Highlights of Past Assemblies

The Opening Night Reception and Awards Ceremony kicked off the Assembly by giving everyone a chance to celebrate achievements and engage in lively conversations. Members of the Ottawa-Gatineau community joined students, faculty, institutional members, alumni and staff, bringing attendance to almost 600 people – a record crowd!

WUSC awards recipients were Alfred Orono Orono for the Alumni Award and Laval University for the Local Committee of the Year Award. Camille Dow Baker received the Lewis Perinbam Award while Rachel Awuor Adipo accepted Farm Radio International’s George Atkins Communications Award. A stirring performance of the Remesha Drums drew the evening to a breath-taking conclusion.

The crowd was buzzing with anticipation for the National Research Forum which took place Saturday morning. Dr. Alastair Summerlee, President of the University of Guelph, who was concluding his term as Chair of WUSC’s Board of Directors, welcomed convener Dr. James Milner to the podium. Dr. Milner reinforced the pivotal role played by young adults in international development. Participants then fanned out to six presentations related to the Assembly’s theme of youth action and civic engagement.

It was a packed room for Maya Ollek’s presentation, Forgotten Females: Women and Girls in Post-Conflict Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Programs. John Cameron and Anna Haanstra from Dalhousie University had people talking with their presentation on the use of sex appeal in awareness and fundraising activities. Speakers from WUSC and partner groups spoke about various topics including engaging youth in Sri Lanka and Canada, facilitating youth to transform their communities in Kenya and tackling the HIV epidemic in Malawi.

Attendants re-assembled to hear an inspirational keynote address by guest speaker Alfred Orono Orono. Mr. Orono, an International Human Rights Lawyer, thanked WUSC for his sponsorship, acknowledged the major impact the Student Refugee Program had on his life and challenged everyone to immediately “envision the world you want to live in tomorrow, and live life today as if it were that ideal world.”

There was yet more engaging content to the weekend, including presentations on volunteering, educating and advocating. Participants explored creating spaces for ethical consumption, taking steps toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals and shared experiences from this summer’s Refugee Studies Seminar. The WUSC Local Committee Get-Together congregated 300 forward-thinking local committee members from across Canada.

On the last day of the assembly, WUSC Program Officer Mirwais Nahzat, after an overview of development work in Afghanistan, invited the audience into lively, small-group discussion to express their hopes, ideas and concerns. Mirwais is an Afghan-Canadian who recently returned from a mission in Afghanistan where WUSC is implementing a vocational training project.

The 62nd Annual Assembly was a huge success thanks to the hard working staff and volunteers, the generosity of sponsors and especially, the commitment and energy of participants. WUSC also extends its gratitude to all presenters who shared their knowledge and time. While a weekend with such dynamism will surely be a tough act to follow, WUSC is confident the post-secondary community in Canada and the world is up to the challenge.

A Greener Assembly
	The 2007 and 2008 Annual Assembly was powered by Bullfrog Power, Ontario's first 100% green electricity retailer.
	To reduce the impact of delegate travel, WUSC purchased high quality credits to offset almost 100 tonnes of carbon emissions through Planetair.ca.

Thanks to our 2008 sponsors!

National Research Forum

Awards Gala

Refreshment Breaks