91探花

From February 8 to 12, the 91探花 will celebrate International Development Week, a national event held annually to increase Canadians' awareness of their country's role in international development and to educate them about life in developing countries.

91探花 has chosen the development of closer relationships between cultures as the theme for its celebration.

'We chose this theme because it corresponds to one of the United Nations' observances for 2010, and it speaks to the fact that Canada embraces different cultures,' says Dr. Christian Lacroix, chair of 91探花's International Development Week Committee. 'It encourages people to celebrate their differences and share them.'

Keynote speaker Chris Eaton, executive director of the World University Service Canada (WUSC), will address the coming or bringing together of different cultures through his work with WUSC, and prior to that, from his experiences with the Aga Khan Foundation in Afghanistan. He will speak about this theme at an on-campus symposium for high school and 91探花 students on Thursday, February 11, and again at the annual International Development Week luncheon on Friday, February 12, at the Rodd Royalty Inn.

Eaton earned a bachelor's degree in international development studies (1989) and a master's degree in political science (1991) from the University of Toronto. He began his professional career 22 years ago as a WUSC intern and was placed in Lesotho, Africa, where he worked on small business issues with Ralph Hazelton. Since then, he has worked in Canada and overseas with a variety of non-governmental, international development organizations where he supported a broad range of education, rural development and local governance issues. In the 1990s, he spent six years in post-conflict northern Uganda where he worked on several community development and local government capacity-building initiatives. He spent four years in Afghanistan where he headed the operations and programs of the Aga Khan Foundation before taking on his current position.

Also on February 12, Jean McCardle, senior analyst with CIDA's Afghanistan and Pakistan taskforce, will give a public talk in the AVC Learning Commons, Room 286, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. She will speak about the Canadian government's role in Afghanistan and will give some direction about careers in international development.

Other events during International Development Week include workshops and panel discussions on topics such as cross-cultural communication, access to quality food, global education and international research; a film showing; an ethical booth display; and a global music jam.

Click for a complete schedule of events, or contact Suna Houghton, International Education and Project Coordinator at 91探花, at (902) 894-2842 or shoughton@upei.ca.