The Killing Fields

“Imagine. You’re playing in the fields, bathing in the sunlight, breathing in the sweet grass, pine and 2,4-D. Wait, what’s that? Oh, just another cancer-causing pesticide. You didn’t know about it. You didn’t have a choice. But now you do and you can make a difference.” Caught your attention didn’t it?  These are the words…

TWLOHA

TWLOHA stands for To Write Love on Her Arms.  TWLOHA is a non-profit movement to raise awareness and encourage hope and recovery for people suffering from depression, self-harm, addiction and thoughts of suicide.  Over 121 million people around the world suffer from depression; over half of them never get the help they need.  Thirty percent…

Alberta Theatre Projects Celebrates Youth

If you can regularly be seen in your school’s drama department then chances are you’ve most likely seen a poster that says, “That $10 Ticket Thing”.  Now I don’t know about you, but when an event is being advertised as $10 I like to look a little closer at the poster, and if you do, you will find it is…

Save Our Fine Arts

Attention students of Alberta! I’m talking K-12! With the recession, the deficit and increasing strain on our spending, the provincial government is proposing cuts all across the board. We already know this – the controversial elimination of written diplomas in sciences and maths have caused quite the stir already. Now, the government has gone a…

Gold Star, A++

Ever wanted to grade Calgary on how well you think it’s doing?  I mean, you get graded all the time, why not turn the tables? Child and Youth Friendly Calgary is actually working on a new project that will let you do just that.  It’s called Youth Vital Signs, and it will let you give…

The First Battle

Centennial High School is still considered a very new school when it comes to how often schools are built; it opened in 2004 while the school was still under construction. This year Centennial hosted its very first Battle of the Bands. The audition process was rigorous, but the top three bands were chosen to perform…

Cybermentor: Inspiring Girls in Science and Engineering

Cybermentor is an online mentoring program aimed at girls 11-18 who are interested in or just want to learn more about science and engineering.  The program matches girls with female students at Alberta universities and other places around the globe who are studying science and engineering, or with professional women scientists and engineers (my current mentor works in Germany!).…

Challenge Day

Gandhi once said “We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” Challenge Day encourages people who participate to challenge themselves and others to make a positive change in their lives and our world. During Challenge Day, the youth who join in the action are encouraged to celebrate diversity and expression, and learn…

The Youth Volunteer Corps

So a while back Kaitlin had posted a topic about the Youth Volunteer Corps (YVC).  For those who don’t know, YVC is a program where youth can sign up to volunteer in Calgary.  Youth can sign up to volunteer 1 time, or 2 times, or 100 times.  Projects are added weekly and youth can volunteer…

Canada World Youth…are awesome

Have you ever wanted to experience a different kind of Canada? Establish new friendships and global connections? Volunteer abroad? Check out this organization and what it has to say! Canada World Youth (CWY) is a world leader in the development of international educational programs for youth aged 15 to 25. We work with countries in…

Hahahaha!!!!

You know when you laugh for a few minutes early in the day, and then for the rest of the day you’re in a wonderful mood? Well, that happened to me today, and I wanted to know why. It’s not only the fact that you have someone funny with you that puts you in a…

Give Thanks

As the holiday season rolls around, we experience an (over?) abundance of food, chocolate, costumes and stretchy pants! Every holiday season, we, the fortunate, often get bombarded with pleas for our aid, food, money and time to help those who are less fortunate. This season, with the economic downfall of the past year, it is…