don’t mean we should all hold hands and sing “Getting To Know You“, a la Deborah Kerr all over campus, even if that would be an amazing flash mob idea (*hint hint*). No - we should step back, take a look at our buildings, and see that the buildings that make up U of T are just as important as the people and events that chance upon it. I’ve found that our school and student body are defined just as much by our buildings as our heavy course load.

Don’t agree? How many times have you heard ‘I’ve got a class at Con Hall’, only to hear it be answered with a collective groan?

Bring up ’Med Sci‘ to a Life Sci student, and chances are they will remember the Macleod Auditorium.

Someone says ‘I’m going to be at Robarts‘, and you know that they’re in (literally) for the long run.

Mentions of Hart House brings about tender feelings of good food, a slight fear of gargoyles, and that creepy picture in the basement – at least for me.

All Vic students know Old Vic, and I would venture to guess that they remember it fondly. The rest of us recall it enviously, because it’s not every day we can say that our college is a pink castle.

And you’ve got to admit that the light-up bubble classrooms inside the Pharmacy Building are hella cool.

But I digress.

There are buildings on campus that we can’t help but notice and learn about, simply because we already hear about them all the time. But there are some places that we don’t know about that can be just as interesting. A good chunk of us have discovered little pockets of architectural treasure. Take blogUT photographer Jimmy‘s gorgeous interpretation of Knox College, for example. In the summer, the courtyard is probably one of the few places at U of T where it is peaceful. If you ever go into the Great Hall of Hart House, take the time to look at all the coats of arms on its walls, and the verses linings the banister above. Of course, these are all just landmarks. Notables. Places we may (now) know and (will maybe) frequent.

I don’t think that U of T only has these noticeable notables, though. I mean, when I checked my schedule for this semester, I saw a building code I didn’t recognize: BI. I did a quick search on the U of T Map, and found out that it was named after Federick Banting, best known for his research on insulin with Charles Best (whose namesake building is right beside it). Just like that, I felt this sense of history. I’m going to be walking into history! I bet we all know that we’re stepping into a piece of history the moment we walk into U of T, but to be just two doors down from discoveries of the past? Yeah. That’s pretty awesome. And I bet, with a bit of searching, I’m not the only one who feels that way.

So here is my lesson to you, UTian: Make good use of our online map, not just to find your buildings, but also to learn more about our campus. Even if it doesn’t initially peak your curiosity, it will definitely give you something to think about as you sit in class staring at the wall. Not that I’m saying we do that. Nope. Not at all.

Oscar Wilde once wrote: “I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being.” What he did not regard, it seems, is how few of us actually get the chance to sense another human being doing their theatrical thing. Theatre has changed tremendously since it was a mandatory cultural practise in ancient Greece; it is now a luxury enjoyed only by those with the financial stability to afford expensive tickets – a category that rarely includes students. Fortunately, theatre companies across our fair city have made their art more accessible to us by providing discount tickets. Here is a breakdown of Toronto’s major theatre companies and what they do to make their tickets more affordable: (more…)