MacEwan Open Journals (MacEwan University)
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Reflections on Lessons Learned: A Journey of Discovery
No full textAttending the Interdisciplinary Dialogue on the Global Refugee Crisis in relation to our Bachelor of Social Work course on Intercultural Practice started us on our journey of discovery and learning. It brought the headline news of refugees, settlement, and crisis to our door steps. It changed us from observers to participants in trying to understand the issue and finding solutions. We wanted to learn more and explore further.
In this presentation, we wanted to share our journey of discovery from why we participated in the forums and what we learned about the Global Refugee Crisis to how we viewed things as social work students. We hoped to link the lessons we learned to our personal lives and academic lives as well as to our ongoing growing professional identity.
Our goal is to continue the dialogue on Global Refugee Crisis, by putting ourselves in the role of active actors of social change.
As future social workers and as responsible members of humanity, we will endeavor to continue to learn, reflect and above all to be agents of change to make this world a place where the well-beings and dignity of everyone is ensured.
Discipline: Social Work
Faculty mentor: Dr. Valerie Ouedraog
On Waxen Wings: Challenges to the Public Sphere in the Network Age
No full textThere is a tendency, particularly among Western pundits and technologists, to examine the Internet in almost universally positive terms; this is most evident in any discussion of the medium’s capacity for democratization. While the Internet has produced many great things for society in terms of cultural and economic production, some consideration must be given to the implications that such a revolutionary medium holds for the public sphere. By creating a communicative space that essentially grants everyone his or her own microphone, the Internet is fragmenting public discourse due to the proliferation of opinions and messages and the removal of traditional gatekeepers of information. More significantly, because of the structural qualities of the Internet, users no longer have to expose themselves to opinions and viewpoints that fall outside their own preconceived notions. This limits the robustness of the public sphere by limiting the healthy debate that can only occur when exposed to multiple viewpoints. Ultimately, the Internet is not going anywhere, so it is important to equip the public with the tools and knowledge to be able to navigate the digital space.
Applying the centrifugal organizational model for pastoralists and other competing communities on the Ethiopian landscape and the shift to agriculture after 1975
No full textFor the past four decades pastoralist activities have been pushed to marginal areas in several regions of Ethiopia. This change was initiated by The Agrarian Land Reform Proclamation of 1974. Pastoralist activities prior to the agrarian reforms was strongly connected to the Earth and developed symbiotically. A connection to the Earth through symbiotic relationships has been shown to foster sustainability. There are a few goals of this paper: 1. to apply the centrifugal organizational model, originally synthesized in the field of plant community ecology, to the changing environment and pastoralism in Ethiopia, 2. to demonstrate a shift from periphery habitat to the core habitat with respect to land use since the agrarian reform in 1974, 3. to demonstrate a loss of connectedness with the Earth in regions of Ethiopia
The Technological Abyss: Heideggerian Ontology and Climate Change
No full text Whenever a decision is made in a social, political, or economic context, it is implicitly grounded in
an ethical outlook. But where do these outlooks come from? To investigate this query, I examine
the basis for ethical decisions regarding technology, focusing specifically on geoengineering
responses to climate change. Subsequently, I argue that ethical considerations concerning climate
change, and their corresponding practical decisions, cannot be reliably made without sufficient
intelligibility regarding the objects and entities these decisions pertain to. To achieve this, I employ
a Heideggerian phenomenological framework through which being affords intelligibility. Doing so
elucidates fundamental inconsistencies in the way humans interact with technology. We are caught
up in what Heidegger calls enframing, the representation of beings as energy reserves. This is the
ground on which our ethical claims are based, but representation cannot afford actuality. When
things are represented in this way, truth is set aside in favour of will, and intelligibility is lost. The
goal, then—if we wish our ethical decisions to be legitimate—must be to gain intelligibility. We
must therefore free ourselves from enframing and look toward being. We cannot, as Heidegger
says, affect enframing’s removal, but we can prepare ourselves for such a change. Only once this
change occurs, can our relationship to technology be intelligible.
 
THE EFFECT OF TRADITIONAL MEDIA ON YOUNG ADULTS: RESEARCH ON THE EDMONTON VALLEY ZOO DEVELOPMENT SOCIETY
No full text The Valley Zoo Development Society (VZDS) is a non-profit organization currently working with the Edmonton Valley Zoo in hopes to re-build and develop the zoo, and ultimately gain awareness from the Edmonton public. VZDS fundraises through seasonal events, in particular, The Festival Of Light. This is a ten-day event, which occurs annually in mid December and offers a variety of entertainment such as ice-skating and fire dancers on the zoo grounds. The current market VZDS is targeting consists primarily of families with young children. Although, this is a large segment, it is not currently creating enough revenue to sustain the Valley Zoo and the Valley Zoo Development Society. Therefore, the VZDS has inquired about reaching a new target demographic, specifically young adults aged 19-25. This group is a large and diverse segment and could be a very beneficial market to promote to. The Valley Zoo Development Society has questioned how one might go about reaching this demographic with a relatively inexpensive marketing campaign. With this in mind, initial exploratory research was conducted with a set of in-depth interviews with individuals within the age category. With the information gained from these interviews, along with literature review on their decision-making processes, a primary marketing problem was identified. This problem is largely based on the lack of information and awareness of this group about the activities of the Edmonton Valley Zoo. With the lack of marketing strategies directed to young adults; they remain vastly unaware of the events hosted by the zoo, or that the zoo is currently involved in major renovations. Therefore, the research conducted analyzes six key research questions involved in how the VZDS can gain this awareness, and what channels of media would yield the best result of reaching this segment. A questionnaire was developed regarding these six research questions to gain insight into how MacEwan students feel about the zoo, and how well informed these students are about the Valley Zoo. On top of this, questions also involved what avenues of media are most used within this sample (print media, social media, radio, television, etc.). Through data analysis it can be concluded that this age group would give a worthy contribution to the Valley Zoo if they were able to incorporate a social experience, such as a romantic outing. As well, these individuals can be reached with many media alternatives, however, through statistical analysis, it has been evaluated that radio advertising will have the greatest potential in reaching individuals who would be willing to attend the Edmonton Valley Zoo again
A Polemic Against Those Who Assert World-Bound Individuals in Leibniz’s Philosophy
No full textA Polemic Against Those Who Assert World-Bound Individuals in Leibniz’s Philosoph
