Ottawa, October 18 2018: The United Nations Association in Canada (UNA-Canada) is pleased to announce that Her Excellency the Right Honourable Julie Payette, Governor General of Canada has kindly accepted the request that she serve as UNA-Canada’s Honourary Patron.
UNAC Vancouver – John Gibbard Memorial Award Speech
Thank you all for inviting me to be part of this wonderful service.
I am very honoured and thankful to be here, receiving the John Gibbard Memorial Award. My name is Andrew Sheroubi and I am a recent graduate from the University of British Columbia with a degree in Chemical and Biological Engineering and a minor in Entrepreneurship.
In recognition of the United Nations Day on the 24th October, UNAC-Vancouver Branch Presented Andrew Sheroubi with the John Gibbard Award.
October 21 – Thank you Way Kent for your always warm welcome to the Vancouver Branch of the UN Association of Canada. The connection between UNAC and the Unitarian Church goes back a long way and remains as strong as ever.
Marta Santos Pais provided the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture, hosted by the UBC Faculty of Education and the Janusz Korczak Association of Canada on September 13, 2018, in the Robert H. Lee Alumni Centre, Jack Poole Hall. Her lecture is available below.
UNAC Vancouver acknowledges with sadness the death on Saturday 18th of August after a short illness, of the seventh UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. He was 80 years old.
Born in Ghana in 1938, Kofi Annan was educated in that country and in the US. He joined the United Nations, working in the New York mailroom, in the mid-sixties.
Photo Credit: greenpeace.org
In September of last year, Kenya joined the growing list of countries to ban plastic bags. This recent ban bars the production, sale and use of all polythene plastic bags, with a fine of up to $40,000 or four years imprisonment for failure to act in accordance with the law (1). This ban was imposed by the government after identifying that the toxins from plastic bags were impeding the water sources within the country. Kenya isn’t the only country to realize the destructive effects of plastic bags, Bangladesh was one of the first countries to enforce a ban after their plastic bags started blocking drainage systems, causing serious flooding across the country. In 2008, China also joined in banning thin plastic bags and began charging more for thicker ones.
UNAC Vancouver is pleased to announce that UNAC-V Past President and current Honorary Director of the branch, Ms. Patsy George, has been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws (LL.D) by the University of British Columbia.
Patsy George is an internationally recognized former social worker and ongoing activist who has devoted her long career to fighting for social justice both within Canada and internationally. She is a recipient of the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia.
Please read and be inspired by Patsy’s acceptance speech, below.
