SFU’s 50th anniversary has come and gone. We are not a perfect university, but we are a unique one. This photo essay is meant to document SFU’s evolution and pay homage to the so-called ‘instant university,’ which has been in constant transformation since it opened its doors in 1965.
As if fears of residence closure and hiking tuition costs on campus weren’t bad enough, residences on Burnaby campus are now facing a scare of a different kind: the occult.
Last week, police were called to respond to what initially seemed to be a run-of-the-mill noise complaint. However, they made a startling discovery when they found a physics major attempting to sacrifice a first-year arts student to a demon.
The student, identified as Xavius Lucifus, was apprehended wearing a pair of light-up devil horns and chanting an incoherent babble of words from the Chicago style guide. He was brandishing a replica Skyrim sword that he had dipped in “unholy water” — which forensics later determined to be hot dog water — all the while dancing around to The Lord of the Rings soundtrack.
The unidentified first-year student was duct-taped to a ceremonial pyre made of failed exam booklets and surrounded by a pentagram drawn in Kraft Dinner sauce.
Classmates of Lucifus confided with The Peak that his academic struggles might have pushed him to this devilish act.
Lucifus was taking a history course for the first time and found himself floundering. He needed to write his term paper on the relevance of ritual in early modern Europe in one week, and had no ideas.
According to a former group member, Lucifus began researching ritual sacrifice, as well as demonic and deific pact-making on Wikipedia. Combined with a patchwork of unreliable sources — one such working being a fictional magic book from The Elder Scroll series — led him to create his strange ritual.
Notes found in his dorm showed that among a list of other questionable items, the crazed physics major’s ritual called for “the blood of an undeclared arts major.”
Lucifus now sits in his jail cell, with ritual blueberry juice still smeared on his face, awaiting trial.
Lucifus’ history professor spoke with The Peak later, remarking, “When I said a good essay takes blood, sweat, and tears, this is not what I had in mind.”
By: Courtney Miller, Jessica Pickering, and Jessica Whitesel
Follow The Peak on Spotify to stay up to date on New Music Friday.
Jessica Whitesel: It’s no “Roses,” but it’s not bad. It has more of a chill kind of love song type feel, but still upbeat and danceable. This is the kind of song that comes on in the club and then you either run to the bar to get another drink, head to the bathroom and cry about your shitty ex, or sloppily make-out on the dance floor.
Courtney Miller: Full disclosure: I freaking love Halsey. If she wasn’t featured on this track, I would not rate it as highly as I do. It starts off just fine, but when she drops in — hot damn man, the song gets taken to another level. I won’t spin this as much as I do Badlands, but I would definitely listen to this over again.
Jessica Pickering: The first song features Halsey. I am truly blessed. I barely listened to the first verse because I was just waiting for her. This is my favourite song that’s been on New Music Friday in a long time. The only thing that would have made it better is if it were all Halsey. I love her.
JW: I know JoJo had some issues with her record company and wasn’t able to record the music that she wanted to, but this sounds like it is straight out of 2006 and was another single paired with “Too Little Too Late.” It’s old, boring, and Khalifa doesn’t really add anything to it either.
CM: Well, the palm-muted guitar instantly reminds me of that Gotye song, so I’m already a little turned off by this track. JoJo’s got some great pipes, and I mean, as a Canadian I have a love/hate thing going on with the whole “fuck apologies” sentiment. Wiz Khalifa’s rap wasn’t terrible? This was overall OK — I wouldn’t change the station but I guarantee I won’t seek it out.
JP: Well I hate JoJo’s voice but I feel the message of this song on a whole other level. This song is solidly OK overall. I am resigned to the fact that it will be every pop radio station’s new go-to track.
JW: I feel like this would play at a millennial cocktail party. If millennials could afford to hold cocktail parties in fancy repurposed warehouses. It has this kind of elevator jazz feel to it with a chill bassline, and some other loops thrown in for good measure. Also there is rapping, but like if it was at this hypothetical party it would just blend into the conversation.
CM: This has an easy-listening/soft jazz feel before the rap starts. I really like the brass, and if I was in the mood for elevator music, I’d be OK with this as an instrumental anyway. The raps are generally filled with gratuitous expletives and other language I dislike, but they have good rhythm if you can ignore the content.
JP: I have a vague memory of being told not to like Mac Miller in high school and I think that’s affecting my enjoyment of this song; that, or it just really sucks. I am also hating that it’s five whole minutes long. It takes a very specific person to pull off a song that is over three minutes long, and Mac Miller is not one of those people.
JW: So the background sounds like someone is singing into a didgeridoo. Other than that the overall feel of this song is very Muse-esque. If they did Linkin Park nu-metal and replaced Matt Bellamy with a female vocalist. Honestly the didgeridoo singing is the best part, which is pretty damn sad.
CM: Pretty mediocre, not going to sugarcoat it. It’s completely unmemorable because I just listened to it and I cannot recall a single second of the song. If you want noise just to have noise, fine, but I think that’s all the mileage you can get out of this one.
JP: I’m not artsy enough for this. This is probably a great social statement mixed with challenges of the medium, or some other combination of hipster buzzwords, but I just hear noise.
JW: I’m getting kind of a jazz feel from the beginning, before Nas and holy crap I forgot how good he was at rapping. But that being said, even though Badu’s vocals are beautiful and Nas is on point I got bored halfway through because it never really went anywhere musically.
CM: Badu’s vocals are haunting and beautiful, lingering even after the instruments have paused. Nas’ rap is emotive, powerful, and well-written. The overarching melancholic feel takes this song to an amazing songwriting skill-level that I don’t think we see all too often these days.
JP: This song is hauntingly beautiful. This song is part of a soundtrack for The Land, a film about Cleveland’s hip-hop culture (shout-out to Google for this info). After hearing this, I really want to see the movie.
JW: This song knows how to build musically. It’s like a multilayered cake with nuts, where some things are softer and sweeter and other things are a little more savoury and textural. The lyrics aren’t necessarily their strongest but they more than make up for it with the production and musicality of the song.
CM: Oh glory. Any day with new Bastille is a great day. I’m so stoked for this album, guys, I can’t even articulate it as well as I’d like to. This song just raises my hopes for the release of Wild World because it’s so elegantly crafted, with classically brilliant lyrics, and top-notch musicality. Ugh, so much perfect in four minutes.
JP: The past 24 hours have been such a gift for me as far as music goes and this is the cherry on top. Bastille is giving me life with this song. Their new album drops September 9 and it honestly can’t come soon enough; especially if the rest of it is anything like this song.
JW: While I don’t mind stripped down music, the vocalist just sounds strained, and like they are holding back. I’ve sung like that before and it’s usually when I don’t know the words or am unsure of the tune. So while it is chill, that kind of kills the vibe. Also, rhythmically it seems a little wonky.
CM: This is a super chill, mellow song. It’s not intrusive, and rests well in the background for reliable study music. It’s got some instrumentation and percussion that elevates it above the regular music rabble, so it’s enjoyable but really low-key.
JP: I have no strong feelings about this one way or the other. It’s a little boring and kind of forgettable. It was good for multitasking, though; I was able to reply to some emails without getting distracted, so that was plus.
JW: I really want to like this but I can’t. The lyrics are kind of sappy, and that is balanced by the backing track but I still find it kind of syrupy. It might be the repetition or the fact that love songs kind of make me cringe at the best of times, or the power guitar solo that feels like it was ripped right out of an ’80s power ballad. I’ll pass on this one. It’s also way too fucking long. Just stop.
CM: I love the sentimental qualities of this song, how his voice can hit such pristine high notes, and how well the melodies flow together. It’s beautiful, and one of my favourites off this playlist.
JP: This song is good but it’s a major buzzkill. Personally I’m trying to get psyched for the weekend right now and this song is extremely counterproductive. And then there’s the weird key-change halfway through. I just want it to be over at this point.
JW: It’s a little country, but in the best way possible. It’s kind of an ode to everybody who has fucked up and stayed in a relationship too long with a person who was cheating on them. I’m pouring one out for you, but listen to this while you burn some roses or something.
CM: OK, I’m loving the minimalist guitar and harmonizing voices before it bursts into a full band song. I’m such a sucker for buildups like that. It took me completely by surprise because I thought Ward Thomas was like a solo male artist’s name instead of the name of a female duo. Also it’s a bit country so there’s some naiveté which I find really endearing.
JP: This is nice. I think that’s a really good word for this song: nice. Nice is unassuming, plain, and not very compelling. At least it’s upbeat.
JW: I love Father John Misty and I love the lo-fi fuzzy vibe this song has. It is something that I could listen to over and over again without getting bored, just because every time you hear one of his songs you notice something different either lyrically or musically. It is worth multiple listens and is probably my favourite of the week.
CM: This reminds of the oldies songs my mother listens to, constantly and without reprieve. It’s fine, but it’s kind of boring.
JP: This song makes me think of the early 1960s. It’s not super hippie but it has a very mellow vibe. I don’t think I’d listen to it a lot; maybe only during finals to de-stress or on a beach or something like that.
JW: I am not prepared for this song. It’s just a messed up, mashup sound. One of the lyrics is, “Let love keep us lifting my beer.” So, like, priorities. I mean I like beer but I would like something more substantial than an emotion lifting my beer — maybe like a hand or something? Oh and Ziggy Marley is on this song for about two seconds so he doesn’t really matter.
CM: OK, so I know I’m the country fan, but FGL isn’t really country. I mean they are, but they aren’t. They’re actually really polarizing: most people either love them or hate them. Now, I don’t hate them but they’re not my fave and if given the option, I won’t listen to them — so, yeah. I wish Ziggy could’ve saved this but there was just not enough in it for that to happen.
JP: I’m not going to like this song. I haven’t even started listening to yet, I’m just guessing. I really hate country. Update: I’m listening to it and this is the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. How do people enjoy this? I listened to the whole song but I’m not happy about it.
JW: I’m getting a pop-y bastard child of Marilyn Manson’s version of “The Beautiful People” and Lorde’s “ Tennis Court” kind of vibe. It would be a good kind of lap dance song, but if you were doing the lap dance you would get bored just because of how repetitive the whole song is. It doesn’t really ever go anywhere.
CM: Ooh, this is good. Sultry, groovy, and definitely dance-worthy. I could see somebody stripping to this, no problem. I’m a fan.
JP: I really like this. This is how you end a playlist. I can see myself playing this for all my friends until they tell me to stop. And then I would continue to play it anyways. A+ Hey Violet, nice work.
For 26 years, the Harmony Arts Festival has been running on the gorgeous West Vancouver waterfront. The festival has been growing exponentially in both artists and attendees, so this year they are expecting quite a turnout.
The festival is a celebration of local art in forms ranging from performance to visual to culinary. This year they are to have over 50 performing artists, 70 visual artists, three full-service restaurants, and five different food trucks that make up the Artisan Eats event.
“It’s a community meeting spot; everyone comes to celebrate each other, the art, and the water,” said Christie Rosta, events and festivals manager for the District of West Vancouver. “We have a small but mighty organizing team and over 200 volunteers that help build the festival.”
There are many notable highlights in this year’s festival. “The festivals are built around the relationship we have with the sponsors, without their support we wouldn’t get to create this amazing experience,” said Rosta. Readings in the Park is a brand new feature offered in collaboration with the West Vancouver Memorial Library; in sponsorship with Maison Senior Living, it includes a crime mystery panel.
Although most of the Harmony Arts festival is free, there are several extraordinary paid events hosted on the beautifully lit Ambleside Beach Pier. “These are paid culinary experiences so that the festival can grow with more artists each year,” said Rosta. “This year we are excited to introduce the Mixology Night on the Pier, a celebration of cocktail culture where we have eight of Vancouver’s best bartenders come together to create unique cocktail concoctions.”
The other paid culinary event is called Best of the West, where 12 wineries and 12 restaurants are paired and compete together to serve the best dish. The winner will be decided by the guests.
This is the second year that Harmony Arts Festival is committing to being zero waste. As Rosta said, “One of our council’s top priorities is the environment and sustainable initiatives.”
Some of the most popular returning events of the festival are Cinema in the Park, this year featuring films like Pirates of the Caribbean, Chicago, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. A handful of musicians and performing artists such as Lovecoast and Sam Cave will be gracing Millennium Park along with the popular Art Market. Art of Photography, an exhibition of local photographers’ work, will take place August 2–4.
All in all, this event is promised to be a family-friendly summer get-together. Don’t miss it, July 29–August 7.
SFU is about to get a makeover.
The university has recently put forward an RFP (request for proposals) for developers for a $10 million project to renovate part of the Burnaby campus. The area in question is the “plaza,” which begins at the Trottier Observatory and stretches down to the Convocation Mall fountain. “It’s a massive area,” chief facilities officer Larry Waddell told The Peak.
The project aims to address the now-aging materials that were originally used to build the plaza, as well as issues such as leaking. The earthenware ceramic tiles that were used for the plaza have reached the end of their lifespan, and have been exposed to plenty of wear and tear over the years.
This is concerning because, while many may see the plaza as a floor, it is actually directly above both the AQ and Convocation Mall parkade. Said Waddell, “It’s a roof you can walk on.” Underneath the tiles is a waterproof membrane that protects the area below.
Where will the $10 million for the project come from? The university will have to foot 25 percent of the bill; however, Waddell mentioned that the provincial government has “dramatically increased” the funding available for these types of projects since the election of the Liberals.
Currently, SFU is also discussing plans to build a new life science building somewhere on campus, in an effort to ease the burden on the aging Shrum Science Centre.
While the project is primarily meant for practical purposes, the plaza may also see some cosmetic updates. The original tiling material is, according to Waddell, no longer available — this means the newly installed tiles will be of a different material, and possibly a different shape.
Don’t expect a huge change, though. “We want to be respectful of the existing campus,” Waddell said, adding that the university plans to stay true to the “original intent” of the architects behind SFU’s design, including Arthur Erickson.
The process for the RFP could stretch on in the next few months, as proposals are evaluated on a number of criteria. The first year of the project will be focused on planning and design work, then the following two years on construction. The project will only cover 20 percent of the area that needs to undergo renewal, as the entire plaza will need an upgrade eventually. However, part of the challenge the university faces is how to stagger the work to limit disruption to students and faculty.
Imagine, said Waddell, the logistical difficulties that would be caused with having to replace all the tiles in Convocation Mall. “This work is going to be noisy, dusty, and disruptive.”
“Start now so my daughter won’t be standing here in 20 years making the same requests,” one speaker said, to applause regarding the concerns about the federal governments to follow through on its Paris agreement pledges.
On July 16, hundreds of concerned citizens met with Burnaby North-Seymour MP Terry Beech to weigh in on climate change and the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion.
The town hall meeting was divided into brief presentations by Beech that explained the Liberal platform, followed by questions from the public. About 200 attendees packed the venue.
Speaking to the issue of climate change, Beech explained the goals that the government has outlined in order to meet its emission reduction targets. In December 2015, Canada adopted the Paris Agreement, which sets the goal of limiting global warming to 2 C above pre-industrial levels by 2030.
Despite Beech’s optimism, the Liberal government’s willingness to follow through on its promises was met with a mixed reaction by the audience.
Another speaker expressed skepticism that the meeting would result in any change at all, instead urging the attendees to “make it politically impossible for [the government] to not act.”
As the meeting shifted topics to discussing the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion, the conversation grew markedly more personal.
The pipeline, conditionally approved by the National Energy Board (NEB) on May 19, is a hotly contested development that would triple the current pipeline’s capacity to transport diluted bitumen from the tar sands to Burnaby, where it would be loaded into tankers in the Burrard Inlet. In 2014, around 100 protesters were arrested for occupying a site being used for geological surveys ahead of the pipeline construction.
Many Burnaby residents present at the meeting lamented the fact that they would be put at greater risk of disaster should there ever be a spill or fire. One such spill in 2007 caused a geyser of oil to erupt from a breached pipeline under the street. About 234,000 litres of oil slicked nearby houses and flowed into the Burrard Inlet.
Several speakers also made reference to the controversial process by which the NEB approved the pipeline. The Board has been accused of not having enough political distance from the companies they regulate, after a former Kinder Morgan consultant was appointed by the Harper government in 2015. The Board has also been criticized for insufficient follow-up with projects that it has approved in the past.
Addressing these comments, Beech spoke to the huge cultural change he has experienced in Parliament, emphatically stating that “It is our job to be the community’s voice in Ottawa, and not the other way around.”
He also drew attention to the fact that the Trudeau government has promised to review the NEB approval process, and has added several more regulatory steps to the Trans Mountain pipeline.
Several attendees expressed appreciation that the meetings were being held at all, with one saying that it was a “huge contrast to our former experiences” with the Harper government.
In a statement he provided after the meeting, Beech explained that SFU students are also important in shaping climate change policy.
“I believe that we need to have SFU students and young Canadians [. . .] involved in developing a strong national climate change policy,” Beech said. He invited young people to attend the other meetings his office is holding over the summer, and asked them to “hold our government’s feet to the fire because, at the end of the day, my voice as an MP is made stronger and louder by you.”
SFU students are “engaging the policymakers of the future” with the Global Model NATO Summit, July 25–30.
Students, academics, and defence experts from across the world will come to Vancouver to participate in the six-day conference.
Students from around the world, including India, Africa, many European countries, the US, and all across Canada will be in attendance. NATO experts from Belgium, Germany, and Canada will mentor and assist the participating students to develop their negotiation and diplomacy skills.
“We’re creating an out-of-classroom learning vehicle to prepare [students] for foreign service, diplomacy, international relations, and defence,” said SFU political science professor, Dr. Alex Moens.
According to him, the Summit “moves past traditional education,” and has attendees learn by doing a simulation as close to the NATO experience as possible.
Moens explained that this will be achieved first by committee work — the most important aspect of NATO decision-making — and second through a crisis response simulation where students will practice the first three critical steps of actual NATO crisis response.
Students have an opportunity to get “real answers from real policymakers” in panel sessions with Q&A, said conference manager Cornel Turdeanu. Speakers include the Honourable Harjit Singh Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, and Colonel Ian Hope of the Canadian Armed Forces.
Students will be “very close to the actual decision-makers” while interacting with NATO delegates at the conference, many of whom work closely with NATO’s Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg.
The event is student-led, with mentorship from Moens, a self-described “guide” for the student team.
“The leaders are gaining a tremendous amount of experience,” he added, noting that the students will be filling out grant proposals, negotiating with NGOs and government organizations, booking flights and hotel accommodations, creating agendas, and building skills in hosting and designing websites.
The team’s grant proposals have so far been incredibly successful, bringing the Canadian Department of National Defence, Royal Canadian Navy, NATO Defence College, SFU’s political science and Hellenic studies departments, and even the Vancouver Canucks on board as sponsors.
SFU students Cornel Turdeanu, Aleksandra Panic, and Sai Wong started SFU’s Model NATO club in 2015. They were inspired after attending a Model NATO Youth Summit in Latvia, and wanted to bring that experience to SFU and Canada.
“It started as a dream, that one day we would host a summit at SFU,” Turdeanu told The Peak. The intention to host the summit came first, and the club came afterwards.
“NATO stands for democracy, liberty, and the rule of law,” values that make Canada function, said Turdeanu, who grew up in Romania, a former Soviet-controlled country. Moens shared the same sentiments, having seen East Germany in the 1970s before the fall of the Soviet Empire.
“We call it ‘Global Model NATO’ for a reason,” said Dr. Moens. “It is a framework for different allies and partners to discuss and reach consensus-based decisions.”
David Newman has lived in Canada for 11 years and earned his PhD at SFU. Now he’s being told he will have to leave the country.
Newman has been denied permanent residence status as a result of Canada’s unique express entry system for immigration. The system works by allotting ‘points’ to immigrants based on several socio-economic factors. Those with the highest points gain priority in applying for permanent residence in Canada. Newman is 45 years old, which awards him zero points under the system. He also does not gain any points for his international work experience, as he has lived in Canada for over a decade.
However, the biggest obstacle he faces is his inability to earn the 600 points available to those who have a permanent full-time job. As a sessional instructor, Newman fails this criteria.
Newman explained to The Peak that given his seniority in his department, he has effective ongoing employment — however, technically, each contract lasts for only a semester. Now he can no longer in work in Canada.
How does Newman plan to proceed? Having left his home country of New Zealand in 1987, he remarked, “I’m like a foreigner in New Zealand.”
He plans to leave for Vietnam this August where he will rejoin his wife and mother-in-law, who is currently ill. Newman’s options for the future remain limited. Officials have encouraged him to wait until the policy can be changed; however, he is unable to work in Canada in the interim, and his son, who is 14, will also be unable to attend school here. Said Newman, “What am I going to live on? I don’t [have] any real choice but to leave at this point.”
He continued, “It’s very frustrating. I believe that common sense will ultimately prevail and there will be a way for us to continue and stay here.” What he hopes is that by appealing to the office of Immigration Minister John McCallum, he will be allowed to apply on the basis of a humanitarian or compassionate ground.
The problem is that since Newman originally applied for residence under economic grounds, he cannot switch. “I understand that [issue],” he said. “But for a 14-year-old, this isn’t about economics — this is where he grew up.”
The Newman family has received a groundswell of support from the Communications Student Union, as well as VP academic and provost Jon Driver, who will be writing a personal letter to the immigration minister. Newman is even working through the office of local MP Terry Beech for support.
Newman feels as though he has made a significant contribution to Canada, citing the “thousands” of students who have gone through his classes at SFU. “Many have felt that I have contributed to their growth and development in a positive way,” he said.
He expressed his disappointment at the bureaucratic technicalities that have caused so much disruption in his life. “I meet the spirit of what the immigration department requires,” he said, “[just] not the technical requirements of how it is met.”
Purpose:
The Satellite Distribution Coordinator exists to deliver physical copies of The Peak to stands in a timely and efficient manner, to collect information on circulation and pickup, and to maintain The Peak’s distribution infrastructure at the SFU Surrey campus and SFU downtown Vancouver campuses.
Duties:
Responsible for meeting courier at the Burnaby campus and receiving each new issue of The Peak and loading them into an approved vehicle for delivery
Shall distribute an appropriate number of copies to The Peak’s distribution points at the SFU Surrey campus
Shall distribute an appropriate number of copies to The Peak’s distribution points at Woodward’s campus, Harbour Centre campus, and Segal School of Business
Shall keep track of the number of unused copies on each stand in this jurisdiction, report these numbers to the Business Manager on a weekly basis, and dispose of unused copies in the appropriate recycling boxes
Shall inspect all distribution points at the satellite campuses at least once mid-week and restock and tidy as necessary
Shall ensure each Peak newsstand in this jurisdiction is kept tidy and clean from posters and graffiti and that the area around the stand is kept tidy
Shall dispose of unauthorized advertising materials placed on Peak distribution points and report large-scale unauthorized use to the Business Manager
Shall maintain all Peak newsstands including cleaning, painting, and coordinating replacement of damaged or stolen boxes
Shall attend all Peak employee meetings
Shall only use car sharing account for the purposes of delivering copies of The Peak to the newsstands and delivery points required (any additional use may result in reduced pay or dismissal)
Other related duties as requested by the Business Manager, Board of Directors, or Collective
Qualifications:
Must be self-motivated, able to work and fulfill expectations without direct supervision
Must be capable of carrying large stacks of newspapers
Must be at least 19 years old and hold a valid class 5 driver’s license
Must have at least 3 years driving history with no at-fault accidents
Must not have any more than 3 driving violations within the last 5 years, and must not have any serious or criminal driving violations
Other details:
Hired on a semesterly basis
4-6 hours per week
Paid $110 per week
NOTE: not meeting the stipend requirements may result in dismissal
or pay reduction.
